A short overview of the main caracteristics of a control system applied to drying processes is
presented. This includes examining several considerations that must be taken into account during the
design of a control system and the associated problems that must be resolved. Special attention is
dedicated to analyze the control problems of spouted bed dryers. The performances of different control
configurations such as a self-tuning PID, supervisory and optimizing controllers are discussed and their
advances and drawbacks examine. In today’s competitive market, technology plays an important rule
allowing the implementation of advance control structures, improving the quality of the dried products
and simultaneously saving energy.
Keywords: PID controller, supervisory controller, controller design, optimizing controller, pressure sensor.
