JPS6259348A - Method and device for quenching or freezing article - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field]

This invention relates to quenchers and freezers, and more particularly to quenchers for small items such as beverage cans, perishable foods, and the like.

[Conventional technology]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Bottled and canned beverage coolers and quenchers in which the bottled or canned beverage is cooled in a body of cooling liquid are not new per se. In fact, numerous U.S. patents relating to such beverage coolers or quenchers have been issued over the years, to name a few: U.S. Pat.
．． 418.300, 2.436.426, 2.546.417, 2.618.127, 2.812.643, and 4.377,076
There is a number. All the above-mentioned conventional devices related to beverage cooling are
With the exception of U.S. Pat. No. 2,811,843, water is utilized as the quenching fluid. Water, even "ice water," has a very rapid cooling action, i.e., properly quenches the beverage container within 3 minutes or less, or is deposited into it if desired (as in the case of non-beverage foods). It is not possible to quickly freeze frozen items. Often, the beverage is kept at a particularly desirable storage temperature, such as 392°F to 50"F, for an indeterminate period of time to ensure that the beverage is properly chilled and always ready for consumption. Because water is used as a quenching or cooling liquid, conventional quenching or cooling devices are designed for non-freezing applications, i.e., at temperatures that can cause water to freeze into ice. is 32°F
Its use has been severely limited to applications where the temperature is equal to or higher than . Even if the water is at or near 32'F, the cooling water must be agitated to prevent ice from forming. Once enough ice is created, the entire cooling process stops completely. Therefore, most refrigeration systems cool down the refrigeration system when ice forms.
Some type of instrument return device is used to restart the cooling cycle once the ice has melted. Salt water can be used to keep water from freezing at 32"F, but salt water solutions leave undesirable odors and residue on items being quenched and can chemically damage various metal parts used in cooling equipment. Strong (erosive) None of the conventional devices associated with beverage cooling have been adapted to quickly freeze items other than beverages. No non-volatile, chemically inert, quenching or cooling fluids at 25°C STP are used.For conventional techniques for freezing perishable items such as food, all devices are liquid, i.e. 25°C. Does not use substances that become liquid at STP. All conventional equipment for freezing perishable items such as food is a Freon compound with a boiling point of -21"P STP (R-12) -320°
liquid nitrogen with a boiling point of F STP, and -109″l'
Liquid or solid carbon dioxide with a boiling point of STP is used. None of the conventional techniques for freezing foods use liquids as defined above. All of them use chemicals that change phase from solid or liquid to gas at temperatures and pressures well below the desired operating temperature of +35°F to -50°F. ``While none of the prior art devices involved in the cooling of beverages has a means for removing quench liquid residue from the article to be chilled or quenched, the present invention provides time to remove fluid residue.
Modifications using vibration, air, cleaning cycles and/or vacuum are used. All conventional devices related to beverage cooling have been shown to be susceptible to 3-3-day contamination in the event of contamination of the beverage liquid, such as by leakage from the beverage container.
It does not use a quenching liquid that immediately converts the beverage to a solid at temperatures well below 2° F. and separates it from the quenching liquid, thereby essentially preventing contamination of the cooling liquid medium. None of the devices known in the art employ flow headers to force the quenching medium over and around the product from the wall of the insulating bath or container containing the cooling or quenching liquid. Simply put, any conventional quenching or freezing device has the disadvantage of a microwave oven's ability to apply heat to an item very quickly.
The opposite is true, where heat is removed very rapidly from the article, thereby quenching or freezing the article as desired.
It does not have the same effect as a microwave oven. Furthermore, recently, beverage immersion quenchers are mostly non-liquid immersion f!
! (quenched air) replaced by cooling, quenching and/or freezing equipment. Currently, immersion quenchers for freezing food require complex and costly recovery equipment, LN2
, 'CO2) must rely on consumable refrigerants such as R-12. However, such "non-liquid" type cooling devices are relatively inefficient in terms of energy consumption and cost compared to liquid immersion type devices. The heat transfer properties of quench air or any other "non-liquid" (as defined above) are incomparable to the heat transfer capabilities of a quench liquid. Quench liquid is 10 to 1000 times more efficient than any air quench medium. Perhaps the reason why the use of liquid immersion devices has fallen out of favor is that they do not attack metals, do not promote algae growth and bacteria, do not drip off the product, do not contaminate with water-soluble impurities (25”) ``This may be due to the unavailability of a suitable liquid coolant that evaporates during STP. The design of the present invention, along with the coolant proposed herein, does not suffer from these drawbacks that plagued conventional immersion-type quenching or freezing. However, the need for improved immersion-type quenchers that can also function as quick-freezers has increased rapidly in recent years as the cost of electrical energy has increased significantly. Even convenience stores that sell relatively small packaged foods use such air-fluid cooling equipment to rapidly cool or freeze beverages and food products, which can add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars each month. It is a prohibitive portion of a store owner's monthly overhead and expenses. This eliminates the need for large air storage systems (which have high set-up costs) or consumable refrigeration systems used to freeze foods, and replaces such costly equipment with the much more efficient liquid immersion quenching system. It will be appreciated that it is highly desirable and cost effective to reduce these costs by replacing the container or freezer. This is especially true when such equipment can quench or freeze products in minutes when needed and consumes little standby energy when not in use. One object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus for selectively quenching or freezing food and non-food items as desired. Another important primary objective of this invention is to provide a method for rapidly cooling and/or freezing articles without leaving undesirable residues on the articles being quenched or frozen. Another object of this invention is to provide a group of liquid fluorocarbon chemicals, 25°C STP, such as various compositions of alcohol and water ranging from 40% to 60% alcohol, brine-monoglycol, salt and water. To provide a method for rapidly quenching or freezing an article while using a chemically inert quenching liquid or freezing liquid. The purpose of this invention is to utilize a liquid medium for quenching or freezing that evaporates rapidly in the presence of ambient air (STP - defined as standard temperature and pressure) and leaves no undesirable residues. Another object of this invention is to use a quenching and freezing process that utilizes a cooling or freezing liquid that has substantially lower surface tension properties than water. While the features of novelty believed to be unique to the invention are particularly set forth in the claims, the construction and operation of the improved cooling and freezing device, as well as other features and advantages, are more specifically described below. will be best understood from a detailed description of an embodiment of the invention.

[Description of preferred embodiment]

Explaining FIG. 1, this invention is generally 100%
is a device for rapidly quenching and/or freezing articles, in particular beverage containers and food products 34. The device includes an insulating container 40 with an open top, an M41 covering the open top of the container 40, and a group of liquid fluorocarbon chemicals or alcohols containing 40% to 60% alcohol-water compounds or salts or glycol salts. A cooling liquid 38 having a relatively low surface tension such as an aqueous solution, a cooling system 101 including a condensing system 21, an evaporator assembly 16 and a thermoscut expansion valve 19a119b, and a liquid 38 to be cooled are passed through the coil of the evaporator to the product chamber. passages and pumping means 18 for circulation, a product chamber 12 for holding the articles to be quenched or frozen, a drain hole 36 for draining the fluid and an overflow drain 1 for handling overflows.
3, a flow ladder 17 for circulating a directed flow of coolant over the product, a bottom grille 23 for lifting the product from the drain liquid pool, and a vibration 8122 for removing unwanted excess residue. , a washing ladder 24 for the same purpose, a flow valve and switches 25a and 25b for monitoring and controlling the coolant level, and a temperature probe and controller 15a and 15b for controlling the condensation cycle.
It consists of discharge and cleaning solenoids 44a, 44b and an electrical switch 5 necessary to control the product cycle. The insulating container, shown generally at 40, is preferably formed in a rectangular configuration and has four side walls 39 and a bottom wall 42. The side walls 39 and the bottom wall 42 are formed of a thermally insulating material 29 having a relatively high value of R (heat loss resistance), such as synthetic plastic foam. The side wall 39, the bottom wall 42 (and M41 for the container 40 in the case described here)
) are known per se and therefore need not be described in detail. The jacket 30 surrounding the side walls 39, bottom wall 42, and lid 41 of the container 40 may be formed of stainless steel sheet material or other similarly durable, sturdy, self-supporting material that is a relatively poor conductor of heat. is typical. This self-supporting material protects the surrounding insulation 29. The combination of the insulating container 40 and the lid 41 is primarily used to contain a cooling liquid 38 which is used to rapidly cool or freeze a desired article. Of course, in practice the side wall 39 is joined to an adjacent cabinet 43 which houses the other parts of the invention. A hinge 2 is attached along one edge of the lid and is fixed to the upper part of the side wall 39 of the container 40. Handle 1 is
It is fixed along one edge of M41 that is not fixed to hinge 2. The handle 1 allows the hinged lid 41 to be opened and closed as desired, in order to place therein or remove articles to be quenched or frozen, as desired. The side wall of the product holding tray 12 is formed so that the inner dimension of the container 40 is nearly the same as that of the inner dimension of the container 40.
It has a total volume of 74 to 173. An overflow outlet 13 prevents liquid overflow and returns the liquid to the lower chamber. A plurality of openings 36 are provided in the bottom of the product tray 12 so that a non-residue-forming cooling fluid 38 can be pumped onto the tray by pump 18 or by gravity into direct contact with the articles to be quenched or frozen. After flowing, it is allowed to drip from the tray 12. When using coolants that produce residue,
A solenoid device, not described here, is used to separate the coolant returning from the wash cycle. Tray 12 is container 40
It is preferably formed from a material complementary to or the same as the material forming the outer jacket 30 of. In the preferred embodiment of the invention described herein, this material is stainless steel. A pump 18 and flow header 17 are operatively coupled to tray 12 to circulate a flow of liquid coolant 38 over the products disposed within tray 12 . The product immersion grill 20 is
It is attached to the lid 40 so that when the lid is closed, the product does not float but remains immersed in the flow of liquid coolant 38 flowing out of the flow header 17. The chamber is surmounted by a perforated bottom grille 23 which lifts the product above the bottom of the tray 12 and allows circulation of liquid 38 from the flow header 17 around the entire product 1.
The product remains lifted from the discharge pool so that the discharge hole 36 will not be closed off. Vibrator 22
is an optional means of vibrating excess coolant 38 from the product. Drain and wash solenoids 44a, 44b are designed to control the cycling of the wash header 24 and to prevent unwanted residue and wash cycle liquid (20) from contaminating the liquid 38 in the container 40. The relief orifice 37 is filled with cleaning cycle liquid (+120)
and undesirable residue, which is removed from the insulating liner 29.
This prevents the water in the washing cycle from freezing. A float valve 25a and a float switch 25b monitor and control the level of the coolant 38 to prevent the operating liquid from reaching critical levels without triggering a warning beep or shutting down the equipment. Do not fall below this rank. To ensure an airtight seal that prevents atmospheric moisture from being pumped into the equipment, the door lid seal 3 is located at the bottom of the lid 41 172 inches from the edge and 2 inches from the edge on all sides. arranged to create an air barrier between the inner and outer lid seals 3. Pump 18 and, if applicable, exhaust solenoid 44a
A magnetic lid switch 4 connected to the lid 41 is designed to stop the pump and/or activate the evacuation device when the lid 41 is lifted by more than 2 inches to prevent a person from coming into prolonged contact with the liquid coolant 38. I try not to be able to do that. Tray 1 with articles placed therein for rapid cooling or freezing
The duration of time that the coolant circulates through 2 is conventionally determined by using an electric timer 5. The output of the timer is coupled to control box assembly 20. Indicator light 7 is operatively connected to timer 5 in the usual manner, and pump 1
8 remains on or illuminated while circulating the coolant 38 within the tray 12. The output of timer 5 is sent from control box assembly 20 to circulation pump 18 and beat generator. In the lower compartment of the product chamber 12 an evaporator or cooling element 16 in the form of a series of coils is arranged. Liquid 38 to be cooled is pumped by liquid pump 18 into tray 12 via passages under the bottom wall of the chamber in container 40 . The liquid 38 is delivered to the opposite side of the tray 12 by the rudder 17 into a stream and evaporated by the outlet hole 36! ! 1
6. After the liquid 38 has passed therethrough, it is again pumped upwardly into the tray 12 by the pump 18. Refrigeration equipment is common and includes a coolant liquefaction system. This liquefier has an electric motor driving a compressor 21 via a conventional belt and pulley connection. The condenser also has a fan driven by a motor to drive the air above it. A pair of temperature sensing elements 15b, 19b is used to control the operation of the cooling system in the conventional manner. Temperature sensing hand 1i115b
is located at the bottom of the chamber within container 40 and is responsive to the temperature of liquid 38 therein, and is electrically connected to temperature controller 15.
a to control the motor of the compressor 4iJI21 of the cooling device. Once activated, the compressor 21 draws evaporated refrigerant from the evaporator 16 via the "low pressure"conduit;
The refrigerant vapor is compressed and then the vapor is pressurized and sent to the condenser m's via a conduit. Air driven by a fan is circulated over the condenser to condense the compressed refrigerant and allow it to flow into its receiver. The condensed coolant is conveyed from the receiver via a conduit to the "high pressure line". Once the temperature of the low pressure line reaches a certain value, the temperature sensing device fi 19b electrically actuates the coolant expansion valve 19a, so that the pressurized coolant is routed through the expansion valve 19a to the evaporator or to the cooling coil. 16, thus quenching the liquid 38 around it. FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the invention;
The same reference numerals are used for the same parts as shown in the figures. Double acting air cylinder means 17 are attached to the product tray 12 which holds the articles to be quenched or frozen. A shaft 13 of air cylinder means 17 is operatively coupled to product tray 12. Air compressor means 25 is air cylinder means 1
It becomes a source of compressed air to operate 7. electric solenoid 2
3 operatively controls the delivery of air to the air cylinder means 17, and an electrical switch 5 necessary for this control.
Contains. A double-acting air cylinder is operatively coupled to the tray 12, with the shaft 13 of the air cylinder means 17
It is connected to 2. Connections therebetween are typically made by a threaded end of the shaft and a nut (not shown). The air cylinder means 17 and its associated shaft 13 are powered by compressed air supplied from an air compressor 25. The compressed air output from the air compressor 25 is transferred to the air storage tank 2
2 directly. An air storage tank 22 is required to create a storage hyperbaric chamber with operating pressure as an air source. Without such a reservoir of pressure, there is typically not enough air to properly operate the pneumatic control system of which air cylinder 17 is a part. It should be noted here that the control device could equally be of the body pressure type. However, the use of hydraulic devices is not necessary, and the use of such devices would significantly increase the weight of the overall device. Air control to cylinder 17 is provided by an electrically controlled solenoid valve 23 with two positions. When air cylinder 17 is required to drive shaft 13 and product tray 12 to a position above the level of coolant 38, solenoid valve 23 is actuated to direct compressed air from air storage tank 22 to air cylinder 17. Send to one air pipe. At this time, compressed air drives shaft 13 upwards as desired by air cylinder 17. Solenoid valve 23
is actuated to send compressed air from the air storage tank 22 to the other pipe connected between the solenoid valve 23 and the air cylinder 17, the action of the air cylinder 17 and its associated shaft 13 is reversed; The tray 12 is lowered into the cooling liquid 38 and the articles to be quenched or frozen enter the cooling liquid 38. The action in which the air cylinder 17 is operated in both directions is called "double acting".
It is called. When the product tray 12 is lifted by the air cylinder 17, a small magnet 10 suitably mounted on the outer edge of the top of the rack 12 is brought into operative relationship with the magnetic switch 9, which switches the control box assembly. The assembly is electrically connected to body 20 and directed into operative electrical connection with solenoid valve 24 . The solenoid valve 24 temporarily opens and the air storage tank 2
The air blower supplies compressed air from 2 to the header assembly 11 via piping, such that the compressed air is supplied to the header assembly 11 via piping.
exiting from the opening 37 in which the previously mentioned air blow is brought into play. The length of time for cooling the tray 12 and the articles placed therein for quenching or freezing is determined by an electric timer 5 as usual.
determined by using The output of the timer is coupled to control box assembly 20. Indicator light 7 is operatively connected to timer 5 in the conventional manner and remains on or illuminated while tray 12 is immersed in cooling liquid 38. The output of timer 5 is sent from control box assembly 20 to air solenoid 23 which raises and lowers tray 12 out of or into coolant 38. If desired, an air vent can be provided in communication with the interior of the air container 40. This is the air release pipe 27
, an air relief one-way valve 28 and a condensate removal and pump assembly 26. Since the lid 41 of the container 40 creates a reasonably airtight condition, as the tray 12 moves up and down within the sealed chamber formed by the combination of the lid 41 and the container 40, a vacuum or higher air pressure is created in the chamber. . This air venting device is provided to prevent the fluid seal between lid 41 and container 40, as well as other fluid connections, from being disturbed or even damaged to the point of inoperability. When the air tries to leave the chamber, it escapes along the air relief pipe 27 while fl'2
8 and discharged to atmosphere or condensate removal and to piping operatively coupled to the pump at 26. , once it is at the reservoir and pump 26, it can be easily pumped therefrom. The refrigeration system is conventional and includes a refrigerant liquefaction system, which has an electric motor driving the compressor 21 via a conventional belt and pulley connection. The condenser has a fan driven by a motor to drive the air above it. A pair of temperature sensing elements 15b, 19b is used to control the operation of the cooling system in the conventional manner. Temperature sensing means 15b are arranged at the bottom of the chamber of the container 40, and the liquid 3 contained therein is
8, and is electrically connected to a temperature controller 15a.
and controls the motor of the compressor 21 of the cooling device. Once activated, the compressor 21 draws evaporated refrigerant from the evaporator 16 via a conduit called the "low pressure side", compresses this refrigerant vapor, and then compresses it under pressure via a conduit. Send to condenser. Air driven by a fan is circulated over the condenser to condense the compressed refrigerant and allow it to flow into its receiver. The condensed coolant is conveyed from the receiver to the "high pressure line" by conduits. Once the temperature of the low-pressure pipe reaches a certain preset ti value, the temperature sensing device 19b pneumatically actuates the coolant expansion valve 19a, and the pressurized coolant is thus transferred to the expansion valve 1.
9a to the evaporator or cooling coil 16, thus quenching the liquid 38 around it. One of the many unique characteristics of this invention described above is that
The quenching device uses a coolant that is cooled to a temperature substantially below the freezing point of water, ie, +32°F or 0°C. No cooling liquid was required to significantly reduce or eliminate residue buildup on the article or product to be quenched or frozen. The liquid is a family of liquid fluorocarbons, some of which are named Freon, a trade name for a family of fluorocarbons manufactured by the DuPont Company. It is typically used in industry as a vapor degreaser. Another such liquid is a mixture of alcohol and water, ranging from 40% alcohol to 90% alcohol, depending on the application. Particularly useful as the coolant of choice is Freon 113.
A group of liquid fluorocarbon chemicals, such as
) and freeze at -34° (136,68°C). Furthermore, it is non-toxic to humans, and when evaporated, it crawls close to the ground due to its high density and is non-flammable. Its reactivity towards metals is compatible with the desired operating environment typically found in cooling equipment such as aluminum, copper, etc. Furthermore, it is virtually colorless and tasteless. The most desirable temperature for coolant 38 is between -30°F and -50°F.
It was found to be in the °F range. When a liquid fluorocarbon such as Freon 113 is at 30°F, a 6-pack of standard carbonated soda, such as root beer or cola, can be crushed 1W into the coolant fluorocarbon for 1 minute and 2 minutes.
At 0 seconds, it is completely quenched and begins to freeze. If it is desired to further reduce the freezing temperature of a liquid fluorocarbon, such as Freon, a mixture of various liquid fluorocarbon products can be used to achieve even lower temperatures.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a vertical side view, partially in section, of a first embodiment of the invention, showing the inside of an insulated cabinet in which the articles to be quenched or frozen are placed, and which cools the liquid and quenches or freezes the liquid; 1 schematically depicts the various elements necessary for placing the articles to be frozen therein; FIG. 2 is a diagram similar to FIG. 1 showing a second embodiment of the invention.

[Explanation of main symbols]

12 Product holding tray, 16... Evaporator, 21... Compressor, 38 Liquid to be cooled, 40 Insulating container, 41
container lid. FIG. 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) In a method of rapidly cooling or freezing an article in a container using a quenching liquid, the liquid having a freezing point substantially lower than 32°F (0°C) is ), sensing the temperature of the pool of quench liquid and periodically cooling said pool by indirect contact with a cooling fluid. maintaining the pool at said temperature, placing the articles to be cooled in said container above the surface of said pool, and bringing said articles into direct contact with said quench liquid for a selected period of time; terminating direct contact of the article in the container and removing the article from above the surface of the pool. 2) In the method according to claim 1), the article to be quenched or frozen is always kept at a height above the surface of the pool of liquid, and the liquid is pumped from the pool. and allowing it to overflow onto the article and return to the pool by gravity. 3) A method according to claim 2) in which the article is rinsed with water to remove any residue of the quenching liquid and the water does not mix with the quenching liquid. 4) A method according to claims 1), 2) or 3), comprising the step of vibrating the article to remove liquid residue. 5) In the method as claimed in claim 1), the article to be quenched or frozen is lowered and immersed into said pool of liquid for said selected period of time, and then lowered from the surface of said pool of liquid. How to lift upwards. 6) In the method according to claim 5), after lifting the article above the surface of the pool of liquid, the article is flushed with a stream of gas so that residues of the quenching liquid remain. , how to remove this residue from it. 7) The method according to any one of claims 1) to 6), wherein the quenching liquid is a liquid fluorocarbon chemical. 8) An apparatus for quenching or freezing articles in a container using a quenching liquid, which has an insulating container for receiving the article to be quenched or frozen, and a low liquid level in the container, which is inert. a pool of cooling liquid having a freezing point substantially below 32°F (0°C); a means for maintaining the pool of liquid at a selected temperature substantially below 32°F (0°C); and quenching or freezing. a tray for holding the articles to be quenched or cooled at a height above the surface of the liquid in said pool; means for effecting direct contact between said liquid and the articles to be quenched or cooled; and means for controlling the duration of contact. 9) The device according to claim 8), wherein the means for bringing about direct contact comprises an overflow chamber at a certain height above the pool and a pump for removing liquid from the pool. and a header for discharging liquid from the pump into the overflow chamber to overflow the article. 10) The device according to claim 9, in which the discharged liquid is discharged from the overflow chamber by gravity and returned to the pool. 11) In the device according to claim 9) or 10), the means for controlling the duration of the direct contact comprises:
A device comprising a timer operatively connected to control said pump. 12) The apparatus according to claim 9), 10) or 11), comprising means for removing liquid residue from the article, the removing means comprising a washing water header disposed above the article. a conduit for supplying pressurized cleaning water to the header; and a drain at the bottom of the overflow chamber below the article and above the surface of the pool of liquid. 13) In the device according to claim 12), the option is provided in the drain pipe to return the discharged cooling liquid to the pool and discharge used cleaning water to the outside of the pool. device with a valve that can be operated automatically. 14) An apparatus according to claims 12) or 13), comprising a vibrator for vibrating the article in order to remove liquid residues therefrom. 15) The apparatus according to claim 8), wherein the means for bringing about direct contact is connected to the tray and causes the tray and the articles thereon to be exposed to the liquid in the pool. Apparatus having a lift for lowering the article from said height above the surface to a lower height at which said article is submerged in the pool. 16) The apparatus of claim 15), wherein the means for controlling the duration of said direct contact comprises a timer operatively connected to control said elevator. 17) The apparatus according to claim 15) or 16), comprising means for removing liquid residue from the article;
The means includes an air jet located above the article.
A device consisting of a header and a conduit supplying pressurized air to the header. 18) The device according to any one of claims 8) to 17), wherein the cooling liquid is non-toxic, has a low surface tension, and has a high specific gravity. 19) The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the cooling liquid is a liquid fluorocarbon chemical. 20) The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the cooling liquid is Freon-113.