DEPARTMENT OF FOOD ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

Course Code & Title: FET-2365; Fluid Mechanism & Thermodynamics

Assignment Number & Name: 2; Unit Operation in Food Engineering

Submitted By:

Nabila Zaman Prova

ID: UG11-51-22-035

Submitted To,
Md. Belal
Lecturer

Dept. Of Food Engineering & Technology

 Submitted on 20th April 2024

Unit Operation in Food Engineering

INTRODUCTION:

Unit operation is a basic step in a process. Unit operations involve a

physical change or chemical transformation such as separation,

crystallization, evaporation, filtration, polymerization, isomerization,

and other reactions.

For example, in milk processing, the following unit operations are

involved: homogenization, pasteurization, and packaging. These unit

operations are connected to create the overall process. A process may

require many unit operations to obtain the desired product from the

starting materials, or feedstocks. Examples of this include filtration,

drying distillation crystallization grinding sedimentation combustion

catalysis heat exchange coating and so on.

Properties Of Food Material Thermal Properties:

Such as specific heat, conduction, diffusivity, boiling point rise,

freezing point depression.

Optical Properties: Primarily color, but also gloss and translucency.

Electrical properties, primarily conductivity and permittivity.

Structural and geometrical properties: Such as density, particles size,

shape, porosity, surface roughness, and cellularity.

Mechanical properties: Such as textural (including strength,

compressibility, and deformability) and rheological properties

(viscosity)

Others include mass transfer related properties (diffusivity,

permeability), surface tension, cloud stability, gelling ability, and

radiation absorbance.
The Main Objective of Unit Operation
1. 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.

2. the studies should be focused on the transformation processes of

agricultural raw materials into final products, or on Conservation of

materials and products.

Unit Operations: Classification

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. 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.

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, ultrafiltration and others.

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 reactions. The opposite process is

called desorption.
Extraction: based on the dissolution of a mixture (liquid or solid) in a

selective solvent, which can be liquid–liquid or solid–liquid. 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.

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 mate-

rial 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 mechanism

Simultaneous Mass–Heat 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.

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.

Others Unit Operation in Food Processing

Material Handling:

Efficient material handling is the organized movement of material in

quantities to and from the correct place accomplished with the

minimum off time labor, wastage, expenditure and with maximum

safety.

Equipment used for handling

1 Loading

• Forklift

• Pelletizer
• Depalletizes
• Automatic case formers

Dimensioning and Scanning system,

• Automation labeling machine

2 transportations inside the warehouse

• AGV (Automated guided Vehicles)

• Overhead trolleys

• Sorting
Cleaning

Cleaning is the unit operation in which contaminating material is

removed from the food and separated to leave the surface of the food

in a stable condition for further processing, it uses.

• Brushing

• High velocity air

• Steam
• Water

• Magnets

• Vacuums

• Microfiltration

It has a wet procedure and dry procedure. *

Separating:

It involves separating solid from a solid like peeling a potato, separating

solid from a liquid as in filtration. it uses sorting grading Size

reduction:

Size reduction is a unit operation in which the average size of a solid

particles of food is reduced by the application of shearing, impact,

Compressor force etc. Uses of high shear forces, grater, cutter, slicers,

homogenizer, ball mill grinder etc.

Heating

Heating of food is carried out to destroy the microorganisms, and to

preserve the food.

• Balancing

• Pasteurization
• Canning
 • Sterilization

Drying

Sun or tray Spray Freeze Drying involves the removal of water with

minimum damage to the food.

Membrane Process Filtration: technique of separating suspends solid

matter from a liquid by causing the latter to pass through the pores of

membrane, called a filter.

Reverse osmosis :uses membranes of the smallest pores and separates

water from solid and it requires a high-water pump.

Ultrafiltration: It use membrane with large pores and will retain

proteins, lipids, and colloidal salts, while allowing smaller molecules to

pass through the membrane.

Concentration &Evaporation: Concentration is achieved through

evaporation and reverse osmosis. It is used principally to concentrate

food by removing water. Vaccum evaporator multistage evaporator

easily remove water.

Mixing : Two major reasons for mixing

1. Heat transfer

2.Ingredient incorporation

There are different type of mixture depending upon the types of

materials to be mixed.

Packaging: Packaging machines operate at high speed and

automatically package food products in a step wise and automated

fashion from forming the container, filling the container, labeling and
stacking it. use for a variety of material

Conclusion: Unit operation is the process which converts our

physical or chemical raw materials into useful products. Uni operation

provides and aid to process food with ease. These processes are

interrelated to each other i.g.concentration and evaporation. It could

be a simple or complex process depending upon the product we desire.

it helps to make the nutrients more available to us and remove the toxic

substance which can cause harm to human health.

References
1.Adams, N. and Lodge, A.S. (1964), Phil. Trans Roy. Soc. London, A, 256, 149.
2.Aguado, M.A. and Ibarz, A. (1988), Unit operation; classification 2/88, 209–

216.

3.Alfa–Laval, Heat Exchange Guide, Alfa–Laval AB-2nd, Sweden. Alvarado, J.D.

and Romero, C.H. (1989), Latin Am. Appl. Res., 19, 15.