Multi-stage cooling mechanism for fruit juice production
By using a multi-stage cooling pipeline system to cool the fruit juice against the walls with the low-temperature water generated during fruit washing, the problem of fruit juice temperature control is solved, achieving efficient cooling and energy-saving temperature reduction, and ensuring the flavor and nutritional value of the fruit juice.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202521184208.3
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-06-10
- Publication Date
- 2026-05-15
- Estimated Expiration
- 2035-06-10
AI Technical Summary
In hot weather or after multiple processing steps, the temperature of NFC juice may exceed 4-25℃, affecting the flavor and nutritional value of the juice. Existing cold filling equipment has difficulty effectively controlling the juice temperature.
Using the low-temperature water generated during fruit washing as cooling water, the juice container is cooled against the wall through a multi-stage cooling pipeline system, ensuring that a temperature difference is maintained between the cooling water at each stage and the juice to be cooled, thus achieving multi-stage cooling of the juice.
It effectively lowers the temperature of fruit juice, maintains its freshness and nutritional value, achieves energy-saving cooling, and improves the taste and quality of the fruit juice.
Smart Images
Figure CN224246562U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This utility model relates to the field of juice production technology, and in particular to a multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production. Background Technology
[0002] NFC juice, as a new type of healthy beverage, is made by washing fresh fruit, pressing out the juice, and then directly bottling it (cold or hot filling) after instant sterilization. It does not undergo any concentration or reconstitution process, thus preserving the original flavor and nutrients of the fruit.
[0003] Making NFC (Not From Concentrate) juice requires a large quantity of fruit. The fruit is thoroughly washed and then pressed, especially the juice from fruits with high water content. Cold filling equipment is typically used for this process. The advantage of cold filling is that it prevents the juice from developing a cooked or other off-flavor due to high temperatures. Cold filling requires the juice temperature to be between 4-25℃, but in hot weather or after multiple processing steps, the juice may be heated to temperatures exceeding this expectation, affecting its flavor and nutritional value. Utility Model Content
[0004] In response to the shortcomings of the existing production technology, the applicant provides a multi-stage cooling mechanism for fruit juice production, which uses the water generated from washing the fruit in the first stage as cooling water for the subsequent cooling stage, thereby achieving the purpose of energy saving and quality preservation.
[0005] The technical solution adopted in this utility model is as follows:
[0006] A multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production includes a washing tank assembly and a juicing stage located downstream of the washing tank assembly; a cooling system is led out from the washing tank assembly, the cooling system comprising:
[0007] Cooling pipes extend from multiple washing tanks, with each pipe providing wall-mounted cooling to one of the juice containers used in the juicing process.
[0008] The secondary cooling pipe delivers the cooled secondary cooling water to at least one juice container.
[0009] The return water pipe receives the output water from the cooling pipe and the secondary cooling pipe and sends it back to the cleaning pool group.
[0010] As a further improvement to the above technical solution:
[0011] The cooling water output from the washing tank maintains a temperature difference with the juice to be cooled corresponding to the washing tank.
[0012] The juice container uses several processing tanks. The cooling pipes output from the washing tank correspond one-to-one with the processing tanks, or multiple cooling pipes output from the washing tanks are used to cool a certain processing tank.
[0013] The number of cleaning pools corresponds to the number of treatment tanks.
[0014] The secondary cooling pipe is a unidirectional input, multi-point output pipe.
[0015] The output end of the return water pipe can be connected to any one of the cleaning tanks, or to multiple cleaning tanks.
[0016] A filter is connected to the cooling pipe.
[0017] A filter is connected to the return water pipe.
[0018] The beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows:
[0019] This application is particularly applicable to the processing of refrigerated fruits into NFC juice. The washing of refrigerated fruits requires at least two washing processes. The wastewater generated in the first washing process has the lowest temperature, while the temperature of the wastewater gradually increases in subsequent washing processes. This application utilizes the low-temperature water generated from washing refrigerated fruits for the subsequent cooling stage of the juice. If the subsequent cooling stage has only one stage, only the first stage's lowest-temperature washing water is used; if the subsequent cooling stage has multiple stages, the first stage's lowest-temperature washing water is used for the final cooling stage.
[0020] This application utilizes the cold energy of refrigerated fruits for the cooling process before juice bottling, which has the advantages of energy saving and ensuring the taste of the juice. Attached Figure Description
[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic block diagram of the cooling water circuit in this application.
[0022] The components are: 1. First cleaning tank; 2. Second cleaning tank; 3. Third cleaning tank; 4. First treatment tank;
[0023] 5. Secondary treatment tank; 6. Tertiary treatment tank; 7. Cooling pipe; 8. Secondary cooling pipe; 9. Return water pipe. Detailed Implementation
[0024] The specific embodiments of this utility model are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0025] like Figure 1 As shown, the multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production in this embodiment includes a washing tank group and a juicing stage located downstream of the washing tank group; a cooling system is led out from the washing tank group, and the cooling system includes:
[0026] Cooling pipes 7 are led out from multiple washing tanks, and each cooling pipe 7 provides wall-mounted cooling for one of the juice containers in the juicing process.
[0027] Secondary cooling pipe 8 delivers the cooled secondary cooling water to at least one juice container.
[0028] Return water pipe 9 receives the output water from cooling pipe 7 and secondary cooling pipe 8 and sends it back to the cleaning pool group.
[0029] The cooling water output from the washing tank maintains a temperature difference with the juice to be cooled corresponding to the washing tank.
[0030] The juice container uses several processing tanks. The cooling pipes 7 output from the washing tank correspond one-to-one with the processing tanks, or multiple cooling pipes 7 output from the washing tanks are used to cool a certain processing tank.
[0031] The number of cleaning pools corresponds to the number of treatment tanks.
[0032] Secondary cooling pipe 8 is a unidirectional input, multi-point output pipe.
[0033] The output end of the return water pipe 9 is connected to any one of the cleaning tanks, or to multiple cleaning tanks.
[0034] A filter is connected to cooling pipe 7.
[0035] A filter is connected to the return water pipe 9.
[0036] The specific structure and working principle of this application are as follows:
[0037] The purpose of this application is to provide a cooling system for NFC juice cooling. Since the temperature of fruit inevitably rises during the juicing process due to friction and other factors, a cooling process is needed at the various stages of the juice processing to ensure the freshness and quality safety of the juice.
[0038] This application uses the processing of chilled and frozen fruits as an example. Especially in summer, in order to ensure the freshness of fruits and prevent the storage environment from warming up due to respiration, fruits are usually stored in cold storage.
[0039] The first rinse of refrigerated fruit uses the lowest water temperature, with subsequent rinses using gradually increasing water temperature. This example illustrates the process using a three-rinse cycle.
[0040] After the fruit is washed, it is transported by conveyor belt to the juicing tank and subsequent processing tank. This embodiment will still use three tanks as an example for explanation.
[0041] For ease of explanation, the three cleaning tanks in the cleaning tank group are named as: First Cleaning Tank, Second Cleaning Tank, and Third Cleaning Tank; and the juice processing tanks are named as: First Processing Tank, Second Processing Tank, and Third Processing Tank.
[0042] like Figure 1 As shown, the first cleaning tank has a first cooling pipe leading out. The water temperature in the first cooling pipe is the lowest. Therefore, the cleaning water in the first cooling pipe is sent to the third treatment tank. The first cooling pipe is coiled around the third treatment tank in a serpentine shape to cool the third treatment tank.
[0043] The second cooling pipe outputs from the second cleaning tank and is transported to the second processing tank, where it is coiled around the tank for cooling.
[0044] The third cleaning tank outputs a third cooling pipe, which then transports the wastewater to the first processing tank for cooling.
[0045] The purpose of this design is to ensure that the output water temperature of the first washing tank is the lowest, the juice temperature of the third processing tank is the lowest, the output water temperature of the third washing tank is the highest, and the juice temperature of the first processing tank is the highest. This ensures that there is a relatively equal temperature difference between the cooling water and the corresponding juice to be cooled, thus guaranteeing the cooling effect at each stage.
[0046] The cooled water output from the first cooling pipe is delivered to the second and first treatment tanks to cool them.
[0047] As shown in the diagram, the blue path is the cooling water path, the purplish-red path is the secondary cooling pipe path, and the red path is the return water path for all secondary cooling water to be returned to the cleaning tank for reuse. To ensure recycling, a filter is added to the red return water path. The filter is an existing structure and will not be described in detail in this embodiment.
[0048] This application uses the cleaning water for cooling and maintains an ideal temperature difference between the cleaning water and the juice to be cooled, ensuring the cooling effect and effectively reducing energy consumption.
[0049] The above description is an explanation of the present utility model and not a limitation thereof. The scope of the present utility model is defined by the claims. Within the protection scope of the present utility model, any form of modification may be made.
Claims
1. A multi-stage cooling mechanism for fruit juice production, characterized in that: This includes a washing tank assembly and a juicing process located downstream of the washing tank assembly; a cooling system extends from the washing tank assembly, and the cooling system includes: Cooling pipes (7) are led out from multiple washing tanks, and each cooling pipe (7) provides wall-mounted cooling for one of the juice containers in the juicing process. The secondary cooling pipe (8) delivers the cooled secondary cooling water to at least one juice container. The return water pipe (9) receives the output water from the cooling pipe (7) and the secondary cooling pipe (8) and sends it back to the cleaning pool group.
2. The multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The cooling water output from the washing tank maintains a temperature difference with the juice to be cooled corresponding to the washing tank.
3. The multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The juice container uses several processing tanks. The cooling pipes (7) output from the washing tank correspond one-to-one with the processing tanks, or multiple cooling pipes (7) output from the washing tanks are used to cool a certain processing tank.
4. The multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production as described in claim 3, characterized in that: The number of cleaning pools corresponds to the number of treatment tanks.
5. The multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The secondary cooling pipe (8) is a pipe with unidirectional input and multi-point output.
6. The multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The output end of the return water pipe (9) is connected to any cleaning tank or to multiple cleaning tanks.
7. The multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production as described in claim 1, characterized in that: A filter is connected to the cooling pipe (7).
8. The multi-stage cooling mechanism for juice production as described in claim 1, characterized in that: A filter is connected to the return water pipe (9).