Desiccant apparatus and method
AssigneeGas Developments Corporation
InventorsRobert A. Macriss, William F. Rush, Sanford A. Weil
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A process and apparatus for drying air by a continuous atmospheric pressure and low pressure drop system wherein the adsorbent body is a wheel of thin sheets or layers of fibrous material containing about 10 to 90% by weight of a finely divided crystalline molecular sieve material. The process and apparatus is especially useful for drying air for confined areas down to and less than 0.001 lbs. of moisture per pound of air.
Claims9
An improved low pressure drop, continuously regeneratable desiccant apparatus comprising a fibrous paper support material formed into a rotatable desiccant wheel having axially parallel apertures therethrough, said support material being selected from the group consisting of cellulosic fibers, glass fibers, asbestos, synthetic plastic fibers, and mixtures thereof, said support material containing a finely powdered crystalline zeolite desiccant in an amount ranging from about 1 to 90% by weight on a dry basis, means for passing air to be processed in one direction through said wheel, means for passing regenerative air through said wheel countercurrent to said air to be processed and heater means for heating a portion of said regeneration air, and means for passing a cooling stream through said desiccant wheel between said regeneration stream and the introduction of said process stream, said cooling stream passing cocurrent with said process stream and means for feeding said cooling stream into said regeneration stream between said heater and said desiccant wheel.
An improved process for drying air by a continuous, atmospheric pressure and low pressure drop process comprising the steps:
- continuously passing the air to be dried through an adsorbent body consisting essentially of thin sheets or layers of fibrous material containing about 10 to about 90% by weight of a finely divided crystalline molecular sieve material for a time sufficient to permit the molecular sieve material to adsorb moisture from said air to an acceptable moisture level and removing dry product air in a first phase;
- and
- regenerating said adsorbent body by continuously passing countercurrent to the drying stream through said adsorbent body in a second phase, a heated regeneration stream removing the moisture from said adsorbent body, exhausting the regeneration stream and continuously passing a cooling stream through said adsorbent body between said regeneration stream and the introduction of the process stream.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.