Process design for a pilot panel plant

The purpose of this research is to put forward a proposal to improve the production process of panela through the design of the process for a pilot plant. In the study, a diagnosis was carried out in six panela plants in the area, which were active during the period from 01 October to 30 November 2016 in the cantons of Ibarra and Urcuquí, in the province of Imbabura. The diagnosis consisted of the evaluation of six variables within the panela production process: milling; concentration of sugar cane juice; beating, moulding or granulating, packaging and storage of panela, and heat generation. Based on the results of the diagnosis, the design of the panela production process is proposed under efficient industrialisation standards and good manufacturing practices. The proposal includes the necessary calculations for the management of raw materials, energy requirements and material balance. For better visualisation, a modelling is made in a software tool (Auto-CAD) with a 3D animation of the process. Finally, the current production processes and the proposed design are compared, showing the improvements in innovation.