Delivery of puffing equipment

Working Principle of Puffed Food Equipment

The core working principle of puffed food equipment is to use high temperature and high pressure to instantaneously vaporize the moisture in the raw materials, generating a powerful expansion force. This alters the structural organization of the material, creating a porous and crispy texture. This process is primarily achieved through extrusion puffing technology.

The specific workflow is as follows:

Mixing and Conditioning: Grain flour (e.g., corn flour, rice flour), starch, water, and other ingredients are uniformly mixed and adjusted to an appropriate moisture content.

Conveying and Pressurization: The mixed raw materials are fed into the barrel of the extruder via a feeder. Inside the barrel, a rotating screw conveys the material forward.

Heating and Melting: During conveyance, the material is subjected to intense shearing and friction from the screw, as well as heating from external heaters. The temperature rises rapidly (typically to 120-180°C), and pressure increases sharply (up to several megapascals). In this high-temperature, high-pressure environment, the starch in the raw material gelatinizes, proteins denature, and the material becomes molten.

Instantaneous Puffing: When the molten material is forced through a die with specific-shaped holes at the end of the barrel, the pressure is instantly released to atmospheric pressure. The superheated moisture within the material vaporizes and evaporates instantly, causing the volume to expand dramatically (by several to over ten times its original volume). Simultaneously, the material cools and solidifies rapidly, forming the puffed product with a porous, sponge-like structure.

Cutting and Drying: The continuous extruded product is cut into the desired shapes by a rotating cutter. It is then typically subjected to subsequent processes like baking or frying, and seasoning, to finally obtain the crispy puffed snack.

Its technical essence is an energy conversion process: mechanical energy (screw shearing) and thermal energy are converted into molecular potential energy (high-pressure state). This potential energy is finally released during pressure release, performing work to puff the material.+86 1516967012