Low Impact Drying
The EcoTech CDM allows the technologist to dry liquids and solids to retain product properties usually achieved only with freeze-drying, if at all. For products where a degree of comminution is acceptable, the CDM can achieve a desirable end-product at perhaps a tenth of the cost of freezedrying. Some examples are:
A range of other applications have been tested. For analysis of your opportunity contact us
- An enzyme hydrolysate of a protein:carbohydrate matrix becomes exceedingly sticky once processing water begins to be removed. Conventional drying requires dispersal of the product in up to 10 times the mass of already-dried product, then evaporation of the water. The consequence of this is that the final product has been exposed to up to 10 times the heat required to evaporate its initial water content, with potential for significant damage to protein properties. The CDM keeps drying material suspended in air, meaning the transient stickiness has no processing impact. By reducing the drying temperature below 80oC, formation of sticky materials is further reduced. Dryer throughput is not materially compromised at this lower operating temperature, but the rheological properties of the processed product are markedly better.
- Gracilaria chilensis is an agar-containing seaweed found in estuaries throughout the Southern hemisphere. When harvested, carefully washed and given a base-acid treatment, it can be dried to form a semi-refined agar, suitable for use in animal nutrition. CDM drying produces an SRA with 43-fold higher gel strength than a conventional alternative.
- Leaves from barley seedlings are valued for their presumed health-giving properties. Conventional hot-air drying can be managed to provide a stable product, but the solubility of cytoplasmic components is reduced, and cooked flavours are noticeable. When dried using the CDM, the product retains a fresh green colour, and when rehydrated, smells and tastes almost as if it is fresh - equivalent to a freeze-dried product. However, on exposure to light, the product bleaches to a pale cream colour. This shows that the drying process has had so little effect on the biochemistry of the tissue that Photosystem I of photosynthesis is still functional;
- When compared to conventionally-dried carrot, CDM-dried carrot had twice the available β-carotene content;
- Compared to conventionally-dried vital gluten, CDM-dried gluten had 30% higher specific water-binding capacity, and "set up" up to 50% quicker.
A range of other applications have been tested. For analysis of your opportunity contact us