1366
FOOD TECHNOLOGY
Worldwide regulation of frying fats and oils
D
eep-fat frying is a complex
method of food preparation in
which many reactions take
place in the frying oil. resulting in
oxidative and hydrolytic degradation TIW ~/ •..... prq1tlTOd frw INFORM by 1Ja.UI
and polymerization of the oil. A num- Flm,OII<. t1/tit< U.s. FotNItIIId Drq _.
ber of studies carried out during the lion, ~.
past 50 years showed that thermally
......, tit< 1993AOCS_
oxidized oil can affect the growth of
test animals. On the other hand. addi- _.FI,._u._~t1/tIt<AOCS.
tional studies indicated that optimal
frying conditions cause no significant
change in the fatty acid composition
of frying oils and no toxicity in lest trol of frying fat quality and is
animals. Safety and other aspects of employed as a routine regulatory test
deep-fat frying technology were dis- in The Netherlands.
cussed at an Institute of Food Tech- Many laboratory tests have been
nologists symposium in 1990 (I). proposed for quality assessment of
frying oils (Table I). Also. a number
Frying oil quality of quick tests have become available.
Recognizing Ihal the quality of fried permitting inspectors and operators to
foods is affected by the quality of the screen oils easily at the fryer. These
frying fat, the German Society for Fat include the Oxifrit Test (redox indica-
Science (Deutsche Gesellschafl fur tor) and the Fritest (carbonyl com-
Feuwissenscnaft. DGF) organized two pounds) distributed by E. Merck,
symposia on frying fats and oils in the Darmstadt. Germany. and the Veri-Fry
19705 (2.3). Following the 1979 sym- quick tests available from Libra labo-
posium. the DGF proposed that polar ratories. Metuchen. New Jersey.
compounds be detennined as a com-
plement to the traditional organoleptic U.S. regulations
(sensory) evaluation of frying oil The Food and Drug Administration
quality. This method (4), involving (FDA) has not established specific reg-
chromatography on a silica gel col- ulations to control me quality of frying
umn, became a standard reference oils since it has not been determined
method in a number of European that frying oils used in deep-frying
countries concerned with possible operations may be injurious to health.
health risk to consumers from improp- However. frying oils are subject to con-
er or excessive use of fats and oils for trol under the general provisions of the
frying. Detennination of dimeric and Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act,
polymeric triglycerides (DPTG) by which states that a food is considered
gel permeation Chromatography (5) to be adulterated if it "contains any
also has become widely used for con- poisonous or deleterious substance
which may
render it inju-
rious to
Table 1
health" (Sec.
Laboratory quality control tests
402(8)( I)). 0'
Acid value Smoke point Epoxides if it "consists
in whole or in
Carbonyl value vtscosuy Iodine value part of filthy,
Cyclic fany acids Volatiles DPTG putrid or
Dielectric constant Anisidine value Refractive index decomposed
TQ(a1polar compounds Color TBA test substance, or
Fatly acid composition Free fany acids Diene value if it is other-
Peroxide value wise unfit for
food" [Sec.
INFORM. Vol. 4. 00.12 (Decembef 1993)
D.C, It 11 __ Oft G pR~OII
Mutbtg and E>q>osi·
402(a)(3)1. In addition, FDA's retail
food protection code (currently under
revision) contains a set of standards to
assure hygienic practices and adequate
operation and maintenance of equip-
ment in food establishments.
The U.S. Depanment of Agricul-
ture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspec-
tion Service's Meat and Poultry
Inspection Manual (6) contains some
general guidelines for frying meat and
poultry products. The USDA guide-
lines allow antioxidants and antifoam-
ing agents in frying fats. Large
amounts of sediment and free fatty
acid content in excess of 2% "are
usual indications that frying fats are
unwholesome and require recondition-
ing or replacement." The manual also
contains guidelines for cleanup of fry-
ing equipment. USDA recently initiat-
ed a program to reevaluate the health
risks from deep-fat frying.
Inquiries were made during
1989-19921035 U.S. cities and a1150
U.S. state health departments and food
control agencies to determine what
laws and regulations were available
for controlling the use of frying fats
and oils in restaurants and food pro-
cessing establishments. A total of 24
cities and 36 states responded. The
replies indicated mat there are no spe-
cific regulations in U.S. cities and
slates other than those assuring that
fats and oils used in food service
establishments are obtained from
approved sources and are not adulter-
ated. Many of the health departments
responded that there are no specific
regulations for frying fats except as
provided in Title 2 I of the Code of
Federal Regulations and the FDA
 1367

requires that deep-fat frying be carried

Table 2
SUrvey 01 trying tat and trled-tood ",gul.Uona:
out in accordance with good manufac-
list 01 other countries contaCfedO turing practice and comply with state
and territory food regulations. Solid
Algeria Hungary Peru fat for deep-fat frying should comply
Australia Iceland Philippines with the following: (a) moisture, not
Austria India Poland more than 3 g/kg; (b) free fatty acids,
Belgium Indonesia Portugal not more than I g/kg; (c) slip melting
Brazil Ireland Russia point. not less than 38"C and not more
Canada Israel Saudi Arabia than 49°C; (d) peroxide value. not
China Italy Singapore
more than 2 meq/kg; (e) gallates. net
China-Taiwan Japan South Africa
xceee more than 0.) g/kg; and (f) clean fla-
Colombia Spain
Costa Ria Kuwair Sweden vor and absence of objectionable odor.
Denmark Luxembourg Switzerland Liquid fat for deep frying should com-
England Malaysia Thailand ply with similar requirements for
Egypt Mexico Thnisia moisture. free fatty acids, peroxide
finland M""",,. Turkey value and gallate content. In addition.
france The Netherlands United Arab Emirates saturated fatty acid content should not
Oe...many New Zealand Uruguay exceed 500 g/kg of total fatty acids.
Hong Kong Norway Venezuela Fats for deep frying should not con-
Pakistan
tain mineral oil or more than 50 g/kg
of erucic acid.
The Victoria Health Department
pointed out that municipal councils are
Food Service Sanitation Manual of establishments. Additional informa- responsible for surveillance of food
1976. The San Francisco Health tion on conrrol of frying fats and oils premises. Frying oils are subject to col-
Department pointed OUI that although in these and several other countries is lection and analysis for iodine value.
cooking rats and oils are not addressed outlined below. saponification value, unsaponifiable
in the California Unifonn Retail Food Austria. The Austrian Codex AIi- matter. acid value and peroxide value
Facilities Law, inspectors check for mentarius (Austrian Foodstuffs Book). as well as qualitative tests for adulter-
color, sediments, excessive smoke and 3rd edition. Chapter B 30, stales that ants. Some local councils have begun
odors of oils used in cooking. and cor- frying fats should not exhibit an using Oxifrit Test kits 10 determine
rections are made through replace- unpleasant odor and taste, unaccept- degree of deterioration of frying fats
ment of the cooking oils. able appearance (dark color. foaming). used in kitchens and bakeries.
Several states reported an interest or high level of carbonaceous residue. Belgium. A royal decree issued in
in passing legislation or amending Also, frying fat should not have an 1974 defined quality standards for
regulations to require food establish- acid value greater than 2.5. smoke edible fats and oils. An additional
ments to inform customers of the type point under 170"C, total polar com- royal decree issued in 1978 authorized
of cooking oil used in food prepara- pounds above 27% or oxidized fall), additives in edible oils, including up
tion and the percentage of saturated acids insoluble in petroleum ether to 3 mg/kg of dimethylpolysiloxane in
fat present in the cooking oil. above I%. Frying fats should not be frying oils. Oils intended for frying
heated above 180"C. are required to be labeled "Oil for
Regulations in other countries Australia. The National Food Frying," and dimethylpolysiloxane. if
A survey also was carried out during Authority, established in August 1992. present. must be listed on me label. A
1990-1992 of regulations for frying is responsible for selling food stan- law (royal decree) issued in 1988 (7)
fats and oils and fried food in other dards that are enforced by the states forbids preparation of fried foods in
countries. Fifty-two countries were and territories under their own food frying fats heated above 180"e or
contacted (Table 2). Thirty-one coun- laws. Fats and oils for frying are not with a free fatty acid content above
tries responded. including J7 of 20 presently governed in detail by the 2.5%. DPTG above 10%, total polar
European countries. Austria. Belgium, 1987 Australian Food Standards compounds above 25%, viscosity
France, Hungary. Italy and Spain have Code. However, the code. which pre- greater than 37 mPa-sec at 50"C (food
specific laws. regulations or standards scribes standards for various foods fats) or 27 mPa-sec at 50"e (food oils)
for frying oils. Other countries sur- including frying oils. slates that edible or smoke point under no"e. Frying
veyed have no specific laws or regula- fats and oils used as frying oils may oils and fats may not contain more
tions for frying fats. although several contain sorbitans and polysorbates as than 2% linolenic acid. The law
coururies (Germany, The Netherlands. well as not more than 10 mg/kg of specifically forbids preparation of
Switzerland. Finland. Norway and 4imethylpolysiloxanc. fried foods in equipment not provided
Sweden) enforce measures for practi- Australian Defense Force Specifi- with temperature control.
cal control in restaurants and fast-food cation 5-5-2 (November 1984) France. A constitutional law in

INFORM, Vol. 4, 00.12 (December 1993)

1368
Table 3
Guidelines for analysis of Irylng tats In Finland
Sensory evaluation (smell, taste. color)
Toml polar compounds
Acid value
Smoke point
Fritesr
Oxifril Test
Food oil sensor
1905 empowered French authorities to
regulate food preparation and to speci-
fy conditions for analysis (8). A 1973
regulation specified that deep-frying
fats should nOI contain more than 2%
linolenic acid. Synthetic antioxidants
(butylated bydroxyamsote. butylated
hydroxy toluene, gallatcs) are permit-
ted, as are natural tocopherol concen-
trates in oils and fats intended for
industrial use (minimum 5-kg contain-
ers). Silicone additives are prohibited.
Decree No. 86-857 of July 18, 1986,
specifies that fats and oils with more
than 25% total polar compounds are
unfit for human consumption (8).
Germany. There are no specific
laws or regulations in Germany for
control of frying fats. However, the
recommendations resulting from the
two OGF symposia on frying fats
(2.3) generally are applied to control
of edible fats and oils and frying fats.
These recommendations were estab-
lished following reports of gastroin-
testinal distress after eating fried
foods. According to A. Seher of the
Federal Institute for Fat Research in
MUnster. an epidemiological study
was unable to link abused fats with
these episodes, but it revealed that
many restaurants were abusing fats,
particularly those frying meaty foods.
According to the 1973 OGF rec-
ommendations, used frying fats are
considered to be deteriorated if (a)
taste or flavor is unacceptable; (b) the
smoke point is below 170"C and the
content of oxidized fatty acids insolu-
ble in petroleum ether is 0.75% or
higher; or (c) the content of oxidized
fatty acids insoluble in petroleum
ether is higher than 1.0%. After devel-
opment of the method for determining
total polar compounds in 1979. the
INFORM, Vol. 4, 00.12 (December 1993)
FOOD TECHNOLOGY
Maximum 25%
Vegetable oils, 2,0
Solid fats. 2.5
Vegetable oils. minimum, ISO°C
Solid fats. minimum, 170ac
Vegetable oils, maximum 2 (scale 1-3)
Below 3 (scale 1-4)
Below 4 (scale 0-6)
DGF recommended allowing no more
than 27% total polar compounds in
food fats.
Hungary. There are no mandatory
regulations in Hungary for control of
frying fat quality. Standard No. MSz-
08-1907-87, valid as of Jan. 6. 1988,
recommends determination of total
polar compounds for estimation of fat
quality as follows: below 25%. accept-
able quality; between 25 and 30%, fry-
ing fat should be changed; and more
than 30%. frying fat is unusable.
The National Institute of Food
Hygiene and Nutrition has recom-
mended that iron and copper fryers
should not be used. frying tempera-
tures should be kept between 160 and
180"C, fat having a smoke point
below 180"C should be discarded
because it indicates deterioration, and
the surface-to-volume ratio of fryers
should be minimized. Sunflower oil
may be used for up to 8-10 hours of
frying if treated carefully. Corn oil
may be used for 10-13 hours. and lard
for 18-20 hours if treated carefully.
After frying, the oil should be filtered
and stored at a low temperature. Dete-
riorated frying oils should ncr be used
for human consumption or for animal
feed.
Israel. Although Israel has no spe-
cific regulations for cooking and fry-
ing oils, guidelines published by the
Swedish National Food Administra-
tion (9) are recommended for applica-
tion by Food Control Administration
inspectors. Israel's Food Control
Administration submitted a request to
the Standards Institution of Israel in
1992 that a requirement for total polar
compounds be added to the vegetable
oil standard, but the request was
rejected.
Italy. The Ministry of Health issued
a regulation on Jan. 1, 1991. for fats
and oils used for frying "to prevent
possible risks to consumers from
improper or excessive use of fats for
frying." The regulation specifies the
following: (a) use only those oils and
fats for frying that are resistant to
heat: (b) ovoid frying temperatures
above 180"C; (c) total polar com-
pounds should not be more than 25
g/IOO g, (d) prepare the food to be
fried properly. avoiding as much as
possible the presence of water and the
addition of salt and spices, which
accelerate changes in the frying fats:
(e) allow excess oil to drain from the
food after frying to avoid absorption
of excessive oil by the food; (f)
change the oil frequently; check the
quality of the oil or fat during frying;
do not use the oil too long as indicated
by darkened color. viscosity and ten-
dency to smoke; (g) filter the oil if it
will be reused and clean the filter and
fryer; charred crust, viscous oily
residue, or old oil will accelerate alter-
ation of the oil; (h) avoid "recondi-
tioning" the oil (addition of fresh oil);
fresh oil is altered rapidly in contact
with used oil; and (i) protect the fry-
ing oils and fats from light.
Japan. There are no formal regu-
lations in Japan controlling the quali-
ty of frying oils. However, with
regard 10 food establishments. sever-
al guidelines are available for deter-
mining when to discard frying oils:
(a) if the smoke point is less than
l70"C, (b) if the acid value is more
than 2.5 and (c) if the carbonyl value
is more than 50.
Luxembourg. There are no specific
regulations for frying fats in Luxem-
bourg. However, the general regula-
tions in force for all foods also apply
to frying fats. For practical control in
food establishments that prepare fried
foods, the food inspector uses E.
Merck's Fritesr. If the Fritest is posi-
tive. then the frying fat is checked for
free fatly acids. total polar com-
pounds. and taste, color. odor and
appearance.
The Netherlands. Food laws in The
Netherlands are enforced by 16 food
inspection services, each covering an
inspection area of about one million
inhabitants. Inspectors sample frying

oil or fat in restaurants, snack bars,
fish shops, etc. Samples are brought to
the laboratory where they are checked
for odor, taste, acid value and DPTG
content. The frying fat or oil is "unfit
for human consumption" if the acid
value is higher than 4.5 and/or the
DPTG content is higher than 16%.
Portugal. There are no specific
regulations for frying fats and oils in
Portugal. However, the Ministry of
Agriculture's Food Quality Institute
examines frying and cooking oils for
color and odor and by E. Merck's
Fritest and Oxifrit Test and Libra Lab-
oratories' Veri-Fry quick test. If posi-
tive, the oils are analyzed for content
of total polar compounds.
Scandinavian countries. The Scan-
dinavian countries have no specific
laws or regulations applicable to fry-
ing fats. General regulations applica-
ble to edible fats and oils apply to fry-
ing fats. Norway's laws require foods
to be free of pollutants and toxic sub-
stances, and specify that only toco-
pherols and citric acid may be added
as antioxidants to fats and oils. For
practical control in restaurants and
fast-food establishments, Norwegian
inspectors may use organoleptic eval-
uation or the Fritest. In Sweden, the
Oxifrit Test is used as a quick test, and
the method for total polar compounds
is used as a reference method.
In Finland, fats are considered
spoiled when evaluation of color, odor
and taste is less than I (on a scale of I
to 5), or when that acid value is
greater than 2.5 and the smoke point is
less than 170°C (10). Vegetable oils
are spoiled when evaluation of color,
odor and taste is less than I, or the
Fritest is greater man 2, the acid value
is greater than 2 and the smoke point
is below 180°C; or the iodine value
decrease (compared to that of the
unused oil) is greater than 16, the acid
value is more than 2, and the smoke
point is below 180°C. These guide-
lines have been in use since 1976.
In 1991, the National Food Admin-
istration of Finland issued a circular
letter to be observed by all public
health boards in the country outlining
procedures for sampling and analysis
of frying fats. Test criteria are shown
in Table 3.
In addition, information is provid-
1369
Table 4
Swedish National Food Administration's guidelines for deep-fat frying
I. Allthe fat in the deep-fat fryer must be changed before it starts smoking or foaming.
Use e.g., Food Oil Sensor or Oxifrit Test to indicate when it is time to change.
2. Strain the fat and clean the fryer once a day. Rinse carefully after cleaning. Solid
material in the fat and detergent residues accelerate breakdown of the fat. Store
strained fats at room temperature or at lower temperatures in a covered stainless-steel
vessel. If iron pots are used, they should be rinsed only with hOIwater. Detergents
remove the protective film of polymerized fat that builds up during use.
3. The frying temperature should be 160-180°C (320-356°F). At lower temperatures,
the product absorbs more fat. At higher temperatures, the fat deteriorates quicker.
4. Use fat thai is specially intended for frying.
5. Avoid salting or seasoning the fried food over the fryer. Salt or seasoning can acceler-
ate breakdown of the fat.
6. Lower the temperature when nor frying and protect the fat from light.
7. The fryer should have no iron, copper or brass pans that come in contact with the
heated fat.
8. Keep a constant level of fat in the fryer. Fry a little at a time to keep the temperature
as even as possible. Prefry when large amounts are to be prepared.
9. Use a separate fryer, if possible, for frying potatoes. The fat deteriorates more rapidly
when meat or fish is fried than when only potatoes are fried.
Caution: Do not overheat. If the fat temperature rises above 300°C (572°F), the far may
start to bum.
ed on choice of kettle material (stain- program approved by control officials.
less steel is recommended) and proper The NFA has recommended use of me
use and cleaning of the frying equip- Oxifrit Test as part of compulsory
ment. Lastly, an inspection form is quality control programs. In Sweden,
presented (Figure 1) to be filled out by antifoam agents, such as silicones, are
the health inspector and provided to not permitted in frying oils because
the food laboratory. they mask the natural foaming in dete-
The Swedish National Food riorated oils.
Administration (NFA) prepared a doc- Spain. Royal decrees of 1981 and
ument in 1989 presenting advice and 1983 regulate the transportation, pro-
guidelines on handling frying fats. A cessing and commerce of edible fats
summary of the NFA guidelines is and oils but are not applicable to fry-
shown in Table 4. An English edition ing. However, a recent decree protect-
was issued in June 1990 (9). Its pur- ing consumers (11) specifies that fry-
pose is to encourage employees in ing oils and fats must not contain for-
food establishments to prepare high- eign compounds, must contain less
quality fried food. The NFA recom- than 25% total polar compounds,
mends use of the Oxifrit Test as a should satisfy sensory evaluations,
quick test to be used by kitchen staff must not alter the quality of the fried
or by local food control inspectors. food and must not be sold for subse-
According to Food Control Ordinance quent use in preparing food products
SLV FS 1990:10, food producers must after use in preparing fried food.
have some form of quality control Switzerland. Food control is car-
INFORM. Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)
1370
INSPECTION
(For The Food Laboratory, To Be Filled Out By The Health Inspector)
No. and Date
Amount of fat in kenle
Fat totally renewed, date
How often will the fat be renewed totally
Criteria for total removal (except time)
How long daily will the fat be kept hot .........
At the time of sampling, how long kept hot.
Fat temperature, reported
Filtering and storage of the fat
What will be fried just now
What else will be fried
Data of the kettle
Cleaning of the kettle, last (when)
How was kettle cleaned .
Sensory evaluation of the fried food:
Taste Smell
Observations on the sJXIt:
Overall cleanliness
Smoke Ventilation
Rgure 1. Rnnlsh Inspection form
ried out by the individual member
states (cantons) of the Swiss confeder-
ation. The basic food legislation is
contained in the federal law of 1905
(12). A 1936 ordinance deals with
labeling and advertising of food and
food additives, as well as investigation
and inspection of food establishments.
Laboratories of the large cantons are
responsible for food control in each
territory.
The Swiss Food Ordinance controls
frying oils and fats in restaurants and
catering facilities and gives guidelines
INFORM, Val. 4, nc.tz (December 1993)
FOOD TECHNOLOGY
FORM - FINLAND NATIONAL FOOD ADMINISTRATION
.
Added daily ..
.
..
..
measured ..
..
.
..
..
.................................Color .
.
..
for food preparation and sale. The Fritest. If positive, the oil is checked
Swiss Public Health Office has issued a in the laboratory for level of total
list of permitted additives and maxi- polar compounds. The OGF recom-
mum levels in foods, including coloring men dation that frying oils should not
agents, antioxidants and emulsifiers contain more than 27% total polar
allowed in food fats and oils (these compounds is generally followed by
additives do not improve frying perfor- food control officials.
mance and are not used in frying oils). A frying oil is considered deterio-
Silicone additives are forbidden. rated if odor and taste are objection-
Food inspectors check frying oils able; or if odor and taste are not clear-
for odor, taste, color and smoking and ly objectionable but smoke point is
observe the state of hygiene in food less than l70"C and total polar com-
establishments. Suspect frying oil pounds are greater than 21 %; or if
quality is checked on the spot by the odor and taste are not clearly objec-
 1371

uonabte but total polar compounds
exceed 27%. These criteria are based
on the assumption that a careful, expe-
rienced cook pays attention not only
to the quality of the frying oils, but
also to the hygiene of the kitchen. If a
frying oil does not adhere to the rec-
ommendations, the owner of a "clean"
establishment will be warned to take
care of the frying oil in use. The
owner of a "dirty" establishment will
be asked to improve conditions as
well as the quality of the frying oil.
Formal laws and regulations for
control of frying fat quality have been
adopted by only a few countries.
However, several other countries
employ practical guidelines and test
procedures to control the quality of
frying fats and fried foods. In addi-
tion, there is increasing awareness that
good frying practice and proper con-
trol of frying fats improve the quality
and acceptability of fried foods. Use
of guidelines for handling frying fats
and on-site tests to check fat quality
are useful tools for overall food sani-
tation and quality control programs
worldwide.
References
I. Food Technol, 45(2):67 (1991).
2. Fette Seifen Anstrichm. 75:49
(1973).
3. Fette Seifen Anstrichm, Special
Issue 81 :493 (1979).
4. Official Methods and Recom-
mended Practices of the Ameri-
can Oil Chemists' Society,
Method Cd 20-91, American Oil
Chemists' Society, Champaign,
Illinois, 1992.
5. Ibid., Method Cd 22-91 (92),
American Oil Chemists' Society,
Champaign, Illinois, 1992.
6. Meat and Poultry Inspection
Manual. Food Safety and Inspec-
tion Service, U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Washington D.C.,
Part 18. p. 154, March 1987.
7. Belgian State J. 20:1544 (1988);
Rev. Franc. Corps Gras 38:224
(1991).
8. J. Officiet de fa Republic Fran-
caise 118 (170): July 24.1986, p.
9126.
9. General Advice on Handling Fry-
ing Fats (SLV FS 1990:2), Nation-
al Food Administration. Box 622,
S-751 26. Uppsala, Sweden.
10. Fette Setfen Anstrichm. 81:551
(1979).
II. Quality Standard for Heated Fats
and Oils, Official State Bull.
(Spain) No. 26. p. 2665. Jan. 31,
1989.
12. Public Health in Europe 28,
Food Safety Services, 2nd edn., p.
177, WHO Regional Office for
Europe, World Health Organiza-
tion, Copenhagen. Denmark,
1988. •

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INFORM. Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)

1372
Using nitrogen to stabilize soybean oil
During the early I960s, it could be
stated that "the use of nitrogen to
protect a product against oxidative
rancidity during manufacture is an
art which has been only sparsely
practiced" (I). However. the emer-
gence of soybean oil as the premier
edible oil in the United States and
the world was based in part on the
use of nitrogen to protect the oil
from oxidative deterioration. Early
research (2) indicated the effect of
oxygen on soybean oil stability
(Table I).
The conditions of exposure
included 48 hours of storage under
ultraviolet light as well as four
weeks' storage in the dark at room
temperature. This data emphasized
the necessity to protect the oils from
manufacturer-to-consumer use and
illustrated the relationship of temper-
ature and conditions of storage.
Development of peroxides in soy-
Table 1
Effect of oxygen on soybean 011 stability
Conditions or air exposure
Sample ·c
1 -"'
2 38
3 94
4 121 3.00
Q Cooling lime: b nonposUle
Table 2
Conditions tor plant storage test on refined, bktached, soybean 011 (Reference 4)
Conditions
Oil temperature
-range
-average
Avemge02
content of tank heads pace
Peroxide value: (meqt'kg)
-initial
-final
INFORM. Vol. 4. rc.tz (December 1993)
FOOD TECHNOLOGY
This article is based on a pnsenlalion by Timothy L.
MOII,"s. Food QlItJlity and Safety Research, National
Cenler for Agricultural UtiliZOl;on Research. A.gric.,}-
tIIrt! Research Servict', U.s.lhponnrelU of Agriculn.n.
1815 N. University SI., Peoria, IL 61604. at tM Pad:
A.limenJoirr '93 Conjnrllce held IIlM 22-24. /993. in
Chicago. InjomtQliOlf on 1M price and co1lU1Il of 1M
full proceedings of 'he conference is available from
illnovation Expositions, 3 Intkpelldettce Way. Prince-
lOIf. NJ 0854() (fax.: 609-520-8989).
bean oil can result in rancid and storage container. The effect of
other off-flavors at peroxide values increased temperature on peroxide
as low as 2 milliequivalent of perox- formation also was noted.
ide per 1.000 grams of oil (meq/kg) Later studies by Going (4)
(3). Sample I, fully protected from showed the beneficial impact of
the atmosphere, showed no oxidation nitrogen to maintain soybean oil
either under normal or accelerated quality during storage. Refined
storage. Other samples increased in bleached soybean oil (1.5 million lb)
peroxides in proportion to the was thoroughly mixed in a nitrogen-
amount of oxygen present in the blanketed tank, after which one-half
was moved to an air-blanketed tank.
Storage conditions are given in Table
2. The two half-filled tanks-one
blanketed with air, the other with
nitrogen-were stored at ambient
conditions for five months. after
Peroxidevalue which samples were hydrogenated.
48hrUV 4wk
H~ Zero @ 32.8°C @ 25°C
deodorized and then evaluated for
flavor stability by taste panel proce-
0.10 «1.10 <0.10 dures.
o 0.10 19.70 15.00 Flavor stability also was deter-
1.50 0.57 25.10 18.50 mined on the pilot-plant-produced
0.72 27.50 19.60 shortening stock made from the two
lots of stored oil. The plant-scale
samples were placed in storage
beginning in mid-summer and thus
were exposed to the highest tempera-
tures during the early part of the
storage test. Peroxide development
was greatest during the first half of
Nitrogen Air the test.
The effects of nitrogen and air
6O-73 F Q
64-78 F
Q
storage conditions. as they affect the
(15.6-33.9"C) ( 17.8-30.6"C) quality of finished deodorized oils,
74.9°F 75.O"F are shown in Figure I. where flavor
(23.9 C)
Q
(23.9"C) score is plotted against days of
accelerated storage at 60°C. As
1.4% ,,% freshly deodorized oils. all experi-
mental samples-irrespective of
1.0 1.0
1.5 5.0
plant storage or processing condi-
tions-were blanketed with air.
These results indicated that even low
 1373

• •
St." S ••• Ih ... "
1I11tt" In • I 51 SI,," 5 ... th IIHI
1I11'IU ['.' .• LSI

·•• ,
~ •
• Sllnli ~ 8nlll
_I' ••
."~"
5.11
St".. 5 ... lIn H'"
III I" • 511

• 2 1 4 S
D"S AI" It 14'·'
Ii

Figure 1. ENKt ol.lr vs. nitrogen stonge of re'IMd, tMeached oil on the qu.lJty 01 deodoriud IIniahed products: (A) soybean salad 011;
(8) soybean 011shortening; Ie) renned, ble.ched, deodorized, hydrogenllted aoybe.n 011(IV 75) (Reference 4).

levels of oxidation products that Vacuum Pressure

form while soybean oil is held in
Rupture Disc ,,'R.li.f Val..
bulk storage have a deleterious effect
on shelf life. 01 ~ .
Oxidation has a most detrimental
...----,-!J<..J...." Folllnl.t
effect on the quality of finished oils Nitrogen Plessur.'y <«
held in storage. Thus. exclusion of R'gulatOi
oxygen during storage is highly
desirable and is a practical method
for preventing oil quality deteriora-
tion (4-7). The common procedure Veg.tabl. Oil
involves replacing oxygen with Storage Tank
nitrogen. Finished oil delivered from
the deodorizer to the storage tank is
r>,
under a complete nitrogen blanket. liquid
Nitrogen can be supplied from a lank NitlOgen
of liquid nitrogen or from commer- Storage Nitrogen
cially available nitrogen generators.
A simple nitrogen blanketing system [,ap",tar
is shown in Figure 2. FOil Outl.t
The nitrogen blanket is main-
tained by a pressure system con- Figure 2. Simple nitrogen blanketing system (Aelerenee 6)
trolled by a regulator. As the tank is
NilrOlen Pressure Relulalor , R ,. , , ,
filled with oil, the pressure builds Pressure

- c,,... aeuum e Ie I we
From \.
and the gas is vented to the atmo- \.., .....'Reli ef VaIn
sphere. Conversely. as oil is pumped
from the tank. the pressure drops and
replacement gas enters the tank.
Nitrogen blanketing can be
Nilrolen
Source LJ( LJI -
Oil Inlet

applied to multi-tank arrangements

(Figure 3). The design is similar to Velellble Veillable Veletable
single-lank systems and has the Oil Oil Oil
advantage of being less wasteful of Slorlle StOrlie StOllle
nitrogen because as one tank is emp- Tank Tan. Tank
tied. the gas can be displaced to
another. Oil O. 11., t Ih.l .... 2 MD. 3

When oil is transferred from tank

to tank, the inert gas is merely
exchanged. Nitrogen pressures
such systems are kepi at 1-15 psi
in
.A -.. ~ g
during filling or emptying: the pres- Figure 3. Multi-tank nltrogan blankel1ng -val.m (Ral.rene. 6)

INFORM, Vol. 4, 1'10.12 (December 1993)

 1374

FOOD TECHNOLOGY

Table 3
SUmmary of treatment areas wit ...nitrogen to protect edible oils (~",.nc.1)

Area of Method of
treatment introducing Approximate
nitrogen Classification usage (cubic reet)

Manufacturing-pumping In-line between cooler and Sparging Approx. 0.125 cf/gal

from deodorizer storage tank

Bulk oil storage From speger directly Blanketing Enough 10 maintain

into headspace positive pressure

Riling of tank cars In-line between storage Sparjing 1,000 cubic feet per
and tank car 8,OOO-galloncar

Tank car or truck Into headspace of car Blanketing Undetennined

after mling

Customer's plant Sparging in-line during Sparging Approx. 0.125 cf/gal

pumping from pumping
tank car to oil
storage

Storage in tanks Directly into headspace Blanketing Enough to maintain

plus nitrogen from positive pressure
sparge

Pumping from storage Sparging in-line during Sparging Approx. 0.125 cf/gal
to filler or header pumping

Filler bowl or header Entrance into closed Blanketing Maintain slight positive
filler bowl or pressure
beeder

Closing or capping Shroud or purge technique Blanketing or Undetennined

machine purging

sures vary, but relief valves are set 10 techniques for protecting edible soy- (1.6,7). Sparging represents a practi-
release at pressures above 15 psi. bean oil during truck and rail car cal mel hod for protecting finished
Sparging and nitrogen blanketing shipments have been reviewed oils from oxidative deterioration dur-
ing shipment from refinery to desti-
nation. The technique is particularly
Table 4 useful when finished oils are loaded
Composition and packaging 01 soybean .alad/co~lng 011. into lank cars and trucks. The princi-
ple involved is saturation of the oil
Cal Fatty acid (% by GLC)!, with nitrogen while the oil is com-
Oila IV C16:0 C18:0 C18:1 C18:2 CI8:J Headspace gas pletely free of air and oxygen. i.e.,
after deodorization. A sparger intro-
I_Bt"" 13.5.4 9.2 4.7 24.0 54.2 8.0 N:zIw.4%~ duces tiny bubbles of nitrogen into
U·BHt"" 116.3 10.0 6.1 38.4 41.3 4.1 Air
UI-BHt"" 11.5.2 the oil stream; as the saturated oil
9.9 6.2 38.8 40.6 4.4 Air
IV-BW 110.7 8.4 5.J 48.0 34.8 J.5 N:zfO.O% O2 ralls into the tank car or truck, the
V-BH 111..5 110.2 5.7 43.2 37.0 J.9 N,!2.1% 0, effusing gas sweeps the headspace
VI·C 13.5.6 10.0 4.9 23.8 53.4 8.7 Air and thus removes most of the air and
VU-C< t38.1 t9.3 4.' 29.4 55.2 9.• Air oxygen from the vessel (6). A nitro-
VDJ-CW' 109.6 8.4 5.• 48.J 34.4 3.3 N2I'O.0% o, gen gas sparger and blanketing sys-
tem fer loading lank cars and trucks
a B_ baltic,C...... and H_ hydmgt:lLllted oil; bOle_ ps-liquid dIromatogJaphy: clabelindiauedu.mplc is illustrated in Figure 4. Nitrogen
0DIIIaincd • mi~tun: of lInllo~idanu(RcfeftOCe J) blanketing and sparging techniques

INFORM, Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)

 1375

have many other applications in pro- NlnOGEN ~ussun

tecting oil quality. A summary is 1I0SE CONNECTION

given in Table 3.
A study of the impact of the use
of nitrogen in consumer packages on
stability of soybean oils was com-
pleted by Evans et ot. (3). Eight lots
of commercially processed soybean
salad oils, representative of those
available 10 U.S. consumers, were S~""GfD •
obtained for the study. Each lot con- ~'ODUCT OUT ~/:;. o'~'

sisted of 20-40 samples packaged in .;-!'!t.' :.!.... .. ::- ....

screw-cap cans and bottles.
Headspace gas analysis (8) A
showed that air, nitrogen (0.0% oxy-
gen) and nitrogen containing low
levels of oxygen were used 10 pack- V ... CUUM

age the experimental samples. All

samples were stored in the dark at 0"
fEED
two temperatures {25.6°C (78 F) and
D

37.8DC (lOODF»), and flavor evalua-

tions were conducted by a 20-mem-
ber taste panel (9).
HOlD ' ...NII: ..
Composition of the oil and infor- V",CUUM COOLER
NITROGEN (3)
mation concerning packaging, i.e .. 100% U VOLUME
type of container and headspace gas ...,nox. l00e CU. rr.
analysis, are given in Table 4. Iodine
values varied from 110 to 138,
linoleate content ranged from 34 to
NIT.OGEI'< III
55%. and linolenate content ranged O'U ...lING CONDITIONS
from 3.3 to 9.6%. The oils used in all TO 'STORAGE Oil TO l ...NII: C....
the long-term storage study were ...00 IOO'!r. n VOLUMf ...00 110.1U'!r. IY VOWME If
FIlliNG DIRECTLY INTO C....
evaluated in accelerated storage
tests. Results of flavor and oxidative B
stability evaluations are given in
Figure 4. (A) Diagram of sparger for Introducing nitroQln Into 011being pumped through
Table 5. Included are initial evalua- • pipeline for loading tank ClT8 and trucks; (8) Points (1,2,3) 01 nitrogen addition to pro-
tions (no storage) directly from the teet deodorized oil
package and after four days of stor-
age at 60 C in a cork-stoppered clear
D
effects of nitrogen packaging on Flavor Sample IV-BH (nitrogen-packed)
bottle (two-thirds full) held in a stability during long-term storage are only showed a decline of approxi-
forced air draft oven. A flavor score evident from Figures 5 and 6. mately one flavor score unit over
of 6 is the minimum acceptable score
in these sensory evaluations. Table 5
Figure 5 shows the effects of Evaluation 01 salad oils (Reference 3)
nitrogen (sample IV-BH, Table 4) vs.
air (sample lll-BH, Table 4) packag- Initial Oils aged 4 days
ing on the flavor deterioration of flavor at 60 e
0
AOMbpV
hydrogenated-winterized soybean Oiltl score Flavor score PV' after 8 h
oils stored in the original containers I_Bt: 7.0 5.3 0.6 2.3
at 25.6°C (78°F) and 37.8°C (100°F) U-BHt: 8.6 6.8 0.4 1.3
for one year. The aged samples were U1-BH':" 7.5 6.3 0.2 3.1
compared against controls held at IV-BW 7.6 6.9 1.4 2.2
-17 .8°C (0° F). The control oils V-BH 7.8 5.6 0.3 1.0
showed no changes in flavor score VI-C 8.1 6.2 1.0 6.5
over the one-year test period. VlI-O" 6.1 5.B 1.4 11.1
The initial flavor scores for the nitro- VU1-CW 7.9 7.5 0.5 1.3
gen-protected sample ranged from 7.1
/I B. bottle. C ~can and H .. hydrosennled DB; b PV _ pero~jdo valut$. AOM ""live oxygen melOOd: C label
to 8.0, and the air-packaged sample g

indicllCd Mmple comained .. mi~lUre or.mioxidanlS

ranged from 7.5 to 8.2. The beneficial

INFORM. Vol. 4, no.12 (December 1993)

1376

FOOD TECHNOLOGY

I one-year storage at both 78"F and

- ,-...... ,--
"""__ II·.·HO ...... lOO"F(25.6"C and 37.8"C). By con-
"':~----""
-, ~- ..:~_
.. _ .. 11°F trast, sample W-BH dropped to a fla-
...... --------
1
.......... vor score of 6 in approximately 18
weeks at 78°F (25.6°C), whereas
........ lIitl'llI
equivalent deterioration occurred in
....... -.._- ..
........ 100°F

------ less than six weeks at 100°F

(37.8"C). This series of curves con-

• .'I.::?..l!~
....
trasts the storage stability of a fully
protected oil (containing antioxidant.
metal inacrivator and nitrogen pack-
, \ II,oF
Ail
aging) with that of an oil bottled
with air in the heads pace. Hydro-

, 12
Agurw 5. Effect 01 nltrooen PKkaglng com~rwd with elr PKkaglng
hydrooeneted-Wlnlerh:ed lIOybeen 011stored lor one year
I -
..
genation alone, without added
24 31
antioxidant, metal scavengers and
nitrogen packaging, is not sufficient
Inks SI,''I' to ensure adequate shelf life of soy-
on '''vor .core' of bean oil, particularly at elevated
storage temperatures.
The storage stability of IWO types
of soybean oils packaged in screw-
cap tin cans is depicted in Figure 6.
where loss of Flavor score at 78"F
and IOO"F (25.6°C and 37.8 C) is D

.
j
, plotted against storage lime. Sample
VIII·CH was a hydrogenated-win-
terized oil that contained amioxt-
darns and was packaged under nitro-
gen. whereas sample VI-C was unhy-
drogenated, contained no antioxi-
• dants and was packaged under air.
Oil VIII-CH showed acceptable stor-
age stability, although it has less sta-
bility than the same type of oil pack-
aged in a glass boule (Figure 5).
o 12 24 36 41 Data presented in the top curve in
Wnh SI.rall Figure 7 suggested that an oil pack-
Figure 6. FI....or del.rlor.tlon 01 soybean oils stored In cans (C) at two temperwtures. aged in screw-cap tin cans and pro-
Semple ynl-CH hydrogenated-Wlnt.rlzed 011In gallon tins, nltrooen In the headSpacH;
Sempl. YI-C, unhydrogenat.d 011In gilion tins with air In the h.adspltCe (Aeterence 3)
tected with nitrogen was equivalent
in quality, for at least a year, to an oil
packaged in bottles under nitrogen, if
.r---------------------------,
I""..~~..
the storage temperature was no high-
er than 78°F (25.6°C). At a storage
temperature of 100°F (37.8"C), oil in
1
\
\
, _...
.. .. .. .. ..
cans (Figure 6) appeared somewhat
.. \\ '...... .......... D.D IUtn
less stable than oil in bottles (Figure
_ ............ -...... 5), but such an observation may be
oX 6 \,
,~ "'\
.~
..--- ..-- ........-----.mBH

-"
related to differences in the closures
: used \0 seal the containers .
... 5
.!! '\.
,". '.

_._._._._._
"--

~.: Oln~ ll, 1M

Oxygen in the beedspace of bot-
tied soybean oil greatly affects t.he
...... 8 storage stability as shown in Figure
• ...- ------------ A'
2' D 1M 7. As the oxygen content of the
headspace gas increases, i.e., IV-BH
,L------,,~2------'27.------~,~,------1.,.-----~ < V-BH < ]J-BH. the flavor scores of
the hydrogenated-winterized oils
Wnks Stmu @' 100 0

decreased.
Figura 7. F.....or detarforwtlon of soyb.an oils stored In glass boU .. s with different lewis An unhydrogenated oil, I-B, pro-
01 oxygen In the haadsptlC •. s.mpn IY·BH, Y·BH.nd II-BH, hydrooenat.d-wlntet1Hd
oIla; SemJ* I-B, unhydrogaMted 011(Relerenea 3)
tected with antioxidant, but with

INFORM. Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)

 1377

fonnation is gradual and at a uniform

Table 6
Ravor stability of soybean oils packaged In glass and PVC with nitrogen
rate. Nitrogen sparging and blanket-
In the headspace ing and, hence, exclusion of oxygen
from and over the liquid, also reduce
Flavor intensity scorese the rate of accelerated oxidation, or
Months@ Clear-glass packaging PVC packaging the secondary phase.
25°C SDO USDO USDO SDO The benefits of nitrogen as a pro-
tective measure are utilized widely
4 7.1 (2.,./, 7.0 (2.3) in the fats and oils industry and
4 7.3 (1.0) 7.2 (1.1) many other industries.
6 5.7 (13.9) 5.1 (33.6)
6 7.2 (6.0) 7.0 (8.2)
9 5.8 (19.0) 6.2 (11.5)
9 5.7 (21.2) 5.8 (33.7) References
12 3,Sd (6.2) 6.2C (6.0)
12 5.3 (48.0) 5.2 (53.0) I. Air Reduction Sales Co., Tech-
nical Data and Process Bulletin,
a SigniflCam differmc." .tthe 1'1. level W,,", noted in the trials indicated; values with diffcnmlsupel'!ol:rip' !ellcn; Treatment and Protection of
an. ,ignificamly dlffe",ot; b values in parenthcse, IUl! pcro~11k valu." allhe limc of lesliog. Edible Fats and Oils To Pre-
serve Quality and Increase Stor-
age Life, Air Reduction Sales
Co., Madison, Wisconsin, 1961,
incomplete nitrogen protection (2% and polyvinylchloride (PVC) bcules pp.I-16.
oxygen), deteriorated to a flavor and sparged with nitrogen for I min, 2. Bayes, A.L.. Food Tech. 4:151
score of 5.0 after 18 weeks of stor- then sealed and aged at 25°C for 4, (1950).
age at 100°F (37.8"C). Even so, its 6, 9 and 12 months. Samples were 3. Evans, C.O .• G.R. List, H.A.
stability was greater than that of an taken at the end of each storage peri- Moser and J.C. Cowan, J. Am.
air-packaged sample of hydrogenat- od for flavor evaluation by a taste Oil Chern. Soc. 50:218 (1973).
ed oil (II-BH). After several months panel. The results of these evalua- 4. Going, L.H., Ibid. 45:632
storage. flavor deterioration occurred tions are presented in Table 6. No (1968).
with both hydrogenated and unhy- significant difference was found in 5. Eselgroth, T.W., Food Eng.
drogenated samples unless they were the sensory evaluation of the oils 23.72 (1951).
protected with nitrogen. The aged in the tong-term ambient tem- 6. Wright. L.M .. Ibid. 53:408
improvement in storage life offered perature tests regardless of the pack- (1976).
by 100% nitrogen (0% oxygen) over aging material used for bottling. 7. List, G.R., and O.R. Erickson, in
98% nitrogen (2% oxygen) was except for the 12-month storage test Bailey's Industrial Oil and Fat
clearly indicated. for soybean oil in clear glass. This Products, Vol. 3. edited by TH.
A recent study compared the sample was given an unusually low Applewhite, John Wiley & Sons,
effects of light, temperature and flavor score. and the result may be New York, New York, 1985. pp.
nitrogen sparging on the stability of considered atypical. In these studies. 273-309.
soybean oils and hydrogenated soy- hydrogenated-winterized soybean 8. Evans. C.O .• and E. Selke. J.
bean oils in plastic and glass con- oil and soybean oil showed no differ- Am. Oil Chern. Soc. 49:106
tainers (10.). Prior research demon- ences in oil deterioration between (1972).
strated that the most effective meth- glass and PVC packaging. Oils pack- 9. Warner, K .. in Analysis of Fats.
ods of maintaining the quality of liq- aged with nitrogen in the headspace Oils and Lipoproteins, edited by
uid soybean oil was the use of amber in PVC bottles had equivalent flavor E.G. Perkins. American Oil
glass containers to reduce light expo- stability compared to oils packaged Chemists' Society, Champaign,
sure and nitrogen packaging to mini- in a similar manner in glass bottles. Illinois, 1991, pp. 344-385.
mize the oxidation of the oil (3). The conclusion was that PVC bottles 10. Warner, K., and TL. Mounts. J.
Properties. such as oxygen perme- were acceptable alternatives to pack- Am. Oil Chern. Soc. 61 :548
ability, impact resistance, clarity and aging oils in clear glass. The results (1984).
flavor transmission, from the bottle of this research had a significant 11. Logsett, R., and D.E. Parson,
material to the food were considered impact on the edible oil industry, Ibid. 53:45A (1976). •
by other researchers (II). which in 1985 converted all con-
Conventional wisdom at the time sumer soybean oils to translucent
of the study was that the oxygen per- plastic bottles.
meability of plastic bottles would Nitrogen sparging and nitrogen
negate any beneficial effects of blanketing, where required, have
nitrogen sparging. been shown to increase the induction
Samples were packaged in glass phase. or the phase where peroxide

INFORM. Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)

1378
FOOD TECHNOLOGY
Nitrogen in total quality for snack food
Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) is an ever-expand-
ing technology in the United States. The current trend is
toward regional plant production and wider distribution
routes. When this is coupled with increasing consumer
demand for healthful quality foods with fewer preserva-
tives. the role MAP can play to achieve this is even more
attractive.
The effect of MAP gases will include suppression of
bacteria and mold as well as inhibition of oxidative reac-
tions on fats and proteins. Tbe general approach to success-
ful MAP applications will be to address the following
areas: (a) initial microbial state of the food. (b) temperature
control. (c) packaging film. (d) packaging equipment and
(e) optimum atmospheres. Each of these represent a hurdle
to the microbial and/or oxidizing agents present in the food
system.
The food applications group at our R&D technical
center has a broad experience base with MAP gases for
food products that generally fall into three major groups:
(a) nitrogen inerting. sparging. injection, (b) carbon
dioxide/nitrogen blends and (c) carbon dioxide/nitro-
gen/oxygen blends. Carbon dioxide has been shown to
playa dynamic role in affecting microbial growth while
nitrogen functions as an inert filler gas. Oxygen is used
to balance fresh produce respiration rates, to prevent
anaerobic microbial growth or 10 maintain brilliant
oxymyoglobin pigmentation in fresh red meats (Table I).
"Total Oil Quality Management" represents the full use
of nitrogen applications to minimize oxidation of edible oil
as the raw material, both in processing and as an ingredient
Total Oil Quality Management
Good
Oil
Quality
Raw materials
Processing
Flgure 1.
INFORM, \otJI. 4, no.12 (December 1993)
TItU tIIfkk is __ 0IIII4 ~ 011 U., Nifm..
,.. hi TDltllOU QwaliqM_nljrw _ Food
"'_PanIdb.FoodR4D~.Uqoid
C4tI>MIc I_COf'/IDI'dIIIM.
T140Iv. _ 51.•C-,..IL
r_c.,.,.,..
6OIi29 ........ tire Pod
A......." '9J COII{eJnu ItddJww 22-24;" CAiar-
1IO.11I{oo-'" tIrofvll
--fr--/UptMIIiDo.j~
C#II#u--"""""" is
.,. 1'1_.....NJOIU4O.
in the finished product. The quality of the frying oil must
be protected from atmospheric and dissolved oxygen at
every step of the process in order 10 achieve a quality prod-
uct with long shelf life (Figure 1).
Raw material
There are three major reaction mechanisms thai yield the
degradation products most commonly found in commercial
frying operations: fat hydrolysis. fat oxidation and thermal
degradation. All fresh oil consists mainly of triglycerides
or triacylglycerols. The fatty acids (carboxylic acids) vary
by seed source variety and degree of unsaturation (double
bonds). The presence of water and heat will cleave one or
more fatty acids off the glycerol backbone. forming mono-
glycerides and diglycerides. Typical vegetable fatty acids
are 18 carbons with unsaturation at the 9 and 12 carbons.
Standard titration methods for percent free fatty acids
(FFA) are based on oleic acid.
Classic rat oxidation mecha-
nisms show oxygen attack at the num-
ber 9 or 12 unsaturated carbon position
of linoleic acid. producing a short-
lived unstable hydroxy or peroxy radi-
cal. This consulutes the primary reac-
tion. From a number or possible sec-
ondary reactions. the peroxy radical
will form more stable five- and six-car-
bon hydrocarbons (hexane), aldehydes
(pentanal), alcohols (hexanol) and
ketones (hexanone). Such products are
considered volatiles. Fatty acids also
Packaging may form. A "seasoned" frying oil will
have a desirable mix of these com-
pounds. A rancid oil will have an
unpleasant mix of these and shorter
chain versions. such as butanoic acid.
Flavor threshold levels for such com-
pounds can be as low as in the 0.2 to 2
ppm range.
Nonvolatile compounds also
can form through peroxy radical and
hydroxy radical attack at unsaturation
sites of adjacent, intact triglyceride
fany acids. Both polar monomers and
 1379

criteria values for the raw material will not be the same
Table 1
Gas mixture will depend on the product for in-process data.
The first opportunity to affect oil quality in the plant
N, CO2 and N} CO2• N2 and O2 is upon receipt of the bulk oil. Ideally, oil is shipped
Nuts Sandwiches Red meat under a nitrogen blanket. This condition can be main-
Snacks Bakery items Fruits tained in-plant through nitrogen blanketing and/or sparg-
Fruit juices Entrees Vegetables ing. The key is to keep oxygen exposure to a minimum,
with % O2 headspace <1.0% and dissolved oxygen <1
oxy-linked dimer and (rimers may form. In thermal abuse mg/IOO mL (Figure 2).
conditions. polymer formation will result in a darker, bitter The effect of nitrogen blanketing can be demonstrated
and more viscous oil. This effect will carry over into the easily through sensory testing of cottonseed oil stored for
finished product, especially since oil content can comprise 21 days under air and nitrogen. At the end of 21 days, the
30-40% of the product by weight. flavor score for the air sample is unpalatable, while the
The more common oil abuse indicators which are well nitrogen-blanketed sample remains unchanged (Table 2).
documented and/or practiced in commercial plants are: The positive effect of nitrogen sparing systems in bulk
peroxide valve (PV), FFA, polymers and polar com- holding systems is very convincing. Vegetable oil shipped
pounds. PV and FFA are quick, reliable titration meth- under nitrogen from the supplier maintains fresh oil quali-
ods. Their use is ubiquitous in snack food plants. Quick ty. Without nitrogen sparging, the PV would be beyond
colar-indicating spot test kits are available for FFA and some plants' upper range of the receiving specification.
polar compound methods. Polymer assessment can be The untreated samples PVs stan out higher and continue 10
used to indicate excessive thermal abuse but is limited ta climb significantly, even beyond a typical process limit by
a good analytical laboratory. Whichever method is 43 days (Table 3).
employed, the found values must be determined from
consistent technique and a baseline of data tied to the Processing
quality and shelf life of the product. In addition, quality Management of oil quality in the actual frying process is

Total Oil Quality Management

Raw materials Processing Packaging

Oil receiving • Hot oil cool down

• Oil turnover rate
• Throughput rate

i Nitrogen blanketing
• Incoming specifications
• Oxygen limits

Bulk Fryer Post fry I-----j Packaging

oil storage

i Nitrogen sparging
and/or blanketing L
• Oil-quality limits

Hold
Nitrogen flushing
« 2% oxygen)
tank
• Quality bag seals
• Minimum oxygen exposure? • Horizontal seals
Nitrogen sparging • Gas-Ilushable film
and/or blanketing

Figure 2

INFORM.VoL 4. nc.tz (December 1993)

1380

FOOD TECHNOLOGY

acts as a low oxygen blanket to reduce oxidation reactions

Table 2
Effect 01 nitrogen blanketing cottonseed 0114 at the surface of the oil. Additionally, the food will absorb
oil, increasing the turnover rate of heated oil. Even short
Storage Dissolved O2 Flavor score production downtimes can lead to quick oil quality loss. U
atmosphere (nW1OO mL) (days) the food is par-fried. it is preferable to operate under inert
o days 21 days conditions.
Most commercial frying operations will shut down on a
Air 2.96 7.2 4.8
scheduled basis. The used frying oil is transferred to a hold
Nitrogen 0.82 6.9 6.9
tank pending next day start-up. Even with an unplanned
shut down of 2-3 hours, the following practices are strong-
ly recommended. The fryer oil should be cooled down
Table 3 quickly under inert conditions. The hold tank should be
Nitrogen sparglng In bulk holding systems equipped with a nitrogen sparger and blanketing system.
These systems can be identical to the bulk system if
Peroxide value (meqlkg) desired. When the hold tank oil is blended with fresh bulk
Vegetable oil Nitrogen sparged Untreated oil under start-up conditions. a proportion schedule can be
followed such that the resulting % FFA and PV levels are
Source location 0.4 0.69
Arrival at plant within start-up limits (figure 2).
0.45 2.35
Bulk tank at 43 days 0.8 5.0 The more significant process factors affecting oil quali-
ty are: fresh oil quality. fryer fill volume. production rate,
hot oil handling and holdover tank oil quality.
Table 4 Good oil quality management during process shut
Process--oil quality managementll down is readily monitored through PV data. PV numbers
should not vary markedly if the oil is cooled and trans-
%FFA PV ferred to a nitrogen sparged and blanketed hold tank. A
Bulk storage slight rise can be expected, but PV should be stable
Initial 0.03 0.30 overnight. When the initial bulk storage oil is well man-
30 days 0.02 0.20 aged, even over 30 days, the quality will have a carry-over
stability for the frying operations. A % FFA value of
Frying process 0.05% with a PV of 0.30 is quite acceptable for a snack
chip frying operation. During frying operations, values
Fryer oil 0.13 1.1
Hold tank after
that stabilize under 0.2% FFA and PV under 2.0 reflect
overnight storage J.3 good oil quality management (Table 4).
An additional confirmation will come from comparison
"(lulk Jlorage and hold Wlk Ilelldspa«@ ktll$l <l~ of morning pre-SIan hold tank PV data. PVs in the hold
tank should be close to PV levels at steady-state frying
Table 5 conditions.
Oil quality management and shelf life Fatty acid values in the hold tank also should be close to
FFA levels at steady-stale frying conditions.
Analytical Sensory
Packaging
Oil quality Test vs, standard Snack food manufacturers give a significant level of atten-
PV.AOM Polymers Texture tion to control of oil quality in the finished product.
FFA Peters Flavor Although this is appropriate, no lesser effort on the quality
of raw material oil and its handling in plant can be afford-
Packaging ed. The total oil quality management concept stresses criti-
cal importance to oil quality at every step through to the
MVTR Seal qualilY consumer eating experience. As in any successful MAP
Moisture ~gain application. a good quality product must first go into the
Product package before the selected gas can be effective. In the
case of fried snack foods. 100% nitrogen is recommended.
Hexanal. moisture Most fried snack food packaging lines utilize vertical form,
texture fill and seal machines. These machines can be retrofitted
with a nitrogen lance placed in the former assembly. Nitro-
most critical and rarely is comprehensive enough to opti- gen flushing must be designed to purge the bag or canister
mize the economics. Prestan-up oil quality limits should to obtain <2% headspace oxygen after sealing. At least two
exist. The desired fryer oil temperature should be attained package design elements must be simultaneously present
promptly. Introduction of substrate into the fryer should for a successful nitrogen flushing system: (a) quality pack-
also not be delayed. The steam evolved from the substrate age seals and (b) gas-flushable packages.

INFORM,Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)

 1381

For flexible films, bag seals must be without folds, in the lower barrier film reached an intermediate 60 days
puckers or leaks. A good heat-sealing film is essential. (Table 6).
Horizontal end seals guard against channel leaks. The film A careful cost analysis for packaging machine inerting
must be gas-flushable. This means the film will have modifications, jaw seal changes and upgrades to higher
acceptable oxygen. aroma and moisture barrier properties barrier packaging is important. The actual nitrogen cost is
(Figure 2). typically one-tenth the film upgrade cost. Many flexible
The ultimate measure of a successful total oil quality bag formers can be modified with gas flushing kits from
management program is extended prod-
uct shelf life. A thorough shelf life pro-
gram will begin with assessment of in-
plant analytical data and continue
t.hrough to sensory acceptance testing.
The analytical measures will assess oil
quality (as mentioned earlier), package
performance and product attributes.
Moisture vapor transmission rates
(MVTR) and oxygen transfer rates
(OTR) can be tracked weekly in the shelf
life test. Seal quality can be addressed by
a simple water tank submersion method.
Moisture content and objective texture
measurements can indicate a sensory
stale point. High oil content products will
also benefit from objective tests. such as
those for peroxides or hexanal thai indi-
cate rancidity development.
Sensory methods have been developed
by major snack food companies 10
achieve a statistical measure of consumer
acceptance in shelf-life testing. The more
reliable methods will use a standard ref-
YOUR SOURCE FORNATIlRALOILS-
erence product. The Food applications
group at our R&D center utilizes this
1-800-AU-OILS.
If you're in the market for all-natural materials, including first
approach (Table 5).
quality marine and vegetable oils, look no further.
As an example, data from one of our
At Arista we specialize in delivering the world's finest, all-natural
shelf-life tests on potato chips is given
marine and vegetable oils, at remarkably competitive prices.
here. Several flexible film Structures
were tested for nitrogen-flushed potato From Almond to Wheat Germ, Cod Liver to Shark Liver,
chips. when you have a need for all-natural oils, tile nnme to remember is
As expected. oxygen headspace track- Ariste ... naturally.
ing in bags showed the lowest O2 gains MARINEOILS VEGETABLEOILS INDUSTRIAL OILS
for the highest barrier structure. The Cod Liver Almond Peanut Fish
Fish Li...
.er- Apricot PumpkinSeed Linseed Oil
lower-barrier film, although less expen- Halibut Liver Avocado Rice Bnm Methyt Esters
sive, was not considered as gas-flushable. Omega-3 Acids Canola Sllffiowcr Vegetable Oil
The higher-barrier film had horizontal Salmon CllSlor Sesame Residue
end seals. This typically has a positive Shark Liver Grapeseed Soybean
Squalene Jojoba Sunnowcr
effect in reducing oxygen gain.
Squnlene Oli ...·e Wheot Germ
Product packed under air in the
lower barrier film was used as the refer-
ence sample. All products were stored
at 70°F. Percent moisture gain data fol-
lowed a similar ranking among materi-
als. Sensory testing of these samples
Anma Indu!U';"'" Inc.· 108Z PO'll Rolli!, Ou.nen, CT 06820
tracked well with the analytical data. In 1-8QO.ALL-OILS ·203-655-0881 • Telex: 9% 193. Fax: 203-65Ml328
this study, product in the higher barrier
film reached a shelf-life endpoint of 90 For InformatIon circle 1180
days based on flavor. aroma and tex-
ture. Product packed in air reached a
20-day shelf life. while inerted product

INFORM. Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)

1382

FOOD TECHNOLOGY

Tabla 6 Table 7
Potato chip shelf life with 011quality management Total 011quality management

G" Shelf lire Estimated costs in packaging

Film Seal nush (weeks)
N2 bag flush 5¢/Ib chips
Medium barrier Vertical Air 3-4 Horizontal jaw seals $100-$300
Medium barrier Vertical <2%02 7-9 Film upgrade" 5¢/Ib chips
High barrier Horizontal <2%0, 10-12+ Fonner modifications $1000-$3000
lIHigh barrier film

the machine vendor. Shelf-life Jesting and film selection
within a range of prices can be coordinated and executed
by our MAP group. Ultimately, customers can decide from
the data and product samples if the payoff exceeds upgrade
expenses (fable 7).
The number of snack food companies packaging prod-
ucts under nitrogen increases each year. In-market data on
competitive samples with similar code dates can demon-
strate the benefits of nitrogen flushing with high barrier
film. Headspace oxygen data on such products correlates
well with our sensory experience. The freshest flavor prod-
ucts have the lowest oxygen levels that are typically found
in the best package structure with nitrogen flushing. Most
in-plant nitrogen systems are capable of purging the pack-
age down 10 0.8-1.5% oxygen. A high barrier film with
good seals at 10°F, 50% relative humidity, will maintain
the oxygen levels under 4% through 50 days and under 8%
through 100 days.
As in any MAP application, the initial quality of the
food that goes into the package must be good. Nitrogen
flushing of rancid product will not correct the inherent
problem of poor in-plant oil quality management. We
strongly recommend the total oil quality management
approach. Nitrogen applications in three key areas must be
addressed: (a) raw materials, (b) processing and (c) pack-
aging. There are at least four in-plant locations to consider:
(a) oil receiving, (b) bulk storage, (c) hold tank and (d)
bagmaker. Trained personnel must use good oil quality
management (Figure 2).
A quick checklist to review with the customer is as fol-
lows:
• incoming oil meets specification,
• Nitrogen sparging and blanketing systems operational,
• Oil quality (FFA and PV) levels meet prestart and
operating standards,
• Quickly cool hot standing oil,
• High barrier package and
• Nitrogen flushing of package to deliver <2% O2
It is our experience that when this oil quality approach
is presented to the customer, serious consideration is given
to the full range of nitrogen applications.
Bibliography
Rancidity in Foods, Second Edition, edited by J.e. Allen
and R.J. Hamilton, Elsevier Applied Science Publishers,
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1989.
Handling and Storage of Oitseeas, Fats and Meals, H.B.W.
Patterson, Elsevier Applied Science Publishers Ltd.,
Barking, England, 1989. •

/!CX;S"
Membership Certificates
The decision to join the American Oil Chemists' Society may have
been one of the most important career choices you've made. Now
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leading international society in the fields of fats, oils and related
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Department. P.O. Box 3489,
Champaign, lL 61826-3489 USA
or call (217) 359-2344.

INFORM. Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)


Laminar gas curtains for food packaging
Conventional turbulent gas curtains
in the food packaging industry use
controlled jets of gas to purge air out
of a package and prevent reentry of
air prior to sealing. They consist of
one or more pipes with a series of
closely spaced holes blowing gas
across an opening. They can be
effective, but require extensive
shrouding, which must be scaled 10
the packaging equipment. This can
lead to mechanical interference and
loss of visibility of the packaging
process.
Figure I shows the jet mixing
behavior of the now through a single
orifice in a turbulent gas curtain (I),
The gas emerging from the orifice
immediately begins entraining the
surrounding air. The inner cone of
pure gas shrinks as the entrained air
mixes toward the center. The central
unmixed core of gas disappears at a
distance of about four times the ori-
fice diameter. The jet continues to
entrain air. and the concentration of
nitrogen (or other packaging gas)
continues to decrease as the distance
from the orifice increases.
The entrained air in the jet signifi-
cantly limits the usefulness of a tur-
bulent curtain as a retrofit device.
The curtain must be physically
shrouded, and the shroud must be
well-sealed to the packaging equip-
-'---'
,
TurbUlent g•• c,,,,.ln
dl.trfbuUon pip"
Agu ... t. Jet mixing beh.vtor (magnified)
1383
This article on laminar gas cW"lo;n lechnology for 1M pockiJging off ODds
in comro/l~d rUlrog~1ItIl1ttOspMI'rS;$ btu~d 011 a !J"Nlllation by M.s.
Nowotorski. DR. Fowl~r ond M.G. McDonald. Proxair Inc .• AppIicotions
R~s~arch ond ~lopww"" m Old Saw Mill Riwr Rood. TorrylDWn.
New York /0591. til 1M Pack Alimenlmrf! '93 Con/omu Nid 111M
22-24.I99J. in ChiCtlgo. Information on 1M price IUIdconl~nl oftMftdl
proc~eding$ of IN con/~rellC~ is avoiJab/~ from /1I1I01IOlionExpositiOlU. J
ItUkpentknu Way. Princ~ton. NI0854O.
menr. This shrouding and sealing can soldering process. This in turn
restrict product movement and impair allowed them to eliminate the need
visibility of the packaging process on for cleaning with CFC fluids. which
equipment originally designed for were banned by the Montreal Proto-
packaging in air. Consequently. most col (3).
controlled atmosphere packaging Laminar gas curtains since have
must be performed on equipment been applied to the steel industry for
originally designed for that purpose. controlled atmosphere induction
melting (4). the semiconductor
Laminar gas curtains industry for high-purity water pro-
Laminar gas curtains (U.S. patent cessing and the chemical industry for
4,823,680) were developed by Prax- protection of oxygen-sensitive chem-
air Inc. (formerly the Linde division icals. They are just now being intro-
of Union Carbide Industrial Gases duced into the food packaging indus-
Inc.) in 1986 to facilitate the intro- try.
duction of nitrogen or other con- Laminar gas curtains exclude air
trolled atmospheres to existing indus- from an enclosure by blowing a wide
trial processes carried out in air (2). laminar flow of gas across an open-
They originally were applied to the ing (Figure 2). The key to their effec-
electronics soldering industry. Lami- tiveness is their gas distributors. The
nar gas curtains allowed electronic gas distributors consist of an inlet
assemblers \0 eliminate air from the tube. plenum and porous face. The
,
II" dlet,lbuto,
for turbulent gal curtain Agu ... 2. Jet mixing behavk!r lor lamln.r gas curtain
INFORM. Vol. 4. nO.12 (December 1993)
1384

FOOD TECHNOLOGY

lent gas curtain. but on a much larger

scale. Air is entrained by the flow as
soon as it leaves the distributor and
mixes into the inner core of pure Nz.
porou. dl.trlbutor The flow is wide enough, however, so
that by the time the outside air mixes
across the inner core, the inner core
Inl.t tube has passed over the opening being
protected. Consequently, no air mixes
into the opening.

Low-air entrainment,
tbermoforming
Figure 3 illustrates the application of
a laminar gas curtain to a thermo-
forming machine. There is a distribu-
tor on each side of the package. The
FIgure 3. laminar gal curtain on thermoforming machine
flows of gas from each distributor
meet in the center of the opening and
bend away from the package. Any air
that is entrained by the outer edge of
the gas is swept away before it can
mix down to the food product. The
oxygen level at the food product is
essentially zero.
.hroLid A clearance of several millimeters
can be provided between the laminar
mixed N"Alr curtain and the package to allow for
movement. The height of the laminar
(10.15'11. 0,) curta in di stributors is only one-
eighth of the width of the package
~ ,------,':::00::'.::'.::"::':::"::.' _) ) opening. Product and lid-sealing
hardware can pass through the lami-
nar curtain without entraining exces-
sive amounts of air.
Agure 4. liJrbulenl gas curtain with shroud of Il'\ermo'ormlng
machine
Figure 4 shows how a comparable
turbulent gas curtain with a shroud
plenum generales the wide flow of The mixing behavior of the wide would behave. The curtains are
gas. The distributor damps QUI any flow of laminar gas emerging from the mounted in the middle of the shroud.
turbulence in the wide flow of gas, gas distributor is the same as that of The height of the shroud must be at
making it laminar. the flow out of an orifice in a turbu- least twice the width of the opening.

I
I
I
I
I
" \
\
<n'
\
\
" \
\
Laminar C.lltaln

\
\
• I" .....
•

"j,~----------c,.--------O>-c",~----------".
,j--~'~"~~".~':'~~-~-:;-~~=;====::~:::c~:==
Cijn.ln

, ------,
---

Nltroe-n Flow (elm)

_

.
Nltrog.n FI_ (elm) ... Ift.~"""'., I......\I ........
""...,

FIgure 5. 18mlner curtain YS.turbulenl curtain for Iow--.lr entrein- Agul1l 6. laminar curtain vs. turbulent curtain for high-alr entrain-
men! product ment product

INFORM, Vol. 4. no.12 (December 1993)


Rgure 7. ellk: tamtn.r 01' curt.ln
Significant amounts of air are still
entrained in the turbulent curtain,
and the oxygen level at the food
product is 8-\5%.
A level of 8-15% oxygen is 100
high for most controlled atmosphere
food packaging requirements. Conse-
quently. turbulent curtains are inef-
fective as retrofit devices on existing
equipment. New machines designed
for controlled atmosphere packaging
Incorporate additional doors and cur-
tains to minimize air entrainment.
They also are designed to minimize
mechanical interference.
Figure 5 shows how the oxygen
levels attained by a laminar curtain
compare with those attained by a tur-
bulent curtain in the simulated ther-
moforming packaging application
shown in Figures 3 and 4. A five-
inch (l3-cm) opening is shrouded
Rgure 8.. lWo'llded laminar g•• curtain
1385
with either a I" (13-cm) wide by 30" (76.2 ern) long
(2.S-em) high former lube (shroud) is inerted with
laminar curtain either a I" (2.5 cm) high laminar cur-
with no addi- lain or with a turbulent curtain. Both
tional shroud or the laminar and turbulent curtain are
with a turbulent located 20" down from the top open-
curtain centered ing in the former tube. There is no
in a 10" (25.4. gap between the bottom of the fonn-
em) shroud. A ing tube and the packaging film.
O.25 (O.63-cm)
H
As for the laminar curtain, the
gap is provided oxygen level in the package falls to
below the cur- 2% at a flow of 4 cfm (105 liters per
tains 10 allow minute). Higher flows give lower
for package oxygen levels, but at a higher cost.
movement. This behavior is different from what
For the laminar curtain. the oxy- is seen in the example with a low-air
gen level falls to zero «20 ppm) at 9 entrainment product and a short
cubic feel per minute (efm) (236 shielding tube. The long former tube
liters per minute). It remains at zero in this case improves the effective-
no mailer how much the flow is ness of the laminar barrier. The oxy-
increased. Higher flows entrain more gen level drops initially faster with
air into the curtain, but the geometry increasing flow rate. The potato chip
of the flow stays the same and the air product, however, entrains much
is swept away before it reaches the more air than does the low-entrain-
product. ment product. The oxygen level ulti-
For the turbulent curtain. the oxy- mately drops more slowly at higher
gen level at the package falls to about flows than in the low-entrainment
12% at a now of 1.6 cfm (44 liters example.
per minute). Higher flows entrain For the turbulent curtain. the oxy-
rnore air and the oxygen level stays gen level in the package falls 10 2%
at 8-12%. A longer shroud and a at a flow of 2.4 cfm (63 titers per
smaller clearance gap would be minute). This is significantly better
required (0 get lower oxygen levels. than the laminar curtain. The turbu-
lent curtain is better able to purge the
High-air entrainment product air out of the chips as they fall. Out-
Figure 6 shows how the oxygen lev- side air entrainment is minimal due
els attained by a laminar curtain com- 10 the very long fanner lube and the
pares with those light seal at the bottom with the
auained by a turbu- packaging film.
lent curtain in a sim-
ulated rorrn-fitt-seal Range or laminar curtain designs
machine packaging Laminar curtains can be custom-
potato chips. A 5 H
designed for a wide range of retrofit
Rgure 9. Ctrculllr IIImln.r gal curtain
INFORM. Vol. 4. 00.12 (December 1993)
1386
applications. Figures 7-9 illustrate
some of the more common designs.
Figure 7 shows the basic gas dis-
tributor. It is suitable for packages
with rectangular cross sections. A
111.a ....
'_.11._1
_i
.,
GEKA ENERGY SYSTEMS
GOTTFRIED KNEIFEL
GmbH & Co. KG
Germany, DlesefstrafJe 8
0-76227 Karlsruhe-Durlach
Telefon (0721) 405021
Te~fax(0721)494331
For information circle .130
INfORM. VOl.4. no.12 (DeCember 1993)
FOOD TECHNOLOGY
tube in the rear feeds gas to the suucnon are 314 stainless steel. The
plenum, and this is distributed by the porous face can be cleaned by wiping
porous face. The entire right-hand and by immersion in disinfectant
wall of the gas distributor is the water with a low-flow gas bubbling
porous face. All materials of con- through it.
Figure 8 shows a two-sided rect-
angular design with a sleeve seal 10 a
1
rectangular loading lube. This is suit-
able for product feed tubes where lop
clearance is minimal and where seal-
ing with the package is nOI practical.
The gas distributors on each side help
ensure that the flow of gas is not
blocked by incoming product or
hardware.
Figure 9 shows a circular-shaped
gas distributor. This is suitable for
circular packages and loading tubes.
It is especially effective for inerting
liquids.
Laminar gas curtains are a simple
low-cost method of introducing con-
trolled atmosphere packaging to
existing equipment packaging in air.
They are especially effective for
inerting low air entrainment product
where mechanical limitations do not
The executive allow doors, curtains, long shroud
tubes or sealing with the packaging
manufacturer of
boiler for
film. Oxygen levels of less than 1%
in the package can be attained easily.
hermetically closed
Laminar gas curtains can be cus-
steam systems up to tomized to fit a wide range of inert-
95 bar (1350 psi), ing applications. They are in com-
3025kW mercial service in electronic solder-
(lOx 10' BTU/H) ing. semiconductor. steel and chemi-
for Edibles Oils cal industries. They are just now
Industry process being introduced into the food pack-
heating. aging industry.
Advantages with
GEKA: more than References
20 years experience, I. Perry. C.. Chemical Engineers
approved systems, Handbook. 51h Edn .. McGraw
worldwide in the Hill. 1973. pp. 5-20.
2. Nowotarskt, M.S.. "Wide lami-
Edible ai/Industry.
nar Fluids Doors," U.S. Patent
4.823,680. April 25, 1989.
3. Nowotarski, M.S.. and S.G. Kon-
sowski. "Nitrogen Gased Flux-
less Soldering," Surface Mount
Technology4(10). October 1990.
4. Sharma. S.K.. and M.S.
Nowotarski, "Laminar Barrier
Inerting for Induction Melting,"
Modun Casting. American
Foundrymen's Society. Novem-
ber 1990. •