Semi-continuous freeze dryer with easy-loading

Freeze-drying is both a time- and energy-consuming process. In addition to the drying itself, loading the trays in and out of the dryer manually also requires a lot of time. Therefore you need to focus on process and loading efficiency.

Freeze-dry your berries, coffee, and pharmaceuticals quicker with a higher throughput

The Quasi-Continuous Freeze Dryer (QCF) from Bucher Merk is for freeze-drying goods in the food and pharmaceutical industry in a semi-continuous way. It has an easy tray-loading solution with trolleys suspended from a top-rail system which makes the product handling process easier and faster compared to fully manual loading.

What is more, it is suitable for batches starting at 200 kg and can go up to 3,000 kg. The QCF, allows you to dry products gently and efficiently while saving on energy costs. The system is unique because it utilizes both contact (from below) and radiant heating (from above) for faster processing compared to traditional methods. You can achieve high product quality by a controlled drying profile, limiting the maximum product temperature and in the same shortening the overall drying time.

It comes with vacuum and heating or cooling systems specifically designed to utilize preferred energy sources and provide the optimum balance between short batch times and energy savings. You have the option to include features such as product weighing, continuous drying observation with cameras, emergency cooling, automatic trolley loading/unloading, and cleaning systems in combination with up- and downstream processes.

Benefits

  • Heating-cooling plate surface area ranges from 16 to 256 m2
  • No oxidation and a minimal flavor loss
  • Rapid product handling
  • Higher throughput compared to traditional freeze dryers