Mixing is one of the most common processes in the chemical and food industry. In the process of mixing, particles of the material move more than once in the vessel’s capacity under the action of a specially defined impulse, which is transmitted from a mechanical jet of mixer, liquid, steam or gas.
Mixing has different purposes:
— acceleration of the flow of various chemical processes or reactions;
— ensuring uniform and proper distribution of fluid in the fluid;
— ensuring a regular, stable temperature in the liquid;
— ensuring the distribution of solid particles in a liquid;
— enhancing the heating or cooling process.
There are a large number of various designs of mixing apparatuses, however, the most popular and popular are mechanical mixers with a rotational mechanism of mixing parts.
Along with this, mixing occurs with steam or gas, mixing the circulation of the liquid, pulsating or vibrational mixing. Each of these types of mixing devices has both pluses and minuses in a particular application. Most often, choosing the type of mixing device, consider the following concepts:
— the degree of mutual distribution of substances or liquids after mixing. This concept is called an indicator of homogeneity and is determined exclusively empirically, based on the samples taken;
— Mixing intensity This concept is expressed using quantities such as the speed of the interfering device, as well as the power that is spent on the entire process. In practice, these values are determined by the time to achieve a given result;
— mixing efficiency. This concept is determined by the ability to achieve the required quality in the shortest time and with minimal energy consumption.
However, to date, there is no exact criterion that would allow one to accurately determine the choice of an interfering device for a particular process.
It is worth clarifying that for the choice of a mixing device, such a concept as the viscosity of the product is also important. The viscosity of a product is its ability to resist the mixing process. Most often, this value is expressed in poises (Pz).