Opening and Conditioning all types of Lamina

The Garbuio Dickinson DCC provides effective opening and conditioning of all types of lamina.

Before processing starts, the cylinder is preheated by circulating warm dry air throughout. This minimises sticking of tobacco particles to the cylinder walls when processing starts, thus preventing losses when the equipment is cleaned.
Slices of lamina enter the cylinder and are immediately exposed to the mechanical opening action of radial pins mounted on the cylinder walls. These pins lift and tumble the slices, exposing them to a co-current flow of high humidity warm air and diffuse steam sprays at the infeed end of the cylinder.
Immediately the moisture in the process air condenses on the lamina particles, raising both their moisture content and temperature. This has the effect of opening or unfolding the lamina, enlarging the surface pores so that the product becomes receptive to further moisture addition.

As the tobacco progresses along the cylinder it is contacted by a finely atomised spray of water which raises the moisture content of the product to the desired level. Special paddles in this part of the cylinder present the product in a distributed cascade to the water spray, thus ensuring effective and uniform moisture addition to all surfaces.

At the delivery end of the cylinder the process air passes through a self-cleaning rotary screen and is recirculated to the infeed by a fan, while the product is discharged in a uniform stream onto the take-off conveyor. As an option, the cylinder discharge hood can be trace heated, again to minimise tobacco waste.