Latest content from Drying

Second Electric Dryer sold to China - Geelen Counterflow
Drying

2+ MIN

Second Electric Dryer sold to China - Geelen Counterflow

Geelen Counterflow has started the engineering and manufacturing of the second electric dryer for extruded petfood, to be installed in 2021 in China. High temperature industrial heat pumps will supply 2400 kW of heat to a 7 deck counterflow dryer and 65% of that heat will be recovered and re-used in the dryer. The first electric dryer is being assembled in South Korea for another customer and will be commissioned in 2021. Both electric dryers will initially be commissioned with gas burners. This allows installation and commissioning according to standard operating procedure. A few months later, once the dryers are up and running, the Counterflow Recovery Units (CRU) will be commissioned to start recovering energy through condensation of the warm moist air coming out of the dryer. The warm water coming from this CRU will be boosted in temperature by high temperature industrial heat pumps which will supply 100% of the heat for the dryer, so then the gas burners can be switched off or go in stand-by mode. The net energy consumption of the dryer will then be up to 65% lower and consist of electricity only. If the electricity is from renewable sources, the direct and indirect CO2 emissions of the dryer can be eliminated. Since dryers are by far the biggest consumers of gas in the plant, this typically reduces the CO2 footprint of the entire production line by more than 50%. Geelen Counterflow started developing this technology in 2014. It was tested and approved on pilot scale in a commercial petfood plant during 2016. Since then, full scale components have been developed and tested and the technology has been on the market since 2018. It is no coincidence that Geelen's first electric dryers will be installed in the petfood industry. The market leaders in this industry have short term ambitious targets for net zero greenhouse gas emissions in order to comply with the Paris climate agreement. Electrification through heat pumps is the only technology that enables not only the elimination of CO2 emissions from dryers but also a big improvement in energy efficiency. The majority of new dryers installed by Geelen for extruded petfood and aquafeed are now of the latest MkIV generation, which means they are prepared for either gas-burners and/or electric heat pumps. Plants that now install dryers with only gas burners can upgrade them to heat pumps and heat exchangers with a minimum of downtime. A flowsheet and more details of the process can be found here : For more information, please contact info@geelencounterflow.com by All Extruded

Geelen Counterflow and the GoodShipping Program
Drying

2+ MIN

Geelen Counterflow and the GoodShipping Program

Geelen Counterflow and the GoodShipping Program have signed a 3 year contract that ensures that all of Geelen Counterflow's container ocean freight to customers around the world will be climate neutral through the use of sustainable biofuels for container ships. Geelen Counterflow is a supplier of dryers and coolers for the feed and food industry. The company ships around 300 containers per year to customers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and North America. This requires around 75 metric tons of fossil marine fuel and causes approximately 250 tons of CO2 emissions. By joining forces with GoodShipping, Geelen Counterflow ensures that their annual ocean freight volume is decarbonized through the usage of sustainable biofuels. On Geelen's behalf, GoodShipping facilitates a fuel switch and substitutes the corresponding fossil fuel volume with these sustainable biofuels.  This way GoodShipping can certify that all equipment that Geelen Counterflow ships by containers to customers worldwide, is done with net zero emissions of CO2. The sustainable biofuels are supplied by GoodFuels Marine and are waste and residue based. GoodFuels' external and independent sustainability board makes sure these fuels meet the highest sustainability criteria. This means that the products GoodFuels supply do not cause deforestation or biodiversity loss. There are also no other, higher quality applications possible for these waste and residue streams. Geelen Counterflow does not charge the costs for this fuel switch to its customers. Instead it pays for these costs from its sustainability budget which results from the application of an internal CO2 price of € 100 per ton of CO2 emissions. This internal carbon price is virtually charged to all activities that cause Geelen Counterflow to emit CO2. Fossil fuels have already been phased out from its office and company cars. As soon as factory heating switches to heat pumps in 2020 the entire site is close to being fossil-free. Electricity is generated by an array of over 3000 solar panels which generate the same amount of electricity as the complete Geelen site uses annually. Excess solar energy (in summer and weekends) and deficits (mostly in winter) are exchanged with the local electricity coop Leudal Energie which includes windmills, a watermill and multiple solar arrays. Any remaining electricity consumption is supplied by 100% sustainable sources in the Netherlands. The CO2 emissions from employee travel, business travel, trucks etc. are virtually charged with €100 per ton, and the virtual proceeds are used to facilitate the above fuel switch to sustainable biofuels, amongst others. Sander Geelen, Managing Director of Geelen Counterflow: 'The biggest challenge we face is to avoid global warming over 1,5 ⁰C above pre-industrial temperatures. For us that means phasing out fossil fuels from our own processes as soon as possible. However, the biggest impact we can have is to continue developing and installing dryers and coolers that run on renewable energy. Shipping these dryers and coolers around the world without causing carbon emissions is a challenge that GoodShipping will help us solve.' by Geelen Counterflow

Expanded Training Program in Chile  - Extrusion and Drying
Drying

2+ MIN

Expanded Training Program in Chile - Extrusion and Drying

Following their first Aquafeed Extrusion course in South America last year, Australians Dennis Forte and Gordon Young are working with the Catholic University of Temuco to present and expanded program in November 2020.  In addition to the 'Aquafeed Extrusion Technology' program, a course in 'Petfood Extrusion Technology' will be presented.  And to provide a further opportunity to both Aquafeed and Petfood industries – as well as the wider food processing industry – a two-day program in 'Food & Feed Drying Technology' is offered. While the courses will be presented in English, this year for the first time simultaneous translation into Spanish will be provided. Last year's course was very well received.  One person, who couldn't attend, but whose colleague did - sent a message "I'm sitting next to my colleague in a car on our way to the plant and he's telling me how wonderful your course was! I'm really, REALLY sorry I could not go. He told me that you guys were very specific and almost took every situation and/or problem that our plant could have. Amazing... Next year count me in!". 'Participation in 2018 was limited by presentation being only in English' course organiser Gordon Young said. 'So this year we plan to extend access by simultaneous translation.' The 2019 course will again be hosted by the Department of Agricultural and Aquaculture Sciences (Departamento de Ciencias Agropecuarias y Acuícolas) at the Catholic University of Temuco, accessing their excellent pilot plant facility for a demonstration. The 3-day extrusion program covers the principles of extrusion, the design of extrusion processes, and the formulation of extruded products.  Topics cover the basics of extruders and their configuration, through what is happening inside the extruder barrel, to an understanding of extruder dies and extruder instability. Examples in product formulation and the design of extrusion processes demonstrate application of the theory. Drying is one of the most common operations in food and feed production. It is critical to quality, and it is one of the most energy-intensive process operations. Yet it is often poorly understood and inefficient.  The drying course is about understanding the drying technologies used commonly across the food and feed industries - and how we can use that understanding to improve current processes and products, or design/select new systems that are both effective and efficient. Details of the courses (in English and in Spanish) are available via www.foodstream.com.au/events. The course presenters have also written two books – one on extrusion technology and how it is applied in the food and feed industries, the other specifically on 'The Design of Food Extrusion Dies'.  The books are available from major booksellers, or from www.fie.com.au/books. Contact: Gordon Young   Email: gyoung@fie.com.au  by All Extruded