System to freeze food products

A method to freeze items, comprising:

• freezing an item in a freeze chamber of a blast freezer;
• applying a pulsed electrostatic field to the item for one or more time intervals while freezing the item in the freeze chamber;
• in response to application of the pulsed electrostatic field to the item:
• alternately pulling positively charged particles within the item in a first direction and a second direction opposite to the first direction;
• alternately pulling negatively charged particles within the item in the second direction and the first direction;
• and
• alternately accumulating charges on a surface of the item opposite to the pulsed electrostatic field;
• creating microscopic ultrasonic vibrations on the surface of the item in response to the alternate pulling and accumulating;
• and
• transmitting the microscopic ultrasonic vibrations internally into the item to inhibit formation of ice crystals within the item during the freezing;
• wherein:
• applying the pulsed electrostatic field to the item includes alternately applying a first electrostatic field oriented in the first direction and a second electrostatic field oriented in the second direction to the item, the second direction being opposite to the first direction;
• alternately pulling the positively charged particles within the item in the first direction and the second direction comprises alternately pulling the positively-charged particles in the first direction in response to application of the first electrostatic field and in the second direction in response to application of the second electrostatic field;
• alternately pulling the negatively charged particles within the item in the second direction and the first direction comprises alternately pulling the negatively-charged particles within the item in the second direction in response to application of the first electrostatic field and in the first direction in response to application of the second electrostatic field;
• and
• alternately accumulating charges on the surface of the item opposite to the pulsed electrostatic field comprises alternately accumulating charges opposite to the first electrostatic field on the surface of the item in response to application of the first electrostatic field and charges opposite to the second electrostatic field on the surface of the item in response to application of the second electrostatic field, the accumulation of charges on the surface of the item in response to application of the second electrostatic field being opposite to the accumulation of charges on the surface of the item in response to application of the first electrostatic field.

A system to freeze food products, comprising:

• a control unit;
• a power supply unit connected to the control unit;
• a high voltage converter connected to the control unit and the power supply unit;
• a signal generator connected to the control unit and the high voltage converter;
• a field detector;
• and
• an electrostatic module to apply a pulsed electrostatic field to food products, the module comprising one or more induction coils mounted to a radiator plate of one or more emitters;
• wherein:
• the electrostatic module is configured to apply the pulsed electrostatic field to the food products for one or more time intervals while the food products are being frozen in a freeze chamber of a blast freezer;
• application of the pulsed electrostatic field to the food products is configured, for a given food product, to:
• alternately pull positively charged particles within the given food product in a first direction and a second direction opposite to the first direction;
• alternately pull negatively charged particles within the given food product in the second direction and the first direction;
• and
• alternately accumulate charges on a surface of the given food product opposite to the pulsed electrostatic field;
• applying the pulsed electrostatic field to the given food product includes alternately applying a first electrostatic field oriented in the first direction and a second electrostatic field oriented in the second direction to the given food product, the second direction being opposite to the first direction;
• alternately pulling the positively charged particles within the given food product in the first direction and the second direction comprises alternately pulling the positively-charged particles in the first direction in response to application of the first electrostatic field and in the second direction in response to application of the second electrostatic field;
• alternately pulling the negatively charged particles within the given food product in the second direction and the first direction comprises alternately pulling the negatively-charged particles within the given food product in the second direction in response to application of the first electrostatic field and in the first direction in response to application of the second electrostatic field;
• and
• alternately accumulating charges on the surface of the given food product opposite to the pulsed electrostatic field comprises alternately accumulating charges opposite to the first electrostatic field on the surface of the given food product in response to application of the first electrostatic field and charges opposite to the second electrostatic field on the surface of the given food product in response to application of the second electrostatic field, the accumulation of charges on the surface of the given food product in response to application of the second electrostatic field being opposite to the accumulation of charges on the surface of the given food product in response to application of the first electrostatic field.