Chocolate Sugar Refining Process for Energy Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current chocolate manufacturing methods are inefficient in terms of production time, energy consumption, plant volume, and hygienic preservation, particularly due to the lengthy and energy-intensive refinement steps required for reducing sugar lump size and achieving desired product quality, which also exposes chocolate to potential contaminants.
Innovation Solution
A method where sugar is refined separately and continuously to a particle size of 100 microns or less at room temperature, eliminating the need for repetitive refinement of fatty flour and allowing for faster mixing and kneading, reduced energy use, and improved hygienic processing by avoiding exposure to atmospheric impurities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If sugar is ground to very fine particle size (100 μm or less) through repetitive refinement steps, then chocolate quality and homogeneity are improved, but production time and energy consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-grinding sugar to the desired fine particle size (100 μm or less) before the mixing step. This preliminary refinement of sugar eliminates the need for repetitive refinement steps during subsequent processing stages, thereby reducing overall production time while maintaining high manufacturing precision in sugar particle size.
2Manufacturing precision
If repetitive refinement steps are used to reduce sugar lump size, then chocolate homogeneity is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs the energy-intensive grinding operation preliminarily before mixing, where sugar is ground to the target particle size in a dedicated step. This eliminates the need for repeated energy-consuming refinement cycles during subsequent processing stages, achieving the desired sugar particle size with reduced total energy consumption.
3Manufacturing precision
If lengthy refinement steps are performed to achieve desired product quality, then chocolate homogeneity is improved, but plant volume and process complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent consolidates the refinement operation into a single preliminary step performed before mixing. This approach achieves the desired product quality through one focused grinding stage rather than multiple repetitive refinement steps, thereby reducing process complexity and the volume of equipment required while maintaining high manufacturing precision.
4Productivity
If traditional mixing and refinement steps are used, then chocolate production is maintained, but hygienic preservation is compromised due to exposure to atmospheric impurities
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs sugar grinding and refinement as a preliminary step in a controlled environment before the mixing operation. By completing the refinement step beforehand in a sealed or controlled setting, the chocolate mixture is exposed to atmospheric impurities for a shorter duration, thereby maintaining productivity while improving hygienic preservation.
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 approach reduces production time, energy costs, and plant volume, while ensuring high-quality chocolate with optimal organoleptic properties and improved hygienic preservation by refining sugar independently before mixing with other ingredients, resulting in a more efficient and aseptic chocolate manufacturing process.
Implementation Method 1
the sugar is ground before being mixed with other components, the particles having a size of 150 μm or less, preferably of 100 μm or less
Implementation Method 2
the mass of melted chocolate is firstly cooled in a controlled manner down to a temperature of about 27°C and then heated again to a temperature of between 29°C and 31°C and then cooled again until it is solidified. The thermal shock affecting the product being prepared reduces significantly the unstable crystals of the cocoa butter
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing chocolate which comprises: a step for preparing a predefined quantity of cocoa butter (21) and a predefined quantity of sugar (22) as well as other ingredients depending on the type of chocolate to be produced, such as cocoa powder or paste (23), milk or powder milk (35) and various flavourings (24). The method envisages a step for refining the sugar (22) which is carried out on the latter without involving in any way the other starting ingredients (21, 23, 24, 35). Refinement of the sugar (22) is performed continuously before performing mixing thereof with the other ingredients (21, 23, 24, 35). Once the sugar (22) has been refined, it is mixed with the other ingredients (21, 23, 24, 35) in order to produce a mixture which undergoes a subsequent kneading step with the addition of further ingredients, such as cocoa butter and lecithin which have the function of fluidifying and homogenizing the product. Finally this is followed by a tempering step where the crystals of cocoa butter are stabilized and a solidification step where the chocolate is solidified in the desired form.