JP2007325537A - Method for producing aqueous suspension of filtration auxiliary - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for producing an aqueous suspension of a filtration auxiliary used for the filtration of a fermented drink, wherein the quantity of a deaeration gas is reduced to lower a cost related to the production of the suspension. <P>SOLUTION: The method for producing the aqueous suspension of the filtration auxiliary is characterized in that the quantity of the deaeration gas such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen gas or helium gas, blown in a process for blowing the deaeration gas to remove oxygen gas from the aqueous suspension of the filtration auxiliary in a mixing tank 21 is determined on the basis of the quantity of the suspension. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for producing an aqueous suspension of a filter aid used in a filtration process of a fermented beverage.

  Fermented beverages such as happoshu made from beer and malt are produced using yeast. Taking beer as an example, beer is produced through the steps of malting, preparation, fermentation, aging, filtration, and filling. In the fermentation process, yeast is added to wort and young beer is produced by fermentation. In the aging process, young beer is aged in a storage tank. In the filtration step, yeast and coagulum are filtered from the beer obtained in the aging step. The filtered beer is filled into bottles, cans and barrels and shipped as products.

When beer is oxidized, aging of the product progresses, the original taste and aroma are impaired, and the quality deteriorates. Therefore, sufficient consideration is given so that beer is not oxidized in each process of producing beer. A technique for suppressing such beer oxidation is disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example.
JP, 2000-4866, A In a filtration process, beer is filtered using the water suspension of filter aids, such as diatomaceous earth and silicon dioxide, for example. The aqueous suspension of the filter aid is supplied to the filter and used, but the aqueous suspension is required not to contain oxygen in order to suppress beer oxidation in the filtration step. Air (oxygen) is mixed when the filter aid and water are mixed in a tank to produce a water suspension of the filter aid. Therefore, a method of expelling oxygen from the aqueous suspension by blowing a gas having no oxidizing action such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen gas or helium gas from the lower part of the tank can be employed. A gas such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen gas or helium gas that is blown into the water suspension to drive out oxygen in the water suspension is referred to as “degassing gas”. At present, a large amount of degassed gas is consumed because degassed gas is blown into the tank and the filter aid and water are introduced under this condition.

  An object of the present invention is to reduce the consumption of degassing gas used when producing an aqueous suspension of a filter aid, and to reduce the cost for producing the suspension.

  The present invention relates to a method for producing an aqueous suspension of a filter aid used in a filtration step of a fermented beverage, the first step of supplying water to a tank, and the filter aid is put into the tank. The method includes a second step and a third step of blowing a degassed gas into the tank, wherein the degassed gas is blown in an amount based on the amount of water suspension generated.

  In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, at least one of diatomaceous earth and silicon dioxide is used as the filter aid. The third step is started after the time point when both the first step and the second step are completed.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the consumption of the degassing gas used when producing the aqueous suspension of the filter aid, and therefore it is possible to reduce the cost associated with the production of the aqueous suspension.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an overall configuration of a filtration device 1 used in a filtration process of beer, which is a typical fermented beverage. The filtration device 1 includes a filter aid water suspension production device 2, a filter body 3 that filters unfiltered beer supplied from a storage tank to remove yeast and coagulum, unfiltered beer, and filter aid. Supply pipe 4 for supplying the aqueous suspension of the filter to the filter body 1, and a recovery pipe 5 for recovering the filtered beer and sending it to a bottle, can, and barreling step. The filter main body 3 includes a substantially cylindrical can body 31, and the can body 31 is provided with a partition wall 32 at an upper portion thereof. A large number of cylindrical filter carriers 33 are suspended substantially vertically on the partition wall 32. The supply pipe 4 is branched on the side opposite to the side connected to the filter body 1 into a pipe connected to the liquor storage tank and a pipe connected to the filter suspension water suspension production apparatus 2. Yes. Valves V1 and V2 and pumps P1 and P2 are respectively provided between the branch point of the supply pipe 4 and the storage tank 2 and the water suspension manufacturing apparatus 2 for the filter aid.

  An example of the procedure for filtering beer is to close the valve V1 of the pipe line connected to the liquor storage tank and open the valve V2 of the pipe line connected to the water suspension production apparatus 2 for the filter aid. And the pump P2 is driven and the aqueous suspension of the filter aid is supplied from the manufacturing apparatus 2 to the filter main body 3 through the supply pipe 4. The supplied aqueous suspension of the filter aid is deposited on the filter carrier 33 to form a filter layer (precoat layer) of the filter aid. Any filter carrier can be used as the filter carrier 33 as long as it can form a filter layer of a filter aid on the surface thereof. For example, a metal net, thick filter paper, or a ceramic tube can be used. Moreover, diatomaceous earth and silicon dioxide can be used as a filter aid.

Next, the valve V2 is closed and the valve V1 is opened. In this state, the pump P1 is driven to supply unfiltered beer stored in the storage tank to the filter main body 3 through the supply pipe 4.
The supplied unfiltered beer flows into the unfiltered side 34 of the filter body 3, and yeast, coagulum and the like are removed by the filter layer of the filter aid formed on the filter carrier 33. The beer clarified by filtration is sent from the filtration side 35 of the filter body 3 to the next process through the recovery pipe 5.

  Next, production of an aqueous suspension of the filter aid will be described with reference to FIG.

  The filter aid water suspension manufacturing apparatus 2 includes a mixing tank 21 for mixing and stirring the filter aid and water, a filter aid measuring tank 22 for measuring the filter aid to be added to the mixing tank 21, and a mixing tank 21. A water supply pipe 23 for supplying a predetermined amount of water, a gas blowing pipe 24 for supplying a degassing gas such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen gas or helium gas to the mixing tank 21 and a degassing gas from the mixing tank 25 Further, air containing oxygen substituted for gas and a gas discharge pipe 25 for releasing degassing gas can be included. The mixing tank 21 is connected to a branch pipe of the supply pipe 4 for discharging the aqueous suspension of the filter aid produced therein and supplying it to the filter main body 34.

  When the aqueous suspension of the filter aid is produced, the valve V2 disposed in the branch pipe of the supply pipe 4 is first closed. Next, as a first step, a predetermined amount of water is supplied from the water supply pipe 23 into the mixing tank 21. Then, as a second step, the filter aid adjusted to a predetermined amount in the filter aid metering tank 22 is charged into the mixing tank 21. Oxygen is mixed into the aqueous suspension of the filter aid by supplying water in the first step and introducing the filter aid in the second step. In the first step and the second step, any one of the steps may be performed first. Also, the first and second steps can be performed simultaneously.

  In order to remove oxygen in the suspension, degassed gas is blown into the suspension of the mixing tank 21 through the gas blowing pipe 24 in the third step. The degassed gas expels oxygen dissolved in the suspension, and is released from the gas discharge pipe 25 together with the expelled oxygen. By passing through the third step, the aqueous suspension of the filter aid in the mixing tank 21 does not contain oxygen. As the degassing gas used in the third step, for example, carbon dioxide gas, nitrogen gas, or helium gas that does not have an oxidizing action can be used. Among them, it is preferable to use carbon dioxide gas produced as a by-product during brewing from the viewpoint of availability.

  In the third step, the amount of degassed gas blown is determined based on the amount of suspension to be manufactured so as not to wastefully blow out the degassed gas. If the total amount of water supplied in the first step and the amount of filter aid added in the second step, that is, the amount of the suspension to be produced is determined, the amount of oxygen mixed in the suspension is determined. The amount is determined, and the amount of degassed gas blown is determined in accordance with the amount of oxygen. The amount of degassed gas blown is an amount proportional to the amount of the filter aid water suspension to be produced. Accordingly, the blowing of the degassing gas in the third step is stopped when the blowing amount reaches a predetermined value determined based on the amount of the suspension to be manufactured.

  The blowing amount of the degassing gas can be expressed as the blowing time of the degassing gas. For example, when the amount of degassing gas blown through the gas supply pipe 24 per unit time is constant, the degassing gas blowing time can be determined based on the amount of suspension to be manufactured. In this case, when the degassing gas blowing time reaches a predetermined time determined based on the amount of suspension to be produced, the degassing gas blowing can be automatically stopped.

  When the third step is started from the time when the first and second steps are started, degassed gas is wasted. Therefore, the third step is preferably started after the time point when both the first step and the second step are completed.

  In the above embodiment, the water used for the aqueous suspension of the filter aid is not degassed, but degassed water can also be used. In that case, the proportionality constant of the amount of suspension to be produced with respect to the amount of degassed gas must be changed.

It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the filtration apparatus which can be used by this invention. It is a figure which shows the water suspension manufacturing apparatus of the filter aid which can be used by this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Filtration apparatus 2 Water suspension manufacturing apparatus 21 of a filter aid 21 Mixing tank 22 Filtration aid metering tank 23 Water supply pipe 24 Gas blowing pipe 25 Gas discharge pipe 3 Filter body 31 Can body 32 Partition 33 Filter carrier 34 Unfiltered Side 35 Filtration side 4 Supply pipe 5 Recovery pipe V1, V2 Valve P1, P2 Pump

Claims (3)

A method for producing an aqueous suspension of a filter aid used in a filtration process of a fermented beverage,
A first step of supplying water to the tank;
A second step of adding a filter aid to the tank;
A third step of blowing degassing gas into the tank,
The method according to claim 3, wherein the amount of the degassing gas to be blown into the tank in the third step is determined based on the amount of the water suspension to be produced.   The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of diatomaceous earth and silicon dioxide is used as the filter aid.   The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the third step is started after the time point when both the first step and the second step are finished.

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