Automatic feeding device and method for hermetia illucens

Abstract

The present invention relates to biological reactions and transformations. An automatic feeding device and method for Hermetia illucens, which are commonly used for recycling biological waste to produce feed and fertilizer. The present invention mainly solves the problem that existing feeding and screening equipment is overly complex. The current processing methods require limiting the humidity and nutrient ingredients, as excessive moisture or dryness will affect the transformation and finished product screening. In the present invention, an inverted container is placed in a feeding liquid to form an air-exchangeable space, enabling Hermetia illucens to breathe in the reactor. Moreover, by means of utilizing the behavioral trait of terrestrial organisms moving upward in water under hypoxic conditions, Hermetia illucens are allowed to congregate at the upper part when air is discharged from the liquid in the reactor, thereby achieving the screening effect.

Description

Automatic black soldier fly breeding device and method TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the cross field of industrialized insect breeding technology and organic waste biological treatment, in particular to an automatic black soldier fly breeding device and method based on an underwater gas container cluster. BACKGROUND

[0002] Using black soldier fly to convert biological waste is a popular environmental protection technology in recent years, which can process biological waste that cannot be directly returned to the food chain of the breeding industry, and the nutrients of black soldier fly larvae are recycled and returned to the food chain, which can reduce the dependence on soybean and fish meal. TECHNICAL PROBLEM

[0003] The current black soldier fly breeding equipment is complex, and most of them use upper tanks and trays as black soldier fly larvae feeding and development containers, and use upper conveying belts, stacking machines or feeding and stirring machines on the tank, which occupies a large area and costs a lot. At the same time, the feed cannot be dried after consumption, and even becomes a block, which is a difficult problem, and the selection type of feed lacks flexibility. TECHNICAL SOLUTION

[0004] The present application moves black soldier fly breeding from land to water, and industrializes the water breeding mode, thereby simplifying the equipment used for black soldier fly breeding and screening, using pipelines instead of conveying belts, and using reactors with gas exchange instead of trays and tanks. The biological biogas generated during breeding and fermentation is also collected and utilized, and the waste heat is also uniformly managed and recycled, reducing the impact on the surrounding environment. ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECT

[0005] Simplify equipment, reduce initial and operating costs; collect biogas, reduce environmental impact, generate heat or electricity; use nutrients in recycled biomass soup, improve output, reduce sewage treatment costs, and reduce the cost of evaporating water in soup. At the same time, multiple screening and multiple feeding are realized, the conversion space and time of biological substrate are compressed, and the efficiency is greatly improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0006] Figure 1 is a cross section of a breeding reactor and a screening device of an automatic black soldier fly breeding and processing device according to the present application

[0007] Figure 2 is a heat exchange layout of an automatic black soldier fly breeding and processing device according to the present application

[0008] Figure 3 is a partial section of a breeding reactor of an automatic black soldier fly breeding and processing device according to the present application

[0009] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of an air container structure of an automatic black soldier fly breeding and processing device according to the present application

[0010] Figure 5 is a flexible air container shape switching 3D diagram of the automatic black soldier fly breeding and processing device according to the present patent

[0011] Figure 6 is a flexible air container shape switching diagram of the automatic black soldier fly breeding and processing device according to the present patent

[0012] Explanation of reference signs

[0013] Breeding reactor (001), sifter (002), heat exchanger (3-2) and (3-6), refrigerator (3-1), air pump (3-4), gas container (1), gas container part and reactor inner wall part joint (2), medium and animal filling (3), gas container and reactor inner wall complete joint (4), opening and closing hole (5), gas pipeline (6), sensor (7), bottom multiple discharge pipelines (8), gas circulation system (9), dehumidification and cooling heater (3-2), liquid collection pipeline (3-3), temperature regulator (3-6), oxygenator (3-7), gas circulation system (9), heat exchange pipeline in reactor structure (10), support frame of gas container (1-2), support frame between gas containers (1-3), exhaust passage in gas container (1-4), flexible gas container (1-5), central connecting support of flexible gas container (1-6), edge connecting support of flexible gas container (1-7), columnar structure (11) Best mode of the present patent

[0014] Rigid structure: 304 / 316L stainless steel (thickness ≥1.5mm), resistant to organic acid corrosion (pH 3-9 environment), support frame welding place passivation treatment, service life increased to more than 10 years; Flexible container: food grade thick silica gel (thickness 5-8mm, shore hardness 40A), resistant to 100,000 times of inside-outside turning deformation, surface micro-texture design reduces larva attachment damage; Reactor body: glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin (layer thickness ≥15mm), inner wall coated with biochar, accelerates fermentation.

[0015] Feed temperature between 25-52 degrees Celsius, moisture content 70-95%.

[0016] Vibrator coordination strategy: low frequency vibration (5-10Hz): gas container bottom vibrator starts at regular intervals to prevent larva accumulation and blockage of the outlet; High frequency pulse (50Hz): sifter (002) inlet vibration for 3 seconds → trigger valve opening → automatic detachment of worm body from the substrate.

[0017] Visual sorting system: lens captures worm size (threshold 8 to 9 larva >20-25mm) → computer controls sifter valve opening and closing → qualified worm enters the excrement discharger and dehydrator. Embodiment of the present patent

[0018] The feeding reactor has gas containers (1) with downward openings. After the mixed solid liquid medium (or slurry) and black soldier fly larvae are injected into the reactor, a gas-filled space, hereinafter referred to as the gas container (1), is formed. The gas container creates a closed and controllable environment with air, feed and moisture, which is conducive to the feeding and development of black soldier fly larvae.

[0019] The gas container can be partially connected to the inner wall of the reactor (2). The unconnected part will be filled with medium and black soldier fly larvae (3) and allow the exchange of materials between different air containers. The gas container can be completely connected to the inner wall of the reactor (4), forming completely independent partition spaces between the gas containers. The gas container can be supported by the bottom of the reactor (1-2), supported by other air containers (1-3), or hung from above. The air container and the liquid container can be a sealed container with air exchange, feed and discharge channels, with air on the top and slurry on the bottom, serving as a single reactor or stacked to form a reactor. The top of the gas container has an opening (5) that allows materials and black soldier fly larvae to pass through. Multiple gas containers can be placed in a reactor, arranged horizontally and vertically, and connected with air exchange devices that pump the required air for the larvae and exchange it in each gas cavity. The gas container and its cluster can be directly placed in various containers or water bodies, such as a bucket, to easily feed insects with buoyancy and basic swimming ability, such as black soldier fly larvae, fly maggots, and chironomids. The fixed way can be, but not limited to, fixing the gas container cluster at the bottom of the container, anchoring the floating gas container and its cluster with ropes / chains and pulleys at the bottom of the bucket, or fixing it on the inner wall of the container, or installing it at the bottom of the cover, etc. to immerse the gas container and its cluster in the feed, providing the required nutrients and air for the growth of insects.

[0020] The gas container has a gas inlet and outlet (6) for gas exchange. Sensors (7) such as air monitoring and visual lenses can be installed in the entire gas flow path of the gas container, gas transport pipe, gas pump, heat exchanger, etc. to determine the frequency and amount of gas circulation and gas exhaust. The reactor has a water level detector (7) to control the amount of air exhaust and intake, and also to quantify the circulation and air exchange based on the volume of the air container. The air circulation and exhaust frequency and amount of the air container can also be pre-programmed based on parameters such as the number of black soldier fly larvae, feed nutrients, and growth stages. The circulating air will be dehumidified, oxygenated, and cooled, and then circulated back into the reactor.

[0021] The gas in the gas container will be first transmitted to a heat exchanger (3-2) connected with the cooler (3-1) for cooling and dehumidification, and the liquid water and the biogas dissolved in water will be collected and utilized (3-3). Then the cooled gas will be transmitted to the air pump assembly (3-4), and when the gas is pumped out of the air pump assembly, it will pass through a heat exchanger (3-6) connected with the reactor and the air container for flowing out of the heat exchange liquid (3-5) for heating, and oxygen will be added (3-7), and the heat exchange liquid flowing back to the reactor and the air container will be cooled, so that the slurry in the same reactor or other reactors will be cooled. The air pump can be installed before the cooling heat exchanger (3-2) or after the temperature regulator (3-6). The gas output from the air container must first pass through the cooling and dehumidification heat exchanger (3-2) and then pass through the temperature regulator (3-6). The gas heat source is first cooled by the cooler, then the low-temperature gas is used to cool the slurry heat source, and at the same time the gas is heated to a temperature suitable for the development of black soldier fly larvae. This step can increase the gas dehumidification effect and at the same time cool the slurry through heat exchange. The biogas such as carbon dioxide, methane and ammonia in the gas circulating in the air container will be collected and utilized. The detection of carbon dioxide and the biological development and activity obtained by the visual lens will be used to judge the remaining amount of feed and the growth state of black soldier fly larvae.

[0022] By discharging the gas in the gas container and opening the hole (5) at the top of the gas container, the black soldier fly larvae can naturally move upward to the upper layer. Or directly open the top hole of the gas container, make the upper liquid move downward, and make the air and black soldier fly larvae move upward. Proper inflation can speed up the upward movement of animals. Flexible gas container can discharge air by changing shape (Fig. 5, 6) to make black soldier fly larvae move upward. The vibration generated by the vibrator helps the bubbles to be discharged upward, and finally the gas and black soldier fly larvae will be concentrated above the reactor, while other solids and liquids will be discharged below, achieving the effect of screening by discharging them to different outlets (8). The lower part of the material discharged first contains fewer black soldier fly larvae, and the upper layer of the material discharged later contains more black soldier fly larvae. If the black soldier fly larvae are judged to be not mature, the reactor can discharge the lower part of the material containing fewer black soldier fly larvae, and then inject the feed again. The feed can be injected multiple times, and the liquid mixed with black soldier fly larvae can also be discharged, and after being homogenized after adding the culture medium, it can be injected into one or more reactors (groups). After each new injection, the reactor can be inflated, and the gas recovered at the top of the reactor is then recycled to the air container at the bottom (9), so that the substrate flows and achieves the effect of homogenizing the black soldier fly larvae and the feed. The reactor can also transport all the materials to the screener (002) when the black soldier fly larvae are mature or the feed is close to exhaustion, and the bubbles are discharged by the vibrator (2-1) to make the black soldier fly larvae gather above and other materials stay below. When the slurry is discharged, it can be distinguished through the transparent observation window to achieve the effect of screening by discharging in stages. After the liquid substrate is discharged, the black soldier fly larvae can be flushed out by vibration and water spraying.

[0023] To prevent the reactor from overheating, the air container and the reactor are provided with heat exchange pipelines (10) for injecting liquid, and the collected heat energy is used to cool the heat exchanger (3-6) and heat other reactors that need to be heated. Excess heat is cooled by a heat pump, and the heat energy collected by the heat pump is used to heat the heat energy storage device for heating peripheral facilities. Industrial applicability

[0024] The present application provides an automatic black water fly underwater feeding device and method, which has significant industrial applicability in the following core fields: providing a general technical platform for breeding aquatic economic insects such as fly maggots and larvae.

[0025] The innovation of large-scale biological transformation industry This technology converts traditional land insect breeding into continuous underwater industrial production through modular gas container clusters (such as flexible reversible containers, cluster support structures) and reactor systems. The design of the feeding reactor (such as stackable reactors, pipeline screening / dewatering units) supports direct deployment in scenarios such as sewage treatment plants, organic waste treatment centers, and feed factories, achieving efficient biological transformation of kitchen waste and agricultural waste, with a daily processing capacity of hundreds of tons.

[0026] Low-threshold infrastructure adaptation device The device has low requirements for container purity (allowing the presence of miscellaneous bacteria) and can use low-cost engineering plastics (such as HDPE) or glass fiber reactors, significantly reducing plant construction investment. The gas container cluster can adapt to existing containers (such as water buckets and liquid storage tanks), and by simple anchoring (scaffolding / rope suspension), it can be given breeding function, solving the pain point of small and medium-sized farms that cannot scale up breeding due to equipment costs.

[0027] Realization of automatic production system Integration of sensor network (visual lens, nutrient density sensor), gas circulation system (dehumidification / temperature adjustment unit), and computer-controlled valve (such as screen separator outlet valve) to realize full-process automation of larva sorting, substrate renewal, and gas regulation.

[0028] Resource recycling industry chain integration Multi-reactor group design (coupled through substrate connection pipelines) supports the formation of a regional organic waste treatment network: Input: municipal organic waste, food factory waste; Output: dewatered insect bodies (high-protein feed raw materials), insect manure organic fertilizer (homogenizer processing products.

Claims

1. An automatic Hermetia illucens breeding apparatus and method, characterized by , including, the feeding reactor (001) is provided with a gas container (1), the gas container is an upside-down container, the top of the gas container has a certain sealing property, the opening of the gas container is downward, the gas container forms a space that traps air in the liquid, so that air cannot or very slowly discharges upward; The gas container is vertically and longitudinally combined, the gas container can be partially (2) or completely connected (4) to the inner wall of the feeding reactor, or can be fixed by the support between the reactor bottom (1-2) and the gas container (1-3); the space in the gas container is connected to the gas dehumidification and cooling device (3-2), the temperature regulator (3-7) and the air pump through the pipeline, and the pipeline inlet and outlet are provided with valves; The top of the gas container is provided with an opening and closing hole (5); The gas container has a gas discharge passage (1-4) on the top; If the feeding reactor is composed of one gas container, the gas container can not be provided with a gas discharge passage; The gas container can be made of soft material, and the flexible gas container (1-5) can be inverted inside and outside, the opening of the gas container can be switched between downward and upward, and the bottom of the container can be switched to the top; The gas containers can be connected into a cluster, and there are fixing structures such as supports and struts between the gas containers, and there are gas exchange devices between the gas cavities in the cluster; The gas containers and the cluster thereof can stand on the bottom of the reactor or be suspended in the liquid; the gas containers and the cluster thereof can be pulled from below by a rope / chain / support and suspended in the liquid; The gas container and its cluster are provided with a gas supply or gas exchange device, and can be put into any container or water body for use, so that the container or water body has a feeding function. The gas container and its cluster can be connected to the structure of the container, stand in the container or water body, float in the container or water body, so as to achieve the effect that the gas container and its cluster are immersed in the feed; The gas container can change the horizontal angle by rolling, so that air and insect bodies are discharged at a higher place; The bottom of the feeding reactor has a plurality of discharge outlets (8), the discharge outlets are controlled by valves, the discharge outlets are connected to a plurality of channels, the channels are provided with valve control, and the bottom outlet is connected to each channel to select a sizer (002), a homogenizer, a dehydrator, another feeding reactor, a larva collection pipeline and a substrate collection pipeline; The feeding reactor has a gas circulation system (9), the gas inlet is in the upper part of the feeding reactor, driven by a gas pump, connected to the gas outlet at the bottom of the feeding reactor, and the gas outlet is provided with a valve; The feeding reactor is provided with visual lenses, water level sensors, liquid tension sensors, liquid nutrient density sensors and liquid moisture content sensors (7); the inner wall of the feeding reactor is provided with liquid nozzles connected to the dehydrator and other water sources; The feeding reactor is provided with a vibrator, the internal hoisting vibrator, and the gas container and the support connected to the gas container are provided with a vibrator; The top of the feeding reactor has an exhaust valve; The bottom of the feeding reactor has a gas inlet; A plurality of feeding reactors can form a group, and the feeding substrate position in the feeding reactor is connected to other feeding reactors through a substrate connection pipeline; The outer wall of the feeding reactor has a transparent structure, and the external visual lens is connected to a computer, and the computer controls the opening and closing of the valve of the sizer outlet.

2. The automatic black soldier fly rearing device and method of claim 1, wherein , including, the structure of the feeding reactor and the gas container has heat exchange pipeline (10), heat exchange pipeline is provided with pump and valve, is connected to other feeding reactor, the temperature controller, heat collector and heat storage; The gas outlet pipeline of the gas container is connected to the dehumidifier and cooler first, and then to the temperature controller. The dehumidifier is provided with liquid collecting device and cooling coil connected to the cooler. The temperature controller is provided with oxygen inlet and cooling coil connected to the heat exchange pipeline from the feeding reactor; The feeding reactor, the gas container, the dehumidifier, the temperature controller, the pipeline and the air pump are provided with air temperature sensor, relative humidity sensor, carbon dioxide concentration sensor, ammonia concentration sensor, methane concentration sensor, oxygenator (3-7) and oxygen concentration sensor. The gas outlet pipeline in the gas container and the gas dehumidifier are provided with fresh air inlet and exhaust system. The inlet amount is greater than or equal to the exhaust amount. The biogas in the reactor is collected and utilized by the exhaust system.

3. The automatic black soldier fly rearing device and method of claim 1, wherein The feeding reactor bottom outlet is connected to the screen feeder inlet. The inside of the screen feeder is provided with dense columnar vibrating structure. The columnar structure (11) is vertically fixed on the branch frame and can move up and down. The inner wall of the screen feeder is provided with liquid spray head connected to the dehydrator and other water sources. The outer wall of the screen feeder is provided with transparent structure. The external visual lens is connected to computer. The computer controls the opening and closing of the screen feeder outlet valve. The bottom of the screen feeder is provided with multiple discharge outlets. The discharge outlets are controlled by valves or the discharge outlets are connected to multiple channels. The channels are controlled by valves. The bottom outlet is connected to selector, homogenizer, dehydrator, other feeding reactor, larva collecting pipeline and substrate collecting pipeline.

4. The automatic black soldier fly breeding device and method according to claim 1-3, wherein the larvae move upward by nature when the gas in the air container is discharged. Or the top hole of the gas container is directly opened, the upper layer liquid moves downward, and the air and black soldier fly larvae move upward. The vibration device is started and the air is appropriately inflated to accelerate the upward movement speed of the animals. The flexible gas container changes the shape to make the top of the gas container become the bottom, so that the air is discharged and the black soldier fly larvae move upward. When the larvae mature or the feed is close to exhaustion, all the materials are transported to the screen feeder (002), the air bubbles are discharged by the vibration device (2-1), the black soldier fly larvae are gathered in the upper part, and the other materials are left in the lower part. When the reactor and the screen feeder discharge the slurry, the content of the black soldier fly larvae in the slurry is increased, the discharge outlet is switched, and the screening effect of segmented discharge is achieved. After the liquid substrate is discharged, the black soldier fly larvae adhered to the inside of the reactor are washed out by vibration and water spraying.

5. The black soldier fly and substrate can be discharged from the rearing reactor multiple times, transported to the sifter, after removing a large amount of substrate through the sifter, re-transported to one or more of the rearing reactors, and re-added with substrate feed, or directly transported from the rearing reactor to multiple rearing reactors without the sifter, re-added with substrate feed, and continue to be reared; or after passing through the homogenizer, mixed and homogenized with substrate feed, and then transported to one or more of the rearing reactors.

6. The automatic black soldier fly rearing device and method of claims 1-2, wherein The outer ring of the flexible gas container has more than one connection point, the central part of the gas container has one connection point, and has the following two structure modes: Mode 1: the central connection point is fixed to the reactor through the central connection bracket (1-6) of the flexible gas container, the outer ring connection point is fixed to the bracket that can move up and down, and the bracket has a vibrator; Mode 2: the outer ring connection point is fixed to the reactor through the edge connection bracket (1-7) of the flexible gas container, the central connection point is fixed to the bracket that can move up and down, and the bracket has a vibrator; the outer ring of the flexible gas container can be partially connected to the inner wall of the reactor.

7. An automatic black soldier fly rearing device and method, characterized by The surface of the gas container, the inner wall of the reactor, and the surface of the bracket are embedded or covered with biological carbon material.

8. The automatic black soldier fly rearing device and method according to claims 1 to 6, characterized in that It can be used for rearing various non-spinal animals and various organisms.

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