Cold Storage Material Using Locust Bean Gum and Xanthan Gum
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cold storage materials prone to syneresis and contamination when damaged, particularly when containing tetrahydrofuran, due to inadequate gel strength and stability.
Innovation Solution
A cold storage material comprising tetrahydrofuran, water, and a thickening and gelling agent with a specific ratio of locust bean gum and xanthan gum, optimized to achieve desired gel strength and elasticity, thereby suppressing syneresis and ensuring safety during storage, transportation, and use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If tetrahydrofuran is contained in the cold storage material, then cool-keeping performance is improved, but syneresis occurs and gel strength is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite thickening and gelling agent system comprising locust bean gum and xanthan gum in specific ratios. This composite approach combines the advantages of both polysaccharides: locust bean gum provides gel formation and xanthan gum enhances viscosity and stability. The combination creates a synergistic effect that improves gel strength and suppresses syneresis while maintaining the cold storage functionality of tetrahydrofuran.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent specifies precise compositional parameters: tetrahydrofuran content at 0.16-0.24 mass ratio, locust bean gum at 0.5-5 mass%, and xanthan gum at 0.5-5 mass%. By optimizing these parameters, the patent achieves the right balance between gel strength, syneresis suppression, and cool-keeping performance. The specific ratio ranges allow the material to maintain structural integrity while preventing syneresis during storage and use.
2Reliability
If thickening and gelling agents are added to prevent syneresis, then gel strength is improved, but the material becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent simplifies the formulation by limiting the thickening and gelling agent to only two specific polysaccharides (locust bean gum and xanthan gum) within defined concentration ranges. This parameter optimization reduces compositional complexity compared to using multiple different agents, while still achieving the desired gel strength and syneresis suppression effects.
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 material effectively maintains desired gel strength and elasticity, reducing the likelihood of syneresis and contamination, ensuring effective cool-keeping performance and safety by maintaining temperature and preventing scattering of the cold storage material.
Implementation Method 1
a thickening and gelling agent, wherein a ratio of a content of the tetrahydrofuran to a total amount of the content of the tetrahydrofuran and a content of the water is 0.16 or more and 0.24 or less on a mass basis, and the thickening and gelling agent includes a main component composed only of locust bean gum and xanthan gum
Implementation Method 2
The cold storage material in the present disclosure is likely to have desired gel strength and elasticity due to the action of the above thickening and gelling agent
Implementation Method 3
At the time when the inventors conceived of the present disclosure, there was a possibility that a cold storage material that is liquid at normal temperature may contaminate an article when the container of the cold storage material is damaged during storage
Implementation Method 4
the heat of fusion of a clathrate hydrate of tetrahydrofuran is large
Implementation Method 5
is advantageous from the viewpoint of suppression of occurrence of syneresis during use while containing tetrahydrofuran
Data Source
AI summary
A cold storage material of the present disclosure contains tetrahydrofuran, water, and a thickening and gelling agent. The ratio of the content of the tetrahydrofuran to the total amount of the content of the tetrahydrofuran and the content of the water is 0.16 or more and 0.24 or less on a mass basis. The thickening and gelling agent includes a main component composed only of locust bean gum and xanthan gum.