The world-wide demand for starch and tailor-made starch products, high-purity proteins, fermentation materials and ethanol from renewable resources is growing continuously. Centrifugal separation technology is a key technology in the recovery of valuable renewable plant products, with substantial potential for improving products and production processes. The process lines incorporating separation technology and the process technological developments of Westfalia Separator are a product of experience and innovative strength of the technology leader in this important sector.

Starch

World-wide demand for starch products is growing daily and centrifugal separation technology is a critical element for meeting this demand. Industrial success depends on a combination of increased productivity, premium quality and the economical use of resources. Starch is predominantly obtained from starch-rich plants such as wheat, potatoes, maize, rice, peas and tapioca. Today there are some 600 different starch products used for a variety of applications such as the making of noodles, farinaceous food, grape sugar, for sizing paper, thickening paints and producing biodegradable plastics. The resulting increase in production and the potential for end-product diversification demands ultra-modern production systems. Today Westfalia Separator continues to occupy a leading technological position world-wide with its integrated process lines for starch extraction. Starch production breaks down essentially into three distinct technical processes: classification, washing and concentration of the extracted starch. Westfalia Separator has the requisite technical expertise and the appropriate equipment for each of these processes.

Proteins

Vegetable proteins are among the most important nutritional resources. At the same time the fascinating properties of proteins are constantly opening up new potential applications to industry. To profit from this diversity these valuable substances must be isolated with a high degree of purity so that they are suitable as tailor-made proteins for further processing. On this basis Westfalia Separator has developed various techniques and is constantly improving existing processes. The out come is integrated plant systems and process lines which treat renewable raw materials sparingly, are highly automated and consume much less water and energy than was possible in the past.

Fermentation materials and products

Westfalia Separator has taken a close interest in biotechnology from the outset and contributed substantially to its industrial utilisation. So it’s no surprise that we are a partner to the yeast industry for more than 110 years. But that applies not only to the obtaining of classical biotechnological products, but also to processing systems in which the use of centrifuges was previously unusual. For example the production of algae where Westfalia Separator uses clarifying separators with the HydroStop-System for very high dry residue and therefore maximum product yield. For the production of amino acids such as lysine Westfalia Separator developed the hydrohermetic decanter for the dewatering of the fermentation broth.

Bioethanol

For a long time ethanol’s principal importance was as raw material for beverage alcohol. The development of bioethanol has changed that. As a fuel made from renewable resources, the product is starting its second career at the petrol pump. Whatever the biomass used, in the quest for efficient processing methods a fundamental key lies in the use of centrifugal separation technology. Westfalia Separator provides strong support for industry, not just with sophisticated machines but also with individual integrate solutions, from design and installations of decanters and separators to complete process lines for specific areas. Economic efficiency extends not just to ethanol production itself but also to efficient utilisation of valuable by-products such as gluten or stillage.