RU2406339C1 - Smoking-and-drying multi-purpose chamber - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: food industry.

SUBSTANCE: chamber contains a thermally insulated body, a ventilation unit, a smoke generator, a source of heat, a cooling unit, a thermal treatment process control board and a drain tube. The cooling unit is represented by a refrigerating machine, the compressor-and-condensing unit whereof is placed outside the thermally insulated body while the evaporative-and-condensing unit is placed inside the thermally insulated body. The ventilation unit contains the main and the auxiliary sections. The main section contains axial master ventilators having individual drives and fully covering the chamber cross-section and vertical air gates installed in front of and behind the axial master ventilators. The auxiliary section contains axial auxiliary ventilators; it communicates with the evaporative-and-condensing unit of the refrigerating machine.

EFFECT: invention allows to produce different kinds of finished products.

4 cl, 1 dwg

Description

The invention relates to the food industry and can be used in the manufacture of dried and smoked products.

It is known to use a three-section smoking device in a hot-smoked fish production line for drying, boiling, hot-smoked and cooling fish. A steam generator is connected to the first section of the smoking device to produce superheated steam, a wood dispenser is connected to the second section, from where the sawdust is fed to the mixer via a conveyor belt, and then to the smoke generator, where exhaust air from the third section is supplied with a fan, and smoke is supplied in the second section of the smoking apparatus for actually smoking fish, after which the product enters the third section of the smoking smoking device for cooling, to which the fan is connected p for supplying air (n. RF №2328856, A23B 4/044, publ. 20.07.2008 g).

The disadvantages of this device are:

- the inclusion in the installation of a steam generator that provides the process of boiling fish is unnecessary, because in the process of hot smoking operation of boiling fish, i.e. the folding of fish protein occurs due to the processing of the product with hot smoke;

- the bulkiness of the apparatus due to the presence of three sections requiring the movement of processed products by conveyor or manually;

- cooling is carried out by a stream of air without preliminary cooling, which does not allow to obtain a high-quality product, since stabilization of the movement of internal moisture occurs with a contrasting change in temperature.

A smoking apparatus is known, comprising a working chamber with parallel guides located in it, doors for loading and unloading the product, and nozzles for supplying and discharging coolant, a cable conveyor passes through the working chamber, on which sieve pallets with fish located on them are placed, a working one the chamber consists of three sections: drying, boiling and smoking, the under-chamber space of each section is equipped with a nozzle for supplying coolant, two internal transverse partitions between the sections we are made movable in the horizontal plane, and in the movable transverse partitions there are windows for the passage of sieve pallets, which can be overlapped by solid plates moving along the guides with the help of actuators, in the lower and upper parts of the movable transverse partitions are movable supports, which are two coaxially installed pipes, on both sides of the internal pipe installed sliders, made with the possibility of movement along the rails, and gear ENA contact with the toothed racks mounted on the outer sides of smoking apparatus body, and the two slots formed on the outer trubovale through which the flexible tape, both ends of which are rigidly fixed (Sec. RF №2346446, A23B 4/044, publ. 02/20/2009).

This device has the following disadvantages:

- the complexity of the design due to the presence of a cable conveyor for moving trolleys, additional traction mechanisms, movable supports that require additional kinematics, which, in the end result, complicates the operation of the camera;

- due to the complexity of the kinematic scheme and the bulkiness of the equipment, the device can only be washed manually. This leads to the fact that washing pauses correspond to the processing time (smoking) of the entire cycle, which does not allow to obtain products with the necessary microbiological indicators;

- the absence of the operation of rapid air cooling contributes to the rapid reproduction of microorganisms and does not allow to obtain high-quality products;

- drying the product with warm air (unregulated humidity) leads to a decrease in the moisture content in muscle tissue and a change in physical properties both on the surface and inside the fish, which at high temperatures (hot smoking) leads to a defect in the drying of the surface and the appearance of spots.

Closest to the claimed device by the number of similar features and the achieved effect is a heat treatment chamber, which contains a smoke generator, a thermally insulated body with a ventilation unit and an exhaust mixture removal unit including a fan with a drive and an exhaust channel with a damper, the ventilation unit is located in the upper part corps. The smoke generator is placed inside a thermally insulated housing and is made with circulation channels, a loading system and a system of protection against generated waste, made in the form of an inclined tray with holes for the formation of smoke intake and exhaust channels and screens with visors above them, and a drain pipe is installed in the chamber wall. The ventilation unit is combined with the spent working mixture removal unit and contains a flow housing partially located in the chamber cavity, the fan being located in the lower part of the flow housing, the first non-return valve is installed in the wall of the flow housing located in the chamber cavity, and above it inside the flow housing placed a second check valve. The chamber contains several ventilation units, and the fan shafts are connected by a common drive. The smoke generator loading system is made in the form of a receiving two-chamber hopper, a screw conveyor of reverse action, an unloading two-chamber hopper and a hopper for collecting and removing ash. The chamber is equipped with a cooler located above the smoke generator in at least one of the smoke intake or exhaust channels (Cl. RF No. 2052937, A23B 4/044, publ. 01.27.96).

The disadvantages of the known device include:

- placement of the smoke generator inside a thermally insulated case leads to additional heat gain, and in the case of cold smoking products requires additional cooling of the smoke-air mixture;

- the presence of a smoke generator inside the device also leads to a rise in price of the device, since it requires the installation of an additional system of protection against generated waste during combustion of smoke;

- the impossibility of changing the direction of the air flow from each fan and, accordingly, the insufficient performance of the fans, because of this, in the ventilation unit, the shafts of all fans are connected by a common drive;

- in the case of smoking fish on the nets, the process does not ensure uniform smoking, since the movement of air in the chamber occurs from the bottom up, and each net is an additional damper for the air flow in the vertical direction, in the end, this leads to a deterioration in the quality of the finished product;

- the use of a water heat exchanger as a cooler reduces the economic efficiency of the device, since it requires an additional recycled water supply system. In addition, the temperature of the cooling water depends on the air temperature in the street, which significantly reduces the heat transfer efficiency when working in the summer, especially in places with high humidity;

- the presence of check valves in the flow channel of the inlet (outlet) of air from the chamber does not provide the necessary heat transfer and does not allow to intensify the process of smoking products;

- the manufacture of a thermally insulated body with a hinged sectional floor leads not only to complicate the design, but also to increase its cost, since it requires the installation of additional equipment inside the chamber for rolling in container trolleys with products, in particular a folding ladder, guides, rails, grips for trolleys;

- to the deterioration of product quality also leads to the fact that products placed on shelves are blown unevenly due to the fact that the fan is located in the lower part of the chamber;

- the impossibility of ensuring rapid cooling of products (up to 10 ° C) can cause the rapid multiplication of microorganisms and lead to finished products of inadequate quality in microbiology, especially in the summer.

The problem solved by the invention is to reduce the cost and simplify the design, expand the functionality of the device to improve the organoleptic characteristics of the finished product due to the design features of the device, which allows the use of more advanced cold and hot smoking technologies.

The claimed technical result is achieved in that in a known chamber for heat treatment of products, including a thermally insulated body, a ventilation unit, a smoke generator, a heat source, a cooler, a heat treatment process control panel and a drain pipe, it is new that a refrigeration machine, a compressor is installed as a cooler -condenser unit which is located outside the thermally insulated housing, and the evaporative-condenser block is located inside the thermally insulated housing, it includes two capacitors, between which an evaporator is installed. The ventilation unit includes a main and auxiliary section, while the main section includes axial main fans with individual drives, and vertical air dampers located before and after the axial main fans. Axial main fans completely overlap the cross section of the chamber. The auxiliary section, located above the main section, includes axial auxiliary fans and is in communication with the evaporative condenser unit of the refrigeration machine. In addition, the chamber is additionally equipped with a supply and exhaust ventilation system, including two axial fans and two automatic air valves, the fans being placed at opposite ends of the chamber in the direction of the main air flow. A smoke generator is installed outside the chamber and connected to it by an air duct.

The process is controlled by sensors located inside the chamber and connected to the control panel of the heat treatment process. It includes control devices for the number of revolutions of main fans, relays of sensors for determining the temperature of the air in the chamber and dew points on the surface of the evaporation-condenser block, a sensor for air flow through the evaporation-condenser block and a device for determining the change in the weight of the product processed in the chamber. The control panel allows you to almost completely automate the process of processing products in the chamber and to avoid deterioration in the quality of finished products due to the economical process, and also avoids possible negative errors of operators.

To further improve the quality of the finished product, by eliminating the conditions for the development of microorganisms, a system of spraying detergents and disinfectants on the inner surfaces of the housing with a high pressure pump is located inside the thermally insulated housing.

The thermally insulated chamber body is stationary.

The use of a chiller as a cooler in the inventive chamber significantly expands the functionality of the chamber, since the regime of cold drying (before hot smoking) and the mode of catering refrigerator are introduced, which allows introducing the effect of ripening of fish into the process of hot smoking, as a result of which the organoleptic characteristics of the fish rise by more high level.

In the case of hot smoking, drying is carried out using a refrigeration machine, in which the product is blown with cold air (up to 28 ° C) of low humidity, and the temperature differential is set to 10 ° C, which allows you to enter a ripening effect and get high-quality products. The ripening effect is due to the fact that the semi-finished product is washed first with warm air, then with cold air. This happens cyclically, based on the temperature of the semi-finished product, which, together with a change in the speed of the circulating air, allows free water emulsions formed in the muscle tissue together with the dissolved components of the salted mixture to move along microcapillaries not only to the outer surface of the semi-finished product, but also from the outer surface to the inner layers muscle tissue, which determines the physical component of the ripening effect.

In addition, in the drying mode before cold smoking, the chiller is used in the heat pump mode, which allows you to turn off the heat source, thermoelectric heaters (TENy) and save at least 50% of electric energy. Upon completion of the smoking process, the refrigeration machine allows you to quickly cool the product, which contributes to the distribution of taste and inhibition of the development of the microbiological environment on the surface of the fish. Using the chiller in heat pump mode greatly expands the range of use of the camera.

Axial main fans with individual drives and completely covering the cross-section of the chamber, the main ventilation section provide uniform air flow in the chamber through the semi-finished product, completely block the living section of the chamber, and the chamber works on its own (i.e., the volume of blown air is determined by 75% the size of the camera and is constant). Providing each main fan, located in the chamber for heat treatment of products, with a separate drive allows you to change the flow direction and the volume of air blown around the product, both during drying and during smoking. This allows you to carefully treat the semi-finished product and, due to the change in the air flow rate, to avoid external defects of the fish and change the heat transfer coefficient from fish to air, which proportionally changes the transmitted (given) heat from air to the semi-finished product and, accordingly, the amount of moisture.

The placement of vertical air dampers entering the main ventilation section, in front of and before the axial main fans, focuses the direction of the main air flow along the live section of the fans, which contributes to uniform air flow around the product, reduces the temperature difference along the longitudinal section of the chamber, as a result of which the organoleptic properties of the finished product increase.

The auxiliary section of the ventilation unit located above the main section and connected through the air duct, as well as communicated with the evaporative condenser unit of the chiller, mixes the exhaust air, which is part of the main (up to 25%), to the mass of the main air stream. In this section, the air is first cooled, then heated, and moisture is removed from it in the form of drops through a drain pipe. The smooth mixing of the exhaust air with the air of the axial main fans ensures the preservation of the outer surface of the fish soft and elastic, the absence of dried spots and cracks, respectively, of a concentrated taste drop and uneven texture.

Providing the chamber with a supply and exhaust ventilation system, including two axial fans and two automatic air valves, the fans being placed at opposite ends of the chamber in the direction of the main air flow, provides an extreme air replacement in terms of:

a) sanitary standards (up to 1-5%);

b) shutdown of the refrigeration machine in case of a transition period (winter - summer), when the temperature and humidity of the street correspond to the technology of processing products. In this case, the air temperature in the chamber is regulated by automatic air valves of the axial fans of the auxiliary section. In the case of smoking, these fans provide the removal of the exhaust smoke mixture. In the case of hot-drying products, they not only supply fresh air (blowing), but also remove moist air (pumping into the street), work on the principle of "how much has come, so much has gone." In addition, the supply and exhaust ventilation, with the ability to switch the direction of rotation, contributes to a significant intensification of the process of replacing the smoke-air mixture in the case of smoking and to increase the heat transfer rate during hot drying of products. In the end result, the system of supply and exhaust ventilation significantly increases the profitability of the camera and helps to obtain high-quality products.

Placing the smoke generator outside the chamber does not require the installation of an additional system to protect the product from generated waste during smoke combustion, and also avoids possible “thermal shocks” in the event of sawdust ignition, thereby preventing a violation of the thermal regime and, as a result, processing technology with a decrease in organoleptic characteristics finished products.

Making the insulated casing of the smoke-drying chamber stationary makes it possible to significantly simplify and reduce the metal consumption of the structure, since the floor is used as the bottom, and also to abandon devices and devices that ensure the supply and exit of processed products from the chamber. In addition, in the inventive design of the chamber, the cart with the processed product can be rotated around the axis for better blowing of the product, which also contributes to improving the quality of the finished product.

In addition, the thermally insulated chamber in the proposed design makes it possible to easily solve sanitary hygiene issues, since all surfaces are smooth and there are no conveyors and conveyors.

In the proposed design of the camera, all the necessary equipment is located in one section, in which the entire process is carried out. The inventive smoke-drying chamber is universal, because due to the ability to control the temperature conditions of product processing, it allows you to carry out several technological operations without moving the product:

- Ambassador, cold storage of the semi-finished product at a temperature of 0 to 10 ° C;

- the process of drying, drying from 15 to 28 ° C;

- the drying process at temperature, cold drying without the ripening effect of 15 to 28 ° C upon contact of the semi-finished product with air outside the chamber;

- the drying process in the temperature range from 15 to 28 ° C without contact of the product with air outside the chamber using the heat pump mode with the ripening effect;

- cold smoking can be carried out in the temperature range from 15 to 28 ° C with or without contact of the product with outside air using the heat pump mode of the refrigeration unit;

- hot smoking or hot drying can be carried out in the temperature range from 50 ° C to 80 ° C, without the process of cooking and baking using the technology of gradual folding of the protein.

The invention is illustrated in the drawing, which shows a General view of the chamber for heat treatment of products.

The camera for heat treatment of products contains a thermally insulated body 1, mounted on the floor 2 of the workshop, inside which is placed a ventilation unit, including the main and auxiliary section. The main section of the ventilation unit includes axial main 3 fans, completely overlapping the chamber section and having individual drives (not indicated in the drawing). On both sides of the axial main 3 fans to control the air flow installed vertical air flaps 4, 5; a heat source 6 is placed between the axial main 3 fans and the vertical air damper 5. Thermoelectric heaters (TENs) are used as the heat source 6. The auxiliary section of the ventilation unit includes axial auxiliary fans 7, 8, between which an evaporative-condenser unit of the chiller is installed, including condensers 9, 10 and an evaporator 11 (i.e., connected to it), and a compressor-condenser 12 unit of the chiller is installed outside thermally insulated housing 1 (on the roof of the chamber). The auxiliary section of the ventilation unit is located above the main section of the ventilation unit and is connected to it by air flow through an air duct (not indicated in the drawing). Under the evaporator 11, there is a condensate collection tray 13, which is removed from the thermally insulated housing 1 via a drain pipe 14. In the upper part of the chamber on both sides above the loading and unloading gate 15 and 16, a supply and exhaust ventilation system is installed, including axial fans 17, 18 , and air valves 19 and 20, respectively, located between the axial fans 17, 18 and the thermally insulated body 1. The smoke generator 21 is installed outside the chamber and communicates with it through the duct 22, through which the smoke-air mixture stumbles into the camera. The control panel 23 of the heat treatment process is located outside the camera and provides not only the operation of the camera, but also control the heat treatment process using sensors (not indicated in the drawing) located inside the camera and connected to the control panel 23. The control panel 23 of the heat treatment process includes number control devices revolutions of the axial main 3 fans, devices for determining the air temperature in the chamber and dew points on the surface of the evaporator 11 of the evaporative condenser unit, the air flow sensor through the evaporator the condensing unit and the device for determining the change in the weight of the product processed in the chamber (devices and relays are not indicated in the drawing).

Chamber for heat treatment of products operates as follows.

The semi-finished fish product is laid out on the nets of shelves 24, which, through loading and unloading gates 15 and 16, are rolled into a thermally insulated housing 1, installed on the left and right of the main section of the ventilation unit. Through the control panel 23 of the heat treatment process, the axial auxiliary 7, 8 fans and the evaporator 11 of the auxiliary section of the ventilation unit and the refrigeration machine 12 are turned on. For a certain time (from 1 hour to 24 hours, depending on the type of processed product), the camera operates in the refrigerator mode for ensuring the ripening process of fish. Upon completion of the ripening process, additionally include axial main 3 fans and vertical air dampers 4 and 5 of the main section of the ventilation unit and condensers 9, 10 of the auxiliary section of the ventilation unit. The temperature in the chamber rises from + 15 ° С to + 28 ° С, and the drying process (drying) occurs with the additional ripening effect due to the temperature difference and the flow velocity of the axial main 3 fans. This process is controlled by changing the temperature, humidity and weight of the processed product using instruments (not indicated in the drawing) for determining the air temperature in the chamber and the dew point on the surface of the evaporative-condensing unit, the air flow sensor through the evaporative-condensing unit and the device for determining the product weight change , temperature and humidity, weight characteristics of the processed semi-finished product, placed on the control panel 23. Moisture released from the semi-finished product is removed in the form of condensate with erhnosti evaporator 11 through the sump 13 to the drain conduit 14 from the chamber. If you get dried or dried products, then at this stage the heat treatment process can be completed.

To obtain cold smoked products, at the end of the drying process, a smoke generator 21 is turned on, and the smoke-air mixture formed therein enters the chamber through the duct 22. During smoking, the ventilation system operating in the exhaust mode is additionally turned on, for which the axial fans 17, 18 and air valves 19, 20 are alternately turned on, based on the direction of rotation of the axial main 3 fans. This process provides the production of cold smoked product and is controlled through the control panel 23 of the heat treatment process.

To obtain a hot smoked product, turn off the refrigerator 12, axial auxiliary fans 7, 8, condensers 9, 10 and the evaporator 11 of the auxiliary section of the ventilation unit and turn on heating elements 6. The operation of heating elements 6 is determined by temperature sensors (not shown in the drawing). After a cycle of hot smoking, the main section of the ventilation unit, the smoke generator 21, the supply and exhaust ventilation system are turned off and the axial auxiliary 7, 8 fans of the auxiliary section of the ventilation unit are turned on. The camera operates in a refrigerator mode for quick cooling of products, while the process of distributing the taste characteristics of smoke smoke and improving the microbiological characteristics of the finished product are underway. At the end of this procedure, the end of which is determined by the organoleptic characteristics of the finished product, the loading and unloading gate 15 and 16 is opened, the shelves 24 with the cooled finished product are rolled out from the thermally insulated building 1 and sent to the finished product warehouse. The chamber includes a high pressure pump (not shown in the drawing), spraying systems (not shown) of detergents and disinfectants on the surfaces of the thermally insulated housing 1, and the chamber is sanitized, after which the chamber is ready for use again.

In the case of obtaining dried protein products, the camera operates in the hot drying mode. This mode is carried out similarly to the mode of hot smoking, differs from it in that the smoke generator is turned off. The chamber is used for hot drying of seafood.

Thus, the technology implemented in the claimed design allows not only to obtain a hot smoked product with high organoleptic characteristics after preliminary cutting of the product into fillets, layers, etc., but also to receive dried, cold smoked and dried products.

Claims (4)

1. A chamber for heat treatment of products, including a thermally insulated casing, a ventilation unit, a smoke generator, a heat source, a cooler, a heat treatment process control panel, a drain pipe, characterized in that a chiller is used as a cooler, the condensing unit of which is located outside the thermally insulated casing and the evaporative condenser block is placed inside a thermally insulated housing; the ventilation unit includes the main and auxiliary sections, while the main section includes axial main fans with individual drives and completely covering the cross section of the chamber, and vertical air dampers installed before and after the axial main fans, and the auxiliary section is located above the main section and connected with it through the duct, includes axial auxiliary fans and communicates with the evaporative-condenser unit of the refrigeration machine; the chamber is additionally equipped with a supply and exhaust ventilation system comprising two axial fans and two automatic air valves, the axial fans being placed at opposite ends of the chamber in the direction of the main air flow; the smoke generator is installed outside the chamber and connected to it by an air duct. 2. The chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that the heat treatment process control panel includes a control unit for the number of revolutions of the main fans, devices for determining the temperature of the air in the chamber and dew points on the surface of the evaporative-condenser unit, an air flow sensor through the evaporative-condenser unit and the device determining the change in weight of the product processed in the chamber. 3. The chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that inside the thermally insulated housing there is a spray system of detergents and disinfectants on the inner surfaces of the housing with a high pressure pump. 4. The camera according to claim 1, characterized in that the thermally insulated body of the camera is stationary.