초록 ▼

This invention is directed to an apparatus and method for wetting and dissolving finely divided dry particles, including hygroscopic particles such as coffee fines, in a liquid, including viscous liquids such as concentrated coffee liquor, in a manner in which foaming, the presence of wet lumps and

This invention is directed to an apparatus and method for wetting and dissolving finely divided dry particles, including hygroscopic particles such as coffee fines, in a liquid, including viscous liquids such as concentrated coffee liquor, in a manner in which foaming, the presence of wet lumps and liquor degradation are minimized. The apparatus includes a dissolving tank containing at least one pair of counter-rotating drums partially submerged in a body of the dissolving liquid. The tank includes a liquid inlet and a discharge conduit which maintain a predetermined level of liquid in the tank. A powder feeding device mounted above the tank discharges a falling curtain of particles onto a thin layer of liquid on the surface of one of the drums in each counter-rotating pair. The partially wetted powder is carried into the nip between the counter-rotating drums to compress, knead and break up wet lumps of partially wetted powder formed on the surface of the drums, with the wetted powder being carried into and dissolved in the body of liquor. Continued rotation of the drums carries any wet powder lumps which may remain in the liquor into the converging gap between the drum and a tangentially mounted solubilizing bar to abrade and disintegrate the lumps in the liquor body.

대표청구항 ▼

An apparatus for wetting and dissolving finely divided dry particles in a liquid which comprises a dissolving tank having liquid supply means and discharge means, gate means in said tank intermediate said supply means and discharge means to provide a body of liquid of predetermined level in said tan

An apparatus for wetting and dissolving finely divided dry particles in a liquid which comprises a dissolving tank having liquid supply means and discharge means, gate means in said tank intermediate said supply means and discharge means to provide a body of liquid of predetermined level in said tank, at least one pair of axially aligned counter-rotating drums mounted in said tank partially submerged in said body of liquid, the drums in each of said pair being mounted in close proximity to define a nip therebetween, means for rotating each drum in each of said counter-rotating pairs toward said nip, a solubilizing bar tangentially mounted substantially parallel and in close proximity to an upwardly rotating section of each drum submerged in the body of liquid, said bar extending over substantially the entire axial length of the drum to provide a converging gap between the bar and the surface of the adjacent drum, feeding means mounted above the dissolving tank for depositing the dry particles onto one of the drums in each counter-rotating pair, and filter means in communication with the liquid discharge means of said tank to receive liquid from the tank and disintegrate and dissolve any solid particles in the liquid.