Cat litter and preparation method thereof

Abstract

The invention relates to cat litter and a preparation method thereof. The cat litter comprises beer malt residues, corn starch and an adhesive. The invention also provides a preparation method of the cat litter. The method comprises the following steps: mixing and stirring the beer malt residues, the corn starch and the adhesive, grinding, granulating and forming, drying and sieving powder to prepare the cat litter. The malt cat litter disclosed by the invention has excellent water absorption capacity, caking strength, deodorization effect and collapsibility, and is an environment-friendly, natural, healthy and reliable cat litter with excellent performance.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a cleaning and processing product for pet excrement, in particular to a cat litter and a preparation method thereof. Background Art

[0002] Cat litter is essentially a bedding material used to bury feces and urine. It is a product that was created to address the pain point between the natural habit of cats to bury their excrement and the need to enable cats to live indoors. Without cat litter products, it is difficult for cats to defecate comfortably indoors. Cat litter products are daily necessities that enable cats to live at home and maintain a hygienic environment at home.

[0003] According to the purpose of use and application scenarios, the performance indicators of cat litter involve three aspects: water absorption capacity, clumping strength, and deodorization effect. The water absorption capacity of cat litter specifically refers to the water absorption speed and water absorption rate of cat litter, which determines whether it can absorb excrement in time and fully, and prevents the cat litter from sticking to the cat litter box after encountering liquid and causing inconvenience in cleaning; the clumping strength of cat litter specifically refers to the block strength of the cat litter after the cat litter is clumped, which is related to whether the cat litter can be smoothly shoveled out and processed after absorbing and wrapping the excrement; the deodorization effect of cat litter is related to whether it can absorb or cover up the odor of cat excrement. For some plant-based cat litters, there will also be indicators for their ability to disintegrate in water, requiring them to fully disintegrate in water within a specified time so that the used cat litter clumps can be processed using the household toilet system.

[0004] Cat litter classification Cat litter products can be divided into two categories according to the type of raw materials: inorganic cat litter and organic cat litter. Inorganic cat litter includes bentonite cat litter, crystal cat litter and other cat litters made of non-organic substances. Organic cat litter mainly includes plant cat litter (such as tofu cat litter, millet cat litter, corn cat litter, etc.), paper litter, wood litter and other cat litters made of organic matter. Different base materials directly affect the performance of cat litter. In terms of material, paper litter and wood litter have weaker water absorption and deodorizing power than other cat litters; tofu cat litter and corn cat litter are organic materials, so they are prone to mold and breeding pests after use; bentonite cat litter has more dust than other cat litters, which is easy to affect the cat's respiratory tract; crystal litter is made of chemical substances, and if cats eat it by mistake, there is a chance of poisoning.

[0005] Cat litter can be divided into clumping cat litter and disintegrating cat litter according to the characteristics of cat litter's performance when it comes into contact with water: clumping cat litter will absorb water and solidify into a ball after it comes into contact with liquid, while disintegrating cat litter will absorb water and break apart. Disintegrating cat litter requires a special double-layer cat litter box so that the debris can be sifted into the lower layer. The water absorption and deodorization power of clumping cat litter are often better than disintegrating cat litter. In addition, if you use disintegrating cat litter, you usually need to equip it with a double-layer cat litter box and urine pad.

[0006] In the current market, tofu cat litter has become the cat litter with the highest user preference. Overall, user preference for plant-based clumping cat litter (such as tofu cat litter, millet cat litter, corn cat litter, etc.) continues to grow rapidly. With the vigorous development of the domestic and even global pet economy and the continuous expansion of the cat-keeping population, the demand for plant-based cat litter continues to grow, and the market potential is considerable. However, the tofu cat litter manufacturing industry is currently facing certain difficulties. The supply of raw material dregs is a necessary resource for tofu cat litter manufacturers, and the supply of dregs resources has begun to show a downward trend, followed by rising raw material costs and unhealthy market competition in the tofu cat litter manufacturing industry. Summary of the invention

[0007] The invention provides a cat litter, which comprises the following components: beer malt residue, starch and a binder.

[0008] Optionally, the starch is selected from cereal starch.

[0009] Optionally, the cereal starch is selected from cereal starch.

[0010] Optionally, the cereal starch is selected from at least one of rice starch, wheat starch, corn starch, sorghum starch, millet starch, millet starch, yellow rice starch or buckwheat starch.

[0011] Optionally, the rice starch is selected from at least one of indica rice, japonica rice or glutinous rice.

[0012] Optionally, the wheat starch is selected from at least one of wheat starch, barley starch, oat starch or rye starch.

[0013] Optionally, the starch is selected from corn starch.

[0014] Optionally, the adhesive is selected from at least one of a polysaccharide adhesive or a plant gum adhesive.

[0015] Optionally, the polysaccharide binder is selected from at least one of guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, gum arabic, tragacanth gum, xanthan gum, karaya gum, konjac gum, tamarind pectin, gellan gum, cellulose gum, methylcellulose, propylene glycol alginate or pectin.

[0016] Optionally, the plant glue adhesive is selected from at least one of starch glue, dextrin glue, rosin glue, carboxymethyl cellulose glue or lignin glue.

[0017] Optionally, the binder is guar gum.

[0018] Optionally, the cat litter comprises the following raw material components based on the total volume of the following raw material components:

[0019] Beer malt residue 60%-70% by volume, starch 25%-35% by volume, binder 2%-5% by volume;

[0020] Optionally, the cat litter comprises the following raw material components based on the total weight of the following raw material components:

[0021] Beer malt residue 40-50% by weight, starch 43-53% by weight, binder 4-7% by weight;

[0022] Optionally, the beer malt residue raw material is beer malt residue having a moisture content of 65%-75% by weight.

[0023] Optionally, the cat litter has a moisture content of 8%-11% by weight.

[0024] Optionally, the average particle size of the cat litter is 1 mm-3 cm; and the particle shape of the cat litter is a solid structure.

[0025] Optionally, the solid structure is selected from at least one of a spherical shape, a hemispherical shape, a columnar shape, a strip shape, a block shape or a cone shape.

[0026] Optionally, the columnar shape is selected from at least one of a quasi-cylindrical shape and a quasi-prism shape.

[0027] Optionally, the cat litter is a quasi-cylindrical solid structure; optionally, the quasi-cylindrical solid structure has a length of 0.5cm-3cm, optionally 0.5-2cm; and a diameter of 1mm-4mm, optionally 2-3mm.

[0028] The present invention also provides a method for preparing cat litter, the method comprising the following steps:

[0029] a) mixing beer malt residue, starch and a binder to obtain a mixture;

[0030] Optionally, b) grinding the mixture to obtain a ground mixture;

[0031] c) granulating the ground mixture to obtain a granular mixture; and

[0032] d) drying the granulated mixture.

[0033] Optionally, in step a), based on the total volume of the following raw material components, the amounts of the components by volume are as follows: beer malt residue 60%-70%, starch 25%-35%, binder 2%-5%.

[0034] Alternatively, based on the total weight of the following raw material components, the amount of each component by weight is as follows:

[0035] The beer malt residue is 40-50% by weight, the starch is 43-53% by weight, and the binder is 4-7% by weight.

[0036] Optionally, in step a), the beer malt residue is adjusted to have a moisture content of 65% to 75% by weight.

[0037] Optionally, in step a), the mixture is adjusted to have a moisture content of 22% to 28% by weight.

[0038] Optionally, in step b), the ground mixture is adjusted to have a moisture content of 22% to 28% by weight.

[0039] Optionally, in step d), the obtained granular mixture is dried to a moisture content of 8% to 11% by weight. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] The specific implementation methods of the present invention will be described in detail below to fully and completely demonstrate the technical details, features, performance effects and implementation objectives of the present invention.

[0041] The core key concept of the present invention is to use the malt residues produced after the saccharification process of the beer industry to manufacture malt cat litter with excellent performance and cost-effectiveness.

[0042] The present invention provides a malt cat litter made from malt residues produced after the saccharification process in the beer industry, thereby providing the market with a cat litter product with excellent performance, providing a treatment plan for the malt waste residues in the beer industry and extending the downstream industry, and proposing an alternative raw material with superior performance and controllable cost in response to the dilemma of the relative shortage of bean dregs resources and rising cost prices in the tofu cat litter industry.

[0043] The malt residue in the beer industry will be discharged from the beer production line as waste after the saccharification process. The malt residue after the saccharification process consumes about 70%-80% of the sugar, which is more suitable as an organic matrix for making cat litter. Malt residue does not participate in the fermentation process in the beer production line, so it will not be mixed with substances that are harmful to the health of cats. After flash evaporation, the malt residue has the same excellent water absorption capacity as bean dregs. At the same time, the recovery mode and process of malt residue are highly similar to those of bean dregs. Therefore, the use of malt residue in the beer industry to convert into malt cat litter has mature references in production, supply chain and other models, and can also better solve the current difficulties faced by the tofu cat litter industry.

[0044] One embodiment of the present invention provides a cat litter, which comprises the following raw materials: beer malt residue, starch and adhesive. Optionally, the cat litter raw materials are edible.

[0045] In some embodiments, the cat litter consists of beer malt grains, starch, and a binder.

[0046] The beer malt residue of the present invention is a byproduct of the beer industry, and is the remaining wet malt residue after the saccharification process in beer production, and the wet malt residue has no obvious odor. The cat litter is a plant cat litter.

[0047] In some embodiments, starch is selected from cereal starch. Preferably, cereal starch is selected from cereal starch. Preferably, cereal starch is selected from at least one of rice starch, wheat starch, corn starch, sorghum starch, millet starch, millet starch, yellow rice starch or buckwheat starch. Preferably, rice starch is selected from at least one of indica rice, japonica rice or glutinous rice. Preferably, wheat starch is selected from at least one of wheat starch, barley starch, oat starch or rye starch. Preferably, starch is selected from corn starch.

[0048] In some embodiments, the binder is selected from at least one of a polysaccharide binder or a plant gum binder.

[0049] Preferably, the polysaccharide adhesive is selected from at least one of guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, gum arabic, tragacanth gum, xanthan gum, karaya gum, konjac gum, tamarind pectin, gellan gum, cellulose gum, methylcellulose, propylene glycol alginate or pectin. Preferably, the plant glue adhesive is selected from at least one of starch glue, dextrin glue, rosin glue, carboxymethyl cellulose glue or lignin glue. Preferably, the adhesive is guar gum.

[0050] In some embodiments, the binder is guar gum. Optionally, guar gum is a food grade additive. Optionally, corn starch is a food grade additive.

[0051] In some embodiments, the raw materials of cat litter include, relative to the total volume of each component: 60%-70% by volume of beer malt residue, 25%-35% by volume of starch, and 2%-5% by volume of binder.

[0052] In some embodiments, the raw materials of cat litter include, relative to the total volume of each component: 60%-70% by volume of beer malt residue, 25%-35% by volume of corn starch, and 2%-5% by volume of guar gum.

[0053] In some embodiments, the raw materials of cat litter include, relative to the total volume of each component: 65%-70% by volume of beer malt residue, 25%-29% by volume of corn starch, and 2%-5% by volume of guar gum.

[0054] In some embodiments, the raw materials of cat litter include, relative to the total volume of each component: 60%-65% by volume of beer malt residue, 30%-35% by volume of corn starch, and 2%-5% by volume of guar gum.

[0055] For example, the content of beer malt residue by volume can be 60%, 61%, 62%, 63%, 64%, 65%, 66%, 67%, 68%, 69% or 70%, or a range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0056] For example, the starch content by volume can be 25%, 26%, 27%, 28%, 29%, 30%, 31%, 32%, 33%, 34%, 35%, or a range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0057] For example, the binder content can be 2%, 2.4%, 2.8%, 3.0%, 3.4%, 3.8%, 4.2%, 4.5%, 4.8% or 5% by volume, or a range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0058] In some embodiments, the raw materials of the cat litter include, relative to the total weight of each component, 40-50% by weight of beer malt residue, 43-53% by weight of starch, and 4-7% by weight of a binder.

[0059] In some embodiments, the raw materials of the cat litter include: 40-50% by weight of beer malt residue, 43-53% by weight of corn starch, and 4-7% by weight of guar gum, relative to the total weight of each component.

[0060] In some embodiments, in the raw material components, the moisture content of beer malt residue is 65%-75%. For example, the weight moisture content of beer malt residue can be 67-73%, 68-72% or 69-71%, such as 65%, 66%, 67%, 68%, 69%, 70%, 71%, 72%, 73%, 74% or 75%, or the range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0061] In some embodiments, the cat litter has a moisture content of 8-11% by weight.

[0062] In some embodiments, the average particle size of cat litter is 1mm-3cm. In some embodiments, the particle shape of cat litter is a solid structure. Preferably, the solid structure is selected from at least one of spherical, hemispherical, cylindrical, strip, block or conical. Preferably, the column is selected from at least one of quasi-cylindrical and quasi-prism. Preferably, the cat litter is a quasi-cylindrical solid structure with a particle length of 0.5cm-3cm and a diameter of 1mm-4mm. Optionally, the particle length can be 0.5cm-2cm, such as 0.5cm, 1cm, 1.5cm, 2.0cm, 2.5cm or 3cm, or a range between any two of the above endpoint values; Optionally, the diameter can be 2mm-3mm, such as 1mm, 1.5mm, 2.0mm, 2.5mm, 3.0mm, 3.5mm, 4.0mm, or a range between any two of the above endpoint values.

[0063] In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain an inorganic matrix. In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain bentonite. In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain okara. In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain starches other than cereal starch. In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain starches other than cereal starch. In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain starches other than rice starch, wheat starch, and corn starch. In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain starches other than corn starch. In some embodiments, the cat litter does not contain tapioca starch.

[0064] One embodiment of the present invention also provides a method for preparing cat litter, the method comprising:

[0065] a) mixing beer malt residue, corn starch and a binder to obtain a mixture;

[0066] Optionally, b) grinding the mixture to obtain a ground mixture;

[0067] c) granulating the ground mixture to obtain a granular mixture; and

[0068] d) drying the granular mixture to obtain the product.

[0069] In some embodiments, the cat litter comprises, relative to the total volume of each component, 60%-70% by volume of beer malt residue, 25%-35% by volume of corn starch, and 2%-5% by volume of a binder.

[0070] In some embodiments, the starch is corn starch.

[0071] In some embodiments, the binder is guar gum.

[0072] In some embodiments, the cat litter preparation method is as follows:

[0073] (1) Fresh beer malt residue without generating peculiar smell discharged from the saccharification process of beer production is dehydrated by a dehydration device to obtain pre-dehydrated beer malt residue.

[0074] (2) The pre-dehydrated beer malt residue in step (1) is uniformly mixed with corn starch and a binder such as guar gum in the above proportions to form a mixed raw material.

[0075] (3) The mixed raw material obtained in step (2) is put into a grinder to prepare a powdery mixed raw material, and the powdery mixed raw material is adjusted to a suitable water content by weight.

[0076] (4) The powdery mixed raw material prepared in step (3) is placed in a granulator for granulation to obtain a granular mixed material.

[0077] Step (5) placing the granular mixture prepared in step (4) into a dryer for drying, sieving the powder after drying and cooling, and then packaging.

[0078] In some embodiments, the weight moisture content of the pre-dehydrated beer malt residues in step (1) is 65%-75%. For example, the weight moisture content of the beer malt residues can be 67-73%, 68-72% or 69-71%, such as 65%, 66%, 67%, 68%, 69%, 70%, 71%, 72%, 73%, 74% or 75%, or a range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0079] In the present invention, the weight moisture content of beer malt residue refers to the weight ratio of water content after dehydration (for example, dehydration by a dehydration device such as a crawler filter press or a screw filter press) and before mixing with other cat litter raw materials.

[0080] In some embodiments, the weight moisture content of the mixed raw materials in step (2) is 22%-28%, for example, it can be 22%, 23%, 24%, 25%, 26%, 27% or 28%, or a range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0081] In some embodiments, in step (3), the weight moisture content of the powdered mixed raw material is 22%-28%, for example, it can be 22%, 23%, 24%, 25%, 26%, 27% or 28%, or a range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0082] In some embodiments, the grinder described in step (3) is an electric disc grinder.

[0083] In some embodiments, in step (4), the weight moisture content of the granular mixture is 17%-27%, for example, it can be 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%, 21%, 22%, 23%, 24%, 25%, 26% or 27%, or a range between any two of the above endpoints.

[0084] In some embodiments, the pelletizer in step (4) is a feed pelletizer.

[0085] In some embodiments, the feed pellet mill comprises one of a flat die feed pellet mill, a ring die feed pellet mill, a double-layer mode feed pellet mill, or a vertical feed pellet mill.

[0086] In some embodiments, the dryer described in step (5) is a microwave drying device.

[0087] In some embodiments, the powdered cat litter waste obtained from the sieving process in step (5) can be evenly mixed into the mixed raw materials in step (2).

[0088] In the raw material ratio of the malt cat litter of the present invention, beer malt residue is a water absorbent, and corn starch and guar gum are binders. The water absorbent beer malt residue absorbs water, and the binders corn starch and guar gum in the cat litter react with water to thicken and form agglomerates.

[0089] In some embodiments, the preparation method comprises:

[0090] (1) Take fresh beer malt residue without obvious odor produced by the saccharification process of beer production, and put it into the dehydration device for the first dehydration process before it produces obvious odor. In order to ensure the smoothness of the subsequent mixing stage, the weight moisture content of the wet beer malt residue after pre-dehydration at this stage needs to be controlled at 65%-75%;

[0091] Optionally, the dewatering device comprises a crawler filter press or a screw filter press;

[0092] (2) Take out the pre-dehydrated beer malt residue in step (1) and mix them in a volume ratio of 60%-70% beer malt residue, 25%-35% corn starch, and 2%-5% guar gum in a mixer and mix them evenly. To ensure that the subsequent powder is smoothly made, the weight moisture content of the mixed raw materials at this stage needs to be 22%-28%;

[0093] Optionally, the mixer can be one of a drum mixer, a double cone mixer or a spiral mixer;

[0094] (3) The mixed raw material with a weight moisture content of 22%-28% obtained in step (2) is placed in an electric disc grinder for powdering. The grinding parameters of the grinder need to be set to the finest. Taking the electric disc grinder used in the present invention as an example, it needs to be set to 280 meshes-300 meshes to ensure that the powdered mixed raw material can be granulated smoothly. The weight moisture content of the powdered mixed raw material at this stage needs to be controlled at 22%-28%;

[0095] (4) placing the powdery mixed raw material with a weight moisture content of 25%-35% obtained in step (3) into a ring-type feed pelletizer for pelleting. Due to the high temperature generated during the pelleting process, the weight moisture content of the powdery mixed raw material will decrease by 1%-5%. The weight moisture content of the granular mixed material obtained at this stage is 17%-27%;

[0096] Optionally, the ring mode feed pellet mill includes a 125 type ring mode feed pellet mill or a 250 type ring mode feed pellet mill;

[0097] (5) Place the granular mixed material with a weight moisture content of 17%-27% prepared in step (4) into a microwave drying device for drying. To prevent the raw materials from being burned and over-dried, the temperature parameter of the microwave drying device must be set between 70°C and 85°C, and the time parameter must be set to 3 minutes to 4 minutes. The weight moisture content of the dried shaped malt cat litter must be controlled at 8%-11%;

[0098] (6) waiting for the formed malt cat litter with a weight moisture content of 8%-11% obtained in step (5) to cool to room temperature, vibrating the screen to sieve the powder, and then vacuum bagging with 6L per bag to make a malt cat litter product;

[0099] In some embodiments, the finished cat litter has a solid cylindrical structure with a particle length of 0.5 cm to 3 cm and a diameter of 1 mm to 4 mm.

[0100] The cat litter of the present invention has the following advantages:

[0101] Since beer malt slag is the main waste generated in the beer brewing process and the current lack of treatment mode for beer malt slag is not yet mature, beer malt slag is used to make malt cat litter, sustainable utilization of resources can be achieved, its potential economic value is fully excavated, and a circular economy is created. Meanwhile, relative to some common cat litter raw materials, such as pea powder, bean curd residues, the market demand for beer malt slag is relatively low, and the price is low, providing cost advantages for the production of malt cat litter. Beer malt slag is the most important raw material resource of malt cat litter, and the beer manufacturing industry can regularly provide a large amount of stable malt slag supplies, so using wet malt slag to produce malt cat litter can obtain a relatively stable and sufficient supply of raw materials. The beer malt slag used by the cat litter of the present invention has a large output, low demand, and a low market price, and the feasibility of recycling to make malt cat litter is high, and the cost control advantage is obvious.

[0102] The beer malt residue used in the cat litter of the present invention only participates in the saccharification process in the beer production process, consumes about 70%-80% of the sugar in the saccharification process, and does not participate in subsequent fermentation-related processes. Therefore, the beer malt residue not only has a lower sugar content, for example, the sugar content of the malt residue is about 15%-17%, so that it is not easy to deteriorate due to its low sugar content in the cat litter raw materials, and its components are not mixed with harmful components such as alcohol that may damage the health of cats. Therefore, using beer malt residue as an organic base material can effectively reduce the health risks caused by cats accidentally eating cat litter.

[0103] The invention controls the weight moisture content of beer malt residue and the weight moisture content of raw materials during the raw material preparation process, so that the cat litter has good product performance and can effectively improve the water absorption rate, cohesion and cohesion strength of the cat litter.

[0104] The cat litter of the invention has reasonable raw material ratio and manufacturing process, so the contents of harmful elements such as lead, total arsenic, formaldehyde, aflatoxin B1, total mold count, salmonella and the like in the cat litter are extremely low, and the safety is greatly higher than the industry standard.

[0105] The cat litter of the present invention has excellent water absorption capacity, clumping strength, deodorizing effect, and disintegration ability, and its comprehensive performance has significant advantages over common cat litters on the market.

[0106] Example

[0107] The technical solution of the present disclosure is further illustrated by specific examples below. Those skilled in the art should understand that the examples are only to help understand the present disclosure and should not be regarded as limiting the present disclosure.

[0108] Example 1

[0109] This embodiment provides a cat litter, wherein the initial raw materials of the cat litter include, by volume percentage, 64% beer malt residue, 30% corn starch, and 4% guar gum, wherein the weight moisture content of the beer malt residue is 70%.

[0110] The preparation method of the cat litter comprises: mixing beer malt residue, corn starch and guar gum according to the above ratio and stirring, granulating and forming, drying and sieving the powder to obtain the cat litter. In this embodiment, the cat litter is a solid cylindrical structure with a particle length of 1.0 cm-1.1 cm and a diameter of 2 mm-3 mm.

[0111] Example 2

[0112] This embodiment provides a cat litter, wherein the initial raw materials of the cat litter include, by volume percentage, 62% of beer malt residue, 35% of corn starch, and 3% of guar gum, wherein the weight moisture content of the beer malt residue is 65%.

[0113] The preparation method of this cat litter comprises:

[0114] (1) fresh beer malt residues without generating peculiar smell discharged from the saccharification process of beer production are dehydrated by a screw filter press to obtain pre-dehydrated beer malt residues, and the weight moisture content of the pre-dehydrated beer malt residues is controlled to be 65%;

[0115] (2) mixing beer malt residue (i.e., pre-dehydrated malt residue), corn starch, and guar gum according to the above ratio and stirring, and putting them into an electric disc grinder to prepare a powdery mixed raw material, and adjusting the weight moisture content of the mixed raw material to 23%;

[0116] (3) placing the powdered mixed raw material into a 250-type ring-mode feed pelletizer for pelleting to obtain a granular mixed material;

[0117] (4) The granular mixed material prepared in step (4) is placed in a microwave drying machine for drying, and after drying and cooling, the mixed material is sieved and then packaged. In this embodiment, the cat litter is a solid cylindrical structure with a particle length of 0.5 cm-0.7 cm and a diameter of 3 mm-3.5 mm. The powdered cat litter waste obtained in the sieving process can be uniformly mixed into the mixed raw material in step (2).

[0118] Example 3

[0119] This embodiment provides a cat litter, wherein the initial raw materials of the cat litter include, by volume percentage, 70% beer malt residue, 26% corn starch, and 4% guar gum, wherein the weight moisture content of the beer malt residue is 69.31%.

[0120] The preparation method of the cat litter is similar to that of Example 2, except that

[0121] (1) Controlling the weight moisture content of beer malt residue to 69.31%;

[0122] (2) adjusting the weight moisture content of the mixed raw materials to 25%;

[0123] (4) Cat litter has a solid cylindrical structure with a particle length of 1.2 cm to 1.5 cm and a diameter of 3 mm to 3.5 mm.

[0124] Example 4

[0125] This embodiment provides a cat litter, wherein the initial raw materials of the cat litter include, by volume percentage, 61% of beer malt residue, 36% of corn starch, and 3% of guar gum, wherein the weight moisture content of the beer malt residue is 69.31%.

[0126] (1) At this stage, the weight moisture content of the pre-dehydrated beer malt residue must be controlled at 69.31%.

[0127] (2) The pre-dehydrated beer malt residue in step (1) is taken out and mixed in a drum mixer in a volume ratio of 61% beer malt residue, 36% corn starch, and 3% guar gum. To ensure smooth powdering in the subsequent process, the weight moisture content of the mixed raw materials at this stage is controlled at 22.39%.

[0128] (3) The mixed raw material with a weight moisture content of 22.39% obtained in step (2) is placed in an electric disc grinder for powdering. The grinding parameters of the grinder need to be set to the finest. For example, the electric disc grinder used in this embodiment needs to be set to 280 mesh-300 mesh to ensure that the powdered mixed raw material can be granulated smoothly. The weight moisture content of the powdered mixed raw material at this stage needs to be controlled at 23.58%.

[0129] (4) The powdery mixed raw material with a weight moisture content of 23.58% obtained in step (3) is placed in a 125-type ring-mode feed pelletizer for pelleting. Due to the high temperature generated during the pelleting process, the weight moisture content of the powdery mixed raw material will decrease. The weight moisture content of the granular mixture obtained at this stage is 22.31%.

[0130] (5) The granular mixed material with a weight moisture content of 22.31% prepared in step (4) is placed in a microwave drying device for drying. To prevent the raw materials from being burned and over-dried, the temperature parameter of the microwave drying device must be set at 70° C. and the time parameter must be set for 3 minutes. The weight moisture content of the dried shaped malt cat litter must be controlled at 10%.

[0131] (6) Waiting for the shaped malt cat litter with a weight moisture content of 9% obtained in step (5) to cool to room temperature, sieving the powder by screen vibration, and vacuum bagging in 6L bags to prepare malt cat litter products. The finished cat litter has a particle length of 1.1cm-1.2cm and a cylindrical solid structure with a diameter of 3mm-4mm.

[0132] Examples 5-9 and Comparative Examples 1-5

[0133] The following Examples 5-9 and Comparative Examples 1-5 provide a cat litter, the initial raw material composition and preparation method steps of the cat litter are similar to those of Example 4, except that in steps (2) to (4), the weight moisture content of the raw materials is controlled differently. At the same time, the cat litter products prepared in Examples 5-10 and Comparative Examples 1-5 are subjected to performance tests, as shown in Table 1 for details.

[0134] Among them, the testing instrument for the weight moisture content of the raw materials is: halogen lamp heating moisture tester;

[0135] Performance score reference: T / CIQA 11-2020 5.2.1 "Technical indicators of tofu cat litter".

[0136] Table 1

[0137]

[0138] It can be seen that the present invention controls the weight moisture content of beer malt residue and the weight moisture content of raw materials during the raw material preparation process, so that the cat litter has good product performance, that is, the water absorption rate, clumping property and clumping strength of the cat litter are improved.

[0139] Example 10

[0140] This embodiment provides a cat litter, wherein the raw materials of the cat litter include, by volume percentage, 66% of beer malt residue, 31% of corn starch, and 3% of guar gum, wherein the weight moisture content of the beer malt residue is 72%.

[0141] (1) Take fresh beer malt residue without obvious odor produced by the saccharification process of beer production, and put it into the crawler filter press for the first dehydration process before it produces obvious odor. In order to ensure the smoothness of the subsequent mixing stage, the weight moisture content of the beer malt residue after pre-dehydration at this stage needs to be controlled at 72%.

[0142] (2) The pre-dehydrated beer malt residue in step (1) is taken out and mixed in a drum mixer in a volume ratio of 66% beer malt residue, 31% corn starch, and 3% guar gum. To ensure smooth powdering in the subsequent process, the weight water content of the mixed raw materials at this stage is controlled at 26%.

[0143] (3) The mixed raw material with a weight moisture content of 26% obtained in step (2) is placed in an electric disc grinder for powdering. The grinding parameters of the grinder need to be set to the finest. For example, the electric disc grinder used in this embodiment needs to be set to 280-300 meshes to ensure that the powdered mixed raw material can be granulated smoothly. The weight moisture content of the powdered mixed raw material at this stage needs to be controlled at 32%.

[0144] (4) The powdery mixed raw material with a weight moisture content of 32% obtained in step (3) is placed in a 250-type ring mode feed pelletizer for pelleting. Due to the high temperature generated during the pelleting process, the weight moisture content of the powdery mixed raw material will decrease, and the weight moisture content of the granular mixture obtained at this stage is 25%.

[0145] (5) The granular mixed material with a weight moisture content of 25% prepared in step (4) is placed in a microwave drying device for drying. To prevent the raw materials from being burned and over-dried, the temperature parameter of the microwave drying device must be set between 80° C. and the time parameter must be set for 4 minutes. The weight moisture content of the dried shaped malt cat litter must be controlled at 9%.

[0146] (6) Waiting for the shaped malt cat litter with a weight moisture content of 9% obtained in step (5) to cool to room temperature, sieving the powder by screen vibration, and vacuum bagging in 6L bags to prepare malt cat litter products. The finished cat litter has a particle length of 1.0cm-1.5cm and a cylindrical solid structure with a diameter of 3mm-4mm.

[0147] Embodiment 11

[0148] Similar to Example 10, except that:

[0149] The raw materials of the cat litter include 63% beer malt residue, 35% corn starch and 2% guar gum according to volume percentage.

[0150] Example 12

[0151] Similar to Example 10, except that:

[0152] The raw materials of the cat litter include 70% beer malt residue, 28% corn starch and 2% guar gum according to volume percentage.

[0153] Comparative Example 6

[0154] Similar to Example 10, except that:

[0155] The raw materials of the cat litter include 75% beer malt residue, 15% corn starch, 7.5% cassava starch and 2.5% guar gum according to volume percentage.

[0156] Comparative Example 7

[0157] Similar to Example 10, except that:

[0158] The raw materials of the cat litter include 62.5% of beer malt residue, 18.75% of corn starch, 9.375% of cassava starch and 9.375% of guar gum according to volume percentage.

[0159] Comparative Example 8

[0160] Similar to Example 10, except that:

[0161] The raw materials of the cat litter include 66% of beer malt residue, 20% of corn starch, 10% of cassava starch and 4% of guar gum according to volume percentage.

[0162] Comparative Example 9

[0163] Similar to Example 10, except that:

[0164] The raw materials of the cat litter include 70% of beer malt residue, 28% of cassava starch and 2% of guar gum according to volume percentage.

[0165] Comparative Example 10

[0166] The raw materials of commercially available brand tofu cat litter include corn starch: 40%, tapioca starch: 36%, soy fiber: 21% and guar gum: 3% by volume.

[0167] Comparative Example 11

[0168] Commercially available brand bentonite cat litter, the raw materials of which include 75% bentonite, 15% minerals and 10% organic base material in weight percentage.

[0169] Experimental example

[0170] Experimental Example 1: Product Performance Test

[0171] Taking the cat litter produced in Example 7 as an example, the performance test of the product was carried out. The test method and results are shown in Table 2:

[0172] Table 2

[0173]

[0174] It can be seen that the cat litter prepared by the present invention has extremely low content of harmful elements such as lead, total arsenic, formaldehyde, aflatoxin B1, etc., and its safety is greatly higher than the industry standard. It not only has excellent water absorption capacity, agglomeration strength, deodorization effect, and disintegration ability, but also has better comprehensive performance than commercially available cat litters. It should be noted that the cat litters prepared by other embodiments of the present invention also have similar water absorption capacity, agglomeration strength, deodorization effect, disintegration ability, etc.

[0175] Experimental Example 2

[0176] The cat litters prepared in the above Examples 10-12 and Comparative Examples 6-11 were subjected to product performance tests, and the test methods and test results are as follows:

[0177] (1) Agglomeration test:

[0178] Take the above cat litter sample and spread it in a basin with a thickness of about 8 to 10 cm. Use a pipette to absorb 20 ml of 1% sodium chloride solution (salt water) at a temperature of 36 to 40 degrees Celsius, transfer it to an acid dropper, adjust the acid dropper to about 3 cm away from the sample plane, open the acid dropper, and allow the solution to flow into the sample within 30 seconds. After all the solution flows out for 60 seconds, take out the clumping sample and measure the longitudinal sample length, which is the clumping property of the cat litter. According to this method, 3 groups of samples are made at the same time to calculate the average value (test method reference: T / CIQA 11-20206.2).

[0179] Product evaluation method reference: T / CIQA 11-2020 5.2.1, the value of qualified products should be less than 5cm.

[0180] The test results are shown in Table 3.

[0181] (2) Water absorption test: Take a cat litter sample and spread it in a basin with a thickness of about 8 to 10 cm. Use a pipette to absorb 20 ml of 1% sodium chloride solution (salt water) at a temperature of 36 to 40 degrees Celsius, and transfer it to an acid dropper. Adjust the acid dropper to about 3 cm away from the sample plane. Open the acid dropper and let the solution flow into the sample within 30 seconds. After all the solution flows out for 60 seconds, take out the clumped sample and weigh it on a balance. According to this method, three groups of samples are made at the same time to calculate the average value. The water absorption formula is as follows:

[0182] X = [20 / (m-20)] * 100% (where: X-water absorption (%); m-clustering weight (g))

[0183] (Test method reference: T / CIQA 11-2020 6.3)

[0184] Product evaluation method reference: T / CIQA 11-2020 5.2.1, the value of superior products should be greater than 100%; the value of first-class products should be greater than 80%; the value of qualified products should be greater than 66%.

[0185] Note: If the cat litter being tested fails to completely absorb the poured liquid, resulting in a large amount of water remaining at the bottom of the beaker, the batch is also unqualified.

[0186] The test results are shown in Table 3 below.

[0187] (3) Agglomeration strength test:

[0188] Randomly take a clumping sample from the above clumping test (T / CIQA 11-2020 6.2), weigh it, and then drop it freely from a height of 60 cm onto a marble or other inelastic tabletop. Pick up the largest cat litter ball and weigh it m1. The clumping strength calculation formula is as follows:

[0189] Q = (m1 / m) * 100% (where: Q - agglomeration strength (%); m1 - maximum agglomeration mass, in grams (g); m - agglomeration weight, in grams (g)) (Test method reference: T / CIQA 11-2020 6.5)

[0190] The product evaluation method refers to: T / CIQA 11-2020 5.2.1, the value of superior products should not be less than 90%; the value of first-class products should not be less than 80%; the value of qualified products should not be less than 75%.

[0191] The test results are shown in Table 3 below.

[0192] At the same time, a comprehensive evaluation is made on the performance of the above three tests: 1 point is added for passing, 3 points are added for first class, 5 points are added for excellent, and 3 points are deducted for failing. The comprehensive score is calculated by adding the results of the three tests.

[0193] Table 3

[0194]

[0195]

[0196] Remark:

[0197] a) The cat litter failed to absorb all the liquids poured in, and water accumulated seriously at the bottom of the container. Therefore, the low weight of the clumping sample does not represent the water absorption capacity.

[0198] b): The product sticks to the bottom seriously, and a lot of water remains at the bottom of the container and is not absorbed.

[0199] c) The cat litter was not able to absorb all the liquids poured in, and water accumulated seriously at the bottom of the container. Therefore, the low weight of the clumping sample does not represent the water absorption capacity.

[0200] d) Due to differences in material density, the water absorption of mineral sand is not applicable to this standard.

[0201] As can be seen from Table 3, in the present invention, corn starch is selected as a single starch component to serve as a mixed raw material and bonding effect, so that it has a synergistic effect when it is combined with beer malt residues and guar gum to prepare cat litter, so that cat litter has better bonding during the preparation process, and has more excellent performance in agglomeration performance, water absorption performance and agglomeration strength, which is significantly better than the comparative example using other starch components, or using other starch components and corn starch in combination. At the same time, the cat litter prepared by the present invention using the above raw materials has performance and quality comparable to or even better than commercially available cat litter.

[0202] (4) Inhibition of fungal growth test:

[0203] Take the cat litters prepared in Example and Comparative Example respectively, fill a beaker with a capacity specification of 500 ml respectively, use a pipette to draw 20 ml of 1% sodium chloride solution (saline) at a temperature of 36 to 40 degrees Celsius, pour it into the cat litter and let it stand, observe the mold growth on the surface of the cat litter in the beaker with the naked eye, observe the situation once every 8 hours, mark the situation every 24 hours, and mark "moldy" or "not moldy".

[0204] Moldy means that mold spores can be clearly observed to grow on the surface of the cat litter with the naked eye; non-moldy means that there are no mold spores on the surface of the cat litter and the surface is dry and clean.

[0205] Each batch of samples in the control group experiment should be placed in the same space with the same ambient temperature.

[0206] This experiment - ambient temperature: 29°C; humidity: 60%.

[0207] The experimental results are shown in Table 4:

[0208] Table 4

[0209]

[0210]

[0211] It can be seen from Table 4 that the cat litter combination of the present invention also has unexpected antibacterial properties and can maintain product properties after being left to stand for 240 hours without any mold.

[0212] Experimental Example 3 Determination of Antibacterial Performance of Cat Litter

[0213] Taking Example 10 as an example, the antibacterial properties of cat litter were measured.

[0214] Experimental method: The experiment refers to the antibacterial performance test method of non-dissolving antibacterial (inhibitory) products in Appendix C5 of GB 15979-2002 "Hygiene Standards for Disposable Sanitary Products".

[0215] Experimental procedure (GB 15979-2002C5.1): The experiment was divided into an experimental group and a blank control group. In the experimental group, the cat litter prepared in Example 10 was selected, and 0.75 g of cat litter was weighed and placed in a 250 mL conical flask. No cat litter was added to the blank control group. 70 mL PBS and 5 mL bacterial suspension were added to the two groups respectively, so that the concentration of the bacterial suspension in PBS was 1×104~9×104 cfu / mL.

[0216] The conical flask was fixed on a shaking table and shaken at 300 r / min for 1 h.

[0217] Take 0.5 mL of the shaken sample solution, or the sample solution appropriately diluted with PBS, and inoculate the plate using the agar pouring method to count the colonies.

[0218] The test was repeated 3 times, and the inhibition rate was calculated according to the following formula:

[0219] X=(AB) / A×100%,

[0220] Where: X——inhibition rate, %; A——average colony count of the test sample before shaking; B——average colony count of the test sample after shaking.

[0221] Evaluation standard of experimental results: refer to GB 15979-2002C5.2. If the colony count of the group without sample pieces is between 1×104 and 9×104 cfu / mL, and the difference of the average colony count before and after the sample pieces are shaken is within 10%, the test is valid;

[0222] The difference between the antibacterial rate of the sample group and the antibacterial rate of the control sample group is greater than 26%, and the product has an antibacterial effect.

[0223] The test results are shown in Table 5.

[0224] Table 5

[0225]

[0226] As can be seen from Table 5, the cat litter of the present invention has excellent antibacterial properties, can inhibit the growth of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans to a certain extent, and can play an excellent antibacterial effect in the application process of cat litter, thereby ensuring the health of cats. It should be noted that the cat litters prepared in other embodiments of the present invention also have similar antibacterial properties.

Claims

1. A cat litter comprising the following components: beer malt residues, starch and a binder.

2. The cat litter according to claim 1, wherein The starch is selected from cereal starch; Preferably, the cereal starch is selected from cereal starch; Preferably, the cereal starch is selected from at least one of rice starch, wheat starch, corn starch, sorghum starch, millet starch, millet starch, yellow rice starch or buckwheat starch; Preferably, the rice starch is selected from at least one of indica rice, japonica rice or glutinous rice; Preferably, the wheat starch is selected from at least one of wheat starch, barley starch, oat starch or rye starch. Preferably, the starch is selected from corn starch.

3. The cat litter according to claim 1, wherein The adhesive is selected from at least one of a polysaccharide adhesive or a plant glue adhesive; Preferably, the polysaccharide binder is selected from at least one of guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, gum arabic, tragacanth gum, xanthan gum, karaya gum, konjac gum, tamarind pectin, gellan gum, cellulose gum, methylcellulose, propylene glycol alginate or pectin; Preferably, the plant glue adhesive is selected from at least one of starch glue, dextrin glue, rosin glue, carboxymethyl cellulose glue or lignin glue; Preferably, the binder is guar gum.

4. The cat litter according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein Based on the total volume of the following raw material components, the cat litter includes the following raw material components: Beer malt residue 60%-70% by volume, starch 25%-35% by volume, binder 2%-5% by volume; or, Based on the total weight of the following raw material components, the cat litter includes the following raw material components: Beer malt residue 40-50% by weight, starch 43-53% by weight, binder 4-7% by weight; Preferably, the beer malt residue raw material is beer malt residue having a moisture content of 65%-75% by weight.

5. The cat litter according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein The moisture content of the cat litter is 8%-11% by weight.

6. The cat litter according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein The average particle size of the cat litter is 1mm-3cm; the particle shape of the cat litter is a solid structure; preferably, the solid structure is selected from at least one of spherical, hemispherical, columnar, strip, block or conical; Preferably, the columnar shape is selected from at least one of a quasi-cylindrical shape and a quasi-prism shape; Preferably, the cat litter is a quasi-cylindrical solid structure; more preferably, the quasi-cylindrical solid structure has a length of 0.5 cm-3 cm, preferably 0.5-2 cm; and a diameter of 1 mm-4 mm, preferably 2-3 mm.

7. A method for preparing a cat litter according to any one of claims 1 to 6, the method comprising the following steps: a) mixing beer malt residue, starch and a binder to obtain a mixture; Optionally, b) grinding the mixture to obtain a ground mixture; c) granulating the ground mixture to obtain a granular mixture; as well as d) drying the granulated mixture.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that - In step a), based on the total volume of the following raw material components, the amounts of the components by volume are as follows: beer malt residue 60%-70%, starch 25%-35%, binder 2%-5%; or - In step a), based on the total weight of the following raw material components, the amount of each component by weight is as follows: The beer malt residue is 40-50% by weight, the starch is 43-53% by weight, and the binder is 4-7% by weight.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that: In step a), the beer malt residue is adjusted to a moisture content of 65% to 75% by weight.

10. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that: In step a), the mixture is adjusted to have a moisture content of 22% to 28% by weight; Preferably, in step b), the ground mixture is adjusted to have a moisture content of 22% to 28% by weight; Preferably, in step d), the obtained granular mixture is dried to a moisture content of 8% to 11% by weight.

Images