CENTRIFUGAL SEPARATION AND SIEVING

1. Introduction Centrifugation is a process for the separation of heterogeneous mixtures of phases that differ from each other in their density. Accelerated separation is made possible by the effect of centrifugal forces, which may be many times stronger than earths gravity. Centrifuges are relatively expensive machines, both in capital expenditure and in the cost of operation (energy consumption, wear of rapidly moving parts, need for sturdy construction capable of resisting the very high forces and pressures). Notwithstanding their cost, centrifuges are used extensively in industry. The magnitude of the centrifugal force on an object of mass m moving at tangential speed v along a path with radius of curvature r is:

Where ac is the centrifugal acceleration. This force is also sometimes written in terms of the angular velocity of the object about the center of the circle: F = mr2 = mr (2 N/60)2 = m (0.011 rN2) r : radius of the path, m : angular velocity of the particle, 1/s N : rotational speed in revolutions per minute (rpm) Compared to the force of gravity (Fg) on the particle (Fg = mg), centrifugal acceleration (0.011 rN2) can be seen to have replaced gravitational acceleration (g). The relative centrifuge force (RCF) expressed in units of gravity (times gravity or g) is: RCF = m (0.011 rN2)/ m g = 0.011 rN2/g = 0.00112. r. N2 or RCF = (1.12 x 10-5) r N2 ( r in cm, N in rpm)

The separation of material at different densities can occur at a rate termed relative velocity between two phases:

D : diameter of the particles in the higher density phase N : rotational speed in revolutions per minute r : radius of the path p : density of the particles s : density of the solvent : viscosity of the solutions For liquid-liquid separation, the distance from the surface of separation between the two phases to the central axis can be calculated as:

A : heavy density liquid phase B : low density liquid phase. r1 : radius at the discharge pipe for the heavier liquid r2 : radius at the discharge pipe for the lighter liquid Sieving is a gravity-driven mechanical size separation process that is widely used in the food industry to remove fine particles from large ones. Standard sieve sizes range from 25 mm aperture down to about 0.6 mm aperture. There is a sufficient number of choices among woven wire sieves, the ratio for the opening size has been kept approximately constant from one sieve to the next. A normal series progresses as . If closer ratios are needed, the ratio of can be used. Standard Sieves

2. Objectives To become familiar with the centrifugation and sieving processes To estimate particle size distributions from sieve analysis

3. Materials and methods 3.1 Apparatus & Materials - Laboratory centrifuge - Sieving apparatus - Sieves - Balance - Test tubes - Raw milk

3.2 Procedures 3.2.1 Centrifugal separation 3.2.1.1 Transfer milk to 2/3 test tube capacity 3.2.1.2 Place the test tube in the holder of the centrifuge and close the cover. 3.2.1.3 Set the centrifuge to 3,000 rpm and turn it on for 10 min. 3.2.1.4 When the centrifuge comes to a complete stop, open the cover and take the test tubes out. 3.2.1.5 Measure the height of cream and skim milk and record the observations. 3.2.1.6 Repeat these steps using 5,000, 7,000, and 10,000 rpm. 3.2.2 Sieving analysis 3.2.2.1 Use the coning and quartering technique for sampling. 3.2.2.2 Use the screens provided in the lab. Make sure sieves are clean, if many particles are stuck in the openings try to poke them out using brush. 3.2.2.3 Prepare a stack of sieves. Sieves having larger opening sizes (lower numbers) are placed above the ones having smaller opening sizes (higher numbers). The last sieve is 45 m opening and a pan is placed under it to collect the portion of passing material. 3.2.2.4 Weigh all sieves and the pan separately. 3.2.2.5 Pour around 200 g of the test material to the stack of sieves from the top and place the cover, put the stack in the sieve shaker and fix the clamps, adjust the time on 10 minutes and get the shaker going. 3.2.2.6 Stop the sieve shaker and measure the mass of each sieve + retained test materials. 4. Expected results & Discussion 4.1 Centrifugal separation: Calculate RCF at different speeds of the centrifuge, given that the effective radius of the centrifuge is .cm. Discuss the effect of RCF on the completeness of separation. Plot the graphs in the following formats: a) the percentage frequency curve, b) the cumulative percentage of material passing (or the percentage less than a given size) versus size opening . You should use scatter-with-smooth-lines chart for these graphs. Use the graph (b) to report the percentage of particles with size smaller than 50, 70 90, 150, and 200 m; and the percentage of particle between these sizes.

4.2 Sieving analysis:

4.3 Calculate particle size using two equations provided in your lecture on size reduction.

5. Reports Your informal reports should include: Date and location of the work Names of persons doing the work Objectives Briefly describe the methods including facilities used in the experiment Data collected and calculations Interpretation of results (graphs, discussion)

6. References Barbosa-Cnovas, G.V.; Ma, L., and Barletta, B., 1997. Engineering Laboratory Manual. Technomic Pub. Singh, R.P., and Heldman, D.R., 2009. Introduction to Food Engineering, 4th Edition. Academic Press, Inc. San Diego, CA.

DATA SHEET

Sieve size

Size opening (m)

Mass of each sieve (g)

Sieve Mass + Sample mass (g)

Mass Retained (g)

Mass Retained (%)

Cumulative mass retained (g)

Cumulative percentage mass retained

Cumulative percentage passing

120 230 325 Pan

125 63 45

CALCULATION EXAMPLE 0 18 27 9 Total = 54

0 33.3 50.0 16.7 100

0 18.0 45.0 54.0

0 33.3 83.3 100.0

100.0 66.7 16.7 0.0

Total =