Molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction

Abstract

The utility model discloses a molecular distillation device for plant extraction, including bearing frame body, which is equipped with material storage cylinder, double -layer evaporation subassembly and heating assembly, and material storage cylinder is passed through material conveying subassembly and is communicated with double -layer evaporation subassembly, and double -layer evaporation subassembly is constituted by first evaporation chamber and second evaporation chamber that are connected in series up and down, and heating assembly is independently heated to two evaporation chambers through branch heat supply pipeline, and the flow is adjusted to electric control valve, and stirring subassembly is located in heating assembly, and stirring motor drives stirring rod and vane rotation, makes the uniform circulation of heat conduction medium, avoids partial overheating, and double -layer evaporation subassembly and heating assembly top all are equipped with pressure -relief valve, and guarantee high -vacuum under safe operation, and material conveying subassembly includes conveyer and conveying motor, realizes stable feeding, and bearing frame body one side is equipped with the maintenance ladder, and is convenient for maintenance. The device has the advantages of reasonable structure, high separation efficiency, uniform heating, safety and reliability, convenient maintenance and the like, and is suitable for efficient extraction of heat-sensitive plant components.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the technical field of plant extraction equipment, specifically to a molecular distillation device for plant extraction, suitable for the separation and purification of heat-sensitive, high-boiling-point or easily decomposed components in natural products, such as the industrial extraction of active substances like plant essential oils, flavonoids, saponins, fatty acids, and vitamins. Background Technology

[0002] In the extraction of active ingredients from plants, conventional distillation techniques such as atmospheric and vacuum distillation generally suffer from problems such as high operating temperatures and long residence times. Since most plant active ingredients are highly heat-sensitive, they are prone to oxidation, polymerization, or structural damage under high temperatures, leading to reduced yields and lower quality of the target product. Furthermore, traditional methods have limited ability to separate high-boiling-point components, making it difficult to achieve high-purity extraction and restricting their application in the preparation of high-end natural products.

[0003] Molecular distillation technology has become an important method for extracting heat-sensitive substances due to its advantages such as operation in a high vacuum environment, short distance between the evaporation and condensation surfaces, and short material heating time. However, most currently widely used molecular distillation equipment adopts a single-stage evaporation structure, where the material passes through the heating zone only once. This results in incomplete separation of light and heavy components, often requiring multiple repetitions to achieve the desired purity, severely impacting production efficiency. Furthermore, the heating system is generally a monolithic heating system, leading to uneven heat distribution and potential localized overheating. This not only affects product quality stability but may also cause material carbonization or coking, increasing cleaning difficulty and equipment failure rate.

[0004] Commercially available molecular distillation equipment still has significant structural design flaws. Material conveying largely relies on gravity flow or simple screw propulsion, resulting in uncontrollable feed rates and a tendency for blockages or material interruptions, affecting the continuity and stability of the distillation process. The heating system lacks an effective stirring mechanism, leading to large temperature gradients in the heat transfer medium and further exacerbating uneven heat transfer. Furthermore, most equipment lacks pressure regulation and overpressure protection devices, posing safety hazards in case of vacuum system malfunctions or thermal expansion. The overall layout is compact and difficult to disassemble, hindering maintenance and creating numerous cleaning dead zones, increasing the risk of cross-contamination and making it difficult to adapt to the flexible production needs of multi-variety, small-batch operations.

[0005] Therefore, it is necessary to design a molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction to solve the problems mentioned above. Utility Model Content

[0006] This invention provides a molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction. By optimizing the overall structural layout and introducing technologies such as segmented evaporation, zoned heating, internal stirring, and controllable conveying, the apparatus significantly improves the separation accuracy, thermal energy utilization efficiency, and operational stability of the molecular distillation process. It also enhances the equipment's safety and maintainability, making it suitable for the efficient and continuous extraction of various heat-sensitive plant components.

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model provides the following technical solution:

[0008] A molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction includes a support frame, on which a material storage cylinder, a double-layer evaporation assembly, and a heating assembly are mounted. A material conveying assembly connects the material storage cylinder and the double-layer evaporation assembly. A stirring assembly is internally installed within the heating assembly. The material conveying assembly stably conveys the material to be processed from the material storage cylinder to the double-layer evaporation assembly. The double-layer evaporation assembly performs segmented evaporation and separation of the material, improving the separation efficiency of light and heavy components. The heating assembly provides a stable heat source for the double-layer evaporation assembly. The stirring assembly rotates within the heating assembly, promoting the circulation of the heating medium, resulting in a more uniform temperature distribution and preventing localized overheating that could lead to material carbonization or deactivation of active ingredients. A maintenance ladder is also provided on one side of the support frame, facilitating routine inspection and maintenance of the components at higher levels by operators.

[0009] Furthermore, the double-layer evaporation assembly includes a double-layer evaporation cylinder, which is composed of a first evaporation chamber and a second evaporation chamber connected in series, with the first evaporation chamber located above and the second evaporation chamber located below. A connecting channel is provided between the two, so that after the material completes the first stage of evaporation, it can flow into the next evaporation chamber step by step for further separation, thereby realizing multi-stage gradient distillation and improving product purity.

[0010] Furthermore, the top of the double-layer evaporator is equipped with a first pressure relief valve, which is used to regulate the internal pressure of the first and second evaporator chambers to prevent overpressure risks caused by vacuum system failure or gas accumulation; its outer side is connected to a separate heating pipeline, one end of which is connected to the first and second evaporator chambers respectively, and the other end is connected to the heating component, which is used to independently supply heat energy to the two evaporator chambers; the separate heating pipeline is equipped with an electrically controlled valve, which can precisely control the heat supply flow of each evaporator chamber, realize temperature zone control, and adapt to the vaporization requirements of different components.

[0011] Furthermore, the heating assembly includes a heating cylinder disposed on one side of the double-layer evaporation assembly, with an electric heating tube at its bottom for heating the heat-conducting medium; the heating cylinder is connected to an external heat circulation system via a main heating pipeline; the end of the main heating pipeline away from the heating cylinder is connected to a branch heating pipeline via a hot gas delivery pump, which delivers the generated high-temperature steam or heat medium to the double-layer evaporation assembly, thereby achieving efficient heat transfer and recycling.

[0012] Furthermore, a second pressure relief valve is provided at the top of the heating cylinder to release overpressure gas that may be generated during the heating process, thereby ensuring the safe operation of the heating system and preventing equipment damage caused by thermal expansion.

[0013] Furthermore, the stirring assembly includes a stirring motor, a stirring rod, and stirring blades; the stirring motor is installed on the top of the heating cylinder and drives the stirring rod to rotate within the heating chamber; the stirring blades are arranged around the stirring rod to break up temperature stratification by stirring the heating medium (such as water or heat transfer oil), thereby improving heat transfer efficiency and ensuring stable and uniform heating.

[0014] Furthermore, the material conveying assembly includes a conveyor connected to the bottom discharge port of the material storage cylinder. One end of the conveyor is equipped with a conveying motor for driving the conveyor to operate. The conveyor is located below the support frame and mechanically feeds the material from the material storage cylinder through the discharge port into the double-layer evaporation assembly in a continuous and controllable manner, avoiding blockage or unstable flow caused by gravity feeding and ensuring the continuity of the distillation process.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this utility model are:

[0016] In this invention, a molecular distillation device for plant extraction achieves the following effects: 1. By setting up a double-layer evaporation assembly consisting of a first evaporation chamber and a second evaporation chamber connected in series, the material undergoes two independent evaporation stages sequentially, achieving graded separation of light and heavy components, effectively solving the problem of incomplete separation caused by traditional single-stage evaporation, and significantly improving product purity and extraction efficiency; 2. By using separate heating pipelines to supply heat energy to the two evaporation chambers, and by adjusting the flow rate of the heat medium in each branch through electrically controlled valves, temperature differentiation control of different evaporation sections can be achieved. Optimal distillation parameters can be set according to the volatility characteristics of different components, avoiding overheating or energy waste, and improving process flexibility; 3. A stirring assembly is set inside the heating assembly. The stirring motor drives the stirring rod and blades to rotate, promoting the full circulation of the heat transfer medium (such as heat transfer oil or water) in the heating chamber, eliminating temperature gradients, ensuring uniform heat transfer to the evaporation assembly, and effectively preventing material carbonization, coking, or deactivation of active ingredients caused by local overheating; 4. In the double-layer evaporation assembly... A first pressure relief valve is installed at the top, and a second pressure relief valve is installed at the top of the heating component. These valves can automatically release overpressure gas when the internal pressure of the system rises abnormally, preventing equipment damage or safety accidents caused by vacuum disruption or thermal expansion, and ensuring long-term stable operation of the device. 5. The material conveying component adopts a structure of conveyor and conveyor motor, replacing the traditional gravity feeding method. It can accurately control the feeding speed and flow rate, avoid blockage, material interruption or supply fluctuation, ensure the continuity and stability of the distillation process, and improve the level of production automation. 6. The high-temperature steam generated by the heating component is circulated to the double-layer evaporation component through the main heating pipeline and the branch heating pipeline via a hot gas delivery pump. This realizes the cascade utilization and recovery of heat energy, reduces the need for external heat source supplementation, significantly reduces operating energy consumption, and conforms to the green and low-carbon production concept. 7. A maintenance ladder is installed on one side of the support frame, which allows operators to safely access high-level components of the equipment (such as evaporation cylinder, valves, pipeline interfaces, etc.) for inspection, debugging, replacement of parts or troubleshooting, greatly shortening downtime and improving equipment maintainability. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall three-dimensional structure of this utility model;

[0018] Figure 2 This utility model Figure 1 Front view structural diagram;

[0019] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the double-layer evaporation assembly of this utility model;

[0020] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the heating component and stirring component of this utility model.

[0021] In the diagram: 1. Support frame; 2. Material storage cylinder; 3. Double-layer evaporation assembly; 4. Heating assembly; 5. Material conveying assembly; 6. Stirring assembly; 7. Maintenance ladder; 31. Double-layer evaporation cylinder; 32. First evaporation chamber; 33. Second evaporation chamber; 34. First pressure relief valve; 35. Sub-heating pipeline; 36. Electrically controlled valve; 41. Heating cylinder; 42. Electric heating tube; 43. Main heating pipeline; 44. Second pressure relief valve; 45. Hot gas conveying pump; 51. Conveyor; 52. Conveyor motor; 61. Stirring motor; 62. Stirring rod; 63. Stirring blade; 21. Discharge port. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The technical solutions of the present utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the embodiments of the present utility model. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present utility model, and not all embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present utility model without creative effort are within the protection scope of the present utility model.

[0023] To facilitate understanding of this utility model, a more comprehensive description will be given below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Several embodiments of this utility model are provided. However, this utility model can be implemented in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that the disclosure of this utility model will be more thorough and complete.

[0024] Example 1

[0025] Please see Figure 1 as well as Figure 2 This embodiment provides a molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction, including a support frame 1. The support frame 1 is a steel structure frame with sufficient strength and stability to support the entire equipment. A material storage cylinder 2, a double-layer evaporation assembly 3, and a heating assembly 4 are installed on the support frame 1. The material storage cylinder 2 is located at the top of one end of the support frame 1 and is used to store the plant extract to be processed or other raw materials containing active ingredients. The bottom of the material storage cylinder 2 is provided with a discharge port 21, which is connected to the material conveying assembly 5 through a pipe.

[0026] Example 2

[0027] Please see Figure 2This embodiment, based on embodiment 1, further defines the material conveying component 5 as including a conveyor 51 and a conveying motor 52. The conveyor 51 is a screw conveyor structure, horizontally positioned below the support frame 1. One end of the conveyor 51 is connected to the discharge port 21 of the material storage cylinder 2, and the other end extends to the feed end of the double-layer evaporation component 3. The conveying motor 52 is fixed to one axial side of the conveyor 51, driving the screw shaft to rotate, thereby achieving continuous and controllable material conveying. This design avoids the problems of easy clogging and unstable flow rate in traditional gravity feeding, ensuring the continuity and uniformity of the distillation process.

[0028] Example 3

[0029] Please see Figure 3 This embodiment, based on Embodiment 1, further specifies that the double-layer evaporation assembly 3 is located above the middle of the support frame 1. It mainly includes a double-layer evaporation cylinder 31, which is composed of a first evaporation chamber 32 and a second evaporation chamber 33 connected vertically. The first evaporation chamber 32 is located above, and the second evaporation chamber 33 is located below. The two are connected by an internal communication channel, allowing the material to flow into the next evaporation chamber for secondary separation after the first stage of evaporation. This segmented structure significantly improves the separation efficiency of light and heavy components, solving the problem of incomplete separation in single-stage evaporation.

[0030] The top of the double-layer evaporator shell 31 is equipped with a first pressure relief valve 34, which automatically opens to release excess gas and prevent overpressure damage to the equipment when the system vacuum is abnormal or the internal pressure rises. A separate heating pipeline 35 is located on the outside of the double-layer evaporator shell 31. This pipeline is divided into two branches, which are respectively connected to the heating jackets of the first evaporator chamber 32 and the second evaporator chamber 33 to achieve independent heating. An electrically controlled valve 36 is installed on the separate heating pipeline 35, which can adjust the flow rate of the heat medium in each branch through an external control system, thereby achieving differentiated temperature control of the two evaporator chambers to meet the vaporization requirements of different components.

[0031] Example 4

[0032] Please see Figure 4 This embodiment, based on embodiment 3, further specifies that the heating component 4 is located on one side of the double-layer evaporation component 3, including a heating cylinder 41, with an electric heating tube 42 installed at its bottom for heating the heat transfer medium (such as water or heat transfer oil). The heating cylinder 41 is connected to an external heat circulation system via a main heating pipeline 43. The end of the main heating pipeline 43 away from the heating cylinder 41 is connected to a branch heating pipeline 35 via a hot gas delivery pump 45, which delivers the high-temperature steam or heat transfer medium generated by heating to the double-layer evaporation component 3, realizing the cascade utilization and recovery of heat energy and reducing energy consumption.

[0033] The top of the heating cylinder 41 is equipped with a second pressure relief valve 44, which is used to release the overpressure gas generated by thermal expansion during the heating process, forming a dual safety protection mechanism to ensure the safe operation of the system.

[0034] Example 5

[0035] Please see Figure 4 This embodiment, based on embodiment 4, further specifies that the stirring assembly 6 is located inside the heating assembly 4, and includes a stirring motor 61, a stirring rod 62, and stirring blades 63. The stirring motor 61 is installed on the top of the heating cylinder 41 and drives the stirring rod 62 to rotate in the heating chamber. The stirring blades 63 are arranged around the stirring rod 62. By stirring the heat-conducting medium, the temperature stratification phenomenon is broken, the heat distribution is made more uniform, and local overheating is effectively prevented from causing material carbonization or deactivation of active ingredients.

[0036] Example 6

[0037] Please see Figure 1 Based on Embodiment 1, this embodiment further specifies that a maintenance ladder 7 is provided on the longer side of the support frame 1, which facilitates the safe access of operators to high-level components of the equipment (such as the double-layer evaporator 31, the first pressure relief valve 34, the electrically controlled valve 36, etc.) for daily inspection, maintenance or troubleshooting, thereby improving the maintainability of the equipment.

[0038] The working process of this utility model is as follows: When using the molecular distillation device for plant extraction, the plant extract or other materials containing active ingredients to be processed are pre-stored in the material storage cylinder 2. The material storage cylinder 2 is fixed above one end of the support frame 1 to facilitate gravity-assisted feeding. The conveyor motor 52 is started to drive the conveyor 51 to run. The material enters the feed end of the conveyor 51 through the discharge port 21 at the bottom of the material storage cylinder 2. The conveyor 51 adopts a spiral propulsion structure to stably and continuously transport the material to the feed port of the double-layer evaporation component 3, realizing controllable feeding and avoiding blockage or material interruption. The material first enters the first evaporation chamber 32 in the double-layer evaporation component 3 and begins to evaporate under the action of an external heat source. The first evaporation chamber 32 and the second evaporation chamber 33 are connected by a connecting channel. The light component vapor escapes upward, and the heavy component liquid flows into the second evaporation chamber 33 below under the action of gravity for secondary evaporation, realizing segmented gradient separation and significantly improving separation accuracy and efficiency. The electric heating tube 42 in the heating component 4 heats the heat transfer medium (such as water or heat transfer oil) in the heating cylinder 41, and the generated high-temperature steam or heat transfer medium is output through the main heating pipeline 43. The hot gas transfer pump 45 delivers heat energy to the sub-heating pipeline 35, which then supplies the heating jackets of the first evaporation chamber 32 and the second evaporation chamber 33 respectively, achieving efficient heat transfer and recycling, reducing energy consumption. The stirring motor 61 of the stirring assembly 6 drives the stirring rod 62 to rotate, which in turn drives the stirring blades 63 to stir the heat transfer medium inside the heating cylinder 41, promoting uniform heat distribution, preventing local overheating that could lead to carbonization of materials or deactivation of active ingredients, and ensuring heating stability. The electrically controlled valve 36 on the sub-heating pipeline 35 can independently adjust the flow rate of the heat medium entering the first evaporation chamber 32 and the second evaporation chamber 33, achieving differentiated temperature control of the two evaporation chambers to meet the vaporization requirements of different components. The first pressure relief valve 34 at the top of the double-layer evaporator 31 is used to monitor and regulate the internal pressure of the system to prevent overpressure risks caused by vacuum failure or gas accumulation. The second pressure relief valve 44 at the top of the heating cylinder 41 can release overpressure gas generated by thermal expansion during the heating process, forming a dual pressure protection mechanism to ensure the safe operation of the heating component 4 and the entire system. Subsequent operators can safely climb to the top of the equipment via the maintenance ladder 7 set on one side of the support frame 1 to perform daily inspections, cleaning, or troubleshooting of key components such as the double-layer evaporator 3, heating component 4, first pressure relief valve 34, and electrically controlled valve 36, thereby improving equipment maintainability and reducing downtime.

[0039] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction, characterized in that: The device includes a support frame (1), on which a material storage cylinder (2), a double-layer evaporation assembly (3), and a heating assembly (4) are provided. A material conveying assembly (5) is connected between the material storage cylinder (2) and the double-layer evaporation assembly (3). A stirring assembly (6) is provided inside the heating assembly (4). The material conveying assembly (5) is used to convey the material to be processed inside the material storage cylinder (2) to the double-layer evaporation assembly (3). The double-layer evaporation assembly (3) is used to perform segmented evaporation and separation of the material. The heating assembly (4) is used to provide a heat source for the double-layer evaporation assembly (3). The stirring assembly (6) rotates inside the heating assembly (4) to make the water temperature more uniform and avoid local overheating. A maintenance ladder (7) is also provided on the longer side of the support frame (1).

2. The molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction according to claim 1, characterized in that: The double-layer evaporation assembly (3) includes a double-layer evaporation cylinder (31), which is composed of a first evaporation chamber (32) and a second evaporation chamber (33) connected in series. The first evaporation chamber (32) is located above and the second evaporation chamber (33) is located below. A connecting channel is provided between the first evaporation chamber (32) and the second evaporation chamber (33) to realize the step-by-step flow and evaporation of materials.

3. The molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction according to claim 2, characterized in that: The top of the double-layer evaporator cylinder (31) is provided with a first pressure relief valve (34) for adjusting the internal pressure of the first evaporator chamber (32) and the second evaporator chamber (33). The outer side is connected to a separate heating pipeline (35), one end of which is connected to the first evaporator chamber (32) and the second evaporator chamber (33) respectively, and the other end is connected to the heating component (4) for independently supplying heat energy to the two evaporator chambers. The separate heating pipeline (35) is equipped with an electrically controlled valve (36).

4. The molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction according to claim 1, characterized in that: The heating assembly (4) includes a heating cylinder (41), which is located on one side of the double-layer evaporation assembly (3). An electric heating tube (42) is provided at the bottom of the heating cylinder (41). The heating cylinder (41) is connected to the main heating pipeline (43) on the outside. The side of the main heating pipeline (43) away from the heating cylinder (41) is connected to the sub-heating pipeline (35) through a hot gas delivery pump (45) to provide heating steam for the double-layer evaporation assembly (3). An electric control valve (36) is also provided on the main heating pipeline (43).

5. A molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction according to claim 4, characterized in that: The heating cylinder (41) is equipped with a second pressure relief valve (44) at the top, which is used to release the overpressure gas generated during the heating process and ensure the safe operation of the system.

6. The molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction according to claim 1, characterized in that: The stirring assembly (6) includes a stirring motor (61), a stirring rod (62), and stirring blades (63). The stirring motor (61) is installed on the top of the heating cylinder (41). The stirring rod (62) extends through the top cover of the heating cylinder (41) into the heating cavity. The stirring blades (63) are arranged around the stirring rod (62) for stirring during the water heating process.

7. A molecular distillation apparatus for plant extraction according to claim 1, characterized in that: The material conveying assembly (5) includes a conveyor (51) connected to the bottom discharge port (21) of the material storage cylinder (2). A conveying motor (52) is provided on one axial side of the conveyor (51). The conveyor (51) is located below the support frame (1). The conveying motor (52) drives the conveyor (51) to send the material from the material storage cylinder (2) through the discharge port (21) into the double-layer evaporation assembly (3).

Images