Applications of fluidization in the food industry

Liquid fluidization is the basis of both the Oslo (or Krystal) continuous crystalliser (Mullin, 1993) which is used in the production of, for example, sugar or citric acid, and the bioreactors in which immobilised cells or enzymes are fluidized by the reactant solution (Epstein, 2003). It is used in the leaching of vegetable oils from seeds (Rios et al, 1985 Epstein, 2003) and in physical operations such as the washing and preparation of vegetables. 

The details of food processing applications are covered in Chapters 3-7 the remainder of this chapter deals with a detailed description of fluidized bed behaviour. 

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