Modeling the deposition of fluorescent whitening agents on cotton fabrics

The adsorption of two widely used fluorescent whitening agents (FWAs) on unbrightened cotton fabrics has been investigated as a function of temperature, hardness of the wash liquor, initial concentration of FWA in solution, and fabric to wash liquor ratio. Sorption efficiencies of FWAs have been studied using a UV spectrophotometry technique. A mechanistic model has been developed to describe the dissolution process of FWAs, convective mass transport into the fabrics, diffusion in the stagnant layer to the fabrics' surface, and adsorption of FWAs on cotton fabrics. Dual porosity of the fabrics (inter‐yarn and intra‐yarn porosity) has been considered by allowing two different regions (outer and inner areas of the cotton fabrics) where FWAs molecules can diffuse and adsorb. Good agreement between experimental and predicted whiteness benefit by the proposed mathematical model has been observed for the range of variables considered

Advances in control of food mixing operations

Mixing is a ubiquitous unit operation within the food industry and employed not only to combine multiple ingredients, but also to control reactions and modify the structure of foods. Failure of the mixing process may result in poor quality, organoleptic or functional attributes of foods along with product safety concerns. The industry is increasingly adopting automation and advanced control strategies such as Process Analytical Technology. Sensors can provide both insights into the complex mechanisms of mixing along with effective control. Here we discuss some recent advances in the control of food mixing operations

The absorption of 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline during cooking of rice (Oryza sativa L.) with Pandan (Pandanus amaryllifolius Roxb.) leaves)

AbstractRice (Oryza sativa L.) is a staple food for about half of the population in the world. Aroma is one of the most important rice sensory quality characteristics. The chemical compound that contributes mostly to the aroma profile of aromatic rice (e.g. basmati rice) is 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (2-AP). This highly volatile compound has been found to occur naturally in Pandan leaves. Adding fresh Pandan leaves to enhance the flavour profile of non-aromatic rice is as an old practice in South-East Asia. However, there has been little work done on how 2-AP is extracted from Pandan leaves and the phenomena taking place during cooking. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanism of absorption of 2-AP from non-aromatic rice mixed with Pandan leaves during cooking. Non-aromatic rice was cooked with fresh Pandan leaves using optimal and excess water conditions. The amount of 2-AP in rice grain was found to decrease at 10min (optimal water) and 5min (excess water) of cooking. A possible explanation of this phenomena could be linked to starch gelatinization and the effect it has on interaction with 2-AP from the rice grains

Monitoring Mixing Processes Using Ultrasonic Sensors and Machine Learning

Mixing is one of the most common processes across food, chemical, and pharmaceutical manufacturing. Real-time, in-line sensors are required for monitoring, and subsequently optimising, essential processes such as mixing. Ultrasonic sensors are low-cost, real-time, in-line, and applicable to characterise opaque systems. In this study, a non-invasive, reflection-mode ultrasonic measurement technique was used to monitor two model mixing systems. The two systems studied were honey-water blending and flour-water batter mixing. Classification machine learning models were developed to predict if materials were mixed or not mixed. Regression machine learning models were developed to predict the time remaining until mixing completion. Artificial neural networks, support vector machines, long short-term memory neural networks, and convolutional neural networks were tested, along with different methods for engineering features from ultrasonic waveforms in both the time and frequency domain. Comparisons between using a single sensor and performing multisensor data fusion between two sensors were made. Classification accuracies of up to 96.3% for honey-water blending and 92.5% for flour-water batter mixing were achieved, along with R2 values for the regression models of up to 0.977 for honey-water blending and 0.968 for flour-water batter mixing. Each prediction task produced optimal performance with different algorithms and feature engineering methods, vindicating the extensive comparison between different machine learning approaches

Crystallisation of sodium dodecyl sulfate and the corresponding effect of 1-dodecanol addition

Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) exhibits crystallisation upon exposure to low temperatures, which can pose a problem in terms of product stability. In this study, non-isothermal crystallisation of SDS is investigated via differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) at concentrations that are typical of those present in many industrial liquid detergents. At different low temperatures, the crystal structures are analysed with X-ray diffraction (XRD) and it is concluded that ice formation during the surfactant crystallisation process occurs below 0 °C. The capability of the alcohol precursor, 1-dodecanol, as a seeding material for SDS crystallisation is also investigated through the use of DSC and optical microscopy. These results show that 1-dodecanol can successfully act as a seed for SDS crystallisation. Upon cooling an SDS aqueous system, the crystallisation peak in the DSC thermogram shifts to a higher temperature in the presence of 1-dodecanol. Therefore, any remnant alcohol precursor in surfactant-based formulations could have a negative impact on the product stability upon exposure to cold climates

Mechanical cleaning of food soil from a solid surface: A tribological perspective

In this work, a tribological approach was used to distinguish the synergistic effects of mechanical removal and chemical removal (i.e. dissolution) of a layer of representative food soil from a solid surface, using a tribometer, Mini Traction Machine (MTM). Gravimetric and wear measurements of the soil were used to calculate the cleaning rates of burnt tomato puree on a stainless-steel disc, and the corresponding frictional characteristics offers insight of the mechanical removal. The cleaning due to soil dissolution (chemical removal) was quantified by UV–Vis measurements. The overall cleaning rates of food soil featured a linear reduction in mass over time, with a scaled removal rate k = 0.0046 s−1 (5 N applied force and 100 mm s−1 relative velocity), for most cases studied. It was observed that the cleaning rate can be improved with an increasing mechanical load or speed (50% from 1 to 2.5 N and 13% from 50 to 100 mm s−1), but is independent of the initial mass. UV–Vis measurements show that by increasing the load or speed the removal of chunks of burnt tomato puree was enhanced more than removal attributed to dissolution. Similar values of cleaning rates for most experimental parameters were extracted from both the gravimetric and wear measurements. Adhesion and cohesion measurements of the burnt tomato puree were conducted with a micromanipulator. It was found that adhesion forces are higher than cohesion for short soaking times, but for longer times the adhesion forces became weaker and with the additional shear rate in the MTM cleaning experiment, adhesion failure was observed in many cases by the end of the experiment. Indentation measurements showed the change in mechanical properties of the food foulant with a few minutes of soaking in water

Coating powder beds with liquids and foams based on viscous formulations using a twin screw mixer:A continuous process study

Coating with viscous formulations has been essential in numerous industries as it can be a means for providing functionalization, additional properties, as well as other benefits. However, there have been scarce studies that have investigated and proposed methodologies in literature. Continuous coating of powders with viscous liquids poses as a promising technology, which has been mentioned in some studies, but has not yet been thoroughly investigated. This paper employs the use of image processing and analysis, in combination with statistical analysis of particles to evaluate the effectiveness of foams and liquids as a means of coating powder beds. Two different sizes of twin screw mixers that are working in continuous operation are employed, and a new continuous foaming device is fabricated and used for the experiments of coating. The effect of materials and process parameters (as for example rotational speed, and flowrate) on the quality of coating are investigated. Image analysis is used to assess the coating quality. The results clearly showcase the potential of using twin screw mixers for coating purposes and not only for mixing. The hypothesis that using large bubble foams to improve the coating of viscous liquids on particles is proven correct, as they provide higher quality coatings compared to their equivalent liquids, when used in the twin screw mixer. Surprisingly, using a larger scale twin screw mixer, does not show a substantial effect on the mixing, regarding quality, however there is still a requirement for mix optimization for achieving scale-up of this process. These results provide a new pathway for coating powders with viscous formulations in industrial applications, requiring less energy and effort in this process, and can pave the way towards introducing more sustainable industrial methodologies for coating