JP3874704B2 - Fluid heat exchange system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a heat exchange system for heating or cooling a fluid, and more particularly to continuously heat treating (heating or cooling) a fluid by passing it through a heat exchanger. It relates to a suitable heat exchange system.
[0002]
[Prior art]
For continuous heat treatment of fluids, tube heat exchangers, plate heat exchangers, etc. are used. In heat exchange systems incorporating this type of heat exchanger, rotary pumps, A pump source such as a mono-screw pump is considered an essential element, and it is common to feed fluid into the heat exchanger by this pump source.
[0003]
In particular, foods and medicines require strict heat treatment time management. As a means for this, the pump source is controlled, thereby reducing the time required for the fluid to pass through the heat exchanger. To keep it constant.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, when a rotary pump or the like is incorporated in the heat exchange system, for example, if a solid-liquid mixture containing solids and liquids is to be heat-treated, the rotary pump will cause “collapse” in which some of the solids are lost. End up. Such a problem of “disintegration” of solids cannot be overlooked because, for example, in the food industry, it is a problem related to product quality. Due to such problems, the application range is limited in the conventional heat exchange system.
[0005]
It is another object of the present invention to provide a heat exchange system that does not require a transfer power pump such as a rotary pump as in the prior art in order to send the fluid to the heat exchange system.
[0006]
A further object of the present invention is to provide a heat exchange system that can be suitably applied to a system provided with a quantitative discharger that fills a retail container with a heat-treated fluid downstream from the heat exchange system. It is in.
[0007]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a heat exchange system suitable for heating or cooling foods in which the “collapse” of the solid contained in the solid-liquid mixture has a great influence on the quality of the product.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve this technical problem, according to the present invention,
A tank for receiving a supply of pressurized gas and being held at a predetermined pressure and containing a fluid;
A heat exchanger in communication with the tank and for heating or cooling the fluid supplied from the tank;
A flow rate meter comprising a metering discharger including a filling nozzle that communicates with the heat exchanger and discharges a predetermined amount of the fluid heated or cooled by the heat exchanger at a predetermined time interval. A body heat exchange system is provided.
[0009]
According to the present invention, the fluid in the tank is supplied to the heat exchanger by the tank internal pressure, and the fluid heated or cooled by the heat exchanger is given a predetermined amount at a predetermined time interval by the quantitative discharger. Is discharged, the time required for the fluid to pass through the heat exchanger is strictly controlled by the metered discharger. Therefore, unlike the prior art, the pump for feeding the fluid to the heat exchanger and its control are not required.
[0010]
Therefore, the heat exchange system according to the present invention not only heats or cools a liquid or paste-like fluid, but even if a solid-liquid mixture is processed, a conventional pump source such as a rotary pump is used. Since the problem of “collapse” of the solid material does not occur, the solid-liquid mixture can be suitably heated or cooled by the heat exchange system of the present invention.
[0011]
The above and other problems of the present invention and the effects thereof will become apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the present invention.
[0012]
【Example】
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0013]
First embodiment (FIG. 1 )
FIG. 1 shows a heat exchange system 1 of the first embodiment. The system 1 has a pressurized tank 2 connected to an air source, and the pressure in the pressurized tank 2 is adjusted by a regulator 3. The heat exchange system 1 also has a double-tube type tube heat exchanger 6 (pipe inner diameter: 23 mm, pipe length: 1600 cm, material) connected to the pressurized tank 2 through a pipe 5 provided with a valve 4. Stainless steel, using hot water as the heat medium), and a quantitative discharger 8 connected to the downstream end of the tube heat exchanger 6 via a pipe 7. The metering discharger 8 includes an inlet valve 9, a metering piston 10 provided on the downstream side of the inlet valve 9, and a filling nozzle 11 provided on the downstream side of the metering piston 10, and is discharged from the filling nozzle 11. The fluid is stored in a retail container (eg, pouch) 12.
[0014]
The operation of the quantitative discharger 8 is as follows. When the fluid that has been heat-treated (heated or cooled) by the heat exchanger 6 reaches the metering discharger 8, first, the inlet valve 9 is opened and the fluid is drawn into the metering piston 10. After metering with the metering piston 10, the inlet valve 9 is closed, and then the fluid is pushed out from the metering piston 10 to the filling nozzle 11. With the above operation, the quantitative discharger 8 quantitatively discharges the heat-treated fluid. The inlet valve 9, the metering piston 10, and the filling nozzle 11 are controlled so as to operate at a predetermined cycle, for example, 20 to 40 times / minute, by a signal from an external control device.
[0015]
Then, as described above, by controlling the fixed amount discharger 8 and operating the fixed amount discharger 8 in a constant cycle, the passage time of the solid-liquid mixture passing through the tube heat exchanger 6, that is, the heat treatment time is strictly controlled. can do. In addition, in the heat exchange system 1 of an Example, although the tube-type heat exchanger 6 was used, it may replace with this and may make it incorporate a plate-type heat exchanger.
[0016]
According to the system 1 having a relatively simple configuration without providing a pump source and controlling the pump source as in the prior art, the liquid or pasty fluid can be heated or cooled as in the prior art. Can do. In order to manage the heat treatment time of such a fluid, the flow rate distribution is taken into consideration, for example, based on the velocity of the fluid passing through the central portion in the cross section of the tube heat exchanger 6, Various parameters may be set so that the passing time becomes a predetermined value.
[0017]
In addition, since the system 1 of the embodiment does not have a pump source as described above, even if the solid-liquid mixture containing the solid and the liquid is heat-treated, the problem of the “collapse” of the solid by the pump can be solved. It does not occur. Therefore, the system 1 of the embodiment can be used for heat treatment even for a solid-liquid mixture that is considered difficult with the conventional system, particularly a solid-liquid mixture with a large solid content. In addition, when heat-treating a solid-liquid mixture, a tube type heat exchanger is generally preferable to a plate type heat exchanger.
[0018]
Here, the most preferable processing method is demonstrated in detail below regarding the heat processing of the continuous solid-liquid mixture using the system 1 of an Example.
[0019]
A solid-liquid mixture in which a solid and a liquid are mixed has a flow characteristic close to that of a liquid when the density of the solid is small, but conversely, when the density of the solid is large, the gap between adjacent solids is increased. The liquid is easy to slip through. When such a “slip-through” phenomenon of the liquid occurs, there is a difference between the time required for the liquid to pass through the heat transfer tube and the time required for the solid material to pass through the heat transfer tube. It becomes impossible to perform uniform heat treatment. However, if this “slip-through” phenomenon of the liquid can be suppressed, the solid substance and the surrounding liquid can be moved together.
[0020]
From the above viewpoints, (1) the solid-liquid mixture is pumped by gas pressure and passed through the heat exchanger; (2) the solid is adjusted to a dense state; and (3) the viscosity of the liquid is adjusted. It is preferable to combine the elements, so that the solid-liquid mixture is heated uniformly without causing a flow velocity distribution substantially inside the tube heat exchanger 6 and suppressing the above-mentioned “slip-through” phenomenon of the liquid. Or it can be cooled.
[0021]
For such processing, the relationship between the density of solids and the viscosity of the liquid correlates with the flow rate that passes through the heat exchanger, etc., and it is difficult to uniformly define numerical values. The liquid viscosity may be relatively small if it is fast enough. Conversely, if the flow rate is relatively slow, it is desirable to make the viscosity of the liquid relatively large. What is necessary is just to adjust the viscosity of a liquid using starch, a thickener, etc. The solid material only needs to have a size capable of passing through the tube heat exchanger 6.
[0022]
The inner diameter of the heat transfer tube constituting the tube heat exchanger 6 is generally preferably 10 mm to 25 mm, and the pipe length of the heat transfer tube is the solid-liquid mixture transfer speed (passes through the heat transfer tube). The speed of the solid-liquid mixture) and the heat treatment conditions may be taken into consideration.
[0023]
Examples of solid-liquid mixture foods include corn soup with corn grains, miscellaneous food containing rice grains, or tapioca, beverages containing small solids such as white ball dumplings, etc. For example, meat such as beef, pork and chicken, seafood such as fish and shellfish, vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, pumpkins, peppers and onions, grains such as corn, beans such as soybeans and peas And the like.
[0024]
Examples of the thickener include heat-resistant thickening polysaccharides or modified starches such as gellan gum, xanthan gum and sodium alginate. In order to suppress the above “slip-through” phenomenon of the liquid, the viscosity of the liquid is preferably 700 mPa · s to 4000 mPa · s, more preferably 900 mPa · s to 3000 mPa · s, most preferably, according to experiments. The viscous liquid is preferably 1100 mPa · s to 2000 mPa · s. In order to obtain such a viscosity, for example, the content of the thickener relative to the solid-liquid mixture necessary for adjusting the viscosity of a liquid such as water varies depending on the type of the thickener, but is 0.1 weight. % To 2.0% by weight.
[0025]
What is necessary is just to adjust the content rate of a solid substance in the dense state of the solid substance in a solid-liquid mixture. That is, the solid-liquid mixture contains 30% by weight or more of solids, more preferably 35% to 80% by weight, still more preferably 40% to 70% by weight, and most preferably 45% to 65% by weight. It is preferable to mix solid and liquid materials.
[0026]
As described above, by adjusting the solid-liquid mixture, the solid-liquid mixture moves downstream in the tube heat exchanger 6 while maintaining the relative positional relationship between the solids and the liquid. Move towards. That is, the solid-liquid mixture can be uniformly heat-treated by the tube heat exchanger 6 while suppressing the occurrence of the flow velocity distribution and suppressing the “slip-through” phenomenon of the liquid.
[0027]
Specifically, using the system 1 of the first embodiment, as a green pea 50 parts by weight (whole grain, average particle size 7 mm), 49.5 parts by weight water, and 0.5 parts by weight thickener. The mixture (hereinafter simply referred to as a mixture) with a viscous liquid (about 1100 mPa · s (measured at Toki Sangyo Co., Ltd. B-type viscometer, rotor No. 3, product temperature 25 ° C.)) in which xanthan gum was dissolved was heat-treated. .
[0028]
The mixture prepared as described above was charged into the tank pressurized tank 2 and mixed. Next, after the pressure inside the pressurized tank 2 is adjusted to 0.3 MPa by the air regulator 3, the valve 4 is opened, and the mixture in the tank 2 is passed through the pipe 5 to the double-tube type tube heat exchanger 6. Heat treatment was carried out by pumping, and the mixture after the heat treatment was filled into a retail pouch via a quantitative discharger 8. The product temperature of the above mixture passing through the heat exchanger 6 was 90 ° C., and the time required for passing through the heat exchanger 6 was 13.3 minutes (the average flow rate during this period was 500 g / min).
[0029]
Under the above conditions, the mixture was continuously heat sterilized, and the product contained in the retail pouch 12 was confirmed. As a result, the green peas were not discolored, had no overheating odor, and had collapsed. I didn't see any green peas.
[0030]
As described above, by connecting the quantitative discharger 8 to the tube heat exchanger 6 and opening the fixed discharger 8 for a certain period of time in a predetermined cycle, the mixture fed to the tube heat exchanger 6 is The inside of the heat exchanger 6 is moved intermittently.
[0031]
FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining this state. In the figure, regions A, B, C... Partitioned by wavy lines extending in the vertical direction indicate a solid-liquid mixture accommodated in the retail container 12 by one operation of the metering discharger 8. As can be understood from the figure, in the above mixture, the generation of flow velocity distribution in the tube heat exchanger 6 of the system 1 is suppressed, and the solid-liquid mixture in the region A pushes out the solid-liquid mixture in the downstream region B. Thus, it moves intermittently like frame advance. In other words, in the tube heat exchanger 6, the solid-liquid mixture moves toward the downstream side while maintaining the relative positional relationship between the solids S and the liquid L, and the quantitative discharger By controlling 8, it becomes possible to strictly control the heating or cooling of the solid-liquid mixture through the tube heat exchanger 6.
[0032]
Second embodiment (FIG. 3)
FIG. 3 shows the heat exchange system 20 of the second embodiment. The system 20 of the second embodiment has a configuration in which another line (second line 24) is added to the system 1 of the first embodiment described above. Here, the same reference numerals are given to the same elements as those included in the system 1 of the first embodiment described above, and the description thereof is omitted as appropriate.
[0033]
That is, the heat exchange system 20 of the second embodiment includes the system 1 of the first embodiment described above as a main line. Here, a storage tank 23 connected via valves 21 and 22 is added to the system 1 of the first embodiment. Similarly, the storage tank 23 may be added to the system 1 (FIG. 1) of the first embodiment described above.
[0034]
In the system 20 of the second embodiment, a second line 24 is added to the first line (system of the first embodiment) 1. The second line 24 includes a mixing tank 25 for storing soup and the mixing tank. 25 and a pipe 27 connected via a valve 26.
[0035]
The pipe 27 is provided with a rotary pump 28, a tube heat exchanger 29, a homogenizer 31 interposed in a pipe 30 connected to the downstream end of the heat exchanger 29, and a downstream side of the homogenizer 31. The second storage tank 38 is connected to the pipe 30 via a valve 39. The downstream end of the pipe 30 is connected to the common filling nozzle 11, whereby the first line 1 and the second line 24 are joined by the common filling nozzle 11.
[0036]
The fixed amount discharger 8 has a valve 13 provided on the downstream side of the measuring piston 10 in addition to the configuration described in the first embodiment, and an inlet valve 40 is provided in the pipe 30 of the second line. And a second measuring piston 41 provided on the downstream side of the inlet valve 40 and a valve 42 provided on the downstream side of the measuring piston 41.
[0037]
In the system 20 of the second embodiment, the solid-liquid mixture measured by the first metering piston 10 of the first line 1 and the liquid component measured by the second metering piston 41 of the second line 24 are mixed and shared. A retail container (for example, pouch) 12 is filled through a filling nozzle 11.
[0038]
Regarding the operation of the system 20 of the second embodiment, a soup with green peas will be described as an example. In the first line 1, as described above in the first embodiment, the viscosity of the viscous liquid containing the green peas is adjusted, and the green peas that are solids are also adjusted to have a high density and are stored in the tank 2. Is done.
[0039]
The mixing tank 25 of the second line 24 stores the soup material of green pea soup that is a product, and the soup material is mixed in the mixing and stirring tank 25 to prepare soup. Next, the valve 26 is opened and the rotary pump 28 is operated so that the soup in the mixing tank 25 is transferred to the tube heat exchanger 29 via the pipe 27 and passed through the tube heat exchanger 29. The soup was heat sterilized.
[0040]
The flow rate of soup passing through the tube heat exchanger 29 is 4500 g / min. Next, the sterilized soup is sent to the homogenizer 31 via the pipe 30, and homogenized by the homogenizer 31. Subsequently, the homogenized soup is transferred to the metering discharger 8.
[0041]
In the metering discharger 8, first, the inlet valve 9 is opened, and the green pea and the viscous liquid are drawn into the first metering piston 10. After metering with the metering piston 10, the inlet valve 9 is closed, the valve 13 is opened, and the green pea and the viscous liquid are supplied from the first metering piston 10 to the common filling nozzle 11.
[0042]
On the other hand, the soup in the second line 24 is sent to the common filling nozzle 11 by opening the inlet valve 40 and drawing it into the second metering piston 41, and then closing the inlet valve 40 and opening the valve 42. The inlet valves 9 and 40 and the valves 13 and 42 are opened and closed at 25 times / minute according to signals from external control devices. In this common filling nozzle 11, the ingredients supplied from the first line 1 and the second line 24 are mixed to contain green peas having a ratio of 10 parts by weight of green peas, 10 parts by weight of viscous liquid and 180 parts by weight of soup. The pouch 12 is filled with 200 parts by weight of soup.
[0043]
During the operation of the system 20 of the second embodiment, if for some reason an operation failure occurs in peripheral devices such as the common filling nozzle 11 and a filling seal device (not shown), the first tube heat exchanger 6 performs heat sterilization treatment. The solid-liquid mixture thus obtained is stored in the first storage tank 23, and the soup that has been heat sterilized by the second tube heat exchanger 29 is stored in the second storage tank 38.
[0044]
The above operation is continued until the operation failure of the common filling nozzle 11 or the like is eliminated. During this time, in the pipe 7 (first line 1), switching between the green pea and viscous liquid pumping from the tube heat exchanger 6 side and the reverse transfer from the metering discharger 8 side is performed. This switching is performed by opening and closing the valve 22 and the valve 21. In this embodiment, the switching frequency is 25 times / minute, which is the same as the opening / closing frequency of the inlet valve 9. Thus, by providing the storage tank, the pressurized tank 2 can intermittently pump the green peas and the viscous liquid to the tube heat exchanger 6. Therefore, even if an operation failure occurs in a peripheral device such as a filling nozzle or a filling seal device (not shown), the green pea and the viscous liquid can be collected in the storage tank, and thus overheating is avoided. On the other hand, for the soup, while the filling nozzle 11 or the like has stopped discharging the fluid due to a malfunction or the like, the inlet valve 40 of the quantitative discharger 8 is closed and the valve 39 is opened to complete the heat treatment. The soup is stored in the second storage tank 38.
[0045]
As will be understood from the above description, if the person skilled in the art understands that the viscosity of the solid-liquid mixture heated or cooled using the first line 1 or the density of the solid is not suitable as a product, the second after the heat treatment, By mixing the liquid component heat-treated in the line 24, the viscosity of the solid-liquid mixture of the product can be lowered, and the density of the solid can be lowered to obtain a product having a desired viscosity and density.
[0046]
As the heat exchanger 29 in the second line 24, a plate heat exchanger or any other heat exchanger may be used, and instead of the pump 28, the tank 25 is used instead of the first line 1. In addition, a tank connected to an air source and regulated in pressure by a regulator may be used. In addition, although one second line 24 is added to the first line 1, one or more lines similar to the second line 24 may be further added.
[0047]
In addition, the said 1st line 1 and the 2nd line 24 can process a respectively different fluid, and are especially the liquids (for example, the viscous liquid which gave viscosity by kaku, potato starch etc.) which is easy to receive a viscosity change. ), Fluid containing a heat-sensitive component (for example, a seasoning liquid containing flavor), or a fluid that easily causes emulsification (sauce containing oil or fat, soup, etc.), etc. It is suitable for heat exchange treatment of two or more desired fluids. Moreover, since a fluid is mixed with a common filling nozzle, each fluid is easy to be mixed uniformly.
[0048]
Among these, the case of processing a liquid that easily causes emulsification will be described more specifically. Sauce or soup containing fats and oils such as tomato sauce is heat-exchanged in the first line 1, and heat such as flavors is separately provided. The liquid containing weak components is heat-exchanged in the second line 24, mixed with the filling nozzle 11 and sealed in a retail container, so that liquids such as soups and sauces containing the fats and oils pass through the pump. The heat exchange treatment can be performed without causing the emulsification caused by passing through the pump to be suppressed, so that a well-colored sauce and soup can be obtained, while the deterioration of the flavor component contained in another liquid is suppressed. Therefore, liquid foods such as soup or sauce with good color and fragrance can be obtained.
[0049]
Moreover, the said system can heat-process a solid-liquid mixture as a fluid in both the 1st line 1 and the 2nd line 24. In this case, the second line 24 may be changed to a configuration substantially the same as that of the first line 1 by omitting the pump 28 from the second line 24. For example, in the case of applying to the production of a jelly containing pulp, which is a hole of grape, lychee or the like or a mixture of pulp and jelly cut into an appropriate size, the solid-liquid mixture containing the pulp and viscous liquid is used as the first. Heat exchange processing is performed in line 1, and the solid-liquid mixture obtained by mixing the jelly and the viscous liquid is subjected to heat exchange processing in the second line 24. As a result, it is possible to select a line with a pipe diameter corresponding to the size of the solid material and perform a heat exchange process suitable for each solid material, and the pulp does not collapse, and the amount of pulp and jelly is measured. Retail containers can be filled with high accuracy.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a heat exchange system according to a first embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a flow form of a solid-liquid mixture when a preferred method of applying the system of the first embodiment to heating or cooling of the solid-liquid mixture is adopted.
FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a heat exchange system according to a second embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Heat exchange system of the first embodiment (first line)
2 Pressurized tank 3 Regulator 6, 29 Tube heat exchanger 8 Fixed discharger 20 Heat exchange system 24 of the second embodiment 24 Second line 25 Mixing tank 28 Rotary pump 23, 38 Storage tank S Solid matter L Liquid

Claims (5)

A tank for receiving a supply of pressurized gas and being held at a predetermined pressure and containing a fluid;
A heat exchanger in communication with the tank and for heating or cooling the fluid supplied from the tank;
Communicates with the heat exchanger, possess a quantitative ejector comprising a filling nozzle to discharge a predetermined amount of the fluid which is heated or cooled in heat exchanger at predetermined time intervals,
The fluid in the tank is supplied to the heat exchanger by the internal pressure of the tank, and the fluid heated or cooled by the heat exchanger is discharged by a predetermined amount at a predetermined time interval by the metering discharger. A fluid heat exchange system characterized in that the time for passing through the heat exchanger is controlled .  The heat exchange system according to claim 1, further comprising a storage tank for storing the fluid after being heated or cooled by the heat exchanger when the quantitative discharger stops discharging.  The heat exchange system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the heat exchanger is a tube heat exchanger. It is added to the heat exchange system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, and includes at least one second line joined by the filling nozzle,
The second line is
A tank containing a second fluid;
A second heat exchanger in communication with the tank and for heating or cooling the second fluid supplied from the tank;
A fluid heat exchange system, characterized in that the fluid heat exchange system includes a fixed amount discharger that is in communication with the second heat exchanger and includes the filling nozzle as a common filling nozzle.  5. The heat exchange system according to claim 4, wherein the second line further includes a pump provided between a tank containing the second fluid and the second heat exchanger.

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