BevExpress Series

ErtelAlsop just helped a large whiskey distillery in Tennessee remove the carbon and char from it’s small batch, single barrel whiskey with 4 plate and frame filters for whiskey. Each of these plate and frame filter have 42.7 square feet of filtration area for a total of 170.8 ft² of filtration area. With that much filtration area, this Tennessee distiller can filter 50 barrels of whiskey per day. That’s 2,650 gallons of whiskey which fills just over 5,700 bottles!!

The filtration process for flavor and fragrance products is what achieves a high quality standard for clarity, color and stability.

Blends of aromatic organic compounds can be composed of natural, nature identical and/or synthetic ingredients. These are concentrated through distillation, mechanical separation, or extraction before finally going through the filtration process to clarify and polish the product before packaging.

The varying degrees of filtration demanded by flavors and fragrances are met by ErtelAlsop’s wide range of cellulose depth filter media and filtration equipment.

ErtelAlsop depth filters and media succeed in filtering diverse natural and synthetic flavor aroma chemicals, essential oils, oleoresins, distillates, extracts and liquid compounds to assure the highest degree of quality.

Depth Filtration in Flavor Applications

Flavor chemists formulate blends of materials to product extracts or liquid compounds. Depth filtration plays a critical role in the process to ensure the end product satisfies the customer.

Common applications include:

• Particulate and Haze Reduction: ErtelAlsop Micro-Media depth filter media provides an ideal solution for reducing particulate loading in a wide variety of flavor products, effectively removing fine particulate that may collect over time at the bottom of product packaging.
• Essential Oil Absorption: ErtelAlsop 100% Cellulose Alpha-Media filter media is used in flavor extract applications to absorb free oil remaining in the extract after it is chilled and decanted. The cellulose depth matrix provides simultaneous particulate and haze reduction.
• Removal of insoluble waxes/lipids: Filtration ensures haze and wax residue will not be visible when the product is chilled or blended.
• Removal of microbial contaminants: Finer grades of depth media can remove microbial contaminants as well as byproducts of fermentation processes.
• Water Removal: Unwanted water contamination is sometime present in essential oils after extraction, either residual from the raw materials, or introduced in the manufacturing process. This water appears as a haze in the material, increasing the turbidity readings of the product. ErtelAlsop Zeta-Dri Pak Lenticular technology succeeds at removing water from essential oils during the filtration process. Both particulate and water can be removed in one pass through a Zeta-Dri Pak system.

Depth Filtration in Fragrance Applications

Expert perfumers in the fragrance industry draw from extensive palettes of essential oils and other fragrance materials. They scents they invent are enjoyed in a variety of products including fine fragrance, personal care, home care and home design products.

The filtration of essential oils for fragrances removes haze, particulate, and possibly filter aids which were used in the refinement of these liquids.

Common Applications Include:

• Particulate and Haze Reduction: ErtelAlsop’s Micro-Media filter media provides a trusted solution to the varying degrees of filtration required by fragrance producers. The blending of essential oils with alcohols, water and other base solvents can result in the formation of additional haze or precipitates in the final product. Filtration of chilled fragrances through depth filter media is the quickest, most consistent and cost efficient means of polishing these liquids prior to filling.
• Color correction: In some cases, color removal is essential for the presentation of a fragrance product. Micro-Clear filter media with activated carbon is the perfect solution for these filtration applications. The carbon impregnated filter media can be used in existing filtration equipment, removing the need to contaminate processing tanks with loose activated carbon. The process fluid can be recirculated through the filter media to achieve the required level of contact time with the activated carbon. Color correction and particulate removal can be achieved in one step.
• Vapor Control: An ErtelAlsop Vapor Master Enclosed Plate and Frame Filter Press or Lenticular Housing allows for the both containment of vapors and the treatment of liquid with filter aids.