Steam injection heater with integrated cleaning mechanism

A direct contact steam injection heater, comprising:

• a heater body having a steam inlet, a product inlet, and a heated product outlet;
• a mounting cage received within the heater body, the mounting cage including modulating portion that defines a steam chamber located in communication with the steam inlet;
• a pair of steam discharge sections formed in the modulating portions and each having a plurality of nozzles to allow the flow of steam out of the steam chamber;
• a stem plug rotatably positioned within the mounting cage, the stem plug including a regulating head and a stem;
• a pair of sealing faces formed on the regulating head, wherein each of the sealing faces includes a sealing insert sized to cover one of the steam discharge sections when the regulating head is in a closed position;
• a pair of recessed chambers included on the regulating head, each recessed chamber being formed from a back wall and a bottom wall, wherein each of the recessed chambers are located between the pair of sealing faces;
• a pair of foils each extending from the bottom wall of one of the recessed chambers
• an actuator connected to the stem plug and operable to rotate the stem plug over a full 360° rotation;
• and
• a control unit operable to control the actuator to selectively rotate the regulating head from a closed position to an open position to control the amount of steam flowing out of the steam chamber.