Introduction To Unit Operations: Fundamental Concepts: 1.1 Process

TX69299 ch01 frame.
book Page 1 Wednesday, September 4, 2002 2:13 PM
1
Introduction to Unit Operations:
Fundamental Concepts
1.1
Process
Process is the set of activities or industrial operations that modify the properties of raw materials with the purpose of obtaining products to satisfy the
needs of a society. Such modifications of natural raw materials are directed
to obtain products with greater acceptance in the market, or with better
possibilities of storage and transport.
The primary needs of every human being, individually or as a society,
have not varied excessively throughout history; food, clothing, and housing
were needed for survival by prehistoric man as well as by modern man. The
satisfaction of these necessities is carried out by employing, transforming,
and consuming resources available in natural surroundings.
In the early stages of mankinds social development, natural products were
used directly or with only small physical modifications. This simple productive scheme changed as society developed, so that, at the present time, raw
materials are not used directly to satisfy necessities, but rather are subjected
to physical and chemical transformations that convert them into products
with different properties.
This way, not only do raw materials satisfy the necessities of consumers,
but also those products derived from the manipulation of such raw materials.
1.2
Food Process Engineering
By analogy with other engineering branches, different definitions of food

process engineering can be given. Thus, according to one definition, food
process engineering includes the part of human activity in which the knowledge of physical, natural, and economic sciences is applied to agricultural
products as related to their composition, energetic content, or physical state.
1
2003 by CRC Press LLC
TX69299 ch01 frame.book Page 2 Wednesday, September 4, 2002 2:13 PM
Unit Operations in Food Engineering
Food process engineering can also be defined as the science of conceiving,

calculating, designing, building, and running the facilities where the transformation processes of agricultural products, at the industrial level and as
economically as possible, are carried out.
Thus, an engineer in the food industry should know the basic principles
of process engineering and be able to develop new production techniques
for agricultural products. He should also be capable of designing the equipment to be used in a given process. The main objective of food process
engineering is to study the principles and laws governing the physical,
chemical, or biochemical stages of different processes, and the apparatus or
equipment by which such stages are industrially carried out. The studies
should be focused on the transformation processes of agricultural raw materials into final products, or on conservation of materials and products.
1.3
Transformation and Commercialization

of Agricultural Products
For efficient commercialization, agricultural products should be easy to handle and to place in the market. As a general rule, products obtained directly
from the harvest cannot be commercialized as they are, but must undergo
certain transformations. Products that can be directly used should be adequately packaged according to requirements of the market. These products
are generally used as food and should be conveniently prepared for use.
One problem during handling of agricultural products is their transport
from the fields to the consumer. Since many agricultural products have a
short shelf life, treatment and preservation methods that allow their later
use should be developed. As mentioned earlier, many of these products
cannot be directly used as food but can serve as raw material to obtain other
products. Developed countries tend to elaborate such products in the harvest
zone, avoiding perishable products that deteriorate during transport from
the production zone to the processing plant.
1.4
Flow Charts and Description of Some Food Processes
Food processes are usually schematized by means of flow charts. These are
diagrams of all processes that indicate different manufacturing steps, as well
as the flow of materials and energy in the process.
There are different types of flow charts; the most common use blocks or
rectangles. In these charts each stage of the process is represented by a
block or rectangle connected by arrows to indicate the way in which the
materials flow. The stage represented is written within the rectangle.
Introduction to Unit Operations: Fundamental Concepts
Olives
WASHING
PRESSING
Bagasse
Oil from
press
DRYING
CENTRIFUGATION
Exhausted
bagasse
Virgin oil
EXTRACTION
Bagasse oil
FIGURE 1.1
Extraction of olive oil.
Other types of flow charts are equipment and instrumentation.

Figures 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 show some flow charts of food processes.
1.5
Steady and Unsteady States
A system is said to be under steady state when all the physical variables
remain constant and invariable along time, at any point of the system; however, they may be different from one point to another. On the other hand,
when the characteristic intensive variables of the operation vary through the
system at a given moment and the variables corresponding to each systems
point vary along time, the state is called unsteady. The physical variables to
consider may be mechanical or thermodynamic. Among the former are volume, velocity, etc., while the thermodynamic variables are viscosity, concentration, temperature, pressure, etc.
1.6
Discontinuous, Continuous, and

Semicontinuous Operations
The operations carried out in the industrial processes may be performed in

three different ways. In a discontinuous operation the raw material is loaded

Fruit
CRUSHING
PRESSING
Pulp
Juice 12 Brix
PRE-CONCENTRATION
Water and
aromas
Juice 15 Brix
ENZYMATIC
TREATMENT
CLARIFICATION
EVAPORATION
Water
Juice 70 Brix
COOLING
STORAGE
FIGURE 1.2
Production of fruit concentrated juices.
in the equipment; after performing the required transformation, the obtained

products are unloaded. These operations, also called batch or intermittent, are carried out in steps:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Loading of equipment with raw materials

Preparation of conditions for transformation
Required transformation
Unloading products
Cleaning equipment
The batch operation takes place under an unsteady state, since its intensive
properties vary along time. An example of this batch process is the crushing
of oily seeds to obtain oil.
Roasted
coffee
GRINDING
Hot
water
EXTRACTION
Solid
waste
Coffee exhaust
(diluted solution)
EVAPORATION
Water
vapor
Coffee extract
(concentrated solution)
DRYING
Water
Soluble coffee
FIGURE 1.3
Elaboration of soluble coffee.
In continuous operations the loading, transformation, and unloading

stages are performed simultaneously. Equipment cleaning is carried out
every given time, depending on the nature of the process and the materials
used. To carry out the cleaning, production must be stopped. Continuous
operations take place under steady state, in such a way that the characteristic
intensive variables of the operation may vary at each point of the system
but do not vary along time. It is difficult to reach an absolute steady state,
since there may be some unavoidable fluctuations. An example of a continuous operation is the rectification of an alcoholwater mixture.
In some cases it is difficult to have a continuous operation; this type of
operation is called semicontinuous. A semicontinuous operation may occur
by loading some materials in the equipment that will remain there for a
given time in a discontinuous way, while other materials enter or exit continuously. Sometimes it is necessary to unload those accumulated materials.
For example, in the extraction of oil by solvents, flour is loaded and the
solvent is fed in a continuous way; after some time, the flour runs out of oil
and must be replaced.
These different ways of operation present advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages of continuous operation include:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Loading and unloading stages are eliminated.

It allows automation of the operation, thus reducing the work force.
Composition of products is more uniform.
There is better use of thermal energy.
Disadvantages of continuous operation are:

1. Raw materials should have a uniform composition to avoid operation fluctuations.
2. Is usually expensive to start the operation, so stops should be
avoided.
3. Fluctuations in product demand require availability of considerable quantities of raw materials and products in stock.
4. Due to automation of operation, equipment is more expensive and
delicate.
Continuous operation is performed under an unsteady state during starts
and stops but, once adequately running, may be considered to be working
under steady state. This is not completely true, however, since there could
be fluctuations due to variations in the composition of the raw materials and
due to modifications of external agents.
When selecting a form of operation, the advantages and disadvantages of
each type should be considered. However, when low productions are
required, it is recommended to work under discontinuous conditions. When
high productions are required, it is more profitable to operate in a continuous
way.
1.7
Unit Operations: Classification
When analyzing the flow charts of different processes described in other

sections, it can be observed that some of the stages are found in all of them.
Each of these stages is called basic or unit operation, in common with many
industrial processes. The individual operations have common techniques
and are based on the same scientific principles, simplifying the study of these
operations and the treatment of these processes.
There are different types of unit operations depending on the nature of
the transformation performed; thus, physical, chemical, and biochemical
stages can be distinguished:
Physical stages: grinding, sieving, mixture, fluidization, sedimentation, flotation, filtration, rectification, absorption, extraction,
adsorption, heat exchange, evaporation, drying, etc.
Chemical stages: refining, chemical peeling
Biochemical stages: fermentation, sterilization, pasteurization,
enzymatic peeling
Hence, the group of physical, chemical, and biochemical stages that take
place in the transformation processes of agricultural products constitute the
so-called unit operations of the food industry, the purpose of which is the
separation of two or more substances present in a mixture, or the exchange
of a property due to a gradient. Separation is achieved by means of a separating agent that is different, depending on the transferred property.
Unit operations can be classified into different groups depending on the
transferred property, since the possible changes that a body may undergo
are defined by variations in either its mass, energy, or velocity. Thus, unit
operations are classified under mass transfer, heat transfer, or momentum
transfer.
Besides the unit operations considered in each mentioned group, there
exist those of simultaneous heat and mass transfer, as well as other operations that cannot be classified in any of these groups and are called complementary unit operations.
All the unit operations grouped in these sections are found in physical
processes; however, certain operations that include chemical reactions can
be included.
1.7.1
Momentum Transfer Unit Operations
These operations study the processes in which two phases at different velocities are in contact. The operations included in this section are generally
divided into three groups:
Internal circulation of fluids: study of the movement of fluids through
the interior of the tubing; also includes the study of equipment
used to impel the fluids (pumps, compressors, blowers, and fans)
and the mechanisms used to measure the properties of fluids
(diaphragms, venturi meters, rotameters, etc.).
External circulation of fluids: the fluid circulates through the external
part of a solid. This circulation includes the flow of fluids through
porous fixed beds, fluidized beds (fluidization), and pneumatic
transport.
Solids movement within fluids: the base for separation of solids within a fluid. This type of separation includes: sedimentation, filtration,
and ultrafiltration, among others.
1.7.2
Mass Transfer Unit Operations
These operations are controlled by the diffusion of a component within a

mixture. Some of the operations included in this group are:
Distillation: separation of one or more components by taking advantage of vapor pressure differences.
Absorption: a component of a gas mixture is absorbed by a liquid
according to the solubility of the gas in the liquid. Absorption may
occur with or without chemical reaction. The opposite process is
called desorption.
Extraction: based on the dissolution of a mixture (liquid or solid) in
a selective solvent, which can be liquidliquid or solidliquid. The
latter is also called washing, lixiviation, etc.
Adsorption: also called sorption, adsorption involves the elimination
of one or more components of a fluid (liquid or gas) by retention
on the surface of a solid.
Ionic exchange: substitution of one or more ions of a solution with
another exchange agent.
1.7.3
Heat Transfer Unit Operations
These operations are controlled by temperature gradients. They depend on

the mechanism by which heat is transferred:
Conduction: in continuous material media, heat flows in the direction
of temperature decrease and there is no macroscopic movement of
mass.
Convection: the enthalpy flow associated with a moving fluid is called
convective flow of heat. Convection can be natural or forced.
Radiation: energy transmission by electromagnetic waves. No material media are needed for its transmission.
Thermal treatments (sterilization and pasteurization), evaporation, heat
exchangers, ovens, solar plates, etc. are studied based on these heat transfer
mechanisms.
1.7.4
Simultaneous MassHeat Transfer Unit Operations
In these operations a concentration and a temperature gradient exist at the

same time:
Humidification and dehumidification: include the objectives of humidification and dehumidification of a gas and cooling of a liquid.
Crystallization: formation of solid glassy particles within a homogeneous liquid phase.
Dehydration: elimination of a liquid contained within a solid. The

application of heat changes the liquid, contained in a solid, into a
vapor phase. In freeze-drying, the liquid in solid phase is removed
by sublimation, i.e., by changing it into a vapor phase.
1.7.5
Complementary Unit Operations
One series of operations is not included in this classification because these

are not based on any of the transport phenomena cited previously. These
operations include grinding, milling, sieving, mixing of solids and pastes, etc.
1.8
Mathematical Setup of the Problems
The problems set up in the study of unit operations are very diverse,
although in all of them the conservation laws (mass, energy, momentum,
and stochiometric) of chemical reactions apply. Applying these laws to a
given problem is done to perform a balance of the property studied in
such a problem. In a general way, the expression of the mass, energy, and
momentum balances related to the unit time can be expressed as:
(Property entering the system) = (Property exiting the system)

+ ( Property that accumulates )
This is, that which enters into the system of the considered property is
equal to that which leaves what is accumulated. In a schematic way:
E =S+A
In cases where a chemical reaction exists, when carrying out a balance for
a component, an additional generation term may appear. In these cases the
balance expression will be:
E+G =S+A
When solving a given problem, a certain number of unknown quantities
or variables (V) are present, and a set of relationships or equations (R) is
obtained from the balances. According to values of V and R, the following
cases can arise:
If V < R, the problem is established incorrectly, or one equation is
repeated.
If V = R, the problem has only one solution.
If V > R, different solutions can be obtained; the best solution is
found by optimizing the process.
10
There are
F = V R
design variables. The different types of problems presented depend on the
type of equation obtained when performing the corresponding balances.
Thus,
Algebraic equations have an easy mathematical solution obtained
by analytical methods.
Differential equations are usually obtained for unsteady continuous processes. The solution of the mathematical model established
with the balances can be carried out through analytical or approximate methods. In some cases, differential equations may have an
analytical solution; however, when it is not possible to analytically
solve the mathematical model, it is necessary to appeal to approximate methods of numerical integration (digital calculus) or
graphic (analogic calculus).
Equations in finite differences are solved by means of analogic
computers which give the result in a graphic form. In some cases
the exact solution can be obtained by numerical methods.

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TX69299 ch01 frame.

book Page 1 Wednesday, September 4, 2002 2:13 PM

Food Process Engineering

By analogy with other engineering branches, different definitions of food

TX69299 ch01 frame.book Page 2 Wednesday, September 4, 2002 2:13 PM

Unit Operations in Food Engineering

Food process engineering can also be defined as the science of conceiving,

Transformation and Commercialization

Flow Charts and Description of Some Food Processes

TX69299 ch01 frame.book Page 3 Wednesday, September 4, 2002 2:13 PM