Heat Pump-Assisted Dryers

Vasile Minea has been working as a scientist researcher at the Hydro-Québec Research Institute, Laboratory of Energy Technologies, Canada since 1987. His research activity mainly focuses on industrial refrigeration and heat pumps, heat recovery technologies in large-scale commercial/institutional HVAC systems, low- and medium-temperature geothermal heat pumps, and medium-enthalpy power generation cycles. During this period, Dr. Minea also collaborated with the Canadian and American heat pump industry and R&D drying community in developing laboratory- and industrial-scale experimental heat pump-assisted drying systems. Previously, he worked as a university professor for over 15 years, teaching courses in hydraulic/fluid and HVAC systems for civil, agricultural, and industrial processes and buildings, as well as thermodynamics, heat transfer, and refrigeration. He earned his Ph.D. from the Bucharest Technical Construction University, Romania.

• 1. Introduction. 2. Drying of Porous Solid Materials. 3. Drying of Fruits and Vegetables. 4. Drying of Woods. 5. Heat Pump-Assisted Drying: What’s Wrong?. 6. Optimum Coupling of Thermodynamic Systems. 7. Optimizing Dehumidification Capacity of Mechanical Vapor Compression Heat Pumps. 8. Efficient Operation and Control Rules. 9. Conclusions.