AIRFLOW BEHAVIOUR IN TIMBER (LUMBER) KILNS

Even drying of stacked timber boards in a kiln depends, amongst other things, on having a uniform airflow through the pile. A study of possible airflow maldistribution in existing kilns has been carried out using a Perspex model of a kiln, with water as the fluid, which has been designed to be geometrically similar to an actual kiln and have dynamically similar flows. Measurements of local velocities were possible by tracing the flow of fine gas bubbles. The standard kiln arrangements result in significant recirculation zones before and after the stack, with a non-uniform incident velocity profile. Different design alternatives for the geometry of the plenum spaces on either side of the stack have been investigated.     

AIRFLOW DISTRIBUTIONS IN THE FILLET SPACES OF A TIMBER STACK

An important requirement for producing evenly dried timber (lumber) in a kiln is that the airflow is uniformly distributed throughout the timber stack. The airflow distribution within the timber stack of a semi-scale kiln, which has multiple fans, was investigated to determine the possible causes of any airflow non-uniformity. Airflow measurements along the length of the timber stack illustrated the importance of ensuring that each fan generates the same flowrate, and that end-baffles are placed on either side of the timber stack to reduce bypass around these edges. Airflow measurements down the height of the timber stack demonstrated the effects of a separation zone near the air-inlet face of the stack, which partially reduced the airflow through the upper portion of the stack, and of non-aligned boards, which generated a saw-toothed velocity profile. Once the data had been smoothed to account for these effects, the down-stack velocity profile took on the expected form, with the maximum and minimum velocities at the top and bottom of the stack, respectively. Comparison of the velocity profiles at the air-inlet and outlet faces of the stack indicated a significant redistribution of the flow through the stack. The prediction of a one-dimensional model of airflow in a kiln was shown to be in good agreement with the smoothed experimental data at the air outlet of the stack.     

MOISTURE MOVEMENT ON DRYING SOFTWOOD BOARDS AND KILN DESIGN

ABSTRACT

This paper provides an overview of present understanding of how moisture can move through softwood boards, as a basis for determining kiln-seasoning strategies. Moisture in green wood is held essentially unbound, whereas below fibre saturation it is bound to a variable extent to the fibre walls. Sapwood, which is that part of the timber used for the transport of liquid nutrients, contains more moisture than physiologically inactive heartwood. Sawing the felled log creates a moisture-denuded layer at the damaged exposed surfaces. These features have a profound influence on the way that moisture can be removed on drying. Superimposed are differences arising from seasonal variations in the growth of wood between earlywood and latewood, which have different moisture permeabilities. When the width of the annual growth ring is relatively large compared with the board dimensions, moisture movement and the development of drying stresses depend markedly upon the sawing orientation relative to the grain direction. Quarter-sawn boards dry more uniformly (in the direction normal to the drying surfaces), but more slowly than flat-sawn boards. Most timber boards are stacked and then dried in box-shaped kilns. The uniformity of drying depends on the goodness of this stacking and on a uniform airflow being presented to the inlet face of the stack. Some non-uniformities can be mitigated by periodic reversals of the airflow direction through the stack and by overdrying the majority of boards to reduce wet spots, but there are limits, while overdrying reduces kiln capacity. Attention to aspects of the kiln geometry can reduce the fan-energy requirements and shorten the drying time, with a more uniform moisture content through out the kiln load.     

The Application of Mathematical Models to the Commercial High-Temperature Drying of Softwood Lumber

ABSTRACT

High temperature drying of softwood is used because it provides much faster drying rate than is possible at lower temperatures. However, the occurrence of some drying defects limits its use where the quality is critical. In order to understand the drying phenomena and to describe the drying processes, numcrous mathematical models have been developed in the past two decades. The diffusion model is the earliest attempt to describe wood drying processes and is relatively simple in form, so it is often used for stress analysis. However.further substantial work is still required before it is possible to apply the stress model to kiln control. Recently. transpon-based mathematical models have been receiving attention in modelling studies. This review discusses one of these models, a physiological-transport-based model, which has been further applied to the drying of mixed sap/heartwood boards and the drying of a kiln-wide stack. The mixed boards with a thin heanwood layer parallel to the flat surface are considered to have added difficulty in drying. In the analysis of the timber stack drying, a kiln-wide model is proposed in which the above physiological-transpon-based model is used to generate the characteristic drying curves. Airflow reversal is essential in kiln     

MEASURED GAS VELOCITY AND MOISTURE CONTENT DISTRIBUTION IN A CONVECTIVE VACUUM KILN

ABSTRACT

Transferring the necessary heat of evaporation to the stack is the bottleneck in convective vacuum drying of wood. Higher gas velocities are applied to compensate for the lower gas density and to obtain similar heat and mass transfer characteristics as under normal pressure. Like in conventional kiln drying the region with the most unfavorable drying conditions determines drying time and product quality. To use the full potential of the meanwhile established superheated steam vacuum drying technology, it is therefore necessary to work on an improved uniformity of process conditions in the kiln.

To evaluate the fluid dynamics and its influence on the final moisture content, experimenls in a laboratory convective vacuum kiln were carried out. For different total pressures the profiles of dynamic pressure in the stack entry section were measured in a dry atmosphere. At normal pressure the profiles were determined between the board layers throughout the whole stack. For the same slack configuration vacuum drying tests were used to assess the impact of the velocity distribution in the slack on the final moisture content distribution-Regions of low gas velocities coincided well with regions of high final moisture content.     

THE INFLUENCE OF KILN GEOMETRY ON FLOW MALDISTRIBUTION ACROSS TIMBER STACKS IN KILNS

ABSTRACT

A one-dimensional mathematical model is evaluated for flow through a timber-drying kiln. This model is used to develop recommendations for the design of the plenum chambers on either side of the timber stack. The variation of the vertical air velocity was explored for a sticker spacing of 20 mm and a board thickness of 50 mm. When the width of the plenum chambers is at least equal to the sum of the thickness of the stickers, flow maldistribution is substantially reduced in single-track kilns. The width of the plenum chambers of double-track kilns may be reduced to three-quarters of the sum of the thickness of the stickers, because the increase in timber-stack resistance to airflow mitigates the effect of pressure variations down the length of the plenum chambers.     

EFFECTS OF SAWING PATTERN ON LUMBER DRYING: MODEL SIMULATION AND EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION

ABSTRACT

The sawing pattern of lumber affects the drying rate due to transverse permeability differences. These permeability differences are considered in a single board drying model which is able to investigate the drying rates for boards with varying growth ring angles. For the drying of Pinus radiata lumber, the model predicts that the quartersawn boards need longer drying time than the flatsawn boards. The drying time difference was 10–15% of the total drying time for conventional temperature (CT) drying and accelerated conventional temperature (ACT) drying, but was less significant for high temperature (HT) drying. In the simulation of a kiln stack drying, a sawing pattern factor was introduced to the relative drying rate function, which reflected the effects of the growth ring angle and the drying temperatures. The modified kiln wide drying model was used to predict the drying rates for a kiln stack consisting of entirely flatsawn boards and a kiln stack consisting of entirely quartersawn boards. Drying tests were conducted using stacks of mixed flatsawn and quartersawn Pinus radiata sapwood boards. In the tests, three drying schedules were used which included CT, ACT and HT drying. The experimental results agree closely with the model predictions and thus, after further validation, the drying models can be used to predict commercial kiln drying of boards with different sawing patterns.     

OPTIMIZATION OF A WOOD DRYER KILN USING THE MIXED INTEGER PROGRAMMING TECHNIQUE: A CASE STUDY

Abstract

When wood is to be utilized as a raw material for furniture, buildings etc., it must be dried from approximately 100% to 6% moisture content. This is achieved at least partly in a drying kiln. Heat for this purpose is provided by electrical means, or by steam from boilers fired with wood chips or oil. By making a close examination of monitored values from an actual drying kiln it has been possible to optimize the use of steam and electricity using the so called mixed integer programming technique Owing to the operating schedule for the drying kiln it has been necessary to divide the drying process in very short lime intervals i.e., a number of minutes. Since a drying cycle takes about two or three weeks, a considerable mathematical problem is presented and this has to be solved.     

Experimental Investigation and Practical Application of Superheated Steam Drying Technology for Softwood Timber

Abstract

Due to several advantages, superheated steam drying of timber has attracted great attention. However, the technology is still restricted to some special cases, partly due to the lack of fully understanding of the drying process. In this work, experiments were conducted to dry radiata pine timber using superheated steam under vacuum and at pressure. In the first part of the experiments, softwood timber was dried in a superheated steam kiln with drying rates, steam temperature across the stack and wood temperature being measured during drying. In the second part of the work, experimental studies were performed to investigate potential applications of the superheated steam drying at ultra-high temperatures (UHT) and pressurized steam conditioning of kiln dried timber. Compared to normal drying temperatures, the UHT drying can reduce the drying time by a factor of 5 to 10 and it is also more energy efficient. The pressurized steam conditioning has been proven to be a promising technology to relieve drying stresses and to reduce twist of the dried timer.

     

RELATIONSHIP OF PROCESS PARAMETERS AND STACK WIDTH IN TIMBER DRYING

ABSTRACT

Drying schedules applied in kiln drying, especially for hardwood species should be supplemented with values of air velocity. When dryers have no air velocity control their drying schedule can be suitably corrected. The correction should take into account factors related to dried material, i.e. wood moisture content, timber thickness, dried timber volume and primary width of a stack. Drying efficiency may be the criterion of modifications. The applied procedure of drying efficiency calculations lets to determine quantitative relationships between process and material factors.     

DYNAMIC MODELLING OF A DEHUMIDIFIER WOOD DRYING KILN

ABSTRACT

For the optimum design and operating information of heat pump dehu-midifier wood drying kilns, a comprehensive kiln model has been developed, which solves the fundamental balance equations for the whole system. The model is suitable for analysing the influence of design and control variables on the performance of the system as a whole. To illustrate the application of the model, the operation of a dehumidifier wood drying kiln has been analysed under typical operating conditions and kiln controls. The drying performance has been discussed in detail.     

SIMULATION OF DRYING IN A BATCH LUMBER KILN FROM SINGLE-BOARD TESTS

ABSTRACT

A deterministic model was developed to perform a board-by-board simulation of a forced convective batch lumber kiln. Individual board properties may be input and dryer operating parameters varied. The drying rates are empirical correlations based on single-board laboratory tests. The model incorporates the thermodynamic properties of the wood and gas, as well as mass and energy balances within the lumber stack. It also accounts for differences in heat and mass transfer resulting from position and changing gas properties throughout the dryer. The rate of drying predicted by the model and the final moisture content distribution were verified by weighing boards in a batch kiln before, during, and after drying. The application of the model is illustrated by simulating four common scenarios.     

MOISTURE MOVEMENT ON DRYING SOFTWOOD BOARDS AND KILN DESIGN

This paper provides an overview of present understanding of how moisture can move through softwood boards, as a basis for determining kiln-seasoning strategies. Moisture in green wood is held essentially unbound, whereas below fibre saturation it is bound to a variable extent to the fibre walls. Sapwood, which is that part of the timber used for the transport of liquid nutrients, contains more moisture than physiologically inactive heartwood. Sawing the felled log creates a moisture-denuded layer at the damaged exposed surfaces. These features have a profound influence on the way that moisture can be removed on drying. Superimposed are differences arising from seasonal variations in the growth of wood between earlywood and latewood, which have different moisture permeabilities. When the width of the annual growth ring is relatively large compared with the board dimensions, moisture movement and the development of drying stresses depend markedly upon the sawing orientation relative to the grain direction. Quarter-sawn boards dry more uniformly (in the direction normal to the drying surfaces), but more slowly than flat-sawn boards. Most timber boards are stacked and then dried in box-shaped kilns. The uniformity of drying depends on the goodness of this stacking and on a uniform airflow being presented to the inlet face of the stack. Some non-uniformities can be mitigated by periodic reversals of the airflow direction through the stack and by overdrying the majority of boards to reduce wet spots, but there are limits, while overdrying reduces kiln capacity. Attention to aspects of the kiln geometry can reduce the fan-energy requirements and shorten the drying time, with a more uniform moisture content through out the kiln load.     

STABILITY OF A KILN STACK*

Mathematical proof is presented that the wind pressure on a round stack is two-thirds that of a square stack with the wind square to one side. A reconsideration is given of a stack section¹ where tension occurred, and a correction is presented. A convenient method and its application is also given for calculating the stability of a kiln stack upon the soil. The application of the “kern” theorem is discussed, using the kern for the worst condition, viz., with wind blowing diagonally against a square stack.     

The Application of Mathematical Models to the Commercial High-Temperature Drying of Softwood Lumber

High temperature drying of softwood is used because it provides much faster drying rate than is possible at lower temperatures. However, the occurrence of some drying defects limits its use where the quality is critical. In order to understand the drying phenomena and to describe the drying processes, numcrous mathematical models have been developed in the past two decades. The diffusion model is the earliest attempt to describe wood drying processes and is relatively simple in form, so it is often used for stress analysis. However.further substantial work is still required before it is possible to apply the stress model to kiln control. Recently. transpon-based mathematical models have been receiving attention in modelling studies. This review discusses one of these models, a physiological-transport-based model, which has been further applied to the drying of mixed sap/heartwood boards and the drying of a kiln-wide stack. The mixed boards with a thin heanwood layer parallel to the flat surface are considered to have added difficulty in drying. In the analysis of the timber stack drying, a kiln-wide model is proposed in which the above physiological-transpon-based model is used to generate the characteristic drying curves. Airflow reversal is essential in kiln     

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE GAPS BETWEEN BOARDS IN DETERMINING THE MOISTURE CONTENT PROFILES IN THE DRYING OF HARDWOOD TIMBER

ABSTRACT

A numerical simulation (CFX 4.1) of the airflow patterns around timber boards has been used to assess the significance of gaps between boards in terms of the mass-transfer coefficients across both side and top faces of 50 mm square pieces of hardwood timber. These gaps, which are the distances between board edges in the streamwise direction, are inevitable consequences of both imperfect sawing and shrinkage, and are typically of the order of 1–20 mm. However, for the laminar flow conditions which are typical of the air velocities used in hardwood drying (0.5 m ^?1), the simulations suggest that the air in the gaps quickly becomes almost saturated, even for 20 mm wide gaps, since there is no net air flow through the gaps. This situation means that the effective mass-transfer coefficients from the narrow faces of the boards are likely to be less than 1% of those from the broad faces (which are exposed to the airflow). This in turn suggests that the moisture-content profiles in stacked timber will be considerably less two-dimensional than those for the drying of single boards during laboratory testing, unless precautions are taken to simulate typical kiln stacking arrangements.     

VALIDATION OF A DYNAMIC MODEL FOR A DEHUMIDIFIER WOOD DRYING KILN

ABSTRACT

The validation of a dehumidifier wood drying kiln model established previously has been conducted by using the performance data for a commercial scale kiln. The good agreement between the modelled and measured performance results shows that the model can be used for the design and analysis of dehumidifier wood drying kilns.     

ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF CHANGING SHRINKAGE RATES DURING KILN DRYING

ABSTRACT

This paper emphasizes the established need for a stress based kiln control system. It refers to I) the work which verified that the initial shrinkage rate changes within a board are the result of reduced stress levels and 2) the new statistical method short/long-term slope comparison method used to detect slope changes. The paper continues by giving the explanation for the additional shrinkage slope changes as the equilibrium moisture content changes during fan reversal and kiln schedule advancements. The kiln schedule advancements can cause both shrinkage and swelling. Reduced drying rate resulting in reduced shrinkage rate explains other changes. A stress based automated kiln control system is conceptually possible with 1) shrinkage rate changes understood and 2) a production useful statistical method to detect these changes.     

Dielectric property measurements in design of industrial scale hybrid kiln

Abstract

It has been appreciated for some years now that the dielectric properties of a material need to be considered if microwave processing is to progress from an empirical basis. The present paper describes the evaluation of materials for use in a pilot plant scale hybrid kiln. Previous kilns at Staffordshire University using microwaves as the only source of energy operated at 2·45 GHz but a new pilot plant scale hybrid kiln for operation at 896 MHz with 75 kW of microwave power is under development with improved, more complex, insulation and firing arrangements. For this reason a range of new refractory and insulation materials has been assessed, e.g. support tubes for heating elements and previously used products and materials measured at only 2·45 GHz have been remeasured at 911 MHz. The results of dielectric property measurements are presented for a range of refractory materials together with an assessment of their likely interactions with the microwave environment.     

Mathematical Modelling of Solar Kilns for Drying Timber: Simulation and Experimental Validation

Abstract

A complete solar kiln model (including the drying of hardwood timber) has been developed with particular reference to the seasoning of blackbutt (Eucalyptus pilularis) timber. The predicted internal air temperatures, relative humidities, and timber moisture contents have been compared with experimental data. The maximum difference between the actual and predicted moisture contents was 0.05 kg kg^?1. The agreement between the predicted and measured temperatures of the internal air is reasonable, and both the predictions and measurements have a similar cyclical pattern. The generally good agreement between the model prediction of the final moisture content and its measurement may be due to the careful measurement of the boundary conditions such as the solar energy input. The main uncertainties were identified as the heat exchanger output, the measurement of the initial moisture content, and the estimation of sky temperature. The significant uncertainty (18%) in the estimation of the initial moisture content is a key reason for the mismatch between the model predictions and the measurements.