US3795483A - Method and device for sterilising of containers - Google Patents

Method and device for sterilising of containers Download PDF

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Publication number
US3795483A
US3795483A US00291151A US3795483DA US3795483A US 3795483 A US3795483 A US 3795483A US 00291151 A US00291151 A US 00291151A US 3795483D A US3795483D A US 3795483DA US 3795483 A US3795483 A US 3795483A
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US
United States
Prior art keywords
containers
chambers
gas
sterilising
chamber
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
US00291151A
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English (en)
Inventor
A Grafingholt
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Lever Brothers Co
Original Assignee
Lever Brothers Co
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from DE19691934363 external-priority patent/DE1934363C3/de
Application filed by Lever Brothers Co filed Critical Lever Brothers Co
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of US3795483A publication Critical patent/US3795483A/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
    • B65B55/00—Preserving, protecting or purifying packages or package contents in association with packaging
    • B65B55/02—Sterilising, e.g. of complete packages
    • B65B55/04—Sterilising wrappers or receptacles prior to, or during, packaging
    • B65B55/10—Sterilising wrappers or receptacles prior to, or during, packaging by liquids or gases
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
    • A61L—METHODS OR APPARATUS FOR STERILISING MATERIALS OR OBJECTS IN GENERAL; DISINFECTION, STERILISATION OR DEODORISATION OF AIR; CHEMICAL ASPECTS OF BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES; MATERIALS FOR BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES
    • A61L2/00—Methods or apparatus for disinfecting or sterilising materials or objects other than foodstuffs or contact lenses; Accessories therefor
    • A61L2/16—Methods or apparatus for disinfecting or sterilising materials or objects other than foodstuffs or contact lenses; Accessories therefor using chemical substances
    • A61L2/20—Gaseous substances, e.g. vapours

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a method of sterilising prefabricated, stackable packaging containers before they are filled and closed, sterilisation being effected by means of a sterilising gas.
  • the invention also relates to devices for carrying out this method.
  • the known devices are not suitable for sterilising packaging containers such as tubs or trays adequately in the quantities which can be filled and closed by a fast-running packaging machine.
  • packaging containers such as tubs or trays
  • Packaging sensitive liquids or paste-like products such as fruit juice, oil, mayonnaise, milk, ice cream and processed cheese for example, in prefabricated containers requires sterilisation notonly of these products but also of the packing material in order to extend their storage period.
  • Theobject of the invention is therefore to sterilise prefabricated packaging containers by treating them with a germicidal gas for an adequate time and, if necessary, repeating the treatment with this gas.
  • lids required for the closure are sterilised in the same way as the containers and conveyed to the packaging machine.
  • the fluctuations in pressure in the sterilisation chambers are at least 1/3 and preferably more than 9/10 of the maximum pressure. It was found preferable to allow the pressure of the processing gas to fluctuate several times between approximately 1 atm. and l to 10 mm. mercury column.
  • the sterilisation chamber is evacuated in order to remove most of the air brought in with the containers.
  • the sterilising gas is likewise removed by evacuation before the sterilisation chamber is filled with the sterile atmosphere used in the packaging machine.
  • the device provided for putting the method into effect consists of a number of tubular chambers to take the stacks of containers. These chambers can be arranged parallel to one another and mounted rotatably about a common shaft. it is also possible, however, to arrange them in the path of the feed line of the packaging containers, the chambers then being in series.
  • FIG. ll shows a cross-section through a device with chambers rotating about a shaft
  • FIG. 2 shows a cross-section through chambers arranged in series
  • FIG; 3 shows the chambers arranged according to FIG. 2 in the path of the feed line of the containers to the packaging machine.
  • each tubular chambers l are arranged in a type of rotating platform 16.
  • the cross-section of the chambers l is slightly larger than the largest diameter of the containers in the stack of containers 15.
  • the chambers l have at their upper end an inlet opening, the cross-section of which is as large as that of the chambers.
  • This inlet opening can be hermetically sealed by a sealing organ 2, for example in the form of a retractable slide plate.
  • the lower end of the chambers l is constructed in the same way and is hermetically sealed by a similar sealing organ 3.
  • Each of the chambers has at least one pipe connection 5 for vacuum and/or gas.
  • the height of the chambers is approximately the same as the height of a stack of containers which can be filled by the packaging ma chine coupled to the outlet side in a period that depends on the number of chambers and the duration of the sterilisation treatment.
  • the chambers ll arranged in the rotating platform to or suitable supporting arms can be rotated about the shaft 6 so that the chambers i can be connected in one position of the rotating platform M with the feed pipe 12 for the tubs and in another position with the discharge pipe 13 for the sterilised tubs.
  • the rotating platform 16 rotates intermittently so that there is sufficient time for the tubs to be introduced and discharged.
  • This distributor On the shaft 6 there is a distributor to provide a link between the connections 5 on the chambers l and the feed pipes ill for vacuum, sterilising gas and protective gas.
  • This distributor consists of a perforated disc ti rotating with the rotating platform 16, from which feed pipes Ml branch off to the connections 5, and a fixed perforated disc 9 to which the pipes 11, through which the gases are introduced or discharged, lead via the control mechanisms '7.
  • chambers El For aprocessingperiod of approximately 15 minutes in the sterilisation device it, chambers El, say, are provided in the rotating platform, each of the chambers ll being able to take a stack of containers which can be handled by the packaging machine in approximately one minute.
  • the individual chambers in this device are moved to the next position about once a minute.
  • the duration of the individual processing operations may be longer or shorter than the time a chamber remains in each position.
  • the device according to the invention and the method to be carried out with it enable the tubs or similar packaging containers to be treated for a sufficient length of time. At the same time the device only requires a relatively small amount of space, as the containers are treated in stacks.
  • the fluctuations of pressure according to the invention enable the stack of containers to be adequately sterilised. Surprisingly they ensure that even the parts of the containers in the interior of the stack are sufficiently exposed to the'sterilising gas.
  • the chambers 1 are in a line.
  • the chambers can be arranged horizontally, vertically or obliquely.
  • the sterilisation chambers according to the invention can be arranged in a particularly advantageous way, as shown in FIG. 3.
  • the stacks of tubs pass from a magazine 14, into which the prefabricated tubs are inserted in stacks and from which they are pushed into the first of the chambers I in a known way, through further chambers I, in which they are down in them.
  • the internal cross-section of the chambers l is only slightly larger than the largest crosssection of the stack of containers. The quantity of gas required for sterilisation is kept small by this means.
  • the chambers to be arranged in series in a line according to FIGS. 2 and 3 make it possible to sterilise the prefabricated containers without additional space being needed for this process if the container feed pipes previously used are replaced by the chambers.
  • the chambers also provide a bufferspace for the packaging material.
  • Sterilisation canbe carried out at a normal temperature without heating the containers which preferably consist of thermoplastics, by means of gases or mixtures of gases, for example HCl, ethylene oxide, formalin and the like; however, the device is naturally also suitable for treating containers with steam if the material of the containers with steam if the material of the containers permits of such treatment.
  • gases or mixtures of gases for example HCl, ethylene oxide, formalin and the like
  • a method of sterilizingrigid preformed stackable containers by the effects of a sterilizing gas before they are filled and closed in which the containers to be sterilized are stacked one inside the other in a nested relationship comprising the steps of a. introducing the containers in a stacked nested configuration to a sterilization chamber, the chamber having a substantially cylindrical interior with an internal diameter slightly larger than the external diameter of the container and a height approximately that of the height of the stack of containers;
  • a method as in claim 1 wherein the sterilization gas is hydrogen chloride.

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  • Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
  • Animal Behavior & Ethology (AREA)
  • Public Health (AREA)
  • Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
  • Epidemiology (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
  • General Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Veterinary Medicine (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Apparatus For Disinfection Or Sterilisation (AREA)
  • Vacuum Packaging (AREA)
  • Food Preservation Except Freezing, Refrigeration, And Drying (AREA)
US00291151A 1969-07-07 1972-09-21 Method and device for sterilising of containers Expired - Lifetime US3795483A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
DE19691934363 DE1934363C3 (de) 1969-07-07 Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Sterilisieren von Verpackungsbehältern

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US3795483A true US3795483A (en) 1974-03-05

Family

ID=5739095

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US00291151A Expired - Lifetime US3795483A (en) 1969-07-07 1972-09-21 Method and device for sterilising of containers

Country Status (8)

Country Link
US (1) US3795483A (xx)
JP (1) JPS4836664B1 (xx)
BE (1) BE753069A (xx)
FR (1) FR2054191A5 (xx)
GB (1) GB1318996A (xx)
IT (1) IT1051601B (xx)
NL (1) NL7009539A (xx)
ZA (1) ZA704582B (xx)

Cited By (12)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4164538A (en) * 1977-11-11 1979-08-14 American Sterilizer Company Load conditioning control method for steam sterilization
US4203947A (en) * 1977-11-11 1980-05-20 American Sterilizer Company Load conditioning control apparatus for steam sterilization
US4203943A (en) * 1977-11-11 1980-05-20 American Sterilizer Company Method of biocidal sterilization using cyclic subatmospheric pressure conditioning
US4239731A (en) * 1979-11-21 1980-12-16 American Sterilizer Company Apparatus for biocidal sterilization using cyclic subatmospheric pressure conditioning
US4241010A (en) * 1979-02-06 1980-12-23 American Sterilizer Company Pressure responsive conditioning control gas sterilization
US4294804A (en) * 1979-02-06 1981-10-13 American Sterilizer Company Pressure responsive conditioning control gas sterilization
WO1982001996A1 (en) * 1980-12-12 1982-06-24 Corp Tegal Plasma pressure pulse sterilization
US4457892A (en) * 1979-02-06 1984-07-03 American Sterilizer Company Biocidal gas sterilization and gas leakage determination
WO1999040949A1 (fr) * 1998-02-16 1999-08-19 Sidel S.A. Procede et dispositif pour la sterilisation des corps creux
US20040063607A1 (en) * 2000-12-22 2004-04-01 Andrea Fetz Process to improve stability of a pharmaceutical composition
US20090056828A1 (en) * 2007-09-01 2009-03-05 Krones Ag Apparatus for distributing a medium to containers
WO2013022785A3 (en) * 2011-08-05 2013-05-02 Noxilizer, Inc. In line sterlizer

Families Citing this family (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB1586858A (en) * 1976-06-07 1981-03-25 Unilever Ltd Device for treating packaging components
DE3119037A1 (de) * 1981-05-13 1982-12-02 Ganzhorn u. Stirn GmbH + Co, 7170 Schwäbisch Hall Verfahren und vorrichtung zum sterilisieren
US4681739A (en) * 1982-10-19 1987-07-21 The Scopas Technology Co., Inc. Use of chlorine dioxide gas as a chemosterilizing agent
DE3525299A1 (de) * 1985-07-16 1987-01-29 Jagenberg Ag Verfahren und vorrichtung zum sterilisieren von gestapelten verpackungsbehaeltern, insbesondere von ineinandergestapelten kunststoffbechern vor ihrem fuellen und verschliessen
KR20210060728A (ko) * 2019-11-18 2021-05-27 주식회사 이앤씨 스틱형 패키지 제조 장치 및 방법

Citations (10)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB542554A (xx) *
GB698972A (en) * 1950-06-24 1953-10-28 Schaerer Ag M Improvements in and relating to sterilising apparatus
US3042533A (en) * 1955-12-06 1962-07-03 John E W Mcconnell Method of sterilization
US3206275A (en) * 1961-12-15 1965-09-14 Griffith Laboratories Pulsation process of gas treatment for fumigation and the like
US3409389A (en) * 1963-09-16 1968-11-05 Getinge Mek Verkst S Aktiebola Method of removing air from goods in preparation for autoclave sterilization
US3436170A (en) * 1965-01-05 1969-04-01 American Sterilizer Co Method of sterilizing utilizing steam
US3458275A (en) * 1966-08-17 1969-07-29 Sybron Corp Material handling container and method for using the same
US3494725A (en) * 1968-06-20 1970-02-10 American Sterilizer Co Pulsing process of sterilization
US3511022A (en) * 1969-05-29 1970-05-12 Pet Inc Aseptic filling apparatus
US3576594A (en) * 1967-07-31 1971-04-27 Lever Brothers Ltd Process for the sterilization of solid surfaces

Patent Citations (10)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB542554A (xx) *
GB698972A (en) * 1950-06-24 1953-10-28 Schaerer Ag M Improvements in and relating to sterilising apparatus
US3042533A (en) * 1955-12-06 1962-07-03 John E W Mcconnell Method of sterilization
US3206275A (en) * 1961-12-15 1965-09-14 Griffith Laboratories Pulsation process of gas treatment for fumigation and the like
US3409389A (en) * 1963-09-16 1968-11-05 Getinge Mek Verkst S Aktiebola Method of removing air from goods in preparation for autoclave sterilization
US3436170A (en) * 1965-01-05 1969-04-01 American Sterilizer Co Method of sterilizing utilizing steam
US3458275A (en) * 1966-08-17 1969-07-29 Sybron Corp Material handling container and method for using the same
US3576594A (en) * 1967-07-31 1971-04-27 Lever Brothers Ltd Process for the sterilization of solid surfaces
US3494725A (en) * 1968-06-20 1970-02-10 American Sterilizer Co Pulsing process of sterilization
US3511022A (en) * 1969-05-29 1970-05-12 Pet Inc Aseptic filling apparatus

Cited By (17)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4164538A (en) * 1977-11-11 1979-08-14 American Sterilizer Company Load conditioning control method for steam sterilization
US4203947A (en) * 1977-11-11 1980-05-20 American Sterilizer Company Load conditioning control apparatus for steam sterilization
US4203943A (en) * 1977-11-11 1980-05-20 American Sterilizer Company Method of biocidal sterilization using cyclic subatmospheric pressure conditioning
US4457892A (en) * 1979-02-06 1984-07-03 American Sterilizer Company Biocidal gas sterilization and gas leakage determination
US4241010A (en) * 1979-02-06 1980-12-23 American Sterilizer Company Pressure responsive conditioning control gas sterilization
US4294804A (en) * 1979-02-06 1981-10-13 American Sterilizer Company Pressure responsive conditioning control gas sterilization
US4239731A (en) * 1979-11-21 1980-12-16 American Sterilizer Company Apparatus for biocidal sterilization using cyclic subatmospheric pressure conditioning
WO1982001996A1 (en) * 1980-12-12 1982-06-24 Corp Tegal Plasma pressure pulse sterilization
US4348357A (en) * 1980-12-12 1982-09-07 Motorola, Inc. Plasma pressure pulse sterilization
FR2774912A1 (fr) * 1998-02-16 1999-08-20 Sidel Sa Procede pour steriliser des corps creux et dispositif pour la mise en oeuvre
WO1999040949A1 (fr) * 1998-02-16 1999-08-19 Sidel S.A. Procede et dispositif pour la sterilisation des corps creux
US6984360B1 (en) * 1998-02-16 2006-01-10 Sidel S.A. Method and device for sterilizing hollow bodies
US20040063607A1 (en) * 2000-12-22 2004-04-01 Andrea Fetz Process to improve stability of a pharmaceutical composition
US20090056828A1 (en) * 2007-09-01 2009-03-05 Krones Ag Apparatus for distributing a medium to containers
US7699080B2 (en) 2007-09-01 2010-04-20 Krones Ag Apparatus for distributing a medium to containers
WO2013022785A3 (en) * 2011-08-05 2013-05-02 Noxilizer, Inc. In line sterlizer
EP2739318A4 (en) * 2011-08-05 2016-01-06 Noxilizer Inc INLINE STERILIZER

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
ZA704582B (en) 1972-02-23
DE1934363B2 (de) 1977-04-14
JPS4836664B1 (xx) 1973-11-06
BE753069A (fr) 1971-01-06
GB1318996A (en) 1973-05-31
IT1051601B (it) 1981-05-20
NL7009539A (xx) 1971-01-11
FR2054191A5 (xx) 1971-04-16
DE1934363A1 (de) 1971-01-14

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