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Basic research in food process engineering
· Process
scale-up
· Development of food processing plant and
machinery
BASIC RESEARCH IN FOOD PROCESS
ENGINEERING
Activities and
achievements
· Application of Aqueous
Two Phase Extraction (ATPE) technology in extraction of proteins in
downstream processing and recovery of
bio-molecules
· Application of Supercritical Fluid
Extraction technology in extraction and purification of many value-added
products from the oil and fat industry
· Application
of molecular distillation for extraction of high value products, as in
tocopherol enrichment in deodourised distillates, and separation of free
fatty acids from DODO
· Application of infrared,
microwave and radio frequency radiation in food heating, drying and
baking, and IR radiation of food materials
·
Fluidised bed and spouted bed roasting
· Osmotic
dehydration and mass transfer of fruit and
vegetables
· Membrane separation of crude edible
oils for degumming and decolourisation for energy savings and quality
improvement
· Cryogenic grinding of
spices
· Extrusion cooking of
foods
· Engineering properties of
foods
· Modelling and simulation of food
processes
PROCESS
SCALE-UP
Activities and
achievements
Process scale-up has been
a major activity of the Food Engineering Department since 1956, and we
have scaled up and commercialised laboratory processes that
cover-
Infant food from buffalo's
milk
We scaled up a laboratory
process and established the first industrial infant food plant for AMUL in
Anand, Gujarat. The process involved critical operations as evaporation
and spray-drying/drum-drying. We optimised all the operations and designed
the plant as well.
Integrated utilisation of
groundnut
For TOMCO, Bombay, we offered our
first turn-key services by scaling up in our pilot plant a laboratory
process for integrated utilisation of groundnut-recovery of protein
isolate, oil and starch as well as fibre from the whole seeds. This became
the first ground protein isolate plant in the
world.
Sterilisation of whole black
pepper
We have developed the STERILEP
process for sterilization of whole black pepper by the HTST (High
Temperature Short Time) thermal treatment process. By bringing down the
microbial count, this enables Indian spice exporters to achieve a
competitive quality edge in the global
market.
Quick Cooking
Rice
We have developed a process for
"quick-cooking" rice, with high nutrition and good taste. The process
works on a continuous cooker integrated with continuous drying systems, to
which soaked rice is continuously fed. The rice needs cooking in boiling
water for just 7 minutes and in cold water for about 15 minutes, to be
ready for consumption. The process is optimised for an output of about 350
kg. per shift and is
up-scaleable.
Spray-dried coconut
milk
We have developed a process for
production of whole coconut milk powder by spray-drying. The process calls
for shelling, paring, disintegration of the white endosperm, extraction,
formulation, homogenisation and pasteurisation of the emulsion (coconut
milk) before spray-drying. The process has already been released to an
export unit.
Downstream processing for
natural colours
We have developed an
effective method for the extraction of natural colourants using the ATPE
process. Know-how for the production of the blue natural colourant
phycocyanin has already been released, and the process for extraction,
purification and stabilisation of the red natural colourant anthocyanin is
due for release now.
Membrane separation and
concentration of mango serum
We have
standardised a process for membrane-separation of mango pulp and
concentration of serum for Totapuri and Neelam varieties of
mangoes.
Development of extruded
products
We have carried out extensive
development work in extrusion-cooking of foods and snacks, which includes
development of extrusion hardware such as twin-screw feeder and slit and
star dies, and development of extrusion cooking
processes.
Our process scale-up activities also
cover the vegetable toned milk Miltone, spice oils and oleoresins,
dehydrated green pepper, cryogenic grinding of spices, compressed Baker's
yeast from molasses, beneficiation of sunflower seeds, whitening of sesame
seeds, ethanol from osmo-tolerant yeast strains, weaning food, edible
quality groundnut flour, protein isolates from Soya bean, tamarind juice
concentrate and tamarind powder, convenience foods such as Sambar and
Rasam mixes, concentrate for cola and other fruit beverages, coconut
processing including desiccated coconut, wet rendering of coconuts, legume
milling, rice milling/drying and parboiling, egg powder, chitosan and
other by products from wastes of prawn and squilla, fish meal and fish
protein concentrate, sardine oil and refining of rice bran oil, garlic
powder, dehulling of mustard, coffee whitener for beverage products,
dehulling of sesame, production of pectin from apple pomace and citrus
waste and calcium caseinate.
DEVELOPMENT OF
FOOD PROCESSING PLANT AND MACHINERY
Activities
and achievements
Over the years, the
department has successfully developed, and in many cases commercialised,
food processing plant and machinery particularly needed and affordable by
the small scale
sector.
Evaporators
We
have built designs and prototypes for low-cost vacuum evaporators and many
types of concentrators such as calendria-type forced circulation
evaporators. Some of these designs have been adopted by the food
preservation industry for concentration of tamarind pulp extract as well
as orange, pineapple and tomato juices, protein hydrolysates and enzymes,
pectin solutions, glucose solutions for liquid glucose
preparation.
Dehydrators
We
have designed, fabricated and commercialised a number of prototype dryers
for diverse applications. Important among these are through-flow dryers,
bin-dryers, cabinet-type through-flow dryers, cashew kernel drier, walnut
drier, pulse drier, continuous drier for paddy, roto-cone drier, contact
plate dehydrator, cross-flow tunnel drier for cardamom, ginger, potato
slices and garlic, chillies & ready mixes, arecanut drier, cardamom
drier and pneumatic flash drier, double drum driers and accelerated
freeze-driers.
Machinery for traditional
foods
One of our major activities is
development of machinery for continuous production of traditional foods.
We have fabricated prototypes and evaluated performances of machinery for
continuous production of Chapathi (600 numbers per hour), Dosa (400
numbers per hour) and Idli (1200 numbers per hour). These machines are in
different stages of commercialisation.
Rice
bran stabilization equipment
We have
developed equipment for thermal (steam-heated) and chemical (by lowering
of pH with optimal addition of HCL) stabilisation of rice bran as soon as
it is milled, to arrest lipase activity. The designs have been released to
the industry.
Fruit and vegetable processing
equipment
We have developed a citrus juice
extractor, fruit slicing/dicing equipment, pulping and juicing machines,
washers, crushers, paste-makers, pasteurisers, citrus peel oil extractor
and vacuum puffing unit to meet the particular needs of the Indian fruit
and vegetable industry which is largely small-scale and medium-scale. The
designs for many of these have been released to the
industry.
Online Retort Control
System
We have developed this
microprocessor-based dedicated control system for the special benefit of
India's small and medium size canning (using cans, glass jars and flexible
pouches) units and retort manufacturers. The system offers some unique and
highly sophisticated hardware and software features to automate the
retorting process, with manual loading and unloading of
cans.
Grain milling, cleaning and grading
equipment
We have built prototypes and
evaluated performance for paddy separators, rice-bran broken separators,
pneumatic grain cleaners/husk separators, vibratory and rotary graders and
cleaners for cereal grains, maize degermer/ husker, flour sifters, pulse
splitters, dehuskers, mini rice mill, paddy parboiling equipment, and
rubber roll paddy shellers. Some of these equipment are already in
commercial use. A major contribution of our department to the food grain
industry is the development of destoners.
Other
equipment
For certain specific
applications, we have designed and fabricated equipment such as walnut
huller, walnut washer, spice oil or oleoresin plant, cardamom oil
distillation unit, solvent extraction unit, 3000-litre fermentor for yeast
manufacture, CNSL bath cashew kernel roaster, continuous roaster for IR
radiation of food. mixers, blenders, conveyors, elevators and wet
grinders.
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