DESIGN AND EXPERIMENTAL VALIDATION OF FORCED-AIR RECIRCULATING FURNACES FOR THERMAL INACTIVATION OF SHELL EGGS CONTAMINATED WITH HIGHLY PATHOGENIC AVIAN INFLUENZA

Abstract

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreaks present significant challenges for industrial table egg farms. Specifically for this work, the recovery process requires these facilities to dispose of the shell eggs before recovery can commence. Current disposal methods are often costly or logistically complex, which adds significant cost and delays to the recovery process. This work proposes an alternative disposal strategy by using an approved thermal inactivation method with low-cost recirculating air furnaces (RCAFs). The feasibility of using a thermal inactivation method is investigated through a system-level model for a fictional 250,000-hen farm developed in MATLAB to simulate the real-world process parameters during an HPAI outbreak. This model was used to establish quantitative design targets to be used during the development of the RCAF, which include system throughput and costs. A small-scale RCAF was then designed, built, and used to experimentally establish the governing heat transfer methods to effectively heat treat palletized eggs. This system established that heat transfer is dominated by uniform airflow through free flow areas created by palletized egg geometries. With these findings, a larger-scale RCAF system was constructed and used to verify that the strategies used at small-scale can be scaled up to larger systems. A full-scale system design was then proposed and evaluated using the MATLAB model, indicating that thermal inactivation can be completed within the required timeline using a low-cost system. Overall, this work demonstrates that a thermal inactivation approach is technically feasible and an economically viable alternative to current shell egg disposal methods.