U.S. patent application number 13/180400 was filed with the patent office on 2011-10-27 for method of freezing with brine.
This patent application is currently assigned to Winterlab Limited. Invention is credited to Peter H. GLIDDEN, SR., Barnet L. LIBERMAN, Robert J. PEACOCK, II, Kevin C. VANDERVOORT.
Application Number | 20110259021 13/180400 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34527905 |
Filed Date | 2011-10-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110259021 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
LIBERMAN; Barnet L. ; et
al. |
October 27, 2011 |
Method of Freezing With Brine
Abstract
Improved brine solutions and uses thereof for uncontaminatedly
and/or efficiently freezing items such as foods, and biological
samples. In accordance with one embodiment, a brine solution
containing a sufficient amount of dye in conferring the solution a
distinctive color is used in the freezing process. In accordance
with another embodiment, a brine solution containing deionized
water is used for improving the freezing efficiency and/or freezing
capacity.
Inventors: |
LIBERMAN; Barnet L.; (New
York, NY) ; GLIDDEN, SR.; Peter H.; (Windsor, CT)
; VANDERVOORT; Kevin C.; (Suffield, CT) ; PEACOCK,
II; Robert J.; (Lubec, ME) |
Assignee: |
Winterlab Limited
|
Family ID: |
34527905 |
Appl. No.: |
13/180400 |
Filed: |
July 11, 2011 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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12217147 |
Jul 2, 2008 |
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13180400 |
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10938081 |
Sep 10, 2004 |
7415832 |
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12217147 |
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60515324 |
Oct 29, 2003 |
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60509150 |
Oct 7, 2003 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
62/64 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A23B 4/068 20130101;
A23L 3/362 20130101; A23L 3/364 20130101; A23L 3/36 20130101; A01N
1/00 20130101; A01N 1/02 20130101; A23L 3/37 20130101; A01N 1/0221
20130101; A23B 7/0416 20130101; A23B 4/064 20130101; A23B 7/0433
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
62/64 |
International
Class: |
F25D 17/02 20060101
F25D017/02 |
Claims
1. A method of freezing an item in a brine comprising deionizer
water the method comprising: cooling said brine to a predetermined
temperature; and subjecting the item to a heat transfer
relationship with said cooled brine for a period of time sufficient
to freeze the item.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the item is frozen to a
temperature of about -20.degree. C.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein said brine further comprises at
least about 0.005% by weight of a cruciferous oil.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein said brine further comprises at
least one of propylene glycol and calcium chloride.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein said brine comprises about 0.01%
rapeseed oil, about 43.18% deionizer water, about 44.06% propylene
glycol, and about 12.75% calcium chloride.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein said brine further comprises a dye
in a sufficient amount to produce a predetermined color of said
brine.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein said brine is cooled to a
temperature ranging from about -30.degree. C. to about -43.degree.
C.
8. The method of claim 1 wherein said brine is cooled to a
temperature ranging from about -38.degree. C. to -40.degree. C.
9. The method of claim 1 wherein the item is subjected to the heat
transfer relationship by immersion of the item in said cooled
brine.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 12/217,147 filed on Jul. 2, 2008 which is a divisional of
U.S. Ser. No. 10/938,081 filed on Sep. 10, 2004, which is now U.S.
Pat. No. 7,415,832, which claims priority from U.S. Provisional
Patent Application No. 60/515,324 filed on Oct. 29, 2003, and U.S.
Provisional Patent Application No. 60/509,150 filed on Oct. 7,
2003, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference
herein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a brine for use in
preserving various foods and biological samples without causing
contamination thereto. The present invention also pertains to a
method for preserving various foods and biological samples with a
brine, such as by freezing, so as not to cause contamination to the
preserved items by the brine.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] Methods of freezing food products for long time preservation
or biological samples for cytological or histological examination
are known and available. For example, liquid nitrogen is a
conventional method for freezing food or biological samples.
Nevertheless, this method is costly since the liquid nitrogen is
expensive. Moreover, there may be damage to the cellular structure
of the foods or biological samples, which in turn results in
deterioration in the quality of the foods, or interferes with a
rapid and accurate examination of cryogenically frozen tissue.
[0006] Using a cooled brine (antifreeze solution) is another
conventional freezing method. Brine includes inorganic substances
such as calcium chloride, and organic substances such as ethylene
glycol, and propylene glycol. Furthermore, the solution prepared by
mixing the above ingredients is advantageous in that greater
cooling is achieved at a comparatively lower price.
[0007] For example, "A Method of Freezing Fishery Products" is
known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,601,909 issued to Nagoshi on Jul. 22,
1986. This method includes the steps of preparing a brine
containing rapeseed oil, propylene glycol, calcium chloride and
water, cooling the brine and immersing the seafood in the cooled
brine until it is frozen. This method reduces or eliminates
breakdown of muscle tissue in the seafood. Hence, deterioration in
quality of the frozen product is prevented or reduced.
[0008] A similar process for "Quick Freezing of Meat" is disclosed
and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,654,217 issued to Nagoshi on Mar.
31, 1987. The process disclosed in this later patent is similar to
that disclosed in the earlier patent except that it is applicable
to beef, poultry, pork and the like.
[0009] U.S. Pat. No. 4,657,768 issued to Nagoshi on Apr. 14, 1987,
discloses a "Freezing Method for Perishable Foods" which includes
placing a perishable food in a heat conducting container and
causing the other surface of the heat conducting container to
contact cooled brine or a liquefied gas. Accordingly, the
perishable food is frozen quickly without immersion.
[0010] U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,963 issued to Sakai on Sep. 1, 1987,
relates to a method of freezing foods. The method of Sakai is
similar to the methods of Nagoshi except that a layer of brine is
placed in the heat conducting container along with the perishable
food. Freezing proceeds only from the portion which is in contact
with the brine and the potential for the food to stick to the
container is reduced.
[0011] U.S. Pat. No. 4,840,035 provides a method of freezing a
tissue specimen by using a brine comprising a cruciferous oil.
[0012] None of the aforementioned patents addresses the potential
problem that the chemical ingredients of the brine may enter into
the package of the foods or biological samples during the freezing
process, when the package develops a puncture or tear and is
compromised. Thus, the brine may contaminate the frozen foods or
biological samples, and causes problems such as deteriorating the
quality of the foods; causing an unpleasant or undesired taste of
the foods; and interfering with rapid and accurate examination of
the frozen biological samples.
[0013] Accordingly, it is desirable to find a simple, convenient,
and effective freezing method, which can facilitate the
identification and separation of the contaminated frozen products.
In addition, there is also a need to further improve the efficiency
of the freezing or the freezing capacity per unit volume of
brine.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0014] It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to
provide a freezing process for quickly and conveniently identifying
whether during the freezing process the brine enters into the
package of a frozen item such as a food or a biological sample, and
thereby preventing the frozen items from being put on the market
for consumers' use or sent to the laboratory for researchers'
examination.
[0015] A further object of the invention is to provide a method of
freezing which facilitates monitoring the freezing progress.
[0016] Still another object of the invention is to provide a method
of freezing which enables the user to conveniently determine
whether the composition of the brine is within the desired
balance.
[0017] Still yet another object of the invention is to improve
freezing efficiency or freezing capacity per unit volume of the
brine.
[0018] Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in
part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the
specification.
[0019] Therefore, in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention, it is provided a method of freezing an item in a package
by performing the steps of:
[0020] (1) freezing the packaged item by subjecting the packaged
item in contact with a pre-cooled brine having a predetermined
color, the package having a sufficient clarity to enable observance
of the color of the packaged item from outside of the package, and
with the predetermined color of the brine being distinguishable
from the color of the packaged item, (2) rinsing the outer surface
of the packaged item, and (3) detecting the predetermined color
appearing within the package, thereby determining whether the brine
enters into the package.
[0021] Subsequent to the above detecting step, those packaged items
determined to be contaminated with brine may be separated out from
the remaining packaged items.
[0022] Colored brine may be used in the above method. The colored
brine comprises a sufficient amount of dye for producing the
predetermined color in the colored brine. For example, the brine
may contain about 0.00001% of the dye. Preferably, the dye is a
food grade FDA approved blue dye such as Bright Dyes.RTM. Standard
BIue.TM. liquid concentrate ("Bright Dyes.RTM.") manufactured by
Kingscote Chemicals, Inc. of Ohio. More preferably, when the
pre-cooled brine absorbs the heat from the packaged item during the
freezing step, the color of the brine changes, thereby indicating
whether the freezing is initiated, in progress, or completed. In
addition, it is also preferable that the color of the colored brine
varies with the composition of the brine at a given temperature.
Thus, whether the composition of the brine is in compliance with a
predetermined requirement can be determined in accordance with a
predetermined correlation between the color and composition balance
of the brine at the given temperature.
[0023] In accordance with another embodiment of the present
invention, a method of freezing is provided by preparing a brine
comprising deionized water, cooling the brine to a predetermined
temperature, and subjecting an item to be frozen to a heat transfer
relationship with the cooled brine for a period of time sufficient
to freeze the item.
[0024] For example, the brine may be cooled to a temperature
ranging from about -30 to about -43.degree. C. (-22.degree. to
-46.degree. F.), preferably from about -38.3 to about -40.5.degree.
C. (-37.degree. to about -41.degree. F.). The item may be subjected
to the heat transfer relationship with the cooled brine by
immersing the item into the brine. The item may be frozen to a
temperature of about -20.degree. C.
[0025] The brine used in the above method comprises an effective
amount of deionized water. Preferably, the brine contains at least
about 0.005% by weight of cruciferous oil. More preferably the
brine further contains at least one of propylene glycol and calcium
chloride. One particular preferable brine comprises about 0.01%
rapeseed oil, about 43.18% deionized water, about 44.06% propylene
glycol, and about 12.75% calcium chloride. It is also preferable
that the brine comprises a dye in a sufficient amount to produce a
predetermined color of the brine.
[0026] The various features of novelty which characterize the
invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed
to and forming a part of the disclosure. For a better understanding
of the invention, its operating advantages, and specific objects
attained by its use, reference should be had to the drawings and
descriptive matter in which there are illustrated and described
preferred embodiments of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0027] In the drawings:
[0028] FIG. 1 illustrates the progress of cooling brine that
contains deionized water to a predetermined temperature, as
compared to the progress of cooling brine that contains
non-deionized water to the same predetermined temperature.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0029] As used herein, the term "an item" means anything that is
suitable for being frozen with brine, which includes food and/or a
biological sample. The food may be meat, seafood, vegetables, or
fruit. The biological sample may be tissue, fertilized eggs,
unfertilized eggs or the like.
Colored Brine
[0030] The dye used in the colored brine of the present invention
can be any suitable dye, which can confer a desired color to the
brine. Preferably, the dye is a food grade FDA approved dye, with a
distinctive color such as blue. More preferably, the dye has a
color contrasting with the color of the item to be frozen, for the
convenience of identification. For observing whether the color of
the brine appears inside the package, the package is preferably
made of a material having a sufficient clarity, more preferably a
transparent material, such as HDPE (high density polyethylene)/EVA
(ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers).
[0031] A photo cell sensitive to the color of the colored brine may
be installed at the end of the washing/rinsing line connected to a
solenoid driven sorter. Thus, those rinsed packages exhibiting the
color of the colored brine will be detected by the photo cell,
whereupon a sorting device will remove the so-detected items from
the production line for disposal.
[0032] As noted above, the color of the dye preferably changes when
the temperature changes, thereby enhancing the ability to determine
the density of the ice crystals in the brine. One such an example
is Bright Dyes.RTM. Standard Blue.TM.. When the brine comprising
such a dye is cooled to a desired level so that the brine remains
in its crystal full state, the brine is in aqua marine color; when
the brine is used to freeze an item, it absorbs heat from the item
and visibly changes to a royal blue. Thus, the freezing progress
may be observed in accordance with the color change of the
brine.
[0033] The dye in the brine may also be used for determining the
composition balance of the brine. For example, a color wheel guide
may be devised to establish the perfect balance color at different
temperatures, such as from -36.6.degree. C. to -40.5.degree. C.
(-34.degree. F. to -41.degree. F.). Thus, if the color of a brine
solution later used does not match the color at the corresponding
temperature in the color wheel, it may indicate that the brine
solution does not have the desired composition balance. Then a
further full analysis of the brine solution, such as specific
gravity, may need to be performed.
[0034] In addition to the dye, the colored brine of the present
invention may comprise other suitable ingredients such as
cruciferous oil, propylene glycol, calcium chloride and water. The
colored brine may be prepared by mixing the ingredients together
sequentially or concurrently. The preferred method is mixing the
ingredients sequentially. For example, the colored brine may be
prepared by adding the dye into a known brine solution, such as any
of the brine solutions disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,601,909;
4,654,217; 4,657,768; 4,689,963; 4,743,343; 4,840,034; 4,840,035;
5,001,047; and 6,248,381, the contents of which patents are
incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
[0035] Preferably, the colored brine comprises at least about
0.005% by weight of cruciferous oil. More preferably, about 0.005%
to 0.018% by weight of cruciferous oil such as rapeseed oil should
be used. Alternatively, the amount of cruciferous oil may be
selected such that a maximum amount of the oil is dissolved in the
brine. The dye is used in a sufficient amount to confer the desired
distinctive color to the brine. For example, the amount of the dye
may be 0.00001% to 0.00002% based on the total weight of the
colored brine.
[0036] Presently a preferred brine composition includes, by weight,
about 0.00001% dye, about 43.18% water, about 44.06% propylene
glycol, about 12.75% calcium chloride, and about 0.01% rapeseed
oil. The temperature of the brine should be between about
-30.degree. C. and about -43.degree. C. (-22.degree. F. and
-46.degree. F.), and preferably between about -38.degree. C. and
about -40.degree. C. (-37.degree. F. to -41.degree. F.).
Brine Containing Deionized Water
[0037] It is now surprisingly found that using a cooled brine
containing deionized water ("deionized brine") is much more
efficient in freezing an item to a desired temperature such as
-20.degree. C., than using the same amount of cooled brine
containing non-deionized water ("non-deionized brine") under the
same conditions. In addition, it has been discovered that it takes
significantly less time to cool the deionized brine itself to a
predetermined temperature such as -40.degree. C. than to cool the
same amount of non-deionized brine to the same predetermined
temperature.
[0038] The process of deionizing water removes as much inorganic
material as possible from the water used in the mixing of the
brine. Inorganic substances contaminate feed water as the water
travels to its place of use. For example, calcium and magnesium
(two substances that cause "hard water") dissolve into the water
from the rock formations of the water's origin. Carbon dioxide gas
also dissolves into the water, making it mildly acidic. Silicates
leach from sandy riverbeds or from glass transport vessels, and
ferrous iron also joins the solution in transit, from iron pipes.
Chloride and fluoride are added at the water treatment plant.
Accidental pollution occurs with nitrates from fertilizer and
phosphates from detergents.
[0039] Deionization is a method used most often by laboratories to
produce purified water on-demand and is able to purify water to a
maximum resistivity of 18.2 megohm/cm at 25.degree. C. Deionization
may be conducted by exchanging hydrogen ions for cationic and
hydroxyl ions for anionic contaminants in the feed water. For
example, the deionization resins, which are tiny spherical plastic
(resin) beads through which the feed water passes, may be used for
producing the deionized water.
[0040] The following examples further illustrate the present
invention without limiting it.
Example 1
[0041] Example 1 was designed to detect the presence of brine that
permeated the HDPE/EVA packaging.
[0042] Example 1 follows the following procedure:
[0043] a) slowly added 2.08 ml of Bright Dyes.TM. to 208 liters
Trufresh.RTM. to make a colored brine (Trufresh.RTM. comprises
about 0.01% rapeseed oil, about 43.18% water, about 44.06%
propylene glycol, and about 12.75% calcium chloride);
[0044] b) cooled the colored brine to -40.degree. C.;
[0045] c) prepared four transparent HDPE/EVA packages of fresh
salmon which is bright pink;
[0046] d) intentionally compromised two of the four packages;
[0047] e) immersed the four packages in the colored brine for 18
minutes;
[0048] f) removed the four packages from the colored brine and
rinsed them.
[0049] After the rinsing, blue color clearly appeared inside those
two intentionally compromised package; whereas blue color appeared
inside neither of the other two packages.
Example 2
[0050] Example 2 provides a specific procedure for establishing the
color chart.
[0051] The procedure comprises:
[0052] a) mix 265 liters (70 U.S. gallons) of TruFresh.RTM. brine
perfectly with 2.65 ml Bright Dyes.TM. dye to make a colored brine
with a desired composition balance;
[0053] b) place 189 liters (50 U.S. gallons) of the colored brine
in a freezer;
[0054] c) prepare ten 0.946 liters (1 quart) samples of brine by
respectively decreasing the water concentration of the colored
brine by 2%, 6%, 10%, . . . , and 40%;
[0055] d) prepare ten 0.946 liters (1 quart) samples of brine by
respectively decreasing the propylene glycol concentration of the
colored brine by 2%, 4%, 6%, . . . , and 20%.
[0056] e) place samples of the off brine samples of c) and d) in a
small container, open top, reduce temperature to -40.degree. C.,
and stir;
[0057] f) when both good brine of b) and off brine samples of c)
and d) are at the same temperature, take photos of the good brine
and off brine with good overhead light.
[0058] g) make a color chart in accordance with the photos of f)
showing the correlation of the color and the composition of the
brine solution.
[0059] h) repeat the above, respectively, at -20.degree. C.,
-22.degree. C., . . . , -40.degree. C., and -42.degree. C.
[0060] The color chart thus provides a tool to show composition
balance of the brine solution at different temperatures by
color.
Example 3
[0061] Example 3 illustrates that cooling a deionized brine to a
predetermined temperature such as -40.degree. C. takes a
significantly shorter time than cooling non-deionized brine.
[0062] A brine tank with a full brine capacity of 37.85 liters (10
U.S. gallons) was used in the following tests.
[0063] The first test uses the deionized water according to the
following procedure:
[0064] a) add 30.3 liters (8 U.S. gallons) of brine to the brine
freezer; the brine contains about 43.18% deionized water, about
44.06% propylene glycol, about 12.75% calcium chloride, and about
0.01% rapeseed oil; b) cool the brine in the brine freezer to
-41.degree. C.; and c) record the temperature of brine every five
minutes.
[0065] In the second test, the deionized water in the brine of the
freezer was replaced with non-deionized water. Other conditions
remained the same as the first test.
[0066] The results of the above two tests are listed in the
following table and shown in FIG. 1.
TABLE-US-00001 Test 1 Test 2 Cooling time Temperature of Non-
Temperature of (Minutes) deionized brine .degree. F. deionized
brine .degree. F. 0 70.4 12.9 5 12.7 10.4 10 8.9 7.9 15 5.4 5.4 20
1.6 2.9 25 -2 0.4 30 -5.7 -2.1 35 -9.2 -4.6 40 -12.5 -7.1 45 -14.4
-9.6 50 -16.7 -12.1 55 -18.4 -14.6 60 -20.1 -17.1 65 -21.7 -19.6 70
-23.2 -22.1 75 -24.6 -24.6 80 -25.8 -27.1 85 -26.8 -27.4 90 -28
-28.3 95 -28.9 -29.0 100 -29.7 -29.8 105 -30.4 -30.4 110 -31.1
-31.0 115 -31.8 -31.3 120 -32.4 -30.3 125 -33 -29.9 130 -33.5 -30.1
135 -33.8 -30.5 140 -33.1 -31.6 145 -32.5 -31.3 150 -32.5 -32.1 155
-32.7 -33.7 160 -32.9 -35.1 165 -33.1 -32.4 170 -33.3 -32.1 175
-33.5 -32.7 180 -33.6 -32.8 185 -33.8 -32.8 190 -33.9 -36.2 195
-34.1 -37.7 200 -34.2 -39.3 205 -34.3 -41.4 210 -34.4 -42.1 215
-34.5 220 -34.7 225 -34.7 230 -34.5 235 -35.2 240 -35.2 245 -35.3
250 -35.9 255 -36.3 260 -36.7 265 -36.8 270 -36.9 275 -36.7 280
-36.3 285 -37.2 290 -37.6 295 -38.1 300 -37.8 305 -38.1 310 -37.8
315 -36.5 320 -36.1 325 -40.1
[0067] As shown in the above table and FIG. 1, it took about 320
minutes to cool the non-deionized brine from the temperature of
about +12.degree. F. to about -40.degree. F.; whereas it only took
about 200 minutes to cool the same amount of deionized brine. If
starting from about -20.degree. F., it took about 265 minutes to
cool the non-deionized brine to about -40.degree. F.; whereas it
took only about 135 minutes to cool the same amount of deionized
brine to the same temperature. If starting from-about 30.degree.
F., it took about 220 minutes to cool the non-deionized brine to
-40.degree. F.; whereas it only took about 100 minutes to cool the
same amount of deionized brine to -40.degree. F. Hence, the
efficiency of cooling the brine by using deionized water has been
significantly improved, compared to the use of non-deionized
water.
[0068] The invention is not limited by the embodiments described
above which are presented as examples only but can be modified in
various ways within the scope of protection defined by the appended
patent claims.
[0069] Thus, while there have shown and described and pointed out
fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a
preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that various
omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of
the devices illustrated, and in their operation, may be made by
those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the
invention. For example, it is expressly intended that all
combinations of those elements and/or method steps which perform
substantially the same function in substantially the same way to
achieve the same results are within the scope of the invention.
Moreover, it should be recognized that structures and/or elements
and/or method steps shown and/or described in connection with any
disclosed form or embodiment of the invention may be incorporated
in any other disclosed or described or suggested form or embodiment
as a general matter of design choice. It is the intention,
therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the
claims appended hereto.
* * * * *