Direct shear testing of flowability of food powders

With an increasing quantity and variety of powders being produced in industry, there is growing need for information about material characteristics important for handling and processing. Knowledge of mechanical properties of food powders is essential for design of industrial equipment, efficient and reliable material processing as well as for estimation of quality of raw material (MOLENDA, STASIAK 2002). The knowledge of physical properties of food powders is also important for quality assessment of final product on-line as well as during later storage, handling and transport. Flow properties of powders influence handling and processing operations, such as flow from silos and hoppers, transportation, mixing, compaction and packaging (KNOWLTON et al. 1994).