A method for producing a mixture of oil and fluid food product includes placing a funnel into a pressure tank such that a stem of the funnel extends at least halfway down into the pressure tank. The pressure tank is flushed with nitrogen. Oil flows into the pressure tank through the funnel. A flow of nitrogen into the pressure tank is maintained through a side inlet of the pressure tank. Oil is dispensed from a pressure tank into the transfer line flowing a flow of fluid food product from a batch tank. The dispensed oil is dispersed into the flow of fluid food product in a inline shear mixer creating oil-in-fluid food product droplets. The oil-in-fluid food product droplets flow to the batch tank with the flow of fluid food product. The oil-in-fluid food product droplets are distributed in a volume of fluid food product in the batch tank.

The present invention relates to a single-stage process for the production of starch blends in a twin-screw extruder or two twin-screw extruders arranged in series, where i) the starch, together with a plasticizer, passes through a wetting section of length 8D to 30D in an extruder or in a wetting section of length 8D to 80D if two extruders are used at temperatures below the gelatinization temperature of the starch, with mixing, where D is defined as the screw diameter of the screw cylinder and the wetting section is defined as starting at that point on the extruder screw at which the starch and the entire or partial quantity of plasticizer encounter one another and ending at that point in the extruder at which the starch is gelatinized and is digested to give thermoplastic starch; ii) in a plastifying section of length 10D to 50D the extruder temperature is adjusted stepwise to above 130° C., where the starch is digested, destructured and thermoplastified, and is dispersed in a starch-immiscible polymer, and a water content below 5%, based on the starch blend, is established before the material leaves the extruder; where the starch-immiscible polymer is added in molten or granular form at any desired point in the extruder, and a mixture of all of the components present is consequently produced.

The present invention relates to a single-stage process for the production of starch blends in a twin-screw extruder or two twin-screw extruders arranged in series, where i) the starch, together with a plasticizer, passes through a wetting section of length 8D to 30D in an extruder or in a wetting section of length 8D to 80D if two extruders are used at temperatures below the gelatinization temperature of the starch, with mixing, where D is defined as the screw diameter of the screw cylinder and the wetting section is defined as starting at that point on the extruder screw at which the starch and the entire or partial quantity of plasticizer encounter one another and ending at that point in the extruder at which the starch is gelatinized and is digested to give thermoplastic starch; ii) in a plastifying section of length 10D to 50D the extruder temperature is adjusted stepwise to above 130° C., where the starch is digested, destructured and thermoplastified, and is dispersed in a starch-immiscible polymer, and a water content below 5%, based on the starch blend, is established before the material leaves the extruder; where the starch-immiscible polymer is added in molten or granular form at any desired point in the extruder, and a mixture of all of the components present is consequently produced.

A magnetically-coupled liquid mixer has axial and radial directions, and comprises: a drive mount to be secured to a wall of a mixing tank and having a stationary closed-end cylindrical casing arranged in the axial direction and configured for protruding into the tank, a tank-external drive rotor having a rotatable first magnet array and configured to be inserted in the cylindrical casing, and an impeller configured for being rotatably-mounted on the cylindrical casing and having a plurality of radially extending blades and a second magnet array. The first and second magnet arrays in an assembled state of the mixer are configured for enabling rotary torque to be transferred from the drive rotor to the impeller by magnetic coupling between the first and second magnet arrays. An upper portion of at least one blade is curved/angled in an intended direction of rotation to help move liquid axially downwards during impeller rotation.

The present invention provides a method and system for providing on-site electrical power to a fracturing operation, and an electrically powered fracturing system. Natural gas can be used to drive a turbine generator in the production of electrical power. A scalable, electrically powered fracturing fleet is provided to pump fluids for the fracturing operation, obviating the need for a constant supply of diesel fuel to the site and reducing the site footprint and infrastructure required for the fracturing operation, when compared with conventional systems.

The present invention relates to novel applications of hop acids and formulations using hop acids. More specifically, the present invention relates to formulations comprising hop acids to stabilise or emulsify hop oils or other essential oils in aqueous media. We describe an aqueous emulsifiable composition comprising 0.01-5.00 wt % of at least one essential oil and 0.005-10.0 wt % of at least one hop acid, the balance being water. We also describe a method of stabilising or emulsifying an essential oil or mixture of essential oils. The method comprises mixing the essential oil or mixture of essential oils with at least one hop acid to form an essential oil and hop acid mixture and mixing the essential oil and hop acid mixture with water. We further describe the use, as an emulsifier, of a composition comprising at least one hop acid and beverages obtainable with the composition.

Provided herein are containerized liquid formulations comprising a plurality of agrochemicals. The formulations comprise a plurality of parallel liquid layers, wherein each layer is disposed within the container such that it is in contact with at least one adjacent layer at an interface. Also provided are methods of preparing, storing, shipping, and using the containerized liquid formulations.

Provided is a highly efficient pipe-type flocculation mixer, comprising: a feeding pipe, a mixing pipe, a discharging pipe and a mixer. The feeding pipe, the mixing pipe and the discharging pipe are disposed in parallel and sequentially communicated. The mixing pipe is a circular pipe and has two blind ends. The mixer comprises a driving motor, a mixing blade and a central shaft. One end of the central shaft is coupled to the driving motor, and another end of the central shaft is coupled to the mixing blade. The size of the mixing blade enables the mixing pipe to exactly accommodate the mixing blade. Also provided is a feeding-mixing device, wherein an agent can be introduced into a hollow central shaft via an agent feeding chamber, and be sprayed out from the central shaft into a mixing chamber; said agent feeding manner enables sufficient mixing.

A mixer apparatus for mixing a high-viscosity fluid has a mixer shaft with a plurality of blades affixed thereto, a hydraulic motor drivingly connected to the mixer shaft so as to rotate the mixer shaft, a hydraulic pump connected by a fluid circuit to the hydraulic motor so as to deliver hydraulic fluid under pressure to the hydraulic motor, an electric motor drivingly connected to the hydraulic pump, and a hydraulic fluid reservoir connected to the fluid circuit so as to supply hydraulic fluid to the hydraulic pump. The plurality of blades are pivotally mounted to the mixer shaft.

Embodiments of the present invention provide systems and methods of producing stable homogeneous dispersions of non-polar fluid(s) in a continuous phase of polar fluid(s) or of polar a continuous phase of non-polar fluid(s) without using synthetic emulsifiers and/or other chemical surfactants.