Heat exchanger for sugar beet slices and extn. juice - has feed hopper ensuring homogeneous distribution of slices in juice

摘要

A countercurrent contacting heat exchanger is claimed for heating slices of sugar beet in hot juice prior to extn. of sugar. Appts. comprises a cylindrical channel along which the slices are axially conveyed countercurrent to flowing juice. The slices are fed into the channel at one end from a hopper which increases in cross-section from top to bottom. The hopper joins the cylindrical channel on the side where the conveying rotor is moving downwards. The joint between the hopper outlet and the channel extends from the highest point to the lowest point of the channel casing. The outer wall of the delivery end of the hopper is curved to merge tangentially with the base of the channel circumference. Pref. the section of the channel which meets the hopper outlet is sepd. from the rest of the channel by a perforated, annular screen coaxial with the channel. The conveying rotor shaft extends through the central hole of the screen. The slices are distributed homogeneously throughout the juice without forming agglomerations. In this way, the efficiency of heat transfer is greatly improved.