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CA-3073233-C - MALTING PROCESS FOR STEEPING GRAIN COMPRISING A WATER CIRCULATION STEP

CA3073233CCA 3073233 CCA3073233 CCA 3073233CCA-3073233-C

Abstract

The present invention concerns malting process for steeping grain comprising the provision of at least a first steeping tank having an inlet and an outlet, a second steeping tank having an inlet and an outlet, and a water circulation device fluidly connecting the outlet of the first steeping tank and the inlet of the second steeping tank for circulating steeping water from the first steeping tank in the second steeping tank.

Inventors

  • Philippe Jean-Marie GOUDOT

Assignees

  • MALTERIES SOUFFLET

Dates

Publication Date
20260505
Application Date
20180830
Priority Date
20170905

Claims (6)

  1. 24 CLAIMS 1.- A malting process for steeping grain, the process being characterized in that it comprises the following successive steps: - 1) providing a malt house equipment comprising at least: a plurality of steeping tanks, each steeping 5 tank comprising walls delimiting an internal grain-receiving space, each steeping tank comprising an inlet for water and an outlet for water, and a grid pierced with orifices configured to evacuate the water from the steeping tank and allow air circulation while 10 maintaining the grains in the internal space of the steeping tank, a device for feeding water into the internal space of each steeping tank, a water circulation device arranged between at least a first 15 steeping tank of the plurality of steeping tanks and a second steeping tank of the plurality of steeping tanks, the water circulation device fluidly connecting the outlet of the first steeping tank and the inlet of the at least second steeping tank, - 2a) filling each steeping tank with a same batch of grains being in a 20 same wet steeping phase, - 2b) feeding water into the internal space of the first steeping tank until the grains of the first steeping tank are immersed, while the grains in the internal space of the second steeping tank are not immersed, - 2c) the grains in the first steeping tank remain immersed for a 25 predetermined period of time, - 2d) evacuating the water through the water outlet of the first steeping tank into the water circulation device while the grains stay in the first steeping tank, and - 3) feeding said water from the first steeping tank into the second 30 steeping tank through the water circulation device until the grains of the first steeping tank are no longer immersed.
  2. 2.- The malting process according to claim 1, wherein the water circulation device comprises at least one circulation pump.
  3. 3.- The malting process according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the malt house equipment further comprises a water aeration device connected to the water circulation device connecting the outlet of the first steeping 5 tank and the inlet of the second steeping tank.
  4. 4.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a step 4) wherein steps 2b) to 3) are repeated.
  5. 5.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein step 3) 10 comprises the following steps: 3a) feeding water into the internal space of the second steeping tank, until the grains in the second steeping tank are immersed while the grains in the internal space of the first steeping tank are not immersed, wherein the main part of said water is water coming from the first 15 steeping tank through the water circulation device, 3b) the grains in the second steeping tank remain immersed for a predetermined period of time, and 3c) evacuating the water through the water outlet of the second steeping tank while the grains stay in the second steeping tank. 20
  6. 6. The malting process according to claim 5, further comprising, during step 3b) feeding air into the internal space of the second steeping tank. 7.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a step wherein the water from a last steeping tank of the plurality of steeping tanks different from the first steeping tank is fed back into the first steeping 25 tank of the plurality of steeping tanks through the water circulation device. 8.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein a period of time between two periods during which the grains are immersed in a same steeping tank is adjusted so that the grains present inside said steeping tank remain wet during that period. 30 9.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the malt house equipment further comprises a device for treating the water coming 26 from the outlet of at least one steeping tank from the plurality of steeping tanks. 10.- The malting process according to claim 9, further comprising a step of treating water from the outlet of the steeping tank with the device for treating 5 water. 11.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the malt house equipment further comprises valves being operable between an open position wherein water is allowed to flow and a closed position preventing water from flowing, said valves being arranged at the outlet of each steeping 10 tank, wherein each valve is operated independently. 12.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein each steeping tank comprises an inlet for grain and/or air and an outlet for grain and/or air. 13.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the 15 malt house equipment comprises a device for extracting general atmosphere and heat from the internal space of each steeping tank. 14.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the malt house equipment comprises a device for feeding air into the internal space of each steeping tank. 20 15.- The malting process according to any one of claims 1 to 14, further comprising, during step 2b) feeding air into the internal space of the first steeping tank.

Description

1 Malting process for steeping grain comprising a water circulation step The present invention relates to a malting process for steeping grain. Malting consists of 3 main phases, soaking or steeping, germination and kilning. The object of the steeping phase is to raise the moisture of the grain in order to trigger the activation of the enzymes and to cause the natural process of germination. Steeping is mainly done in two types of tanks: the first type having a conical bottom and the second being flat-bottomed. The former has the advantage of reduced water consumption and gravity handling 10 but is limited in capacity for technical reasons (tank size) and quality (homogeneity of production, ventilation capacity, etc.). Its capacity is generally limited to 70 tons and is therefore multiplied in order to obtain bigger batch sizes and higher production capacities. The latter has the advantage of not being limited in capacity. It allows greater ventilation sometimes serving as pre-germinating tank. However, it has the drawback of 15 consuming more water due to its shape (false bottom) and the investment is higher because it requires a radial discharger to be unloaded. For plants having a high production capacity, it is common to use a combination of both technologies. The object of steeping is to raise the moisture of the grain in order to trigger its 20 germination and this, without asphyxiating it. To do this, a succession of 1 to 4 sets, typically 2 or 3 sets of wet steeping separated by periods of dry steeping, also called air rest, is carried out. This process lasts typically from 1 to 2 days. During wet steeping, the grain is completely submerged under water. Air is 25 regularly blown into the tanks to re-oxygenate the water (oxygen consumed by the grain) and homogenize the tank by stirring the grain. It is therefore important that the grain is completely submerged. During dry steeping, the water is evacuated leaving the grain without any water between the grains on a perforated grid at the bottom of the tank which will allow 30 extraction of general atmosphere and heat from the grain. These two phases are repeated from 1 to 3 times depending on the design of the plant, the temperature of the water, the cereals and varieties used and the final characteristics sought. Water consumption is usually comprised between 1 and 1.3 m3 per ton of steeped 35 barley and per wet steeping, depending on the type of equipment used. Barley moisturization by steeping is the main point of water consumption in malting plant, 2 regarding the two other steps of process consuming water, i.e. germination phase and plant cleaning. Moreover, the water used for steeping grain must be of food grade. Intermediate storage of water issued from wet steeping causes the development of a microbiological 5 load making water unsuitable for reuse for a second wet steeping. In plants which operate in discontinuous batch, a single batch of grains is often divided into several steeping tanks in which steeping is implemented in parallel. At the end of this steeping step, the grains of the steeping tanks are gathered in a same germination box or vessel where germination of the whole batch takes place. In such plants, each 10 steeping tank is filled independently with food grade water. The protection of the planet, the scarcity of water in certain areas and its rising prices are prompting companies to think about alternative solutions in order to guarantee a sustainable development of the activity. It is well known that recycling steep out water to subsequent steeps results in a 15 delayed germination and a deterioration of malt quality, due to the presence in recycled water of germination inhibitors, of other organic compounds favorable to microorganism growth if the recycled water is stored, of other non-desirable compounds. EP 1 988 150 describes a malting process wherein steeping is at least partially carried out with recycled steep water. In this process, steeping water from a same tank 20 containing grain from a given batch is recovered at the end of the steeping process, is then treated for removing germination inhibitors and is eventually fed back in the same tank containing new grain from a different batch. However, in this process, water may be stored for a long period of time before being recycled, and a bioreactor is needed in order to remove germination inhibitors 25 and/or microflora from steep water. Also known in the art is a malting process using the technology OPTISTEEP®. OPTISTEEP® is a water purification system for treating steeping water during only one single prolonged wet steeping step of the steeping process. In this process, steeping water from a same tank containing grain from a given batch is continuously cleaned by 30 selective adsorption in addition to a filtration membrane and fed back in the same tank during the same single wet steeping step, in order to remove non- desirable compounds having a negative effect on furt