JP3162032B2 - Sterilization method of food etc. - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for sterilizing liquid foods, pharmaceuticals and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a means for sterilizing foods, pharmaceuticals, etc., an object to be sterilized is filled and sealed in a container such as a bag and then placed in a retort or continuously transferred in a high-pressure tank for a predetermined period of time. Heat sterilization under high pressure is disclosed in
No. 1069, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-296866, and the like.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional method, the tank itself is kept at a high temperature simultaneously with the high pressure, and the container filled with the material to be sterilized is sterilized by heating under high pressure from the outside. In particular, in the case of a plastic container such as a polyethylene bag, a whitening phenomenon occurs in the container, and depending on the shape or thickness of the bag or the container, the object to be sterilized cannot be quickly and uniformly heated. In addition, there is a problem that it is difficult to control the temperature of the object to be sterilized, and the thermal efficiency is deteriorated.

In view of the above situation, the present invention prevents the occurrence of a whitening phenomenon in a plastic container such as a film bag containing a filling of an object to be sterilized, and facilitates temperature control of heat sterilization of the object to be sterilized. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of sterilizing foods and the like that can be heat-sterilized without deteriorating the quality and has high heat efficiency.

[0005]

According to the present invention, there is provided a method of filling a plastic container such as a film bag in a high-pressure tank at a normal temperature which does not heat a sterilized material immediately after being heated to a temperature higher than a sterilizing temperature. It is characterized in that it is sealed, then it is kept in the above-mentioned non-heated normal-temperature high-pressure tank for a predetermined sterilization time, sterilized as required, cooled, and taken out of the high-pressure tank.

The substances to be sterilized in the method of the present invention include fluids such as various juices, soups, coffees, pasta sauces, meat sauces, white sauces, rice porridge, rice porridge, liquid foods such as liquid foods, infusions and blood for blood transfusions. Means pharmaceuticals,
These are filled in a plastic bag or container made of polyethylene or the like, sealed, and heat-sterilized.

According to the method of the present invention, a plastic container degassed in a high- temperature tank at room temperature in which the object to be sterilized is heated to a temperature higher than its sterilization temperature outside the high-pressure tank and the heated object to be sterilized is not immediately heated. It filled sealed from the pressurized <br/> heated non high-pressure tank in a further cooled to after the required sterilization and held in a predetermined time high temperature required for sterilization of the object to be sterilized object in the high-pressure tank It is to sterilize extracted foods.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The method of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the following examples. And then heated to a high temperature of 110 to 140 ° C. or higher, which is higher than the sterilization temperature adapted to the material to be sterilized, and immediately heated to 1.2 to 2.0 kg through a heat-insulating pipe or the like. It is transferred to the filling device 4 inside.

In the lower part of the high-pressure tank 3, a cooling tank 5 is provided, and in the high-pressure tank 3, a transfer device 7 having a retainer 6 for accommodating a filling container is provided. A container supply device for supplying a plastic bag or a container to the retainer 6 above the starting end of the transfer device 7 in the gas phase portion. 8 and retainer 6
And a container take-out device 9 for taking out the filled container therein.

The filling nozzle of the filling device 4 is provided in front of the container supply device 8 to fill the plastic container in the retainer 6 with the high temperature state of the object to be sterilized at the time of the intermittent stop of the transfer device 7. A sealing device 10 is further provided in the front part of 4 to seal and seal the opening of the plastic container filled with the material to be sterilized.

The plastic container filled with the object to be sterilized, which has been heated to 110 to 140 ° C. above the sterilizing temperature of the object to be sterilized by the high-temperature heating device 2 in this manner, is intermittently transferred through the gas phase for a predetermined time by the transfer device 7. After being sterilized by the heat of the object to be sterilized, the liquid is intermittently transferred to a cooling tank 5 provided at the lower part of the high-pressure tank 3, further cooled, and then conveyed again to the gas phase, and is removed by the container removal device 9. It is taken out of the retainer 6 to the outside of the high-pressure tank 3 and sterilization is completed.

In this case, the heating temperature of the high-temperature heating device 2, the pressure of the high-pressure tank 3, and the intermittent transfer speed of the transfer device 7 are adjusted according to the type and amount of the material to be sterilized, the type of the plastic container, the sterilization time and the like. It can be so. In the figure, 11
Is a cooling water circulation pump, and 12 is a cooling device.

Therefore, for example, after the object to be sterilized which can be sterilized at 118 ° C. for 4 minutes is heated to 120 ° C. slightly higher than its sterilizing temperature by the high-temperature heating device 2, it is immediately cooled to 1.3 kg / cm ² without the sterilizing means. When a polyethylene bag is filled and sealed in the high-pressure tank 3 at room temperature and the gas phase is transported for 4 to 5 minutes, the temperature gradually decreases to 118 ° C. and the predetermined sterilization treatment is completed. After being conveyed and cooled, it is taken out of the high-pressure tank 3 and sterilized.

In the method of the present invention, in order to reliably prevent air and other contaminants and ensure sterilization, such as blood transfusions and blood for blood transfusion, etc., the sealed containers in which the filling portions of these plastic containers are sealed are used. A container filling section cutting device is provided in front of the filling device 4 so that the filling portion can be opened in the high-pressure tank 3 to fill the material to be sterilized by using the container. After the supply unit was cut off and the filling unit was cut, the conveying device 7 was rotated 180 degrees to fill the container with the filling unit facing upward, and the filling by the filling device 4 and the sealing of the filling unit by the device 10 were performed. Later, the transport device 7
It is preferable to provide the transporting device 7 with a container reversing device so that the container can be transported by turning the container 180 upside down by 180 degrees and refilling the sealed portion downward.

Further, the means for loading and unloading the containers in the container supply device 8 and the container removal device 9 does not lower the pressure in the high-pressure tank 3 and is conventionally known, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. Sho 56-43350, 1964-51
No. 069 can be used.

[0016]

According to the method of the present invention, a material to be sterilized which is fluid outside the high-pressure tank is directly heated to a temperature higher than the sterilization temperature in advance, and the plastic container is filled and sealed in a high-pressure tank at room temperature which is not immediately heated. By maintaining the sterilization time in the tank and sterilizing it, the heat efficiency can be significantly improved compared to the conventional method of filling the container and then heating to the sterilization temperature in the high-temperature and high-pressure tank, and at the same time controlling the temperature of the sterilization temperature In addition, the food container and the like can be efficiently heat-sterilized at low cost without causing whitening due to sterilization heating of the plastic container or deteriorating the container due to deterioration of the container.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of the inside of a high-pressure tank for implementing a method of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 High-temperature heating device 3 High-pressure tank 4 Filling device 5 Cooling tank 7 Transport device 8 Container supply device 9 Container removal device 10 Sealing device

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A plastic container such as a film bag is filled and sealed in a room temperature high-pressure tank that does not heat a sterilized material immediately after being heated to a temperature higher than the sterilizing temperature.
A method for sterilizing foods or the like, comprising maintaining a predetermined sterilization time in the non-heated normal-temperature high-pressure tank, performing required sterilization, cooling, and taking out from the high-pressure tank.