Method and apparatus for manufacture of dry powders
AssigneeBiomass Technologies Pty Ltd
InventorsMaxwell Scott, Rodney Brown
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of production of a homogeneous powdered product from a starting product in a liquid state, the starting product having sugars as at least 60% of its total solids, the method comprising: in the absence of air; pressurizing the starting product to a pressure greater than 1 bar; injecting a gas into the starting product to form a mixture in which the starting product is substantially saturated by the gas; and degassing the mixture into a continuous stream of transport gas such that, on contact with the transport gas, water from the mixture evaporates to leave the homogeneous powdered product.
Claims10
A method of production of a homogeneous powdered product from a water containing sugar-rich product in a liquid state, the sugar-rich product having sugars as at least 60% of its total solids, the method comprising:
- pressurizing the sugar-rich product to a pressure greater than 1 bar and less than 15 bar;
- in the absence of air, mixing the sugar-rich product with an aeration gas to form a mixture in which the sugar-rich product is substantially saturated by the aeration gas;
- degassing the mixture into a continuous stream of transport gas at a temperature of 50° C. or greater such that, on contact with the transport gas, water from the mixture evaporates to leave the homogeneous powdered product;
- and wherein the aeration gas comprises at least one of:
- carbon dioxide;
- or nitrous oxide, or a mixture thereof, in a quantity sufficient to form a mixture comprising carbonic acid and/or nitric acid,
- and wherein during the mixing of the aeration gas and the sugar-rich product, the sugar-rich product is held at a temperature of 30° C. or lower.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.