A new generation of high-capacity separators for the brewing industry

Apart from the established process applications for separators in breweries such as hot wort clarification, beer recovery from excess yeast or beer preclarification ahead of filtration, there are process operations which heretofore were possible only in smaller and medium capacity ranges, such as e.g. cold wort separation or polishing clarification of beer. Westfalia Separator AG has moved high-capacity separation up to another level with the CSA 500 model. While achieving the same separation cut as previous models, the capacity range has been tripled.

The design of the equipment took account of product requirements in the brewing industry, in particular in terms of maximum clarification capacity. As a result, the following design characteristics emerged:

- High g-number as a result of high bowl speeds,

- maximum disc area,

- hydro-hermetic feed, permitting gentle acceleration of the material to be clarified in the bowl.

Application in food operations involves the use of a "hygienic design" i.e.:

- Optimal CIP-suitability for all parts,

- hydro-hermetic sealing of process areas to atmosphere.

In addition, the stringent requirements in terms of operational safety, ease of servicing etc. have been taken into account.

Principle of operation

The liquid to be clarified is fed centrally into the bowl, accelerated and distributed towards the outside in the disc pack. Because of the centrifugal force, solid particles are forced onto the underside of the disc and slip off into the outside region of the bowl (solids area). The clarified liquid leaves the bowl via the centripetal pump which is a fixed pump impeller on the bowl head, skimming off the rotating liquid. The solid particles are periodically ejected

(Fig. 1) through tappings in the bowl wall, controlled by a hydraulic closure system.

Both design and product-specific parameters have an influence on the clarification performance of separators in the process.

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