Conches
Operation principle of the TRIQUENCE® Mixing Conche
The proven high-shear conche from LIPP has a central mixing shaft. Several mixing elements with close clearance to the conche wall are mounted along the length of this shaft.
Each ploughshare-like mixing element sweeps a specific ring-shaped area once during each rotation. With the new TRIQUENCE® Mixing Mechanism however the mixing vessel section is swept three times during each rotation of the shaft (TRIQUENCE® effect).
In conventional mixer designs, the product is turned once only for each shaft rotation. With the TRIQUENCE® mixers it is turned three times.
This produces the following effects:
Significantly improved mixing effect
This in turn means
- Temperature and concentration gradients are reduced,
- A larger, constantly renewed free surface area is created,
- as the product is more effectively disaggregated,
Improved heat transmission between the product and mixer wall
This results from
- an increased frequency with which the product adjacent to the wall is agitated,
- more intensive mixing of the material.
More effective dispersing
The essentially higher heat transfer allows significant improvement in cooling capacity. This allows more shear energy to be fed in without overheating the contents. The ability to run at very high shear shortens the conching time by 30 percent while at the same time reducing the need of emulsifiers and fat to achieve viscosity. This is achieved without increasing either the complexity or the cost of the machine.