STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND

The present invention is directed to a method and apparatus for enhancing carbonation of drinking water and drinking beverages, resulting in carbonated water and carbonated drinking beverages (by mixing carbonated water with syrups). Carbonated water and other carbonated drinks are typically formed by combining pressurized chilled water (H2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2) within a metal chamber; or in a few cases, instantaneously mixing them on-line, at a point of dispensation.

When the carbonated drink is produced at a beverage production facility, the resulting carbonated beverage is dispensed in bottles, cans, or other containers for distribution. Some beverages are produced with higher level of carbonation than others. Level of carbonation varies from beverage to beverage. The level of carbonation may be a function of consumer taste. It may also be influenced by a desire to maintain the carbonation at a certain level over a period of time. In consideration of the longevity of CO2 in beverages, it is known that certain PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) containers (e.g., plastic bottles in which carbonated beverages are contained), leak carbon dioxide from their walls over time, therefore drastically reducing the duration of carbonation in beverages. This happens because, initially the carbonated beverage is kept under pressure; and once a bottle or a can is opened, the carbonation will begin to decrease as carbon dioxide bubbles are dissipated from the beverage very quickly due to atmospheric pressure and at ambient temperature. The same is true with a point-of-use dispenser (e.g., a soda fountain) which combines, at high pressures, the carbon dioxide with the refrigerated water to generate highly carbonated water, and mixes the highly carbonated water with syrups inside the dispensing nozzle (e.g., post-mix dispenser).

It is well known that the solubility of carbon dioxide gas in water is fixed at 25° C. and atmospheric pressure. Under these boundary conditions, only a small fraction of CO2 in water exists as carbonic acid and the majority of CO2 in water is not converted to acid and remains as CO2 (aq), i.e., the CO2 (aq) is not bonded to the water and can rapidly be released from the water. To increase the amount of CO2 dissolved in water (in the event that sparkling water must be generated) the Food and Beverage Industry has developed a process using water refrigerated, at low temperature, that is mixed with gas under high pressure. In fact, mixing water with carbon dioxide at temperatures close to water freezing (0° C./32° F.), dramatically increases the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2 aq) that is retained in (chilled) water. By increasing the carbon dioxide gas pressure while mixing it with highly pressurized (chilled) water is an additional step that is commonly used by the Food and Beverage Industry to amplify the carbonation level in beverages. Consequently, when producing carbonated water, low temperatures (close to water freezing, 0° C.) and high pressures (over 400 pounds per square inch (psi)) of both liquid and gas are the solutions currently used in beverage production plants as well as in point-of-use post-mix beverage dispensers.

In typical carbonated beverages, gas bubbles quickly form when the beverage is dispensed. Under atmospheric pressure and at room temperature, gas (CO2) bubbles grow inside the water solution until they are quickly released from the surface of the beverage, resulting in a “flat” beverage in relatively short amount of time. In order to produce highly carbonated water suitable for drinking in an open glass, it is necessary to dissolve a larger quantity of carbon dioxide gas in water, and to avoid the gas quickly dissolving in the atmosphere.

The electrical bond between water (H2O) molecules and the carbon dioxide (CO2) molecules is understood to be a dominant factor in the ability to maintain the amount of carbon dioxide inside the water (in a form of carbonic acid). This bond assists in allowing sparkling water to retain its carbonation level for a longer period of time after being dispensed. Unfortunately, that bonding between H2O and CO2 molecules is known to be very weak (i.e., water molecules prefer to bond to each other rather than with carbon dioxide molecules). In general, an equilibrium condition exists when a chemical reaction (CO2/H2O bonding) and its reverse reaction (CO2/H2O separation) occur at equal rates. That equilibrium is typically determined by the partial pressure of CO2 (gas) on the water.

Both water and carbon dioxide molecules are polarized molecules. As described below, the present invention is directed to a method and apparatus whereby, in addition to the use of conventional (low) temperatures and (high) pressures to provide carbonating, the extended chains of water molecules are broken up, and the natural polarization of the molecules of water and carbon dioxide is also increased to enhance the bonding between water (H2O) molecules and carbon dioxide (CO2) molecules. This produces more highly carbonated water, which retains its carbonation level for a more extended period of time.

Enhancing the polarization property of the molecules of water and carbon dioxide allows the molecules to be more readily oriented for greater bonding, particularly in combination with providing a substrate to which the molecules (particularly carbon dioxide molecules may be captured for facilitating bonding activity. The water solution can then be carbonated to a higher level and retain that elevated level of carbonation for a longer time after being dispensed.

By electrostatically charging and orienting the polarizations of the water molecules, and to a lesser extent the carbon dioxide molecules, a greater number of chemical bonds between the two molecules is generated, resulting in higher levels of carbonic acid (H2CO3 concentration) is present in the water which, in turn, translates to a lower level of pH in the resulting sparkling water. For example, in pure water the Bjerrum plot shows a pH of 5.7 under atmospheric conditions. By enhancing the orientation of the polarized molecules, more dipole bonds are formed between water and carbon dioxide molecules, resulting in a sparkling water with a pH that can reach 3.6 pH or less, under atmospheric pressure (pCO2=1 atm). This same low value of pH is equivalent to a level that would normally result at a much higher CO2 pressure level, i.e., in a Bjerrum plot, to a pCO2 level exceeding 5 bars.

As described further below, the present invention provides a methodology and apparatus for enhancing the bonding between the carbon dioxide and water molecules by, inter alia, mitigating bonds among the water molecules, polarizing the water molecules and then orienting the water molecules so that carbon dioxide molecules have a higher probability of bonding with the more water molecules.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Carbonation apparatus is provided for carbonating a mixed input flow of pressurized and refrigerated carbon dioxide and water. A first cartridge is disposed within the carbonation chamber, defining a porous micromesh net in fluid communication with the input flow and a central cavity in fluid communication with the carbonation chamber output port. The micromesh net is configured to break up chains of water molecules passing through the net, to enhance bonding between the water and carbon dioxide molecules within the cartridge. The net also responds to the flow of water and carbon dioxide molecules impacting and passing through the net by generating a passive polarizing field that has a polarizing influence on the water molecules to further enhance bonding. Beads may be provided within the cartridge for capturing and stabilizing carbon dioxide molecules to yet further enhance bonding between the water and the carbon dioxide molecules.

Multiple carbonation chambers may be utilized, generally in a serial arrangement.

In one embodiment the carbonation apparatus is implemented as a pair of carbonation chambers, with the first carbonation chamber including a cylindrical micromesh net and the second carbonation chamber including a plurality of beads disposed therein.

In another embodiment both carbonation chambers include an associated micromesh net within the carbonation chamber, with the plurality of beads disposed within the area defined by the micromesh net. The net and the beads may be of similar or different sizes.

In one embodiment the carbonation chambers defining the internal volume of between 2 to 400 cm3.

The micromesh nets may be formed of stainless steel strands, of between 2 to 100 in diameter, and defining an open mesh area of between 5 to 800μ2.

In one embodiment the first carbonation chamber includes a cartridge defining a 100 micromesh net, housing the 5 mm diameter beads, where the second carbonation chamber includes a cartridge defining a 400μ mesh net and beads having a diameter between 0.5 and 3 mm.

The input flow to the carbonation apparatus is expected to be the pressure of approximately 160 psi and a flow of 1.5 gallons per minute (GPM). The input to the second carbonation chamber may be at a lower pressure of 65 psi and a lower flow rate of 1.1 GPM.

A fluid flow compensator may be provided at the output of the carbonation chambers, for reducing the pressure and flow rate from the carbonation chambers to a pressure suitable for dispensation, e.g., a pressure of 15 psi and a flow rate of 0.5 to 1 GPM.

