Multistage Electrodynamic Dehydrator with Heat Pumps

Abstract

The aim of this work is the utilization of the secondary steam energy through its thermal transformation in electrodynamic dehydrators developed by the authors. To achieve this goal, the use of heat pumps is proposed. A hypothesis is formulated that the use of electromagnetic energy sources in the process of removing moisture from food solutions, followed by the transformation of secondary steam energy, will allow for the formation of reverse energy flows. A method for calculating energy efficiency in the presence of direct and reverse flows is presented. Multistage dehydrators, where electrodynamic systems are used at the final stage and heat pumps at the previous stages, are analyzed. It is shown that the formation of reverse flows significantly increases the overall energy efficiency. The use of an electrodynamic apparatus at the final stage solves the problems of obtaining a highly concentrated quality solution. The application of heat pumps at the remaining stages allows for the efficient use of secondary steam energy. The most significant result is the matching schemes of heat pumps with the dehydrator and the environment. The importance of the work lies in the substantiation and confirmation of the high energy efficiency of organizing reverse energy flows, and the proposed installation with combined systems — electrodynamic and heat pump. By calculation, the modes have been established in which the overall efficiency for two-stage apparatuses with heat pumps can be increased from 0.4 to 0.6, and for four-stage dehydrators from 0.4 to 0.8.