Rheology Solutions OLR OnLine Rheometer

The OnLine Rheometer (OLR) continuously measures, plots and reports the flow properties of liquids in process pipes. It assists process monitoring, process control and quality control of liquids in the processing and manufacturing of food products.

Flow properties that influence processability or mouthfeel like viscosity, tack, elasticity and body are important for a variety of products in the food industry. The OLR is able to make measurements that directly relate to these variables and provide feedback to the operator in real time. The operator can thus make informed process decisions about the quality of the material in the pipe and make changes as appropriate.

The product can reduce or remove waiting times associated with laboratory testing, removing production bottlenecks and increasing effective production capacity. Consumer-critical parameters such as mouthfeel can be monitored online so that satisfaction with the final product can be better assured during production rather than post-production from a taste panel assessment. The product will consistently measure the properties that define critical mouthfeel attributes that have been previously evaluated as preferred and important from pilot product tests with taste panels.

The device is tuned to frequencies that probe the relevant microstructure and provides measurements that can be easily correlated to the attributes of interest. The product’s software, SOLR, allows the process/production engineer to select a range of frequencies and monitor the measurements at these frequencies over the course of the production process in real time. Once a signature of a good product is set, the process can be controlled/monitored so that products remain in spec for all subsequent batches.

Advantages of the product include: fast, reliable, real-time results; low maintenance; out-of-specification diagnosis; plug-and-play installation; precise and robust sensor system; process control; process monitoring; quality control.