Search

Droogprocessen opereren vaak suboptimaal. Dit heeft te maken met de complexe afweging van energiekosten, productkwaliteit, drogerontwerp en veiligheid. NIZO food research kan bij het vinden van oplossingen assisteren middels een stapsgewijze optimalisatieaanpak. Bij deze aanpak worden naast proces- en productscans ook simulatietechnieken gebruikt. Het blijkt dat al snel besparingen van 10-20% in de operationele kosten kunnen worden gerealiseerd. Naast sproeidrogen vinden ook droogtechnologieën zoals walsdrogen, zeolietdrogen en vriesdrogen een steeds breder toepassingsgebied.

Spray drying is an essential unit operation for the manufacture of many products with specific powder properties. It is characterised by atomisation of a solution or suspension into droplets, followed by subsequent drying of these droplets by evaporation of water or other solvents. Spray drying is used for the manufacture of many consumer and industrial products such as instant food products, laundry detergents, pharmaceuticals, ceramics and agrochemicals. The best known example of an instant food product is milk powder, but instant beverages such as coffee can also be produced by spray drying.

Heparin coating of an extracorporeal circuit for cardiopulmonary bypass improves the hemocompatibility of the circuit and reduces the inflammatory response of the body. It has not been established, however, that heparin coating also improves postoperative hemostasis. We therefore performed a study in 30 patients who underwent a routine coronary artery bypass graft operation subjected to cardiopulmonary bypass with an uncoated (control) or a heparin-coated extracorporeal circuit (Duraflo II). We found significantly higher plasma levels of heparin in the Duraflo II group. However, we found no significant differences between the two groups with regard to other parameters of activation of the fibrinolytic and coagulation systems and to activation of platelets. Postoperative blood loss and donor blood transfusions were reduced in the Duraflo II group but not to a statistically significant extent. We conclude that heparin coating of an extracorporeal circuit improves anticoagulation but does not significantly reduce platelet activation, fibrinolysis, postoperative blood loss, and donor blood transfusions in routine coronary bypass operations.

Cardiopulmonary bypass generates a systemic inflammatory response including the activation of the complement cascade and leukocytes contributing to postoperative morbidity. To evaluate whether the use of heparin-coated extracorporeal circuits could reduce these activation processes, we performed a study on 30 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting who were randomly perfused with a heparin-coated circuit (Duraflo II, n = 15) or with a similar noncoated circuit (control, n = 15). Standardized systemic heparinization was applied for every patient before cardiopulmonary bypass. The use of heparin-coated circuits resulted in a reduction of systemic leukocyte activation during cardiopulmonary bypass reflected by reduced elastase release (p