KR102428661B1 - Appratus and method for downward type steam appliance and manufacturing apparatus for grain syrup having the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a steamer that enables efficient use of steam while reducing the generation of water vapor in a facility and improving the convenience of a process, wherein a chamber unit accommodating a material therein is supplied with steam from an upper portion and flows to a lower portion It provides a top-down steamer that steams the material in the process and discharges the steam and condensed water that have been steamed downward together.

Description

Top-down steamer, saccharification equipment including the same, and steaming method

The present invention relates to an apparatus for cooking ingredients or blanching food using steam, and more particularly, to a steamer that enables efficient use of steam while reducing the generation of water vapor in equipment and improving the convenience of the process will be.

In general, a steamer, also called a steamer, is used for cooking or blanching various types of food or raw materials, and in recent years, it is also used for sterilizing food.

Traditionally, these steamers were often used in mills or factories for making rice cakes. Conventionally, rice cake soup is made of earthenware, wood, bamboo, stainless steel, etc., and stacked in a multi-stage type on a steam pot, and hot steam is passed through the steam to steam the rice cake.

In recent years, various steam generators for steaming rice cakes have been developed to meet the demand for mass production, but the traditional method and the principle of steam application are the same. Development tasks for the steamer have been focused on how to produce a large amount of rice cakes in a short time and how to save energy.

In the case of a rice cake maker or steamer for steamed bread, food is placed on a tray, which is a predetermined rice cake soup or a kind of tray, and steam is naturally supplied upward from the internal space where steam is generated and heat is absorbed in this process. Since this is excessively used and released into the atmosphere, there is a problem of excessive consumption of energy. This acts as a weakness in the manufacturing process that requires mass production.

Korean Utility Model Publication No. 2000-0002732 proposes a chamber-type steamer of the prior art, and FIG. 1 is a front sectional view thereof.

Specifically, a steaming room 2, a soybean juice supply pipe 5 for supplying soybean juice to the steaming room 2, a steam pipe 4 having a plurality of steam holes 41, and the steam pipe ( It is composed of a boiler (3) that supplies steam (S) to 4). At this time, the steam room 2 has a lid 22 coupled to the upper open surface of the main body 21 taking the shape of a circular container having a depth to seal the inside. The steam heated in the predetermined device moves to the steam pipe 4 through the steam supply hole, is ejected into the steaming chamber 2 through the steam hole 41, and the soybean juice supplied through the soybean juice supply pipe 5 is steamed into soft tofu. function to do

Such a steam chamber type steamer is still being used in a similar form due to the convenience and economic feasibility of manufacturing.

However, even in this form, not only is the steam supplied excessively, but also the food is not cooked evenly or contains excessive moisture due to the generation of water vapor and the condensation of water in the upper portion.

In addition, there is always a problem with respect to the processing of the remaining material and condensed water after steaming, and contamination.

The present invention has been devised to solve the problems of the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a steamer capable of mass production while ensuring a function of steaming while being able to drastically reduce the amount of steam applied.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to suppress the generation of water vapor in the furnace to which steam is applied, and to overcome the limitations of the conventional steamer that inhibits the uniformity of quality, such as excessive moisture content in food due to condensed water. There is a purpose.

As a means for solving the above-described technical problem, the present invention provides a chamber for accommodating a material therein, a supply port provided on the upper side of the chamber so that steam supplied through a steam supply line flows in, and a steaming process through the material. It provides a top-down steamer comprising a discharge port provided at the lower side of the chamber so that the completed steam and the water condensed as the steam moves downward are discharged together.

The chamber unit includes a supply region (a) in which the pressure and temperature of the steam supplied to the supply port are maintained to provide a controlled supply pressure P0 to the material downward according to the softness of the food, and gravity and steam to the material. The internal space is divided into a steaming region (b, c), in which steam moves downward along the air gap as pressure is applied, and a drain region (d), in which condensed water is collected adjacent to the bottom of the chamber and discharged by being guided by the steam to the outlet. When steam is supplied from the top in a state in which the material is biased to the bottom by its own weight in chronological order, the steam moves to the lower layer of the steaming area, and the condensed water that penetrates into the material during the initial condensation time and exchanges heat exchanges with the steam discharge line When the condensed water is discharged and the discharge of steam is started when the heating proceeds to the lower layer of the steaming area, steaming can be performed by locking the steam discharge line after a set time.

In addition, the upper side of the chamber part may further include a cover part hinged to open and close the inner space and to which the steam supply line is connected.

Preferably, the cover part includes a pressure measuring part and a valve part.

In addition, it may further include a lower plate portion hinged to the lower side of the chamber portion so as to open and close the inner space and to which the steam discharge line is connected.

It is provided on the outlet side of the chamber part and may further include a sieving part for preventing the passage of materials while passing steam and condensed water.

On the other hand, in the present invention, the agitator unit extending from the upper side of the chamber unit to the lower side and receiving power from the driving unit to rotate the impeller arranged in the circumferential direction, the water body supply line connected to the upper side of the chamber unit, and the hot water supply line. Provided is a saccharification facility including a jacket part for allowing supplied hot water to circulate along an outer wall of the chamber part, and a saccharification solution discharge line connected to the bottom of the chamber part so that the saccharification solution is discharged.

In addition, the present invention includes the steps of accommodating a material in the chamber part and sealing the inside, supplying steam into the chamber part through a steam supply line, and the material and steam in the chamber part are condensed while heat-exchanging. Provided is a steaming method comprising the steps of discharging water to the steam discharge line, and closing the steam discharge line and steaming the material after the initial condensation time has elapsed and steam starts to be discharged to the steam discharge line.

According to the present invention described above, the efficiency of energy use is maximized because it can be used for the steaming of materials against the direction of gravity while supplying steam from the upper part and maintaining the pressure and temperature. There is an effect that the amount of steam used can be drastically reduced.

In addition, since the condensed water can be moved along the flow direction of the steam, the rice does not become tough and homogeneous steaming is possible in the upper and lower layers, and steam and condensate can be discharged without using a separate drain equipment.

In addition, since the cooking itself is made in the internal space and the washing, heating, pressurizing, and maintaining processes can all be performed inside the chamber, the process is not only simple, but also the configuration of the upper duct for discharging water vapor without using a tray is required. It is economical and has the effect of improving maintainability.

In addition, due to the application of the chamber method, the cooking and saccharification process is possible in a large capacity, so the productivity is dramatically improved, and the efficiency of heat transfer is improved by securing an effective flow path for generation and overheating of steam in a minimum space. It has the effect of saving energy and improving economic efficiency.

1 is a front cross-sectional view of a chamber-type steamer of the prior art.
2 is a configuration diagram of a top-down steamer according to the concept of the present invention.
3 is a side cross-sectional view of a top-down steamer according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a saccharification facility including a top-down steamer according to an additional embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a top-down steamer, a saccharification facility including the same, and a steaming method including the same according to the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

However, the embodiments described below are merely for explaining in detail enough that a person of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains can easily implement the invention, which limits the protection scope of the present invention. doesn't mean

In the following description, when a part is 'connected' to another part, it includes not only a case in which it is directly connected, but also a case in which another part or device is interposed therebetween. In addition, when a part 'includes' a certain component, this means that other components may be further included, rather than excluding other components, unless otherwise stated.

The present invention basically provides a top-down steamer that allows the material to be steamed in the process of receiving steam from the upper part of the chamber for accommodating the material and flowing to the lower part, and to discharge the steam and condensed water to the lower side.

In the present invention, rice, rice flour, or grains are basically described as examples of materials for cooking, but it should be understood that the materials accommodated in the chamber include various types of raw materials that require a steaming process, as well as foods that require a process of applying heat. do.

Here, cooking refers to absorbing water suitable for rice to make starch gelatinous and to soften the tissue of rice properly. Usually, cooking proceeds in the order of washing, water control, immersion, heating, and steaming, but when using steam, it is convenient to at least perform water control, immersion, heating and steaming with one device, When the concept of the present invention is applied, washing, cooking and saccharification may be performed with one equipment. In this regard, specific examples will be described later.

In addition, the steaming (蒸熟) of the present invention means steaming and cooking through steam, but in some cases, using steam for heating the finished product is also included in the concept of steaming of the present invention.

2 is a configuration diagram of a top-down steamer according to the concept of the present invention.

The chamber unit 1100 is configured to be isolated from the outside to some extent to accommodate the material and steam therein, and to preserve a predetermined pressure and temperature. A supply port (reference number not shown) connected to the steam supply line 2110 is configured on the upper side of the chamber unit 1100, and an exhaust port (reference number not shown) connected to the steam discharge line 2210 is configured on the lower side. The steam flowing in from the inside is discharged to the bottom after steaming the material inside, and in the process from the top to the bottom, the temperature and pressure will be reduced according to the density and voids of the material. At this time, in the concept of the present invention, since the condensed water generated from the lower side is discharged together to the steam discharge line 2210, a configuration for a separate drain is unnecessary. A detailed description related thereto will be provided later.

In addition, the steam applied in the present invention is basically generated by heating water, but in some cases, the use of various types of water bodies, such as a mixed solution or distilled water, is not excluded.

As described above, the chamber unit 1100 is preferably formed in a cylindrical shape that can be sealed as a whole, but is not necessarily limited to the illustrated shape. The chamber unit 1100 may be made of a material durable to internal high temperature and high pressure, and preferably made of stainless steel. The upper and/or lower sides of the chamber unit 1100 may have an openable and openable structure to facilitate discharging and cleaning of materials. Examples related thereto will be described later.

The steam supply line 2110 is connected to the upper side of the chamber unit 1100 as described above and may receive heated and vaporized water from the steam supply unit 2100 installed outside. The steam supply unit 2100 may have a known configuration including a heat transfer means and a predetermined controller, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The inner space of the chamber unit 1100 may be divided into predetermined functional areas from an upper side to a lower side according to a predetermined state. The inner uppermost layer is a supply region (a) in which the high pressure of steam can be maintained as it is by receiving steam directly from the supply port, and the lower side from the interface of the material, which is the lower limit of the supply region (a), is substantially steamed. It can be understood as the steaming region (b, c). A relatively upper region of the steaming region is defined as an upper layer (b), a lower region as a lower layer (c), and a region adjacent to the outlet is defined as a drain region (d).

The upper layer part (b) has a relatively high porosity because it has less influence of its own weight than the lower layer part (c). can That is, the material can be accommodated in the steaming area by maintaining a certain degree of density under the influence of gravity and pressure. In the case of the lower layer (c), a decrease in pressure occurs in the process of steam flowing through the pores. In the drain region (d), condensation of water occurs or the condensed water is collected. In this region, the condensed water is discharged together with steam to the steam discharge line 2210 .

It may be preferable that the connection portion of the steam supply line 2110 and the steam discharge line 2210 of the chamber unit 1100 is approximately arranged in the center of a plane, as will be described later, of additional configurations such as stirring or supply of hot water. It is also possible to arrange some eccentricity from the center of the axis if the arrangement is required.

3 is a side cross-sectional view of a top-down steamer according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The chamber unit 1100 accommodates the material as described above therein, and the material is disposed downward by the pressure and weight of the steam. The upper portion is the supply region (a), and the cover portion 1200 may be coupled to be rotatable up and down so as to open and close the upper portion.

The cover part 1200 is connected to one side of the upper end of the chamber part 1100 by an upper hinge 1201 so that it can be opened and closed through a rotation operation. The cover part 1200 may be provided with an opening/closing handle (not shown) on the upper side or the side. In addition, the cover part 1200 may be configured to include an airtight means such as a sealing to maintain the sealed state of the chamber part 1100, and a locking part 1202 to fix the closed state. Since these airtight means and the locking unit can be applied to various well-known devices, overlapping descriptions will be omitted.

The cover part 1200 can be rotated up and down or back and forth by the upper hinge 1201 to communicate the internal space of the chamber part 1100 with the outside, and the cover part 1200 is provided with a supply port to provide a steam supply line (2110) may be connected. Accordingly, the cover part 1200 may be formed with a supply passage penetrating up and down.

In addition, a pressure measuring unit 1210 may be further provided to monitor the pressure inside the chamber unit 1100 . Considering the convenience of maintenance and management, the pressure measuring unit 1210 is provided on the cover unit 1200 . It is preferable to configure, but is not necessarily limited thereto.

In addition, it is preferable that the valve part 1220 is further configured to temporarily release the pressure inside the chamber part 1100 or to discharge a part of the steam during the sealing of the cover part 1200 and the supply of steam or maintaining the pressure. do.

On the other hand, the chamber unit 1100 has a shape that is opened up and down, and the lower side can be opened and closed according to selection. Accordingly, the lower plate part 1300 that can be opened and closed downward may be further configured. The lower plate part 1300 is rotatable up and down by the lower hinge 1301, and additionally, a locking part and a sealing means may be further disposed. The description of the cover part 1200 applies mutatis mutandis.

A discharge passage is formed in the lower plate 1300 to discharge condensed water and steam discharged from the outlet side to the steam discharge line 2210 .

As shown, the materials are accommodated inside the chamber unit 1100, and there is a risk that the materials are undesirably discharged to the steam discharge line 2210 through the outlet. To prevent this, a filter unit 1310 is further provided at the outlet side It is preferable to be The filter unit 1310 has an open portion through which a predetermined amount of steam and water can be discharged, such as a mesh network, but various types of devices capable of preventing material permeation may be applied.

In the illustrated state, the supply pressure P0 and the supply temperature t0 of the supply region (a) are maintained to some extent in the upper layer (b) and are used for steaming the material as the first pressure (P1) and the first temperature (t1). used The temperature and pressure are gradually lowered toward the lower layer, and on the lower plate part 1300 side, the steam is condensed at the lowered pressure and the third temperature t0 and converted into liquid water.

The drain region d may be formed in a rounded shape or a wedge shape with a low central height so that water collected at the lower side can be easily collected in the filter 1310 .

On the other hand, when the steaming area is divided according to a predetermined height, it means that the pressure is changed according to the height. For example, when divided into an upper layer part (b) and a lower layer part (c) as shown, the first pressure P1 is applied to the upper layer part and the second pressure P2 is applied to the lower layer part. When the pressure is adjusted in the supply region (a), it is possible to adjust the degree of hardness and softness of the food according to the height in the upper and lower layers (or multi-layer regions).

In the present invention, the steam input from the upper steam supply unit 2100 can be evenly distributed along the voids of the material in the process of flowing downward, and the condensed water generated in the middle is naturally moved downward along with the flow of steam, so that the filter unit 1310 ) to the steam discharge line 2210 to be discharged together with the steam.

According to this concept, rice or rice flour is moistened by steam during cooking, but an even steaming is possible as a whole without occurrence of areas containing excessive moisture.

In addition, since the supply pressure (P0) and temperature are maintained in the upper supply region (a) and contact with the material starts, the material can be densely compressed downward, which reduces the voids with the effect of gravity between the materials. Since it is homogenized, there is an advantage in that the steam can be evenly distributed and discharged.

Let's look at the process of steaming rice through the top-down steamer of the present invention in a little more detail.

A steam pressure of about 0.5 bar was applied from the steam supply unit 2100, the inside was sealed, and the steam discharge line 2210 was opened while the steaming process was performed. The materials filled therein are disposed to be biased downward by their own weight and steam penetrates from the top, but steam is not initially discharged to the steam discharge line 2210 . This is understood because it takes time for the pressure and temperature of the upper part to be applied to the lower part filled with the material as described above.

The steam immersed in the material is condensed during heat exchange, is converted into water, flows downward, and is discharged to the steam discharge line 2210 . During this initial condensing time, it was confirmed that almost no steam was discharged to the steam discharge line 2210 and only condensed water was discharged. In addition, only condensed water was discharged without discharging steam for about 40 minutes under the experimental conditions of the present invention.

As the heating proceeds to the lower end of the lower layer, steam starts to be discharged to the steam discharge line 2210 while the discharge of condensed water is reduced. After passing through the process of locking the steam discharge line 2210 and steaming, steam will not be discharged to the outside. In this way, it was confirmed that the steaming was completed in about 15 minutes after closing the valve configured in the steam discharge line 2210 to seal the inside.

In the conventional bottom-up supply method, it should be noted that steam is completely different from the phenomenon of the present invention because steam passes through the pores while going against gravity. In particular, in the case of bottom-up steaming, condensation occurs in the portion corresponding to the supply region (a) on the upper side based on the illustrated state and gradually moves to the lower side. Due to this change, there is a problem in that a part must be discarded or a structure for the drain must be separately constructed, and the present invention can solve all of these problems. In addition, unlike the case of the bottom-up type, pressure can be applied and maintained, and the use of steam is minimized because the optimized temperature and pressure are utilized.

Considering that the discharge of steam to the upper and lower portions is actually made in a very small amount as in the above experimental example, it is economical because facilities such as a duct for treating water vapor are unnecessary compared to the case of applying the bottom-up method according to the prior art.

4 is a side view showing a saccharification facility using a top-down steamer according to an additional concept of the present invention.

A configuration in which the lid part 1200 is coupled to the upper side of the chamber part 1100 so as to be opened and closed, the steam supply line 2110 is connected to the lid part 1200, and the steam discharge line 2210 is connected to the lower side; In relation to the above, the overlapping description will be omitted. However, in the present invention, since the stirrer unit including the driving unit, impeller and shaft, and the saccharified liquid discharge line 2310 for discharging the saccharified liquid are configured in the present invention, the supply and outlet for inflow and discharge of the steam are central lines It is placed in a slightly eccentric position.

The chamber unit 1100 accommodates the cooked rice therein, mixes a predetermined water body (rice water and malt), and then undergoes stirring and saccharification to proceed with the production process of coarsening.

For the saccharification process, a stirrer unit may be mounted. The stirrer unit includes a driving unit 3100 above the cover unit 1200 to supply rotational power according to a control signal, and the chamber unit by the power of the driving unit 3100. (1100) The shaft part 3210 penetrating into the inside is rotated to rotate one or more impellers 3220 arranged in the longitudinal and/or circumferential direction to loosen the rice and mix it with a predetermined water body.

The driving unit 3100 may be mounted as needed on a predetermined mounting portion already configured in the cover unit 1200 , and is integrated with the cover unit 1200 to perform cooking and saccharification according to the replacement of the cover unit 1200 . You might even be able to choose. However, it is preferable that cooking and saccharification are performed together in one chamber unit 1100 .

The impeller 3220 is preferably arranged to be biased toward the lower side of the chamber unit 1100 in consideration of the weight and the arrangement state of the rice, mainly sinking at the lower end of the chamber unit 1100 to release the rice stuck to each other. can be done

On the other hand, the chamber unit 1100 may be further provided with a transmission window (not shown) through which the state of the material inside can be visually confirmed.

In addition, a part of the cover part 1200 or the upper side of the chamber part 1100 is connected to a water body supply line 2410 for supplying a water body, where a liquid material necessary for the production of coarse powder, such as water or malt, is input. and may be stirred by the impeller 3220 .

Meanwhile, for smooth progress of saccharification, the chamber unit 1100 needs to be maintained at a temperature higher than that of the outside air. For this purpose, it is preferable that the jacket part 4100 is disposed in a form that surrounds at least a portion of the chamber part 1100 where the material is disposed. The jacket part 4100 allows the hot water supplied and circulated through the hot water supply line 4210 to maintain the temperature while moving along the outer wall and the bottom of the chamber part 1100 . As heating equipment for heating the hot water supplied through the hot water supply line 4210, a known electric heater or boiler may be applied, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In addition, a saccharified solution discharge line 2310 may be configured to facilitate discharging of the saccharified material to the lower side of the chamber unit 1100 or the lower side of the lower plate unit 1300 . The saccharification liquid discharge line 2310 is provided with a discharge valve 2320 for opening and closing since the discharge must be performed after the cooking and saccharification processes are completed.

In addition, it is also included in the concept of the present invention that well-known valves for opening and closing the distribution system of the steam supply line 2110, the steam discharge line 2210, and the water body supply line 2410 are applied.

The saccharification solution discharged as described above is filtered and concentrated to form a crude solution, and a known technique may be applied thereto. In some cases, the filtration and concentration equipment may also be integrally configured with the saccharification equipment described in the present invention.

The top-down steamer of the present invention described above maximizes the efficiency of energy use because it can be used for steaming materials against the direction of gravity while supplying steam from the upper part and maintaining pressure and temperature, especially in the case of conventional trays and bottom-up. Compared to that, there is an advantage that the amount of steam used can be drastically reduced.

In addition, the condensed water can be moved along the flow direction of the steam, so that the rice is not thickened and the upper and lower layers can be steamed homogeneously, and steam and condensed water can be discharged without using a separate drain equipment.

In addition, since the cooking itself is made in the internal space and the washing, heating, pressurizing, and maintaining processes can all be performed inside the chamber, the process is not only simple, but also cleaning and maintenance are improved because the tray is not used.

In addition, due to the application of the chamber method, the cooking and saccharification process is possible in a large capacity, so the productivity is dramatically improved.

In the above, the present invention has been described in detail based on the embodiments and the accompanying drawings. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited by the above embodiments and drawings, and the scope of the present invention will be limited only by the contents described in the following claims.

1000...Steam unit 1100...Chamber part
1200...Lid 1201...Upper hinge
1202...Locking part 1210...Pressure measuring part
1220...Valve part 1300...Lower plate part
1301...Lower hinge 1310...Filtration part
2100...Steam supply unit 2110...Steam supply line
2210...Steam discharge line 2310...Saccharified solution discharge line
2320...Discharge valve 2410...Water body supply line
3100...Drive part 3210...Shaft part
3220...Impeller 4100...Jacket part
4210...Hot water supply line

Claims (7)

A chamber part for accommodating the material therein;
A supply port provided on the upper side of the chamber unit so that the steam supplied through the steam supply line is introduced;
It is made including an outlet provided at the lower side of the chamber so that the steam, which has passed through the material and has been steamed, and the water condensed according to the temperature lowered as the steam moves downward are discharged together to the outside,
The chamber part,
The pressure and temperature of the steam supplied to the supply port are maintained and the supply region (a) provides a controlled supply pressure (P0) to the material downward according to the softness of the food, and gravity and steam pressure are applied to the material. The inner space is divided into a steaming region (b, c) in which steam moves downward along the void, and a drain region (d) in which condensed water is collected and discharged by being guided by steam to an outlet adjacent to the bottom of the chamber part,
When steam is supplied from the upper part in a state where the material is biased downward by its own weight, the steam moves to the lower part of the steaming area, and the condensed water that penetrates into the material during the initial condensation time and exchanges heat is discharged to the steam discharge line, and the steam is discharged to the steam discharge line. When the discharge of steam is started as heating proceeds to the lower layer of the unit and the discharged condensate decreases, the steam discharge line is locked after a set time to perform steaming.
According to claim 1,
The top-down steamer further comprising a cover part hinged to the upper side of the chamber part so as to be able to open and close the inner space and to which a steam supply line is connected.
3. The method of claim 2,
The cover part,
A top-down steamer having a pressure measuring unit and a valve unit.
3. The method of claim 2,
The top-down steamer further comprising a lower plate hinged to the lower side of the chamber to open and close the inner space and to which the steam discharge line is connected.
According to claim 1,
A top-down steamer provided on the outlet side of the chamber part and further comprising a sieving part for preventing the passage of materials while passing steam and condensed water.
A saccharification apparatus comprising the top-down steamer of any one of claims 1 to 5,
a stirrer unit extending from the upper side to the lower side of the chamber unit and receiving power from the driving unit to rotate the impeller arranged in the circumferential direction;
a water body supply line connected to the upper side of the chamber;
A jacket part for allowing the hot water supplied through the hot water supply line to circulate along the outer wall of the chamber part;
A saccharification apparatus including a saccharification liquid discharge line connected to the bottom of the chamber part so that the saccharification liquid is discharged.
As a steaming method using the top-down steamer of any one of claims 1 to 5,
a) accommodating the material inside the chamber part and sealing the inside;
b) supplying steam into the chamber through a steam supply line;
c) discharging the condensed water to the steam discharge line while heat exchange between the material and the steam inside the chamber;
d) after the initial condensing time elapses and steam starts to be discharged to the steam discharge line, closing the steam discharge line and steaming the material;

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