Introductory aspects
- Presentation of the course (objectives, contents, methods of examination); introduction to the agri-food plant engineering sector. Environmental and energy aspects specific to the agri-food industry.
Cold technologies
- Principles of refrigeration, refrigeration cycle, refrigerating fluids, efficiency coefficients, refrigerant circuit components. Direct and indirect refrigeration systems. Heat recovery from refrigeration.
Production and distribution of thermal energy
-The heat in the food industry, chemical and physical characteristics of fossil and renewable fuels, combustion process, boilers, steam generators, heat transfer fluids. Sizing criteria, conversion yield.
Heat exchangers
- Direct and indirect systems; plate, tube, tube bundle, agitated and spiral exchangers; operational characteristics and performance. Exchange efficiency.
Transportation and handling of materials
- Solid product handling systems. Transport circuits of fluids, pipes, materials, design criteria. Pumps: characteristic parameters. Types of pumps; sizing, selection criteria and use.
Separation of components
-Sedimentatori; machines for liquid separation and solid-liquid separation: tubular centrifuges, disc centrifuges, centrifugal decanters. Selection criteria and usage parameters. Filtration: techniques, materials; machines and plants for filtration
Overview of automation and process control
-Finality of control and regulation systems; components: sensors, regulators, actuators; operating logics
Enological plant engineering. notes on the main machines for the mechanical harvesting of grapes and on transport wagons. Reception and management of production in the cellar (weighs, analyzers), transport systems for solid and semi-solid materials (screw conveyors, technical notes and sizing). Transport of liquid materials (alternative and rotary volumetric pumps, rotodynamic pumps). Main oenological machines: crushing-destemming, destemming-crushing, destemming machines, vinifiers, static and dynamic separators, svinatori, machines for the exhaustion of the marc (continuous and discontinuous presses) and for the clarification of musts and wines (centrifuges, decanters and floaters)
Exercises
- Call up units of measurement; resolution of applied physics problems; hints of safety and ergonomics of work; flow charts and plant schemes. Analysis of production lines subject to technical examination
