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Before choosing, it is important to seek to understand the main differences for each type of mixing and how your process will be conceptualized, for example, whether it is necessary to modify recipes regularly or always produce the same product, among other choices that helped define the best option and the most suitable for that type of operation.
Even if you are an experienced professional in processing flour products or powders, some doubts may always arise, with this in mind we selected some factors and considerations about the different types of mixtures.
Below for procedural analysis:
In continuous mixing the materials flow constantly through the lines being controlled to the mixer, very common where continuous feeding from other equipment is required, the products will be mixed for a short period of time (seconds or minutes depending on the application) then flowing through of the discharge outlet. Continuous mixing is more suitable for lines where there is no need for much variation in recipes due to its greater difficulty in cleaning and sanitizing, whereas when compared to batch mixing, it provides high performance and low energy consumption.
Batch mixing offers high precision and control over the exact composition of the mixture, promotes possibilities for greater operating capacities and is also more suitable for operations where it will be necessary to prepare various recipes quickly and efficiently. This type of process offers greater flexibility in the addition of pasty products due to the design of the mixers.
It is important to note that correct sizing of production is necessary, allowing the mixer to always be in operation, guaranteeing a constant supply with the use of lung silos, gravimetric scales for exact measurement, hoppers and other equipment, providing operation with correct fractions of materials and raw materials and no waiting time between batches.
When feeding the product, consider where the materials will come from and whether the different raw material sources can consistently provide the correct fractions, both of powders and micro ingredients that are more abrasive and of lower percentage. In some processes, there may be differences in the way ingredients are extracted, moved and measured after storage, so continuous mixing may be impractical in these cases. If, for any reason, the flow may be inconsistent, batch mixing will be able to provide higher quality results.
Regarding production times and capacity, processes with continuous flow mixers provide smaller capacities when compared to batch options, but the process takes place more quickly, requiring less energy expenditure, and they also generally require less physical installation space.
Batch mixers have a greater range of options in terms of capacity, from the y-type mixer, which is highly recommended for the manufacture of cores and pre-mixes of own micro-ingredients, where greater independence is generated, to the paddle mixer, helical and fluidized bed mixers, which increase the capacity and versatility of recipes, but take up more physical space and also add greater energy consumption that must be compensated by the production volume.
When evaluating processing times, which is the time it takes for the material to flow from the feed inlet to the mixture discharge outlet, it is necessary to take into account that for continuous mixing, if longer mixing times are required, it will not be the best option, as the continuous mixer was designed for short mixing times due to the speed at which the materials must move internally, reducing this variable can produce an uneven product mixture.
For batch mixing, there will be variation depending on the product and the choice of mixer for the desired application, but we can define average mixing times for the paddle mixer of 3 minutes, for the fluidized bed mixer of up to 3 minutes, for the 5-10 minutes helical mixer and the Y type mixer will vary further according to the needs of each operation.
The immediate assumption is that faster is better, but this is not always true, the desired speed required will depend, in addition to the cost linked to each option, on where the bottleneck is for each application or production line, from the measurement time from ingredients to mixing, unloading, movement and the time required to put the mixture back into operation, that is, to ensure that there is no unnecessary waste, it is extremely important to consider the entire product processing chain.
When it comes to precision and control of mixtures, continuous mixing tends to be less efficient, when moving a large amount of material quickly it is difficult to control the precise quantities of each element in the mixture, therefore, for certain segments you will need greater precision than a continuous mixer can provide. For this reason, food and feed industries tend to lean towards batch processing, as they need exact fractions of each product with little variation. We also cannot leave aside that the number of different ingredients can directly influence which option to choose, if the recipe requires more types of powdered, pasty or liquid ingredients, the best option is mixing in batches due to its greater ease of adaptation, always remembering that the more products there are, the more the mixing time may vary.
We know that ease of cleaning in some cases is of paramount importance, both for the application of new recipes and just for sanitary control, so we know that in the continuous mixer, due to its design, it makes cleaning the line a more complicated task. Therefore, as already described above, it is best suited for applications without much variation in recipes.
For mixing in batches there are some possibilities, in paddle, helical and Y-type mixers for internal cleaning it is necessary, depending on the need, to apply some product to the line or to do it manually. In the fluidized bed mixer, the mixing is carried out pneumatically through a non-toxic membrane located inside, as it is equipment that operates by injecting air, making it self-cleaning (depending on products mixed), thus avoiding wasted time in maintenance. line hygiene.
The need for maintenance should also be a factor to consider, with both the continuous flow mixer and batch options the need is minimal, the design is made in such a way that any damaged internal agitator can be easily replaced and readjusted. Furthermore, the shaft-mounted gearmotor does not require any maintenance other than oil changes and only in the long term does changing the shaft seal become necessary. In the pneumatic option, the operation is even more reliable and long-lasting where the only need for long-term measurement is its fabric sleeve.
There are several factors to make the correct choice and for each application need they can be different, therefore, in addition to considering these different approaches, it is also useful to work together, where we can assess your demands and assist in this process, so be sure to get in touch get in touch with our technical team, who knows, maybe a great partnership is about to emerge?
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