Introduction to the types of production equipment commonly used in beverage production lines

First, water treatment equipment

Water is the largest raw material used in beverage production, and the quality of the water has a great impact on the quality of the beverage. Therefore, the water must be treated to meet the process requirements of the beverage line. Water treatment equipment is generally classified into three categories according to its function: water filtration equipment, water softening equipment, and water disinfection equipment.

1. Water filtration equipment

(1) Sand filter equipment (multi-media filter equipment) Sand filter (multi-media filter) is a mechanical filtration equipment with layered anthracite, sand, finely divided garnet or other materials as the bed. In order to filter the particles of different particle sizes in the water by depth, the larger particles are removed at the top layer, and the smaller particles are removed at the deeper part of the filter medium, so that the water quality reaches the standard after coarse filtration, and the water SDI is lowered ( The value of the sludge density index meets the water quality requirements for deep purification.

(2) Activated carbon filter activated carbon has adsorption, and there is a certain turbidity removal effect. The main structure and arrangement of activated carbon filter are similar to sand filter. Therefore, activated carbon adsorption is also referred to as activated carbon filtration. Activated carbon filtration is mainly used for organic impurities in water and colloidal fine particle impurities in water, and can also be used for dechlorination.

(3) Sand core rod filter The sand core rod filter is also called a sand filter rod filter, and there is a stereotyped product in the water treatment equipment. It is mainly suitable for the treatment of water with less water and only organic matter, bacteria and other impurities in the water.

(4) Microporous filter Microfiltration is a new membrane separation technology. It can filter out particles and bacteria of 0.01μm or more of filtrate and gas. The utility model has the advantages of high capturing capacity, large filtering area, long service life, high filtering precision, small resistance, large mechanical strength, no peeling phenomenon, strong acid and alkali resistance and convenient use. This filter filters out most of the particles and is therefore widely used in fine filtration and sterilization processes.

2, water softening equipment

(1) Ion exchanger. Ion exchangers are a commonly used device in water treatment, which can soften or desalinate water by selecting a certain process. It mainly uses some ion exchangers to temporarily fix unwanted ions in the raw water, so that the content of these ions in the water is reduced to the required level. The ions immobilized by the exchanger are released in the regenerant and the exchanger can be reused. That is to say, it is essentially the physicochemical reaction of the insoluble electrolyte (resin) with another electrolyte in the solution, that is, the exchange reaction of the exchangeable ions on the resin with other isomers in the solution.

(2) Electrodialysis unit. Electrodialysis is widely used in the chemical, pharmaceutical, food and other industries as a new technology for separation, concentration, purification and recovery. The application in the food industry is mainly focused on the purification of soda water and beer water. Used in soft drink plants to soften (desalt) water. Electrodialysis technology is to pass the ion exchange membrane with selective permeability and good conductivity, and under the action of external DC electric field, according to the principle of heterosexual attraction and homosexual repelling, the anion and cation in the raw water pass through the anion exchange membrane and A technique for purifying the cation exchange membrane.

(3) Reverse osmosis equipment. Reverse osmosis is the largest and most mature membrane technology in its application. Its application is about half of the whole membrane separation field, which is the biggest breakthrough in the development of membrane technology. Reverse osmosis is the separation of the solvent from the solution through a reverse osmosis membrane. The application of reverse osmosis has been developed from seawater desalination, hard water softening, etc. to the concentration of vitamins, antibiotics, hormones, bacteria, viruses, and the concentration of juice, milk, and coffee. The advantages of reverse osmosis equipment are continuous operation, stable water quality; no need to use acid-base regeneration; no downtime due to regeneration; saving backwashing and cleaning water; producing ultrapure water in high yield (up to 95% yield); regeneration Sewage does not require water treatment facilities; low operating and maintenance costs; simple installation and low cost.

There are two key points in the production of pure water by reverse osmosis facilities: one is a selective membrane, which we call a semi-permeable membrane, and the other is a certain pressure. Simply put, the reverse osmosis semipermeable membrane has a large number of pores, the size of which is equivalent to the size of water molecules. Since bacteria, viruses, most organic pollutants and hydrated ions are much larger than water molecules, they cannot be penetrated. The reverse osmosis semipermeable membrane is separated from the aqueous phase of the reverse osmosis membrane. Among the many impurities in water, dissolved salts are the most difficult to remove. Therefore, the water purification effect of reverse osmosis is often determined according to the level of salt removal. The reverse osmosis rate is mainly determined by the selectivity of the reverse osmosis semipermeable membrane. The selectivity of the higher selectivity reverse osmosis membrane element can be as high as 99.7%.

For the reverse osmosis separation, the preferential adsorption layer must be formed at the membrane-solution interface. The degree of preferential adsorption depends on the chemical properties of the solution and the chemical properties of the membrane surface. Just select the appropriate membrane material and simply change the microscopic surface of the membrane. The pore structure and operating conditions, reverse osmosis technology can be applied to the solute separation of any resolution.

(4) Ultrafilter

Although the ultrafiltration technology started late in China, it has developed very rapidly. With the continuous promotion of this technology and the increasing awareness of it, the beverage production industry will gain more benefits.

Ultrafiltration membrane equipment has several different forms in industrial applications such as flat, tubular, spiral plate and hollow fiber. Most of the domestic applications are plate-like and tubular, and in particular hollow fiber membranes (hollow fiber membranes) have also been widely used in water treatment.

Hollow fiber ultrafiltration membrane is the most mature and advanced form of ultrafiltration technology. The membrane is a membrane having a spatial solid geometry developed on the basis of a flat membrane, so that the membrane device per unit volume does not rely on a very thin semipermeable membrane and has a large membrane permeability. The hollow fiber tube wall is covered with micropores, and the pore diameter is expressed by the relative molecular mass of the retentate substance, and the molecular weight of the interception can be several thousand to several hundreds of thousands. Due to the hollow cylindrical configuration, the production capacity per unit volume of membrane permeation equipment is greatly improved. The raw water is pressurized and flows outside or inside the hollow fiber, and constitutes an external pressure type and an internal pressure type, respectively. Ultrafiltration is a dynamic filtration process in which the trapped material can be removed with concentration without clogging the membrane surface for long-term continuous operation. It can be proved that in the ultrafiltration application, a cylindrical bundle of a small-diameter hollow fiber membrane of reasonable size is used, and the amount of permeate generated will be equivalent to that obtained on an ultra-thin flat membrane of more than ten square meters.

The hollow fiber is a slender membrane tube, the inner wall is a membrane layer, the membrane layer is bonded to the outer wall of the sponge type, the outer wall has a coarse pore, and the inner layer functions as an ultrafiltration separation. The size of the intimal pores determines the size of the hindered material in the tube. The hollow fiber is made of an inert nonionic polymer with a thickness of about 200 μm and has a unique anisotropic (epidermal) structure with a significantly high flow rate. Its characteristics are: 1 the membrane volume per unit volume in the device is large; 2 the membrane wall is thin, the liquid permeation speed is fast; 3 because the geometric configuration of the hollow fiber has a certain pressure resistance performance, so the strength is high.

3, water sterilization equipment

(1) Ozone sterilizer The so-called ozone sterilizer uses the strong oxidizing property of ozone to achieve sterilization. Ozone is a strong oxygen agent, its bactericidal effect is 15 ∽ 30 times higher than chlorine, and it can be used for 5 ∽ 10 min at a certain concentration. Ozone can achieve sterilization degree for various fungi. It has been widely used in foreign countries for disinfection of water to deodorize and remove color. It is also common in domestic production of mineral water and purified water for sterilization.

(2) Ultraviolet sterilizer When the microorganism is irradiated with ultraviolet light, the protein and nucleic acid of the microorganism absorb the ultraviolet spectrum energy, causing the protein to be denatured and causing the death of the microorganism. Ultraviolet rays have a certain ability to penetrate clean and transparent water, so water can be disinfected. Ultraviolet sterilization can not change the physical and chemical properties of water, and it is widely used because of its fast sterilization speed, high efficiency and no odor.

Second, sterilization equipment

Sterilization is an important part of beverage processing. Beverage sterilization is somewhat different from medical and biological sterilization. Beverage sterilization has two meanings: one is to kill the pathogenic bacteria and spoilage bacteria contaminated in the beverage, destroy the enzyme in the food and make the beverage in a specific environment, such as a closed bottle, a can or other packaging container. There is a certain shelf life; the second is to protect the nutrients and flavor of the beverage as much as possible during the sterilization process. Therefore, the sterilized beverage is commercially sterile.

There are two major types of beverage sterilization methods: physical sterilization and chemical sterilization. The chemical sterilization method uses a bactericide such as hydrogen peroxide, ethylene oxide or sodium hypochlorite. Due to the influence of chemical residues in chemical sterilization, contemporary food sterilization methods tend to be physically sterilized. The physical sterilization method is divided into a heat sterilization method and a cold sterilization method. The heat sterilization method is further divided into a heat sterilization method, a dry heat sterilization method, a microwave sterilization method, and a far infrared heat sterilization method. The cold sterilization method is divided into an ultraviolet radiation sterilization method, an ionizing radiation sterilization method, and a freeze sterilization method. Among the moist heat sterilization methods, there are a pasteurization method, a high temperature short-time sterilization method, and an ultra-high temperature instantaneous sterilization method. The so-called pasteurization is a low-temperature long-time sterilization method, the sterilization temperature is lower than 100 ° C, and the holding time is 30 min. High temperature short-time sterilization (HTST), sterilization temperature is generally 100 ° C, such as milk HTST sterilization temperature is 85 ° C, maintained for more than 15s. Ultra-high temperature transient sterilization (UHT), sterilization temperature above 120 ° C, only for a few seconds. HTST and UHT sterilization methods are not only efficient, but also the structure and appearance of food and the preservation of nutrition and flavor are better than other sterilization methods. According to the sterilization method described above, there are many types of beverage sterilization equipment, and the following three types are classified according to the shape of the materials to be processed:

(1) Sterilization equipment for fluid beverages Fluid beverages refer to unpackaged dairy products, juices and the like. The sterilization equipment for handling such materials has direct and indirect methods. Directly, steam is directly injected into the material for sterilization. The indirect type is to sterilize the beverage by heat exchange with a plate and a tube heat exchanger.

(2) Sterilization equipment for canned beverages Canned beverages such as canned beverages and bottled beverages. The sterilization equipment for handling such materials can be divided into atmospheric pressure sterilization equipment and pressure sterilization equipment according to different sterilization temperatures. The sterilization temperature of the atmospheric pressure sterilization equipment is below 100 ° C, and is used for sterilization of beverage products with a pH value of less than 4.5. Canned sterilization equipment designed with the pasteurization principle belongs to this category. The pressure sterilization equipment is generally carried out in a closed apparatus, the pressure is greater than 0.1 MPa, and the temperature is usually about 120 °C. Atmospheric pressure and pressure sterilization equipment can also be divided into batch type and continuous type in operation. According to the heat source used in the sterilization equipment, it can be divided into direct steam heating sterilization equipment, water heating sterilization equipment, flame continuous sterilization machine and the like.

(3) Physical sterilization equipment using electromagnetic waves This type of sterilization equipment is heat-sterilized by using physical radiation such as microwave, far infrared, ultraviolet light, etc. It is a sterilization equipment with promising development.

Third, the bottle washing machine

CP-12 type bottle washing machine is a kind of rotary bottle washing machine with domestic advanced level based on the introduction, digestion and absorption of advanced technology at home and abroad. This machine is suitable for the filling production of bottled beverages, mineral water, cola and other liquids. It can be used for cleaning large and medium-sized production plants or for stand-alone use. The machine has the following characteristics:

(1) This machine is a special equipment for cleaning plastic bottles of various specifications;

(2) The equipment is compact in structure, complete in control system, easy to operate and maintain;

(3) The cleaning process is reasonable. The inside and outside of the bottle are washed by the spray principle, and the residual water in the bottle is automatically filtered. After cleaning, the empty bottle meets the sanitary requirements;

(4) The shape of the bottle can be changed by simply replacing the star wheel and the guide plate, and the operation is simple and convenient.

The CP-32 type bottle washer is a semi-automatic external shower type rinsing machine, which is suitable for flushing old and new bottles of various bottle shapes and materials. The main features of the machine are: spraying on the outer wall of the bottle, and the inner wall is continuously washed twice to ensure the flushing effect; the main parts are made of stainless steel or wear-resistant copper alloy to prevent corrosion; the tap water is used for normal pressure work, and the adaptability is strong. The machine has reasonable structure, simple operation and convenient maintenance. It is widely used in wine, beverage, soy sauce, vinegar, liquid medicine and other manufacturers.

Fourth, automatic bottle washer

Automatic bottle washers are divided into different types according to different situations: from the way of entering and leaving the bottle can be divided into double-ended and single-ended; the transfer mode from the bottle can be divided into continuous and intermittent; the way of processing the bottle from the machine Can be divided into spray, brush and immersion. The following is mainly introduced according to the way of washing bottles.

(1) The jet type bottle washer includes flushing of the inside and outside of the bottle. The center of the nozzle must be aligned with the center of the bottle. This type is especially suitable for the flushing of the crown cap, because the bottleneck is small, generally only about 5mm, it is difficult to clean the inside of the bottle with other types of bottle washers. The nozzles of detergents should be of high pressure type. However, this kind of bottle washing method is very easy to generate foam, and it is difficult to remove the trademark. In addition, due to the action of carbon dioxide in the washing liquid and air, the concentration is quickly lowered and the energy consumption is also large.

(2) The immersion bottle washer first performs hot water jet rinsing once or several times, and then the bottle is continuously submerged (emptied after filling) in a washing tank of different temperatures for washing or disinfecting. After the last flooding, rinse with hot water and cold water several times to flush the washing solution. Desirable soaking bottles are also used sparingly.

(3) Soaking and brushing bottle washing machine It is to clean the bottle by immersing in the brushing combination. This is an effective method of cleaning the walls of the bottle. In the past, the brush has been used for many years. Due to the easy hair loss, the life is short, and the quality of the brush is affected by the dirt in the brush. Some countries use synthetic materials as brushes, which work better. The structure of the washing part of the bottle washing machine is complicated, because the brush and the bottle mouth must be aligned to enter the bottle, so there is not much use of this type.

(4) Immersion and jet type bottle washing machine It combines the advantages of soaking and spraying, and has one or more soaking tanks and more spraying parts, and the nozzles are mostly high pressure type. Some believe that when the spray portion is more than a certain degree, it can replace the two spray grooves, and the cleaning effect of the high pressure spray can be equivalent to brushing with a brush.

Five, filling machine

From the perspective of packaging materials, it can be divided into liquid filling machine, paste filling machine, powder filling machine, particle filling machine, etc.; from the automation degree of production, it is divided into semi-automatic filling machine and automatic filling production line. From the filling material containing gas or not can be divided into equal pressure filling machine, atmospheric pressure filling machine and vacuum filling machine.

1. Isobaric filling machine

The isostatic filling machine generally maintains a certain filling pressure in the storage tank. When the container to be filled enters the filling machine, the container is first inflated. The gas may be compressed air or carbon dioxide gas. it is good. When the pressure in the container and the pressure in the storage tank are the same, the self-weight of the liquid is filled through the open filling valve. During the filling process, the gas in the container is smoothly exported and returned to the storage tank or to the gas chamber. In the filling of soda, small champagne and beer, most of them are filled with equal pressure, the process is as follows:

(1) Initial position. The bottle has not touched the filling valve and all gas and liquid channels are closed.

(2) Inflation pressure. The bottle and the filling bonnet are raised together to a predetermined position, at which time the swivel fork opens the inflation valve and pressurized gas enters the bottle from the annular hopper through the inflation passage.

(3) Injecting liquid back. When the pressure in the bottle reaches the pressure of the storage tank, the liquid valve automatically opens, and the liquid must flow down the bottle wall by the diverting umbrella. At the same time, the pressurized gas displaced in the bottle returns to the injection tank through the return pipe, when the bottle is filled with liquid When the surface reaches the lower port of the return air pipe, the liquid injection ends.

(4) The valve is closed. The rotary fork closes the pressure gas valve and the liquid valve.

(5) Inflation. The top carbon dioxide valve is opened and carbon dioxide or other inert gas is charged from the annular groove into the bottle to drive the air out of the bottle neck.

(6) Pressure release. The pressure relief valve opens and the pressure in the bottle escapes through the needle valve in the pressure relief passage to the annular groove.

2, atmospheric pressure filling machine

Many beverages, such as juices, milk drinks, and syrups in secondary filling of soda, do not contain carbon dioxide by themselves, and generally use atmospheric pressure filling machines.

The atmospheric pressure filling machine is mainly composed of a filling system, an inlet and outlet bottle mechanism, a lifting bottle tank mechanism, a work table, a transmission system, and the like, and is used for filling a liquid containing no gas. Such a filling machine is generally a rotary type.

Under the action of the transmission system, the rotating shaft drives the turntable and the dosing cup to rotate together, and the liquid material flows into the dosing cup from the storage cylinder through the pipe by its own weight. The bottle holder drives the bottle up under the action of the cam. When the bottle mouth rises against the gland plate, the spring compresses, and the slide valve slides upward in the inner hole of the movable measuring cup. As the shaft rotates, the well-determined measuring cup has been turned under the feed tube and into the filling position. When the spool rises and the inlet hole is opened, the liquid material flows into the bottle, and the gas in the bottle is discharged from the four small grooves on the lower surface of the gland plate to complete the filling task of one bottle. As the turntable rotates, the dosing cups are successively entered directly below to complete the quantitative work. When the transfer position is turned away from the quantitative position, the bottle is started again when entering the filling position, so that the work is repeated continuously and continuously.

3. Negative pressure filling machine

It is often referred to as a vacuum filling machine. The filling method is to make the storage tank at normal pressure. When filling, only the inside of the bottle is evacuated to form a vacuum. When a certain degree of vacuum is reached, the liquid flows in by the pressure difference between the injection tank and the container. In the bottle, complete the filling. It is mainly used for liquid filling without gas, if juice. Since the filling is done under vacuum, the filling is stopped when the bottle is broken, and the loss can be reduced. However, under vacuum, for some liquids with aroma, the pressure filling method to lose some fragrance is stricter on the bottle specifications, because its quantitative value is determined by the depth of the filling nozzle deep into the bottle, and the volume of the bottle directly affects Quantitative accuracy. However, due to the ease of adjustment, it is still widely used.

Sixth, CIP cleaning system

CIP is an abbreviation for clean in place or in-place cleaning. It is defined as a method of washing the contact surface with food by using a high-temperature, high-concentration cleaning solution without disassembling or moving the device.

Therefore, CIP can be scrubbed, cleaned and sterilized without disassembling the mechanical device and piping. It is an optimized cleaning management technology in the cleaning process and can properly handle the relationship of washing, cleaning, sterilization and economy, and energy conservation. The CIP device is suitable for multi-pipe sterilization machinery in direct contact with fluid materials. If the juice beverage, dairy product, concentrated juice, and soybean milk are cleaned in situ (ie, CIP cleaning) is a commonly used method in beverage manufacturers, and the quality of the product is guaranteed. The purpose of the cleaning is to remove residues from the equipment and the pipe wall to ensure that the hygiene indicators are met. Under normal circumstances, it must be cleaned once for 6∽8h. In special cases, when the production capacity is found to be significantly reduced, it should be cleaned immediately.

The purpose of cleaning is to remove dirt adhering to the machine to prevent microbes from growing between them. To remove the dirt, the cleaning system must be able to provide the cleaning capacity needed to overcome the pollutants. There are three sources of cleaning power, namely the kinetic energy generated from the flow of the cleaning fluid, the chemical energy generated from the detergent, and the thermal energy in the cleaning fluid. These three capabilities have complementary roles. At the same time, the factors of ability are related to the factors of time. In the same state, the longer the washing time, the better the washing effect.

CIP has the following advantages:

(1) It can maintain a certain cleaning effect to improve the safety of the product;

(2) Saving operation time and improving efficiency, saving labor and ensuring operation safety, saving cleaning water and steam;

(3) The level of hygiene is stable and the amount of cleaning agent is saved;

(4) The production equipment can be enlarged and the automation level is high;

(5) Increase the durability of production equipment.