Food storage method and apparatus
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current food preservation methods, such as freezing and deep-freezing, have limitations in maintaining nutritional and organoleptic properties, and require high energy consumption, while refrigeration only extends preservation for a limited time at temperatures above 0°C.
Innovation Solution
A blast chiller equipped with an optimizer device featuring a conical element made of metal with a silver coating, which generates a weak electrostatic current to enhance food preservation by promoting cellular life and optimizing thermal treatment cycles, allowing for longer preservation times at temperatures above 0°C without the drawbacks of low temperatures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of stationary object
If freezing or deep-freezing is used to preserve food, then preservation time is extended, but nutritional and organoleptic properties deteriorate due to crystal formation damaging cellular structure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter from freezing ranges (below 0°C) to refrigeration ranges (above 0°C, specifically 2-10°C), allowing preservation without the harmful crystalline structures that form at lower temperatures. This parameter change enables extended preservation time while maintaining food quality properties.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If deep-freezing is used to rapidly transform water into ice, then preservation time is extended, but high cooling power and energy consumption are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter from deep-freezing (−18/−20°C or lower) to refrigeration (2-10°C), dramatically reducing the cooling power required and thereby lowering electromechanical energy consumption while still achieving extended preservation through the optimizer device.
3Reliability
If refrigeration is used to preserve food at temperatures above 0°C, then nutritional and organoleptic properties are maintained, but preservation time is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an optimizer device as an intermediary component that generates weak electrostatic currents to modify the refrigeration process. This intermediary enables extended preservation time at refrigeration temperatures by affecting the food's vital capability through electrostatic interactions, without requiring freezing temperatures.
4Duration of action of stationary object
If freezing is used to preserve food, then preservation time is extended, but larger frozen crystalline structures form that damage internal tissues and fibers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter from freezing (below 0°C) to refrigeration (above 0°C, specifically 2-10°C), preventing the formation of harmful frozen crystalline structures entirely. This parameter change eliminates the crystallization process that causes cellular damage while still achieving extended preservation through the optimizer device's electrostatic 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 optimizer device in the blast chiller increases vital energy in foods, improving preservation and maintaining nutritional and organoleptic properties, as demonstrated by chemical-physical parameter analysis and sensory tests, extending the preservation time beyond what is achievable with standard refrigeration.
Implementation Method 1
an optimizer device featuring a conical element made of metal with a silver coating, which generates a weak electrostatic current to enhance food preservation by promoting cellular life
Implementation Method 2
A blast chiller equipped with an optimizer device... allowing for longer preservation times at temperatures above 0°C
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for preserving foods, such as fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, and the like. The foods are placed in a treatment chamber (3) and are kept in thermal exchange with an air flow cooled by a refrigerating unit. The air laps an electroscopic optimizer device (10), comprising at least one active element (20) adapted to generate an electrostatic charge because of the presence of different layers of materials (21, 22).