Answer the questions:

1. What is to be used for inspection and certification?

2. What requirements do Alternative rules for high pressure vessels include? Specify them.

Major manufacturers of high pressure processing equipment.

Worldwide, a number of manufactures have developed ultra-high pressure equipment, each of them starting from their own area of expertise. Three major players dominate the market: Flow International Corporation, ACB Pressure System-Alstom, and Kobe Steel. Manufacturers started developing this equipment as early as 40 years ago, mainly focusing on processes such as hot and cold isostatic presses. A decade ago, equipment manufacturers started to develop high pressure equipment dedicated to the treatment of food products. A typical example of the scale of these units is the Avomex high pressure processing facility installed by Flow, which has a capacity of 215 liters operating at 600 MPa. Whereas the large equipment manufacturers focus mainly on industrial-scale equipment for the food industry, a large number of smaller companies develop laboratory-scale and pilot units for use at research institutes and universities. Now lets consider the leading manufacturers.

Kobe Steel (Japan).

With more than 30 years of experience. Kobe Steel has become a leading sup­plier of high pressure equipment in Japan and has sold approximately 700 units, including the largest cold isostatic processing-unit, which can handle a volume of 14.700 liters at 98 MPa. Kobe Steel is involved in the following activities:

• hot and cold isostatic presses;

• isostatic extrusion;

• high pressure crystallization;

• super critical gas extraction;

• rubber isostatic presses;

• compound semiconductor s ngle-crystal growth system.

Kobe Steel has in-house capabilities to design and manufacture wire-wound vessels and yokes as well as intensifiers. In addirion, Kobe Steel has developed equipment to control product temperature during ultra-high pressure. Recently, the company installed a twin vessel unit with 300-liter vessels for treatment of rice operating at 400 MPa.

Answer the questions:

1. What are the leading producers of food industrial equipment on the global market?

2. When were isostatic presses developed?

3. What is high pressure equipment used for?

4. What’s the profile of Kobe Steel? Is it a producer or a supplier?

5. What are the companies latest elaborations?

Flow International Corporation (United States and Sweden).

Flow International has its roots in ultra-high pressure waterjet cutting and has become a leader in this area. Today, the company has delivered more than 5000 units worldwide. In addition, the company is involved in isostatic presses used for the production of advanced materials and for treatment of foods, sheet-metal forming presses, and watered cutting and cleaning.

In 1993 Flow started developing high pressure processing systems for food industry. In collaboration with Oregon State University, Flow studied the effects of high pressure treatment on food products. In 1999. Flow took over ABB Pressure Systems. This company was started in the early 1950s to manufacture diamonds (which require a pressure of about 8000 MPa). Later, ABB expanded its high pressure technology to other areas. In the early 1990s. ABB started its research on the effects of high pressure processing on foods together with Tetra Laval and SIK (a Swedish research institute) and later with SSICA (an Italian research institute). Currently, ABB Pressure Systems has been converted into a unit within Flow International and is called Flow Pressure Systems.

Flow Pressure Systems has developed technology for wire winding of vessels and yokes, reducing the weight by 50% and leading to an infinite lifetime of vessel and yoke (trade name Quintus). In addition, Flow International's experience gained from manufacturing water jet cutters is a sound basis for the design of intensifier pumps.

Equipment developed or manufactured by Flow International includes the following:

At Flow Sweden a 1500 MPa unit is available for testing at temperatures up to 115°C with 1.5 liter volume.

Approximately 20 laboratory units have been delivered to the United States, Europe, Japan, and Korea. Most of these units have a pressure of 900 MPa and a volume of 1.4 liters.

One 22-liter, one 50-liter, and one 215-liter press have been delivered to Avomex in the United States for treatment of avocado, salsa, etc. All systems are operated at nominal pressures of 600 MPa or higher.

Two units of 35 liter, 600 MPa have been delivered to Japan and Europe.

Flow has delivered a number of batch presses in the range 25 to 45 liters and continuous systems for treatment of liquid food.

In 2000, six units of 215 liters or larger with pressures from 400 to 600 MPa were delivered, among others for Avomex (Traff, personal communication, June 1998, February 2000).