Method and device for cleaning a liquid

Abstract

In a method for cleaning a liquid, in particular oil, that is used in a tank (3) of a deep fat fryer, by means of a filter element (19) through which the liquid flows, the liquid is removed from the deep fat fryer, preferably during operation of same, directed through the filter element (19) and brought back into the tank (3).

Description

[0001] METHOD AND DEVICE FOR CLEANING A LIQUID

[0002] Technical area

[0003] The invention relates to a method for cleaning a liquid, in particular oil, which is used in a bath of a deep fryer, by means of a filter element through which the liquid flows, and to a device therefor.

[0004] State of the art

[0005] There are a variety of fluids that require cleaning, both in private and industrial settings. These include, for example, coolant or lubricant baths, in machine tools, or even cooking oils, e.g., from fittings. These are just a few examples, but the invention is intended to apply to all possible fluids that require cleaning.

[0006] WO 02 / 28505 discloses such a device for purifying liquids, particularly edible oils, using a filter in a filter housing. The filter is connected downstream of a pump, and a motor is provided in a housing for driving the pump, which has a rotor with a rotor disk with vanes in a submersible housing. The housing, submersible housing, and filter housing together form a unit that can be at least partially inserted into and removed from the liquid to be purified. This device has proven itself worldwide.

[0007] A continuation of this device is described in DE 10 2020 134 844 A1.

[0008] Object of the invention

[0009] The object of the present invention is to develop a method and a device of the above-mentioned type which is versatile in application and, above all, can also be used in machines already on the market.

[0010] Solution to the task

[0011] To solve this problem, the liquid is preferably removed from the fryer during operation, passed through the filter element and returned to the bath.

[0012] The inventive method thus ensures continuous cleaning of the liquid, even when operating a deep fryer, for example. Discontinuous operation is also possible, of course, and is intended to be encompassed by the inventive concept. The only essential requirement is that the liquid to be cleaned is removed from the liquid bath, cleaned, and returned to the bath.

[0013] What's striking about this example is the simple design of the entire fluid circuit. It's important to emphasize that the fluid to be cleaned is directed beneath the filter element and forced through the filter element from below. This means that the filtered-out impurities in the fluid don't clog the filter element too quickly from above, but rather that heavier impurities settle to the bottom, allowing the filter to remain open and perform its cleaning function.

[0014] The liquid to be cleaned is thus extracted from the bath, forced through the filter element from below, and returned to the bath. The return should preferably be via a nozzle that allows the flow to reach as many areas of the bath as possible, preventing the formation of dead spaces where contaminants can settle. To ensure this, it may even be possible to move the nozzle, which can be achieved using fluid technology or, for example, by motor.

[0015] Preferably, both the extraction and return of the liquid take place in a single pipe section, which can be easily inserted into the drain of existing systems for retrofitting. The remaining elements of the liquid circuit are then connected to this pipe section. The possibility of retrofitting devices already on the market and in use is a particularly striking feature of the present invention.

[0016] Regarding the device for cleaning a liquid, in particular oil, in a deep fryer bath using a filter element, the bath is to be provided with a fluid circuit for the liquid from the bath and back into the bath, with the filter element being integrated into the fluid circuit. This filter element is preferably located in a removable filter box, so that it can be easily replaced. The filter box can also be easily cleaned in this way.

[0017] Preferably, the filter element divides the filter box into a lower and an upper space, both of which are optionally separated from the filter element by any desired separating element, in particular, for example, by a perforated plate.

[0018] The lower chamber should be connected to a pump, which is also connected to the fluid circuit. The pipe section described above, which is connected to the bath's drain, opens into this pump. The pump then forces the fluid into the lower chamber of the filter box, i.e., below the filter.

[0019] A return line for the liquid leads from the upper chamber of the filter box back to the bath, with this return line preferably running through the pipe section. The return line discharges from the pipe section into the bath via a nozzle, which houses the nozzle mentioned above.

[0020] Character description

[0021] Further advantages, features and details of the invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments and from the drawings, which show:

[0022] Figure 1 is a front view of the device according to the invention for cleaning a liquid;

[0023] Figure 2 is a perspective view of the device according to Figure 1;

[0024] Figure 3 is a further perspective view of the device according to Figure 2 from below;

[0025] Figure 4 is a side view of a major part of the device according to Figure 1;

[0026] Figure 5 is a side view of a schematically illustrated, partially opened filter box;

[0027] Figure 6 is a schematic and block diagram representation of the method according to the invention for cleaning a liquid.

[0028] Example

[0029] A device according to the invention for purifying a liquid comprises, as shown in Figure 1, an insert 1 with a bath 3, which is inserted into a housing 2. This housing 2 is preferably open at the front, but can of course also be closed.

[0030] According to Figure 2, a liquid 4, shown in Figure 5, is located in the bath 3. Immersed in the bath 3 are heating rods 5 for heating the liquid 4. Associated with these heating rods 5 is a folding device 6 for folding the heating rods 5 out of the bath 3. Furthermore, the bath 3 contains a basket 7 for holding a product, for example, to be deep-fried. In this case, the liquid 4 is a suitable frying oil.

[0031] In a possibly lower-lying area 8 of the bath 3, a drain 9 is provided, into which a fluid circuit 30 according to the invention is inserted. This drain 9 leads into a pipe section 10, which in turn is connected to a pump 12 via a bend 11. A ball valve is inserted into the bend 11, which is operated by means of a lever 13. This ball valve 13 is neglected in Figure 4.

[0032] A filter box 14 is connected downstream of the pump 12. This filter box 14 has an upper frame 15, which is connected to a machine-mounted frame 17 via clamping elements 16. A corresponding seal is arranged between them. After loosening the clamping elements 16, the filter box 14 can be removed from the frame 15 and the contents of the filter box 14 can be cleaned or replaced.

[0033] In Figure 5, the filter box 14 with its handle 15 can be seen more clearly, with a zigzag filter element 19 dividing a lower chamber 20 from an upper chamber 21 of the filter box. The zigzag filter element 19 overlaps a corresponding grid 22 and is fixed to this grid 22.

[0034] From the upper chamber 21, a pipe arrangement 23 leads back into the pipe section 10 and continues within the pipe section 10 with a nozzle 24 that opens out of the drain 9 and has a nozzle 25 there. A further ball valve with a lever 26 is also integrated into the pipe arrangement 23. The operation of the invention is as follows and is explained in more detail with reference to Figure 6.

[0035] The design of the bath 3 with the lower region 8 makes it possible to use the inventive liquid circuit 30 during operation of the device itself, i.e., with the heating elements 5 folded in and the basket 7 inserted during deep-frying. Naturally, the inventive concept also encompasses the operation of the liquid circuit 30 outside of the device's operation. Particularly and clearly emphasized is the possibility of retrofitting the liquid circuit 30 into existing devices or baths 3 by simply providing the pipe section 10 with an annular collar at its free end, with a corresponding seal being inserted between the annular collar and the bottom of the bath 3 when inserting this pipe section 10.

[0036] To operate the device, the ball valve is opened with the lever 13 so that the pump 12 can draw liquid from the bath 3. The pump 12 forces this liquid into the lower chamber 20 of the filter box 14 below the filter element 19 and from below through the filter element 19. To define the filter element, a perforated plate 27, for example, can be provided below the grid 22. A further perforated plate 28 or the like can also be provided towards the upper chamber 21, which defines the upper chamber 21 from the filter element 19.

[0037] After the purified liquid enters the upper chamber 21, the liquid enters the pipe arrangement 23 and from there through the open ball valve with the lever 26 into the nozzle 24 in the pipe section 10 and is discharged from the nozzle 24 through the nozzle 25 into the bath 3. This nozzle 25 can, for example, be specially equipped or aligned so that no dead zones arise in the bath 3 in which impurities of the liquid can accumulate. For example, it can also be provided that the nozzle 25 is moved by a suitable device or as a result of the flow of the liquid itself, so that it covers different zones of the bath 3 in varying degrees. After a predetermined time or at regular intervals, the filter box 14 is removed after closing the ball valves by loosening the clamping elements 16, cleaned and / or the corresponding filter is replaced.Figures 1 to 4 also show that an additional tray 28 is inserted beneath the fluid circuit 30, which serves to collect any oil that may leak from the fluid circuit 30. Appropriate seals, however, are intended to prevent this.

[0038] List of reference symbols

Claims

Patent claims 1. Method for cleaning a liquid, in particular oil, which is used in a bath (3) of a deep fryer, by means of a filter element (19) through which the liquid flows, characterized in that the liquid is preferably removed from the deep fryer during operation, passed through the filter element (19) and brought back into the bath (3).

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the liquid is guided under the filter element (19) and pressed through the filter element (19) from below.

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the liquid is pressed from a nozzle (25) back into the bath (3).

4. Method according to claim 3, characterized in that the nozzle (25) is moved.

5. Method according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the liquid is removed in a pipe section (10) in which the liquid is also returned after cleaning.

6. Device for cleaning a liquid, in particular oil, in a bath (3) of a deep fryer by means of a filter element (19), characterized in that the bath is assigned a liquid circuit (30) for the liquid from the bath (3) and back into the bath (3), wherein the filter element (19) is inserted into the liquid circuit (30).

7. Device according to claim 6, characterized in that the filter element (19) is located in a filter box (14) which can be removed from the liquid circuit (30).

8. Device according to claim 7, characterized in that the filter element (19) divides the filter box (14) into a lower and an upper space (20, 21).

9. Device according to claim 8, characterized in that the filter element (19) is limited upwards and / or downwards by a perforated plate (27, 28).

10. Device according to claim 9, characterized in that the lower space (20) is connected to a pump (12) which is also connected to the liquid circuit (30). 1 1. Device according to claim 10, characterized in that the pump (12) is connected via a pipe section (10) to an outlet (9) of the bath (3).

12. Device according to claim 1 1, characterized in that a return line (23) for the liquid leads from the upper space (21) of the filter box (14) into the pipe section (10).

13. Device according to claim 12, characterized in that the return line (23) opens into the bath (3) with a nozzle (24) from the pipe section (10), a nozzle (25) being associated with this nozzle (24). Device according to claim 13, characterized in that the nozzle (24) is adjustable.

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