Dehydraattorit

Dehydraattorit are devices and systems designed to remove water from substances, processes, or gas streams. They can operate by physical means, such as evaporation or sublimation, or by chemical means, where water is bound or reacted away. The term covers a range of technologies used in laboratories, industry, and food processing.

Physical dehydration methods include drying ovens and hot-air dryers that remove moisture by heating, vacuum dryers that lower the pressure to drive off water at lower temperatures, and freeze-dryers (lyophilizers) that sublimate water from frozen materials. Spray dryers and rotary dryers convert liquids into dry powders or granules by exposure to heated air. Desiccant-based systems use moisture-absorbing materials such as silica gel, activated alumina, or molecular sieves to remove water from air, solvents, or gas streams, often in continuous flow setups.

In gas processing, dehydration units remove water from natural gas or process streams using glycols (glycol dehydration) or solid desiccants to achieve a target dew point. Chemical dehydration involves drying reagents that react with water to form stable byproducts, commonly used to dry reactive solvents in laboratories.

Applications span the food industry (dried fruits, vegetables, meats), pharmaceuticals and chemical manufacturing (dry solvents and materials), laboratory sample preparation, and industrial gas processing. Selection depends on the material to be dried, the required moisture level, temperature sensitivity, throughput, and compatibility with solvents or gases involved. Key considerations include energy consumption, equipment cost, operating conditions, potential thermal degradation, and safety concerns related to flammable or hazardous substances. Dehydration can be implemented in batch or continuous modes, with downstream handling of the finished dry product or stream.