Gas Detection Requirement in the Food Beverage Industry
Gas Detection Requirement in the Food & Beverage Industry August 2020
Outline • Introduction • Food processing • Food packaging • Food distribution and storage • Brewing and beverage industry • Case studies • Next steps © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Introduction The food and beverages (F&B) industry is all companies involved in: • Processing raw food materials • Packaging • Distribution This may include: • Fresh, prepared foods as well as packaged foods, and • Alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. • All products meant for human consumption, with the exception of pharmaceuticals, which are considered F&B industry. Top global F&B companies are listed here, many have manufacturing facility worldwide © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Food Processing • Includes the processing of meats, cheeses and package food, also creating soft drinks, dairy and alcoholic beverages. • Excludes foods that are directly produced via farming as it falls under agriculture industry e. g. fresh produce. • Types of food processing: Ø Primary food processing is conversion of raw food into commoditiesmilling wheat into flour Ø Secondary food processing turns the ingredients into edibles – turning wheat into bread Ø Tertiary food processing is the commercial production of ready-to-eat food – frozen pizza • Secondary food processing methods involve fermentation, heating, chilling dehydrating or cooking of some kind. © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Food Processing – Flammable Gas • • Food processing companies do a lot of cooking with industrial steam boiler. Steam boiler are usually gas fired (natural gas or LPG) or combination of gas & fuel oil fired • Natural gas consist mainly of methane (CH 4), a highly combustible gas lighter than air. Natural gas is piped directly into boilers. • LPG is mainly propane (C 3 H 8), combustible gas heavier than air. LPG boilers usually require on-site fuel storage tank. • In addition to safety consideration in handling pressurized equipment, boiler rooms must also consider fire protection. Ø OSHA boiler safety guideline recommends gas detection system be implemented for any gas-powered equipment (> 2 MW). This system is design to trigger alarms and relay contact in case of gas hazard. © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Food processing - Keeping it Clean • • • There are three commonly used methods of sanitation: Thermal, radiation, and chemical. Chemical disinfection is very common and effective to sanitize equipment or other surfaces. Chlorine sanitizers are commonly utilized in the food industry because they are inexpensive, fast acting, and effective against a variety of microorganisms. There are several different chlorine compounds that are used, including hypochlorite, organic and inorganic chloramines, and chlorine dioxide. Sodium hypochlorite (Na. OCl) is stored in tanks while chlorine dioxide (Cl. O 2) is usually generated on-site Gas detection required in chemical storage © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Case Study: Food Additive Company in Thailand Application • As part of production process, local vegetables such as sugar cane and tapioca are boiled and then fermented to release glutamic acid. The acid is further refined and crystallised to form mono sodium glutamate (MSG) crystals. • During the production process, heat and steam is required and LPG fuel is used to power boilers and other equipment. • The high-pressure boilers that are used must have LPG detectors to detect leaks, particularly in the boiler house. Crowcon Solution • Xgard Bright with local display and integral relay • Small footprint to retrofit existing installation • Local service support © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Food Packaging with N 2 Flushing • • Food packaging allows food to be transported and stored safely. Food packaging serves many purposes, from protecting the food to creating portion sizes to offer information on the product. • Shelf life of package food can be extended with N 2 flushing • Packagers widely use N 2 flushing method for preserving and storing their products because: Ø N 2 is a non-reactive gas. It is non-odorous and non-toxic. Ø It prevents oxidation of fresh food with sugars/fats Ø It prevents the growth of dangerous bacteria and prevents spoilage Ø It prevents packages from collapsing by creating a pressurized atmosphere • N 2 is an asphyxiant capable of displacing oxygen in air • Instead of detecting N 2 we detect O 2 content. © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Food Distribution & Storage • Refrigeration facilities in the F&B industry are used to keep food cool for long periods of time. • Large scale food storage facilities often use anhydrous ammonia (> 50% NH 3) based cooling systems as it is efficient and economical • Properties of Ammonia: Ø Both toxic and flammable. Ø Lighter than air and fill up enclosed space rapidly Ø NIOSH REL: 25 ppm TWA, 35 ppm STEL Ø Highly toxic > 300 ppm. Ø LEL 15%, UEL 25% • Ammonia can become flammable if released in an enclosed space, with a source of ignition present, or if a vessel of anhydrous ammonia is exposed to fire. © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved. Download NH 3 factsheet here
NH 3 Detection • • • NH 3 is detected with electro-chemical (toxic) and catalytic sensor (flammable) technology Portable detection, including single gas or multi-gas detectors can monitor instantaneous and TWA exposure to toxic levels of NH 3 Multi-gas personal monitors has been shown to improve worker’s safety. Ø Low range ppm for routine system surveys Ø Flammable range is used during system maintenance Fixed detection systems include a combination of toxic and flammable level detectors connected to local control panel – usually supplied as part of cooling system. Fixed systems can also be used for process over-rides and ventilation control. Consider detector placement as ammonia will fill up breathing space rapidly. © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Gas Detection Solution • • • Crowcon offers a wide range of personal and fixed gas detection suited for the F&B industry Wide selection of gases and housing material Bump test/ calibration station for personal detectors © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Brewing & Beverage Industry Refer to our interactive map for an overview of beer & wine production Gas hazards within wineries and breweries include: Ø CO 2 from fermentation, chilling, blanketing and recovery Ø Disinfectants such as , Cl. O 2, O 3 and SO 2 for cleaning equipment Ø Argon and N 2 used as blanketing gases to create inert atmospheres Ø NH 3 from refrigeration equipment Ø O 2 monitoring in confined spaces CO 2 is generated in large amounts during fermentation. It is also injected into beverage in process called carbonation. © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
CO 2 detection Carbon dioxide or CO 2 occurs naturally in our atmosphere (0. 04%). CO 2 is colourless and odourless. heavier than air and if it escapes, will tend to sink to the floor. CO 2 collects in cellars and at the bottom of containers and confined spaces such as tanks and silos. © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved. Download CO 2 white paper here
Case Study: DB Brewery in NZ Application • DB Brewery has over 100 employees who routinely enters cellars and drink storage area where CO 2 cylinders are kept • As part of their safety initiative, employees are equipped with CO 2 detectors before they enter any risk zone. Crowcon Solution • Gasman CO 2 easy one button operation & TWA alarms • IR technology requires little maintenance • Service support by local distributor © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved. DB Breweries Hamish Clentworth: “One of the key factors in selecting Crowcon was the flexibility of its device. The ability to select the alarm function to best suit the working conditions whilst ensuring safety, is paramount, as it ensured minimal disruption when our sales teams visited bars, restaurants or retail outlets. . ”
Case Study: Asahi owned Brewery in UK Application • Brewery uses Crowcon personal gas detectors site-wide • Customer H&S identify CO 2 detection in fermentation and maturation vessel, with link to extraction equipment and drive status indicator to show whether area is safe to enter. Crowcon Solution • Xsafe Bright IR CO 2 with addressable output connected to GM 64 controller • Addressable solution reduce cabling cost and allow clear indication of area • Special adaptation of Xsafe Bright to suite SS requirement © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Case Study: Leading Global Brewery Application • CO 2 detection is part of company’s life saving rules • Any worker (onsite or remote) has a monitor if they have a chance of encountering gas • Fleet size: 10, 000 units over Europe Crowcon Solution 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Gasman CO 2 with gas tester Tie in with Crowcon connect All devices calibrated & data recorded online Need to know staff are using the devices Backward compatibility - need to work with existing fleet and new purchases Hierarchical visibility - HQ sees all, countries and teams just see data relevant to them • • • © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved. Satisfies the key requirements Low cost of implementation No change to processes Works with existing legacy fleet and future purchases Onsite, offsite & pool fleet solutions
Crowcon Connect • Our new gas safety and compliance insight solution Record Analyse Act © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved. Crowcon Connect gives the visibility and insights you need from your detectors to ensure compliance, improve efficiency and raise levels of safety
Next Steps • • • Identify food processing or beverage plants in your area Talk to enduser on how their gases are stored and monitored Look out for upgrading or re-instrumentation projects Ø EPC for new build plant Ø Endusers for existing plant upgrading Ø System integrator (ozone generator, chemical supplier, specialty gas supplier) © 2018 Crowcon Detection Instruments. All rights reserved.
Thank you! Questions? Next Webinar 26 th August 2020 8: 30 am BST Cross Sensitivity Explained Series Catch-up: crowcon. com/webinars
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