ATTRITION EVALUATION FOR SELECTED AGGLOMERATED FOOD POWDERS: THE EFFECT OF AGGLOMERATE SIZE AND WATER ACTIVITY

Investigation of the attrition of agglomerates is very important for assessing the agglomerate strength, compaction characteristics, and quality control. A one‐term exponential attrition index model and the Hausner ratio were used to study the effects of agglomerate size and water activity on the attrition kinetics of some selected agglomerated food powders. It was found that the agglomerate size and water activity played significant roles in affecting the attrition: the larger the agglomerate size and the higher the water activity, the higher the attrition index under the same tap number. The Hausner ratio was well correlated with the attrition index at high tap numbers and might be used as a simple index to evaluate attrition severity for agglomerates. Knowing the effects of agglomerate size and water activity is very useful to minimize the attrition phenomenon during the handling and processing of agglomerated powders.