GELATINE CONCENTRATION AND DEMINERALISATION LINE, WITH RECOVERY OF WATER FROM THE PRODUCT

GELATINE CONCENTRATION AND DEMINERALISATION LINE, WITH RECOVERY OF WATER FROM THE PRODUCT

Gelatine production technology is demanding and highly complex. The broth preparation stage itself involves a number of processes that ultimately affect the quality and type of gelatine produced. A relatively new application is the use of ultrafiltration as a step in the concentration of the broth, i.e. the gelatine solution, and its demineralisation in order to standardise it in terms of its basic characteristic – gel formation capacity expressed in degrees Bloom.

The project task included the design and delivery of an integrated membrane filtration system consisting of:
An ultrafiltration unit for the concentration and demineralisation of the broth, adapted to the application of diafiltration, with a capacity of 15,000 l/h.
RO-polisher equipment, designed to receive and purify the permeate produced on the ultrafiltration unit in order to recover water and be able to use it to wash the UF unit. By switching on the RO-polisher, up to 85% of the water in the product is recovered.
A specific feature of the ultrafiltration system is absolute continuous operation due to the sensitivity of the product, the high process temperature and the need to keep production flowing. The unit is adapted to ‘non-stop’ operation, i.e. it is built with 6 loops, among which 5 are always running, one is in the CIP phase or in readiness for switching.
The UF+RO units are integrated into a complete process line, working with storage and intermediate tanks and an evaporator unit, in a fully automatic system.