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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Stoneville, Mississippi » Warmwater Aquaculture Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #416380
Research Project: Umbrella Project for Food Safety

Location: Warmwater Aquaculture Research Unit

Title: Development of a singulation system for handling catfish fillets

Author
item JING, YI - Mississippi State University
item LIU, WENBO - Mississippi State University
item LU, YUZHEN - Michigan State University
item LYU, JIAQI - Stevens Institute Of Technology
item YANG, XIAORAN - Stevens Institute Of Technology
item WU, DI - University Of California
item ZHANG, XIN - Mississippi State University

Submitted to: International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/26/2023
Publication Date: 7/5/2024
Citation: Jing, Y., Liu, W., Lu, Y., Lyu, J., Yang, X., Wu, D., Zhang, X. 2024. Development of a singulation system for handling catfish fillets. International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology. 128:81-89. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-023-11867-3.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-023-11867-3

Interpretive Summary: In 2019, catfish was the eighth most popular seafood in the United States. Among the various catfish products, fillets are particularly common and are typically stored chilled or frozen after initial processing. However, when these fillets are removed from storage for further processing, they often stick together and require manual separation. This manual effort is necessary for steps like breading and quick-freezing the individual fillets. Due to a shortage of labor and rising costs, there's a pressing need for automated methods to handle this task, which would help boost the profitability of the U.S. catfish industry. This study introduces a new system that uses water buoyancy and underwater streams to separate catfish fillets automatically. Researchers have examined and fine-tuned several operational parameters to improve the system's efficiency and output. They have also established guidelines for continuous production, ensuring that the process remains effective and productive. The insights from this study are expected to pave the way for more advanced and efficient singulation technologies for catfish and other fish species.

Technical Abstract: Catfish ranked 8th among seafoods consumed per capita in the United States (U.S.) in 2019. As a major catfish product, catfish fillets are often chilled or frozen for storage after filleting and trimming operations. When they are removed from storage for further processing, manual interference is required to separate and flatten all the catfish fillets that otherwise could agglomerate together. This is necessary for further processing operations such as breading and individual quick-freezing. Because of the shortage of labor force and rising labor costs, there is an urgent need to reduce labor dependence by developing automated singulation methods for catfish fillets manufacturing, to enhance the profitability of the U.S. catfish industry. This study presents a novel singulation system that enables separating catfish fillets by utilizing water buoyancy and underwater streams. Several operation parameters have been investigated and optimized to achieve better singulation performance and production rate. The continuous production mode with operation rules is defined to keep the total amount being processed in an appropriate range for maximizing the singulation effect and production rate. This study will be beneficial for developing more effective next-generation singulation technologies for catfish and other fish species.