The invention relates to a method for drying a quantity of moulding powder, such as starch, used in a confectionery moulding process to a desired moisture content. The quantity of moulding powder is divided into at least a first fraction and a second fraction, wherein the first fraction is dried to a first moisture content and the second fraction is dried to or remains at a second moisture content, the first moisture content being lower than the second moisture content, wherein at least a portion of the dried first fraction and at least a portion of the second fraction are combined in order to obtain a resulting moulding powder having the desired moisture content. Further, the invention relates to a system for carrying out the method.

Methods, systems, and apparatuses for coating a material by contacting the material with a coating material and a solvent are disclosed herein. The coated material can be obtained by evaporating the solvent: by heating the coated material directly or indirectly with electromagnetic radiation; by heating with heat generated from a heat source that heats an internal container for the material to be coated and/or coated material; and/or in an interior volume of a coating container having a side wall, by heating a portion of the side wall of the coating container and/or internal container with a heat source that is positioned outside of the interior volume of the coating container.

A liquification system for an organic waste management system includes a hopper that is oriented vertically such that organic waste added to the hopper is biased by gravity toward a bottom end of the hopper; a fixed grinding plate disposed at the bottom end of the hopper and including grinding elements for grinding and liquefying organic waste; an agitator that is disposed within the hopper and is movable relative to the grinding plate in a first rotational direction that moves organic waste downward toward and against the grinding plate and in a second rotational direction that moves organic waste upward toward a top end of the hopper; a motor configured to selectively move the agitator in the first and second rotational directions under control of the controller; and an outlet through the bottom end of the hopper through which liquified organic waste drains from the hopper.

Embodiments disclosed herein provide a bucket assembly and method of use thereof. The bucket assembly is a relatively lightweight and removable apparatus that can fracture cut, paddle, and heat contents contained therein. The bucket assembly can include a housing that has a curved metal plate and blade array attached thereto. A cut and paddle assembly can rotate within the housing and interface with the blade array to fracture cut contents contained therein. The cut and paddle assembly is also operative to mix the contents to ensure full dispersal within the housing. A flexible heater array is attached to and operative to heat the curved metal plate. The combination of the fracture cutting, paddling, and heating can convert organic matter to a ground and selectively desiccated product.

Embodiments disclosed herein provide an organic matter processing apparatus and method for the use thereof to convert organic matter into a ground and desiccated product. The organic matter processing apparatus includes a lid assembly that is positioned at the top or head of the processing apparatus and an air treatment system. The lid assembly is operative to open to allow a user to deposit organic matter into the processing apparatus or to remove a removable bucket contained therein. The lid assembly is operative to close and provide an odor containing seal that prevents or substantially mitigates escape of odor. The air treatment system uniformly distributes untreated air through an air treatment chamber to convert the untreated air to treated air, which is exhausted out of the processing apparatus.

The production method includes: a gel-crushing step of grinding a crosslinked hydrogel polymer to obtain a particulate crosslinked hydrogel polymer; a heating drying step of obtaining dried particles from the particulate crosslinked hydrogel polymer by using a continuous stirring drying machine; a post-crosslinking step of post-crosslinking the particulate crosslinked hydrogel polymer or the dried particles; and a sizing step of adjusting a particle size of the dried particles or the post-crosslinked dried particles to obtain water-absorbent resin powder. The particulate crosslinked hydrogel polymer contains a gel fluidizer. A gel temperature of the particulate crosslinked hydrogel polymer containing the gel fluidizer, the gel temperature being measured by a contact thermometer, is not lower than 50° C. In the production method, the dried particles or the post-crosslinked dried particles is forcedly cooled before the sizing step.

A system and method for the removal of volatile components from a liquid or a slurry containing solids and liquids and using a screw conveyor or auger systems that transfers solid/liquid slurries through an elongated tube heated by solar energy from a parabolic solar trough. The system flashes off the volatile component then counter-currently flows that vapor back into the hollow pipe inside of the augur creating a Multi-effect or Multi Flash device which greatly improves the overall efficiency of removal of the volatile material.

A coat drying device dries a coated film that is coated on a continuously transported coating object having first and second parts, where the second part has a greater heat capacity than the first part. The coat drying device includes a drying furnace, a hot air supply device and a control unit. The coating object is conveyed inside of the drying furnace main body. The hot air supply device heats the coating object by blowing hot air to the drying furnace. The control unit controls the hot air supply device based on a heat capacity of the coating object. The control unit controls the hot air supply device such that, when heating the second part, hot air with a greater amount of heat is supplied to the second part than an amount of heat in the hot air that is supplied to heat the first part.

A coat drying device dries a wet-coated film that is coated on a continuously transported coating object having first and second parts, where the second part has a greater heat capacity than the first part. The coat drying device includes a heat source and a heat source moving device. The heat source provides thermal energy primarily to a coating surface of a second part. The heat source moving device moves the heat source to the second part such that a spacing between the second part and the heat source is maintained within a predetermined range.

A coat drying device dries a wet-coated film that is coated on a continuously transported coating object having first and second parts, where the second part has a greater heat capacity than the first part. The coat drying device includes a heat source and a heat source moving device. The heat source provides thermal energy primarily to a coating surface of a second part. The heat source moving device moves the heat source to the second part such that a spacing between the second part and the heat source is maintained within a predetermined range.