FR2839359A1 - Continuous water cooler for dough making has water tank with cooling circuit directly connected to it and in contact with water - Google Patents

Abstract

The continuous water cooler for bakery dough making operates directly on the water tank (4) and has a first circuit (7) with a first coil (9) adjacent to the wall of the tank and under the water level to form a bank of ice. A second circuit (8) has a second coil (13) offset axially and with one end adjacent to an end of the first coil. The second coil has a double coaxial coil carrying the water to be cooled.

Description

hot air (2) by a flexible sleeve (9).

  The present invention relates to a water cooler making it possible to lower the temperature of the water in the network for practically continuous operation between 0 and 3 C. The cooler of the invention is used in particular in bakery, area in which the water used to make the dough must be at the lowest possible temperature so that at the end of the kneading process, which obviously increases the temperature of the dough, it

does not exceed 25 C.

  The three elements involved in the preparation of the dough at the time of kneading are water, ambient air and flour. This behind is at the temperature of the bakehouse, while that of the air depends in particular on the climatic conditions, but is generally not lower than 18-20 C. In the summer, this temperature can on the other hand be considerably higher, which complicates

considerably the problem.

  For the above condition to be fulfilled (dough temperature less than or equal to 25 C), it is established that the sum of the temperatures of the water, air and flour must be less than or equal to 54 C. To achieve this, especially in summer when the ambient temperature is high, lteau, the only component on which it is possible to influence under conditions

  acceptable techniques, either at very low temperature.

  The quantity of cold water required varies according to the size and even the type of bakery. A neighborhood bakery, for example, produces a quantity of bread and therefore of dough requiring a quantity of cold water much lower than the quantity required to produce a large area. In many cases, the means of producing cold water is constituted by tanks for storing water cooled by means of a copper or stainless steel coil playing the role of evaporator of the cold circuit, which is traversed by a refrigerant gas. The quantity of cold water stored depends on the size of the production of bread, and the manufacturers of chillers therefore offer a range of tanks whose volumes are suitable for different uses. There are thus tanks which can store 1000 liters of water cooled to 0 3 5 3 C, for use in large areas. At the other end of the spectrum of use, the suppliers also offer tanks of 90 liters, more

  especially configured for small neighborhood bakeries.

  Such a solution, apart from being not perfect in terms of hygiene, is not very flexible, and in any case does not allow any adaptability to an unforeseen variation in production. Thus, the baker who punctually decides to increase his production will be obliged to fill the tank he has a second time, and he will therefore have to wait until the newly stored water is in turn cooled, which can take several hours . Conversely, a large area will consume the same cooling energy even if it decides to sharply lower its production to

a limited period.

  To overcome this lack of flexibility, it has been proposed coolers operating to a certain extent continuously, with the aid of banana tanks. These wind tanks provided with a peripheral coil in which circulates a refrigerant gas which lowers the temperature of the water in its vicinity until creating a bane of peripheral grace, which in turn gradually lowers the temperature of the water until center of the tank, crossed by another

  coil in which the water has to cool.

  This latter system is not satisfactory either, because after a certain number of draws of 60 liters of water (quantity normally used in bakeries to make the standard dough mass according to the operating standards of industrial devices bakery), the grace has melted, and it then takes several hours to reconstitute a bane of grace. Typically, after six 60-liter draws, the grace is exhausted, and it takes about 8 hours to recreate a bane of the appropriate size. Now, a volume correspond

  6 prints is notoriously insufficient, for example for large areas.

  In this case, there is a clear break in the continuity of production of cold water, and therefore of dough, a break which is also registered at the expense of the flexibility of use of this type of device. for the

production of cold water.

  The invention proposes to remedy these shortcomings by proposing a cooler which offers, in the context of the operation of a bakery, both small and hypermarket, the possibility of drawing water.

  Which can be described as continuous.

  The device of the invention is conventionally based, like its predecessors, on a refrigerating gas production unit, as well as on a thermally insulated cooling tank filled with said cooling water. 11 is characterized mainly by the fact that the refrigerant gas circuit consists of two parallel branches: - a first branch comprising a first coil whose wind turns are arranged on the one hand near the wall of the tank and on the other leaves below the level of the water filling the tank, to form a bane of grace; - A second branch comprising a second coil axially offset outside the first and one of the ends of which is arranged at least at the end proximal to said first coil. The second coil being double by a coaxial coil conveying the water of the network to be cooled, the latter extending along the grace strip

consists of the first coil.

  The invention in fact provides a first pre-cooling of the water, using the double coil, followed by more conventional additional cooling by means of a grace strip. In the second part of the treatment with the help of the graceful bane, the water is no longer at network temperature (16-18 C), but it has already been cooled by the second coil and is at a

temperature around 1 0 C.

  As a result, the temperature exchanges in the second wind phase such that the weather strip is much less stressed, and that it is exhausted by

  therefore less targeted, even in the case of repeated draws.

  In reality, there are in the invention two distinct cooling means

  and which are exerted substantially sequentially on the liquid to be cooled.

  According to a possible configuration, the double coil is arranged at least partially above the level of the water filling the cooling tank. The direct expansion carried out in the double coil is indeed not dependent on and in principle has no effect on the cooling water filling the tank. To improve the efficiency of the heat exchanges, the pre-cooling is in fact carried out until the bane of grace takes over the second phase of the cooling. For this reason, said bane being immersed in water, the double portion of the coil has an end located below the water level, near the end of the first

3 0 coil.

  Preferably, the serpentine wind provided coaxial. The serpentine, which has become simple, is therefore placed equidistant from the grace strip. This configuration ensures that water cooling, at least in its second

  phase, is carried out continuously and in a uniform manner.

  The two branches of the refrigerant product are each controlled by a solenoid valve. Indeed, the gas circuits, for example of freon, constitute the two branches certainly work in parallel, but dolvent can be cut according to the phase of production, the thickness of the bane of grace, etc. according to

  a mode of operation which will be explained in more detail below.

  Likewise, the water supply of the network includes a flow controller which manages the circulation of the gas, which must for example be stopped if there is no

  in order to prevent water from freezing in the spiral tube.

  The tank finally comprises a thickness sensor of the grace bane, which provides information on a threshold thickness of the latter from which the circulation of the refrigerant gas must be cut in the coil which the grace bane covers. In the absence of this indication, said bane could develop inconsiderately, or even cover the coil conveying the water to

  cool, at the risk of freezing it behind and damaging the tubing.

  The tank is of course also provided with at least one means for stirring the cooling water, so as to distribute the frigories correctly, with a view to achieving uniform cooling of the water. As for the geometrical configuration of the serpentine (coaxial), this measure also aims to balance in space the cooling process, which applies in a substantially identical way regardless of the location of the configuration at

symmetry of revolution of the system.

  Preferably, the double coil consists of an internal coil

  conveying the refrigerant gas and an external coil conveying the water to be cooled.

  This solution is more advantageous in terms of yield.

  More preferably still, in the double coil, the directions of circulation of

  reverse wind and water and refrigerant gases.

  The present invention will now be described in more detail, with reference to the appended figures, for which: - Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cooler according to the invention; 2S - Figure 2 shows, in exploded perspective, the cooler of Figure 1; - Figure 3 is a block diagram of the cooler of the invention; - Figure 4 shows, in an elevational view, the double coil including realizing the pre-cooling of water; - Figure 5 shows, in elevation view, the peripheral coil 30 forming the bane of grace; - Figure 6 shows, still in an elevational view, the fluid circuits shown respectively in Figure 4 and 5, in their embotée configuration; and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the temperature of the water produced as a function of the number of flows required, knowing that these flow

limited to trots per hour.

  With reference to FIG. 1, the cooler of the invention, of course installed in a frame B. comprises a conventional cooling group (1) whose refrigerant is for example freon, which is sent in two parallel branches in particular formed of separate serpentine (see figure

  3), via control solenoid valves (2 and 3).

  In the lower part, the device of the invention comprises a thermally insulated tank (4) intended to receive the cooling water in particular

  S cooled by the bane de grace (11).

  Figure 2 illustrates in more detail the configuration of the cooler of the invention. Most of the constituent elements of the structure of the cooler are not directly related to the invention, and therefore are not described in detail below. This is the case for the various components of the cooling group, which are conventional and well known in the technical field.

of the invention.

  Referring to Figure 3, the cooling unit (1) comprises an outlet pipe (6), which is divided into two branches (7 and 8), at the entrance of which are located said solenoid valves (2 and 3). The branch (7) feeds the internal coil (9) of the double coil, while the branch (8) feeds the coil (10) constituting the bane of grace (11). These two branches (7 and 8) meet in common tubing at the inlet (12) of the group of

cooling (1).

  The external coil (13) of the double coil is supplied by a pipe (14) connected to the water network. At the inlet of the duct (14), a flow controller (15) makes it possible to regulate or stop the circulation of gas in the coil (9), which then becomes a function of the circulation of water in the

coil (13).

  In fact, the controller (15) and the solenoid valves (2 and 3) make it possible to adapt the operation to the context of use of the cooler. Thus, the situation is not the same depending on whether one draws water or whether a lion does not draw it, depending on whether there have been recent or old drawings, depending on whether the bane of grace is completely constitutes or not, etc. In certain cases, the two branches (7, 8) of the refrigerant gas circuit operate in masked time, when they need not be active at the same time. So it is for example when the bane of grace (11) is completely constituted (the thickness sensor of grace (not shown) indicates that this bane (11) has its maximum volume): in this case, it does not There is no need to circulate the freon in the coil (10). Figure 4 shows in more detail the double coil and more particularly the refrigerant gas circuit attached to it. A filter drier (16) is provided upstream of the solenoid valve (2) (and also of the solenoid valve (3) since it is located upstream of the separation of the branches (7 and 8)). It should be noted that the refrigerant gas flows in the opposite direction to the direction

water flowing.

  This figure clearly shows that the double coil is in fact only half of the entire length of the geometric coil represented, which is perfectly consistent with the function of the branch (7): to pre-cool the water . In its lower part, which has become simple, the coil only carries water, which is now cooled by the water stored in the tank (4). This lower part is also arranged opposite the coil (10) shown in Figure 5 equipping the second branch

  (8) of the freon circuit, serpentine (10) which gives birth to the bane of grace (11).

  The relative positioning of the different serpentines (9, 10, 13) appears in the figure

  6, which also shows their support structures (peripheral "combs").

  It is the complex circuit of FIG. 6 which is arranged in and above the

tank (4).

  Finally, Figure 7 gives an idea of the water temperature as a function of the number of draws of volumes equivalent to 60 liters of water each, considering that a maximum of 3 draws are blown per hour. In this hypothesis, the water temperature does not exceed 3 C around the draft, that is to say after 8 hours of consumption "continuously" in the

  working background of a bakery.

  On a theoretical level, the fact that the temperature is not kept below 3 C whatever the number of draws (always on the assumption of 3 draws of 60 liters per hour) prohibits in principle to qualify this continuous operation. In practice, given the real operating context of a bakery, being able to have for 8 hours straight the possibility of drawing three times 60 liters of water per hour leads to meet the needs of a traditional bakery : we can therefore speak of practical continuity. The example of the cooler given above should not be considered as exhaustive of the invention, which on the contrary covers all the variants of

  shape and configuration that is within the reach of the man of art.

Claims (9)

  1. Water chiller operating by direct expansion on the water of the network, comprising a refrigeration unit (1) with refrigerant gas and a cooling tank (4) with thermally insulated water, characterized in that the circuit of the refrigerant gas is made up of two parallel branches (7, 8): - a first branch (8) comprising a first coil (10) whose wind turns are arranged on the one hand near the wall of the tank (4) and d on the other hand below the level of the water filling the tank, to form a graceful bane (11); - A second branch (7) comprising a second coil (9) offset axially outside the first (10) and one of the ends of which is arranged at least at the end proximal to said first coil (10).   The second coil (9) being double by a coaxial coil (13) conveying the water of the network to be cooled, the latter extending along   bane of grace (11) constitutes around the first coil (10).   2. Water cooler according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the double coil (9, 13) is arranged at least partially at   above the water level filling the cooling tank (4).   3. Water cooler according to any one of the claims   previous, characterized in that the serpentines (9, 10, 13) are coaxial.   2 5 4. Water cooler according to any one of the claims   precedents, characterized in that the two branches (7, 8) of the circuit   refrigerant each controlled by a solenoid valve (2, 3).   5. Water cooler according to any one of the claims   precedents, characterized in that the water circuit of the network comprises a flow controller (15).   6. Water cooler according to any one of the claims   previous, characterized in that the tank (4) includes a sensor of thickness of the bane of grace.   7. Water cooler according to any one of the claims   previous, characterized in that the tank (4) is provided with at least one   means of stirring the cooling water.   8. Solon rune water cooler   previous, characterized in that the double coil (9, 13) consists of an internal coil (9) conveying the refrigerant gas and a   external coil (13) conveying the water to be cooled.   9. Water cooler according to the preceding claim, characterized in that, in the double coil (9, 13), the directions of water circulation and