Method and system for crack-free drying of high strength skin on a porous ceramic body

A method of drying a skin disposed on an outer periphery of a porous ceramic honeycomb body comprising a first end face, a second end face, and axial channels and the outer periphery extending from the first end face to the second end face, the method comprising:

• supporting the honeycomb body on the first end face such that the axial channels and the outer periphery are substantially vertical;
• drying the skin under a first set of conditions comprising flowing a first gas vertically to the honeycomb body at a first velocity, wherein at least a portion of the first flowing gas passes substantially equally around the outer periphery of the skin disposed on the outer periphery of the honeycomb body to uniformly dry the skin to a first dryness forming a partially dry skin that is less than 50% dry;
• drying the partially dry skin to a second dryness under a second set of conditions different from the first set of conditions,
• wherein the skin comprises an inorganic binder comprising an average particle size (D50) in a range between 10 nm and 700 nm.