UV Light Aging Assembly with Copper Cylinder and Oak Dowels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aging devices for distilled spirits are inefficient in accelerating the aging process while maintaining flavor and color quality, as they often impart unpleasant flavors or require lengthy processes.
Innovation Solution
A copper cylinder with submerged oak dowels and an ultra-violet light emitter is used to enhance the aging process by increasing chemical reactions between the alcohol and dowels, speeding up the aging process without compromising flavor.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional aging methods are used, then the aging process is slow, but the flavor and color quality is maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by introducing ultra-violet light to alter the chemical reaction conditions between the alcohol and oak dowels. This changes the energy state of the system, accelerating the extraction of flavor compounds and oxidation processes that normally occur slowly during traditional aging, thereby achieving rapid aging while maintaining quality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the passive mechanical aging process (simple contact between alcohol and wood over time) with an active optical field system. The ultra-violet light emitter substitutes for the natural time-based chemical reactions, providing energy to drive accelerated chemical processes that mimic and enhance traditional aging mechanisms
2Productivity
If copper is used in contact with alcohol, then the aging process is accelerated, but unpleasant flavors are imparted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful flavor-imparting property from copper by removing it from direct contact with the alcohol. The copper cylinder serves only as a structural container, while the flavor and color enhancement functions are achieved through oak dowels that do not impart unpleasant flavors, thus separating the structural support function from the chemical interaction function
3Object-generated harmful factors
If wood is submerged in distilled spirits, then flavor and color are enhanced, but the process is time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the energy parameter of the aging system by introducing ultra-violet light. This provides activation energy to the chemical reactions between the alcohol and oak dowels, accelerating the extraction of vanillin and other flavor compounds, as well as the oxidation processes that develop color, thereby achieving quality enhancement in reduced time
Solution Approach 2:
The ultra-violet light emitter performs preliminary action by pre-activating the chemical pathways for flavor extraction and color development. The light energy prepares the molecular structures for faster reaction, initiating and accelerating the chemical processes before they would naturally occur at their slow ambient rate
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 solution significantly accelerates the aging process of distilled spirits by enhancing flavor and color, outperforming traditional methods by maintaining the quality and speed of the aging process.
Implementation Method 1
The light emitter emits light in the ultra-violet spectrum to increase the rate of chemical reaction between the alcohol and the dowels thereby speeding up the process of aging the alcohol
Data Source
AI summary
An alcohol aging assembly for rapidly aging distilled spirits includes an aging container for containing alcohol. A cylinder comprised of copper is provided which can be submerged in alcohol without imparting an unpleasant flavor to the alcohol. A plurality of dowels is each of the dowels is disposed within the cylinder and each of the dowels is comprised of oak to facilitate a chemical process to enhance the flavor and color of the alcohol. A light emitter is disposed inside of the cylinder to emit light into the alcohol when the cylinder is submerged into the alcohol. The light emitter emits light in the ultra-violet spectrum to increase the rate of chemical reaction between the alcohol and the dowels thereby speeding up the process of aging the alcohol.