WO2006061705A1

WO2006061705A1 - Cleaning and sanitizing device for food manufacture premises and equipments

Info

Publication number: WO2006061705A1
Application number: PCT/IB2005/003715
Authority: WO
Inventors: Andrea Amalberto
Original assignee: Aeraque Impianti Tecnologici Srl
Priority date: 2004-12-06
Filing date: 2005-12-05
Publication date: 2006-06-15
Also published as: ITMI20040551U1

Abstract

A device for cleaning and sanitizing premises and equipment for food production comprising: means (2) for the generation of ozone, means (3) for mixing ozone with water, means (4) for feeding pressurized water into said means for mixing, means of dispersion (7) for delivering pressurized ionized water, and means (5) for opening and closing the connection of the means for the generation of ozone with the means (3) for mixing, wherein the means (4) for feeding water are adapted to supply highpressure water, the means for mixing (3) are shaped so as to mix high-pressure water with ozone, and between the means for mixing and the means of dispersion (7) a conduit (10) being provided, shaped so as to improve the absorption of ozone into the high-pressure water.

Description

CLEANING AND SANITIZING DEVICE FOR FOOD MANUFACTURE PREMISES AND EQUIPMENTS

The subject matter of the present invention relates to a device for cleaning and sanitizing premises and equipment for food production, according to the pre- characterizing part of the main claim.

In the present context, by sanitizing is meant a process for the dispersion of water having an ozone content equal to at least 0.5 ppm, and preferably comprised between 1 and 2 ppm, onto the walls of the premises or onto the equipment to be sanitized, after having removed any deposits and encrustations by means of the mechanical action of high-pressure water.

Premises intended for the production, storage and packing of substances destined for human consumption, and the relevant equipment, are liable to accumulate organic substances and fats, etc., constituting an ideal culture medium for microorganisms such as bacteria, Salmonella, Staphylococcus, etc.

Such contamination is particularly serious and hazardous, since it is capable of contaminating products which, prior to arriving in the aforementioned premises or being treated with the aforementioned equipment, fully complied with the legally established requirements of bacteriological purity. Devices for cleaning and sanitizing premises and equipment for food production have been known for some time, however the known devices are incapable of delivering water with such an ozone content so as to permit effective sanitizing (an ozone content equal to at least 0.5 ppm) and also at the same time with high pressure (at least 30 bar at the water delivery nozzle outlet). Hence, the known high-pressure water devices add known chemical sanitizing agents to water; despite such devices being capable of sanitizing the premises wherein they operate, there is a problem associated with the disposal of the water containing the chemical compounds and possible modified food components which may have come into contact, even by chance, with said sanitizing agents. The object of the present invention is to provide a device for cleaning and sanitizing premises and equipment for food production overcoming the drawbacks of the known devices, which should be suitable for use in all situations requiring "food quality" operating conditions wherein the bacteriological purity of the operating environment is a critical parameter, and which allows the elimination of the problems related with the disposal of contaminated wash water, allowing alternation of the high-pressure wash stages with sanitizing stages using high-pressure ozonised and/or ionized water, and which is easily handled and used.

These and other objects, which will appear evident for a person skilled in the art, are achieved by a device having the features indicated in the appended claims. For better understanding of the present invention a drawing is enclosed by way of non-limiting example, wherein the sole figure represents a diagram of a device according to the invention.

With reference to the aforementioned figure, it schematically represents a device according to the invention comprising: a reservoir 1 for storing oxygen connected by means of a pipe 8A and a pressure reducer 8 to means 2 for generating ozone. The latter may be of any conventional type, but advantageously they are of the kind comprising one or more ozonation cells, wherein a corona-effect electrical discharge is produced, following which, a proportion of the gaseous oxygen flowing into the cell is converted into ozone.

Preferably ozone generators with limited sizes and weight are used, for example with air cooled ceramic cells, so as to reduce the overall dimension and weight of the device according to the invention.

The device further comprises a conduit 9 for supplying mains water, whereon arranged in series are a high pressure pump 4 and an ejector 3 capable of aspirating, and thoroughly mixing with the water, the ozonised gas originating from the ozone generating means 2 through a duct 5 A having conventional means 5 for intercepting the ozone flow towards the ejector 3. In the present context, by high-pressure pump is meant a pump capable of delivering water with an outlet pressure of at least 80 bar, preferably 200 bar.

In one variant of the present embodiment, the conduit 9, instead of being connected to the mains water supply, may be connected to a conventional reservoir, not shown. The outlet of the ejector 3 is connected to a high-pressure pipe 10 which flows into the local surroundings through means of dispersion 7. A means for manual interception 6 is provided between the ejector 3 and the means of dispersion 7, which permits or prevents the outflow of the pressurised water from the means of dispersion 7. Thanks to the intercepting means 5 on the ozonised gas conduit 5A, it is possible to selectively control the direct inlet of ozonised gas into the outlet conduit 10 through the ejector 3, or to have only high-pressure water in said conduit. The components of the device according to the invention and in particular the ejector 3 and the dispersion device 7 are shaped so as to have a pressure drop, in the water coming from the high-pressure pump, over the ejector after inletting ozone, comprised of between 20 and 80 bar, preferably comprised of between 50 and 60 bar, so as to have ozonised water with a pressure of at least 30 bar and preferably comprised between 60 and 70 bar outletting from the dispersion device, and to have ozone absorption into the high-pressure water so that the ozone content in the high- pressure water outletting from the dispersion device is at least equal to 0.5 ppm and preferably comprised between 1 and 2 ppm. To this end, the final high-pressure conduit provided between the ejector and the dispersion device must be appropriately sized so as to allow the aforementioned absorption, for example said conduit must have a length equal to at least 50 cm and a diameter of 10 mm, preferably a length equal to at least 70 cm and a diameter equal to at least 15 mm. Indeed, it has surprisingly been found that by connecting the ozone conduit in proximity to or directly to the dispersion device 7 it was not possible to obtain a flow of high-pressure water outletting from the dispersion device, having sufficient ozone content to allow the use thereof under sanitizing conditions. The device described allows all the desired sanitizing operations. The undissolved ozonised gas residue disperses into the operating environment and contributes towards completing the sanitizing process. In the case where the use of ozone as a sanitizing agent is not desired, or where, for specific and particular reasons, it is desired to implement the sanitizing process over time, conventionally used sanitizing additives, such as quaternary ammonium salts, chlorine and/or other oxidizing substances, may be added to the high-pressure water fed to the dispersion device 7. To this end, an ordinary manual or automatic additive adding device is provided between the emitter 3 and the dispersion device 7.

The modes and frequency of the sanitizing stage may be freely selected by the operator, depending on the initial microbial load conditions of the encrustations and the general cleanliness of the premises to be treated. Thus, the device has the advantage of being able to perform the dual functions of cleaning and thorough cleaning, followed by the sanitizing and disinfection of the operating premises, with the possibility of switching from one operational mode to another after having performed the basic operations.

All components of the device according to the invention are assembled onto a trolley and are arranged so that the overall weight of said trolley is less than or equal to 70 kg, without the oxygen cylinder.

Finally, it should be repeated that the embodiment illustrated so far has been provided purely by way of example and that several variants are possible, all comprised within the same inventive concept.

Claims

1) A device for cleaning and sanitizing premises and equipment for food production comprising: means (2) for the generation of ozone, means (3) for mixing ozone with water, means (4) for feeding pressurized water into said means for mixing, means of dispersion (7) for delivering pressurized ozonised and/or ionized water, characterized in that:

- the means (4) for feeding water are adapted to supply high-pressure water,

- the means for mixing (3) are shaped so as to mix high-pressure water with ozone, - between the means for mixing and the means of dispersion (7) a conduit (10) is provided, shaped so as to improve the absorption of ozone into the high-pressure water,

- means (5) are provided for opening and closing the connection of the means for the generation of ozone with the means (3) for mixing, - the means of dispersion (7) are shaped so as to deliver ozonised water for high- pressure sanitizing.

2) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the means of dispersion (7) deliver ionized water at a pressure of at least 30 bar, preferably at a pressure comprised between 60 and 70 bar, and with an ozone content equal to at least 0.5 ppm, preferably comprised between 1 and 2 ppm.

3) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the water feeding means (4) feed water at a pressure of at least 80 bar to the mixing means (3), preferably at a pressure of 200 bar.

4) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the mixing means (3) are shaped so as to mix ozone with a pressure drop, between the pressure of the water at the inlet and the outlet of said mixing means, greater than or equal to 20 bar, preferably comprised between 50 and 60 bar.

5) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the conduit (10) for connecting the means between the mixing means (3) and the means of dispersion (7) is proportioned and shaped so as to allow the dissolution of a quantity of ozone into the pressurized water, so that the pressurized ionized water outletting from such conduit is adapted to being used for sanitizing, and provides an ozone content of at least 0.5 ppm, preferably comprised between 1 and 2 ppm.

6) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the conduit (10) for connecting the means between the mixing means (3) and the means of dispersion (7) has a length equal to at least 50 cm and a diameter of at least 10 mm, preferably a length equal to 70 cm and a diameter equal to 15 mm.

7) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that all components are assembled onto a trolley and are arranged so that the overall weight of said trolley is less than or equal to 70 kg.

8) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that it provides means for automatically adding conventional sanitizing additives to the pressurized water.

9) The device according to claim 8, characterized in that the means for automatically adding conventional sanitizing additives to the pressurized water are provided between the mixing means (3) and the means of dispersion (7).

10) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the means (2) for generating ozone comprises at least one ozonation and/or ionization cell connected to an oxygen cylinder, said cell being adapted to produce an electrical discharge of the corona-effect kind, thereafter gaseous oxygen flowing from said cylinder into the cell being converted into ozone.

11) The device according to claim 1, characterized in that it provides arranged in series in the following order: means (4) for feeding pressurized water, means (3) for mixing ozone with water, means of intercepting (6), and means of dispersion (7) for delivering pressurized ionized water, and in that it provides in series and connected to the mixing means (3) in order: means for generating ozone (2, 8) and means (5) for opening or closing the means for generating ozone with the mixing means (3).