New decanter generation for beverage technology
With the F series, GEA Westfalia Separator has introduced an entirely new decanter generation. The decanter GCF 405 is specially designed for products which are difficult to discharge.
It is used in breweries, wine-making or fruit juice operations as a multifunction machine for de-juicing, must clarification, tank bottom yeast or must trub processing. Its special bowl design ensures a large clarifying area and thus maximum separating performance in all applications.
The multifunction machine with a bowl diameter of 400 mm ensures maximum performance combined with high clarifying efficiency and maximum dry matter in the solids. This is achieved by the high speed, a high torque, large clarifying area and the deep pond. The machine is a so-called “hydro-hermetic” decanter with a pressurized separation chamber. This feature allows the discharge of soft and fluffy solids which would not be possible without the support of the pressure.
This new design provides major advantages for foaming and degassing products, as foaming is minimized and degassing is prevented. Oxygen absorption is also avoided. For instance, in yeast recovery, the beer which is contained in the yeast is separated in a very gentle manner and very quickly, so that it reliably meets the required quality and so that it can be recycled back into the production process. In this way the decanter combines quality and efficiency for recovering beer from yeast.
Always at the optimum operating point
The decanter also features the familiar Westfalia Separator® varipond® system. This enables the level of liquid in the bowl - the so-called pond depth - and thus the separating result to be optimized without the decanter having to be shut down for this purpose. Even in conjunction with fluctuating feed concentrations, Westfalia Separator® varipond® regulates the pond depth in the bowl so precisely that the concentration of the solids can be adjusted to a constantly high level. This means that the solid content of the liquid phase can be set easily and in a structured manner. Westfalia Separator® varipond® enables the customer to respond in a flexible manner to changing production conditions and makes sure that the decanter is always operated at the optimum operating point.
Its optimum CIP capability is also crucial for its use in the beverage industry. All components which come into contact with product are of course made from highly resistant stainless steel. The collection chambers are designed specifically to ensure that they can easily be cleaned and spray nozzles ensure a sanitary process design.
The new decanter generation of GEA Westfalia Separator also features exterior gears. This means that the decanters are very easy to service, because the gears can be accessed directly without the decanter itself having to be opened. As they are also located outside the product chamber, they are of course less affected by the product temperature. This means that the new F generation of GEA Westfalia Separator is also good for hot operation.
One feature of the new decanter family is the new Westfalia Separator® power D3 drive. This is a four-shaft drive with a torque that is independent of the differential speed. This means that the torque remains stable, irrespective of whether the differential speed changes. This has a positive impact on the service life of the drive. The large regulating range for the differential speed means that the operator can adjust the decanter to a range of production conditions in a flexible manner. The differential speed is also independent of the bowl speed. As a result the scroll can be rotated even when the bowl is stationary and it is thus possible to empty a bowl which has seized.
