Device for fortifying milk with vitamin d3

Abstract

The invention relates to the food industry, and more particularly to devices for fortifying milk with group D vitamins, preferably vitamin D3, and can be used for vitaminizing milk. The present device comprises a photochemical reactor that is a source of ultraviolet radiation with a wavelength of 290-310 nm, a peristaltic pump, a tank and a frame. The photochemical reactor has a spiral configuration and consists of a housing, a quartz spiral and an ultraviolet lamp. The tank is equipped with an adapter. The device is equipped with two drain valves, one bleed valve and pipes, which form a circulation loop that permits a plurality of vitaminization cycles to be performed. The technical result of the invention includes a more effective milk vitaminization process by virtue of greater homogenization of the milk containing vitamin D3, and a better-quality end product.

Description

[0001] DEVICE FOR ENRICHING MILK WITH VITAMIN D3

[0002] The invention relates to the food industry, namely to devices for enriching milk with vitamins of group D, primarily vitamin D3, and can be used for vitaminization of milk.

[0003] Currently, milk is fortified by adding artificially synthesized vitamin D. Vitamin concentrates have a number of significant disadvantages, such as: storage and transportation requirements, quality requirements for raw materials for concentrate production, and the complication of the technological process of milk production.

[0004] The prior art provides technical solutions for enriching milk with vitamin D3 by irradiating the product with ultraviolet radiation. This solution is presented in RU 160816 "Milk vitaminizer", which presents a method for vitaminization with a mercury lamp of ultraviolet radiation with a wavelength of 252 nm with a protective quartz case. However, the known solution does not provide sufficient efficiency of the vitaminization process, since the highest spectral efficiency of vitamin D3 formation in milk is in the range of 295-310 nm.

[0005] A milk processing device is known (patent document CN1091595A, published 09 / 07 / 1994), which comprises an outer casing made of a material permeable to ultraviolet light, and an inner casing made of a high-strength material. An ultraviolet lamp is provided in the inner casing. A gap of 2-40 mm is provided between the outer and inner casings. At least one limiter is provided at the lower end of the inner casing or the lower part of the outer casing. The ultraviolet lamp is a high-pressure mercury lamp or a metal halide lamp having an ultraviolet spectrum of 254 nm, or 280-320 nm, or 340-365 nm, and a power of 120 W. The limiter consists of a rubber stopper and a small stainless steel tube. A flow-through device is installed at the bottom between the casing and the inner sleeve. A container for storing milk is located under the inner casing and the ultraviolet lamp.Outside the milk storage container there is a thermostatic container with a water bath. Under the container with a water bath there is a thermostat consisting of a heater and a temperature controller made of a shape memory alloy. The device contains a milk storage container, an ultraviolet light source located outside this container, and a stirrer in the lower middle part of the milk storage container. The ultraviolet light source near the milk storage container is a high-pressure mercury lamp or a metal halide lamp with an ultraviolet spectrum of 254 nm, or 280-320 nm, or 340-365 nm, and a power of 120 W. The main disadvantages of this device are that it does not operate in a flow-through mode and assumes the use of only mercury lamps with a linear spectrum, which is unsafe.

[0006] The closest to the claimed technical solution is a device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 (RU Patent for Invention No. 2802082, published on August 22, 2023), including a plasma-chemical reactor, a tank and a frame. The plasma-chemical reactor, which is a source of ultraviolet radiation with a wavelength of 290-310 nm, consists of a quartz glass cup, a body, a lid, small and large sealing rings, brackets and pipes. The tank consists of a cylinder, a cone and a nozzle, and the frame consists of profiles and corners. The device is additionally equipped with a peristaltic pump connected by a pipeline to the plasma-chemical reactor, and a system of valves and pipelines forming a circulation circuit with the possibility of carrying out several vitaminization cycles. However, the design of this device does not ensure uniform distribution of vitamin D3 throughout the entire volume of milk contained in the device, and therefore the quality of the final product in one batch may differ.In addition, the device operates only on pulsed radiation sources with a lower efficiency of conversion into radiation, which may be essential for some vitaminization processes.

[0007] The objective of this technical solution is to develop a device for enriching milk with vitamin D3, ensuring uniform distribution of the vitamin in the volume of raw materials placed in the device.

[0008] The technical result of the claimed invention consists in increasing the efficiency of the milk fortification process by increasing the degree of homogenization of milk containing vitamin D3 and improving the quality of the final product.

[0009] The technical result is achieved in that the device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 includes a photochemical reactor, which is a source of ultraviolet radiation with a wavelength of 290-310 nm, a peristaltic pump connected to the photochemical reactor by a pipeline, a tank and a frame, wherein the photochemical reactor is made of a spiral type and consists of a housing, a quartz spiral, an ultraviolet lamp, the tank is equipped with a nozzle, the device is equipped with two drain and one fill taps and pipelines that form a circulation circuit with the possibility of carrying out several vitaminization cycles.

[0010] The photochemical reactor can be made with several sources of ultraviolet radiation, including pulsed sources of ultraviolet radiation.

[0011] Protective screens can be installed on the frame opposite sources of ultraviolet radiation.

[0012] The device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 may contain a control board with the ability to adjust the operating mode of the peristaltic pump and the ultraviolet radiation source of the photochemical reactor.

[0013] The claimed invention is explained by illustrations, which show: Fig. 1 - a general view of the device, Fig. 2 - a side view of the device, Fig. 3 - a hydraulic diagram of the device.

[0014] The numbers indicate the following:

[0015] 1 - glass,

[0016] 2 - peristaltic pump,

[0017] 3 - photochemical reactor,

[0018] 4 - glass,

[0019] 5-6 - drain taps,

[0020] 7 - inlet valve,

[0021] 8 - ultraviolet lamp,

[0022] 9 - frame,

[0023] 10 - screen 1,

[0024] 11 - screen 2. The device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 is a structure consisting of the following elements: photochemical reactor 3, glasses 1 and 4, taps 5-7, tank, frame 9, power supply unit and peristaltic pump 2. In figures 1-2, glasses 1 and 4, taps 5-7, tank and power supply unit are not shown. The device can be additionally equipped with a control board with the ability to control the operating mode of peristaltic pump 2 and the lamp of photochemical reactor 3.

[0025] The photochemical reactor 3 is made of a spiral type and includes a quartz spiral, an ultraviolet lamp 8, which is a source of ultraviolet radiation at a wavelength of 290-310 nm, and a housing. The photochemical reactor 3 can be made with several sources of ultraviolet radiation, for example, a quartz lamp, ultraviolet diodes, etc., including in combination with pulsed radiation sources (for example, xenon lamps). The housing of the photochemical reactor 3 consists of two flanges connected by means of studs, onto these same studs, then, using gaskets, a quartz spiral is also installed. The internal space of the photochemical reactor 3 is closed with a cylindrical casing, clamped using the same flanges. For the purpose of further mounting the photochemical reactor 3 on the frame 9, a bracket is attached to the flanges by means of a bolted connection.There are holes on the surface of the flanges, into which bushings are installed using screws, into which silicone gaskets are placed, onto which an ultraviolet lamp 8 is placed along the axis of the system. The gaskets are then clamped with a cap with a hole.

[0026] Glasses 1 and 4 are auxiliary elements of the device for milk inlet and outlet and are cylindrical containers with a conical bottom and a nipple for connecting fittings installed on the main frame 9 or a separate frame. Glass 1 is the input for the original milk and is connected to the milk supply pipe, which can be equipped with a filter. Glass 4 is the output for the fortified product.

[0027] The drain cock 5 is provided in the device for moving the processed product into the input cup 1, from where the milk is then drained into the final container using the drain cock 6. Also, the drain cock 5, when open, implements the circulation mode during the milk processing, which consists of several passes of milk through the photochemical reactor 3. The inlet cock 7 is provided in the device for servicing the photochemical reactor 3; when it is opened under the action of atmospheric pressure, the possibility of emptying the volume of the quartz spiral is realized.

[0028] The tank consists of a cylinder, a cone and a nozzle. The working volume of the tank is 5 liters. The cone is necessary to ensure a steady flow of liquid, and the nozzle is for connecting pipeline fittings.

[0029] The device is equipped with a peristaltic pump 2, connected by a pipeline to a photochemical reactor 3 and an inlet valve 7, and a pipeline that forms a circulation circuit with the possibility of carrying out several vitaminization cycles.

[0030] The power supply is connected to the peristaltic pump 2, the ultraviolet lamp 8 and, if available, the control board

[0031] The above-mentioned hydraulic elements are connected by means of a flexible pipeline and are secured to the nipples of cups 1 and 4, as well as to screen 1, using nuts and screws. Frame 9 is a structure consisting of several metal profiles, for example, 40x40 and 45x45, as well as corners fastening the said profiles together. Screens 10-11 are installed on frame 9 opposite ultraviolet lamp 8, intended for protection against contact with the electrodes of ultraviolet lamp 8, as well as for installing equipment on them (for example, peristaltic pump 2).

[0032] All elements of the device are connected to each other by means of threaded connections.

[0033] The device can be additionally equipped with a vitaminization cycle counter and a device for automatic regulation of milk supply to the photochemical reactor 3, which are built into the control board, if available.

[0034] The device operates as follows. Unfortified milk (fresh or pasteurized) is poured into the tank through glass 1 and the milk supply pipe, which is pumped into the photochemical rector 3 with the ultraviolet lamp 8 turned on using the peristaltic pump 2, where vitamin D is formed from the precursor in the near-wall layers due to the restructuring of intermolecular bonds, and due to the transverse vortices (Dean vortices) directly inside the spiral, which arise due to the curved geometry, better mixing of the precursor in the milk and its higher degree of vitaminization are ensured. That is, the milk itself receives the velocity components in the section perpendicular to the main flow, which means mixing. Then the drain valve 5 is opened, and the fortified milk returns to the glass 4, from where it can be sent for an additional vitaminization cycle (with the open valve 5) or accumulated in the glass 4.Upon completion of the vitaminization process, the entire product is directed back into the glass 1, from where it is collected through the open tap 6 into the final container for further consumption. If it is necessary to empty the quartz spiral of the photochemical reactor 3, the inlet tap 7 is opened, after which the spiral is emptied under the action of atmospheric pressure. The claimed device ensures a full cycle of milk enrichment with vitamin.

[0035] D3, as well as a high degree of homogenization of the vitamin in the final product due to the spiral design of the reactor, which ensures the occurrence of transverse vortices. In addition, the claimed device is disassemblable, which significantly simplifies its transportation. And the design of the device is more compact, since its dimensions can be changed by changing the size of the reactor, the power of the lamps and the pump, thereby allowing its use in manufacturing plants with different volumes of product output.

Claims

FORMULA 1. A device for enriching milk with vitamin D3, comprising a photochemical reactor that is a source of ultraviolet radiation with a wavelength of 290-310 nm, a peristaltic pump connected to the photochemical reactor by a pipeline, a tank and a frame, wherein the photochemical reactor is of a spiral type and consists of a housing, a quartz spiral, an ultraviolet lamp, the tank is equipped with a nozzle, the device is equipped with two drain taps and one fill tap and pipelines that form a circulation circuit with the possibility of carrying out several cycles of vitaminization.

2. A device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 according to paragraph 1, characterized in that the photochemical reactor is made with several sources of ultraviolet radiation.

3. A device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 according to paragraph 2, characterized in that the photochemical reactor is made with pulsed sources of ultraviolet radiation.

4. A device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 according to paragraph 1, characterized in that protective screens are installed on the frame opposite the sources of ultraviolet radiation.

5. A device for enriching milk with vitamin D3 according to claim 1, characterized in that it contains a control board with the ability to regulate the operating mode of the peristaltic pump and the ultraviolet radiation source of the photochemical reactor.

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