JPH0445158B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a food extrusion processing method and an apparatus therefor.

(Prior Art) As for a conventional food extrusion processing method and its apparatus, the one shown in FIG. 13 is well known. This conventional food extrusion processing apparatus is mainly composed of a cylinder 50 and a screw 51, and has a food raw material supply port 52 at one end of the cylinder 50, a molding die 53 at the tip of the cylinder 50, and an outer circumference of the cylinder 50. It was a simple device equipped with a heater 54. This molding die 53 is, for example, as shown in FIG.
This multi-hole die 53 has a large number of holes 55, and is used to extrude a large number of products such as thin rods and string rods.A cutter is provided in front of the die 53 to make a cylindrical product.

The one shown in FIG. 15 similarly enables the production of a large number of string-like products, but is of the type in which the die 56 can be replaced for each hole. Furthermore, a guide spacer 57 is provided to equalize the flow of the material before it enters the die 53.

As shown in FIG. 16, the die 56 has one round hole.
By processing into rectangular (plate-like) holes, cylindrical holes, etc., rod-like (string-like), sheet-like, and tube-like products can be obtained. Furthermore,
By making the die shape irregular, it is possible to extrude products with a diamond, star, or other relatively simple cross-sectional shape.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) In the conventional food extrusion processing method and device, the food raw material supplied from the supply port 52 is heated, compressed, pulverized, kneaded, etc. while being conveyed by the screw 51. After some processing, products with various cross sections were continuously molded by fluid extrusion from a molding die 53 in a highly fluid state.

By the way, food raw materials are generally high moisture materials, and when such moisture materials are heated and pressurized and then extruded through the die 53 under atmospheric pressure, the product foams and expands considerably due to the water vapor pressure due to the moisture in the materials. There was a problem of coarse bubbles. Therefore, in an attempt to obtain a product in the form of a dense solid, even if the pressure inside the die is increased by forcefully increasing the die resistance, the material will compress and solidify and cause clogging, making continuous extrusion impossible and producing the desired dense solid form. I couldn't get the product.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a food extrusion processing method and an apparatus therefor, which are capable of continuously extruding a dense solid food product.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The method of the present invention for achieving the above object is characterized by the following:
At the exit of the cylinder of the extruder, the fluidized food material is press-fitted into the die, and solidification of the material is substantially completed while passing through the die, and lubrication is provided between the inner surface of the die hole of the die and the surface of the food material. The device is characterized by food extrusion, in which the food material, which maintains fluidity at the exit of the cylinder, is press-fitted into a die installed at the exit of the cylinder and extruded. In the processing device, the die is provided with a solidifying section that heats or cools the food material to a temperature necessary to solidify the food material while passing through the die hole, and at least a part of the die hole of the die or the die hole. Immediately before this, a lubricant press-in part is provided for press-fitting a substance that provides lubricity between the inner surface of the die hole and the surface of the food material.

(Function) According to the present invention, the food material supplied into the cylinder from the supply port is pressurized, heated, and kneaded while being conveyed to the die side by the screw. This food material maintains its fluidity until the cylinder exit.
In this fluid state, it is press-fitted into a molding die. While passing through the die hole, the material is heated or cooled by the solidification section to a temperature necessary for solidification, and at the exit of the die, the material is in a state where it is not substantially expanded. That is, since the material gradually solidifies while flowing under the pressure of the die hole, the material does not swell and becomes dense. When the material solidifies in the die hole, a so-called plug flow phenomenon occurs in which the material moves while being pressed against the inner surface of the die hole, and the extrusion resistance becomes extremely large.However, in the present invention, the die is provided with a lubricant press-fitting part. Since the lubricant is press-fitted between the surface of the solidified food material and the inner surface of the die hole from the press-fitting part, continuous sliding is possible, and continuous extrusion molding can be performed without clogging.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the drawings.

What is shown in FIG. 1 is a first embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a cylinder of a food extrusion processing machine, and a supply port 2 for supplying food raw materials is provided at one end of the cylinder 1. A molding die 3 is attached to the tip surface of the other end. A screw 4 for conveying, compressing, and kneading food materials is rotatably inserted into the cylinder 1. A heater 5 is provided on the outer periphery of the cylinder 1.

The molding die 3 is provided with a die hole 6 that is concentric with the cylinder 1 and extends through the molding die 3. The die hole 6 has a tapered approach 7 extending from the inner hole of the cylinder 1 to a cross-sectional hole of the molded product shape. It consists of a land 8 having approximately the same cross section as the shape. If the product is rod-shaped, the land 8 is a portion of the length l of a cylindrical hole with a diameter of ΦD, as shown by l in the figure, and is a hole with approximately the same shape as the cross-sectional shape of the product, and the distance between the facing surfaces is substantially the same. A part that remains constant in the longitudinal direction. In the present invention, the land length l is made longer with respect to the product cross-sectional area or the product outer diameter ΦD, and a lubricating liner 9 is provided at least in a part of the land l, near the entrance in the illustrated example, and the remaining land that follows has a smooth surface. This is a normal land liner 10 having the following features.

An oil reservoir 11 is provided on the outer periphery of the lubricant liner 9 to facilitate the penetration of lubricant into the lubricant liner 9. A fixed amount of lubricant is injected into the oil reservoir 11 through an external pipe 12 at a regulated oil amount/hydraulic pressure. Thus, a lubricant press-fitting section 13 is constituted by the external piping 12, the oil reservoir 11, the lubricating liner 9, and the like.

The die 3 is provided with an external heating/cooling device 14, which controls the temperature to an appropriate temperature for solidifying the food material passing through the die hole 6. This external heating cooler 14
A solidification portion 15 is constituted by the die hole 6 and the like.

A resistance adjuster 16 is installed in front of the exit side of the dice 3. For example, as shown in the figure, this resistance adjuster 16 has a pair of upper and lower elastic crawlers 17, 17 each having a cross-sectional shape substantially similar to the shape of the product.

According to the first embodiment of the present invention, the food raw material supplied into the cylinder 1 from the supply port 2 is conveyed by the feed screw 4 and undergoes processing such as compression, heating, and kneading, and is maintained at an appropriate temperature and fluidity. It enters the die hole 6 with a certain amount of force, reaches a solidification temperature under pressure by the solidification section 15, and solidifies as it advances through the die land 8 one after another. Then, a lubricant is press-fitted from around the material in an extremely thin film form by a lubricant liner 9 provided at an appropriate position of the die land 8, and the solidified material and the land 8 are
This prevents sticking to the wall surface and high frictional force, and the solidified material is continuously extruded with appropriate sliding resistance.

The solidified product coming out of the die hole 6 is taken through a resistance adjuster 16. That is, elastic crawler 1
The product is held between the upper and lower pairs of 7 and 17, and the crawler 1
7, 17 to give a braking effect to the drive system,
Alternatively, the operating conditions can be optimally controlled by adjusting the back pressure applied to the material within the die (particularly the material before solidification) by applying forward drive through the slip clutch.

As the lubricant, any lubricant such as edible oil can be used without any problems as long as it does not cause any inconvenience as a food product. Further, as the lubricating liner 9, porous ceramics, porous sintered alloys, etc. can be used.

FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the invention, in which a lubricating liner 9 is provided on the approach 7. In addition, a material pressure gauge 18 is installed at the approach 7 or at the tip of the cylinder 1 to detect the head pressure, and by linking this with a resistance regulator 16 installed downstream of the die exit, the back pressure of the head is always maintained. We are trying to maintain constant quality by keeping the operating conditions constant.

FIG. 3 shows a third embodiment of the present invention, in which a circumferential annular slit 19 is provided at the entrance of the land 8, and the lubricant is press-fitted through the slit 19 instead of injecting the lubricant with a lubricant liner. It is. That is, the intermediate die 20 is provided in the middle of the die land 8,
An annular semicircular manifold 22 communicating with a connecting pipe 21 for press-fitting lubricant and an annular slit 19 communicating therewith are provided. The manifold 22 and the annular slit 19 have an annular shape eccentric to the die axis, and the tip of the slit 19 opens into the die hole 6. As a result, the lubricant is evenly press-fitted around the die hole 6 in the form of a thin film. The device shown in FIG. 3 can also be provided in the approach section as shown in FIG. 2.

What is shown in FIG. 4 is a fourth embodiment of the present invention, in which an intermediate die 23 is provided in place of the lubricating liner, and an annular circular manifold 25 communicating with a communicating pipe 24 and an annular slit communicating therewith are provided in the intermediate die 23. 26 is provided in the die hole 6 eccentrically with respect to the axis, and the slit 26 is opened in the die hole 6.
The intermediate die 23 is divided into two at the center of the circular manifold 25. From the opening of the slit 26 to the land 8 at the die exit, the diameter of the die hole 6 is increased by a gap t shown in the figure, so that the diameter is ΦD+α.

Like the one shown in Figure 3, this one in Figure 4 can also be used for press-fitting lubricants, but it can also be used for simultaneous two-layer molding by press-fitting other self-lubricating food ingredients. It is possible. In this case, t(D+α) depending on the desired outer layer material thickness
Furthermore, the shapes of the intermediate die 23, manifold 25, slit 26, etc. are determined separately depending on the material.

What is shown in FIG. 5 is a fifth embodiment of the present invention, and shows the structure of a cylinder 1 used when the food material has a high moisture content. That is, a vent 27 is provided in the middle of the cylinder 1, and the vent 27
A deaeration pipe 28 is connected to 7, and a vacuum gauge 29, a control valve 30, and a vacuum pump 31 are interposed in the pipe 28.

The material containing excessive moisture supplied from the supply port 2 is heated and compressed, and the moisture content is vaporized and degassed from the vent 27. In this way, by adjusting the dehydration in the middle of the cylinder 1, swelling can be prevented more efficiently.

What is shown in FIG. 6 is a sixth embodiment of the present invention, which shows the structure of the cylinder 1 used when the water content is even higher, and a dehydration cylinder 32 is provided in front of the vent 27. That is, the dehydration cylinder 32 includes a dehydration liner 33 and a cylinder body 3.
4 and a cover 35, the dehydration liner 3
3 is a perforated plate-like cylinder, a liner with longitudinal slits,
Alternatively, continuous porous ceramics, sintered alloys, hard plastics, etc. may be used. This dehydration cylinder 32 first dehydrates by physical squeezing action to more effectively perform subsequent steam dehydration.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 above, by removing and adjusting the water content of the raw material at least before the material enters the die hole 6, a more dense solid food material can be obtained. In addition, by adjusting the moisture content before entering the die hole 6 and heating or cooling the material in a state as close to solidification as possible within the range of not solidifying and maintaining formability, the material can be heated or cooled in the die. can be solidified in a shorter time, and the length of the die hole 6 can be shortened.

FIG. 7 shows a seventh embodiment of the present invention, in which the flow of the material is made uniform before it enters the die hole 6.

That is, a heating block 36 is interposed between the tip of the cylinder 1 and the die 3. A heating element 37 is built into the heating block 36. The heating body 37, heating block 36, and die 3 are electrically insulated by an insulating layer (not shown). The heating element 37 is made of a ceramic resistance heating element, generates heat by itself when energized from an external power supply through an electrode 38, and heats the material passing through a plurality of material passages 39 formed within the heating element 37.
The inner surface of the material passage 39 is coated with an electrically insulating ceramic coating 40, as shown in FIG.

The material passage 39 has a parallel perforated plate shape as shown in FIG. 91, a concentric multilayer cylindrical shape as shown in FIG. 2, and a honeycomb shape (square hole, hexagonal hole, etc.) as shown in FIG. 3. It is possible.

In this way, if the material is configured to be divided into small cross-sectional areas and pass through the heating body 37 having a large number of material passages 39 and a large heat transfer area after being heated to the necessary degree in the cylinder 1, the material can be heated to a required degree in the cylinder 1. Capable of uniformly heating large volumes. In addition, since the heating element 37 itself generates heat,
Heat efficiently and uniformly.

Further, by using ceramics, the heat resistance, corrosion resistance, and abrasion resistance of the heating body 37 itself can be effectively utilized, and since it has good formability, it can be processed into a desired shape. In particular, the shape of the passage 39 of the heating body 37 has a great effect of rectifying the material, which makes the flow of the material into the die 3 uniform, improving moldability, and also helps improve the texture of the product due to the orientation effect of the material. .

What is shown in FIG. 10 is an eighth embodiment of the present invention, in which a cooling block 41 is interposed between the heating block 36 and the die 3 to lower the temperature to an effective molding temperature and prevent the material from overheating. This is to prevent malfunctions.

This cooling block 41 has a cooling jacket 42
Temperature control using heat transfer oil, hot water, etc.
Heating at an appropriate temperature using an external heater is also possible. The cooling passage 43 in the cooling block 41 is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
It is possible to form multiple subdivision channels as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, and it has efficient cooling and temperature adjustment effects, and its rectification function provides the same formability improvement effect as the heating element 37 described above. and a texture improving effect.

The specific resistance of the ceramic resistance heating element increases rapidly at a certain desired temperature. So-called
If you use something with PTC characteristics, such as BaTiO ₃ (semiconductor barium titanate), when it heats up to a temperature above a certain level, the resistance will suddenly increase and prevent the temperature from rising any further, improving safety and operation. But it's convenient.

As described above, by uniformly rectifying the flow of the material before it flows into the die hole 6, solidification within the die hole 6 becomes more uniform, resulting in stable operation and improved quality.

(Effects of the Invention) According to the present invention, it is possible to continuously extrude a dense solid food product.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 12 show embodiments of the present invention;
Figures 1 to 16 show conventional examples, where Figure 1 is a sectional view of the first embodiment, Figure 2 is a sectional view of the second embodiment, Figure 3 is a sectional view of the third embodiment, and Figure 4 The figure is number 4
A sectional view of the embodiment, FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the fifth embodiment,
6 is a cross-sectional view of the sixth embodiment, FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the seventh embodiment, FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of the material passage, FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing various shapes of the passage, and FIG. FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing the eighth embodiment, FIGS. 11 and 12 are sectional views showing the shape of the cooling path, FIG. 13 is a sectional view, FIG. 14 is a front view showing the shape of the die, and FIG. 15 is a sectional view showing the shape of the die. A sectional view of the die, FIG. 16 is a partially sectional perspective view showing the shape of the die hole. 1... Cylinder, 3... Die, 6... Die hole, 8... Land, 13... Lubricant press-fitting part, 15
...Solidification part.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a method of extrusion-molding a food material using an extruder and a die provided at the tip thereof, the food material that maintains fluidity at the outlet of the cylinder of the extruder is press-fitted into the die, and 1. A method for extruding food products, which comprises substantially completing the individualization of the material during passage, and supplying a lubricant between the inner surface of the die hole of the die and the surface of the food material for extrusion. 2. When the food material is singulated and extruded while passing through the die, the material flow pressure between the tip of the extruder and the die is reduced by applying positive or negative resistance in the extrusion direction of the singulated material at the die exit side. The method for extruding food according to claim 1, characterized in that extrusion is carried out in a controlled manner. 3. The food extrusion processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that simultaneous two-layer molding is performed using another food material having a self-lubricating agent as a lubricant. 4. In a food extrusion processing device that presses and extrudes food material that maintains fluidity at the exit of the cylinder into a die provided at the exit of the cylinder, the food material is inserted into the die while passing through the die hole. A singulation section is provided that heats or cools to the temperature required for singulation, and provides lubricity between the inner surface of the die hole and the surface of the food material at least in a part of the die hole of the die or immediately before the die hole. A food extrusion processing device characterized by being provided with a lubricant press-in part for press-fitting a substance. 5. A resistance adjuster is provided on the exit side of the die to adjust the material flow pressure between the tip of the extruder and the die by applying positive or negative resistance in the extrusion direction of the singulated material. A food extrusion processing apparatus according to claim 4. 6. The food extrusion processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the resistance adjuster has a pair of elastic crawlers that grip and pull out the singulated material at the exit of the die.