Pressurized Cooker Transfer Chambers for Gentle Continuous Blanching
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional continuous process cookers/blanchers lack control over food product transfer, leading to potential damage from pressure and friction forces, especially for delicate items, and inefficient processing due to reliance on speed and compartment capacity.
Innovation Solution
A pressurized steam cooker/blancher with an infeed weigh hopper, conveyor belt, and transfer devices that control pressure transitions and use a recirculating water system to cushion food products, along with a system controller for efficient operation and reduced damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If rotary valves are used to transfer food product in continuous process cooker/blancher, then continuous processing is achieved, but food product damage occurs due to pressure and friction forces
Solution Approach 1:
The transfer device is segmented into multiple chambers (first transfer chamber, void area, second transfer chamber) that operate in sequence. Food product is transferred through discrete stages rather than continuous rotation, reducing cumulative damage from pressure and friction forces while maintaining continuous processing capability.
Solution Approach 2:
A recirculating water system is introduced as an intermediary medium to cushion and protect food product during transfer operations. Water provides a protective environment that reduces direct contact between food product and mechanical surfaces, minimizing friction damage while enabling continuous transfer.
2Productivity
If food product is transferred quickly through rotary valves, then processing efficiency is improved, but control over transfer precision is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The transfer device incorporates dynamic pressure control through the void area that can be pressurized or depressurized as needed. This dynamic adjustment allows precise control over food product transfer timing and positioning while maintaining high processing speeds, resolving the contradiction between speed and precision.
Solution Approach 2:
A system controller provides feedback control for the transfer device operations, monitoring and adjusting transfer parameters to optimize both speed and precision. The controller coordinates the operation of multiple chambers and the recirculating water system to achieve precise food product placement while maintaining efficient continuous processing.
3Quantity of substance
If compartments in rotary valves are filled to capacity, then processing volume is maximized, but edge food product becomes damaged by pressure and friction
Solution Approach 1:
The recirculating water system provides beforehand cushioning by introducing water into the transfer chambers before food product contact. This protective water environment is established in advance to cushion food product during transfer, preventing edge damage even when compartments are filled to maximum capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
Hydraulic pressure control through the void area and recirculating water system enables precise management of food product transfer forces. By using water pressure instead of mechanical friction from rotary valve surfaces, the system maximizes processing volume while protecting food product integrity through controlled hydraulic forces.
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
Enhances the controlled transfer of food products, reduces damage, and improves processing efficiency by maintaining elevated pressure and using a recirculating water system for protection and even distribution.
Implementation Method 1
a recirculating water system for cushioning and protecting the food product. The recirculating water system preferably introduces water into the first and second transfer device prior to the contact of the food product therewith, thereby providing additional suspension and protection for the food product while being transferred
Implementation Method 2
the first and second transfer chambers each being adapted to form pressure seals with the void area
Implementation Method 3
an cooking/blanching chamber sealed from the external environment and capable of sustaining an interior pressure elevated above atmospheric pressure
Data Source
AI summary
A continuous flow pressurized cooker/blancher cooks a food product by continuously transporting the product on a conveyor system and by forcing steam through or over the surface of the food product. The food product to be cooked may be, but is not limited to, seafood and preferably crustaceans. The cooker/blancher includes an exterior pressurized housing, an infeed weigh hopper, an infeed and an outfeed transfer device, and an internal conveyor system. Each transfer device comprises an internal and an external transfer chamber. A pressure assembly forces steam into the exterior pressurized housing while the transfer device is adapted to maintain a selected pressurized environment.