Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23N—MACHINES OR APPARATUS FOR TREATING HARVESTED FRUIT, VEGETABLES OR FLOWER BULBS IN BULK, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PEELING VEGETABLES OR FRUIT IN BULK; APPARATUS FOR PREPARING ANIMAL FEEDING- STUFFS
  • A23N12/00—Machines for cleaning, blanching, drying or roasting fruits or vegetables, e.g. coffee, cocoa, nuts
  • A23N12/02—Machines for cleaning, blanching, drying or roasting fruits or vegetables, e.g. coffee, cocoa, nuts for washing or blanching
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23F—COFFEE; TEA; THEIR SUBSTITUTES; MANUFACTURE, PREPARATION, OR INFUSION THEREOF
  • A23F5/00—Coffee; Coffee substitutes; Preparations thereof
  • A23F5/02—Treating green coffee; Preparations produced thereby
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23N—MACHINES OR APPARATUS FOR TREATING HARVESTED FRUIT, VEGETABLES OR FLOWER BULBS IN BULK, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PEELING VEGETABLES OR FRUIT IN BULK; APPARATUS FOR PREPARING ANIMAL FEEDING- STUFFS
  • A23N5/00—Machines for hulling, husking or cracking nuts
  • A23N5/08—Machines for hulling, husking or cracking nuts for removing fleshy or fibrous hulls of nuts

Definitions

• the general field of the invention encompasses the technology for carrying out wet coffee processing without polluting water supplies.
• the present invention refers to a machine and a coffee washing process without previous mucilage degradation by natural fermentation or through the addition of pectinolytic enzymes, with which 100% of the water pollution generated through wet coffee processing is controlled, thus entirely reducing the impact of hydrolyzed sugar wastewater on the environment.
• Fig. 1A which is comprised of a rotor having bars welded to a shaft (Fig IB), rotating vertically, inside a housing made with rods with a square cross-section (Fig 1C).
• Fig IB a rotor having bars welded to a shaft
• Fig 1C a housing made with rods with a square cross-section
• the rotor Towards the bottom, the rotor has a propeller welded thereon in order to force bean flow through the open space between the housing and the rotor.
• Mucilage is removed as it moves inside the machine and later expelled through the open space between the housing's rods. Water is supplied to the rotor's shaft, by means of a pump. This machine has a specific water consumption of 1.83 L per kilogram of dry coffee, in excess to those seen on Cenicafe's DESLIMS machines (National Coffee Research Center, Chinchina, Caldas, Colombia), which range between 0.7 and 1.0 L per kilogram of dry coffee. It was also noted that the mucilage removal efficacy in the 25860 document ranged between 80 and 82%.
• BECOLSUB Wet ecological coffee processing and by-product management
• Resulting coffee wastewater is blended with the pulp thus controlling more than 90% of the pollution generated in the process.
• the lixiviates generated can be blended with the decomposed pulp allowing to control more than 95% of the pollution.
• FIG. 1A Another process developed by Fukunaga (1957) disclosed a vertical upward bean flow coffee demucilager, Fig 2A, comprising a shaker made of 6.35 mm diameter steel rods placed in the middle of a 15 cm diameter cylinder.
• Fukunaga welded 9.5 mm diameter steel rods to the outside surface of the shaker.
• Rotor speed was 860 rpm and specific power and water consumption was 0.00244 kW-h per kilogram of depulped coffee and 0.42 L per kilogram of depulped coffee, respectively.
• the device comprises two chambers: the first chamber, 15 cm diameter, beans are subject to high shear strengths and continuous vertical flow, thus expecting a high demucilaging percentage.
• the shaker (or impact device, according to Fukunaga, 1957) can rotate at relatively high rates (1200 rpm) without a significant increase in power consumption given its reduced diameter. Coffee beans which exit this first chamber enter the second chamber where there is another shaker rotating at a lesser rate (1000 rpm). According to the inventor, the coffee must be washed in a later step within the coffee processing.
• Wash tank having submergible pump.
• a submergible pump is used to wash coffee by passing said coffee from one tank to another four times, with a coffee/water ratio of 2/3 in mass, water recirculation used in the third rinse and a 5,000 kg/h flow of coffee and water mix.
• a specific consumption of 9 L per kg of processed dried coffee and pollution load of 12,692 ppm of COD per kg of dry coffee is estimated.
• Semi-submerged channel wash. Hydromechanic device wherein coffee is transported through a channel by means of a submergible pump; greater density beans settle in the first sections and are separated in a hopper, while lesser density beans are dragged by the water flow and unloaded at a second tank.
• Venturi ejector A hydraulic device, wherein the wash phase is carried out by means of friction by feeding coffee having degraded mucilage into a pipe using a Venturi ejector, and also during its later conveying.
• the hydraulic ejectors operate at pressures ranging from 2.5 to 4.0 atm, obtained through pumps or hydraulic head difference. Operation is recommended with a degraded mucilage coffee/water mixture ratio of 2/5 v:v. Pump power requirements are high and thus have also lost popularity.
• Horizontal shaft mechanical washers These basically consist of a cylinder in which a central shaft rotates, said shaft having pallets which assure agitation and the forward movement of the coffee mass and the water-mucilage mixture until unloading and at the same time carrying out the wash phase.
• the central shaft rotates at 40 rpm and the necessary power to move said shaft is 1.5 kW, when the cylinder is 1.80 meters high and 0.40 meter in diameter. Its capacity is estimated at 1500 kg of coffee having degraded mucilage/hour and a consumption of 0.3 liters of water per kilogram of coffee having fermented mucilage.
• Vertical shaft mechanical washers consist of a circular tank located vertically and of a pallet tree located centrally therein. Fermented coffee is shaken in this device until clean, allowing for used water to continuously exit the device by overflow and through gates located at the bottom.
• the mechanical action of mucilage separation is energetic when working with little water and much less when increasing the water/coffee ratio.
• the washer can be initially operated with little water and increase said water supply towards the end of the process.
• the central shaft rotates at about 18 rpm and the motor power is 0.75 or 1.5 kW, according to if said operation is being carried out using abundant water or not, in a tank with a 0.8 m 3 capacity.
• Megawasher® mechanical washer manufactured by Penagos (Bucaramanga, Colombia). It comprises a vertical shaft and upward flow continuous mechanical device for coffee washing having degraded mucilage, which shows, according to the manufacturer, specific water consumption between 1.2 and 2.0 L per kg of processed dried coffee and power requirements of 4.5 kW for its operation.
• the rotor can be a worm gear or a shaft having pallets welded onto its surface spaced spirally; the housing does not have perforations in order to separate fluids (water and mucilage) from coffee.
• the device is both physically different (externally and internally) as well as in its operation, in comparison to the machine for which a patent is sought herein.
• the instant invention discloses a coffee washing machine wherein the coffee mucilage has previously been degraded by means of natural fermentation or by the addition of pectinolytic enzymes, wherein the degradation process minimizes the coffee's environmental impact together with the washing process.
• the machine herein comprises: i) a depulping system (1 1) comprising one or more machines according to capacity; ii) a conveyor transport system which can be a worm gear (18) in order to take the depulped coffee to a device to be screened according to size, which may be a sifter (13), whereby a large part of the pulp and berries are removed; iii) a conveyor transport system which may also be a worm gear (14) in order to take depulped coffee to the cylindrical fermentation tanks; iv) one or more cylindrical tanks (15) having an inverted truncated cone shape, in order to allow unloading by means of gravity and facilitate further washing, with substantial reduction in the water volume used in comparison to masonry-manufactured
• One of the preferred embodiments of the instant invention allows washing coffee in a capacity range between 500 kg/h and 5,000 kg/h of washed coffee, with mucilage removal efficacies ranging between 95 and 99%, specific water consumption between 0.3 and 0.4 L per kg of processed dried coffee and less than 0.5% of mechanical coffee bean damage, less in comparison to research carried out at Cenicafe using DESLIM technology (Roa et al., 1999; Mejia et al., 2007).
• Wastewater produced (mucilage + added water + bean remains) from washing in the instant invention is not mixed with pulp; in one of the preferred embodiments, it can be dehydrated and later added to the decomposed pulp, using solar energy and tunnel type dryers designed through technology developed at Cenicafe (Oliveros et al., 2006), as well as mechanical dryers or any other type of dryer, in order to avoid the generation of lixiviates and gain control over 100% of the water pollution generated in the process.
• the method disclosed in the instant invention comprises: i) depulping coffee berries; ii) conveying coffee to a screening system in order to remove berries not depulped and the vast majority of the pulp; iii) conveying depulped berries to a tank, iv) storing the depulped berries in tanks allowing for mucilage degradation either through natural fermentation or by use of pectinolytic enzymes; v) conveying coffee from the fermentation tank towards the mechanical washer; vi) removing the degraded mucilage, allowing for washed coffee ready to initiate the drying phase.
• Figs 1A, IB and 1C show details of a demucilaging coffee device according to prior art.
• Figs 2A and 2B show details of a demucilager and a coffee washer according to prior art.
• Fig 3 shows the ecological coffee-washing module using natural fermentation or the application of pectinolytic enzymes of the instant invention.
• Fig 4 shows details of a coffee feeding worm gear and mechanical washer of the instant invention.
• Fig 5 shows details of a rotor of the mechanical washer and housing of the instant 5 invention.
• Fig 6 shows details of the sliding gate of the fermentation tanks.
• Fig 7 shows details of the stirrers and washers.
• the coffee washing device can be manufactured to process anywhere between 500 kg/h to 5,000 kg/h of washed coffee.
• the components in each module to process different 0 coffee amounts are the same, varying in the case of washer (17) size and number of stirrers (2), driving propeller (7) and intermediate propeller (6), rotor size (1), as indicated in Table 1.
• the washer (17) comprises one rotor (1) having stirrers (2) and spacers (39) which separate the stirrers, rotationally connected to a steel shaft with a square cross-section.
• a rotating connection means any type of coupling that allows the shaft to rotate and move elements connected thereto through the action generated by the construction of its square cross-section.
• the shaft is operatively connected to a motor at the top section in such a manner the rotor can rotate.
• the group of stirrers have a greater length vane called cleaners (4), which has the same cross-section as the stirrers (2) and which allows maintaining the interior surface of the housing (5) clean when rotating and thus avoiding obstructions.
• cleaners (4) a greater length vane
• the washer (17) has four cleaners (4). The number of cleaners goes according to the capacity of the module as described on Table 1.
• stirrer (2) Referring to Fig 7, stirrer (2), cleaner (4) and spacer (3) details are shown.
• the stirrers (2) (Fig 7B) have 8 vanes and have a rectangular cross-section, as shown in the transverse B-B section, have the following size: 22 mm x 15 mm x 18 mm in length made in plastic or metallic materials.
• the spacers (3) have the following dimensions: 27 mm in height and 99.5 mm in diameter, also made from plastic or metallic materials.
• the steel shaft with a square cross-section is 32 mm long.
• the cleaners (4) (Fig 7C) have the same cross-section as the stirrers (2) and are 33 mm long and oppositely located in order to avoid any imbalance in the rotor.
• the water required to wash the coffee is fed through three inlet holes (20) on the housing each measuring 9.5 mm, located at 400 mm, 625 mm and 875 mm (element 8 in Fig 5) from the housing base (5).
• the washer (17) rotor (1) has an intermediate propeller (6) located in the intermediate section of the rotor, at 485 mm high, having a 195 mm diameter, 195 mm pitch and 160 mm high, manufactured in 305 or 430 grade 14 steel, in order to maintain the rotational movement of the coffee mass, avoiding material accumulation such as pulp which could obstruct the housing holes and affect washing, and also to reduce power and reduce mechanical damage inflicted on the beans.
• the rotor (1) rotates at 870 rpm about the housing (5) center having an inside diameter of 215 mm and 1000 mm high, made from 305 or 430 grade 16 steel sheet material, having 27 x 3 mm perforations and a perforated area of 40%.
• maximum 16 L per minute for the module with greatest capacity 5,000 kg of washed coffee/h
• commercially available valves (19) are used.
• the coffee to be washed in the device is fed through a worm gear conveyor (9) (shown on Figure 4) having a 150 mm diameter and 150 mm pitch, rotating at 25 to 40 rpm according to the desired device capacity. Coffee is fed through the bottom housing section (5), at the area where the coffee-driving propeller (7) is located.
• a T-shape splitter connection was designed (10) which allows for these to rise in the 150 mm diameter and 200 mm high column thus avoiding being compressed by the conveyor worm gear (9).
• a depulping system or depulper is used (11) having a 2000 kg of cherries/h yield supported on a metallic structure (12); however, it must be understood that for any embodiment, a depulping system is used (1 1) and also a metallic structure (12) supporting each one of the components of the instant invention.
• the depulped coffee is passed though a circular sieve (13) having oblong 8 x 30 mm perforations and a perforated area greater than 30%, in order to remove the vast majority of pulp of existing cherries not yet depulped.
• the sieve can be circular with rods or machined laminate sheet, or in other embodiments, it can be flat swing sieve.
• the depulped sieve- cleansed coffee (13) is conveyed in an elevator (14) into two deposit tanks (15) (o more, according to farm needs).
• the elevators can be comprised of a worm gear or it can be a bucket elevator.
• the tanks (15) are manufactured in an inverted truncated cone shape, with a diameter greater than 1000 mm, 240 mm bottom diameter and 930 mm high, having a sliding gate (21 on Fig 6) at the bottom in order to allow coffee flow towards the mechanical washer feeder (17).
• the hopper has an inverted cone shape with more than a 65-degree inclination re the horizontal made in stainless steel or inert material.
• the gate (21) is perforated in order to allow wastewater drainage (mucilage + added water + bean remains + coffee pulp remains) during the coffee flow fermentation stage at the beginning of the wash.
• the tank (15) is supported on a metallic structure (16), which in the preferred embodiment, each one of the tanks has a capacity for 1000 kg of depulped coffee.
• the tanks (15) may be manufactured of stainless 305 or 430 grade 18 steel, and are designed to store coffee the time it requires in order to reach the "wash point", which may be anywhere between 16 to 20 hours with natural fermentation or maximum 3 hours when using pectinolytic enzymes.
• a worm gear (9) is used placed at its base, which feeds the mechanical washer (17) using the T-shaped connection (10) mentioned above, in order to reduce damage inflicted upon the coffee when entering the washer (17).
• a worm gear 9 is used placed at its base, which feeds the mechanical washer (17) using the T-shaped connection (10) mentioned above, in order to reduce damage inflicted upon the coffee when entering the washer (17).
• the worm gear is the only method to convey coffee from one system to the other.
• Other horizontal or slightly inclined conveyor methods may be used, such as for example a pallet conveyor.
• the coffee is taken to the fermentation tanks (15); iii) coffee mucilage is left degrading in the tanks (15) for 16 to 18 hours by the effect of microorganism activity and bean enzymes; the mucilage can also be degraded in less than three hours using pectinolytic enzymes applied on coffee before entering the fermentation tank (15); iv) coffee is removed from the tank (15) by means of gravity upon opening the sliding gate (21) and by using a worm gear (9) it is conveyed to a T-shaped connection (10) joined to the washer (17) at its base which avoids beans from being subject to shears generated by the feeder worm gear (9) or the washer driving propeller (7) which could damage the coffee.
• valves may vary from 1, for the 500 kg of washed coffee/h model, to 3, for the 5000 kg of washed coffee/h model.
• Coffee is washed due to friction between coffee beans as it moves forward through the open space left between the stirrers (2), housing walls (5), water counter-flowing and the effect of centrifugal force generated by the rotor (1) towards the inside of the washer (127), rotating at 870 rpm.
• Washed coffee exits the washer (17) through the top portion with a removal rate of 95% or more of the mucilage and with a device-inflicted mechanical damage of less than 0.4%.
• the washed coffee can be taken to the dryer immediately, or, in certain special cases, another device may be required to remove impurities. All wastewater produced (mucilage + added water + bean remains + coffee pulp remains) during washing using the device is conveyed by gravity or using a pump towards solar energy or mechanical dryers designed for this purpose, allowing to control 100% of the pollution which could impact water supplies or the dryers.

Landscapes

• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Food Science & Technology (AREA)
• Polymers & Plastics (AREA)
• Tea And Coffee (AREA)
• Processing Of Solid Wastes (AREA)
• Polysaccharides And Polysaccharide Derivatives (AREA)
• Apparatus For Making Beverages (AREA)
• Paper (AREA)

Priority Applications (5)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=48128531

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (9)

Cited By (5)

Families Citing this family (3)

Citations (1)

Family Cites Families (11)

• 2012
  • 2012-02-02 CO CO12018726A patent/CO6730164A1/es unknown
• 2013
  • 2013-02-03 PE PE2014001936A patent/PE20142255A1/es active IP Right Grant
  • 2013-02-03 BR BR112014019242A patent/BR112014019242B1/pt active IP Right Grant
  • 2013-02-03 PE PE2014001209A patent/PE20142414A1/es not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2013-02-03 MX MX2017012844A patent/MX385189B/es unknown
  • 2013-02-03 MX MX2014009341A patent/MX361675B/es active IP Right Grant
  • 2013-02-03 CN CN201380018560.3A patent/CN104254257B/zh active Active
  • 2013-02-03 PE PE2014001926A patent/PE20142254A1/es active IP Right Grant
  • 2013-02-03 WO PCT/IB2013/050898 patent/WO2013114341A2/en active Application Filing
• 2014
  • 2014-08-01 GT GT201400171A patent/GT201400171A/es unknown
  • 2014-08-04 NI NI201400085A patent/NI201400085A/es unknown
  • 2014-09-02 CR CR20140407A patent/CR20140407A/es unknown

Patent Citations (1)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events