Compressed Milk Tablet Surface Humidification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for producing solid milk tablets face challenges in achieving high throughput capacity, maintaining microbial safety, and ensuring consumer demands for friability, shelf-life, and reconstitution properties, with existing methods often resulting in long processing times and increased risk of microbial contamination.
Innovation Solution
A method involving compressing milk powder to achieve mechanical strength between 10 kPa and 300 kPa, followed by humidification in a chamber with relative humidity above 95% and temperatures between 60-90°C for less than 5 seconds, and subsequent drying to produce tablets with a core/crust structure, low friability, and enhanced reconstitution properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If the powder is wetted and agglomerated before compression to improve tablet formation, then tablet structure is improved, but the powder loses free flowability making it difficult to feed the tabletting machine and drying becomes much slower increasing microbial growth risk
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies preliminary humidification to the compressed tablet surface before drying. The compressed tablet is briefly exposed to humid air (relative humidity 80-100% at 20-40°C for 1-30 seconds) to create a surface layer with improved structure, then immediately dried. This preliminary surface treatment improves tablet integrity without affecting the bulk powder flowability or causing slow drying of the entire tablet.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention applies different moisture treatments to different parts of the tablet. Only the surface layer is humidified briefly to improve structure, while the interior remains dry and maintains fast drying characteristics. This localized surface humidification creates a surface crust that improves tablet stability without compromising overall drying speed or introducing microbial risks throughout the entire tablet.
2Strength
If high compression pressure is applied to increase tablet hardness for safe transport and handling, then mechanical strength is improved, but reconstitution and solubility properties deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies preliminary humidification to the surface of already-compressed tablets. The tablets are first compressed to achieve sufficient mechanical strength for handling, then briefly exposed to humid air to create a surface layer with improved structural properties. This surface treatment enhances tablet integrity without requiring increased compression pressure that would harm reconstitution properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical-chemical parameters of the tablet surface through controlled humidification. By exposing the compressed tablet surface to humid air at specific relative humidity (80-100%) and temperature (20-40°C) for controlled durations (1-30 seconds), the surface layer undergoes structural changes that improve mechanical strength without altering the compression parameters or compromising the interior structure needed for good reconstitution.
3Reliability
If processing time is extended to ensure proper drying and microbial safety, then product quality is improved, but throughput capacity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies preliminary humidification to the compressed tablet surface before the main drying process. This brief surface treatment (1-30 seconds) prepares the surface for more efficient drying and creates a protective surface layer that reduces microbial contamination risk. The overall drying time is reduced because the surface is pre-treated, enabling high throughput while maintaining microbial safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention rushes through the humidification step with a controlled brief exposure (1-30 seconds) to humid air, then immediately proceeds to drying. This rapid surface treatment creates the necessary structural improvements and microbial protection without extending the overall processing time significantly, thereby maintaining high throughput capacity of several tons per day.
4Manufacturing precision
If the humidification exposure time is increased to improve tablet structure, then surface quality is improved, but microbial contamination risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention optimizes the humidification parameters by controlling relative humidity (80-100%), temperature (20-40°C), and exposure time (1-30 seconds). These controlled parameter changes create a surface layer with improved quality while limiting the exposure duration to minimize microbial contamination risk. The specific parameter range achieves surface structural improvement without prolonged moisture exposure that would promote microbial growth.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention rushes through the humidification step with a strictly controlled brief exposure time (1-30 seconds), then immediately transitions to the drying phase. This rapid passage through the humid environment creates the necessary surface quality improvements while minimizing the window of opportunity for microbial contamination, thereby achieving surface quality enhancement without significantly increasing microbial risk.
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 enables the production of solid milk tablets with improved mechanical strength, reduced microbial risk, and excellent reconstitution behavior, meeting consumer demands while maintaining high throughput and minimizing processing time, thus ensuring product quality and safety.
Implementation Method 1
humid air comprising condensed water vapour
Implementation Method 2
drying the humidified and compressed solid milk units to obtain compressed solid milk tablets
Data Source
Figure 1~2
AI summary
The present invention is in the field of nutrition and relates to compressed solid milk tablets,a method for producing the same and a modular system for carrying out said method. The method for preparing compressed solid milk tablets comprises the following steps: (a) compressing milk powder to obtain compressed solid milk units with a mechanical strength of between 10kPa and 300kPa, (b) humidifying the compressed solid milk units by exposing said units in a humidifying chamber to humid air having a relative humidity of more than 95% and a temperature of between 60 and 90°C, wherein the humid air comprises condensed water vapour, and (c) drying the humidified and compressed solid milk units to obtain compressed solid milk tablets. The tablets obtained by this method have a mechanical strength of between 20kPa and 1000kPa, a core/crust structure, wherein the crust comprises or consists of milk particles that are solidified and fused in parallel and perpendicular planes, relative to the tablet surface,and a friability of less than 5%.