Where is the homogenizer of the fresh milk production line?

Normally, the homogenizer on the fresh milk production line is placed in the upstream section, that is, before the final heating of the heat exchanger. Typically, in most pasteurization lines used to produce commercial milk, the homogenizer is placed after the first heat recovery.

In the production of the UHT fresh milk production line, the homogenizer is usually in the upstream section of the indirect heating system, while in the direct heating system is in the downstream section of the heating section, that is, on the sterile side after UHT treatment. Such a homogenizer requires a sterile design, with a sterile plunger seal, packaging, sterile condenser, and special sterile baffle. However, for indirect UHT systems, when dairy products with a fat content higher than 6-10% and/or increased protein content need to be processed, it is also required to place the homogenizer in the downstream zone, because the fat content and As the protein content increases, the fat clusters or (protein) aggregation under high-temperature treatment also increases. These ball clusters are broken up by a sterile homogenizer located in the downstream zone.

Full-flow homogenization or overall homogenization is the most commonly used form of homogenization of municipal milk and milk used to produce fermented milk products. Before homogenization, milk fats are standardized, and sometimes (for example in yogurt), fat-free dry matter is also standardized.

The partial homogeneity of the fresh milk production line means that the main part of the skimmed milk is not homogeneous, but only the cream containing a small amount of fat is homogenized. This homogeneous form is mainly used for pasteurized milk. The main reason is to reduce operating costs. Because only a small portion of the fluid flows through the homogenizer, the total energy consumption is reduced by 65%. When the product contains at least 0.2g of casein per gram of fat and the cream has a fat content of not more than 12%, a sufficiently good homogenization effect can be obtained. The hourly working capacity of a homogenizer used for partial homogenization can be calculated according to the following example.