Centrifugal pellet dryer screen
OwnerMichael Elooinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A centrifugal pellet dryer screen especially adapted for drying micropellets includes an exterior or outer support screen in the form of a cylindrical perforated plate, an inner screen of small wire mesh material, and an optional middle screen of wire mesh material sandwiched between the outer support screen and the inner screen. The screen layers are preferably diffusion bonded to each other. These multi-layer screens produce drier micropellets exiting the dryer and reduce banding of the micropellets and plugging of the dryer screen outlet holes.
Claims20
A screen for a centrifugal pellet dryer when used to dry polymer micropellets or other small pellets introduced into the dryer as a slurry of water and pellets, said screen comprising a generally cylindrical perforated shape sustaining outer member and at least one inner wire mesh screen conforming with and attached to an inner surface of said outer member, said inner wire mesh screen having closely spaced openings small enough to retain polymer micropellets or other small pellets interiorly of the inner screen and permitting passage of water through the inner screen and outer member during operation of the centrifugal pellet dryer.
A centrifugal pellet dryer for drying polymer micropellets and other small pellets which comprises a housing, a cylindrical screen mounted generally vertically in said housing, a water and pellet slurry inlet adjacent a bottom of said cylindrical screen and a dried pellet outlet adjacent a top of said cylindrical screen, and a driven rotor to direct said pellets entering said inlet outwardly towards said cylindrical screen and upwardly towards said outlet, said generally cylindrical screen being multi-layered and having at least a generally cylindrical perforated shape sustaining outer member and a wire mesh inner screen conforming with and attached to an inner surface of said outer member, said wire mesh screen having a wire mesh size sufficient to retain said pellets interiorly of the screen and permitting passage water through the inner screen and outer member during operation of the centrifugal pellet dryer.
A generally cylindrical screen for a centrifugal pellet dryer when used to dry polymer micropellets introduced into the dryer as a slurry of water and pellets, said generally cylindrical screen comprising three layers, including a generally cylindrical perforated shape sustaining outer member, a wire mesh middle screen whose outer surface is diffusion bonded substantially throughout its contact surfaces to inner contact surfaces of said outer member, and a wire mesh inner screen conforming with and having its outer surface diffusion bonded substantially throughout its contact surfaces to inner contact surfaces of said middle screen, said wire mesh inner screen having openings smaller than openings of said wire mesh middle screen and sufficient to retain said polymer micropellets interiorly of the inner screen while permitting passage of water through the inner screen, middle screen and outer member during operation of the centrifugal pellet dryer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.