Peanut butter processing equipment
A peanut butter pumping machine consisting of two steamjacketed
vessels and two pumps, with stainless steel piping (inner
diameter 1.500) to circulate molten peanut butter (donated by
North Carolina State University and funded through a FDA Centers
of Excellence grant awarded to Western Center for Food Safety,
University of California at Davis) was installed into the IFSH Bio-
Containment Pilot Plant (BCPP) to allow safe experimentation
with large quantities of pathogen (Fig. 1). Biohazard suits with
breathing air were used for trials involving large quantities of
pathogenic microorganisms or procedures that presented a risk of
aerosolization. The steam-jacketed vessels (capacity ~75 L)
included thermocouple units to provide continuous in-tank temperature
profiles of the heating process. The positive displacement
pump from the peanut butter tank allows re-circulation of product,
or disposal from system and had a flow rate of ~17.4 L/min.