Patent ID: 7691438

Claim:
Continuous method for producing enzyme granulates comprising: a. injecting, in a processing space, one or more fluid enzyme formulations by spraying devices into a heated solids-bearing gas stream, b. exposing material particles in the solids-bearing gas stream wetted with liquid in the heated gas stream to a drying and granulation process, c. separating the particles from the gas stream after a residence time and feeding the particles back into the processing space by supplying the particles to a gas inlet region by the effect of gravity over inclined surfaces and generating a circular-like solids flow in an axial direction of the processing space through material supply in the gas stream supplied over rotationally symmetric or elongated gap openings, d. separating the fine particles, dust, and particles entrained by the processing gas forming the gas stream and feeding them back to the process as nuclei material for the granulation process, supplying the nuclei material into the circular-like solids flow via a range of feeds arranged in a lower region of side walls of the inclined surfaces where the fine particles are suctioned and fed into a zone where the injecting takes place, e. removing formed enzyme granulates by the use of discharging elements ( 4 ) in the form of sifting devices or volumetric discharge elements and sifting devices, separating enzyme granulates removed from the process that are too large or too small from the material product, processing the enzyme granulates removed from the process that are too large by reducing them in size by a size reduction aggregate and feeding them back into the processing space as nuclei material, and feeding back into the processing space, as nuclei material, enzyme granulates which are removed from the process and which are too small, also supplying these nuclei materials into the circular solids-flow via a range of feeds arranged in the lower region of the inclined surfaces side walls where the fine particles are suctioned and fed into a zone where injection takes place; f. keeping an average dwell time of the enzymes in the heated processing space to less than 1.5 hours, and g. keeping a grain size distribution of the enzyme granulate to a value, expressed as a ratio of d10/d90, equal to or greater than 0.4.