GB2048643A - New procedure for manufacturing an effervescing sweet - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a process for manufacturing an effervescing confectionery sweet, in which process a mass of sugar (s), containing sufficient water to enable the sugar to melt, is melted inside a pressure reactor and bubbles of a non-toxic gas above atmospheric pressure are engaged within a molten mass, wherein, once the mass is melted, a stirrer is put into motion to stir the molten mass, and almost simultaneously the non-toxic gas is slowly fed into it through a porous plate located in the bottom of the reactor and beneath the stirrer. The pressure inside the reactor rises to above 15 atmospheres. The molten mixture is subsequently cooled quickly down to a temperature between air temperature and -25 DEG C.

Description

SPECIFICATION New procedure for manufacturing an effervescing sweet The present invention is concerned with a new procedure for manufacturing a confectionery sweet, of the type which effervesces in the mouth, and here inafter referred to as an effervescing sweet.

The technique where a gas is added to the inside of a mass of edible material is known, and in particu lar is that whereby what is obtained is an effervescing sweet which, upon being consumed, releases a gas whose pressure is above atmospheric pressure.

Procedures are known whereby a mass of melted sugar(s) is placed inside a pressure reactor, and then gas at above atmospheric pressure is fed into the top, with a stirrer being put into motion afterwards, whose effect causes the gas to become distributed throughout the mass of moulten sweet in bubbles.

Said procedures have the following main disadvantages: 1. The mass of sugar possesses a high viscosity, which makes this system of distributing the gas bubbles difficult to accomplish.

2. The size of the bubbles cannot be altered, since this is a constant which depends upon the features of the stirrer that is used.

3. A further disadvantage of the known technique lies in the limited size of the charge used each time the procedure is applied, since it is necessary to leave a relatively large empty space above the moulten mass.

This means that maximum use is unable to be made of the capacity of such an extremely costly piece of equipment as is the reactor.

In accordance with the present invention, the procedure basically comprises the following stages:- 1). The reactor is charged with a mixture of moulten sugar(s).

2). A stirrer is put into motion in order to stirthe moulten mixture, while, almost simultaneously: 3). The gas is added slowly through a porous plate located at the bottom of the reactor and beneath the stirrer, so as to attain a pressure of above 15 atmospheres inside said reactor.

4). The mixture is rapidly cooled down to a temperature in the range between air temperature and -25 C.

The advantages that are obtained by applying this procedure are now described hereunder.

The procedure enables the whole capacity of the reactorto be utilized, thus reducing the unit cost of the end product manufactured, because only a Small empty space is required inside the top of the reactor.

By virtue of the special porous plate located at the bottom of the pressure reactor, the gas is admitted in the manner of a "spray", and the bubbles travel the greatest distance possible inside the reactor.

The gas is admitted as slowly as possible and comes in underneath the stirrer. While the gas is being admitted, stirring goes on in order to break up.

and disperse the bubbles throughout all the mass of sugar or mixture of moulten sugars.

In accordance with this procedure, gas can be admitted for as long as may be wished, because even through the maximum working pressure may have been attained, it is only necessary to open slig htly the needle valve provided for the purpose on the top of the reactor, in order for the gas to go on bubbi ing through the mass of moulten sugar. Due to high viscosity of the mass, only the large bubbles emerge at the surface, whilst the small ones become disper sed throughout the mass.

The gas is admitted at the bottom of the reactor so that in this way it will have the largesttravel and contact as possible in the moulten mass, and thus increase its dispersion and occlusion therein.

The most important consideration for successfully occluding gas in a sweet is the way in which such gas is incorporated into the moulten mass, and the most important consideration as regards the end product, is the size of the bubbles.

The bubble size in the end produce depends mai ny upon: a) The size of the pores in the plate.

b) The time during which the stirrer is in motion, so as break up the larger bubbles more thoroughly.

The gas inlet into the mass of moulten sugar, or mixture of moulten sugars takes place through a plate which is specially designed for the purpose.

Said plate is made of an inert and temperature resistant material, such as for example, stainless steel.

The basic feature of this plate lies in the diameter of the pores, because this is how the size of the bub bles is controlled. Pore diameter may range from 20 microns to 3' miilimeters, and the most suitable size is used for each particular application.

When the bubbles are very large, they will rise quickly to the surface, and an insufficient amount of gas will become engaged in the mass.

When the bubbles are very small and have a dia meter below 0.01 mm, then their strength upon bursting is very small or practically nil.

Best results have been obtained with bubbles hav ing a diameter of between 0.3 and 0.01' mm.

The working' mechanism' might be as follows: When the gas is fed in at a slow but constant rate, the bubbles travel towards the surface. The larger ones travel at a relatively higher speed through the sticky' mass and reach the surface before other smal ler bubbles which have entered it previously, and have consequently done so at a lower pressure.

When the larger bubble having a higher pressure reaches the surface, it prevents the Smaller ones frdnl merging, and these become dispersed and occluded inside the moulten' mass. The effervescing system, using porous plates, is located at the bottdm ofthe reactor, and its installation is very simple, ins ofar that it can be removed without the need to open the reactor, thus facilitating the procedure for chang ing over or cleaning the plate.

A further novelty that is inherent to this invention is the fact that the effervesced product displays two cdmpletely different effects upon coming into cont act with water, an appropriate solvent, or upon being placed in a person's mouth, these being as follows: a) "Sputtering", which takes place when the gas which is occluded or diffused inside the sugar mass is freed in accordance with the way already known from the previous technique. This sputtering is cau sed by bubbles whose diameter is below 0.15 mm.

approximately.

b) "Disintegration" or breakages which take place when a piece of the sweet suddenly, but not danger ously, disintegrates into smaller pieces which then go on providing the characteristic sputtering feature.

Such disintegration or breakages are caused by bubbles whose diameter is greater than about 0.15 mm.

The aforementioned disintegration is a novelty that is provided by the present invention, and it is a peculiar and very important feature which is achieved upon effervescing the sugar.

Suchdisintegrationsonlytake place in pieces that are larger than 1.6 mm, and this is a very special feature ofthe product.

The smaller the size of the pieces, the lower the amount of gas each occludes as is obvious, because whenever a piece suffers breakage, part of the occluded gas is freed. The best results are obtained with pieces whose diameter is greater than 0.5 mm.

It isimportantto eliminate those pieces which, because oftheir small size, do not provide the characteristic sputtering sensation, because if they are not, the quality of the product is prejudiced.

In orderto make the product occlude a greater number of bubbles, small amounts of Agar-Agar, cellulose carboximetyl (CCk'l), etc. may be added in orderto increase its viscosity.

When the effervescing sweet that is manufactured in accordance with the present invention is dissolved in water or in the mouth, it undergoes sputtering through the effect of the pressurized gas inside the body of the sweet being released.

It is very important for the sputtering undergone by the sweet to be sufficiently strong and continuous as to provide a pleasant and agreeable sensation, and in this regard, besides paying attention to the size of the bubbles, it is a requirement that the film enveloping each bubble be sufficiently strong as to withhold the gas at the pressure at which it became occluded inside the mass of syrup during the manufacturing process. Such over-pressurized bubbles must only become freed at the time when water or a suitable solvent is added, or when the sweet is placed in the mouth for consumption.

AS THE SUGAR OR MIXTURE OF SUGARS, all sugars or sugar products which are solid at ambient temperature and are liquid or sticky masses at higher temperatures may be used. For this purpose, mono-saccharates such as ribose, xylose, arabinose, glucose, galaclose, laevulose and so forth may be used, as may di-saccharates such as sucrose, maltose, lactose, raffinose, and so forth, and likewise trisaccharates, tetra-saccharates, sorbitol, gluconic acid, glucaric acid, and derivatives such as methygl ucose, methylarbinose, ethylglucose, propylglucose, bencylglucose, and so forth.

AS THE GAS, any kind of non-toxic gas may be used, although helium, air, oxygen, nitrogen or car bon dioxide are preferably to be used.

Prior to effervescing the sweet syrup, other produ cts may be added to preserve it, as may essences, colourants, additives, thickeners, greasy acids, oils and so on, and any substance may be added to afford an improved appearance, orto improve the palpable properties and characteristics.

In order to illustrate and provide a fuller understanding of all the foregoing in connection with the present invention, examples of an illustrative but not limitative nature of said invention are described below.

EXAMPLE 1.

A reactor is provided made from 18/8 stainless steel with 100 litres capacity, capable of withstanding pressures up to 250 atmospheres, fitted with a loading mouth, stirrer, three safety valves, heating, three safety valves, heating, a sight glass, a needle valve on the top, a pressure gauge, an outlet valve at the bottom, and a gas "spray" inlet through a plate having 0.4 mm. pores.

The reactor is loaded with a moulten mass comprised of 10 Kgs. of saccharose, 30 Kgs. of glucose and 20 Kgs. of lactose, together with sufficient water to enable the mix to melt properly.

Subsequently, a very slow stream of carbon dioxide is fed into the mix, whilst the stirrer is kept in motion. Once the carbon dioxide has displaced all the air from the reactor, all the valves are closed, and the pressure gradually increased until it reaches 50 atmospheres. The rate of pressure rise generally takes place at a speed of 1 atmosphere per minute.

Once the pressure of 50 atmospheres has been achieved, stirring is stopped, and the mass is cooled down as quickly as possible by means of a cooling system in which the coolant is kept at a temperature of below 0 C. This allows the sweet to become as least hygroscopic as possible, since any possible hydrolosis is avoided.

The resulting product has a wide variety of different sized bubbles inside it.

EXAMPLE 2.

A reactor is provided' made from stainless steel, with about 500 litres capacity and capable of withstanding high pressures. It is fitted with a loading inlet mouth, a stirrer, two safety valves, a pressure gauge, two needle valves, and a gas inlet with a spray type diffuser having 0.5'rum pores. The reactor is loaded with a moulten' mixture comprising 50 Kgs. of saccharose, 50 Kgs. of lactose, 50 Kgs. of glucose, together with sufficient water to enable the mix to melt. Once the mix is ready, CO2 is fed into the reactor until a pressure of exactly 75 atmospheres is attained. The , conventional stirrer with which the reactor is fitted is put into motion, and a flow of gas is allowed to run out through the needle valve on the top of the reactor, while at the same time the same amount of gas is fed in through the bottom of the reactor, with the gas inlet being located beneath the stirrer. In this way, a flow of gas takes place within the mass of syrup, and is dispersed therein by the stirrer.

Such procedure enables the' moulten syrup mass to be effervescenced to the extent required in terms of mVgra'mme.

The average size of the bubbles is approximately 0.08' mm, whilst there are others whose size approaches 0.2' trim, these being the ones that cause disintegration or breakages, whereafter sputtering resumes.

Claims (8)

1. A process for manufacturing an effervescing confectionery sweet, wherewith a mass of sugar(s) is melted inside a pressure reactor and wherewith bubbles of a non-toxic gas above atmospheric pressure are engaged within a moulten mass, wherein, once the mass is melted, a stirrer is put into' motion to stir the moulten mass, and almost simultaneously the non-toxic gas is slowly fed into it through a porous plate located in the bottom of the reactor and beneath the stirrer, wherewith the pressure inside the reactor rises to above 15 atmospheres, and where the moulten' mixture is subsequently cooled quickly down to a temperature between the air tem erature and -25 C.

2. A process according to the preceding claim, wherein the pressure rise inside the reactor takes place at a rate of between 0.1 and 5 atmospheres per minute.

3. A process according to claim 2, wherein the pressure rise inside the reactor takes place at a rate of 1 atmosphere per minute.

4. A process according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the diameter of the pores in the porous plate is in the range from 20' microns to 3 mm.

5. A process according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the porous plate is made from an inert material, and preferably from porous stainless steel.

6. A process according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the top of the reactor is provided with a valve which is opened in the course of the effervescing process in order to create a flow of gas through the massofmoulten sugar(s) between the gas inlet and said valve.

7. A process according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the pressure inside the reactor reaches a value between 35 and 50 atmospheres.

8. An effervescing confectionery sweet, substantially as herein before described, and having nontoxic gas bubbles formed therewith, the diameter of some of said bubbles being greater than 0.15' millimeters.