Coating processes – Particles – flakes – or granules coated or encapsulated – Fluidized bed utilized
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-10
2001-05-01
Beck, Shrive (Department: 1762)
Coating processes
Particles, flakes, or granules coated or encapsulated
Fluidized bed utilized
C264S117000, C264S007000, C023S3130FB, C023S3130FB
Reexamination Certificate
active
06224939
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a process and apparatus for forming a feedstock product matrix. More particularly, the present invention is directed to an improved method and apparatus for forming an encapsulated product matrix. The invention further relates to equipment and a process for forming an encapsulated product matrix utilizing two or more encapsulating materials, as well as combining two or more products in the encapsulated matrix.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In certain material processing technologies such is those used in pharmaceutical and food processing, particulate feedstock material is formed as an intermediate product for use in further processing. The particles may be formed by various techniques. One technique is to spray dry eject product particles from a spray nozzle. This technique employs a spray nozzle supported within a tower. The spray nozzle converts liquid emulsions to dry powder at elevated temperatures. Conventional heated liquid emulsion is transported to the spray nozzle where it is ejected therefrom as a dry powder into a free-flow feedstream. As the heated dry powder falls in a free-flow condition, it cools and solidifies into particles. The particles may then be used for further processing in conventional material handling applications for the formation of food stuffs and pharmaceutical products.
In certain applications, there is a need to encapsulate certain feedstock products during the material handling process so as to form a product matrix. In the food processing industry, it is typically desirable to encapsulate food and bioaffecting additives such as pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, flavorings, colors and sugars in dissimilar food substances such as oleaginous material like fats or oils such as flavor oils. In the pharmaceutical industry, active drugs, vitamins and the like can also be encapsulated in fats and oils. The encapsulation of product additives has certain benefits. The encapsulating substances can act as a taste mask to improve the organoleptic qualities of the food product and also to taste mask certain bitter-tasting drugs. Encapsulating can also prevent unintended volatilization of the actives over time. Furthermore, the substances which encapsulate the drugs can act to deliver them in a time-release fashion.
One technique to provide an encapsulated product matrix is to form the encapsulated product in an extrusion process. An encapsulant such as fat is typically processed in an extruder under controlled heat and pressure. The fat is liquefied or molten and forced through extrusion dies to form round bead or sphere-like particles. Additives may be introduced into the fat during the extrusion process so that the small formed beads include the additive encapsulated within the fat.
This extrusion process serves adequately for many products in the food and pharmaceutical industries. However, the method has certain limitations. In an extrusion process, it is difficult to obtain high loading of the additive material into the fat spheres. The process itself limits the amount of additive which can be introduced into the oleaginous material as the product undergoes extrusion. Further, certain additives which are desirable to be encapsulated with fat exhibit an extremely low melt point. Thus, during the heated extrusion process these low melt additives may have a tendency to break down, or degrade. Additionally, certain desirable additives are resistant to melt flow. Thus these additives are especially difficult to incorporate into a fat sphere during a heated extrusion process. Furthermore, the high heat which must be applied in the extrusion process may have a tendency to effect a reduction in the flavor quality of certain additives. Thus, it may be appreciated that certain additives are not particularly well-adapted to being processed in an extrusion process.
In addition, the necessity of first spraying liquid emulsions, and then encapsulating them via an extrusion process of ten necessitates two or even more separate and distinct pieces of equipment. Distinct equipment such as spray dryers, congealers, fluidizers, extruders and evaporators translates into additional overhead and processing costs. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a process for manufacturing fat encapsulated additives wherein the additives retain desirable product qualities and do not deteriorate during the material processing. It is furthermore highly desirable to accomplish this with one self-contained piece of equipment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for forming a product matrix here a product additive may be efficiently encapsulated with one or more encapsulating material.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus where a product additive may be encapsulated with one or more oleaginous materials and such process does not result in a deterioration of quality of the additive.
A further object in the present invention to provide an apparatus for affecting the encapsulation of a product additive with a sphere or bead of an oleaginous material such as fats or oils.
Still another object of the invention is to provide encapsulated material with increased loading of the additive or active, high content uniformity, enhanced dispersion of the encapsulations in various media, improved taste or taste masking of the encapsulated material, and no or substantially reduced water and microbial activity.
In the efficient attainment of these other objects, the present invention provides a method for forming a product matrix. The method includes the delivery of a substantially solid additive into a free-flow condition. The substantially solid matrix additive is encapsulated during the free-flow condition with a matrix encapsulant which is also supplied to the free-flow condition. The encapsulated additive may also be cooled during the free-flow condition to form the product matrix.
The present invention further provides an apparatus for forming an encapsulated product matrix. The apparatus includes a delivery device that places a product additive into a feedstream of substantially solid particles. A product encapsulant is also delivered into the feedstream of the substantially solid particles to encapsulate the particles. A cooling device may also be employed for cooling the encapsulated solid particles in the feedstream if desired.
In a preferred embodiment shown by way of example herein, a processing tower or other containment environment which has a sufficient free-flow volume is employed. The processing tower accommodates a delivery device at one end thereof so as to eject, deliver or otherwise place the product additive into a free-flow condition within the free-floe containment volume. An encapsulant delivery device ejects, or otherwise delivers the product encapsulant into the free-flow stream so as to encapsulate the individual particles therein. The encapsulated particles remain in a free-flow condition for a sufficient amount of time to form the product matrix.
In one especially preferred embodiment of the invention, the processing tower apparatus may be modified to include additional entry ports for inclusion of double, or even triple or more, the quantity of material to be encapsulated. The product additive delivery device for delivering particles of the product additive into the free-flow condition can be located towards either end of the free-flow containment environment or tower. The equipment will therefore permit differing types of material to encapsulate or to be encapsulated to separately enter the apparatus.
In still another embodiment, it is also desirable to include additional entry ports for the inclusion of an increased quantity of oleaginous encapsulating material entering the processing tower, as well provide for the entry of differing encapsulating materials.
Overall, the invention provides an encapsulated product matrix in which both the types of material to be encapsulated and the encapsulating materia
Cherukuri Subraman R.
Siris Supapong
Beck Shrive
Fuisz International Ltd.
Levis John F.
Schmidt Richard D.
Strain Paul D.
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