Modeling of Mixing Uniformity for Food With Special Medicinal Purposes Based on Chinese Herbal Medicine

Abstract

We developed a recipe based on Chinese herbal medicines for a special medicinal purpose. It is based on the market demand and clinical feedback of formulas for special medicinal uses. The whole nutrient formula contains raw materials in the form of powder and granules, and the finished product is prepared using a dry process. Striking a balance when mixing the powder and granular materials in a uniform manner has always been a critical problem in terms of time and cost when using the dry mixing process. The mixing of the powder and granular raw materials is a complicated process. It involves the mixing of different raw materials, and the physical properties of these raw materials are the main reasons for the hybrid hierarchical nature. A series of experimental studies were carried out on the mass fraction and particle size distribution of each raw material. Using the test data to analyze the influence of different physical properties on the mixing uniformity, we establish a suitable mixing process. On this basis, the experiment was started from the mixing process. Based on the analysis of premixing time, mixed loading amount, premixing speed, total mixing speed, total mixing time, and mixing uniformity, a prediction model based on a genetic hill climbing algorithm is established. INDEX TERMS Dry process, food for special medical purposes, mixed uniformity model.