JP2007082868A - Sterilizing method of food machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily sterilize a heat exchanger in an existing food machine with less changing the constitution of the food machine. <P>SOLUTION: This sterilizing method of the food machine provided with a processing chamber 2 and a decompression means 3 which has a steam ejector 11, the heat exchanger 7 and a decompressor 13 in a decompression line 10 connected to the processing chamber 2 in this order from the upstream side is characterized by making the processing chamber 2 open, supplying high-temperature steam to the steam ejector 11 to operate the decompressor 13 and sterilizing inside the heat exchanger 7. The method is applied to vacuum cooling equipment and a thawing apparatus. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sterilization method for a food machine such as a vacuum cooling device for vacuum-cooling foodstuffs, and more particularly to a sterilization method for a heat exchanger constituting a decompression means.

  As this kind of food machine, there is known a vacuum cooling device including a processing chamber and a decompression unit including a steam ejector, a heat exchanger and a vacuum pump in this order from the upstream side in a decompression line connected to the processing chamber ( Patent Document 1).

JP-A-9-296975

  In the vacuum cooling apparatus as described in Patent Document 1, in order to sterilize the heat exchanger, the structure of the heat exchanger is changed so that the heat exchanger is heated with steam from the outside, and the supply of steam is controlled. Various countermeasures such as attaching an electromagnetic valve for the purpose have been studied. However, such measures are costly for structural changes (modification modifications) for sterilization, and it is not easy to perform such modification modifications in existing vacuum cooling devices.

  An object of the present invention is to sterilize a heat exchanger easily even in an existing food machine without changing the configuration of the food machine as much as possible.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems. The invention according to claim 1 is directed to a processing chamber and a steam ejector, a heat exchanger, and a decompressor in a decompression line connected to the processing chamber. A vacuum cooling device sterilization method comprising pressure reducing means provided in this order from the upstream side, wherein the processing chamber is opened, high-temperature steam is supplied to the steam ejector, and the pressure reducer is operated, whereby the heat It is characterized by sterilizing the inside of the exchanger.

  According to this invention, the inside of the heat exchanger can be sterilized at a high temperature by performing a normal vacuum cooling operation with the processing chamber open to the atmosphere. As a result, the heat exchanger can be sterilized with little or no structural change for sterilizing the heat exchanger.

(Embodiment)
Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described. The sterilization method of this embodiment is carried out in a food machine such as a vacuum cooling device provided with a steam ejector, a heat exchanger, and a decompressor in a decompression line.

  First, an outline of the embodiment will be described. This embodiment is a sterilization method for a food machine comprising a processing chamber and a decompression means for providing a steam ejector, a heat exchanger and a decompressor in this order from the upstream side in a decompression line connected to the processing chamber, A sterilization method for a food machine, wherein the processing chamber is opened, high temperature steam is supplied to the steam ejector, and the decompressor is operated to sterilize the heat exchanger.

  According to this embodiment, when the operation is stopped, the following operation state 1 and operation state 2 are satisfied, whereby the heat exchanger can be sterilized. The operation state 1 is a state in which the processing chamber is opened to the atmosphere, and the operation state 2 is a state in which high-temperature steam is supplied to the steam ejector and the decompressor is operated. When the operation by the AND of the operation state 1 and the operation state 2 is performed, the temperature is raised in the steam ejector and the heat exchanger, the high temperature can be maintained, and the heat exchanger can be sterilized.

  The operation state 1 is realized by opening a manual vacuum release valve that is normally provided in a vacuum cooling device, or by opening a door that opens and closes an opening when taking in and out the food in the processing chamber. Moreover, the said operation state 2 is implement | achieved by the same operation | movement as the vacuum cooling operation which vacuum-cools the said process chamber. Therefore, in this embodiment, the heat exchanger can be sterilized without changing the structure for sterilizing the heat exchanger in a conventional vacuum cooling device. In this operation state 2, when the heat exchanger is made of a material having poor heat resistance, cooling water is supplied (water supply) to the heat exchanger, but when the heat exchanger is made of a heat resistant material, It can be configured to stop water supply.

  Next, components of this embodiment will be described. Ingredients for vacuum cooling are boiled foods. The processing chamber is an area where the food is vacuum-cooled, and means a sealable room, container, or tank, and can also be referred to as a region or a space.

  The decompression means is provided with a steam ejector, a heat exchanger, and a decompressor in this order from the upstream side in a decompression line, and prevents a flow in the direction of the processing chamber between the heat exchanger and the decompressor. A check valve is provided. The decompressor is preferably a vacuum pump, but may be a water ejector having a decompression function other than the vacuum pump.

  The sterilization method of this embodiment is realized in the following embodiment of the vacuum cooling device. That is, the embodiment of this apparatus opens a processing chamber, a decompression means including a steam ejector, a heat exchanger and a decompressor in this order from the upstream side in a decompression line connected to the processing chamber, and the processing chamber. An opening means, and a control means for supplying high-temperature steam to the steam ejector and operating the pressure reducer when the processing chamber is opened by the opening means.

  In an embodiment of the apparatus, the opening means is means for opening the processing chamber to the atmosphere by opening the vacuum release valve or opening the door of the processing chamber. The vacuum release valve is manually operated, but can be configured to open by a switch operation. Although the operation of opening the door of the processing chamber is done manually, an automatic door opening / closing mechanism is also provided, and the door can be opened by a switch operation.

  The control means has a function of controlling a normal vacuum cooling operation and performing a sterilization operation when the normal vacuum cooling operation is stopped. This sterilization operation is an operation in which the operation state 2 is executed in a state where the operation state 1 is satisfied by the opening means. This sterilization operation start command is made by the operator of the vacuum cooling device, and the operation end command is made by the operator or configured to detect and output that the sterilization operation has been executed for a predetermined time. Can do. When the opening means is automatically performed, the opening of the opening means and the execution of the operation state 2 can be simultaneously performed by the control means. In this case, an operation button (cooling button) for vacuum cooling operation and an operation button (sterilization button) for sterilization operation are provided on the operation panel, and the heat sterilization button is operated when the normal vacuum cooling operation is stopped. It can be configured to sterilize the exchanger.

  Hereinafter, a specific example 1 of a vacuum cooling apparatus embodying the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of the first embodiment.

  The vacuum cooling apparatus according to the first embodiment includes a processing chamber 2 that contains a food 1 to be vacuum-cooled, a decompression unit 3 that sucks and exhausts the inside of the processing chamber 2 and maintains the pressure at a low pressure, and the decompressed processing chamber. The pressure return means 4 for returning the pressure by introducing outside air into the air 2, the pressure detector 5 for detecting the pressure in the processing chamber 2, the manual vacuum release valve 6, and the signal of the pressure detector 5 are input. Based on the control procedure stored in the memory, the vacuum cooling operation of the food 1 in the processing chamber 2 is controlled, and the sterilization operation for sterilizing the heat exchanger 7 constituting the decompression means 3 is mainly performed by the control controller 8. As a part.

  Ingredients 1 to be vacuum-cooled are high-temperature ingredients cooked with other cooking utensils.

  The decompression means 3 includes a decompression line 10 that decompresses the inside of the processing chamber 2. The decompression line 10 is provided with a steam ejector 11, the heat exchanger 7, a check valve 12 for blocking the flow in the direction of the processing chamber 2, and a water-sealed vacuum pump 13. A steam supply line 14 for supplying steam from a steam boiler (not shown) is connected to the steam ejector 11, and the steam supply line 14 is provided with a steam supply valve 15. A cooling water supply line 16 is connected to the heat exchanger 7, and a water supply valve 17 is provided in the cooling water supply line 16.

  The return pressure means 4 includes a return pressure line 18 having one end connected to the processing chamber 2. The return pressure line 18 includes a return pressure valve 19 for controlling the introduction of outside air and a filter 20 for sterilization. The return pressure valve 19 uses a proportional valve such as a motor valve capable of adjusting the amount of introduced air by adjusting the opening.

  The processing chamber 2 includes a door 21 that opens and closes an opening (not shown) for taking in and out the food 1. The door 21 is provided with a display / operator 22 for inputting various settings and a command to start operation, and for displaying an operation state.

  The vacuum release valve 6 is manually opened and closed, and constitutes an opening means that opens the processing chamber 2 to the atmosphere.

  The controller 8 receives signals from the pressure detector 5 and the operating device 22 and follows the predetermined processing procedure (program) to the vacuum pump 13, the steam supply valve 15, the water supply valve 17, and the recovery valve. The pressure valve 19 and the operation device 22 are controlled.

  In the first embodiment, the processing procedure includes a vacuum cooling operation process.

  The processing of the vacuum cooling operation includes a well-known vacuum cooling step and a return pressure step. The outline of this vacuum cooling operation is as follows. With reference to FIG. 1, the door 21 is opened, the food 1 is accommodated in the processing chamber 2, and the door 21 is closed to seal the processing chamber 2. In this state, with the vacuum release valve 6 and the return pressure valve 19 closed, the vacuum cooling step of operating the pressure reducing means 3 to discharge the air in the processing chamber 2 and the vapor from the food 1 is performed. In this vacuum cooling operation, the pressure detected by the pressure detector 5 is controlled to have a predetermined pressure pattern. When this vacuum cooling step is completed, the operation of the pressure reducing means 3 is stopped, and the pressure-recovering step of opening the pressure-reducing valve 19 and returning the pressure in the processing chamber 2 is performed.

The sterilization operation process satisfies the following operation state 1 and operation state 2 to enable the heat exchanger 7 to be sterilized. The operation state 1 is an open state of the processing chamber 2, and the operation state 2 supplies high-temperature steam to the steam ejector 11, supplies water to the heat exchanger 7, and operates the vacuum pump 13. It is a state to be made.

  This sterilization operation will be described in detail. The operation operator confirms that the vacuum cooling operation is stopped, and performs the operation of starting the vacuum cooling operation with the operating device 22 in a state where the vacuum release valve 6 is opened (the operation state 1). Then, the controller 8 performs a decompression operation similar to the vacuum cooling operation, that is, supplies high temperature steam to the steam ejector 11, supplies water to the heat exchanger 7, and operates the vacuum pump 13 to operate the vacuum pump 13. Operation state 2 is realized. This sterilization operation is executed for a predetermined time (for example, about 5 minutes at 80 ° C.), and is terminated by inputting an operation end command to the operating device 22.

  As a result, the steam ejector 11 and the heat exchanger 7 can be heated to maintain a high temperature, and the heat exchanger 7 can be sterilized. According to experiments, when the pressure in the processing chamber 2 is about 710 Torr and the temperature of the steam supplied to the heat exchanger 7 is, for example, 140 ° C., the heat exchanger 7 is about 80 ° C. other than the inlet. It was confirmed that the above could be maintained.

  According to the first embodiment, the vacuum release valve 6 is provided in a normal vacuum cooling device, and the operation state 2 is the same as the operation of the decompression means 3 in the vacuum cooling operation. Therefore, there is an effect that the sterilization operation can be realized without remodeling and changing. Therefore, the heat exchanger 7 can be sterilized in an existing vacuum cooling apparatus that does not include the heat exchanger sterilization means.

  The present invention is not limited to the first embodiment, but includes a cooling button for instructing the operating device 22 to start and stop the vacuum cooling operation, and a sterilization button for instructing the start and stop of the sterilization operation (whichever And the heat exchanger 7 can be sterilized by operating the sterilization button when the normal vacuum cooling operation is stopped. In this case, as compared with the first embodiment, modification of the processing procedure of the controller 8 and modification of the operation unit 22 are required depending on circumstances. Moreover, although the said operation state 1 is implement | achieved by the said vacuum release valve 6, it can implement | achieve by opening the said door 21. FIG. Further, the operation state 1 can be realized by opening the return pressure valve 19. In this case, modification of the processing procedure of the controller 8 is required.

It is explanatory drawing which shows schematic structure of Example 1 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Foodstuff 2 Processing chamber 3 Pressure reducing means 6 Vacuum release valve 7 Heat exchanger 8 Controller (control means)
11 Steam ejector 13 Vacuum pump (pressure reducer)

Claims (1)

A food machine sterilization method comprising: a processing chamber; and a decompression means for providing a steam ejector, a heat exchanger, and a decompressor in this order from the upstream side in a decompression line connected to the processing chamber,
A sterilization method for a food machine, wherein the processing chamber is opened, high temperature steam is supplied to the steam ejector, and the decompressor is operated to sterilize the heat exchanger.

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