JP2023022528A - Manufacturing facility and manufacturing method for carbonated beverage - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a manufacturing facility for carbonated beverages that can reduce manufacturing costs for carbonated beverages and reduce environmental loads by reducing consumption of carbon dioxide.SOLUTION: A manufacturing facility for carbonated beverages is provided with: a blender that generates a mixture of raw water and a raw material syrup and comprises a mixture tank that stores the generated mixture; a carbonator that generates product liquid by dissolving carbon dioxide into the mixture and comprises a product liquid tank set in a carbon dioxide atmosphere and storing the generated product liquid; and a gas supply passage through which carbon dioxide ejected from the product liquid tank is regularly supplied to the mixture tank during operation of the carbonator.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to equipment for manufacturing a carbonated beverage, which is a product liquid, by dissolving carbon dioxide gas in a mixed liquid of water and syrup, which is a raw material.

Carbonated beverages, which are an example of beverages made from water and syrup, are usually produced by mixing water and syrup and further dissolving carbon dioxide gas.
Carbonated beverage manufacturing equipment includes a blender that mixes water and syrup at a predetermined mixing ratio, a carbonator that dissolves a predetermined amount of carbon dioxide gas in the mixed liquid obtained by the blender to obtain a product liquid, and a carbonator that dissolves carbon dioxide gas. and a filler for filling the container with the product liquid. Carbonated beverage production facilities continuously perform a process of mixing water and syrup and then filling a container with the product liquid. In the present disclosure, a liquid obtained by mixing water and syrup in a blender is called a mixed liquid, and a liquid obtained by dissolving carbon dioxide gas in the mixed liquid is called a product liquid. The chemical name for carbon dioxide is carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ).

Monitoring of syrup concentration and carbonic acid concentration is practiced in carbonated beverage production facilities. Patent Literature 1 proposes to reuse a product liquid whose syrup concentration is out of the specified range as a result of monitoring. According to Patent Document 1, the product liquid whose syrup concentration is out of the specified range can be reused in the product without being discarded, so the cost of beverage production can be reduced.

JP 2016-141444 A

Especially in recent years, there is a strong demand not only for reuse of the product liquid, but also for cost reduction in beverage production.
Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a production facility and a production method for carbonated beverages that can reduce the production cost of carbonated beverages and reduce the environmental load by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide used.

The carbonated beverage manufacturing facility according to the present disclosure includes a blender that generates a mixed liquid of raw water and raw syrup and that includes a mixed liquid tank that stores the generated mixed liquid, and a mixed liquid supplied from the mixed liquid tank. A carbonator that dissolves carbon dioxide gas to generate a product liquid and stores the generated product liquid, and is equipped with a product liquid tank that is in a carbon dioxide gas atmosphere; and a gas supply path that always supplies the mixed liquid toward the mixed liquid tank.

A method for producing a carbonated beverage according to the present disclosure includes a first step of generating a mixed liquid of raw water and raw syrup, storing the generated mixed liquid in a mixed liquid tank, and a mixed liquid supplied from the mixed liquid tank. a second step of dissolving carbon dioxide gas into the product liquid to generate a product liquid, and storing the generated product liquid in a product liquid tank having a carbon dioxide gas atmosphere, wherein the product liquid discharged from the product liquid tank in the second step Carbon dioxide gas is always supplied to the mixed liquid tank.

According to the present disclosure, by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide used, it is possible to reduce the manufacturing cost of carbonated beverages and to reduce the environmental load.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a carbonated beverage manufacturing facility according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. FIG. 2 shows the manufacturing facility of FIG. 1 operating in steady state manufacturing mode; Figure 2 shows the manufacturing facility of Figure 1 in gas purge mode; Figure 2 shows the manufacturing facility of Figure 1 operating in a clean-in-place mode; FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a carbonated beverage manufacturing facility according to another embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 6 shows the manufacturing facility of Figure 5 performing cleaning-in-place;

Embodiments will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[First Embodiment]
A carbonated beverage manufacturing facility 1 shown in FIG. 1 constitutes a line for manufacturing carbonated beverages containing carbon dioxide gas (CO ₂ ), such as carbonated water, cider, and cola. Various facilities are provided upstream and downstream of the manufacturing facility 1 in this line.
A production facility 1 for producing carbonated beverages in which carbon dioxide gas is dissolved using water and syrup as raw materials will be described below. The manufacturing equipment 1 can keep the amount of carbon dioxide gas used low when manufacturing carbonated beverages.

[Carbonated beverage manufacturing facility 1: Fig. 1]
As shown in FIG. 1, a carbonated beverage manufacturing facility 1 includes a blender 10 that mixes water (raw water) as one raw material and syrup (raw material syrup) as the other raw material to produce a mixed liquid. , a carbonator 20 for pressurizing and dissolving carbon dioxide gas into the mixed liquid produced by the blender 10, and a filler 30 for filling the container with the carbonated beverage as the product liquid produced by the carbonator 20. Prepare. The manufacturing facility 1 also includes a controller 50 that controls the operations of the blender 10 , the carbonator 20 and the filler 30 . Note that FIG. 1 shows only the minimum elements necessary for explaining the manufacturing equipment 1, and the actual manufacturing equipment 1 may include various valves, pressure gauges, flow meters, etc. not shown in FIG. can be done. The configurations of the blender 10, the carbonator 20 and the filler 30 will be described in this order. As for the controller 50, the characteristic control of this embodiment will be referred to in the process of explaining the blenders 10 to 30. FIG.

[Blender 10: Fig. 1]
The blender 10, as shown in FIG. 1, includes a syrup supply source 11 that stores blended raw material syrup RS and a raw water supply source 13 that stores purified raw water RW. A syrup supply source 11 is connected to a syrup tank 12 via a liquid pipe LT1, and raw material syrup RS is supplied from the syrup supply source 11 through the liquid pipe LT1 to a syrup tank 12 and stored in the syrup tank 12. The raw water supply source 13 is connected to the water tank 14 via the liquid pipe LT2.
A deaerator for degassing the raw water RW can be provided in the liquid pipe LT2 between the raw water supply source 13 and the water tank . The deerator removes oxygen gas, nitrogen gas, etc. dissolved in the raw water RW. The deaerator uses carbon dioxide gas for degassing to desorb oxygen gas dissolved in the raw water RW based on partial pressure and solubility according to Henry's law.

In this embodiment, upstream and downstream are specified based on the direction in which raw material syrup, raw material water, etc. flow. For example, syrup supply 11 is located upstream of syrup tank 12 and water tank 14 is located downstream of raw water supply 13 . Note that upstream and downstream are specified relatively.

The blender 10, as shown in FIG. 1, includes a liquid mixture tank 16 for mixing raw syrup RS supplied from the syrup tank 12 and raw water RW supplied from the water tank . A liquid pipe LT5 where a liquid pipe LT3 connected to the bottom of the syrup tank 12 and a liquid pipe LT4 connected to the bottom of the water tank 14 merge is connected to the mixed liquid tank 16, whereby raw syrup RS and raw water are produced. RW is mixed inside the mixed liquid tank 16 to generate a mixed liquid ML, which is stored inside the mixed liquid tank 16 . A throttle valve 17 is provided on the liquid pipe LT3, and a throttle valve 18 is provided on the liquid pipe LT4. By adjusting the degree of throttling of the throttle valves 17 and 18, the flow rate of the raw material syrup RS flowing through the liquid pipe LT3 and the flow rate of the raw material water RW flowing through the liquid pipe LT4 are adjusted, and the raw material syrup RS and the raw material syrup RS in the liquid mixture ML are adjusted. A mixing ratio of the raw water RW is specified. The degree of throttling of throttle valve 17 and throttle valve 18 is based on a command from controller 50 .

A GOB (Gravity Orifice Blender) is adopted as an example of the blender 10, and the liquid level inside the syrup tank 12 for the raw material syrup RS and the liquid level inside the water tank 14 for the raw material water RW are kept constant. controlled. Raw material syrup RS discharged from the syrup tank 12 through the throttle valve 17 at a predetermined flow rate and raw water RW discharged from the water tank 14 through the throttle valve 18 at a predetermined flow rate are mixed inside the liquid mixture tank 16 . However, the present disclosure does not exclude the adoption of other known blenders.

As shown in FIG. 1 , one end of a liquid pipe LT6 that supplies the mixed liquid ML toward the carbonator 20 is pulled out from below the mixed liquid tank 16 . The other end of the liquid pipe LT6 is connected below the product liquid tank 25 of the carbonator 20 . A pump P<b>1 is interposed in the liquid pipe LT<b>6 to suck the mixed liquid ML stored in the mixed liquid tank 16 and feed it toward the product liquid tank 25 . The operation of the pump P1 is based on commands from the controller 50. FIG.

Pipes for supplying and discharging carbon dioxide gas are arranged in the blender 10. Since they are closely related to the gas pipe GT1 and the like arranged in the carbonator 20, they will be referred to in the explanation of the carbonator 20. FIG. In FIGS. 2 to 4, which will be referred to later, pipes through which liquid flows are indicated by "LT", and pipes through which gas flows are indicated by "GT".
[Carbonator 20: Fig. 1]
Next, the carbonator 20 will be described with reference to FIG.
The carbonator 20 includes a carbon dioxide gas supply source 21 and a carbonate nozzle 23 for pressurizing and dissolving carbon dioxide gas into the liquid mixture ML supplied from the liquid mixture tank 16 via the liquid pipe LT6 to generate the product liquid PL. . The carbonator 20 also includes a product liquid tank 25 in which the product liquid PL generated in the carbonate nozzle 23 is supplied and stored.

The carbon dioxide gas supply source 21 is connected to the product liquid tank 25 by a gas pipe GT1. The inside is a carbon dioxide gas atmosphere. A pressure regulating valve V1 is provided between the carbon dioxide gas supply source 21 and the product liquid tank 25 in the gas pipe GT1. The pressure is reduced to a constant pressure selected from the range of 0.2 to 0.5 MPa and supplied to the product liquid tank 25 . As a result, the product liquid PL stored inside the product liquid tank 25 is pressurized with the carbon dioxide gas at the constant pressure. The controller 50 controls the degree to which the pressure regulating valve V1 reduces the carbon dioxide gas.

The product liquid tank 25 and the carbonate nozzle 23 are connected by a gas pipe GT2, and part of the carbon dioxide supplied to the product liquid tank 25 through the gas pipe GT1 is supplied to the carbonate nozzle 23 through the gas pipe GT2. and dissolved in the liquid mixture ML in the carbonate nozzle 23 to generate the product liquid PL. The produced product liquid PL is supplied to the product liquid tank 25 through the liquid pipe LT6.
According to Le Chatelier's principle, the lower the temperature, the easier it is for carbon dioxide to dissolve in the liquid mixture ML. Therefore, when the carbon dioxide gas is injected into the liquid mixture ML, the liquid mixture ML may be cooled by a cooler (not shown). Also, a sterilizer that sterilizes the liquid mixture ML by heating, for example, may be provided in front of the cooler. This cooler and sterilizer are provided in the liquid pipe LT6 upstream of the carbonate nozzle 23 .

As an example, the carbonate nozzle 23 feeds carbon dioxide gas from the carbon dioxide gas supply source 21 into each nozzle into the liquid mixture ML that has flowed into each of the plurality of nozzles, and dissolves the carbon dioxide gas in the liquid mixture ML.

The carbonator 20 has a liquid pipe LT7 that connects the product liquid tank 25 and the filler 30 . A pump P2 and a flow control valve V2 are provided on the liquid pipe LT7 from the upstream side, and the amount of the product liquid PL supplied from the product liquid tank 25 to the filler 30 is adjusted according to instructions from the controller 50 .

The product liquid tank 25 is connected with a gas pipe GT3 for discharging the carbon dioxide gas supplied to the product liquid tank 25 . A gas pipe GT4 branched from the gas pipe GT3 is provided with a safety valve V3. The gas pipe GT3 and the gas pipe GT4 are examples of the second gas discharge path in the present disclosure. When the pressure of the carbon dioxide gas inside the liquid product tank 25 exceeds a predetermined set value, the safety valve V3 is opened to lower the pressure of the carbon dioxide gas, thereby discharging the carbon dioxide gas inside the liquid product tank 25. to lower the internal pressure of the product liquid tank 25 below the set value. In other words, the safety valve V3 is closed during normal operation, and carbon dioxide gas is not discharged through the gas pipes GT3 and GT4. Note that this discharge of carbon dioxide is sometimes referred to as purging.

[Carbon dioxide supply path between carbonator 20 and blender 10: FIG. 1]
Next, referring to FIG. 1, a carbon dioxide gas supply route between the carbonator 20 and the blender 10 will be described.
The carbonator 20 and the blender 10 are connected by a gas pipe GT5 branched from the gas pipe GT3. Specifically, one end of the gas pipe GT5 is connected to the product liquid tank 25 via the gas pipe GT3, and the other end is branched into the gas pipe GT6 and the gas pipe GT7. It is connected to the tank 12 and the gas pipe GT7 is connected to the water tank 14 . As a result, the insides of the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 are pressurized with a predetermined pressure of carbon dioxide gas.
Here, the gas pipe GT4 and the gas pipe GT5 are branched from the gas pipe GT3, but the gas pipe GT4 and the gas pipe GT5 are independently connected to the product liquid tank 25 without providing the gas pipe GT3. can also

The gas pipe GT5 is provided with a regulator 40 that is a pressure regulator that reduces the pressure of the carbon dioxide gas flowing through the gas pipe GT5. The pressure of the carbon dioxide gas flowing through the gas pipe GT5 toward the regulator 40 is selected from the range of 0.2 to 0.5 MPa as described above. After being reduced to a constant pressure of 0.05 MPa, it is supplied to the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 . As long as the pressure can be reduced to this level, the type of the regulator 40 is not limited, and the required pressure reduction can be performed with a single type of equipment, or the required pressure reduction can be performed with a plurality of types of equipment. If two types of equipment are used, as an example, an electro-pneumatic regulator with a relatively large pressure setting range can be provided upstream, and a manual precision regulator with a relatively small pressure setting range can be provided downstream.

The syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 of the blender 10 are connected to one ends of gas pipes GT8 and GT9, respectively, for discharging carbon dioxide from the inside. converged at one end. The other end of the gas pipe GT10 is connected to the liquid mixture tank 16, so that the carbon dioxide gas in the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 is supplied to the liquid mixture tank 16.
The gas pipe GT3 to gas pipe GT10 described so far correspond to an example of the gas supply path in the present disclosure.

A gas pipe GT11 is connected to the mixed liquid tank 16 . The gas pipe GT11 corresponds to an example of the first gas discharge path in the present disclosure. In order to keep the pressure of the carbon dioxide inside the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 constant, in principle, while the blender 10 is in operation, Carbon dioxide gas inside the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 is purged. Here, the carbon dioxide gas supplied to the syrup tank 12, the water tank 14 and the mixed liquid tank 16 is discharged from the gas pipe GT3 connected to the product liquid tank 25. Therefore, the purging of carbon dioxide inside the syrup tank 12 and water tank 14 is equivalent to the purging of carbon dioxide from the product liquid tank 25 .

[Fila 30: Fig. 1]
The filler 30 fills a container such as a PET bottle with the product liquid PL in which the carbon dioxide gas is dissolved by the carbonator 20 . As the filler 30, a rotary filling machine can be used that fills a product liquid temporarily stored in a tank into a continuously supplied container.

[Operation of manufacturing equipment 1: FIGS. 2, 3, and 4]
Next, the operation procedure of the manufacturing facility 1 for carbonated beverages will be described.
The production facility 1 can perform three operation modes: a steady production mode (Fig. 2), a gas purge production mode (Fig. 3) accompanied by gas purge from the product liquid tank 25, and a stationary cleaning mode (Fig. 4) in which CIP is performed. . The steady state production mode and gas purge production mode are responsible for the production of carbonated beverages.
The steady production mode is executed when the pressure of carbon dioxide gas in the product liquid tank 25 is less than the set value.
The gas purge production mode is executed when the pressure of carbon dioxide gas in the product liquid tank 25 exceeds a set value.
The cleaning operation mode is performed to clean the manufacturing facility 1, for example, after a predetermined time of manufacturing operation has passed, regardless of whether it is steady state or gas purge.

[Regular production mode: Fig. 2]
First, with reference to FIG. 2, the liquid and gas flows in the steady production mode will be described. In FIG. 2, solid lines indicate pipes in which liquid or gas is flowing, and dashed lines indicate pipes in which liquid or gas is not flowing. Further, in FIG. 2 , solid line arrows indicate the direction in which liquid flows, and dashed line arrows indicate the direction in which gas flows. The same is true for the next gas purge production mode. The liquid referred to here corresponds to the raw syrup RS, the raw water RW, the mixed liquid ML, and the product liquid PL, and the gas corresponds to carbon dioxide gas.

[Liquid flow]
The raw material syrup RS supplied from the syrup supply source 11 and stored in the syrup tank 12 is supplied to the mixture tank 16 through the liquid pipe LT3, and the raw material is supplied from the raw water supply source 13 and stored in the water tank 14. Water RW is supplied to the mixed liquid tank 16 through the liquid pipe LT4.
In the mixed liquid tank 16, the raw material syrup RS and the raw material water RW are mixed to generate the mixed liquid ML. The liquid mixture ML is produced at a ratio of raw syrup RS and raw water RW according to the flow rate of raw syrup RS controlled by the throttle valve 17 and the amount of raw water RW controlled by the throttle valve 18 . By continuously acquiring the concentration measured by, for example, a Brix meter (not shown) provided in the liquid pipe LT6 between the mixed liquid tank 16 and the pump P1, the syrup concentration of the mixed liquid ML is managed within a specified range. can be done.

In the blender 10, carbon dioxide gas is supplied to the syrup tank 12 through the gas pipe GT6 and to the water tank 14 through the gas pipe GT7, and the inside is filled with carbon dioxide gas having a pressure of 0.05 MPa, for example. This limits the contact with gases other than carbon dioxide, such as oxygen and nitrogen, in which the raw material syrup RS and raw water RW are eventually dissolved. The same applies to the liquid mixture tank 16 to which carbon dioxide gas is supplied via the gas pipe GT10.

The mixed liquid ML is sent from the mixed liquid tank 16 toward the product liquid tank 25 through the liquid pipe LT6 by the power of the pump P1. During this process, the product liquid PL generated by dissolving the carbon dioxide supplied from the gas pipe GT2 in the liquid mixture ML in the carbonate nozzle 23 is supplied to the product liquid tank 25 . The product liquid PL supplied to the product liquid tank 25 is supplied to the filler 30 through the liquid pipe LT7 by the operation of the pump P2, and processing such as filling a container (not shown) is performed.

[Gas flow]
Next, part of the carbon dioxide supplied from the carbon dioxide supply source 21 to the product liquid tank 25 is discharged from the product liquid tank 25 and supplied to the carbonate nozzle 23 through the gas pipe GT2. As a result, the product liquid PL is generated from the liquid mixture ML in the carbonate nozzle 23 .
Another part of the carbon dioxide supplied from the carbon dioxide gas supply source 21 to the product liquid tank 25 is supplied toward the blender 10 via the gas pipe GT3 and the gas pipe GT5. In this process, the pressure of the carbon dioxide gas is lowered by passing through the regulator 40 . Since the safety valve V3 is closed in the steady production mode, carbon dioxide does not flow into the gas pipe GT4. In FIG. 1, it is shown in black that the safety valve V3 is closed. In addition, when the safety valve V3 is closed, it is shown in white.

The carbon dioxide gas that has passed through the regulator 40 is supplied to the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 via gas pipe GT5, gas pipe GT6 and gas pipe GT7. The carbon dioxide supplied to the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 is supplied to the liquid mixture tank 16 through the gas pipe GT8, the gas pipe GT9 and the gas pipe GT10. Part of the carbon dioxide supplied to the mixed liquid tank 16 is purged through the gas pipe GT11. The purging of carbon dioxide in the liquid mixture tank 16 is always performed during the production of the product liquid PL.

The pressure of carbon dioxide gas has been exemplified so far, and will be summarized below.
Carbon dioxide gas supply source 21: 0.6 to 0.9 MPa
Product liquid tank 25: 0.2 to 0.5 MPa
Gas pipe GT5 (before regulator 40): 0.2 to 0.5 MPa
Gas pipe GT5 (after regulator 40), syrup tank 12, water tank 14,
Mixed liquid tank 16, gas pipe GT11: 0.05 MPa

[Gas purge production mode: Fig. 3]
Next, the gas purge production mode will be described with reference to FIG. However, this explanation will focus on the differences from the steady production mode shown in FIG.
In the gas purge production mode, when the pressure of carbon dioxide inside the product liquid tank 25 reaches a predetermined set value, the safety valve V3 is opened to reduce the pressure inside the product liquid tank 25 . Then, the carbon dioxide gas, which has been flowing only through the gas pipe GT5 through the gas pipe GT3, also flows into the gas pipe GT4. Since the safety valve V3 is opened, the carbon dioxide gas that has flowed through the gas pipe GT4 is released to the outside air, and the pressure inside the product liquid tank 25 is reduced.

[Cleaning in place mode: Fig. 4]
Next, the cleaning operation mode will be described with reference to FIG.
Equipment for filling the product liquid PL in an aseptic state, for example, switches the type of beverage to be filled in the container, or periodically cleans the pipes and tanks that make up the flow path of the beverage and carbon dioxide in the equipment. , to remove adhering dirt. Therefore, in this mode the production of carbonated beverages is stopped. This cleaning is called CIP (cleaning in place) and is performed by circulating a cleaning liquid in the piping system. The manufacturing equipment 1 performs stationary cleaning while avoiding the regulator 40 . Specifically, the cleaning liquid CL is supplied from the blender 10 so as to spread over the carbonator 20 and the filler 30 , but the cleaning liquid CL is not supplied to the regulator 40 . Also, the gas pipe GT5 belonging to the blender 10 and the like are cleaned with cleaning air CA. Hereinafter, the flow of cleaning liquid CL and cleaning air CA in the cleaning operation mode will be described more specifically with reference to FIG.

[Washing liquid CL]
First, the cleaning liquid CL will be described. The cleaning liquid CL flows through the blender 10, the carbonator 20 and the filler 30 in this order. Also, in FIG. 4, the cleaning liquid CL flows in the direction of the dashed arrow.
In the blender 10, the syrup supply source 11 is filled with the cleaning liquid CL instead of the raw syrup RS, and the raw water supply source 13 is filled with the cleaning liquid CL instead of the raw water RW. The cleaning liquid CL filled in the syrup supply source 11 is supplied to the syrup tank 12 through the liquid pipe LT1, and the cleaning liquid CL filled in the raw water supply source 13 is supplied to the water tank 14 through the liquid pipe LT2. Up to this point, the syrup supply source 11, the syrup tank 12, the raw water supply source 13, the water tank 14, the liquid pipe LT1 and the liquid pipe LT2 are fixed and washed.

Next, the cleaning liquid CL filled in the syrup tank 12 is supplied to the mixed liquid tank 16 through the liquid pipe LT3 and the liquid pipe LT5. Also, the cleaning liquid CL filled in the water tank 14 is supplied to the mixed liquid tank 16 through the liquid pipe LT4 and the liquid pipe LT5.
The cleaning liquid CL filled in the mixed liquid tank 16 is supplied toward the product liquid tank 25 through the liquid pipe LT6 including the pump P1 and the carbonate nozzle 23 by the operation of the pump P1. Up to this point, the mixed liquid tank 16, the pump P1, the carbonate nozzle 23 and the liquid pipe LT6 are fixed and washed.

The cleaning liquid CL supplied to the product liquid tank 25 flows toward three paths.
The first route is a circulation route in which the cleaning liquid CL supplied to the gas pipe GT2 passes through the carbonate nozzle 23 and returns to the product liquid tank 25 . The second route is a route through which the cleaning liquid CL is discharged out of the route through the gas pipe GT3 and the gas pipe GT4, and is also discharged out of the route through the gas pipe GT3 and the gas pipe GT5. . A third route is a route through which the cleaning liquid CL is supplied to the filler 30 through the liquid pipe LT7 including the flow control valve V2. The cleaning liquid CL supplied to the filler 30 is discharged out of the system.
Up to this point, the product liquid tank 25, the pump P2, the flow control valve V2, the filler 30, the gas pipes GT2, GT3, GT4, GT5 and the liquid pipe LT7 are cleaned.

[Washing air CA]
Next, the flow of cleaning air CA will be described with reference to FIG. The cleaning air CA cleans only the blender 10, which is indicated by solid arrows in FIG.
Cleaning air CA is supplied to gas pipe GT5 downstream of regulator 40 . The supplied cleaning air CA is supplied to the syrup tank 12 through the gas pipe GT6 and to the water tank 14 through the gas pipe GT7. The cleaning air CA supplied to the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14 is supplied to the liquid mixture tank 16 through the gas pipe GT8, the gas pipe GT9 and the gas pipe GT10, and discharged out of the system through the gas pipe GT11.
As described above, the cleaning air CA cleans the gas pipes GT5, GT6, GT7, GT8, GT9, GT10, and GT11.

The cleaning with the cleaning liquid CL and the cleaning with the cleaning air CA can be performed in parallel, or the cleaning with the cleaning liquid CL and the cleaning with the cleaning air CA can be performed separately at different times.
Also, SIP (Sterilization in Place) can be performed on the supply path after the cleaning in place is finished.

[Effect of manufacturing equipment 1]
The manufacturing facility 1 described above has the following effects.
According to the production facility 1, part of the carbon dioxide gas supplied from the carbon dioxide gas supply source 21 to the product liquid tank 25 is supplied from the product liquid tank 25 to the syrup tank 12 of the blender 10, thereby producing the syrup tank 12 as described below. In addition, the amount of carbon dioxide used can be reduced.
The carbon dioxide gas in the product liquid tank 25 is dissolved in the liquid mixture ML in the carbonate nozzle 23 and used to generate the product liquid PL, and the concentration is constant because it applies pressure to the generated product liquid PL. is required. However, since the concentration of carbon dioxide may fluctuate due to various factors, in order to keep the concentration of carbon dioxide constant, new carbon dioxide is supplied from the carbon dioxide gas supply source 21 and the inside of the product liquid tank 25 is replenished with new carbon dioxide. of carbon dioxide gas. This purging is preferably always carried out while the carbonator 20 is in operation, and the amount of carbon dioxide gas purged from the product liquid tank 25 is by no means small.

Therefore, the manufacturing facility 1 uses the carbon dioxide gas purged from the product liquid tank 25 in the blender 10 to form a carbon dioxide gas atmosphere in the syrup tank 12 , the water tank 14 and the liquid mixture tank 16 . The carbon dioxide atmosphere is formed in the syrup tank 12, the water tank 14 and the mixture tank 16 by forming the carbon dioxide atmosphere in the syrup tank 12, the water tank 14 and the mixture tank 16 over the period of operation of the blender 10. Therefore, the amount of carbon dioxide required is never small. However, according to the production facility 1, the carbon dioxide gas purged from the product liquid tank 25 in order to keep the concentration of carbon dioxide gas constant is used to form the carbon dioxide gas atmosphere necessary for the blender 10, so that the carbon dioxide gas atmosphere is formed. There is no need to introduce new carbon dioxide gas in order to Therefore, according to the manufacturing equipment 1, the amount of carbon dioxide used can be reduced. As a result, the product cost can be reduced and the environmental load can be reduced.

[Second embodiment]
Next, a carbonated drink manufacturing facility 3 according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
In the manufacturing equipment 3 according to the second embodiment, the pressure regulator provided in the gas pipe GT5 connecting the carbonator 20 and the blender 10 is composed of a gas flow control valve V4 unlike the regulator 40 of the first embodiment. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, the gas flow control valve V4 is provided in the gas pipe GT5, and the pressure sensor 43 is provided downstream of the gas flow control valve V4. The pressure sensor 43 detects the pressure of the carbon dioxide gas flowing through the gas pipe GT5, and adjusts the opening of the gas flow control valve V4 based on the detected pressure, thereby controlling the amount of carbon dioxide supplied to the syrup tank 12 and the water tank 14. The gas pressure is controlled, for example, at 0.05 MPa.

The gas flow control valve V4 and the pressure sensor 43 can be cleaned with the cleaning liquid CL. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, a part of the regulator 40 and the gas pipe GT5 that were not cleaned in the first embodiment, and furthermore, a part that was cleaned with the cleaning air CA are cleaned with the cleaning liquid CL. becomes. Note that, in the first embodiment, stationary cleaning of the regulator 40 is avoided.

[Effects of manufacturing equipment 3]
The gas flow control valve V4 and the pressure sensor 43 of the manufacturing equipment 3 can be cleaned with the cleaning liquid CL. Therefore, since the manufacturing equipment 3 can be entirely cleaned with the cleaning liquid CL, the completeness of cleaning can be ensured. Further, according to the manufacturing facility 3, it is not necessary to provide the elements necessary for supplying the cleaning air CA, and it is sufficient to provide the elements necessary for cleaning with the cleaning liquid CL, so the structure required for cleaning can be simplified.

[Appendix]
A carbonated beverage manufacturing facility according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure generates a mixed liquid of raw water (RW) and raw syrup (RS), and a mixed liquid tank (16 ), a carbon dioxide gas atmosphere for dissolving carbon dioxide gas in the mixed liquid (ML) supplied from the mixed liquid tank to generate a product liquid (PL), and storing the generated product liquid. a carbonator (20) provided with a product liquid tank (25) which is a product liquid tank (25), and a gas which always supplies the carbon dioxide gas discharged from the product liquid tank (25) toward the mixed liquid tank (16) when the carbonator (20) is in operation. and a feeding path (GT3 to GT10).
According to the production facility according to the first embodiment, the production cost of carbonated beverages can be reduced by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide used.

A blender (10) according to the second aspect of the present disclosure preferably includes a syrup tank (12) storing raw material syrup (RS) supplied from a syrup supply source (11) and a raw material water supply source (13). A water tank (14) for storing raw water (RW) to be mixed, and raw syrup (RS) from the syrup tank (12) and raw water (RW) from the water tank (14) are supplied to the mixture tank (16). The gas supply line (GT3-GT10) leads to the mixture tank (16) via the syrup tank (12) and the water tank (14).
According to the manufacturing facility according to the second embodiment, carbon dioxide gas can be supplied not only to the liquid mixture tank (16) but also to the syrup tank (12) and the water tank (14), thereby further reducing the amount of carbon dioxide used. be able to.

The gas feed path (GT5-GT10) according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure is preferably arranged upstream of the syrup tank (12) and the water tank (14) to supply carbonic acid discharged from the product liquid tank (25). A pressure regulator (40, V4) is provided to reduce the pressure of the gas.
According to the manufacturing facility according to the third embodiment, carbon dioxide gas can be supplied at an appropriate pressure to the liquid mixture tank (16), syrup tank (12) and water tank (14).

A pressure regulator (40, V4) according to the fourth aspect of the present disclosure preferably includes a single type or multiple types of regulators (40).
According to the manufacturing facility according to the fourth embodiment, the pressure of the carbon dioxide supplied to the liquid mixture tank (16), syrup tank (12) and water tank (14) can be controlled with high accuracy.

A pressure regulator (40, V4) according to the fifth aspect of the present disclosure preferably includes a pressure regulating valve (V4) and a pressure sensor (43).
According to the manufacturing facility according to the fifth embodiment, the pressure regulating valve (V4) and the pressure sensor (43) can also be subjected to stationary cleaning.

A blender (10) according to the sixth aspect of the present disclosure is preferably connected to a mixed liquid tank (16), and a first gas discharge passage (GT11) for constantly discharging carbon dioxide gas inside the mixed liquid tank (16). Prepare.
According to the manufacturing equipment according to the sixth embodiment, the carbon dioxide gas pressure in the liquid mixture tank (16), syrup tank (12) and water tank (14) can be maintained.

The carbonator (20) according to the seventh aspect of the present disclosure is preferably connected to the product liquid tank (25), and is a second gas that discharges carbon dioxide gas inside the product liquid tank (25) according to its concentration. It has a discharge path (GT3, 4).
According to the manufacturing equipment according to the seventh embodiment, it is possible to avoid the occurrence of abnormal carbon dioxide gas pressure in the product liquid tank (25).

The gas supply path (GT3 to GT10) according to the eighth embodiment of the present disclosure is for carbon dioxide gas discharged from the product liquid tank (25), except for carbon dioxide gas discharged by the gas discharge paths (GT3, 4). Feed all towards mixture tank (16).
According to the production facility according to the eighth embodiment, the production cost of carbonated beverages can be reduced by limiting the amount of carbon dioxide to be discarded.

A method for producing a carbonated beverage according to the ninth form of the present disclosure includes a first step of storing a mixed liquid (ML) produced by mixing raw water (RW) and raw syrup (RS) in a mixed liquid tank (16). a second step of storing the product liquid (PL) generated by dissolving carbon dioxide gas in the mixed liquid (ML) in a product liquid tank (25) having a carbon dioxide gas atmosphere; and in the second step, the product liquid tank The carbon dioxide discharged from (25) is always supplied to the liquid mixture tank (16).
According to the production method of the ninth embodiment, the production cost of carbonated beverages can be reduced by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide used.

In addition to the above, it is possible to select the configurations mentioned in the above embodiments, or to change them to other configurations as appropriate.

1, 3 manufacturing equipment 10 blender 11 syrup supply source 12 syrup tank 13 raw water supply source 14 water tank 16 mixed liquid tanks 17, 18 throttle valve 20 carbonator 21 carbon dioxide gas supply source 23 carbonate nozzle 25 product liquid tank 30 filler 40 regulator 50 Controllers V1, V4 Pressure control valve V2 Flow control valve V3 Safety valves P1, P2 Pumps GT1, GT2, GT3, GT4, GT5, GT6 Gas pipes GT7, GT8, GT9, GT10, GT11 Gas pipes LT1, LT2, LT3, LT4, LT5 , LT6, LT7 Liquid piping RS Raw material syrup RW Raw water ML Mixed liquid PL Product liquid CA Cleaning air CL Cleaning liquid

Claims (9)

a blender that generates a mixed liquid of raw material water and raw syrup and that includes a mixed liquid tank that stores the generated mixed liquid;
a carbonator comprising a product liquid tank having a carbon dioxide gas atmosphere for generating a product liquid by dissolving carbon dioxide gas in the mixed liquid supplied from the mixed liquid tank, and storing the generated product liquid;
a gas feed path for constantly supplying the carbon dioxide discharged from the product liquid tank toward the liquid mixture tank during operation of the carbonator;
A carbonated drink manufacturing facility.
The blender is
a syrup tank that stores the raw material syrup supplied from a syrup supply source;
a water tank for storing the raw water supplied from the raw water supply source;
a liquid pipe that supplies the raw material syrup from the syrup tank and the raw material water from the water tank to the mixed liquid tank,
The gas supply path is
Through the syrup tank and the water tank to the mixed liquid tank,
The production facility for carbonated beverages according to claim 1.
The gas supply path is
A pressure regulator for reducing the pressure of the carbon dioxide discharged from the product liquid tank is provided upstream of the syrup tank and the water tank,
The production facility for carbonated beverages according to claim 2.
The pressure regulator is
containing single or multiple types of regulators,
The production facility for carbonated beverages according to claim 3.
The pressure regulator is
including pressure regulating valve and pressure sensor,
The production facility for carbonated beverages according to claim 3.
The blender is
A first gas discharge path connected to the mixed liquid tank and constantly discharging the carbon dioxide gas inside the mixed liquid tank,
The production facility for carbonated beverages according to any one of claims 1 to 5.
The carbonator is
A second gas discharge path connected to the product liquid tank for discharging the carbon dioxide gas inside the product liquid tank according to its concentration,
The production facility for carbonated beverages according to any one of claims 1 to 6.
The gas supply path is
Except for the carbon dioxide discharged through the gas discharge path,
supplying all of the carbon dioxide discharged from the product liquid tank toward the mixed liquid tank;
The production facility for carbonated beverages according to claim 7.
a first step of storing a liquid mixture produced by mixing raw material water and raw material syrup in a liquid mixture tank;
a second step of storing a product liquid produced by dissolving carbon dioxide in the mixed liquid in a product liquid tank having a carbon dioxide atmosphere;
always supplying the carbon dioxide gas discharged from the product liquid tank in the second step toward the mixed liquid tank;
A method for producing carbonated beverages.

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