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US 5,013,447 AGranted
Process of treating alcoholic beverages by vapor-arbitrated pervaporation
AssigneeSepracor Inc.
InventorsEric K. Lee, Vinay J. Kalyani, Stephen L. Matson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The method and apparatus of the present invention has general applicability to the manipulation of the concentration, by partial depletion or enrichment, of one or more volatile components in a given liquid while leaving the other volatile components in the liquid in a substantially undisturbed or unadulterated state.
Claims40
A method comprising manipulating the concentration of at least one preselected member of a plurality of volatile components including an alcohol and water present in an alcoholic beverage in which substantially any predetermined desired concentrations of alcohol and water in an alcoholic beverage are provided, while preserving the flavor and aroma of the alcoholic beverage by;
- (a) providing a membrane having a feed side and a permeate side opposite feed side, said membrane being permeable to said at least one preselected member;
- (b) contracting said alcoholic beverage against said feed side of said membrane;
- (c) contacting a gas-phase extraction fluid against said permeate side membrane, said extraction fluid comprising a vapor mixture capable of arbitrating the pervaporation of said volatile components such that a portion of said preselected member passes from said feed side of said membrane to said permeate side of said membrane and mixes with said extraction fluid, while a substantial portion of the remaining members of said plurality of volatile components is retained in said alcoholic beverage on said feed side of said membrane;
- and
- (d) allowing said alcoholic beverage and said extraction fluid to remain in contact with said feed side and said permeate side of said membrane, respectively, for a period of time sufficient to provide a second liquid on said feed side of said membrane in which the concentration of said preselected member has been manipulated to the desired level.
2 more elements
A method comprising:
- enriching the concentration of native ethanol in an alcoholic beverage in which substantially any predetermined desired concentrations of ethanol and water in an alcoholic beverage is provided, while preserving the flavor and aroma of the alcoholic beverage by,
- (a) providing a membrane having feed side and a permeate side opposite said feed side, said membrane being permeable to water;
- (b) contacting said alcoholic beverage against said feed side of said membrane;
- (c) contacting a gas-phase extraction fluid against said permeate side of said membrane, said extraction fluid comprising an ethanol vapor mixture capable of arbitrating the pervaporation of said native ethanol such that a portion of the water present in said alcoholic beverage passes from said feed side of said membrane to said permeate side of said membrane and mixes with said extraction fluid, while a substantial proportion of said native ethanol is retained in said alcoholic beverage on said feed side of said membrane;
- and
- (d) allowing said alcoholic beverage and said extraction fluid to remain in contact with said feed side and said permeate side of said membrane, respectively, for a period of time sufficient to provide a second liquid on said feed side of said membrane in which the concentration of said native ethanol has been enriched to the desired level.
3 more elements
A method comprising:
- reducing the volume of an alcoholic beverage comprising at least two volatile solvents including an alcohol and water in which substantially any predetermined desired concentrations of alcohol and water in an alcoholic beverage is provided, while preserving the flavor and aroma of the alcoholic beverage by,
- (a) providing a membrane having a feed side and a permeate side opposite said feed side, said membrane being permeable to said at least two volatile solvents;
- (b) contacting said alcoholic beverage against said feed side of said membrane;
- (c) contacting a gas-phase extraction fluid against said permeate side of said membrane, said extraction fluid comprising a mixture of said volatile solvents such that a portion of the corresponding solvents which are native to said alcoholic beverage passes from said feed side of said membrane to said permeate side of said membrane at a preselected flux ratio and mixes with said extraction fluid, such that the resultant volume-reduced liquid contains the desired proportion of said native volatile solvents;
- and
- (d) allowing said alcoholic beverage and said extraction fluid to remain in contact with said feed side and said permeate side of said membrane, respectively, for a period of time sufficient to provide a second liquid on said feed side of said membrane having a volume which has been reduced to the desired level.
3 more elements
A method comprising reducing the volume of an alcoholic beverage while substantially maintaining the initial proportion of native ethanol and water therein in which substantially any predetermined desired concentration of alcohol and water in an alcoholic beverage is provided, while preserving the flavor, by,
- (a) providing a membrane having a feed side and a permeate side opposite said feed side, said membrane being permeable to ethanol and water;
- (b) containing said alcoholic beverage against said feed side of said membrane;
- (c) contacting a gas-phase extraction fluid against said permeate side of said membrane, said extraction fluid comprising a mixture of ethanol and water vapor in a predetermined ratio capable of arbitrating the pervaporation of said native ethanol and water such that a portion of said native ethanol and water present in said alcoholic beverage passes from said feed side of said membrane to said permeate side of said membrane, at an ethanol flux to water flux ratio corresponding to the molar ratio of ethanol to water in said alcoholic beverage and mixes with said extraction fluid, while the proportion of said native ethanol and water retained in said alcoholic beverage on said feed side of said membrane corresponds substantially to the initial proportion present in said alcoholic beverage;
- and
- (d) allowing said alcoholic beverage and said extraction fluid to remain in contact with said feed side and said permeate side of said membrane, respectively, for a period of time sufficient to provide a second alcoholic beverage on said feed side of said membrane having a volume which has been reduced to the desired level.
2 more elements
A vapor-arbitrated pervaporation method comprising:
- selectively reducing the amount of a first volatile component including an alcohol and water present in an alcoholic beverage having at least two volatile components independent of the permselectivity of a membrane utilized in said method against one or the other of said volatile components comprising providing substantially andy predetermined desired concentration of alcohol and water in an alcoholic beverage, while preserving the flavor and aroma of the alcoholic beverage, by,
- (a) providing a membrane having a feed side and a permeate side, said membrane being permeable to at least a first volatile component;
- (b) contacting an alcoholic beverage containing said first volatile component and at least a second volatile component against said feed side of said membrane;
- (c) contacting a gas-phase extraction fluid against said permeate side of said membrane, said extraction fluid comprising a mixture of a carrier gas and a sufficient amount of the vapor of said second volatile component such that a portion of said first volatile component passes from the feed side of said membrane to the permeate side of said membrane and mixes with said extraction fluid,
- while a substantial portion of said second volatile component is retained on the feed side of said membrane;
- and
- (d) allowing said alcoholic beverage and said extraction fluid to remain in contact with the feed and permeate sides of said membrane, respectively, for a period of time sufficient to reduce the amount of said first volatile component in said alcoholic beverage to the desired level.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.