Lesson 3 - Wort Clarification Technology and Process Control SAQ
This lesson provides the opportunity for you to test yourself on the material covered in Lesson 2 (Wort Clarification Technology and Process Control) and determine the level to which you have attained the expected outcomes.
Suggested Response - Q3
**You are going to replace your whirlpool with a centrifuge. What factors must you consider?
Response:
The maintenance requirement is much higher for centrifuges. They have seals and bearings that wear and are more likely to stop working than a whirlpool. Therefore, we need to either buy duty and standby machines or ensure we have critical spare parts and the ability to repair the centrifuge in the brewery.
If the throughput rating of the centrifuge is sufficient it will process wort faster than the whirlpool, so we may need to incorporate a stand at the end of the boil to achieve the same beer flavour. We need to ensure that our flavour panel are very familiar with the beer and assess trial brews from the centrifuge for trueness to brand.
We need to determine the standard wort turbidity achieved by the whirlpool and use that as the set point for wort turbidity leaving the centrifuge.
Centrifuges typically have lower wort losses than whirlpools so we may need to reduce the brew size to not over fill fermentation vessels. They are a great deal noisier than whirlpools so either a soundproof enclosure must be installed or staff must be kept out of the area when the centrifuge is in operation.
Centrifuges have large motors and draw a lot of current when starting up. The electrical supply to the brewhouse may need to be upgraded before installation.