Food Plant Utilities

Food plant utilities
1. Industrial water
→ Water is required in several food processing operations, such as steam
generation, washing of raw materials, cooling & addition to food
products. Water is supplied from deep wells, or from clean rivers &lakes.
→ Water pretreatment may involve removal of suspended solids by
sedimentation & filtration & break point chlorination. Potable water used
as food ingredient may require some physicochemical treatment like
carbon filtration, and membrane treatment
→ Water reuse can reduce waste water, using the above mechanical and
physicochemical methods.
2. Steam boilers
→ Steam boiler are an important part of the food processing plant,
providing process steam for heating blanching , sterilization, peeling,
cleaning, evaporation, and drying.
→ In some large processing plants e.g. Beet sugar refineries,
cogeneration installation are used, producing both process steam and
electricity, with better utilization of the fuel energy and reduction of the
thermal and material pollution of the environment.
→ Two cogeneration system is used 1 the toping system, in which high
pressure steam produces power, while the exhaust low presser steam is
used for process applications, 2 the bottoming system in which high
presser combustion gases operate gas turbines and the exhaust gases
are used to produce process steam. Closed cycle gas turbines operate
with high pressure air, heated by combustion of fuel gas, oil, or
combustible wastes.
→ Processsteam boilers produce 5 to 200 tons/h steam at a pressure of
about 20 bars, which is reduced to about 2 bars, near the steam
consumption.
→ Steam generators are usually housed in a separate room for safety
and noise reasons. In food processing, natural gas or lpg are the usual
fuels, because they are clean and do not pollute the environment.
--BY PIYUSH B MORADIYA B.TECH CAET-JAU

→ The feed water for steam boilers is normally treated with chemicals,
ion exchange, or membranes to remove the undesirable salts, which
may cause scaling or corrosion.
→ Production of culinary (potable) steam, used for direct injection in
foods, should comply with the hygienic requirements of public health
authorities.
3.Air moving and vacuum equipment:
→Fans and blowers are used widely in food plants to move process air in
heating, cooling, drying, and air conditioning equipment. Centrifugal
and coaxial fans are used for relatively low pressure drops, while
blowers and compressors operate at higher pressures.
→ The fans are characterized by the capacity (m3 /hr. Or cfm) –pressure
drop(mm water or inches water) curves, which are similar to those of
centrifugal pumps. Compressors for moving air are similar to those
compressors used in refrigeration.
• Industrial vacuum pump equipment includes steam ejectors and liquid
(water) ring pumps. The water ring pumps can operate in wet
environments, like vacuum evaporation and drying.
• Steam ejectors require high pressure steam (about 10
bars).multistage ejectors are used to create and maintain vacuum
down to about 5 mbar in industrial processing equipment. Liquid ring
pumps cannot reach vacuum lower than 10m bar, because of vapor
pressure limitation.
• Rotary mechanical pumps, similar to rotary (roots) blowers, can
produce high vacuum, below 1 m bar, which is needed in freeze drying
and in some vacuum distillation equipment.
• Air conditioning is applied in food plants either for comfort (offices) or
for storage of some products.
4. Electrical equipment
• Electrical equipment, used in food processing plants, includes
electrical motors, electrical heating, illumination, and control
equipment.
• Electrical motors are particularly important, since they operate most
of the food processing equipment.
• Alternating-current motors of constant or variable speed are normally
used, while direct-current motors are used in some application.
• The voltage of motors is 220 volts for relatively small motors(up to
100 kw). Higher voltage is required, e.g., 440 v, for motors up to 250
kw.
• The speed of the alternating-current motors(rpm)is related to the
current frequency(hz)and the number of poles (p),according to the
equation
rpm= 120 hz/p
Thus, for 60 hz current(eu)and two poles, rpm=3600. For 50-hz
current (usa),rpm=3000.
• Direct-current motors operate at 115,230, or 600 volts.
4. waste treatment:
• Food process and design, and operating food processing plants should
consider environmental polluting problems caused by liquid, gas, and
solid discharge from the plants.
• The pollution control laws and regulations of the country and the
region should be taken into consideration in selecting the appropriate
measures for the specific processing plant.
• Wastes pollution is the major problems in food processing, since large
amounts of water are used in washing the raw materials, in cleaning,
and in cooling operations.
• Air pollution is important in some food plants with particulate and
odorous emissions. Management of solids wastes concerns several
food processing plants.
• Water and solids wastes from small food processing plants, located
near agril, land, can be disposed to the fields by spray irrigation and
soil mixing.
• If the waste load is not excessive. And if no toxic substances are
present. Disposal of waste water to municipal treatment plants is an
alternative, if treatment cost is acceptable.
A. Waste water treatment
→ Large quantities of water are used in the washing of fruits and
vegetables prior to processing. Waste water may contain significant
amounts of organic compounds (bod, cod), suspended solids, and oils.
Clean water regulations impose strict limits on the pollutants
discharged into rivers, lakes, seas.
→ Waste water may require pretreatment, primary, secondary, and
tertiary treatment. Before it is discharged to the environment or
reused. Pretreatment includes neutralization and removal of oils.
→ Primary treatment involves sedimentation, screening, and filtration.
→ Secondary (biological) treatments involve bio-oxidation of organic
compounds in ponds, activated sludge, or bio filters. Tertiary
treatment may include adoption and membrane separation.
→ The equipment used in waste water treatment is similar to some of
the food processing equipment, described in this book. Examples are
filters, membrane systems (mf,uf, ro),has absorption and adsorption.
→ Economic, high capacity systems are required in waste water
treatment, in contrast to the specialized, more expensive and efficient
used in food processing.
B. Solid wastes
→ Reduction of solid wastes from food processing plants is of primary
importance, e.g. By using more efficient peeling processes. Solid
wastes can be used in composting and biogas (methane) production.
→ Production of dehydrated food by products for animal feed is
economical alternative, e.g., wastes from sugar, citrus, and fish
processing. Land disposal of nontoxic solid wastes may be applied, if
the food processing plants is located in an agril. Area, way from
populated areas.
C. Gas population
→ Gas and vapor exhausts may create air pollution problems in the
environment of food processing plants, especially if the plant is
located to residential areas.
→ For example, particulate (dust) pollution from spray dryers can be
reduced and prevented by proper design of separation equipment,
such cyclones and bag filters
→ Odorous gas discharges from edible oil plants and fish processing
(e.g., fish meal drying) can be treated in wet scrubbers, using water or
alkaline solution.

→ Offensive fish odors require special scrubbing solutions, such as
chlorine compounds.

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Food plant utilities

--BY PIYUSH B MORADIYA B.TECH CAET-JAU

--BY PIYUSH B MORADIYA B.TECH CAET-JAU

--BY PIYUSH B MORADIYA B.TECH CAET-JAU

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