Improving particle size distribution and flow properties of milk chocolate produced by ball mill and blending

Bolenz, Siegfried; Holm, Marco; Langkrär, Christian

Improving particle size distribution and flow properties of milk chocolate produced by ball mill and blending

2014

Bolenz, Siegfried | Holm, Marco | Langkrär, Christian

Chocolate mass is produced by roller refining and conching or alternatively by ball milling. Grinding can generate varying particle size distributions (PSD), which again influence flow parameters. The latter are very important for downstream processing as well as mouthfeel and consumer acceptance of the final product. The objective of the work was to influence and control PSD and flow properties of ball mill chocolate. Various milk chocolate samples were produced in laboratory and pilot scale, and their PSD and flow properties were measured. First, it was tried to pre-grind milk and cocoa particles to very small size and then to produce coarser sugar particles in order to achieve a bimodal PSD. This should increase package density, which makes more fat available for the flow process. The attempt did not work very well for various practical reasons. Secondly, when instead fine and coarse fractions of the same particle composition were blended, it was possible to achieve bimodal PSDs as they are known from roller-refined products. The lowest values for flow parameters were achieved with a mix of 63 % coarse and 37 % fine particles as predicted in the literature. Thirdly, it was tested to blend roller-refined and ball-milled samples. It was possible to use one-third of the latter without considerably changing flow properties. This opens up various practical possibilities for the industry, e.g. line extension and productivity increase with relatively little effort and investment. ©Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013.

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