One of the first texture-enhancing processes is the dry fractionation of edible oils and fats with high solid fat content (SFC). Typical representatives are:
- Palm oil and palm kernel oil
- Coconut oil
- Soybean oil
With the robust LiquiSonic® measurement technology the fractionation can be monitored inline and the SFC can be precisely determined.
LiquiSonic® Sound velocity profile RBDPO dry fractionation
Application
In the dry fractionation of various edible oils, the fractions with a high fatty acid melting point are separated from those with a lower one without the use of solvents. Thus, by merely changing the temperature, the valuable high-melting-point fatty acids can be separated from the cheaper liquid fraction. In the case of palm kernel oil, the solid fat is used as a cocoa butter substitute.
In the crystallizer, the temperature is gently lowered over hours so that the semi-liquid palm fat partially crystallizes. The resulting crystalline solid phase contains high-quality, mostly long-chain fatty acids (stearin), which are separated from the liquid phase (olein) by membrane filtration.
LiquiSonic® offers maintenance-free process monitoring throughout the entire fractionation. With the desired SFC content, separation for filtration and consistent product quality are thus ensured.
Installation
The LiquiSonic® measurement technology is installed directly in the crystallizer or in edible fat-carrying pipelines.
The LiquiSonic® Controller 30 can be connected to up to four sensors, allowing monitoring of the separation process at several crystallizers. Typically, the implementation of physical parameters (sound velocity, attenuation, and temperature) into the process control system is used for process control and SFC calculation.
Typical measuring range:
Concentration: 0 to 20 m% SFC - Palm oil (RBDPO)
Temperature range: 10 to 70 °C
Customer benefits
The inline measurement system LiquiSonic® enables detailed process control and analysis of the solid fat content using sound velocity and attenuation.
The robust sensor design without moving parts ensures reliable process analysis in the long term. The process time is reduced by optimal monitoring of nucleation, cooling rate, and SFC.
Further advantages for the user are:
- Optimal plant control through real-time information about the process state
- Quality control of fractions and their solid fat content (SFC)
- Stable product properties and texture
- Detection of incipient crystallization and process disturbances in seconds
- Savings of material, maintenance, and energy
- Reduction of sampling and manual analysis
Numerous edible oils and fats cannot be used in their original form for the food industry, which is why the industry uses chemical and physical processes for modification. Only edible oils with a suitable, mostly modified texture guarantee consistent end product quality and stability in the processing process.
