Coperion donates a ZSK 27 Food Extruder in Hybrid Version to Purdue University based in West Lafayette, Indiana. The extruder will be used by the Department of Food Science — College of Agriculture and the Food Entrepreneurship and Manufacturing Institute (FEMI) at the university. The extruder is designed to the top of its class in both technology and innovation. This co-rotating twin screw extruder includes the latest in controls capabilities, customized configurations and process parameters to allow the study of emerging markets such as plant-based meat substitutes, hemp, the production of cereals, snack foods including puff snacks, pet food and the development of many new extruded processed food products. To complement the extruder, the donation includes two Coperion K-Tron loss-in-weight (LIW) feeders, for powders and liquids, designed with the latest generation of controls and load cells to ensure the highest accuracy of ingredient delivery to the extruder.
“This is a huge win for all, and Purdue is very excited about the partnership. The students and staff are ready to conduct research on the new state-of-the-art extruder with all the bells and whistles”, says Allison Kingery, Executive Director Life Science and Agriculture at Purdue University. “The new extruder replaces a working 25-year-old Coperion extruder, but we are looking forward to having a new, up-to-date extruder that includes new controls and new technology. This is a major donation for the students; they will be able to say they have utilized a modern, highly engineered extruder while in school and will be that much further ahead when graduating. The students will certainly benefit from utilizing a machine with such an exceptional reputation in the food industry.”
Kingery goes on to say, “Purdue and Coperion already has companies eager to sign up for the use of the extruder, from smaller start-up companies to large corporations. The setup at the university includes a full-scale kitchen next to the plant. The addition of the extruder to the test lab will not only open opportunities for the testing of products but also will allow the study of the final extruded product to be used in the kitchen and basically bring the product to life. A full 360-degree loop from development, to research to design. Nutritional analysis will also be done at the university from the products produced by the extruder. This is such a broad opportunity for the students at the university.”