BEIJING - The world's largest rotary steam tube dryer rolled out of the factory in Nanjing, Jiangsu province on Sept 20.

The machine was designed by the Tianhua Institute of Chemical Machinery and Automation, a subsidiary of the nation's leading chemical products company, China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina).

It has two dryers with a diameter of 4.2 meters, two dryers with a 4.5-m diameter, and one with a 4.8-m diameter. It is said to have an annual production capacity of 4 million tons of purified terephthalic acid (PTA).

PTA is an important component of chemical fiber, and the rotary steam tube dryer is a key PTA production method.

The drying process intended to cut the amount of water and impurities contained in a certain material to make it easier to pack, store, transport and further process.

This procedure takes 20 to 25 percent of the total energy consumption of the production line, so "advanced, efficient, energy-preserving drying equipment and processes are extremely important," said Xiao Shimeng, director of the Tianhua Institute.

A decade ago, there were only a few developed countries that could produce large dryers of this kind, because they were expensive and had a short life span.

But Tianhua's dryers in recent years have a greater processing capacity and are more efficient, safer and have longer life spans. They are doing well not only on the domestic market, but also overseas in the United States, Spain, Belgium, and elsewhere.

Tianhua dryers can also cut drying costs for the petrochemical industry by 50 percent.

"By using our own large drying equipment, we've greatly reduced industrial production costs and as a result have reduced the cost for customers," said Xiao.

Since the company's inception, its large dryers had an output value of 1 billion yuan ($156.7 million) by the end of last month, and saved the country around $100 million in foreign exchange.

Tianhua Institute has further plans to "improve its PTA drying equipment and transfer the technology to other fields such as coal chemicals, metallurgy, electric power and environment protection," said Chen Hong, general manager of the China National Chemical Equipment Corp, another ChemChina subsidiary.

"In the iron and steel industry, a dryer can save an amount equivalent to 10,000 tons of standard coal, a year," Chen explained.

The Tianhua Institute is the nation's only drying technology and equipment research center. It has taken part in 12 national research projects and been given more than 50 patents. It also helped set seven industry standards over the past decade.

The parent company, ChemChina, was put on the Fortune 500 list in July. Its general manager, Ren Jianxin, said his company has paid closer attention to innovations and the commercialization of technology. "The Tianhua Institute's rotary steam tube dryer, the world's largest, is just one example of ChemChina's innovative spirit," Ren said.

（Source:China Daily）