Agro-food industry concentrate

The use of an integrated membrane process for the clarification and the concentration of citms and carrot juices was proposed as an alternative to the traditional techniques of the agro-food industry [151]. The ultrafiltration process was studied on a pilot plant unit to clarify the raw juice. A clear phase was produced in this step and it was used for concentration by successive membrane treatments. The RO process, performed on a laboratory plant unit, was used to preconcentrate the permeate from UF up to 15-20 g TSS/lOO g. A final OMD step yielded a concentration of the retentate from the RO up to 60-63 g TSS/lOO g. 

The development of the process has been closely associated with the dairy industry. The use of spray drying in the dairy industry dates back to around 1800, but it was not until 1850 that it became possible to dry milk on industrial scale. Since then, this technology has been developed and expanded to cover a large food group which is now successfully spray dried. Over 20,000 spray dryers are estimated to be in use commercially, at present, to agro-chemical products, biotechnology products, fine and heavy chemicals, dairy products, foods, dyestuffs, mineral concentrates, and pharmaceuticals in evaporation capacities ranging from a few kg per hour to 50 tons/h (Mujumdar 2000). 

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