Electromagnetic Biomaterial Heating with Mixing Structures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current thermal processing methods for biomaterials, such as sweet potato puree, face challenges with low thermal diffusivity leading to long heating times, nutrient degradation, and poor product quality due to excessive heat treatment, which limits their application in the food industry.
Innovation Solution
A continuous flow thermal treatment process using electromagnetic radiation and mixing structures within a conduit to achieve uniform heating and sterilization without direct contact with heated surfaces, ensuring a consistent temperature increase and maintaining quality attributes like nutrient content, color, and texture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional thermal processing methods are used to sterilize biomaterials, then microbial growth is controlled, but heating time becomes excessively long due to low thermal diffusivity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional thermal conduction heating with electromagnetic radiation (microwave or radio frequency) heating. This substitution enables volumetric heating throughout the material rather than surface-to-center heat transfer, dramatically reducing sterilization time while maintaining effectiveness. The electromagnetic energy penetrates the material and converts to heat internally, overcoming the thermal diffusivity limitation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates mixing structures that create turbulent flow and enhance heat distribution before and during the heating process. This preliminary action of mixing ensures uniform temperature distribution and prevents cold spots, enabling more effective and faster sterilization by preparing the material to respond more uniformly to the applied electromagnetic energy.
2Reliability
If extended thermal treatment is applied to ensure sterilization, then microbial safety is improved, but nutrient degradation and quality loss increase
Solution Approach 1:
By replacing conventional prolonged thermal conduction with rapid electromagnetic heating, the patent achieves the same sterilization effect in much shorter time. This reduces the total thermal exposure duration, thereby minimizing nutrient degradation and quality loss while maintaining microbial safety. The rapid heating reaches sterilization temperatures quickly and holds them briefly.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses periodic or pulsed electromagnetic radiation delivery combined with intermittent mixing cycles. This periodic action ensures thorough sterilization throughout the material while allowing brief cooling periods that reduce cumulative thermal damage to nutrients and quality attributes, achieving sterilization with minimal quality loss.
3Reliability
If conventional heating methods are used, then sterilization is achieved, but product quality attributes such as color, texture, and flavor deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent substitutes conventional surface-based thermal heating with volumetric electromagnetic heating. This enables uniform heating throughout the material without creating localized overheating zones that cause burning, discoloration, or texture degradation. The entire volume receives consistent energy input, preserving quality attributes while achieving sterilization.
Solution Approach 2:
The mixing structures create preliminary turbulent flow patterns that distribute heat uniformly before and during electromagnetic heating. This preliminary mixing action prevents hot spots and ensures even temperature distribution, thereby preserving color, texture, and flavor quality attributes while achieving the required sterilization throughout the product.
4Reliability
If indirect heating through heated chambers is used, then thermal treatment is effective, but biomaterials burn onto heated surfaces causing reduced heat flow and off flavors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces contact-based indirect heating with non-contact electromagnetic radiation heating. The material is heated throughout its volume by electromagnetic energy without touching heated surfaces, completely eliminating the problem of burning onto surfaces and the associated off flavors. The heating occurs internally within the material matrix.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces electromagnetic radiation as an intermediary energy carrier between the heat source and the biomaterial. Instead of direct thermal contact through heated chamber walls or surfaces, electromagnetic waves penetrate the material and convert to heat internally, serving as a mediator that transfers energy without requiring surface contact and thus preventing burning and off-flavor formation.
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 method allows for rapid and efficient sterilization of biomaterials while preserving quality attributes, enabling larger package sizes and longer storage without significant quality loss, and is applicable to a wide range of materials, including viscous and high-carbohydrate products.
Implementation Method 1
heating the flowable material by exposing the at least a portion of the conduit that is transparent to electromagnetic radiation
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatuses for thermally treating flowable materials using electromagnetic radiation, and foods and materials obtained thereby. Also provided are methods of continuous flow thermal treatment of biomaterials, apparatuses for performing the same, and products prepared using the methods and/or apparatuses.