Study of Drying and Consumption of Natural Gas in a Textile Stenter of Direct Heating

Abstract

Heat and mass transfer in a porous media model was applied to simulate the drying of cotton fabric in a stenter using the finite element method. The influence of ambient conditions on the performance of the stenter was investigated. The model also predicted how much natural gas could be saved when the exhaust heat was recovered. Moisture and temperature profiles were calculated and it was observed that the model represented the real process adequately. Simulation results showed that natural gas consumption increased by 5.3% when the simulation represented the operation of the stenter in cold air and that recovery of exhaust air saved 19–64% of natural gas.

Keywords:

• Mathematical modeling
• Simulation
• Stenter
• Textile drying

Notes

*No recycle corresponds to the Simulation 1, where 25.00°C is the temperature of the ambient air.

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