Microfiltração do soro de leite de búfala utilizando membrana cerâmica como alternativa ao processo de pasteurização.

Abstract

The aim of this work was to obtain buffalo whey from a standard cheese curd production, with the evaluation of their efficiency in relation to the cow milk. The buffalo whey was characterized by nutritional information and microbial aspects. It was compare the efficiency of the microfiltration process of whey with the traditional pasteurization process. To carry out the microfiltration process of buffalo whey, it was used a tubular ceramic alumina membrane (0.8μm of pore size), made in laboratory in Materials Engineering Department, at Federal University of Campina Grande. It was done seven tests and the samples of whey were analyzed after production (SA), after microfiltration process (SF) and after pasteurization process (SP). It was studied the followed physical-chemistry: pH, density, acidity, humidity, total dry extract, fat, lactose and protein content, according to recommended methodology from Instituto Adolfo Lutz, 2005, and the microbiological parameter: aerobic mesophilic bacteria measurement was done by Petri film plates, according to AOAC, 2000. The results showed that the performance of the cheese curd from buffalo milk was 27.51% and the one from cow milk was 13.06%. The characterization of the whey showed the followed results: 89.94% of humidity, 10.06% of total dry extract, 6.29 of pH, 1.029 of density, 10.07oD of acidity, 1.37% of fat, 1.19% of protein and 5.84% of lactose. After microfiltration and pasteurization process the samples of whey showed a reduction of bacterial count to 4.04 log UFC/mL to SA, 1.5 log UFC/mL to SP and 0.70 log UFC/mL to SF. In relation to the physical-chemistry parameters, it was showed great loss of nutritional content of the whey sample after microfiltration process when compared with the pasteurization process. So, despite the microfiltration by ceramic membrane is more efficiency then the pasteurization process to remove the microbial content, there is a need to improve the process to avoid fouling on the membrane surface that is responsible by the nutrients reduction.