Processing large chunks of fruits, vegetables and fish destined for drinks, soups and sauces while minimizing damage through conventional pumps can be a difficult task. To combat this problem, JBT has introduced the innovative Pumpideal™, developed specifically for the gentle treatment of products with larger particulates.
Designed to treat any products with large particulates of up to 80mm in liquid, the Pumpideal is able to achieve gentle particle treatment at a throughput of between 2000 to 10000 liters per hour, while eliminating pulsation to ensure a continuous flow for entering sterilization or pasteurization.
The ability of the Pumpideal to handle large products is such that it can even pump complete shrimp or handle delicate salmon pieces, according to JBT’s Global Product Line Director for Fruit & Vegetable Processing, Michael Mas.
“Imagine you need to move around chunks of pineapple or peach of up to three inches in size: a regular pump is going to tear these to pieces,” he says. “This pump is designed to handle very large particles in a liquid, but in a way that will minimize damage to products such as shrimp, apple, strawberries and peach.”
Continuous flow
Another key advantage of the Pumpideal is an inbuilt control system which has been developed to reduce or completely eliminate pulsation during the pumping process. “Normally there is a spot where neither cylinder is moving,” explains Mas. “We have reduced that, so there is a constant, continuous flow coming through the pump system.
“This is very important when it comes to feeding the product into a sterilizer or pasteurizer because a pause can affect the consistency of the treatment.”
He adds that the Pumpideal can be used across a wide range of products, including for the gentle handling of tomato and white sauces or soups with vegetable and mushroom pieces, yoghurt drinks or smoothies with fruit chunks, and shrimps or salmon in liquid.