Food Process Engineering

Book excerpt: The Second Edition of Food Process Engineering by Dr. Dennis Heldman, my former student, and co-author Paul Singh, his former student, attests to the importance of the previous edition. In the Foreword to the First Edition, I noted the need for people in all facets of the food processing industry to consider those variables of design of particular importance in engineering for the food processing field. In addition to recognizing the many variables involved in the biological food product being handled from production to consumption, the engi neer must oftentimes adapt equations developed for non-biological materials. As more and more research is done, those equations are appropriately modified to be more accurate or new equations are developed specifically for designing to process foods. This Edition updates equations used. This book serves a very important need in acquainting engineers and technologists, particularly those with a math ematics and physics background, with the information necessary to provide a more efficient design to accomplish the objectives. Of prime importance, at present and in the future, is to design for efficient use of energy. Now, it is often economical to put considerably more money into first costs for an efficient design than previously, when energy costs were a much smaller proportion of the total cost of process engineering.