Starch Modification
Only the Bepex food-grade starch processing system offers independent mixing, drying, heating, and reaction processing. That provides better processing control while creating a premium product.
Better Starch Processing. Superior Product.
Bepex brings continuous operations to food-grade starch processing. Continuous processing offers a vast improvement compared to batch processing, including providing more consistent product quality and operational flexibility, improved safety, and lower operating costs. Bepex equipment is widely used to make food-grade modified starch, dextrin, and clean label starches.
Increased Operational Flexibility
Batch systems often combine mixing, drying, and heating into a single unit – limiting flexibility and opportunities to fine tune the process during production. The Bepex modular system is designed to create a wide range of products with consistent, repeatable results. Whether creating new products or perfecting current operations, adjustability in residence time, temperature and gas concentration allows for easy modification of color, RVA profile, or other functional requirements.
Improved Safety
Starch dust can be highly combustible. Bepex’s indirect drying technology uses less oxygen in processing, limiting the opportunity for accidental ignition. Drying, heating, and reacting units are also designed for dust containment or inert operations.
Lower Operating Costs
Bepex offers the fastest drying and heating capabilities on the market while also minimizing required gas flow. Our high efficiency, indirect heat transfer technology significantly reduces the time needed for processing. Continuous processing also requires less labor and material handling than batch operations. Plus Bepex systems are engineered for easy cleaning and changeovers. It all adds up to lower operating costs and better cap ex returns.
Multiple Processes. One Proven Supplier.
Mixing
Mixing is a critical first step in the starch production process. Starch and a diluting acid or base must be mixed aggressively to create a homogenous mix. The Bepex Turbulizer provides aggressive, high-shear mixing, designed to improve product quality and color by preventing localization of the acid or base.
Drying
After mixing, the starch feed needs to be dried to 0.5-1.0% moisture. The Bepex Solidaire quickly removes moisture from the starch mix, preventing gelatinization. The Solidaire’s rapid, thin-film drying technology leads to minimal color change and cuts processing time.
Heating
The dry starch is rapidly heated to 140-220°C, depending on the modification required. Extremely rapid heating helps preserve the color of the starch. A single, multi-zone Solidaire can be used to both dry and heat the starch, or the operations can be separated into multiple units for more control – including the ability to adjust temperatures during the process for absolute control over results.
Reacting
The hot starch enters the Bepex Continuator, where it is held at a specific time and temperature to encourage the inhibition reaction. Residence time, temperature and gas concentrations are all adjustable, allowing for product changes on the fly.
Cooling
The hot, modified starch is cooled in a Solidaire to prevent gelatinization when the starch is added to water to wash out residual chemicals or other impurities. Cooling is done in an inert environment to eliminate opportunities for product degradation.
Drying
After washing, excess water often is mechanically removed from the starch, then the starch wet cake is fed into the Bepex PCX dispersion dryer. The PCX can handle pumpable or non-pumpable starch feeds. It mills and dries the starch in a single step for better control of particle size and density while low drying temperatures protect product quality.
The Better System for Modified or Clean Label Starch Production
Select a product to learn more
Turbulizer
The Turbulizer is built for near-instantaneous mixing or agglomeration of liquids and solids. Its high-speed rotor with adjustable paddles creates intense turbulence with short residence times to produce dust-free particles ranging in size from fine powders up to 2-3 mm.
Continuator
The Continuator allows processors to convert common batch processing applications into continuous operations – increasing throughput, cutting costs, and expanding downstream processing options. The indirect bed technology is used for pressure cooking, vacuum reactions, or long residence time devolatilization.
PCX
The PCX dispersion flash dryer processes high-moisture materials including non-pumpable wet cakes, pastes and slurries into a fine powder or small granules. No extra dilution is required for processing, meaning faster drying, less energy use, and lower emissions.
Solidaire
The Solidaire thin layer paddle dryer offers the highest heat transfer coefficient available. Process dry or wet solids, liquids, slurries, cakes or pastes more efficiently, with more control, at lower cost. Solidaire applications include drying, devolatilizing, reacting, cooling, and crystallizing.
Starch. A Better, Sustainable Alternative.
Helping Customers Produce Sustainable Products…Sustainably
Starch is a cornerstone of food processing.Starch comprises up to 70% of the weight of cereal grains. As an ingredient, its formulation ranges from native starches to a wide range of functional starches – both clean-label friendly and modified. Whether you are creating new products or reformulating an existing offering, Bepex starch processing systems help you meet the most exacting ingredient specifications. And the Bepex system requires less energy and produces less emissions than competitive alternatives. Plus our equipment is backed by our expertise. Our Process Development Center offers the formulation know-how, process and production expertise, and support to help you develop new products or evolve existing formulations.It’s all part of our commitment to work with our customers towards better, sustainable processing leading to a better, more sustainable future.
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Process Development
Feasibility
All new inquiries begin with a feasibility study. These studies aim to provide preliminary insights into the viability of a commercial process. Using as little as 100 grams of material, we can begin early process design, develop plans for pilot-testing and/or confirmation, and begin providing early economic estimates. Our experience across our wide range of technologies gives us a unique ability to provide quick feedback on the feasibility of your process.
Development
From our learnings, we’ll begin the process development work. The primary work in this phase takes place in the form of pilot-scale testing in our Process Development Center. Our pilot tests look a bit different than what you may have experienced in the past. Each test is designed to measure the system performance and feasibility rather than that of any single machine.
Each system is custom assembled for each test. Our goal is to provide as much of a pilot-scale simulation as possible while gathering scale-up data to deliver on commercial capacities. When a certain technology proves ineffective, we’ll draw from our range of options to determine if there is a better fit. The Process Development Center is our sandbox to build, test, and revise to ensure we get every detail right.
Budget Evaluation
With a successful pilot simulation completed, we now have everything we need to scale up and provide proposals for capital equipment with included performance guarantees.
System Design And Build
After receipt of the purchase order, we begin with both equipment and system engineering. Each proprietary technology we sell is custom-designed and built per application. We do not have any off-the-shelf units. At this stage, your exact system begins to take shape, including auxiliary equipment, process flow diagrams, process and instrumentation diagrams, safety provisions, and more.
Commissioning
After delivery and installation of your new system, Bepex will provide a mechanical check to ensure everything is placed according to plan. This is followed shortly thereafter by system commissioning. This is where our pilot-scale simulations become invaluable, as our team of application engineers, controls technicians, and sales engineers begin working with your team to successfully bring your system online.
Support
At this point, you’re up and running at rate, producing a quality product, but our work doesn’t stop there.
Following commissioning, Bepex remains a reliable partner, providing quality OEM parts, immediate field service, process optimization, training, system troubleshooting, and more. We have consistently had high customer retention rates, and we believe it is due in large part to our comprehensive approach to serving our customers long after the original sale.
Improving Starch Processing
Learn more about improving clean label and modified starch production. Reach out to a Bepex processing expert.
