Aço inoxidável como material para equipamentos da indústria de alimentos

Abstract

With the population growth, the demand for food is increasing, and the industrial production of food plays an important role when it comes to supply the required amount of food. During industrial processes, it is fundamental that integrity and quality of food are preserved, and for that, it is important that the material, of which the equipment are made, are adequate to avoid the compromising of the product quality. Legislations, from Brazil and other countries, will be presented, which regulate the sort of materials that are in conditions to be in contact with food, both for processing and for packing. In spite of some variations between laws, in a general manner, every studied country recommends stainless steel and promotes restrictions to certain kinds of materials. Copper, for example, is restricted in all the legislations observed. Stainless steel is the material with the largest application, due to its capability of resisting corrosion and due to its smooth surface, which contributes to avoid contamination and substrate deposition, reducing, therefore, the chances of microbial growing. Types, proprieties and characteristics of stainless steel are discussed, which justify their large application in equipment of food industry, besides the diverse kinds of corrosion that they could suffer. Among the types of stainless steel proper for food industry application, the AISI 304 is the most common, due to its lower cost. Even with a higher resistance to corrosion, stainless steel materials are still subject to corrosion, such as intergranular, by erosion, crevice, pitting, and by tension.