Plant separation device and method

Abstract

The invention discloses a plant separation device, which comprises: an accommodating tank, which comprises a tank body, and the tank body is provided with an accommodating cavity; the feeding assembly comprises a feeding hopper and a material pipe which are connected, the feeding hopper is connected to the containing tank and located outside the containing cavity, the feeding hopper communicates with the material pipe through a pipeline, the material pipe is rotatably arranged in the containing tank, one end of the material pipe is located outside the containing tank, and the other end of the material pipe is located in the containing cavity; the extrusion assembly comprises a material pressing piece and a material bearing piece which are oppositely arranged in the containing cavity, the material pressing piece is arranged on the material pipe in a sleeving mode and can be driven by the material pipe to rotate, the material pressing piece is provided with a material pressing face, the material bearing piece is provided with a material bearing face matched with the material pressing face, and at least one of the material pressing face and the material bearing face is provided with a rib protruding towards the discharging end. According to the device, the action of extruding the material is realized by utilizing the rotation of the material pressing piece relative to the material bearing piece, so that the extraction efficiency can be improved, the time required by extraction is shortened, and the solvent consumption and the energy consumption are correspondingly saved. The invention also provides a plant separation method.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of plant extraction, in particular to a plant separation device for fully extracting plant essence components and a plant separation method using the device. Background Art

[0002] Chinese medicine refers to medicines used for the treatment, diagnosis and prevention of diseases under the guidance of traditional Chinese medicine theory, and have health care and rehabilitation effects. It mainly includes Chinese medicinal materials, Chinese medicinal pieces and Chinese patent medicines. Chinese medicine is mainly composed of botanicals (roots, stems, leaves, fruits) and mineral medicines. Because botanicals account for the majority of Chinese medicines, Chinese medicines are also called Chinese herbal medicines. There are about 5,000 kinds of Chinese medicines used in various places, and there are countless prescriptions formed by combining various medicinal materials. With the development of the economy and society and the development of the Chinese medicine industry, people pay more and more attention to the role of Chinese medicine in regulating the body. Therefore, the demand for Chinese medicine is also increasing. Chinese medicine extraction and concentration technology is a very important process in the Chinese medicine process, which directly affects the quality of the medicine.

[0003] Isatis root granules are a Chinese patent medicine made from a single flavor of Isatis root. It is one of the Chinese patent medicines widely used in daily life to fight colds, and can clear away heat, detoxify, and relieve sore throats. Isatis root is extracted by the traditional solvent method. A solvent is added to the Isatis root powder, such as water, which is first heated to about 90 degrees and then kept warm for 2-3 hours. After filtering, the residue is extracted 2-3 times, and each time it is left to stand for about 2 hours. The filtrate is filtered and combined, and then concentrated, dried, and crushed to obtain a granular finished product. The above-mentioned solvent extraction process uses solvent soaking to gradually dissolve the active ingredients in the medicinal materials, which takes a long time and consumes a large amount of solvent and heat energy. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of this section is to summarize some aspects of embodiments of the present invention and briefly introduce some preferred embodiments. Some simplifications or omissions may be made in this section and the specification abstract and the invention title of this application to avoid blurring the purpose of this section, the specification abstract and the invention title, and such simplifications or omissions cannot be used to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0005] In the final step of certain solution extraction processes, in order to fully squeeze out the liquid, the medicinal residues are pressed. However, conventional pressing heads can only press the medicinal materials in the container as a whole. In this mode, the medicinal residues far from the extrusion head cannot be fully pressed. For plant materials such as Isatis indigotica, which may contain relatively hard lignified structures, this overall pressing cannot effectively squeeze out the solvent adsorbed in the plant materials in the middle. At the same time, the medicinal materials near the pressing head are easily over-pressed and scattered due to repeated actions or excessive force. The scattered medicinal residue powder will increase the turbidity of the extract. Especially for plant materials such as Isatis indigotica containing starch components, the excessive dissolution of starch is not conducive to forming the state of "clear paste", and will increase the difficulty of subsequent filtration or cleaning. Seriously, it will also cause the equipment to become blocked, affecting the production efficiency.

[0006] In view of the problems of high time consumption, high solvent consumption, and high heat energy consumption in the traditional solvent extraction mode of long-term soaking, as well as the pain points existing in pressing the Isatis indigotica medicinal residues as mentioned above. The present invention provides a plant separation device, which can realize a continuous extrusion and dissolution promotion mode, greatly improve the extraction efficiency, shorten the time required for sufficient extraction, and correspondingly save the solvent consumption and energy consumption.

[0007] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a plant separation device.

[0008] To solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides the following technical solution: A plant separation device, comprising: a receiving tank, including a tank body, the tank body having a receiving cavity; a feeding assembly, including a feeding hopper and a feeding pipe connected to each other, the feeding hopper being connected to the receiving tank and located outside the receiving cavity, the feeding hopper being communicated with the feeding pipe through a pipeline, the feeding pipe being rotatably provided in the receiving tank, one end of the feeding pipe being located outside the receiving tank and the other end being located inside the receiving cavity; and an extrusion assembly, including a pressing member and a bearing member oppositely arranged in the receiving cavity, the pressing member being sleeved on the feeding pipe and being able to rotate driven by the feeding pipe, the pressing member having a pressing surface, the bearing member having a bearing surface cooperating with the pressing surface, and at least one of the pressing surface and the bearing surface having ribs protruding towards the discharging end.

[0009] As a preferred solution of the plant separation device of the present invention, wherein: the pressing surface is concave inward from the side of the pressing member close to the bearing member, at least a part of the pressing surface is a conical surface, the bearing surface protrudes towards the pressing member, at least a part of the bearing surface matches the conical surface of the pressing surface, the rib assembly has at least one rib, and the height of the rib protruding from the pressing surface or the bearing surface is 0.1-6 cm.

[0010] The cooperation between the pressing member and the material supporting member can, on the one hand, quickly and evenly spread the plant materials, and on the other hand, effectively squeeze the plant materials. The rib design helps the materials to be evenly spread between the material supporting surface and the pressing surface, guides the flow of the solvent carrying the extracted substances, and prevents slipping when the material member and the material supporting member rotate.

[0011] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, wherein: the material supporting member is liftably arranged in the accommodating cavity, and the material supporting member is elastically connected to the connecting ring inside the tank body or the material basket inside the tank body; on the side of the material supporting member away from the pressing member, there are a plurality of material supporting connecting parts, each of the material supporting connecting parts has a connecting hole, and the material supporting member is connected to the connecting ring inside the tank body or the material basket inside the tank body through the cooperation of the connecting piece and the connecting hole, an elastic member is sleeved outside the connecting piece, and the material supporting member is carried on the elastic member.

[0012] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, wherein: the material supporting member is liftably arranged in the accommodating cavity, and the material supporting member is elastically connected to the connecting ring inside the tank body or the material basket inside the tank body; the squeezing assembly further includes an elastic member, one end of the elastic member is connected to the material supporting member, and the other end is connected to the connecting ring inside the tank body or the material basket inside the tank body. On the side of the material supporting member away from the pressing member, there are a plurality of material supporting connecting parts, and the connecting ring or the material basket has a tank body connecting part corresponding to the plurality of material supporting connecting parts, and the material supporting connecting part and the tank body connecting part respectively have matching cam surfaces.

[0013] With the above configuration of the material supporting member, after the pressing member rotates and presses down, the material supporting member is supported and rebounds by the elastic member, or rotates relative to the pressing member along the cam surface for buffering. On the one hand, it can avoid excessive squeezing of the plant materials, which may cause an increase in the medicinal residues in the solution and lead to the turbidity of the extract. On the other hand, the elastic member or the cam surface automatically returns to its original position, which can cooperate with the action of the pressing member pressing down again to ensure continuous squeezing.

[0014] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, wherein: the material supporting member further has a surrounding member protruding in the direction close to the pressing member, the inner diameter of the surrounding member is larger than the outer diameter of the pressing member, the surrounding member has a liquid leakage structure, and the surrounding member also has a plurality of discharge ports. The surrounding member of the above-mentioned material supporting member can, on the one hand, quickly discharge the liquid rich in the extracted components of the plant materials, and on the other hand, discharge the squeezed plant materials, which can squeeze the newly added plant materials subsequently, so that the squeezing and dissolution can continue.

[0015] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, the following is provided: The feeding assembly further includes a material leveling member connected to the end of the material pipe located in the accommodating cavity. The material leveling member forms a discharging space at the discharging end. The material leveling member is configured to spray materials onto the material receiving member. The material receiving member further has a material leveling body that cooperates with the material leveling member. The material leveling body is located in the discharging space when cooperating with the squeezing assembly. The material leveling body has a spherical structure.

[0016] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, the following is provided: The material receiving member and the material leveling body are made of elastic materials.

[0017] The cooperation of the above-mentioned material leveling member and the material leveling body helps the plant materials to be initially evenly scattered on the entire surface of the material receiving member after flowing out of the material pipe. It not only does not interfere with the action of the material pressing member and the material receiving member squeezing the plant materials, but also reserves an appropriate gap between the material pressing member and the material receiving member to accommodate the plant materials and the solvent. At the same time, the material leveling member will be slightly deformed by the extrusion of the material receiving member and form a certain buffer to avoid excessive extrusion of the plant materials.

[0018] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, the following is provided: The material pipe has a feeding channel. The material pipe further includes a rod body located in the feeding channel and a material scattering portion connected to the rod body. This structure can utilize the self-weight of the plant materials and / or the solvent to push the material scattering portion and the rod body to rotate, preventing the plant materials from getting stuck in the feeding channel.

[0019] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, the following is provided: The plant separation device further includes a filter member located in the accommodating cavity. The filtering aperture of the filter member is smaller than the aperture of the material basket. The material basket and the filter member can perform multiple-stage filtration on the solution, improving the quality of the extracted solution.

[0020] As a preferred embodiment of the plant separation device of the present invention, the following is provided: The tank body has a liquid outlet away from the feeding port. The plant separation device further includes a reflux assembly. The reflux assembly includes a connecting pipe and a reflux inlet. The connecting pipe is connected between the liquid outlet and the reflux inlet. The reflux assembly further includes a heat preservation member. The connecting pipe is located in the heat preservation member.

[0021] The above-mentioned reflux structure can transport the extracted solution back to the accommodating cavity. Cooperating with the squeezing action, it helps to produce a high-concentration solution, reducing the time and energy consumption in the concentration link and even eliminating the concentration step. The setting of the heat preservation member is beneficial to energy conservation and consumption reduction.

[0022] The present invention also provides a method for separating plants, comprising the steps of: providing plant materials and the plant separation device as described above; adding the plant materials into the feed hopper, enabling the plant materials to enter the accommodation chamber through the material pipe, and being carried on the material-carrying member of the extrusion assembly; and rotating the material-pressing member to extrude the plant materials.

[0023] Advantages of the present invention: In this plant separation device, plant materials are continuously added into the tank body through the material pipe; through the cooperation between the material-pressing member and the material-carrying member of the extrusion assembly, the plant materials added therebetween are extruded in real time, accelerating the outflow of the solvent carrying the active ingredients. This device has the advantages of simple structure, easy operation and cleaning. In the plant separation method using this plant separation device, a continuous extrusion and dissolution promotion mode is adopted, which can ensure that each portion of the plant materials added into the tank body is fully extruded and dissolved. Moreover, the outflow of the solvent carrying the active ingredients can promote the further dissolution of the remaining active ingredients by the low-concentration solvent, which can greatly improve the extraction efficiency, shorten the time required for sufficient extraction, and correspondingly save the solvent consumption and energy consumption.

[0024] Of course, the production process can also be flexibly adjusted according to the types of plant raw materials. By recycling the extract and combining extrusion, the solvent consumption can be saved, a high-concentration solution can be produced, and even some concentration steps can be saved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments. Obviously, the following drawings are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings. Among them:

[0026] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the plant separation device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 2 is Figure 1 a partial enlarged view of part A in

[0028] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the extrusion assembly of the plant separation device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the cooperation state of the extrusion assembly of the plant separation device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the connection structure of the extrusion assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Reference numerals: plant separation device, 100; receiving tank, 10; tank body, 11; receiving cavity, 12; cover body, 13; diversion surface, 14; liquid outlet, 15; driver, 16; gear set, 17; basket, 18; connecting ring, 19; feeding assembly, 20; feeding hopper, 21; pipeline, 210; limiting pipeline, 211; feeding pipeline, 212; material pipe, 22; feeding channel, 23; material leveling member, 24; discharging space, 25; rod body, 26; material scattering part, 27; extrusion assembly, 30; material pressing member, 31; material pressing surface, 310; material bearing member, 32; material bearing surface, 320; enclosure member, 33; liquid leakage structure, 34; discharging port, 35; material leveling body, 36; rib, 37; material bearing connection part, 38; connection hole, 380; connecting member, 381; elastic member, 382; tank body connection part, 383; cam surface, 384; filtering member, 40; reflux assembly, 50; connecting pipe, 51; reflux inlet pipe, 52; heat preservation member, 53. Detailed implementation manners

[0032] In order to make the above objects, features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and understandable, the following detailed description of the specific implementation manners of the present invention will be made with reference to the accompanying drawings of the specification.

[0033] In the following description, many specific details are set forth in order to fully understand the present invention. However, the present invention can also be implemented in other ways different from those described herein. Those skilled in the art can make similar promotions without departing from the connotation of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention is not limited by the specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0034] Secondly, the so-called "one embodiment" or "embodiment" herein refers to a specific feature, structure or characteristic that can be included in at least one implementation manner of the present invention. The "in one embodiment" appearing in different places in this specification does not all refer to the same embodiment, nor is it a separate or alternative embodiment that mutually excludes other embodiments.

[0035] Furthermore, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the schematic diagrams. When describing the embodiments of the present invention in detail, for the convenience of explanation, the cross-sectional views showing the device structure will be enlarged locally in a non-general proportion, and the schematic diagrams are only examples, which should not limit the protection scope of the present invention herein. In addition, in actual production, three-dimensional spatial dimensions including length, width and depth should be included.

[0036] Embodiment 1

[0037] Referring to Figures 1 - 5 and Table 1, one aspect of this embodiment provides a plant separation device 100, including a receiving tank 10, a feeding assembly 20, an extrusion assembly 30, a filtering member 40 and a reflux assembly 50.

[0038] The holding tank 10 includes a tank body 11 and a cover body 13. The tank body 11 has a holding cavity 12. The cover body 13 is detachably arranged at one end of the tank body 11 and can seal the holding cavity 12. The bottom of the tank body 11 away from the cover body 13 has a liquid outlet 15. Preferably, a guiding surface 14 is provided at the bottom of the tank body 11, and the guiding surface 14 is inclined towards the liquid outlet 15 so as to guide the liquid towards the liquid outlet 15. It can be understood that a heating wire or the like can also be provided in the tank body 11 to heat or keep warm the plant raw materials or solvents.

[0039] The holding tank 10 also has a driver 16. The driver 16 can be arranged on the cover body 13. The output shaft of the driver 16 is mechanically connected with a transmission assembly. For example, in this embodiment, a gear set 17 is used for transmission. In this embodiment, a material basket 18 is arranged inside the holding cavity 12 of the tank body 11. The material basket 18 can be made of a light material with meshes and is used for holding plant materials and / or solvents. When the material basket 18 is taken out of the tank body 11, the solvent is drained out, and the dregs can be taken out together with the material basket 18, which is convenient for cleaning the dregs. Of course, the tank body 11 can also not be provided with the material basket 18. Correspondingly, a slag discharge port can be provided at the bottom of the tank body 11.

[0040] The feeding assembly 20 is arranged on the holding tank 10. The feeding assembly 20 includes a feeding hopper 21, a material pipe 22 and a material leveling member 24. The feeding hopper 21 is connected to the tank body 11 of the holding tank 10 near the cover body 13 and is located outside the holding cavity 12. The feeding hopper 21 is communicated with the material pipe 22 through a pipeline 210. The pipeline 210 includes a matching limiting pipeline 211 and a feeding pipeline 212. Preferably, the feeding hopper 21 can be partitioned, and by controlling the opening and closing of the valves, plant raw materials or solvents are input into the tank body 11. The limiting pipeline 211 is fixed on one side of the cover body 13 close to the holding cavity 12, extends for a certain length and has an opening. One end of the feeding pipeline 212 is detachably matched with the limiting pipeline 211. The other end of the feeding pipeline 212 is communicated with the feeding hopper 21. Preferably, the feeding pipeline 212 is a flexible pipe.

[0041] The material pipe 22 is rotatably arranged on the holding tank 10. One end of the material pipe 22 is located outside the holding tank 10, and the other end is located inside the holding cavity 12 and passes through the limiting pipeline 211. The material pipe 22 is inside the limiting pipeline 211 and has a certain gap with the limiting pipeline 211. In this way, the material pipe 22 can rotate in the pipeline 211, such as Figure 3As shown, the material pipe 22 has a corresponding feeding opening at the opening of the limiting pipe 211. Specifically, the feeding opening only needs to correspond to the height of the opening of the limiting pipe 211. Preferably, the lower edge of the opening of the material pipe 22 is lower than the connection between the feeding pipe 212 and the limiting pipe 211. The feeding opening can cover a range of 1 / 5 to 1 / 3 of the circumference of the material pipe 22 to facilitate alignment and connection with the feeding pipe 212. When the plant material and / or solvent enter the receiving tank 10 along the feeding pipe 212, they enter the limiting pipe 211 from the connection between the feeding pipe 212 and the limiting pipe 211.

[0042] Specifically, the end of the material pipe 22 located outside the receiving tank 10 is mechanically connected to the gear set 17 and can thus rotate under the drive of the driver 16. The material pipe 22 is of a hollow structure and has a feeding channel 23 inside. The end of the material pipe 22 located inside the receiving cavity 12 is connected with a material leveling member 24. The material leveling member 24 is generally in the shape of a flared opening and encloses to form a discharging space 25. The material leveling member 24 is configured to spray materials into the material receiving member 32 in the receiving cavity 12. The plant raw materials from the feeding hopper 21 pass through the feeding channel 23 and are then sprayed by the material leveling member 24 into the extrusion assembly 30.

[0043] Preferably, a rod body 26 and a material scattering part 27 connected to the rod body 26 are provided in the feeding channel 23 of the material pipe 22. The rod body 26 hangs naturally in the material pipe 22. The material scattering part 27 is a plurality of columnar protrusions connected to the rod body 26 in a staggered manner and extending obliquely downward for a certain length. When plant materials or solvents pass through the feeding channel 23, the self-weight of the plant materials and / or solvents pushes the material scattering part 27 and the rod body 26 to rotate, preventing the plant materials from getting stuck in the feeding channel 23.

[0044] The extrusion assembly 30 is also located in the receiving cavity 12 of the tank body 11 and includes a material pressing member 31 and a material receiving member 32 arranged oppositely. The material pressing member 31 has a certain self-weight, is sleeved on the material pipe 22 and can rotate under the drive of the material pipe 22. Specifically, the material pressing member 31 can cooperate with the material pipe 22 through a tenon structure. When the material pipe 22 is driven to rotate by the driver 16, the material pressing member 31 rotates synchronously therewith. The cross-section of the material pressing member 31 is preferably similar to the shape of the tank body 11. During assembly and use, after the material pipe 22 passes through the cover body 13 and the limiting pipe 211, the material pressing member 31 and the material leveling member 24 are installed at the end located inside the tank body 11, and the soft feeding pipe 212 is assembled and connected to the limiting pipe 211, and then the cover body 13 is closed.

[0045] The side of the material pressing member 31 close to the material leveling member 24 has a material pressing surface 310. The material pressing surface 310 is concave inward from the side of the material pressing member 31 close to the material receiving member 32, and at least a part of the material pressing surface 310 is a conical surface. In this embodiment, the material pressing surface 310 is basically a conical surface as a whole, and its highest point is located at the center of the material pressing member, and the material leveling member 24 is also connected thereto.

[0046] The cross-section of the material receiving member 32 can be similar to the shape of the tank body 11, and it has a material receiving surface 320 that cooperates with the material pressing surface 310. Preferably, in this embodiment, the material receiving surface 320 and the material pressing surface 310 are generally the same in shape. Among the material pressing surface 310 and the material receiving surface 320, at least one has ribs 37 protruding towards the mating part. The height of the ribs 37 protruding from the material pressing surface 310 or the material receiving surface 320 is 0.1 - 6 cm. In this embodiment, both the material receiving surface 320 and the material pressing surface 310 are provided with ribs 37. The ribs 37 can help the material spread out in a staggered manner between the material receiving surface 320 and the material pressing surface 310, guide the flow of the solvent carrying the extraction substance, and prevent slipping when the material member 31 and the material receiving member 32 rotate. Schematically, the ribs 37 in this embodiment are strip-shaped, and multiple ribs 37 are radially distributed. The shape and distribution of the ribs 37 can also be variably designed according to the shape, size and other characteristics of the plant material.

[0047] The material receiving member 32 has a surrounding member 33 protruding towards the material pressing member 31. The inner diameter of the surrounding member 33 is larger than the outer diameter of the material pressing member 31, so that when it cooperates with the material pressing member 31, it can surround the outside of the material pressing member 31 to prevent the uncompressed plant material from overflowing. The surrounding member 33 also has a liquid leakage structure 34 and a plurality of discharge ports 35. The liquid leakage structure 34 is used to discharge the squeezed solvent and can be a hole structure on the surrounding member 33. The plurality of discharge ports 35 are used to discharge the squeezed plant material and can be openings on the surrounding member 33, preferably opened at the end close to the material pressing member 31.

[0048] The material receiving member 32 also has a material leveling body 36 that cooperates with the material leveling member 24. The material leveling body 36 is located in the discharge space 25 when the extrusion assembly 30 is in cooperation. The material leveling body 36 has a spherical structure, which cooperates with the material leveling member 24. After the plant material is sprayed by the material leveling member 24, it is dispersed again by the spherical structure of the material leveling body 36 and evenly scatters on the entire surface of the material receiving member 32. In this embodiment, the material leveling member 24 and the material leveling body 36 are made of an elastic material, preferably edible silica gel, etc. When the material pressing member 31 presses the material receiving member 32, the elastic deformation of the material leveling member 24 forms a certain buffer for the extrusion to avoid excessive extrusion.

[0049] The material receiving member 32 is liftably arranged in the accommodating cavity 12. The material receiving member 32 is elastically connected to the material basket 18 inside the tank body 11. The side of the material receiving member 32 away from the material pressing member 31 has a plurality of material receiving connection parts 38. Each material receiving connection part 38 has a connection hole 380. The material receiving member 32 is connected to the material basket 18 inside the tank body 11 or the connection ring 19 inside the tank body 11 through the cooperation of the connecting piece 381 and the connection hole 380. An elastic member 382 is sleeved outside the connecting piece 381, and the material receiving member 32 is carried on the elastic member 382. The deformable distance of the elastic member 382 is 0.1 - 3 cm.

[0050] In this embodiment, there is a material basket 18 inside the tank body 11. The material bearing member 32 is connected to a position near the bottom inside the material basket 18. The connecting member 381 can be a screw, connecting the material bearing connection portion 38 of the material bearing member 32 and the material basket 18. Preferably, reinforcing ribs are provided on the material basket 18, and connecting the connecting member 381 to the reinforcing ribs can provide sufficient support strength. The material bearing member 32 is carried on an elastic member 382 sleeved outside the connecting member 381. When the material bearing member 32 is rotated and pressed down by the material pressing member 31, due to the action of the elastic member 382, the material bearing member 32 is supported and rebounds by the elastic member 382. On the one hand, it can prevent the plant material from being excessively squeezed; on the other hand, after rebounding, it can cooperate with the action of the material pressing member 31 pressing down again to ensure continuous extrusion.

[0051] The filter member 40 is located inside the accommodation cavity 12 of the tank body 11. Specifically, the filter member 40 is located on the side of the extrusion assembly 30 away from the material pipe 22. Exemplarily, the filter member 40 is a filter mesh plate. The filtering aperture of the filter member 40 is smaller than the aperture of the material basket 18. The cooperation of the material basket 18 and the filter member 40 can perform multi-stage filtering on the solution, improving the quality of the extracted solution.

[0052] The reflux assembly 50 is located on one side of the tank body 11, including a connecting pipe 51, a reflux inlet pipe 52, a heat preservation member 53 and a reflux pump. The connecting pipe 51 is connected between the liquid outlet 15 of the tank body 11 and the reflux inlet pipe 52. The reflux inlet pipe 52 is arranged near the cover body 13 of the tank body 11, preferably in a telescopic setting. When reflux feeding is required, the reflux inlet pipe 52 extends into the accommodation cavity 12. When no feeding is required, the inlet pipe 52 can be retracted to the outside of the side wall of the tank body 11. When a material basket 18 is provided inside the tank body 11, this telescopic structure can avoid the material basket 18 and prevent interference. When reflux needs to be started, the reflux pump is turned on, and the extracted solution flowing out from the liquid outlet 15 is introduced into the reflux inlet pipe 52 through the connecting pipe 51. The heat preservation member 53 can be a heat preservation felt, etc., and the connecting pipe 51 is located inside the heat preservation member 53. In this way, the extracted solution can be heat-preserved to prevent heat loss.

[0053] The plant separation device 100 continuously adds plant materials into the tank body 11 through the material pipe 22; through the cooperation between the material pressing member 31 and the material bearing member 32 of the extrusion assembly 30, the plant materials added therebetween are squeezed in real time, accelerating the outflow of the solvent carrying the active ingredients, and having the advantages of simple structure, easy operation and cleaning.

[0054] Please refer to Figure 1 , Figure 3 and Figure 4 . Another aspect of this embodiment also provides a plant separation method using the above plant separation device, including the steps:

[0055] First, provide plant materials and the plant separation device 100 as described above. The plant materials can be Chinese herbal medicines to be extracted. Optionally, the Chinese herbal medicines are pretreated by heating in a solvent and holding still. In this embodiment, for example, the plant materials are a mixture of the initially soaked Isatis indigotica Fort. powder and the solvent. Specifically, the Isatis indigotica Fort. powder with a particle size of 0.6 cm is added with 8 times the amount of water as the solvent, heated to 90 °C, and soaked for 2 - 3 hours to obtain the mixture. In this way, in the plant separation device 100, there is no need to spend time waiting for standing still. Only extrusion extraction is carried out, and reflux concentration is combined when necessary, which can improve the output operation rate of this device. With an appropriate heating and soaking tank, the overall extraction efficiency at the production site can be improved. Of course, for some plant materials that do not require long-term soaking and standing still, they can also be premixed with the solvent immediately in the hopper, or the plant materials and the solvent are separately added from different areas of the partitioned feed hopper 21. In this way, the proportion can be conveniently adjusted. The above feeding methods can be flexibly selected.

[0056] Secondly, add the plant materials into the feed hopper 21, and let the plant materials enter the accommodating cavity 12 through the feed pipe 22 and be carried on the material-bearing member 32 of the extrusion assembly 30.

[0057] The plant materials enter the accommodating cavity 12 through the feed pipe 22, and are evenly dispersed onto the material-bearing surface 320 of the material-bearing member 32 through the material leveling member 24 and the material leveling body 36. Due to the effect of the enclosing member 33, the plant materials will not overflow from the extrusion assembly 30.

[0058] Then, rotate the material pressing member 31 to extrude the plant materials, lower the material pressing member 31 to the material pressing position so that the material pressing member 31 cooperates with the material-bearing member 32. The material pressing position can be specifically adjusted according to the type of Chinese herbal medicines and the process conditions. For example, Figure 4As shown, due to the setting of the rib 37, when the blank holder 31 cooperates with the material supporting member 32, there is a gap between the two, and the blank holding surface 310 and the material supporting surface 320 are opposite and do not contact. When the blank holder 31 rotates relative to the material supporting member 32, the rib 37 can extrude the flatly laid radix isatidis powder on the material supporting member 32. The material leveling member 24 is slightly extruded and deformed, and the material leveling body 36 is located in the discharge space 25. If plant raw materials or solvents are replenished into the material pipe 22, they can still be evenly guided by the material leveling member 24 to the material supporting surface 320 of the material supporting member 32. While rotating, the blank holding surface 310 extrudes the radix isatidis powder on the material supporting surface 320, and the discharged solvent carries the plant active ingredients and discharges from the liquid leakage structure 34. Since the radix isatidis powder is evenly laid in a thin layer on the material supporting surface 320, each portion of the radix isatidis powder can be effectively extruded. At the same time, when the extrusion action is carried out, the elastic member 382 can provide a buffering effect to the material supporting member 32 to prevent the radix isatidis powder from being over-extruded. And, if the extrusion action needs to be carried out intermittently according to the process, after rotating a certain period, the blank holder 31 is lifted by a certain distance, and the material supporting member 32 can quickly reset under the action of the elastic member 382. As the extrusion progresses, the slag discharges from the discharge port 35. The feed hopper 21 can continuously add plant materials or intermittently supplement plant materials.

[0059] After the solvent carries the plant active ingredients and flows out of the material basket 18, it is secondarily filtered by the filter member 40 and falls on the diversion surface 14 of the tank body 11. When the liquid level in the tank body 11 is higher than the filter member 40 or the bottom of the material basket 18, it can also play an immersion extraction role in the radix isatidis powder at this place, promoting the accelerated extraction of the active ingredients. Optionally, when the extraction liquid obtained in the initial stage of the process fails to meet the concentration requirements, the reflux assembly 50 can be used to start the reflux pump to introduce the above extraction liquid into the reflux inlet pipe 52 through the connecting pipe 51 and add it into the tank body 11 again, and the solvent flows through the extrusion assembly 30 again to absorb the extruded active ingredients.

[0060] For the plant separation method using the plant separation device 100, adopting the continuous extrusion and dissolution promotion mode can ensure that each portion of the plant material added into the tank body 11 is fully extruded and dissolved. Moreover, the solvent in the plant material carries the active ingredients and flows out, which can promote the further dissolution of the remaining active ingredients by the subsequent low-concentration solvent, greatly improving the extraction efficiency, shortening the time required for full extraction, and correspondingly saving the solvent consumption and energy consumption.

[0061] Taking the plant raw material of 10 kg of Isatis indigotica Fort. powder pre-soaked in 8 times of water for 2 hours to obtain the Isatis indigotica Fort. extract with a relative density of 1.2 (60 °C) as an example. In the comparative example, according to the conventional soaking extraction method, after filtering the above plant raw material, it was soaked twice. It was soaked in 6 times of water for 120 min and 4 times of water for 60 min respectively, and the extract that met the density requirement was obtained after filtration and concentration. It took a total of 220 min to obtain the extract from the plant raw material. In contrast, by adopting the plant separation device and method of this embodiment, the plant raw material is extracted in a continuous extrusion and dissolution promotion mode. In Example 1, the reflux mode is not enabled, and the extrusion and dissolution cycle is controlled only by adjusting the feeding speed of the plant raw material and the rotation speed of the pressing member 31. 90 kg of the above plant raw material was processed in 120 min, and the obtained extract could reach the level of a relative density of 1.2. In Example 2, the reflux mode is enabled, and the time-consuming can be further shortened to 100 min. And 100 L of the solvent required for subsequent repeated soaking extraction is saved in both Example 1 and Example 2. In actual production practice, in order to make full use of Chinese herbal medicines, the relative density of the extract is not limited to 1.2 as the upper limit. Therefore, the degree of time and solvent saving of this solution compared with the conventional soaking extraction method should be higher than the level listed here.

[0062] Table 1: Comparison of time and water consumption for extracting plant raw materials in this embodiment and conventional soaking

[0063]

[0064] It can be seen that by using the plant separation method of this plant separation device and adopting the continuous extrusion and dissolution promotion mode, it can ensure that each portion of the plant material added to the tank body is fully extruded and dissolved. Moreover, the solvent carrying the active ingredient flows out of the material receiving member, which can promote the further dissolution of the remaining active ingredient by the relatively low-concentration solvent, can greatly improve the extraction efficiency, shorten the time required for full extraction, and correspondingly save the solvent consumption and energy consumption.

[0065] Example 2

[0066] Refer to Figure 3 , the difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is that there is no material basket inside the tank body 11, there is a connecting ring 19 inside the tank body 11, and the material receiving member 32 is connected to the connecting ring 19 of the tank body 11 through an elastic member 382.

[0067] The connecting ring 19 has a plurality of tank connecting parts 383. On the side of the material receiving member 32 away from the pressing member 31, there are a plurality of material receiving connecting parts 38. The material receiving connecting parts 38 and the tank connecting parts 383 of the connecting ring 19 respectively have cooperating cam surfaces 384. When the two are connected, the material receiving member 32 is carried on the connecting ring 19. When the pressing member 31 of the pressing assembly 30 rotates relative to the material receiving member 32 and the force on the material receiving member 32 is too large, the material receiving connecting parts 38 of the material receiving member 32 and the tank connecting parts 383 on the connecting ring 19 are in cam cooperation, and the material receiving member 32 rotates and rises along the cam surface 384 for buffering. In this embodiment, the lift of the cam cooperation between the material receiving connecting part 38 and the tank connecting part 383 is 0.1 - 3 cm. On the one hand, it can prevent the plant materials from being over-extruded, which may cause an increase in medicinal residues in the solution, resulting in turbid liquid and difficulty in cleaning and filtering. On the other hand, when the force disappears, the cam surface 384 cooperates with the elastic member 382 to automatically return to its original position, which can cooperate with the action of the pressing member pressing down again to ensure continuous extrusion.

[0068] Using the structure of this embodiment, the connection with the connecting ring 19 of the tank 11 is more firm and reliable, and the buffering effect provided by the cam surface 384 is better. Since the buffering cooperation structure is simple, it can avoid the interference of material residues and other sundries on the rebound action.

[0069] Importantly, it should be noted that the construction and arrangement of the present application shown in multiple different exemplary embodiments are merely illustrative. Although only a few embodiments are described in detail in this disclosure, those who refer to this disclosure should easily understand that many modifications are possible on the premise of substantially not departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the subject matter described in this application (for example, the dimensions, scales, structures, shapes and proportions of various elements, and parameter values (such as temperature, pressure, etc.), installation arrangements, use of materials, color, orientation changes, etc.). For example, an element shown as integrally formed can be composed of multiple parts or elements, the position of the element can be inverted or otherwise changed, and the nature, number or position of discrete elements can be changed or altered. Therefore, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention. The order or sequence of any process or method steps can be changed or reordered according to alternative embodiments. In the claims, any "means-plus-function" clause is intended to cover the structure that performs the recited function in this disclosure, and not only structural equivalents but also equivalent structures. Other substitutions, modifications, changes and omissions can be made in the design, operating conditions and arrangement of the exemplary embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to specific embodiments, but extends to various modifications that still fall within the scope of the appended claims.

[0070] In addition, to provide a concise description of the exemplary embodiments, all features of the actual embodiments may not be described (i.e., those features that are not relevant to the currently contemplated best mode of carrying out the invention or those features that are not relevant to the implementation of the invention).

[0071] It should be understood that in the development of any actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous specific implementation decisions may be made. Such development efforts may be complex and time-consuming, but for those of ordinary skill in the art who benefit from this disclosure, without undue experimentation, such development efforts will be a routine task of design, fabrication, and production.

[0072] It should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and not to limit them. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that the technical solutions of the present invention can be modified or equivalently replaced without departing from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the present invention, and they should all be covered within the scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A plant separation device, comprising: A containing tank (10) comprises a tank body (11), wherein the tank body (11) has a containing cavity (12); A feed assembly (20), comprising a feed hopper (21) and a feed pipe (22) connected to each other, wherein the feed hopper (21) is connected to the containing tank (10) and is located outside the containing chamber (12), the feed hopper (21) is connected to the feed pipe (22) via a pipe (210), the feed pipe (22) is rotatably arranged on the containing tank (10), one end of the feed pipe (22) is located outside the containing tank (10), and the other end is located inside the containing chamber (12); and The extrusion assembly (30) comprises a material pressing piece (31) and a material receiving piece (32) which are arranged relative to each other in the accommodating cavity (12); the material pressing piece (31) is sleeved on the material tube (22) and can rotate under the drive of the material tube (22); the material pressing piece (31) has a material pressing surface (310); the material receiving piece (32) has a material receiving surface (320) which matches with the material pressing surface (310); at least one of the material pressing surface (310) and the material receiving surface (320) has a rib (37) protruding in the matching direction.

2. The plant separation device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The pressing surface (310) is concave inward from the side of the pressing piece (31) close to the receiving piece (32), at least a portion of the pressing surface (310) is a conical surface, the receiving surface (320) is convex in the direction close to the pressing piece (31), at least a portion of the receiving surface (320) matches the conical surface of the pressing surface (310), and the height of the rib (37) protruding from the pressing surface (310) or the receiving surface (320) is 0.1-6 cm.

3. The plant separation device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The material receiving member (32) is movably disposed in the accommodating cavity (12), and the material receiving member (32) is elastically connected to a connecting ring (19) on the inner side of the tank body (11) or a material basket (18) on the inner side of the tank body (11); The material receiving member (32) has a plurality of material receiving connecting parts (38) on the side away from the material pressing member (31), and each of the material receiving connecting parts (38) is provided with a connecting hole (380). The material receiving member (32) is connected to the connecting ring (19) on the inner side of the tank body (11) or the material basket (18) on the inner side of the tank body (11) through the cooperation between the connecting member (381) and the connecting hole (380). The connecting member (381) is provided with an elastic member (382) on the outer sleeve, and the material receiving member (32) is supported on the elastic member (382).

4. The plant separation device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The material receiving member (32) is movably disposed in the accommodating cavity (12), and the material receiving member (32) is elastically connected to a connecting ring (19) on the inner side of the tank body (11) or a material basket (18) on the inner side of the tank body (11); The extrusion assembly (30) also includes an elastic member (382), one end of which is connected to the material receiving member (32), and the other end is connected to the connecting ring (19) on the inner side of the tank body (11) or the material basket (18) on the inner side of the tank body (11), the material receiving member (32) has a plurality of material receiving connecting parts (38) on the side away from the material pressing member (31), the connecting ring (19) or the material basket (18) has a tank body connecting part (383) corresponding to the plurality of material receiving connecting parts (38), and the material receiving connecting part (38) and the tank body connecting part (383) respectively have matching cam surfaces (384).

5. The plant separation device according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The receiving member (32) also has a blocking member (33) protruding in a direction close to the pressing member (31), the inner diameter of the blocking member (33) is larger than the outer diameter of the pressing member (31), the blocking member (33) has a liquid leakage structure (34), and the blocking member (33) has a plurality of discharge ports (35) near the pressing member (31).

6. The plant separation device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The feed assembly (20) further comprises a material leveling member (24) connected to the end of the material pipe (22) located in the accommodating chamber (12), the material leveling member (24) enclosing a material discharging space (25), the material leveling member (24) being configured to spray material onto the material receiving member (32), the material receiving member (32) further comprising a material leveling body (36) matched with the material leveling member (24), the material leveling body (36) being located in the material discharging space (25) when the extrusion assembly (30) is matched, and the material leveling body (36) has a spherical structure; The material distribution piece (24) and the material distribution body (36) are made of elastic material.

7. The plant separation device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The material pipe (22) has a feeding channel (23), and the material pipe (22) also includes a rod body (26) located in the feeding channel (23) and a plurality of bulk material parts (27) connected to the rod body (26).

8. The plant separation device according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The plant separation device further comprises a filter element (40) located in the accommodating cavity (12), wherein the filter aperture of the filter element (40) is smaller than the aperture of the basket (18).

9. The plant separation device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The tank body (11) has a liquid outlet (15) away from the feed assembly (20), and the plant separation device further comprises a reflux assembly (50), the reflux assembly (50) comprises a connecting pipe (51) and a reflux liquid inlet pipe (52), and the connecting pipe (51) is connected between the liquid outlet (15) and the reflux liquid inlet pipe (52); The reflux assembly (50) further comprises a heat-insulating component (53), and the connecting pipe (51) is located inside the heat-insulating component (53).

10. A method for separating plants, comprising the steps of: Providing plant material and a plant separation device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9; Adding plant material into the feed hopper (21), allowing the plant material to enter the containing chamber (12) through the material pipe (22) and be carried by the material receiving member (32) of the extrusion assembly 30; and The pressing piece (31) is rotated to press the plant material.

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