GB2160083A - Preparation of pastilles - Google Patents

Abstract

A process for preparing pastilles on the basis of a pastille mass whose main constituent is a consistency agent selected from the group consisting of gum arabic, starch, pectin, agar and mixtures thereof, optionally with the addition of gelatin, and which, in addition to water, further comprises, as required, saccharose, starch syrup, other saccharides, common salt, colouring agents, aromatic agents and/or other flavouring agents is disclosed. The distinctive features of the process reside in that the pastille mass is imparted a dry solids content exceeding 80% by weight, whereupon flavour and colour are adjusted as desired by adequate additions of coloring agents, aromatic agents, citric acid and/or other flavouring agents to the mass, whereupon the resulting batch is mixed in the absence of air before dosed moulding is carried out from a moulding chamber in plastic moulds treated with a release agent, the mass in the moulding chamber and, during the moulding operation, in the moulds being surrounded by air which is humidified with water to a humidity in equilibrium with the vapour pressure of the pastille mass.

Description

SPECIFICATION Preparation of pastilles The present invention relates to a process for preparing pastilles. Pastilles consist of a basic mass having an agreeable flavour and also containing different additives. Pastilles are intended to melt in the mouth and should have a tough consistency as opposed to tablets which disintegrate when coming into contact with moisture and, therefore, are instantly swallowed.

In the preparation of pastilles, one has hitherto set out from crushed gum arabic dissolved in warm water and filtered, or cleaned dried gum arabic.

Water and gum arabic are thereafter mixed with saccharose, starch syrup and, optionally, liquorice, salt and/or sal-ammoniac. Other saccharides have also been used, such as fructose, glucose, sorbitol, xylitol, Lycasin (TN for mixture of sugar alcohols, sold by Roquette Frees, Lille, France) etc. This mixture is then heated to about 70"C to dissolve the sugar. The solution is imparted such a dry solids content, generally about 63-67% by weight, that when subsequently moulded into pastilles it will have a viscosity suited for the moulding equipment.

In order to remove the air from the pastille mass, use is made of a so-called jet cooker in which water vapour is injected in the mass so as to obtain a temperature in the mass of about 105cm. The heated mass is conducted into a vacuum chamber where the air and the water vapour supplied are again removed. The deaerated mass is admixed with optional additives, such as colouring agents, aromatic agents, and/or citric acid for adjusting flavour and colour. This mass is thereafter used for moulding pastilles in a moulding machine where the pastilles are moulded with piston pumps in moulds stamped in maize starch. The moulded pastilles are transferred in their moulds to a heating cabinet where they are dried at about 65"C in circulating air for about 48 hours to a dry solids content of about 88% by weight.The pastilles are then allowed to cool for 24 hours to room temperature, whereupon the maize flour with the pastilles is turned upside down over a sieve so that the flour can be separated from the pastilles. The pastilles having room temperature are thereafter brushed off and optionally transported to a steam curtain where any residual maize starch is gelatinised. The water which then adheres to the pastilles is dried up, for instance by means of IR lamps, whereupon the pastilles are cooled. In order to counteract stickiness and increase surface brightness, the pastilles are thereafter subjected to a surface treatment in a drum with a mixture of liquid paraffin and beeswax. The pastilles are then ready for packing.

When making pastilles based on starch, the gum arabic ingredient is replaced by starch. However, the starch must be gelatinised to become soluble and so, a temperature of 130-145 C must be attained in the jet cooker. Otherwise, the pastilles are prepared in the same way as pastilles based on gum arabic.

The major drawback of this prior art process is that use must be made of moulds of maize starch flour which is highly dusty. Moreover, the maize flour must be heated to about 65"C, which requires much energy since about 4 kg of maize flour will be needed for each kilo of finished pastilles. In addition, about 48 hours will be needed for the tab lets to dry at about 65"C to an acceptable dry solids content of about 88% by weight. This means that large drying spaces must be available which additionally require a substantial energy consumption for heating and ventilation. Furthermore, the pastilles must be brushed, possibly humidified with a steam curtain, again dried and cooled, and subjected to a surface treatment with liquid paraffin and beeswax before being ready for packing.

The object of the present invention is to obviate these drawbacks and prepare pastilles of high and uniform quality.

The distinctive features of the present invention reside in that the pastilles can be moulded at a high dry solids content exceeding 80% by weight, for instance about 85-90% by weight, and that the pastilles, after moulding, need only be cooled before being ready for packing. Consequently, in the process according to the invention use is not made of moulds with maize flour, which means that any after-treatment of moulded pastilles can be dispensed with, as well as the use of maize flour requiring much energy.

The process according to the present invention sets out from a pastille mass whose main constituent is a consistency agent selected from the group consisting of gum arabic, starch, pectin, agar and mixtures thereof, optionally with the addition of gelatin. To the consistency agent are added, in addition to water, e.g. saccharose, starch syrup, sorbitol, xylitol, Lycasin, fructose, glucose and/or other saccharides. If required, liquorice and common salt may also be added. A colouring agent may also be added, if desired. This pastille mass must be pumpable.

The pastille mass is thereafter pumped to a heat exchanger where it is preheated to boiling point or, in the case of a starch-based pastille mass, to gelatinisation temperature. After preheating, the pastille mass is transported to an evaporator where the dry solids content of the mass is increased to above 80% by weight. Not until this stage is the addition made of optional aromatic agents, citric acid, other flavouring and/or colouring agents when the mass is pumped further in the absence of air to a static mixer. After mixing in the mixer, the pastille mass is transported in the absence of air into a moulding chamber which is closed and has downwardly directed valves for moulding. The temperature in the moulding chamber should exceed about 85-90"C because at lower temperatures the pastille mass will become elastic.The higher the temperature is, the faster is the browning reaction. The temperature in the moulding chamber should suitably be about 90-105"C. Further, the chamber is maintained under pressure by means of air humidified with water vapour, the humidity of the air being in equilibrium with the vapour pressure of the pastille mass. The pastille mass is dispensed down through the valves and is moulded in plastic moulds treated with a release agent consisting of e.g. paraffin and beeswax. The moulding operation is effected under such conditions that the moulding valves and the moulds are surrounded by adequately humidified air such that the humidity of the air again is in equilibrium with the vapour pressure of the pastille mass.

After moulding, the moulds are conveyed into a cooling tunnel where the pastilles are cooled to room temperature. After cooling, the moulds are turned upside down and the pastilles are pressed out onto a belt for conveyance to a packing station.

The moulds are reusable.

As compared with prior art processes, the pastille mass is treated more gently in the process according to the invention, and smaller amounts of consistency agent, aromatic agents, colouring agents andlor other optional additives need be used. Additionally, the quality of the pastilles will become more uniform, for in drying cabinets it is difficult to obtain a uniform humidity for all the pastilles in the cabinet. Energy savings are guaranteed since the need of a dry solids content of 6367% by weight during moulding is eliminated, as well as the need of heating large amounts of maize flour. In the process according to the present invention, the aftertreatments hitherto necessary after moulding may be entirely dispensed with.

The characterising features of the present invention will appear from the accompanying claims.

For a better understanding of the invention, the previously known process will now be described with reference to Figure 1, and one embodiment of the process according to the invention will be described with reference to Figure 2.

In Figure 1, a pastille mass based on gum arabic is mixed in a mixer (A) where it is heated to about 70"C so that the sugar dissolves. The content water is adjusted such that in the subsequent moulding operation the mass has a viscosity compatible with the moulding equipment (a dry solids content of about 63-67% by weight). From the mixer (A), the mass is pumped to a so-called jet cooker (B) in which water vapour is injected in the mass so as to attain a temperature of about 105 C. The heated pastille mass is transported to a vacuum chamber (C) where the air and the added vapour are removed from the mass. The deaerated mass is then pumped to a mixer (D) where a solution of colouring agents, aromatic agents andlor citric acid are added.Upon admixture of these additives, the mass is pumped to a moulding machine (E) where pastilles are moulded from the mass by means of piston pumps in moulds stamped in maize starch flour (F), The moulds are thereafter conveyed to a heating cabinet (G) where the pastilles are dried at about 65"C in circulating air for about 48 hours to a dry solids content of about 88% by weight. The pastilles are then allowed to cool for 24 hours to room temperature. The moulds are thereafter turned upside down over a sieve (H) such that the maize flour is separated from the pastilles.

The pastilles are then brushed clean of maize flour and optionally transported to a steam curtain (I) where any residual maize starch is gelatinised.

The water which then adheres is dried up, for instance with IR lamps (J), whereupon the pastilles are cooled, e.g. with cold air. Finally, a brightening step is carried out to counteract stickiness and increase surface brightness, the pastilles being subjected to a surface treatment with a mixture of liquid paraffin and beeswax in a drum (K). From the drum, the finished pastilles are conveyed to a packing station (L).

In the preparation of pastilles based on starch instead of gum arabic, the same procedure is adopted, except that the temperature in the jet cooker must be increased to 130-145OC to gelatinise the starch.

Figure 2 shows a schematic flow chart of a process according to the present invention. A pastille mass based on gum arabic is mixed in a mixer (1), the dry solids content of the mass being adjusted so as to make it pumpable. The pastille mass is thereafter pumped into a preheater (2) where the mass is heated to boiling point or, in the case of a starch-based mass, to the gelatinisation temperature of the starch. After preheating, the mass is transported to an evaporator (3) where the mass is evaporated e.g. to a dry solids content of about 8590% by weight. The mass is thereafter pumped through a piping to which are further connected containers (4) for supplying aromatic agents, solutions of colouring agents, citric acid, other flavouring andlor colouring agents.The piping opens into a static mixer (5) where the additives are mixed with the mass before it enters a moulding chamber (6). This chamber is closed and has downwardly directed valves for moulding. The temperature in this chamber is suitably maintained at 90-105"C.

Further, the chamber is maintained under pressure by means of air humidified with water vapour, the humidity of the air being in equilibrium with the vapour pressure of the pastille mass. The mass is then fed down through the valves and moulded in plastic moulds coated in advance with a release agent (7). The valves and moulds of the moulding chamber (6) are located during moulding in a space where the air is humidified with water vapour under the same conditions as in the moulding chamber. After moulding, the moulds are transported into a cooling tunnel (9) where the pastilles are cooled to room temperature. After cooling, the moulds are turned upside down (10) and the pastilles are squeezed out onto a belt (11) for conveyance to a packing station (12). The moulds are returned (13) to the moulding station.

The invention will now be illustrated by means of a few Examples.

Example I A pastille mass was prepared with the following ingredients: 36.2kg crushed gum arabic 25.9kg saccharose 12.5kg starch syrup [glykos 40 (Reppe Glykos, Växjö Sweden)] 1.1kg trisodium citrate 0.005 kg colouring agent (erythrosine) 24.3kg water The above ingredients were mixed and diluted with water to a dry solids content of 67% by weight. The temperature of the mixture was 38 C.

It was pumped into a preheater, Contherm 6 x 3 from Alfa-Laval, Lund, Sweden, by means of a monopump H32 from Alfa-Laval. The preheater was a scraped-surface heat exchanger with a rotor speed of 300 rpm, and the heating medium was water vapour at 134"C. The mixture was heated to 122"C and the inflow was 118.5 kg/h. The hot mass was conducted into an evaporator, Convap type 6 x 3 from Alfa-Laval, Lund, Sweden. The rotor speed of the evaporator was 900 rpm and the temperature of the water vapour was 169 C. The depression in the evaporator was adjusted with a vacuum pump such that the boiling temperature was 98"C. At lower boiling temperatures, the viscosity becomes too high and at higher boiling temperatures the inversion of sugar increases, whereby the product becomes sticky.From the evaporator, the outflow was 90 kg mass/h with a dry solids content of 88% by weight. The mass was now pumped further by means of a Nemo pump from Alfa-Laval. A citric acid solution (dry solids content 60% by weight) and aromatic agents were supplied to the mass by means of dosing pumps in appropriate amounts to adjust flavour, and the batch was conducted through a static mixer [Static Mixer (USP 3,286,992) Kennics Corporation, Downings, Mass., USA)] before it entered the moulding chamber (temperature 98"C, gauge pressure 0.8 bar, air humidity about 60%).

Example 2 A pastille mass was prepared with the following ingredients: 28.6 kg starch (Perfektamyl gel 45 type from Stadex, Malt6, Sweden) 26.8 kg saccharose 20.2 kg starch syrup (14.7 kg glykos 40 and 5.5 kg glykos 60 from Reppe Glykos, Växjö, Sweden) 1.6 kg sorbitol (Neosorb 70/70, Roquette Frees, Lille, France) 0.02 kg colouring agent (beta-carotene) 22 kg water The same process equipment was used as in Example 1.

The ingredients were mixed together with the water to a dry solids content of 69% by weight.

The starch was non-gelatinised. The mixture was pumped at an inflow of 123 kg/h to the preheater where the temperature was increased from 48"C to 128"C by means of water vapour of 137"C. To prevent boiling in the preheater, a back-pressure valve was mounted before the evaporator. In this instance, the preheater served, in addition to preheating the mass, also to gelatinise the starch. The mass was evaporated to a dry solids content of 88% by weight by means of water vapour at 164"C as heating medium. The mass was pumped on by means of a monopump H32 at an outflow from the evaporator of about 96 kglh and a temperature of 98"C. The pastille mass was thereafter treated in the same way as in Example 1.

Claims (3)

1. A process for preparing pastilles from a pastille mass which comprises a consistency agent selected from the group consisting of gum arabic, starch, pectin, agar and mixtures thereof, optionally with the addition of gelatin, and which, in addition to water, further comprises, as required, saccharose, starch syrup, other saccharides, common salt, colouring agents, aromatic agents and/or other flavouring agents, characterised by imparting to the pastille mass a dry solids content exceeding 80% by weight, thereafter adjusting flavour and colour as desired by adding appropriate amounts of colouring agents, aromatic agents, citric acid and/or other flavouring agents to the mass, and mixing the resulting batch in the absence of air before dosed moulding is carried out from a moulding chamber in plastic moulds treated with a release agent, the mass in the moulding chamber and, during the moulding operation, in the moulds being surrounded by air humidified with water to a humidity which is in equilibrium with the vapour pressure of the pastille mass.

2. Process as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the pastille mass is imparted a dry solids content of 88% by weight and that moulding is effected under the following conditions in the moulding chamber: temperature 98"C, gauge pressure 0.8 bar and air humidity about 60%.

3. A process for prearing pastilles from a pastille mass substantially as hereinbefore described in Examples 1 or 2.