HYBRID MODELLING OF COOLING-DRYING PROCESS IN ANIMAL FEED-PELLETS INDUSTRIES

摘要

Drying/cooling stages in the animal feed sector aim to bring hot, damp pellets produced by a press into thermal and hygrometric balance with the ambient air, in the quickest and most cost-effective manner possible. The purpose of this manufacturing stage is to perform both at once: drying and cooling. This is a delicate process as the ambient air used acts both as a drying and cooling vector. Industrialists have demonstrated poor management of this operation and have a tendency to over-dry/excessively cool the pellets to ensure the stability over time, which has both a substantial energy and economic cost. This paper aims at introducing simulated cooler operating conditions in order to enable industrialists to anticipate their actions and to design operation regulation and control. A hybrid approach has been proposed and discussed.