4. Contents
Introduction
Types/methods of food freezing
1. Freezing in air.
2. Indirect contact freezing.
3. Immersion freezing.
4. Cryogenic freezing.
Conclusion
5. Introduction
What is food freezing?
freezing is a change in state allow preservation of taste, texture and nutritional
value in foods provide a significant extended shelf life to food.
6. Advantages and disadvantages of
freezing
Advantages
Freezing decreases the water activity.
It retard the growth of micro-
organisms.
It controls/decrease the enzymatic
activity.
Disadvantages
Freezing changes color , texture and
flavor of food.
It can cause damage to cell by ice
crystallization.
7. Types/methods of food freezing
There are 4 methods of food freezing.
1. Freezing in air.
2. Indirect contact freezing.
3. Immersion freezing.
4. Cryogenic freezing.
8. Freezing in air
What is freezing in air?
Packaged or unpackaged non fluid foods can be frozen in air at
temperatures ranging from –18° to – 40 °.
Have further three types.
1. Still air sharp freezing.
2. Blast freezing.
3. Fluidized bed freezing.
9. Freezing in air
1. Still air sharp freezing
It consists of placing products in a very cold room, maintained at temperatures in
the range of –15 °C to –29°C. Sharp freezers are cold storage rooms especially
constructed to operate at and maintain low temperatures. Freezing time is generally
3-72 hours or more depending on the conditions and the size of product. No fan is
use for this type of freezing.
10. Freezing in air
2. Air Blast freezing
Vigorous circulation of cold air enables freezing to proceed at a moderately rapid
rate. Products are placed on trays, either loose or in packages and the trays are
placed on freezing coils in a low temperature room with cold air blowing over the
product . In this freezing method fan is used for air circulation. The temperature of
the air is usually between –28° and –46° and air velocity is 15 m/s.
11. Freezing in air
3. Fluidized bed freezing
Fluidized bed freezing is a modification of air-blast freezing. Solid food particles
ranging in size from peas to strawberries can be fluidized by forming a bed of
particles 1-5 in. Deep on a mesh belt (or mesh tray) and then forcing air upward
through the bed at a rate sufficient to partially lift or suspend the particles in a
manner somewhat reminiscent of a boiling liquid.
12. Freezing in air
Advantages
Easy and economical to build.
Can accommodate a wide range of
products.
Economical operation.
Space efficient.
Superior quality due to continuous
processing flow and controlled heat
transfer.
Easy to clean.
Disadvantages
Labor intensive.
Occupies a large floor space.
Poor heat transfer may occur resulting
in poor product quality.
Excessive dehydration in unpacked
products.
Product damage due to sticking.
Labor intensive and costly to clean.
13. Indirect contact freezing
What is indirect contact freezing?
Indirect contact freezing, e.g. plate freezers, where packaged foods or
liquids are brought into contact with metal surfaces (plate, cylinders) cooled by
circulating refrigerant.
For indirect contact freezers, the product is indirectly exposed to the
freezing medium while in contact with the belt or plate, which is in contact with the
freezing medium.
15. Types of indirect contact freezing
There are 2 types of indirect contact freezing.
1. Plate freezing
a). Single plate freezing
b). Double plate freezing
c).Pressure plate freezing
2. Slush freezing
16. Types of indirect contact freezing
1. Plate freezing
In plate freezing layers of the packaged product are sandwiched between metal
plates. The refrigerant is allowed to expand within the plates to provide
temperatures of -28 F (-33 C) or below.
The plates are brought closer together mechanically, so that full contact is made with
the packaged product. This method can be used for meat, fish, and dairy and other
products where agglomeration of the food particles is not a concern.
17. Types of indirect contact freezing
There are further three types of plate freezing.
1. Single plate freezing
2. Double plate freezing
3. Pressure plate freezing
Automatic pressure plate freezing.
18. Types of indirect contact freezing
Pressure plate freezing
It is an important type of contact freezing . This consist of number of metal shelves
or plates through which refrigerant is circulated.
The food usually as flat packages is placed between shelves and there is
provision after loading for applying pressure to squeeze the shelves into more
intimate contact with the top and bottom of the packages for faster freezing.
19. Types of indirect contact freezing
Pressure plate freezing
All is enclosed within an insulated cabinet. Depending on refrigerant
temperature, package size, degree of contact and the type of food, freezing time is
1-2 for commercial packages 4-5 cm thick.
20. Types of indirect contact freezing
Automatic pressure plate freezing
A recent development in frozen food processing is the portable automatic
double pressure plate freezer.These have provisions for automatically loading shelves
from the package line.
As s shelf is loaded , it is moved into pressure contact with the preceding shelf
and into an insulated zone where freezing proceeds.At the rear of freezing zone ,
frozen packages are discharged one shelf at a time and the empty shelves return to
the loading position.
21. Types of indirect contact freezing
Automatic pressure plate freezing
These freezers provide for continuous operation are automatically loaded from a
conveyer, frozen under pressure and automatically discharged for casing with
elimination of manual labor. This is done automatically and continually. Each freezer
is portable and can be move from one place to another.
22. Types of indirect contact freezing
2. Slush freezing
In case of liquid food and purees, the food is pumped through a cold wall heat
exchanger and frozen to the slush condition. The votator is widely used for slush
freezing. A thin strem of juice is forced at about 50 p.s.i. pressure into the space
between the center shaft and the heat transfer tube.
23. Types of indirect contact freezing
Slush freezing
Just as rapid evaporation requires a large area of refrigerated heat transfer surface
per unit of juice, so does the rotator freeze rapidly by causing a thin layer of juice to
pass over a large area of refrigerated heat transfer surface.
Floating scraper blades affixed to the rapidly revolving center shaft are forced
outward against the heat transfer surface and automatically remove the product film
which would otherwise accumulate.
Ammonia is ordinarily used as a refrigerant in this equipment.
24. indirect contact freezing
Advantages
This method is used for both liquid
and solid foods.
It is relatively faster and freeze
individual food particles.
This method is Ideal for thin, flat foods
such as steak, fish fillets or burgers.
Disadvantages
In flexible: used primarily for foods in
packages.
Limited package geometry.
Labor cost is high.
25. Immersion freezing
What is immersion freezing?
Liquid immersion freezing (usually referred to as direct immersion freezing) is
accomplished when a food product, either packaged or unpackaged, is frozen by
immersion in or by spraying with a freezant that remains liquid throughout the
process.
Aqueous solutions of the following substances have been used as freezants:
A. Propylene glycol,
B. Glycerol,
C. Sodium chloride,
D. Mixtures of salt and sugar.
26. Immersion freezing
Cooling media should be non –toxic.
If sugar solution contain 62% sucrose it can decrease temperature up to
-21°C.
23% NaCl solution decrease temperature up to -21°C.
Glycerol is mixed with water to make a solution 67% glycerol solution can
decreases temperature up to -47 °C.
27. Immersion freezing
This technique, although not common, is used commercially for canned citrus
juice concentrate (cans of juice are passed continuously through a chamber
containing liquid freezant); for poultry especially during the initial stages of freezing (
to impart a uniform, white color to the surface); and an occasionally for fish and
shrimp.
29. Cryogenic freezing
What is cryogenic freezing?
using low boiling point liquid gases to freeze food product is called
cryogenic freezing.
30. Cryogenic freezing
What is cryogenics?
Cryogenics is a branch of engineering where the production of cryogen and
maintenance of low temperature technologies are studied. A person who study
elements that have been subjected to extremely cold temperature is called
cryogenicist.
31. Cryogenic freezing
Cryogenic freezing is a new method of freezing, here the food is exposed to
an atmosphere below -60° c through direct contact with liquefied gases such as
nitrogen or carbon dioxide. Due to liquid extremely low temperature (-196° c) and (-
79° c) freezing is instant. Liquid nitrogen is most commonly used because of very
low boiling point (-196° c).
32. Types of cryogenic freezers
There are two main types of cryogenic freezers.
1. The one using immersion or dipping of product into the medium.
2. In second type medium is sprayed on the product.
In both type the product is continuously transported on a belt to the other
end of the freezer. Usually those cryogenic freezers using dipping method or
consuming more medium but give better freezing results. While spraying method
ensure lower medium usage therefore lower cost.
33. Cryogenic freezing
Advantages
Low dehydration .
Can be simpler to operate because no
refrigeration is required.
Lower capital cost.
Efficient freezing and high product
quality.
Economical for low to medium
capacity production and test runs.
Disadvantages
High operating cost of expandable
refrigerant.
Dependence of refrigerant delivery.
Should be monitored regularly.
Potential operational hazard.
Uneconomical for large scale
production.
34. Conclusion
Preservation by low temperature technique is superior to other methods of long
term preservation because it is more effective I retaining flavor color and nutritive
value of food and moderately effective for preservation of texture. It is
comparatively a less time consuming method.