Soft Elastic Aquatic Feed Formulation for Particle Integrity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Commercially available fish feeds for aquaculture become hard and brittle during storage, leading to feed particle breakage and loss, and some fish species, like tuna, reject extruded hard feeds, necessitating a softer and more elastic feed that maintains nutritional completeness during storage.
Innovation Solution
A formulated feed comprising a starch-containing thickening agent, hydrolysed plant protein source, and plasticizer, with a moisture content of 12.5% to 25%, ensuring the feed remains soft and elastic through a combination of extrusion and vacuum fat coating.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If extruded feed is produced by cooking extrusion and dried, then feed particles become harder and reach final hardness during storage, but feed particles fall apart creating broken feed and dust
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by controlling moisture content within a specific range of 12-25% and using extrusion cooking parameters that produce a soft and elastic texture. This resolves the contradiction by finding an optimal moisture parameter that maintains particle integrity without requiring excessive hardness, thereby preventing feed particle breakage during storage and transport.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials by combining multiple ingredients including starch, plant protein sources, fats, and binding agents in a specific formulation. This composite approach creates a feed matrix that achieves both adequate hardness for particle strength and sufficient elasticity to prevent breakage, resolving the contradiction between hardness and particle integrity.
2Reliability
If extruded hard feed is produced, then feed particles maintain integrity during storage, but some fish species like tuna reject the feed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the feed by maintaining moisture content at 12-25% and using extrusion cooking to achieve a soft and elastic texture. This resolves the contradiction by creating feed that is soft enough for tuna acceptance while maintaining particle integrity through optimized formulation and processing parameters.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by creating feed with specific textural properties throughout the particle structure. The feed has a uniformly soft and elastic texture that appeals to tuna while maintaining structural integrity, rather than having hard outer shells with soft interiors or vice versa.
3Ease of operation
If soft feeds are produced for tuna acceptance, then feed acceptance improves, but feed particles become brittle and break during storage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses composite materials with a balanced formulation including starch, plant proteins, fats, and binding agents. This composite structure provides both the softness needed for tuna acceptance and the structural strength to prevent breakage during storage, resolving the contradiction between softness and particle integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes processing parameters including moisture content (12-25%), extrusion temperature, and cooking time to achieve the desired texture. These parameter changes create a feed that is soft enough for fish acceptance while maintaining sufficient structural integrity to prevent brittleness and breakage during storage and transport.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The feed maintains softness and elasticity during storage, improving feed acceptance by fish, enhancing body weight gain, and reducing feed conversion ratio.
Implementation Method 1
a binder which comprises at least partly an edible, starch containing, tuberous-originating thickening agent
Implementation Method 2
The invention relates to a cooking extruded, formulated feed for aquatic species
Implementation Method 3
Most of the ingredients are mixed in a dry blend prior to the cooking extrusion process
Implementation Method 4
The oil coating step may be carried out in a vessel at a sub-atmospheric pressure
Data Source
AI summary
Extruded, formulated, complete feed for aquatic species, said formulated, complete feed comprising: - at least one non-hydrolysed protein source; - at least one fat source; - fibers inherent in at least one raw material; - optionally at least one carbohydrate containing source; - a vitamin additive; - a mineral additive; - water; - a binder comprising at least partly an edible, starch containing, tuberous-originating thickening agent; - a hydrolysed plant protein source; and - a plasticizer, and said formulated, complete feed comprises a moisture content from about 12.5% to about 25% (w/w) of the complete feed. A method for production of the feed is disclosed as well.