A New Look at Cavitation and the Applications of Its Liquid-Phase Effects in the Processing of Food and Fuel

Ultrasound-induced acoustic cavitation has been studied in detail due to its chemical effects (sonochemistry) and light emission (sonoluminescence). However, the physical effects such as shear, shockwaves, etc., can also be used for useful applications despite their harmful effects, such as cavitation erosion. It has been suggested that the physical forces generated during cavitation may alter the 3-dimensional network of water molecules and hence a better hydration of macromolecules can be achieved using the cavitation process. In recent times, the physical effects of acoustic cavitation are used in food processing applications. The possibility of using hydrodynamic cavitation for food processing as an alternative approach to ultrasonic processing has been discussed in this manuscript. A special rotary disintegrator, developed by Dr. Hint in the last century is used for the generation of efficient hydrodynamic cavitation. A mathematical model has been developed for the optimization of rotary disintegrators. The suitability of the model for evaluating the process efficiency has also been tested using experimental data obtained for the production of emulsions used as fuels. The development and testing of a new mathematical model for optimizing rotary disintegrators pave new pathways to the use of hydrodynamic cavitation for processing large volumes of liquid ingredients making them suitable for fuel and food industries.