Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B02—CRUSHING, PULVERISING, OR DISINTEGRATING; PREPARATORY TREATMENT OF GRAIN FOR MILLING
  • B02B—PREPARING GRAIN FOR MILLING; REFINING GRANULAR FRUIT TO COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS BY WORKING THE SURFACE
  • B02B1/00—Preparing grain for milling or like processes
  • B02B1/04—Wet treatment, e.g. washing, wetting, softening
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B02—CRUSHING, PULVERISING, OR DISINTEGRATING; PREPARATORY TREATMENT OF GRAIN FOR MILLING
  • B02C—CRUSHING, PULVERISING, OR DISINTEGRATING IN GENERAL; MILLING GRAIN
  • B02C9/00—Other milling methods or mills specially adapted for grain
  • B02C9/04—Systems or sequences of operations; Plant

Definitions

• the invention relates to a device for wetting cereal grains for the purpose of subsequent further processing into a ground product.
• wetting devices In terms of their function and structure, such wetting devices should not be confused with cleaning systems such as those used in modern industrial mills upstream process, and which aim to remove impurities from under the grain kernels, among other things by separating cleaning water with the impurities dissolved in it after the process.
• the important process step of wetting in a grain mill also has other functions.
• the germ contamination of the grain by the field flora which inevitably ends up being ground by the grain mills, is unavoidable.
• the interior of a wetting device offers microorganisms and germs an ideal breeding ground for their growth. Therefore, the internal cleanability of the wetting device - as well as other devices in a mill system - is an essential requirement.
• Wetting devices according to the prior art have the disadvantage that a mechanism is required for the mechanical mixing of the grain kernels, but it is difficult to clean.
• the cleaning of the mixing elements and the mixing chamber in which there are constantly moist grain kernels and other residues during operation and thus correspondingly adhering to them, is laborious and is therefore often disregarded.
• the wetting device should, in particular, be simple in construction and therefore involve as little production and maintenance effort as possible. Additionally or alternatively, it should be easy to clean.
• the wetting process should be such that a corresponding structure of the wetting device that is as simple as possible is possible. This object is achieved by a wetting device, a method and a mill system as defined in the patent claims.
• the invention is based on the approach that a (defined) falling stream of grain kernels is generated inside a container, and that these grain kernels are mixed with a liquid and/or steam (i.e. with water or steam, with water as required with additives) as they fall enriched) are sprayed.
• a liquid and/or steam i.e. with water or steam, with water as required with additives
• the temperature of the water can be set to any required value during the spraying process, i.e. between 0°C and 100°C.
• the temperature and pressure of the steam are also not fixed at a fixed operating point and can vary.
• the fact that the cereal grains are sprayed and/or steamed 'as they fall' means that the liquid in the form of fine droplets or the steam hits the grain kernels while they are falling and not, for example, only when the grain kernels are on a substrate have encountered.
• This procedure in contrast to spraying grains that lie flat or are conveyed and/or mixed by mechanical means and that form a mass of grains in contact with each other (grains in bulk), allows substantially all the grains to be treated immediately come into contact with the wetting fluid (liquid and/or vapor) during spraying and/or steaming. Therefore, a subsequent mechanical mixing of the grains is not necessary. Mechanical mixers that are difficult to maintain and clean, such as screw conveyors, can be omitted. Rather, the Wetting device should be free of actively driven parts that are in contact with the grain and move it mechanically.
• the mill system can, for example, be constructed in such a way that the cereal grains, possibly after a short dwell time in the container, at least without subsequent mechanical mixing, go directly from the wetting device into a holding cell, solely due to the gravitational effect when the holding cell is below the wetting device , or merely by pneumatic means if it is above or at the same level as the wetting device.
• the downdraft is vertical. This makes it possible for the falling stream to be controlled particularly well, both with a large grain throughput and when the grain throughput is smaller - the wetting works without the grains having to be given a horizontal impulse.
• the spraying and/or steaming can take place through suitably arranged nozzles. In particular, these can be arranged in such a way that essentially the entire downflow is wetted.
• the surface is particularly large, and in particular nozzles acting from the outside and distributed along the circumference of the container can wet particularly efficiently, for example by being arranged between the segments in the circumferential direction (azimuthally).
• there can be at least three outer nozzles distributed along the circumference i.e. there is one outer nozzle each at at least three different azimuthal positions.
• the wetting device can have inner and outer nozzles.
• the internal nozzles may be located approximately on the axis of the container.
• External nozzles may be arranged along the vessel wall, e.g. on several levels, e.g. on a feed line, forming one or more horizontal circumferential rings.
• Such an arrangement with inner and outer nozzles has the advantage that the structure is particularly simple and that no elements potentially impeding the downflow protrude into it - at the level of the spraying, the interior space can be reduced to the centrally arranged inner nozzles and elements Supply be completely free.
• the outer impact elements can, in particular, have the form of wings that are curved upwards or taper upwards towards an edge, the width of which increases radially outwards and the tip of which rises radially outwards.
• the impact elements are arranged in the wetting device in such a way that they do not have a function that loosens the fruit peel - i.e.
• the wetting process is gentle, and the impact speed on the impact elements - and also on the collecting surfaces in the lower area of the wetting device, on which the grain kernels fall after the wetting fall - are shaped and arranged in such a way that the impact speeds of the grain kernels are correspondingly moderate and no mechanical processing of the grain kernels takes place.
• the wetting device can be designed so that there are no internal surfaces for grain to lodge on.
• the container does not form any inner upward-pointing surfaces (shoulders or the like), and with the exception of the impact elements, which only have curved and/or inclined surfaces, there are no elements with further upward-pointing surfaces inside the container .
• the wetting device is controlled in such a way that the wetted cereal grains are backed up in the lower part of the container for a short time (typically a few seconds, for example 8-30 s). This can - if required - have a moisture balancing effect, in addition to moisture balancing in the soaking cell located below.
• the accumulation in the container base can be done with the help of an accumulation control device (an accumulation control member).
• a shut-off device is referred to as a "backwater control device” here, which is controllable in the sense that it can not only be switched between two states (“open” and “closed”), but also allows different flow rates to be set. Examples of such accumulation control devices are accumulation control flaps or outlet slides.
• the accumulation gelling device is set up in particular to regulate the grain mass flow of the wetted grain kernels as a function of the accumulated level.
• a backwater control valve can be advantageous in that such, in contrast to an outlet slide, prevents the
• a backwater control flap - or an outlet slide - can be clamped between two mounting flanges so that the flap or slide can be dismantled at any time.
• Wetting devices for cereal kernels with a container (with a container inlet and a container outlet), and with at least one nozzle for wetting the cereal kernels inside the container.
• the wetting device is operated in such a way that wetting with the desired amount of liquid is effected. This means that at no time is excess water supplied that would have to be excreted from the system.
• a controller - which belongs to the wetting device or to a higher-level unit, e.g. the entire mill system - can monitor both the grain flow rate and the amount of sprayed liquid or steam and at least meter the latter.
• the dosing takes place in such a way that exactly the required amount is dosed. This is generally between 0.5% and 12% of the grain quantity (in percent by mass), which is orders of magnitude smaller than, for example, in grain washers.
• FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of the horizontal tube, vertical tube and the central impact element of the wetting device according to FIGS. 1-5;
• FIG. 7 is a diagram of a wetting device with a stand-off cell;
• Some of the liquid is then transported from there through the horizontal tube and on the side opposite the container puncture through another container puncture into a bracket-shaped transition pipe 33 (Fig. 2). and from there to the nozzle ring of the outer nozzles 37.
• Other ways of guiding the liquid to the nozzles are also possible, e.g. without branching, in which case the liquid then passes e.g. through the vertical tube up to the inner nozzles and from there down again inside the vertical tube, or with a transition between inner and outer nozzles inside the container instead of the transition tube 33, with liquid supply via the outer nozzles to the inner nozzles instead of vice versa, with separate liquid supplies for the inner and outer nozzles, etc.
• Many other ways of supplying liquid to the nozzles are conceivable.
• the outer nozzles 37 are arranged approximately at the level of the flange connection between the upper part 2 and the lower part 3 of the container.
• the wetting device can be set up to discharge this residual amount of water.
• a shaft that supports the outlet flap or a wing of the outlet flap can be a hollow shaft with a perforation at the top. The remaining water can then be discharged through the hollow shaft.
• FIG. 11 shows a section through the backflow control flap 72 .
• the accumulation control flap 72 has essentially identical, symmetrically arranged flap wings 73 (flap halves), which evenly regulate the entire grain mass flow.
• the flap wings 73 are adapted to the contour and their position is adjusted by means of a servo motor (servo actuator 71).
• servo motor servo actuator 71
• the flap wings (73) rotate in opposite directions about their flap axes, represented by concentric circles in the sectional view according to FIG. Due to the symmetrical position of the flap halves, zone formation or an irregular grain mass flow to the outlet center is avoided.
• the inner nozzles 36 and the outer nozzles 37 in the first outer nozzle ring are always simultaneously supplied with liquid for the wetting application through a flexible or rigid connection.
• the liquid can, for example, pass through the first outer nozzle ring directly into the horizontal support strut designed as a tube.
• the vertical position of the inner nozzles 36 is just below the

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Food Science & Technology (AREA)
• Adjustment And Processing Of Grains (AREA)
• Cereal-Derived Products (AREA)
• Bakery Products And Manufacturing Methods Therefor (AREA)
• Special Spraying Apparatus (AREA)
• Nozzles (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=81579605

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Citations (4)

Family Cites Families (6)

• 2022
  • 2022-04-01 JP JP2023558365A patent/JP2024516509A/ja active Pending
  • 2022-04-01 US US18/554,001 patent/US20240181464A1/en active Pending
  • 2022-04-01 AU AU2022254185A patent/AU2022254185A1/en active Pending
  • 2022-04-01 CA CA3214030A patent/CA3214030A1/en active Pending
  • 2022-04-01 EP EP22720610.9A patent/EP4319919A1/de active Pending
  • 2022-04-01 WO PCT/EP2022/058770 patent/WO2022214401A1/de not_active Ceased

Patent Citations (4)

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