During heat treatment in dairy production, the rapid formation of heat-induced fouling deposits on the plant surface leads to reduced efficiency of heat transfer. Therefore, a regular cleaning process is required to soften the heat-induced protein deposits and then remove them from the plant surface. The mechanical property of the deposits is one of the key issues of the cleaning mechanisms since the non-fractured behaviour dominates the deformation of the fouling layer and the failure behaviour has a great impact on the cohesive removal of fouling deposits. Considering the complicated...