KR-102964243-B1 - Espresso coffee machine and related system for filtering and controlling the electrolytic composition of water for espresso coffee machines

KR102964243B1KR 102964243 B1KR102964243 B1KR 102964243B1KR-102964243-B1

Abstract

A machine for preparing and dispensing espresso coffee is described herein, comprising a system for controlling the electrolytic composition of water to be used in the production of espresso coffee, wherein the system comprises a water desalination device and a device for adding at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the desalinated water.

Inventors

뷔름 엔리코 비토리오
지오르다노 임마누엘
프란치니 필리포

Assignees

라 마르쪼코 에스.알.엘.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260513
Application Date: 20210702
Priority Date: 20200702

Claims (16)

As a coffee machine (10) for making and dispensing espresso coffee, Water supply (IN); A dispensing group (13) configured to work with a portafilter equipped with a filter basket having a coffee powder puck, and It includes a system (50) for controlling the electrolytic composition of water used in making espresso coffee, and The machine (10) is configured to supply pressurized water to the coffee powder puck to dispense espresso coffee, and The system includes a water desalination device (30) and a device (37) for adding at least one inorganic salt to the desalinated water, and The device (37) for adding at least one inorganic salt is a device that provides one or more saline solution solutions prepared from demineralized water, and the device (37) is a coffee machine (10) that produces and distributes espresso coffee configured to add at least one inorganic salt to the demineralized water in proportion to the water flow rate required by the coffee machine (10).
In Article 1, The system (50) is a coffee machine (10) that further includes a water filtration device (30).
In Article 1 or Article 2, The system (50) is a coffee machine (10) that further includes a divider (35).
A method for controlling the electrolyte composition of water to be used to make espresso coffee in order to control the extraction of at least one organic molecule present in ground coffee during the making of espresso coffee in a machine (10) for making and dispensing espresso coffee, a) Step of desalinating water (30); b) a step of adding at least one inorganic salt to the above deionized water (37); and c) including the step of using the water obtained in this way for the preparation of espresso coffee, and A method in which at least one inorganic salt is added in the form of one or more aqueous saline solutions prepared from deionized water in step b), and step b) is performed in proportion to the flow rate of water required for the coffee machine.
In Article 4, The above method in which at least one inorganic salt is added in solid form in step b).
In Article 4, A method that further includes a water filtration step (30).
In Article 4, A method in which the addition in step (b) is performed by homogeneously mixing.
In Article 4, A method in which the addition in step (b) is performed in proportion to the water flow rate required for the coffee machine.
In Article 4, The desalination of step (a) is a method in which the desalination is either total desalination or partial desalination.
In Article 4, A method in which inorganic salts are selected from the group including sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium salts.
In Article 10, A method in which an inorganic salt is selected from the group comprising potassium chloride, sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium sulfate, potassium nitrate, calcium sulfate, and magnesium sulfate.
In Article 4, The demineralized water in step a) is divided into a first part and a second part, and Step b) is performed only on the first part and further includes the step of mixing the first part and the second part to form the water used in step c), and The above second part is a method in which the addition of at least one inorganic salt is not performed.
As a system (50) for controlling the electrolytic composition of water for an espresso machine (10), It includes a device (30) for desalting water and a device (37) for adding at least one inorganic salt to the desalinated water, and The device (37) for adding at least one inorganic salt is a device that provides one or more saline solution solutions prepared from demineralized water, and the device (37) is a system configured to add at least one inorganic salt to the demineralized water in proportion to the water flow rate required for the espresso machine (10).
In Article 13, A system further comprising a device (30) for filtering water.
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Description

Espresso coffee machine and related system for filtering and controlling the electrolytic composition of water for espresso coffee machines The present invention generally relates to the field of beverage manufacturing machinery. More specifically, it relates to a system for filtering and controlling the electrolytic composition of water for an espresso coffee machine. The present invention also relates to an espresso coffee machine comprising such a system and a controlled coffee extraction method. Water is the most important component in espresso coffee in terms of quantity, and it is the ingredient that has the greatest influence on the taste of the beverage, second only to the coffee itself. Aside from the various types of processes used to obtain the beverage, what essentially remains besides the base product (coffee) is the "extracted liquid." It is no coincidence that water makes up 95–98% of the composition of a cup of coffee, ranging from espresso to filter coffee, and from mocha to brewed coffee. This crucial element can contain various substances that can modify the final result of the beverage in terms of extracted volatile aromatic compounds and flavor. In fact, water can be regarded not only as an inert, colorless, tasteless, and odorless solvent, but also as the "ingredient" that forms the basis of the final quality in every respect. The applicant recognized that the chemical composition of the water currently supplied to the coffee machine has very large variability when considering various locations within the same country, and furthermore, when considering different countries. Water supplied by public water supply systems actually contains varying amounts of salt and is characterized by variable values of variables such as hardness, that is, calcium and magnesium ion content, pH, etc. Since these differences have various effects on both the proper operation and duration of the coffee machine and the quality of the resulting beverage, it is practically impossible to control and standardize the performance of machines installed in different regions of the world. For example, regarding the proper operation and durability of an espresso coffee machine, the use of water with high calcium and magnesium ion content, if not properly treated, can lead to the formation of excessive deposits due to the precipitation of insoluble salts, such as calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide, even in a short period of time. The present invention will become fully apparent from the following detailed description, given as a non-limiting example readable with reference to the accompanying drawings: - FIG. 1 is an exemplary representation of an espresso coffee machine comprising a system according to the present invention; - FIG. 2 is a simplified representation of a system according to a first embodiment of the present invention; - FIG. 3 is a simplified representation of a system according to a second embodiment of the present invention: - Figures 4a-b are graphs showing the amounts (mg/g, vertical axis) of trigonelline (white column) and caffeine (black column) extracted at 90°C (panel a) and 27°C (panel b); - Figures 5a-b are graphs showing the change in the octanol/water partition coefficient (Kow, vertical axis) as a function of temperature (horizontal coordinate) for caffeine (panel a) and trigonelline (panel b); - Figures 6a-b are graphs showing the amount of caffeine (mg/g, vertical axis) extracted using completely desalinated ultrapure water (MilliQ) or 2-4 mM (Panel a) or 50 mM (Panel b) aqueous solutions; - Figures 7a-b are graphs showing the amount of carbohydrates measured in pectin (mg/g, vertical axis) extracted using completely desalinated ultrapure water (MilliQ), or aqueous solutions of 2-4 mM (Panel a) or 50 mM (Panel b); - Figures 8a-d are graphs showing the values (%, vertical axis) of specific flavor-imparting substances extracted using aqueous solutions containing sodium (panel a), potassium (panel b), magnesium (panel c), and calcium (panel d) ions. According to the present invention, a method for treating water used in an espresso coffee machine is provided. This method, which aims to control the chemical composition, in particular the electrolytic composition of water used in the production of espresso coffee, comprises the desalination of all or part of the water, optionally a filtration step, and a step of adding one or more organic and/or inorganic salts to the water. According to the present invention, a method for controlled extraction of at least one organic molecule present in ground coffee during the preparation of espresso coffee in a machine for preparing and dispensing espresso coffee is provided, said method comprising the following steps: a) a step of at least partially desalting the water and selectively filtering it; b) a step of adding at least one organic and/or inorganic salt to the demineralized water in proportion to the water flow required by the machine by unifo