Author(s)

Emmanuel Baidhe, Julia Kigozi, Hussein Kivumbi Balimunsi

Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Makerere University Kampala, Kampala, Uganda.

The holding tube and heat exchangers are the most significant components in High-Temperature-Short-Time (HTST) pasteurization processes as they ensure that the system adheres to the set temperature and time conditions. The purpose of this study was to visualize the temperature and flow behavior in heat exchangers and the holding tube of the continuous pasteurizer. The pasteurizer consists of three heat exchangers (heating, regeneration, and cooling section) operating on a counter-current flow system. SolidWorks 2019 was used for both modeling and simulation. There was a significant increase (p < 0.05) in tube-side fluid temperature in the heating and regeneration section. A significant reduction (p < 0.05) in tube-side fluid temperature was also observed in the cooling section. There was no significant variation (p < 0.05) in tube-side and shell-side velocities along with the different passes for all heat exchangers. A significant pressure drop (p < 0.05) was observed with the tube-side and shell-side fluids for all heat exchangers. Simulation of flow in the holding tube revealed that the fluid had relatively uniform velocity (0.086 - 0.129 m/s) and temperature of 87.9°C, but with a reduction in fluid pressure. There are high-pressure drops at the U-bends than along the straight path in the holding tubes. The current design has the potential to facilitate heat transfer and maintain the predetermined holding temperature.

High-Temperature-Short-Time, Pasteurization, Holding Tube and Heat Exchangers, Simulation

Baidhe, E., Kigozi, J. and Balimunsi, H.K. (2022) Visualization of Temperature and Flow Behavior in a Continuous Pasteurizer Using Computation Fluid Dynamics. Open Access Library Journal, 9, 1-18. doi: 10.4236/oalib.1108888.