JP2000061359A - Method and apparatus for sorting out crushed material - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To sort out crushed cacao-nibs from seed coats of cacao beans by using an electrostatic method in which crushed materials are electrically charged in a charging section between two different charged electrodes and are discharged in the other two electrodes while falling by gravity. SOLUTION: For sorting out crushed cacao beans, or nibs, from seed coats of cacao beans, crushed-materials 5 are poured into a receiving hopper 4 in the shape or form of coarsely broken pieces or roasted pieces, are fed from its outlet into a vibrating shoot 6 provided with two differently charged electrodes 7 and 8 which generate a homogenous electric field, and are electrically charged while passing through between the electrodes 7 and 8. Smaller pieces of the charged crushed-materials 5 are fed into a falling part 11 in a deflected section 2 so as to make the charged crushed-materials discharge electrically by means of two electrodes 9 and 10 while falling by gravity.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a crushed material consisting of crushed corn or beans and seed coat thereof, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for selecting crushed cocoa beans, so-called nibs, from cocoa bean seed coat. .

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Cocoa beans that are excited by certain preparations in roasting factories, sterilization factories, pre-drying factories, etc. are usually crushed in a reaction crusher. The so-called nibs and seed coats, which are the pieces of crushed cocoa beans resulting from such a preparation, are sorted and the nibs are further processed. The accuracy of the selection has an essential effect on the quality of the cocoa mass produced,
It should be as high as possible. Up to 2% of seed coat in nibs is allowed by valid regulations. Further, the seed coat content in the nibs should be as low as possible to substantially improve the subsequent run time of the grinding station.

Traditionally, the selection of nibs from the seed coat has been carried out by sieving into different pieces and then sieving some of the pieces. To that end, in Applicants' special factory, cocoa beans are automatically sent from the preceding machine to a large preceding sieve and then fed to the crushing station and the grading station. The cocoa beans crushed by the rotary double-disk crusher are separated into 6 kinds of pieces by the classifier. Curved parabola
la) to excite sideways from the sieving box (screen box) (ex
The seed coat and nib mixture to be cited) is sorted into debris and flows to another vertical sieve. A tailored air flow tailored to the nib size of each debris achieves good sorting of particularly heavy nibs from particularly light seed coats based on the principle of backflow sieving. The grading stations are arranged in a row with each other 5
Equipped with a staircase-shaped sieve, the crushed cocoa beans are sorted into 6 kinds of pieces from large particles to small particles. The principle of coarse-to-fine sieving of application, with short contact times and a large amount of short passages, provides advantages from a microbial and hygienic point of view. The sieving of each debris is carried out by 6 horizontal sieving vertical screens. Due to the fine distribution by sieving into 6 different pieces, a higher sorting effect by more accurate sieving is achieved with high throughput. The wind speed of each sieve can be adjusted for optimal sorting effect. The seed coat debris is then pulled up and 6
It is separated from the air by the seed coat separator of the table and discharged through a normal seed coat trap. The nib falls and enters the vibration discharge path.

[0004]

However, while such plants have relatively good results with regard to the classification of crushed beans into debris and the separation of seed coat from nibs, they have certain structural and operational drawbacks. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to further improve the above method and apparatus for sorting materials, especially cocoa crushed beans, so-called nibs, from the seed coat of such beans, and to minimize the equipment and machine costs required therefor. However, the separation rate should be at least the same as that of the conventional method and apparatus.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The foregoing and other objects are to electrically charge a crushed object of a classification structure in a charging area between two electrodes having different charges, and then to the charged object. Advantageously solved by combining the steps of a method of electrostatically sorting by discharging charged objects in free fall into another homogeneous electric field provided by another two electrodes that limit the path of the And as a result,
Since the crushed material is at least partially sorted and subjected to different deflections, the crushed beans are sorted from the seed coat and then, by means of a mechanically operated sorter, two different crushings consisting essentially of a stream of crushed beans and a stream of seed coat. It is sent out as a stream of goods.

In the basic idea underlying the above invention, the screening involves electrostatically charging the pieces of the crushed material in one or several steps with a homogeneous electric field, and then charging the charged pieces with a force proportional to a particular charge. Is achieved by deflecting with another electric field. This idea is based on the well-known fact that the nib size of the strip influences the separation, so far as the size of the strip increases, the ratio of surface to volume becomes less favorable and the specific charge becomes smaller. This point is a physical parameter that limits the rate at which the strips are charged, so the conductivity of the strips also affects. Furthermore, the seed coat and the nibs generally have the same specific gravity, and since only different deflections of small pieces of the same size can be expected, it is necessary to consider that the small pieces are charged differently during charging.

In view of the above physical facts, the embodiment of the method of the present invention is of particular advantage, whereby the charge transfer from the charging electrode in the charging area to the debris is
Supported by the following facts: The flow of crushed material in the supply of crushed material to the area of free fall is affected by the forces that cause the crushed material to vibrate. This vibration can be controlled to adjust the residence time of the debris within the charging area and to adjust the charging time. The debris itself is deflected by the length of the charging area and thus the amount of charge received in the area of free fall of the electrode connected to earth in the direction of the cathode. During this deflection, a portion of the smaller (lighter) smaller pieces of the crushed material is deflected very strongly in the area of free fall, so that said portion passes through the opening provided in the cathode, It is fed to the rear side of these openings through a passage to the flow of seed coat.

In addition, adjusting the water content of the crushed product stream to the charge requirements of the crushed particles prior to the charging zone is particularly advantageous because the conductivity of the material is essentially variable with moisture. I understood.

Furthermore, in order to optimize the charging of the debris and its subsequent sorting into the heavier and lighter parts in the charging area adjacent to the electrode, vibrating or rocking means are used to break up the fragments of the debris. Most of them are dispersed to a single nib layer. This is because when several pieces are stacked into several layers, there is no direct contact between the top piece and the metal surface of the device, which prevents charging.

The apparatus for the method according to the invention generally comprises a charging area for charging the debris to be sorted and a deflection adjacent to the charging area for the electrical discharge of the charged debris during free fall. An area and a sorting area connected to the deflection area for sorting at least partially charged heavy pieces of debris from the light pieces and for removing debris from the selection.

In this regard, the charging zone is configured to include at least a feed hopper and at least a feed chute adjacent to the feed hopper and in feed relation with the feed hopper, the vibrating chute being selected. Comprises differently charged electrodes that are charged by the sorting and passing of debris, the deflection zone further comprising at least two electrodes defining a free fall zone, and the sorting zone coupled to the deflection zone is Providing at least one adjustable mechanical separator connected to a feed system of a sorted crushed stream comprising heavier pieces of crushed cocoa beans or crushed pieces and lighter pieces of cocoa bean seed coat or crushed nibs. It turns out that there are inherent advantages.

Advantageously, one of the two electrodes defining the deflection area is a cathode connected to ground, comprising several flaps with flaps for deflecting the deflection seed coat of cocoa beans, the opening of which On the back side, cocoa bean seed coat,
That is, there is a passage connected to a transfer system for removing lighter pieces of debris. Furthermore, it is advantageous that one of the two electrodes connected to the vibrating chute becomes the cathode connected to the ground, and this cathode supports the transfer of charge to the small pieces of the crushed material, and the vibrating chute is completely externally electrically connected. Insulated and connected to the same voltage as one of the electrodes. The electrodes involved in the vibrating chute may be plastic material covered with metal, or embedded in the vibrating chute so that one electrode is located at the bottom of the vibrating chute and the other electrode is spaced above the bottom. It is advantageous that they are arranged so that the charged debris can be fed between these electrodes. The anode of the two electrodes is connected to a positive or negative DC voltage.

According to another aspect of the invention, the vibrating chute may be equipped with an adjustable vibrating device and the feed height may be changed considerably by adjusting the level of the feed hopper. Further, according to another aspect of the present invention, the inner wall of the vibrating chute may be contoured to support a mixture of pieces of crushed material moving thereon, the contour being a raised structure. Furthermore, according to another aspect of the invention, the two electrodes of the device defining the falling area of the discharge area may be configured as a capacitor plate, and even if the electrodes come into contact with a small piece of debris, the charge A layer of electrically insulating material may be provided to prevent changes.

As explained in connection with the proposal of the invention for this method, the device can comprise means for wetting the crushed material in order to adjust the predetermined water content of the crushed material. This is because the charge transfer efficiency depends especially on the water content. To summarize the above-mentioned advantageous embodiments of the invention, it is advantageous to enclose the device in a housing in which the multistage separating means can be arranged in a row as a case when the whole device is operated under specific environmental conditions. I understood.

[0015]

The invention is explained below on the basis of the embodiment outlined in FIG. 1 relating to the structure of a sorting device for achieving the method according to the invention. In order to screen the crushed cocoa beans, so-called nibs, from the seed coat of the beans, the crushed material 5 is put into the receiving hopper 4 in a crushed, coarse or dry or roasted form, the outlet of which has a different charging which produces a homogeneous electric field. Material is placed in the vibrating chute 6 with the electrodes 7, 8 received. The crushed material 5 to be sorted is supplied between these electrodes 7 and 8 and electrically charged. The receiving hopper 4 and the vibrating chute 6 together with the electrodes 7 and 8 constitute the charging area 1 of the sorting apparatus.

The vibrating chute 6 is equipped with a vibrating device (not shown) which can be controlled so as to obtain a predetermined feeding speed of the crushed material 5. The receiving hopper 4 is adjustable in the level at which it is installed, so that the feed rate of the vibrating chute 6 can be further changed. The vibration chute 6 is completely electrically insulated from the outside. The wall is made of plastic in which the electrodes 7, 8 are embedded, and this wall is covered with metal. Furthermore, the inner wall of the vibrating chute 6 is provided with a profile in the form of ridges, such ridges (protuberances)
It supports a mixture of small pieces of crushed material 5 moving over and enhances the charging action in which these pieces are charged by the electrodes 7, 8. To optimize this charge transfer, it is intended to form only a single layer of pieces at the bottom of the vibrating chute 6 and all pieces of the crushed material 5 are adjacent to each other and do not overlap one on top of the other. This layer is known as a single piece layer. The electrode 7 on the bottom surface of the vibrating chute 6 is connected to a DC voltage (U +) of about 20 to 40 kV and constitutes an anode. On the other hand, the metal electrode 8 located directly above the electrode 7 is a cathode connected to the ground, and supports the charge transfer to the small pieces of the crushed material 5.

By moving between the electrodes 7 and 8, the small pieces of the crushed material 5, that is, the nibs and the seed coat, are subjected to different strong charging.
The charge is essentially provided on the surface of these pieces.
Therefore, the amount of transferred charge is proportional to the size of the surface of the small piece.
The rate of charging depends on the conductivity of the material, which is about the same for seed coats and nibs. Thus, the charging area 1
Needs to be calculated by the amount of charge transferred to the small pieces. This is because the amount of charge on the strip is essentially for subsequent sorting in the deflection area 2 adjacent to the charging area 1.

The deflection area 2 is provided with a drop 11 and is defined by two electrodes 9, 10 into which small pieces of the crushed material 5 are thrown by a vibrating chute 6. One electrode 9 is connected to the same DC voltage (U +) as the anode 7 of the vibration chute 6. In addition, the cathode 10 which is disposed adjacent to and apart from it is connected to the ground. There is a homogeneous electric field E between the two electrodes 9 and 10, and the deflection of the charged fragment of the crushed material 5 by the force F acting in the electric field E therein is proportional to the specific charge of the fragment, and the charge to the mass is Proportional to the proportion of quantity. Since the pieces of the debris 5, ie the nibs and the seed coat, are affected by different electric field forces F during their fall, these pieces, which also have a different large charge amount due to their different conductivity, differ in the direction of the cathode 10. Receive a strong bias. To avoid contact of the seed coat as a lighter piece with the surface of the cathode 10 during deflection, it is provided with several passages through an opening 18 with a flap 17. Behind these openings 18 is a passage 19 provided with a receiving chute 14 connected to a transfer system 13 for removing the seed coat 16.

Due to the different deflections in the deflection zone 2, the nibs 1
5 is separated from the seed coat 16 and falls in the space below the drop portion 11 into the sorting area 3 in which the adjustable mechanical separator 12 is provided. Next to the adjustable mechanical separator 12, crushed cocoa beans (nibs) or crushed material 1
There is a transfer system 13 for a stream of sorts consisting of 5 heavier pieces and lighter pieces of cocoa bean seed coat or shreds 16, respectively. The adjustable mechanical separator 12 having the configuration of the flow separation wedge in the embodiment shown here,
It can be moved back and forth between the electrodes 9, 10 in order to be arranged to sort the nibs from the seed coat as accurately as possible. The moving operation of the adjustable mechanical separator 12 can be automatically performed by means not shown.

The two electrodes 7, 8 of the deflection area 2 are covered by an insulating layer. Otherwise, when the charged small pieces of the crushed material 5 and the electrodes 7 and 8 come into contact with each other, a charge transfer action occurs,
A small piece jumps in or out between the electrodes 7, 8. In addition to the above charge transfer effect that must be avoided, in order to prevent mechanical rebound of the seed coat from the surface of the cathode 10, the seed coat is not repelled on this surface and does not return to the space between the electrodes 9 and 10. A flap-shaped passage 19 is provided through the opening 18 through which the seed coat passes.

Regarding the charging / discharging operation and the sorting operation of the small pieces of the crushed material 5, the water content of the crushed material 5 is an important influencing factor because the conductivity of the material changes greatly depending on the water content. Therefore, in order to humidify the crushed material 5 as well as to adjust the environment in the entire device which can be sealed in a housing (not shown), means and devices not shown here (for example, air conditioning) may be provided.

Further, the mode of the sorting apparatus shown here is
If a given effect of the device requires such a structure,
It can consist of several steps. In the method of the present invention, the force F in the electric field E is sufficiently strong and the nibs and seed coats are distinguished so that these two parts of the crushed material 5 can be separated into each, so that the nibs produced by the electrostatic separator are And that the seed coat can be selected. The required voltage is in the range of 40k to 50kV. Due to the preferred fragmentation of the crushed material 5 received by the receiving hopper 4, any extremely large pieces may be pre-separated if the apparatus does not perform its best in sorting these pieces. Further, the selection result can be optimized by changing the electrode interval, the voltage connected to the electrode, the polarity of the voltage and the supply amount, and the water content of nibs and seed coats.

In the above embodiment, the case where so-called nibs, which are crushed cocoa beans, are selected from their seed coats has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to the selection of crushed products composed of beans and seed coats. It is a thing.

[0024]

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention selects a crushed material composed of beans and seed coats, and particularly when selecting so-called nibs, which are crushed cocoa beans, from its seed coats. Since it is selected, there is an advantage that the separation rate can be maintained at the same level as the conventional one, and necessary devices and machines can be made inexpensive.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of the structure of a sorting apparatus for achieving the method of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 charged area 2 deflection area 3 sorting areas 4 receiving hopper 5 crushed material 6 vibration chute 7, 8, 9, 10 electrodes 11 Falling part 12 Adjustable mechanical separator 13 Transfer system 14 Acceptance shoot 15 nibs 16 seed coat 17 flaps 18 openings 19 passages

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Olav Oemichen             Germany-Day 73457 Essi             Ngen, Hilten-Taich Strasse             1

Claims (27)

[Claims] 1. A method for selecting a crushed material composed of beans and seed coats, comprising charging the crushed material in a fragmented shape within a charging area between two electrodes charged differently, and then charging a falling portion. Electrostatically sort the crushed material by discharging it while falling into a homogeneous electric field generated by two separate electrodes, and the beans are at least partly affected by the different strong deflections of these pieces. A method for sorting crushed material, characterized in that the two streams of the sorted material consisting essentially of the bean stream and the seed coat stream are removed by a mechanical separator. 2. Transfer of electric charge from the charging electrode in the charging area to the crushed material is carried into the flow of the crushed material during supply to the falling part, the strength of which is the waiting time of the crushed material in the charging area and A method according to claim 1, characterized in that it is supported by introducing adjustable vibrations to control the charging time. 3. The debris is deflected in a drop in the direction of a two-electrode cathode connected to ground according to the amount of charge received in the charging area. Method for selecting crushed materials. 4. A portion of the lighter and smaller pieces of the crushed material is extremely deflected in the falling part, so that it passes through the opening provided in the cathode and flows into the flow of the product of the seed coat. The method for sorting crushed material according to claim 3, wherein the crushed material is supplied to the rear side of the opening passing through the passage. 5. The crushed material sorting method according to claim 1, wherein the flow rate of the crushed material is controlled in the charging area. 6. A method of screening crushed material according to claim 1, wherein the water content of the crushed material stream is adjusted before the charging zone corresponding to the requirement of electrically charging the crushed material pieces. . 7. The debris is diffused into the charged area within the area of the electrodes by a vibrating device in order to obtain as high an electric charge as possible of a single piece of debris, by diffusing the debris to one another. A method as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that a single layer of small pieces consisting of small pieces which are only adjacent to and which do not overlap is received. 8. The method of selecting a crushed material according to claim 1, wherein the result of the selection is optimized by changing the distance between the electrodes. 9. The method for selecting a crushed material according to claim 1, wherein the result of the selection is optimized by changing a voltage connected to the electrode. 10. The method for selecting a crushed material according to claim 1, wherein the crushed material consisting of beans and seed coat is selected from soybean nibs, which are crushed cocoa beans, from the seed coat. 11. An apparatus for accomplishing the method of claim 1, wherein a charging area for electrically charging the crushed material to be sorted and the charging to a falling part for different deflection of the charged crushed material. A discharge area for discharging the charged crushed material behind the charging area during free fall of the crushed material and a discharged heavy piece of the crushed material at least partially A crushed material sorting device comprising a sorting area for combining discharge / deflection areas for sorting from small pieces and for removing the sorted crushed material. 12. The charging area comprises at least one feed hopper for receiving debris to be sorted and also comprises at least one vibrating chute coupled with a hopper for feeding the debris, Shoot
The electrodes are provided with differently charged electrodes between which the crushed material to be selected to be electrically charged is supplied to produce a homogeneous electric field, and the deflection area further comprises at least two electrodes defining the drop. Still further, the sorting area comprises at least one adjustable mechanical separator connected to a feed system for the stream of sorted material, the flow comprising heavy pieces of the debris and the debris. The crushed material sorting device according to claim 11, wherein the crushed material sorting device is composed of lighter pieces. 13. One of said two electrodes defining said deflection area is a cathode connected to ground, which provides several passages through an opening having a flap for removal through the deflected seed coat of debris. 13. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising a passage connected to the transfer system for removing a seed coat of the crushed material on the rear side of the opening. 14. The one of the two electrodes provided with a vibrating chute is a cathode connected to ground which supports the transfer of charge to the shreds of debris.
The crushed material sorting device described. 15. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the vibrating chute comprises an adjustable vibrating device. 16. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the supply hopper is adjustable in its arrangement level. 17. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the vibrating chute is completely electrically insulated from the outside, and is connected to the same voltage as one of the electrodes. 18. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the electrode related to the vibrating chute is embedded in a chute made of a plastic material and is covered with a metal. 19. The crushed material sorting apparatus of claim 12, wherein an inner wall of the vibrating chute has an outer shape that supports mixing of the small pieces traveling therethrough. 20. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the outer shape has a raised shape. 21. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the two anodes of the two sets of electrodes are connected to either a positive or negative DC voltage. 22. The two electrodes defining the falling portion of the deflection area form a capacitor plate and are made of a material that electrically insulates to prevent charge transfer when in contact with a small piece of the crushed material. 13. The crushed material sorting device according to claim 12, wherein the crushed material sorting device is covered with a layer. 23. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising a device for humidifying the crushed material. 24. The crushed material sorting device according to claim 12, wherein the crushed material sorting device is sealed in a housing. 25. Some of said devices are arranged in line with each other to form a multi-stage sorting device, or some of said devices are arranged parallel to each other and adjacent to each other to sort different pieces of fragments. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 12, wherein: 26. The crushed material sorting apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the housing is air-conditioned. 27. The crushed material is crushed cocoa beans (nibs)
13. The crushed material sorting device according to claim 12, comprising a seed coat of cocoa beans.