Bacterial cellulose production system

Abstract

The utility model relates to a bacterial cellulose production system. The system comprises a fermentation unit, a cleaning unit, a cutting unit and a purification unit. According to the bacterial cellulose hydrogel production line, the adsorption performance of bacterial cellulose hydrogel is fully utilized, a plurality of steps in bacterial cellulose production form a complete assembly line through intermittent spraying of the spraying nozzles, up-down movement of the end face of the fermentation chamber and matched arrangement of the conveying belt, continuous industrial production of the bacterial cellulose hydrogel is achieved, and the production efficiency is improved. The production efficiency is greatly improved, and the production cost is reduced.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The utility model relates to the production system of biological fermentation raw material, specifically, especially relates to a bacterial cellulose production system. BACKGROUND

[0002] Bacterial cellulose (BC) refers to the cellulose that is generated by the fermentation of some special bacteria under different conditions. Bacterial cellulose has the same molecular structure unit as natural cellulose, but it also has many unique properties. First, compared with plant cellulose, it has no lignin, pectin and hemicellulose and other by-products, and has high crystallinity and high polymerization degree; second, it has a super-fine spatial network structure, which is a fiber bundle combined by microfibers with a diameter of 3-4 nanometers, and is interwoven to form a developed super-fine network structure; in addition, it has an elastic modulus several times or even tens of times that of plant fiber, and also has higher tensile strength; it also has strong water holding capacity and good biocompatibility, adaptability and biodegradability. Due to the above advantages of bacterial cellulose material, it has been widely used in food, medicine, cosmetics, biological materials and other fields.

[0003] The production method of bacterial cellulose is mainly to produce bacterial cellulose by culturing bacteria such as Acetobacter to metabolize bacterial cellulose, which includes static fermentation method and dynamic fermentation method. The static fermentation method is to culture bacterial cellulose producing bacteria in a static liquid culture medium, which will produce gelatinous bacterial cellulose gel product in the gas-liquid contact surface of the liquid culture medium and air. Dynamic fermentation is to produce bacterial cellulose in a stirred, shaking flask, but due to the yield and product physical and chemical properties, the static fermentation method is currently mainly used to prepare bacterial cellulose hydrogel.

[0004] The static fermentation production equipment of bacterial cellulose commonly used at present is relatively simple, that is, a shallow tray is usually used to hold liquid culture medium, and the bacteria are inoculated and then fermented. A main problem thereof is that, in the fermentation process, as the bacterial cellulose hydrogel membrane is generated on the liquid surface of the culture medium, the oxygen necessary for the growth and reproduction of the bacterial cellulose producing bacteria is gradually isolated, so that when the bacterial cellulose hydrogel grows to a certain thickness, the bacterial cellulose producing bacteria cannot continue to grow. This greatly limits the production efficiency of bacterial cellulose. For example, CN107446796A discloses a bacterial cellulose fermentation production equipment, which is also used for static fermentation, and the production efficiency is improved by arranging multiple culture boxes (similar to shallow trays) and stacking them up and down. However, the oxygen supply problem has not been fundamentally solved, and the production efficiency and production cost are still high. In addition, there is currently no automated high-flow production system that can be applied to bacterial cellulose production, so that the production of bacterial cellulose still remains at the stage of manual workshop, and cannot meet large-scale production, which also makes the production cost high. SUMMARY

[0005] In view of the above technical problems, the present application provides a bacterial cellulose production system, which breaks the traditional technical route of using a shallow tray for static fermentation culture of bacterial cellulose, and provides a flow line type highly automated processing system, greatly improving the production efficiency of bacterial cellulose and reducing the production cost.

[0006] The present application provides a bacterial cellulose production system, which comprises a fermentation unit, a cleaning unit, a cutting unit and a purification unit.

[0007] Specifically, the fermentation unit includes a fermentation chamber and a culture solution storage chamber; the fermentation chamber and the culture solution storage chamber are both cuboids, a through hole is formed in the bottom surface of the fermentation chamber away from the cleaning unit, and a through slot is formed in the other end of the fermentation chamber, the other part of the bottom surface is formed by a conveyor belt, and a scraper is fixed beside the conveyor belt near the cleaning unit; the end surface of the fermentation chamber near the cleaning unit is made of a porous rough material with good water absorption, and it can move up and down between the top plate of the fermentation chamber and the bottom plate of the culture solution storage chamber through the through slot; the tip of the scraper abuts against the surface of the porous rough material, and the scraper scrapes the surface of the porous rough material when the porous rough material moves up and down; a spray nozzle and a temperature control device are arranged on the end surface of the fermentation chamber away from the cleaning unit, and the spray nozzle is connected to the culture solution storage chamber through a pipeline; the surfaces of the fermentation chamber and the culture solution storage chamber except the end surface formed by the porous rough material are made of heat preservation material; the porous rough material is fixed on a support plate and moves up and down by sliding in the sliding groove arranged on the end surface of the culture solution storage chamber near the cleaning unit, and the upper end of the porous rough material is fixed by a pin to abut against the top plate of the fermentation chamber to form the fermentation chamber. A culture solution inlet with a cover is also arranged on the top plate of the fermentation chamber. Through the inlet, the culture solution inoculated with microorganisms can enter the culture solution storage chamber through the fermentation chamber.

[0008] The cleaning unit includes a conveyor belt and a spray system arranged above the conveyor belt.

[0009] The cutting unit includes a conveyor belt and a cutter group arranged thereon.

[0010] The purification unit includes a purification tank containing a purification solution.

[0011] In particular, the porous rough material with good water absorption is not particularly limited, as long as it has good water absorption, can adsorb the culture solution to allow the microorganisms to ferment to produce bacterial cellulose hydrogel, and has roughness that can allow the produced bacterial cellulose hydrogel to be adsorbed thereon. The porous rough material can include ceramic material or zeolite material.

[0012] Obviously, other ways of fixing and moving up and down the porous rough material can also be used, as long as they can stably move up and down; the power for the above-mentioned up-and-down movement can be manual, or can be provided by an electric motor, a hydraulic rod, a belt, a chain, etc. Similarly, the fixation of the porous rough material can also be achieved by other means, and any conventional means known in the art can be used in combination with the up-and-down movement, which can be determined according to the cost and production scale.

[0013] The spraying system has no particular limitation, and the number of the spray heads and the spraying intensity can be determined according to the needs.

[0014] The cutter group has no particular limitation, and can be set according to the shape and size of the cut bacterial cellulose gel, for example, a vertical parallel cutter group or a grid cutter group can cut the bacterial cellulose gel into long strips with different sizes, and even rotating blades can cut the long strips into particles.

[0015] The purification tank also has no particular limitation, as long as it can be filled with the cut bacterial cellulose gel and soaked with the purification liquid.

[0016] The temperature control device can control the temperature in the culture solution storage room, so that the liquid culture solution will not ferment in the storage room and can also maintain the liquid state. Specifically, the temperature control devices in the fermentation chamber and the culture solution storage room each include a heating device and a refrigeration device. In high temperature or low temperature weather, the fermentation chamber can maintain a suitable fermentation temperature, and the culture solution storage room can maintain a non-fermentation and liquid temperature, for example, the fermentation chamber is maintained at 25-30℃, and the culture solution storage room is maintained at 5-15℃.

[0017] The pipeline connected to the spray head is also provided with a pump and an electromagnetic valve to control the intermittent spraying of the spray head. Obviously, continuous spraying of the spray head does not affect the fermentation, but intermittent spraying is preferred for energy saving.

[0018] The production system is used for producing bacterial cellulose, and includes the following steps:

[0019] The end surface of the fermentation chamber made of the porous and rough material with good water absorption is lowered to pass through the through groove and reach the bottom plate of the culture solution storage room;

[0020] The bacterial cellulose producing bacteria are inoculated in the sterilized liquid medium to form a culture solution, the culture solution is poured into the fermentation chamber through the culture solution inlet, and then flows into the culture solution storage room through the gap between the through hole and the through groove;

[0021] The end surface made of the porous and rough material with good water absorption is raised to pass through the through groove and reach the top plate of the fermentation chamber to form the fermentation chamber, and the culture solution is adsorbed on the porous and rough material;

[0022] fermentation, when a thin layer of bacterial cellulose gel grows on the surface of the porous rough material, the culture solution is transported from the culture solution storage chamber to the spray nozzle through the pipeline, and the culture solution is sprayed onto the surface of the bacterial cellulose gel through the spray nozzle, and then fermentation is carried out again, and when the thickness increases, the steps of spraying the culture solution and fermentation are repeated until the bacterial cellulose gel grows to the required thickness; the excess culture solution sprayed flows back to the culture solution storage chamber through the gap between the through hole and the through groove;

[0023] After the fermentation is completed, the end face made of the porous rough material with good water absorption is lowered to pass through the through groove to the bottom plate of the culture solution storage chamber, and the bacterial cellulose gel is separated from the porous rough material by the scraper;

[0024] The transmission belt is started to convey the bacterial cellulose gel to the cleaning unit, the spray system in the cleaning unit is opened to clean, and after the cleaning is completed, the bacterial cellulose gel is continuously conveyed through the transmission belt to pass through the cutter group arranged on the transmission belt in the cutting unit to cut it into the required shape, and the cut bacterial cellulose gel is continuously conveyed through the transmission belt to the purification unit and falls into the purification tank containing the purification liquid, and the purification is completed after stirring to be harvested.

[0025] In the method for producing bacterial cellulose, the spray system in the cleaning unit sprays deionized water; and the purification liquid in the purification tank in the purification unit is an alkali solution, such as sodium hydroxide solution.

[0026] In the above method, the temperature in the fermentation chamber is controlled at 25-30℃; and the temperature in the culture solution storage chamber is controlled at 5-15℃ lower than the fermentation temperature.

[0027] It is easy to understand that in order to facilitate monitoring, monitoring equipment such as thermometers, hygrometers and their sensors can also be provided in the fermentation chamber and the culture solution storage chamber as needed.

[0028] The utility model breaks the shallow plate fermentation mode commonly used in traditional static fermentation, utilizes the adsorption performance of bacterial cellulose hydrogel itself, controls the temperature of the fermentation chamber and the culture solution storage chamber respectively, sets the fermentation, cleaning, cutting and purification in the production of bacterial cellulose into a complete assembly line, realizes the continuous industrial production of bacterial cellulose hydrogel, can greatly improve the production efficiency, and greatly reduces the production cost. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0029] Figure 1is a structural schematic view of the bacterial cellulose production system of the utility model; wherein: 1 - fermentation unit; 2 - cleaning unit; 3 - cutting unit; 4 - purification unit; 5 - fermentation chamber; 6 - culture solution storage chamber; 7 - through hole; 8 - through groove; 9 - scraper; 10 - porous rough material; 11 - spray nozzle; 12 - temperature control device; 13 - support plate; 14 - pin; 15 - sprinkling system; 16 - cutter group; 17 - purification pool; 18 - culture solution feed inlet; 19 - bacterial cellulose gel. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The utility model will be further explained in detail in connection with the drawings and examples, but it is easy to understand that the following specific embodiments are only the enumeration of the utility model, and it should not be understood as the limitation of the utility model, and any change or adjustment without departing from the range of the utility model belongs to the range of the utility model. Example 1:

[0031] According to the structure shown in the utility model Figure 1 The bacterial cellulose production system of the embodiment is provided, wherein the porous rough material is made of zeolite material; the spray nozzle is two, and the air temperature is 22 DEG C.

[0032] First, lower the zeolite material end face 10 of the fermentation chamber 5, so that it passes through the through slot 8 to the bottom plate of the culture solution storage chamber 6; then inoculate the bacterial cellulose producing bacteria in the sterilized liquid medium to make a culture solution, and pour the culture solution into the fermentation chamber 5 through the culture solution inlet 18, and then flow into the culture solution storage chamber 6 through the gap of the through hole 7 and the through slot 8, open the temperature control device 12 in the culture solution storage chamber 6, and control the temperature of the culture solution storage chamber to be 15℃; then raise the zeolite material end face 10 of the fermentation chamber 5, so that it passes through the through slot 8 to the top plate of the fermentation chamber 5, form a fermentation chamber, and the culture solution is adsorbed on the zeolite material end face 10, open the temperature control device 12 in the fermentation chamber, and make the temperature in the fermentation chamber be 28℃ for fermentation, when the bacterial cellulose gel 19 thin layer grows on the surface of the zeolite material end face 10, the culture solution is transported from the culture solution storage chamber 6 to the spray nozzle 11 through the pipeline, and then the culture solution is sprayed onto the surface of the bacterial cellulose gel thin layer through the spray nozzle 11, and then the fermentation is carried out again, when the thickness increases, the steps of spraying the culture solution and fermentation are repeated until the bacterial cellulose gel 19 grows to the required thickness; the excess culture solution sprayed is flowed back to the culture solution storage chamber 6 through the gap of the through hole 7 and the through slot 8; after the fermentation is completed, the zeolite material end face 10 is lowered, so that it passes through the through slot 8 to the bottom plate of the culture solution storage chamber 6, and at the same time the bacterial cellulose gel 19 is separated from the zeolite material through the scraper 9; the conveying belt is started to send the bacterial cellulose gel 19 to the cleaning unit 2, the spray system 15 in the cleaning unit is opened to spray deionized water for cleaning, after 10min of cleaning, the bacterial cellulose gel 19 is continuously conveyed through the conveying belt, so that it passes through the cutter group 16 arranged on the conveying belt in the cutting unit 3, and is cut into small strips, and then is conveyed to the purification unit 4 and falls into the purification tank 17 containing 1% sodium hydroxide solution, and is collected after stirring and completing the purification. Example 2:

[0033] According to the structure shown in the utility model Figure 1 The bacterial cellulose production system of the embodiment is provided according to the structure shown in the utility model, wherein the porous rough material is made of ceramic material; the spray nozzle is two, and the air temperature is 12℃.

[0034] First, the ceramic material end surface 10 of the fermentation chamber 5 is lowered to pass through the through slot 8 to the bottom plate of the culture solution storage chamber 6; then the bacterial cellulose producing bacteria are inoculated in the sterilized liquid medium to form a culture solution, and the culture solution is poured into the fermentation chamber 5 through the culture solution inlet 18, and then flows into the culture solution storage chamber 6 through the gap between the through hole 7 and the through slot 8, without opening the temperature control device 12 in the culture solution storage chamber 6, the temperature of the culture solution storage chamber is kept at 12℃; then the ceramic material end surface 10 of the fermentation chamber 5 is raised to pass through the through slot 8 to the top plate of the fermentation chamber 5, forming a fermentation chamber, and the culture solution is adsorbed on the ceramic material end surface 10, the temperature control device 12 in the fermentation chamber is opened, and the temperature in the fermentation chamber is 26℃ for fermentation, when the bacterial cellulose gel 19 thin layer grows on the surface of the ceramic material end surface 10, the culture solution is transported from the culture solution storage chamber 6 to the spray head 11 through the pipeline, and then the culture solution is sprayed onto the surface of the bacterial cellulose gel thin layer through the spray head 11, and then the fermentation is carried out again, when the thickness increases, the steps of spraying the culture solution and fermentation are repeated until the bacterial cellulose gel 19 grows to the required thickness; the excess culture solution sprayed is flowed back to the culture solution storage chamber 6 through the gap between the through hole 7 and the through slot 8; after the fermentation is completed, the ceramic material end surface 10 is lowered to pass through the through slot 8 to the bottom plate of the culture solution storage chamber 6, and the bacterial cellulose gel 19 is separated from the ceramic material by the scraper 9; the conveyor belt is started to send the bacterial cellulose gel 19 to the cleaning unit 2, the spray system 15 in the cleaning unit is opened to spray deionized water for cleaning, after cleaning for 12 minutes, the bacterial cellulose gel 19 is continuously conveyed through the conveyor belt to pass through the cutter group 16 arranged on the conveyor belt in the cutting unit 3 to cut it into granular shape, and then it is conveyed to the purification unit 4 and falls into the purification tank 17 containing 1% sodium hydroxide solution, and after heating to 35℃, stirring is completed to purify and harvest.

[0035] The above-described embodiments are only used to describe the preferred embodiments of the present application, and do not limit the scope of the present application, and various modifications and improvements to the technical solutions of the present application made by those skilled in the art without departing from the design spirit of the present application shall fall within the protection scope of the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A bacterial cellulose production system, characterized by: It comprises a fermentation unit (1), a cleaning unit (2), a cutting unit (3) and a purification unit (4). The fermentation unit (1) comprises a fermentation chamber (5) and a culture solution storage chamber (6); the fermentation chamber (5) and the culture solution storage chamber (6) are both cuboids; a through hole (7) is formed on the bottom surface of the fermentation chamber (5) and is connected to the culture solution storage chamber (6); a through slot (8) is formed on the other end of the bottom surface and is connected to the culture solution storage chamber (6); part of the bottom surface is composed of a conveyor belt, and a scraper (9) is fixed beside the conveyor belt in the direction close to the cleaning unit (2); the end surface of the fermentation chamber (5) close to the cleaning unit (2) is made of a porous rough material (10), and the porous rough material (10) can move up and down through the through slot (8) between the top plate of the fermentation chamber (5) and the bottom plate of the culture solution storage chamber (6); the tip of the scraper (9) abuts against the surface of the porous rough material (10), so that the scraper (9) scrapes the surface of the porous rough material (10) when the porous rough material (10) moves up and down; a spray nozzle (11) and a temperature control device (12) are arranged on the end surface of the fermentation chamber (5) away from the cleaning unit (2); the spray nozzle (11) is connected to the culture solution storage chamber (6) through a pipeline; the surfaces of the fermentation chamber (5) and the culture solution storage chamber (6) except the end surface composed of the porous rough material (10) are made of heat preservation materials; the porous rough material (10) is fixed on a support plate (13) and moves up and down by sliding in the sliding groove arranged on the end surface of the culture solution storage chamber (6) in the direction close to the cleaning unit (2) through the support plate (13), and the upper end of the porous rough material (10) is fixed by a pin (14) to abut against the top plate of the fermentation chamber to form the fermentation chamber; a culture solution inlet (18) with a cover is also arranged on the top plate of the fermentation chamber (5); The cleaning unit (2) comprises a conveyor belt and a spraying system (15) arranged above the conveyor belt; The cutting unit (3) comprises a conveyor belt and a cutter group (16) arranged on the conveyor belt; The purification unit (4) comprises a purification tank (17) containing a purification solution.

2. The bacterial cellulose production system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The porous rough material is a ceramic material or a zeolite material.

3. The bacterial cellulose production system according to claim 1, characterized in that: Temperature control devices (12) are also arranged on the inner walls of the culture solution storage chamber (6).

4. The bacterial cellulose production system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The temperature control devices (12) in the fermentation chamber (5) and the culture solution storage chamber (6) both comprise a heating device and a refrigeration device.

5. The bacterial cellulose production system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: A pump and an electromagnetic valve are also arranged in the pipeline connected to the spray nozzle (11) to control the intermittent spraying of the spray nozzle (11).

Images