Gummy bears are known worldwide as popular, soft, and chewy confections based on gelatin or pectin, and they are particularly popular among children. These colorful, sugary, and flexible snacks stand out with their unique texture and flavors. However, the production process of these fun treats is quite different from ordinary confectionery production. In the production of gummy bears, the role of drying and resting rooms is of critical importance.
The production of gummy bears consists of a series of delicate stages. At the beginning of this process, main ingredients such as sugar, glucose syrup, and gelatin/pectin are mixed. This mixture forms the base of the gummy bear, and various additives are incorporated to achieve the desired flavor, color, and acidity level. The mixture is then poured into molds for the gummy bears to take their shape.
The mogul molds where gummy bears are shaped are generally starch-based and can come in various forms. The gummy mixture is poured into these starch molds, allowing the gummy bears to take the desired shape. The gummy bears are placed on starch trays and transported to the resting room. This stage determines the final texture and durability of the gummy bears. The resting room, equipped with dehumidifiers and temperature control equipment, provides a controlled humidity and temperature environment, allowing the gummy bears to gradually harden and reach the desired consistency. During this process, the gummy bears lose moisture and release the moisture they retain into the environment, gaining a firmer structure. The drying time may vary depending on the amount of gelatin in the gummy bear, the temperature and humidity conditions of the environment, the moisture content of the starch, and the characteristics of the desired final product. Below, a non-complex jelly resting room is examined through its design parameters.
Jelly Product Resting Parameters
Room Design: The room design must be considered to ensure adequate ventilation. The length, width, and height of the room are determined to define the room volume. The room dimensions should be designed to maximize process flow and product capacity.
Product Quantity and Layout: The number of mogul trays and how they are positioned affects airflow. More trays require greater airflow because each gel needs to come into contact with dry air from the dehumidifier for proper drying. There should be sufficient spacing between trays so that dry air from the dehumidifier can reach every surface equally.
Humidity and Temperature: The effectiveness of ventilation also depends on the room's humidity and temperature levels. High humidity levels reduce the air's capacity to carry moisture, which requires a higher-capacity dehumidifier. High temperature levels reduce air density, which affects ventilation efficiency. Achieving the design conditions of the jelly resting room and ensuring continuity in production through the correct dehumidifier and cooling equipment selection is the primary objective.
Pectin and Starch: The hardening of pectin-containing gels and the moisture-absorbing capability of starch can affect ventilation requirements. Starch can alter airflow due to its moisture-absorbing ability. When calculating humidity loads and selecting dehumidifier capacity, the amount of moisture absorbed by starch, as well as the thermal load introduced by the starch into the room in the cooling design, must be included in engineering calculations. Other gelling agents used instead of pectin (such as gelatin, agar agar, carrageenan, etc.) require different humidity and temperature conditions for gelation and hardening.
Room Design:
Product Quantity and Layout
In our example, the jelly room consists of 4 sections. Each section contains 100 carts arranged in a 10 x 10 configuration.
1 cart holds 130 trays.
In total, 400 carts have a capacity of 52,000 trays.
Tray weights vary by product: ranging from 600g to 1800g.
On average, each section contains approximately 12.5 tons of product, and it has been observed that a total of approximately 50 tons of product undergoes the resting process across the 4 sections.
Depending on the nature of the jelly agents used in the products, the products reach the desired dryness level within 24 hours under optimal conditions.
Room temperature and humidity values: Designed for 28°C, 30% RH conditions.
A controlled corridor application was preferred for product placement and evacuation of carts at the end of the resting period.
Humidity and Temperature
Gel and Starch Mass: The total mass of both materials is generally determined in kilograms (kg). This typically represents how much material enters the resting room during a specific period in the production process.
Silikajel Rotorlu Kimyasal Nem Alma Cihazları
Temperature Difference: The difference between the inlet temperature of the gel and starch and the ideal temperature of the resting room is calculated. This is usually expressed in degrees Celsius (°C).
Humidity Control: The dehumidifier humidity load level is determined by considering the inlet and outlet Brix values of the jelly entering the room, as well as the moisture release to the environment based on the product's temperature and humidity conditions.
Specific Heat Capacity: The specific heat capacity of gel and starch is determined. These values can typically be obtained from literature or standard accepted values for similar substances.
Air Velocity: Products placed inside the trays must be rested at a specific air velocity. This air velocity should not exceed the determined threshold speed value due to the lightweight nature of starch.
Pectin and Starch
Pectin is among the carbohydrates that exhibit the best gelation properties at specific temperature and humidity levels. The humidity level in the resting room of pectin-based gummy bears directly affects the texture and shelf life of these confections. If the humidity level is too high, the gummy bears may become overly soft and more susceptible to unwanted microbial growth. Therefore, the use of dehumidifiers in the resting room is critically important to ensure that pectin-based gummy bears reach the desired consistency and quality. Dehumidifiers draw excess moisture from the air to provide an ideal humidity ratio, allowing the gummy bears to reach the optimal firmness and stickiness levels.
Starch, being a substance with high water retention capacity, requires a different approach to humidity control in the production of gummy bears deposited in starch. During the drying and resting processes of such gummy bears, the water retention property of starch keeps the product soft and flexible. However, excessive moisture can lead to structural degradation and shortened shelf life of the gummy bears. In this context, dehumidifiers maintain a balanced humidity ratio in the production of starch-deposited gummy bears, ensuring consistent product quality. The dehumidifier optimizes the humidity ratio to prevent the gummy bears from becoming overly hardened or sticky.
The temperature and humidity sensitivities in the resting processes of gelatin and pectin-based gummy bears should be designed with a macro design perspective that considers all other system components and airflow. Parameters such as the temperature of the incoming material, room volume, inlet Brix value, desired outlet Brix value, room holding time, room temperature, and room humidity must all be considered when determining the capacity of the dehumidifier and temperature control equipment.
Resting Room Dehumidifier Benefits
Product Quality: A stable temperature and humidity level ensures that the product hardens and dries properly. When a dehumidifier that maintains stable humidity levels in the process is used, it helps keep the product's consistency, texture, and taste constant.
Process Control and Production Speed: Process control is critically important for the efficiency and effectiveness of the production process. A stable temperature and humidity level helps make the process predictable and sustainable.
Energy Efficiency: Energy usage is a significant cost factor in any production process. A stable temperature and humidity level can make it possible to use energy more efficiently and thus reduce operating costs. In particular, the use of alternative energy sources for the reactivation heater of the dehumidifier used during humidity control will increase efficiency. In this way, the portion of the latent heat in the air is removed from the environment at low energy costs using the dehumidifier.
Product Safety: In food products, humidity and temperature play an important role in product safety. For example, high humidity levels can provide a favorable environment for the growth of certain harmful microorganisms. Above a certain humidity level, the microorganism reproduction rate increases exponentially. Therefore, correctly controlling temperature and humidity levels helps ensure product safety.
At NKT – Humidity Control Technologies, with our expert engineering team, we offer our customers the most suitable dehumidifier solutions, providing energy-efficient, high-performance recommendations to increase the efficiency of jelly (gummy bear) resting areas and preserve the integrity of the production process.
Silikajel Rotorlu Kimyasal Nem Alma Cihazları