The fouling and cleaning challenge in the food industry

When applying membrane processes on industrial scale in the food industry both the fouling and the subsequent cleaning of the membranes are key but often underestimated factors. This presentation will focus on the impact of pre-treatment, operation conditions and module design on fouling and cleaning.
After reviewing the current state-of-the-art of membrane fouling and cleaning in the food industry, the presentation will focus on an application study related to a membrane unit integrated in the purification of starch-based sweeteners such as glucose after liquification and saccharification. Conventionally, retrograded starch, proteins and fats are removed in this purification step which is often referred to as “demudding” by using a rotary vacuum filter supported by filter aids such as kieselguhr or perlite. Alternatively, a membrane-based hybrid process consisting of a decanter combined with an ultrafiltration unit has been developed. The focus of this study will be on the control and optimisation of the fouling and cleaning of the ultrafiltration membrane unit to achieve a stable and sustainable membrane performance.
Overall, the goal of this presentation is to demonstrate how appropriate measures can reduce the impact of fouling and cleaning on membrane processes and thus improve their long-term sustainability in the food industry.