How a Basic CIP System Works

How a Basic CIP System Works

The key objectives of an efficient CIP system are:

·                 Maximize safety — to avoid cross-contamination between product changes

·                 Minimize CIP time — to help speed up  time-to-market and reduce impact on plant production (downtime reduction)

·                 Optimize thermal efficiency — to avoid unnecessary heat loss and reduce energy requirements.

·                 Minimize water usage – Manage the solution interface.

The conventional CIP process that many of the food processing factories involves multiple cycles including an initial and final drain step, a pre-rinse, an alkali wash, and sometimes depending on the type of soil, an acid wash may be performed and a post-rinse. Rinse and wash cycles vary from five minutes to one hour. The process may include a “sanitize” cycle to reduce the levels of bacterial contamination using strong oxidants such as hydrogen peroxide, ozone, Peracetic Acid (PAA), chlorine dioxide or other chlorine-containing compounds. Thorough removal of these chemicals is required to prevent cross-contamination and to avoid corrosion of the stainless steel apparatus.

The 5-Steps CIP process:                                              

1. Pre-Rinse
2. Detergent Wash Cycle (Ambient or Hot)
3. Intermediate Rinse
4. Disinfection (Sanitation) Cycle
5. Final Rinse

When the CIP process is initiated, pre-rinse water is sent through the circuit and “chases” the product. A timing sequence based on distances and flow rates will switch the valves at the proper time to minimize the interface between product and rinse water. Over 90% of the product residue is removed during pre-rinse, the pre-rinse step is terminated via turbidity of the rinse water, in order to minimize the use of washing chemicals. Proper cleaning  is a function of detergent strength, cleaning time, correct mechanical action, coverage and temperature (TACCT).