Botanical Product Hydration and Incubation Process
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a lack of natural cold brew green tea products and limited cold brew herbal beverage products that infuse well with ambient or cold water, necessitating a method to enhance infusion properties of botanical products.
Innovation Solution
A process involving botanical materials with initial moisture content below 20%, followed by hydration to 30-100% moisture, incubation for at least 20 minutes, and subsequent drying to less than 10% moisture, to produce botanical products with excellent infusion properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If botanical materials are processed traditionally without hydration and incubation, then the production process is simple and quick, but the infusion properties in cold and ambient water are poor
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by hydrating the dried botanical material before the final drying step. This pre-treatment modifies the material structure in advance, enabling better infusion properties in cold and ambient water without adding complex equipment to the production line.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes physical parameters by controlling moisture content during hydration (30-100%) and incubation temperature (5-50°C). These parameter modifications transform the botanical material to achieve superior cold brew infusion properties while using simple, existing processing equipment.
2Reliability
If botanical materials are hydrated and incubated to improve infusion properties, then cold brew infusion quality improves, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes processing time by carefully controlling incubation parameters: moisture content at 30-100% and temperature at 5-50°C. These parameter settings achieve maximum infusion quality improvement within 5 minutes to 24 hours, allowing production scheduling flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent allows flexibility in incubation duration (5-24 hours) where excessive incubation time beyond the minimum required provides diminishing returns. This partial action approach enables producers to balance quality improvement against production throughput needs.
3Reliability
If botanical materials are processed with multiple hydration and drying cycles, then infusion properties improve, but production cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs the beneficial hydration and incubation action during the normal production drying process, rather than as a separate additional step. The material is hydrated, incubated, and then dried to final moisture content <10%, integrating the quality-improving treatment into the existing manufacturing workflow.
Solution Approach 2:
The existing drying equipment performs dual functions: removing excess moisture from hydration while also completing the final drying to <10% moisture content. This multi-functionality avoids the need for separate dedicated incubation and drying equipment, controlling manufacturing costs.
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
The process results in botanical products that deliver an excellent quantity of soluble solids, such as catechins and polyphenols, to the infusion, enhancing the infusion quality and meeting consumer demands for cold and ambient temperature infusions.
Implementation Method 1
contacting the botanical material with water to achieve a moisture content of between 30% and 100% by weight
Implementation Method 2
drying the botanical material to a moisture content of less than 10% by weight
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a process for producing a botanical product, such as a green tea or herbal product. More particularly the present invention relates to a process for producing an ambient or cold water infusible botanical product (e.g. green tea product) with excellent infusion properties at ambient or cold temperature.