Shockwave technology helps soft drinks mixing

The patented Pursuit Dynamics PDX technology is delivering dramatic process improvements and energy savings to companies that use thickening agents and stabilisers in the production of soft drinks

New technology delivers dramatic improvement in dispersion of gums for producers of soft drinks.

The Pursuit Dynamics patented PDX technology is delivering dramatic process improvements and energy savings to companies that use thickening agents and stabilisers in the production of soft drinks.

Thickening agents such as xanthan gum and pectin are commonly used in the production of soft drinks, as are stabilisers such as CMC (sodium carboxyl methyl cellulose), guar gum and gum arabic.

Dissolving these powdered ingredients is often problematic.

For example, they can be slow to hydrate, often requiring the base liquid to be heated which therefore consumes valuable process time and energy.

Powders that are insufficiently hydrated can build up on vessel walls, leading to a requirement to clean the vessel and dispose of the spent ingredients plus there is wastage through the need to overdose the ingredients to take account of the incomplete hydration - or, conversely, a reduced yield has to be accepted.

While hard-to-wet powders can agglomerate and become difficult to disperse, the hydroscopic properties of other powders can lead to entrainment difficulties and bridging problems.

Furthermore, the powders can have a tendency to float on the surface of the base liquid or they can agglomerate, either way, the rate of dissolution is reduced.

As the powders become hydrated the solution increases in viscosity and reduces the performance of conventional mixing equipment.

Finally, because of the nature of the mixing equipment used and the abrasive properties of the powders the rotating parts of conventional mixing systems inevitably wear leading to a need for regular maintenance.

As an alternative, Pursuit Dynamics offers its PDX shockwave technology that pumps, mixes, entrains and heats, all in one easy-to-clean process that has no moving parts.

Several ingredients can be simultaneously wetted and hydrated thereby eliminating the need for pre-mixing.

Agglomerations are dispersed as they pass through the supersonic region of the PDX unit.

Full dissolution consistent quality and maximised yield are achieved and the need for costly integrated stabilisers is eliminated.

The PDX system is energy-efficient and manufactured in food grade 316L stainless steel.

In trials conducted using a PDX system with a 25mm bore, the following concentrations of powders were processed: 1.1% CMC (12,000 litres/hour), 1.7% guar gum (13,000 litres/hour), 12.4% maltodextrin (12,000 litres/hour), 9% pectin (10,000 litres/hour), 21.4% purity gum (9,000 litres/hour) and 1.5-2.0% xanthan (12,000 litres/hour).

The process is scalable either by using multiple PDX units of the same size or larger single units.

For any given size of PDX unit, the throughput is controllable to match the production demand for continuous processes.

The technology can be integrated as either a batch or continuous flow system.

For more information about how PDX can save costs and process time in the production of soft drinks, please contact Pursuit Dynamics.

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