PSC MCT569
Online Wash Down NIR Moisture & Oil/Fat Sensor
The MCT569 is a sanitary-design online NIR sensor for washdown conditions in food and snack-food manufacturing. The sensor helps operators control moisture and oil (fat) and meet product specifications with every production run. The MCT569 is IP69-rated and features NIR technology, which is widely used and accepted in food production.
Continuous Measurement of Moisture, Fat, & Product Temperature
Benefits
- Ensure food products have the ideal texture and flavour by measuring moisture, fat, and other parameters
- Make quick decisions and adjustments to the production line (e.g., adjust oven or fryer temperature) using the analysis data
- Full washdown compatibility makes it ideal for food environments with suspended airborne particles
- Save costs and reduce waste, which improves your company’s bottom line
Features
- The sensor has full washdown capability for food manufacturing (IP69 rated)
- High-speed measurement allows capturing up to 99 readings per second
- IP67-rated user interface protects in challenging operating environments
- Simple to operate, integrate, and standardize across multiple lines
- Proprietary temperature-controlled detector ensures measurement stability
- Fully modular, with all components easily replaceable in the field
- Easy to troubleshoot with advanced on-board diagnostics
Applications – Process NIR Applications for Food Manufacturers
The MCT569 Online NIR Smart Sensor is used in food manufacturing facilities requiring IP69-rated washdown, including:
- Potato Chips
- Corn Chips
- Tortillas
- Cookies
- Crackers
- Pretzels
- Extruded Snacks
- Bread Crumbs
- Oil-Based Flavourings
- Doughs/Dough Sheets
- Breakfast Cereals
- Popcorn
- Pork Rinds
- Sausage Skins
- Ground Meat
- Rendering
- Products
- Animal Feed Ingredients
- Flours and Starch
- Milk Powders
- Potato Flakes
- Sugar and Sugar Beets
- Salts
- Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa Powders
- And Many More
How It Works – Proven Technology for Washdown Food Applications
The MCT569 NIR analyzers are integrated into key areas of a production process to continuously monitor incoming raw materials or control processes on the production line. Each option is designed to integrate seamlessly over belt conveyors or bins & chutes to analyze moisture, oil, and other on-line measurements.
Sanitary Design
The MCT569 conforms to an IP69 rating, which is the accepted standard for equipment used in food production. There are no welds on the sensor housing design, eliminating any opportunity for food contamination, making it ideal for Clean-in-Place (CIP) applications.
The MCT569 is also impenetrable to high-pressure cleaning or steam jets, making it a completely wash-down solution for measuring moisture, oil, and other food quality parameters.
The MCT569 scanning process is simple but reliable:
- Light from the lamp is directed through a rotating wheel at 2000 rpm (up to 6000 rpm) containing NIR filters selected for the application.
- NIR light is directed onto the product being measured.
- The light reflected off the product is captured by a mirror within the unit and focused onto a Peltier Cooled lead sulfide detector.
- The detector’s output is taken by the on-board “smart” circuit board and compares to the internal reference beam. This is then converted into a percent of moisture, oil, and other parameters.
High-Speed Gating Analysis
The MCT566 and MCT569 allow the analysis of segmented products on a conveyor at full-line speeds. Through this process, the MCT566 or MCT569 sensor will only provide measurements when the product is under the sensor, making the system suitable for applications with a non-continuous product flow. High-speed gating capabilities make the MCT566 or MCT569 ideal for measuring moisture and fat content in high-throughput food operations, including:
- Cookies/Biscuits
- Snack Cakes
- Candy Bars/Granola Bars
- Individually-Packed Noodles
- Freeze-Dried Portioned Products
Installation
Over-Belt Conveyor
MCT569 sensors are mounted 200-450 mm (8-18 in) above the conveyor, ideally with continuous product flow.
Bins and Chutes
Sight glass windows, such as Sapphire can be used for continuous flow of products against the window.
Specifications
- IR Temp Sensor: Enables simultaneous measurement of product temperature.
- Snorkel Sampler: Designed to measure free-falling powders/granules in chutes.
- Cal Check Standard: Used to verify sensor stability over time and transfer calibrations between sensors.
- Air Cooling: Vortex cooler attached to the sensor for high-temp applications.
- Product Loss Sensor: Enables measurements when the product flow is discontinuous or when there are frequent lulls in the production stream.