Spray dryers
Pumpable liquids and slurries are atomized into a hot chamber and dried to fine, free-flowing powder in seconds.
- Liquids & slurries
- Uniform, free-flowing powder
- Dyes, chemicals, food, pharma
Acmefil Engineering Systems · dryer manufacturers since 2000
Industrial dryers for every feed – one team, six dryer types
Spray, paddle, flash, spin flash, fluid bed and agitated thin film dryers: selected for your product, built in our Vatva works and commissioned by our own engineers.
- ISO 9001:2015 certified manufacturer
- Pilot trials on spin flash, flash, fluid bed and spray dryers
- Complete plants: dryer, hot air generator and dust collection
24+Years of drying engineering
30+Installation, commissioning & service team
6Dryer types, one engineering team
ISO9001:2015 certified
Trusted by manufacturers of chemicals, pigments, agrochemicals and more
Six dryer types
The right dryer for every feed
See what each dryer handles and where to find it on the maker’s site – paddle and sludge dryers at AS Engineers, all others at Acmefil.
Paddle dryers
Indirect heat through hollow paddle shafts dries sludge, pastes and sticky solids gently, with low gas flow and little dust.
- ETP / STP sludge
- Indirect, low gas flow
- Sticky pastes & slurries
Flash dryers
Loose, crumbly wet solids are carried through a hot-air duct and dried in seconds – simple and continuous.
- Free-flowing wet solids
- Seconds of drying
- Simple, continuous
Spin flash dryers
Wet cake, paste and sludge are broken up by a rotor inside a swirling hot-air vortex and leave as dry powder.
- Filter cake & paste
- Sticky, lumpy feeds
- Pigments, chemicals, sludge
Fluid bed dryers
Hot air lifts granular or crystalline wet solids into a gently moving bed for uniform, controlled drying and cooling.
- Granules & crystals
- Gentle, uniform drying
- Vibratory, static & batch
Agitated thin film dryers
A thin film of viscous or heat-sensitive product is wiped over a heated wall – continuous drying with a short residence time.
- Viscous, heat-sensitive
- Solvent recovery
- Short residence time
How they work
How each dryer makes powder
Wet feed in, dry powder out – but the route is different. Pick a dryer and watch the particles.
Acmefil
Spray dryers
- The liquid feed is pumped to an atomizer – a spinning wheel or a nozzle.
- Fine droplets meet hot air in the drying chamber.
- The water evaporates in seconds and each droplet becomes a dry particle.
- Powder leaves through the cone; a cyclone and bag filter collect the fines and clean the air.
- Liquids & slurries
- Uniform, free-flowing powder
- Dyes, chemicals, food, pharma
Typical products: Dyes, detergents, food and dairy powders, ceramics, pharma, herbal extracts
AS Engineers
Paddle dryers
- Wet sludge, paste or slurry enters one end of a jacketed trough.
- Hollow paddle shafts and the jacket carry steam, thermic fluid or hot oil.
- Slowly turning paddles stir, convey and keep exposing fresh product to the hot surfaces.
- A small gas flow carries the vapour away; the dried product discharges at the far end.
- ETP / STP sludge
- Indirect, low gas flow
- Sticky pastes & slurries
Typical products: ETP and STP sludge, pigments, gypsum, salts, starch, polymers
Acmefil
Flash dryers
- A feeder meters loose, crumbly wet solids into a hot-air duct.
- The air carries the particles upward while the moisture evaporates in seconds.
- A cyclone separates the dry powder from the air.
- The exhaust is cleaned in a bag filter or scrubber before it is released.
- Free-flowing wet solids
- Seconds of drying
- Simple, continuous
Typical products: Starch, minerals, pigments, inorganic salts, fillers
Acmefil
Spin flash dryers
- A screw feeder meters wet cake or paste into the base of the chamber.
- Hot air enters tangentially and swirls upward while a rotor breaks the cake into fine particles.
- The particles dry in seconds; a classifier keeps wet lumps in the chamber until they are ready.
- The dry powder is collected in a cyclone and bag filter.
- Filter cake & paste
- Sticky, lumpy feeds
- Pigments, chemicals, sludge
Typical products: Pigment and dye cake, agrochemicals, chemical cake, sludge
Acmefil
Fluid bed dryers
- Wet granules or crystals are fed onto a perforated plate.
- Hot air blows up through the plate and lifts the bed – vibration helps it travel along.
- Every particle is surrounded by hot air and dries evenly; a cooling zone can follow.
- The product discharges at the far end; the exhaust passes a dust collector.
- Granules & crystals
- Gentle, uniform drying
- Vibratory, static & batch
Typical products: Salts, crystals, granules, pharma granulates, fertilizers
Acmefil
Agitated thin film dryers
- A viscous feed enters at the top of a heated cylinder.
- Rotor blades spread it into a thin film on the heated wall.
- The water or solvent evaporates; the vapour goes to a condenser, so solvents can be recovered.
- The concentrated or dried product leaves at the bottom.
- Viscous, heat-sensitive
- Solvent recovery
- Short residence time
Typical products: Resins, intermediates, effluent concentrates, heat-sensitive pastes
Dryer finder
Which dryer fits your product?
Three quick questions for a starting point. Our process engineers confirm it on your product data or in a pilot trial.
Recommended starting point
Spin flash dryers
Typical products:
General guidance only – the final choice depends on moisture, stickiness, heat sensitivity and capacity. We confirm it on your product data or in a pilot trial.
Compare
Six dryers, side by side
How the feed, drying time, product form and footprint differ.
| Spray dryer | Paddle dryer | Flash dryer | Spin flash dryer | Fluid bed dryer | Agitated thin film dryer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feed | Pumpable liquids, slurries, solutions | Sludge, pastes, wet cake, slurries | Loose, crumbly wet solids | Wet cake, filter cake, paste, sludge | Granular, crystalline wet solids | Viscous concentrates, pastes, heat-sensitive liquids |
| How it dries | Droplets atomized into a hot-air chamber | Indirect heat through hollow paddles and jacket | Particles carried in a hot-air duct | Rotor breaks the cake in a hot-air vortex | Hot air fluidizes the bed (vibration helps) | Thin film wiped over a heated wall by rotor blades |
| Drying time | Seconds | Minutes to hours | Seconds | Seconds | Minutes | Short residence, continuous |
| Product | Fine, free-flowing, often spherical powder | Granules or powder | Powder, as fed | Fine powder, de-agglomerated | Dry granules and crystals | Powder, flakes or concentrate |
| Footprint | Large chamber and tall structure | Long horizontal body | Tall duct, simple layout | Compact, vertical | Long, low body | Compact, vertical |
| Main limit | Feed must be pumpable | Larger size per kg of water than flash drying | Not for sticky or lumpy feed | Feed must be screw-conveyable | Feed must fluidize; fines need filtration | Heated surface area limits capacity |
| Typical products | Dyes, detergents, food and dairy powders, ceramics, pharma, herbal extracts | ETP and STP sludge, pigments, gypsum, salts, starch, polymers | Starch, minerals, pigments, inorganic salts, fillers | Pigment and dye cake, agrochemicals, chemical cake, sludge | Salts, crystals, granules, pharma granulates, fertilizers | Resins, intermediates, effluent concentrates, heat-sensitive pastes |
| Typical heating | Hot air – gas, oil, steam or electric heaters | Steam, thermic fluid or hot oil (indirect) | Hot air – gas, oil, steam or electric heaters | Hot air – direct or indirect fired | Hot air, with a cooling zone if needed | Steam or thermic fluid jacket |
Typical behaviour from industry practice; your product sets the real answer – use the dryer finder or send us your product data.
Applications
What are you drying?
Every material has a guide – the dryers that suit it, and the questions to ask before you buy.
Plants at work
Built in Ahmedabad, running across industry
Real Acmefil and AS Engineers dryers – from the workshop floor to plants in production.
Spray dryer plantTwo drying chambers, cyclone and ducting under erection
Paddle dryerInsulated trough and geared driveAgitated thin film dryerJacketed bodies in fabrication
Spin flash dryer plantBag filter, cyclone and feed hopper
Flash dryerDrying duct and cyclone
Vibratory fluid bed dryerReady for dispatch
Plant under erectionChamber, cyclone, bag filter and ID fan
Paddle sludge dryer pilot plantIn the AS Engineers workshopSpray dryer chamberStainless chamber in its steel structure
Pilot trials
Test your product before you invest
Run your own wet cake, paste or slurry on the pilot plants in our Ahmedabad R&D centre. You hold the real powder in your hand, and we collect the data to size your industrial plant.
- Find stickiness, wall build-up or heat damage before you buy
- Spin flash, flash, vibratory fluid bed and spray dryer pilot plants
- Powder samples to approve with your own customers
Why Acmefil
Engineering you can scale on
- Since 2000 – more than two decades designing and building drying and concentrating plants in Ahmedabad.
- Six dryer types, one team – so the recommendation is the dryer that fits, not the one we happen to sell.
- Designed around your product – temperatures, material of construction and powder properties engineered for your feed.
- ISO 9001:2015 quality – strict control from raw-material purchase to erection and commissioning.
- 30+ people on site – our own installation, commissioning and after-sales team.
- Complete plants – feed system, hot air generator, dust collection and PLC automation from one source.
ACME“the highest point of perfection”
Beyond dryers
The complete line from one group
Evaporation, zero liquid discharge, membranes, air systems and handling – designed and built by Acmefil and AS Engineers.
FAQ
Choosing a dryer, answered
Which dryer is right for my product?
The form of your feed decides most of it: pumpable liquids suit a spray dryer; loose, crumbly solids a flash dryer; wet cake and sticky paste a spin flash dryer; granules and crystals a fluid bed dryer; sludge a paddle dryer; and viscous, heat-sensitive concentrates an agitated thin film dryer. The dryer finder gives a starting point in three questions.
What is the difference between a spray dryer and a spin flash dryer?
A spray dryer atomizes a pumpable liquid or slurry into droplets that dry into fine powder in a large chamber. A spin flash dryer takes a wet cake or paste that cannot be pumped, breaks it up with a rotor in a swirling hot-air vortex and dries it in seconds. If the feed is a filter cake, a spin flash dryer avoids re-slurrying it.
When should I choose a paddle dryer?
Choose a paddle dryer for sludge, pastes and sticky solids that need long, gentle drying: heat is applied indirectly through hollow paddles and the jacket, so gas flow, dust and odour stay low and solvents can be recovered. Flash and spin flash dryers are faster and more compact but need a feed they can disperse.
When is a fluid bed dryer the better choice?
When the wet solid is granular or crystalline and fluidizes evenly. A fluid bed dryer dries and cools gently with tight control of the final moisture; vibratory, static and batch types cover free-flowing salts, granules, sugar-like crystals and pharma granulates.
What does an agitated thin film dryer (ATFD) dry?
Viscous concentrates, pastes and heat-sensitive liquids. The product is spread as a thin film over a heated wall and wiped by rotor blades, so the residence time is short and solvents can be recovered. It is often used after an evaporator. See agitated thin film dryers.
Can you dry ETP and STP sludge?
Yes. Dewatered ETP and STP sludge is usually dried in a paddle dryer, and some sludges suit a spin flash dryer. See sludge dryers and the paddle dryer guide for sludge drying from AS Engineers.
Knowledge hub
Dryer guides from the people who build the plants
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Share the product, feed moisture, final moisture and capacity – get a dryer recommendation, a budget quote and a pilot-trial option within one working day.
