The article describes preparation of an alternative solid fuel from corn alcohol distillery stillage, which is the waste of the alcohol industry. We determined the calorific values of the dried alcohol distillery stillage and experimental briquettes, which were made of it by pressing at high pressure and temperature. The average value of the higher calorific value of the dried alcohol distillery stillage is 19545 kJ kg–1, while this value for the produced briquettes is in the range of 22445 to 26594 kJ kg–1. The established calorific values exceed those of analogues, which are widely used for the producing of alternative solid fuels (miscanthus and energy willow). Solid fuel prepared from corn alcohol distillery stillage can be used both in a solid form and in a dried one. The proposed method for preparation of the solid fuel allows providing additional utilization of alcohol distillery stillage and rational use of secondary raw materials of alcohol production.

Diffusive mass transfer has been studied during drying of grinded sunflower stalks to produce fuel briquettes. Theoretical aspects of diffusive processes during filtration drying have been analyzed. The process of diffusive mass transfer during drying of grinded sunflower stalks particles of prismatic shape has been mathematically described. The temperature effect on effective diffusion coefficient has been examined.

The article describes the results of experimental studies on kinetics of the filtration drying of corn distillery stillage, which has previously proven its effectiveness in drying other crops and various dispersed materials. The experimental data are presented in the form of graphical plots describing the change of material moisture over time depending on the temperature of the drying agent (60, 70, 80 and 900С) and the layer height (40, 80, 120 and 160 mm). The obtained results are analyzed and the changes that occur on the filtration drying curves depending on the change in the material layer height and drying agent temperature are described. It is shown that the filtration drying time of alcohol distillery stillage increases with increasing the material layer height. It is determined that the drying potential remains constant at the same parameters of the drying agent. It is shown that the rate of moisture removal during the filtration drying does not depend on the material layer height. It is found that the average residual moisture of corn alcohol distillery stillage is 3.140.06 wt.%; this value satisfies industrial needs for an increase in its shelf life and the possibility of long-term storage and transportation.

The drying of crushed plant-derived materials, in particular crushed cotton stems, is a complex heat-exchange and technological task. Resolving this task successfully ultimately determines the specific energy costs of the drying process and the quality of the resulting products. The rational drying regime of crushed cotton stems should ensure the minimum possible process duration, energy costs, and provide the necessary quality characteristics of the dried material. To address this issue, it is necessary to investigate the influence of technological parameters of the process (the temperature and filtration rate of the heat agent), as well as the thickness of the stationary layer of crushed cotton stems, on drying kinetics. This paper has generalized experimental studies into the kinetics of filtration drying of crushed cotton stems during the period of complete saturation of the thermal agent with moisture. The influence of the temperature of the drying agent, the speed of its filtering through a stationary layer of different heights of wet crushed cotton stems, on the kinetics of filtration drying has been shown. The study's results demonstrate the dynamics of moisture removal at different parameters of the heat agent and the heights of the stationary layer of crushed cotton stems. The resulting dependence  has been established, which is used to determine the value of the kinetic coefficient η for crushed cotton stems; the value of the kinetic coefficient has been calculated, a=20.74 1⁄m. The dependence  has been derived, using which makes it possible to generalize the kinetics of filtration drying of crushed cotton stems during the period of complete saturation of the heat agent with moisture within the limits of changing the moisture content of the veneer The comparison of the experimental data with those obtained theoretically has shown that the maximum absolute value of relative error does not exceed 15.2 %.

Abstract. The dissolution kinetics of potassium sulfate dissolved in water under pneumatic mixing has been investigated. The mass transfer coefficients were determined by the experiments, as well as on the basis of the local isotropic turbulence theory. The ratio between theoretical and experimental data was found to be satisfying that allows to determine the theoretical mass transfer coefficient to calculate the mentioned process.