Recovery of volatile substances

Not only virtually all of the supplied latent heat can be recovered from the condensed excess steam, but the condensate itself can be used as demineralized water. If the products to be dried contain toxic or expensive organic liquids, superheated steam drying avoids the danger of fire or explosions, as no oxidative or combustion reactions are possible in the absence of oxygen.

Moreover drying with superheated steam allows separation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at a condenser. Thus, the environmental problem of emission of VOCs produced during drying is also eliminated and no waste air treatment is required. The organic volatile components are condensed out with the excess steam. Standard separation processes allow recovery of the condensable organic substances, which can be considered as value-added products.