Active Atmosphere Container with Gas Modulating Membrane
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing food preservation packaging systems fail to efficiently establish and maintain optimal oxygen and carbon dioxide levels within containers, leading to suboptimal shelf life extension across various food types, as they often require lengthy stabilization times and may not effectively inhibit microbial growth or control bioactive compound diffusion.
Innovation Solution
A passive highly permeable film combined with an active CO2 injection system and vacuum pump, controlled by a digital logic controller and sensors, dynamically adjusts gas levels to achieve and maintain optimal atmospheres for different food items, ensuring anaerobic conditions are avoided and bacterial growth is reduced.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-generated harmful factors
If passive highly permeable films are used to allow gas exchange, then gas permeability is improved, but stabilization time is excessively long (6-24 hours)
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by actively injecting CO2 and removing O2 before sealing the package, establishing the desired atmosphere in advance rather than relying on slow passive permeation. This pre-conditioning of the atmosphere eliminates the 6-24 hour stabilization delay inherent in passive systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces active components (CO2 injection system, vacuum pump, control system) as intermediaries to mediate the gas exchange process. These active systems accelerate the establishment of target atmosphere by directly adding CO2 and removing O2, rather than relying solely on the slow intermediary process of passive film permeation.
2Ease of operation
If daily openings of packaging occur, then access is enabled, but steady state conditions cannot be achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains continuous control of the atmospheric composition by actively monitoring gas levels and making real-time adjustments through CO2 injection and vacuum removal. This continuous active management ensures that the target atmosphere is rapidly re-established after any opening event, maintaining atmospheric stability despite frequent accesses.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms through gas sensors that continuously monitor O2 and CO2 levels inside the package. This feedback information is fed to the control system, which automatically adjusts the CO2 injection and vacuum pump operation to maintain the desired atmosphere, ensuring stability even after package openings.
3Temperature
If oxygen levels are controlled using absorbents/scavengers, then oxygen control is attempted, but shelf life is not guaranteed due to incomplete inhibition of bacteria
Solution Approach 1:
The system fundamentally changes the approach from passive oxygen absorption to active atmospheric composition control. By precisely controlling multiple parameters (O2 levels, CO2 levels, and their ratios) through injection and removal systems, the patent creates a more reliable environment that addresses both oxygen control and microbial inhibition, rather than relying solely on oxygen scavenging.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a composite approach combining multiple active systems (CO2 injection, vacuum pump, gas sensors, control algorithms) working together to achieve reliable shelf life extension. This composite system addresses the limitations of single-mechanism approaches like oxygen scavenging alone, providing both atmospheric control and microbial growth inhibition through the synergistic action of multiple components.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This system significantly extends the shelf life of perishable commodities by maintaining optimal gas ratios, improving taste, smell, and color while reducing bacterial growth, and can be used for a wide range of food items including produce, meat, cheese, and beverages.
Implementation Method 1
a gas modulating membrane in selective communication with the interior of the air-tight storage container and the ambient environment outside the container wherein the gas modulating membrane permits carbon dioxide to diffuse from the storage container to the ambient environment and oxygen to diffuse from the ambient environment to the interior of the storage container
Implementation Method 2
The Oxygen Permeation Rate of this film ranges from 110,000 cc/100 in2/day/atm up to 960,000 cc/100 in2/day/atm, with carbon dioxide permeability of at least 350,000 cc/100 in2/day/atm
Data Source
AI summary
This invention relates to a unique food preservation system that is used to extend the shelf life of food items by automatically modulating the gas composition within an air-tight container to the optimal atmospheric conditions for the specific food item(s) being stored in these containers. In order to extend the shelf life of food items, the optimal levels of carbon dioxide and oxygen must be maintained within the food storage container at all times. This is accomplished by constant real-time monitoring of the atmosphere within the food storage container and actively as well as passively controlling the atmosphere.