In this paper, pumpkin juice concentrations were carried out using a three-phase circulating fluidized bed evaporator. The flow and heat transfer characteristics of this evaporation process were investigated and parametric studies were conducted to identify the governing parameters in the process. It was found that compared with two-phase evaporation process, addition of inert particles improved the heat transfer efficiency by 35% and also inhibit forming and clean fouls during the pumpkin juice concentration. A correlation equation of boiling heat transfer coefficient was established for the three-phase circulating fluidized bed evaporator. This research work improves the understanding of the three-phase circulating fluidized bed evaporator and benefit to its wider application in foodstuff field.

The sediment samples of zooplankton subfossil at different depths were collected from a large shallow lake Wuliangsuhai Lake, China, in order to reconstruct lake past changes. The lake began to switch to eutrophication gradually in the middle 1980s, creating a sediment discontinuity layer (about 32.5 cm depth) that can be visually used to separate sediments derived from plankton and macrophyte. Inferences about the timing and trajectory of eutrophication were made using sediment zooplankton subfossil reconstruction. The changes in composition of the zooplankton fragments were rather gradual up the core, whereas the total numbers of fragments show the most marked changes from 32.5 cm to present. Changes in the composition of zooplankton fragments (in 32.5 cm depth) show a gradual shift from a “pelagic community” dominated by B. longirostris, reflecting clearwater conditions with high predation pressure, to a more “benthic” community, dominated by plant associated Chydorids. The results suggest that it is possible to reconstruct past eutrophication trends of the lake by using zooplankton subfossil, and that anthropogenic pollutant loading is the key factor in the eutrophication of Lake Wuliangsuhai.