CLEANING IS AN IMPORTANT UNIT OPERATION FOR EFFICIENT FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL PROCESSING, WHETHER TO REMOVE FOULING DEPOSITS FOR OPTIMAL OPERABILITY OF PROCESS EQUIPMENT OR TO CLEAR RESIDUAL MATERIAL IN PROCESS LINES OF MULTI-PRODUCT PLANTS THAT CAN AFFECT THE SAFETY AND THE APPEARANCE OF THE FINAL PRODUCTS. IN PROCESS INDUSTRIES, CLEANING IS COMMONLY ACHIEVED BY CLEAN IN PLACE (CIP) OPERATIONS. HOWEVER, CURRENT CIP SYSTEMS CONSUME HIGH AMOUNTS OF WATER AND ENERGY. CLEANING ACCOUNTS FOR MORE THAN 40% OF ALL NON-PRODUCT WATER AND ENERGY USED IN THE FOOD PROCESSES. THEREFORE, IMPROVED CLEANING OPERATIONS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES AIMED TO REDUCE WATER AND CHEMICAL USAGE DURING CLEANING ARE CRITICAL FOR BOTH INDUSTRY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY.MICRO-BUBBLES HAVE BEEN USED EXTENSIVELY IN THE METALWORKING, AEROSPACE, AND OPTICAL INDUSTRIES FOR REMOVALS OF METALLIC AND FATTY DEPOSITS. THEY HAVE NOT, HOWEVER, BEEN TESTED IN THE FOOD PROCESS INDUSTRY. THIS NOVEL TECHNOLOGY BASED ON MICRO-BUBBLES HAS THE POTENTIAL TO REDUCE WATER USAGE DURING CLEANING WITH MINIMAL PROCESSING INTERVENTION. THE OVERALL GOAL OF THIS RESEARCH CONSISTS OF USING A MULTI-DISCIPLINARY RESEARCH TO ENHANCE KNOWLEDGE IN FUNDAMENTAL FEATURES OF MICRO-BUBBLE CLEANING FOR FOOD PROCESSING EQUIPMENT. THE EXPECTED OUTCOME OF THIS RESEARCH BUILDS ON THE KNOWLEDGE GENERATED IN THE DESIGN OF PORTABLE MICRO-BUBBLE CLEANING EQUIPMENT WITH REDUCED ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS. THE IMPACT OF THIS RESEARCH IS OF GREAT IMPORTANCE TO THE FOOD INDUSTRY AND OTHER AGRICULTURE RELATED INDUSTRIES, AS EVEN A MODEST REDUCTION IN TIME AND USE OF CHEMICALS FOR CLEANING OF FOULED EQUIPMENT SURFACES COULD HAVE A VERY SIGNIFICANT AND BROADLY APPLICABLE POSITIVE EFFECT ON THE INDUSTRY IN TERMS OF WATER AND ENERGY USAGE AS WELL AS FOOD SAFETY.THE RESEARCH PROPOSED WILL BE UNDERTAKEN BY A TEAM CONSISTING OF EXPERTS IN FOOD DEPOSIT CLEANING, FOOD PROCESS ENGINEERING, COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS, AND MICRO-BUBBLE SYSTEMS. LARGER IMPACTS WILL BE LED BY CURRICULUM AND ENGAGEMENT EXPERTS. THE WORK WILL OCCUR AT PURDUE UNIVERSITY AND UNIVERSITY OF BATH (UK).