Industrial Vacuum Drying Oven With Solvent Recovery

1.1 Characteristics of the customer and our product

Our customer is in fine chemicals/specialty materials. The product exists in upstream filtration as wet solids with residual solvent. Each batch varies in bulk density and particle size, so the dryer needs to do static tray drying without abrasion or breakage. Target is a packable and moisture content stable for warehouse and downstream packaging.

1.2 Drying challenge and solvent loss

Open-air hot-air drying methods result in solvent loss, odor issues, and safety hazards. The exhaust stream contains ethanol/water vapor, necessitating additional treatment measures. The customer seeks to achieve repeatable low-temperature drying while simultaneously recovering reagents.

1.3 The combined target: dry the product and recover the solvent

An industrial vacuum drying oven with solvent recovery was proposed. The combined goals were:

(1) to obtain a stable dryness (for handling and storage)

(2) recover solvent to save on purchasing and reduce emissions, and

(3) a sealed system to improve safety and housekeeping.

2.1 Working principle of vacuum drying

In a vacuum, the boiling point is lower, and so it vaporizes the solvent at lower temps. This is great for heat-sensitive materials that might degrade, oxidize, or discolour under other heating. The model series FZG is made-to-measure for vacuum drying at low temperatures.

2.2 Advantages in comparison with traditional hot air drying

• The thermal stress decreases by reducing the drying temperature.
• Reduced oxidation with the least oxygen exposure under vacuum.
• FZG designs support condensation recovery units for organic solvents, thereby reducing energy consumption and costs.

2.3 Static tray drying for careful handling of the product

Product lies flat on stainless-steel trays; no paddles or augers. Static vacuum drying protects fragile particles or molded parts from breakage and maintains their shape.

3.1 Chamber structure and materials

The FZG-10 employs a square vacuum-resistant body with contact components in SS304 mirror finish for ease of cleaning and GMP-like adherence. The inner bushel is made of 10 mm Q235A carbon steel, and its inside face was lined with a 2-mm-thick SS304 liner, while the cover's thickness reached up to 1.5 mm SS304. Edges are radiused, welds are continuous, and surfaces are smooth to minimise build up of residues and facilitate cleaning.

3.2 Trays, load, and batch planning

The FZG-10 features 5 heating shelves and 20 drying trays. The trays are 460×640×45mm each in SS304 (0.8mm thick). Average loading per tray is 3–5 kg, product dependent. In planning, the batch mass is calculated as the number of trays × fill per tray, which is then matched with each other for drying time and throughput.

3.3 Heating and temperature control

As a rule, the source of heat is steam, which is conducted uniformly through conductive shelves. Insulation of 50mm rock wool makes the temperature stable and energy-efficient. A pointer temperature meter is also provided for easy checks. As described in the description of various sample molecules, process temperatures depend primarily on the solvent, and for ethanol and water, evaporation may occur at a temperature substantially below the atmospheric boiling point.

3.4 Integrated Solvent Recovery System

The vacuum pump extracts solvent vapors from the drying chamber, directing them to a stainless steel condenser before entering a stainless steel collection tank. In our FZG-10 configuration, the condenser surface area is approximately 10 square meters, and the collection tank capacity is about 200 liters. This sizing accommodates several hours of drying operations without frequent replacement. All piping, flanges, and valves are constructed from SS304 stainless steel.

3.5 Operation

Customization of the chamber, trays, and capacity

We can adjust tray count, size of the tray, and volume in the chamber to fit your batch size and scheduling! The FZG-10 itself has 20 trays (460 × 640 mm); applications that require higher throughput can add more layers or a larger area in each tray.

Heating, insulation, and control assembly

The standard FZG-10 model utilizes steam-heated trays with 50 mm thick rock wool insulation. For higher jacket temperatures, insulation thickness is increased accordingly. Control equipment includes dial gauges, and advanced control panels can be integrated based on project scope.

On request, compliance and explosion-proof options

If required, we can provide explosion-proof electrical equipment and components. Please inform us of your explosion-proof requirements as early as possible so we can adapt cabinets, instruments, and junction boxes to local specifications.

From requirements to design proposal

We start with your material properties, batch size, solvent (or otherwise) type/concentration, desired time, and utilities. From there, we suggest the tray loading plan, vacuum package, and also the condenser and tank size, as well as chiller choice (usually 5 °C for ethanol/water).

Manufacturing, FAT, and delivery

Construction is chamber internals/externals, shelves, trays, condenser tank, and control cabinet. We definitely perform vacuum holding and temperature-uniformity tests, instrument (vacuum gauge, temp. gauge, safety valve) checks before shipment.

Supervision and After-Sales Services on-site

Installation advice, start-up support, and spare parts service are offered by us. 

We work with you to engineer complete, turnkey solutions tailored to your capacity targets, process requirements, and compliance standards.

With 18+ years of manufacturing experience and successful installations in 70+ countries and regions, our senior engineering team supports you from concept design and equipment selection to manufacturing, testing, and global delivery.

👉 Talk directly with our senior engineers.
👉 Get a customized turnkey solution and preliminary quotation based on your production needs.
👉 Reduce technical risk before investment decisions are made.

Contact us today for a free technical consultation:

Email: info4@toptionlab.com

WhatsApp: +86 133 8492 7293

Contact now