Method of preparing a liquid extract of cereal grain and apparatus suitable for use in such method

Abstract

The present invention provides a continuous method of preparing a liquid extract of cereal grain by comminuting cereal grain at a rate of at least 100 kg of dry cereal grain per hour and extracting the comminuted cereal grain with a liquid, said method comprising: continuously combining cereal grain with a liquid; continuously disintegrating the grain particles contained within the liquid by colliding freely suspended grain particles with one or more rotating blades, thereby producing a milled suspension; continuously transferring at least a part of the milled suspension, optionally after further treatment, to a separation device for separation into spent grain and liquid extract; wherein the one or more rotating blades are rotating at a tip speed of at least 10 m/s; the total mechanical energy transferred into the milled suspension by the one or more rotating blades is in the range of 5-1000 kJ per kg of dry cereal grain; and the distance between a tip of said one or more rotating blades and the axis of rotation is in the range of 2-25 cm. The invention also provides a system for comprising a milling apparatus and a separation device suitable for use in the aforementioned method. The present method and system offer several advantages, including savings on capital expenditure and maintenance, short milling times and hygienic design.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.