Characterization of honey ultrafiltration process

Ultrafiltration is a treatment used to transform raw honey into a material suitable for food processing. But the operating conditions required for the efficient ultrafiltration of honey have not been obtained, The effects of dilution of honey with water, molecular weight cut-off of ultrafiltration m embrane, feed flow velocity and applied pressure on the performance of ultr afiltration were Examined, At the same feed flow velocity and applied press ure, the permeation rate of sugar increased with temperature and dilution o f honey. The water activity of honey increased with dilution, and when the sugar concentration of honey is greater than 35.5%, the water activity is l ess than 0.94; such conditions inhibit multiplication of microorganisms, Th e flux of the ultrafiltration membranes with a molecular weight cut-off bel ow 30 000 slightly changed by alterations in the variety of honey and the p H of honey solutions, indicating that these membranes are suitable for indu strial use. The optimum conditions needed for ultrafiltration were also exa mined in terms of energy efficiency. Less energy was needed at lower flux. The combination of feed Row velocity and applied pressure minimizing the re quired energy for ultrafiltration can be determined at each flux.