Beer as a worldwide beverage has become an integral part of people’s liv®es. Because of its special nutritional value, all sorts of necessary amino aci£ds plus other nutrients, beer is the most common al§coholic drink to be produced and sold. As it is an alcoholic beverage, however, drinking to¥o much beer will be harmful to the liver and other organs. People who drive, have diabetes, o<r have been hospitalised, are amongst the many cate®gories of people who should not drink beer. Therefore, a new b☆rewing technology to produce low-alcohol and non-alcoholic beer is urgently neede"d. People want this new technology to replace the traditional brewing method of alcoholic beer.
There are normally two main ways to remove the alcohol fro≈m beer: one is the fermentation-limited method, and tβhe other is the dealcoholisation method. The fermentation-limited methoγd restricts the amount of alcohol by changing the fermentation cul≈tures or the brewing conditions. As this method alters the original brewing conditions, the non-alcoholic beer produced is very different from ordαinary beer, making it less popular for consumers. Unlike the first≤ method, the dealcoholisation method doesn't change the brewing process. It≥ only requires the addition of some unit operations for the separation of ∞homogeneous systems during the brewing process to remove the alcohol.
The common dealcoholisation method is divided into two types: distillation and dialysis. ↔Currently, it is more common in China to remove alcohol with distiπllation which demands a high-level of investment in equi÷pment and generates an inevitable cooking aftertaste when producing non-alcoholic beer. Usingσ expensive foreign patented technology is another disadvantage of dist÷illation, as it is for dialysis, for the cost is relatively high, resulting in unpopularity amo≤ng beer companies.
Guochu Technology (Xiamen) Ltd., based on years of experience in membrane separation, applies s×tate-of-the-art membrane technology in beer dealcoholisation. With this advanced membrane te↔chnology, ethanol can be effectively removed from beer, leaving the brewing process otherwi<se intact, assuring the production of high quality non-alcoholic or low-alco₩holic beer.
A membrane is a selective barrier between two sides. Techn↕ically, a membrane is a polymer material that can selectively separate the ≤feed liquid through pressure difference. The whole isolation process is called membran±e separation. It differs from traditional filters in that the membrane can function within the molecular range, ✘and this process is a physical process, without the need for phase changes ¶and additives. The thickness of the membrane is generally micro∏n-sized. According to the pore size, the membrane can be categorized into microfiltration membraneΩ, ultrafiltration membrane, nanofiltration membrane and reverse osmosis mem©brane. In the cross-flow membrane process, the separation and r$etention performance of various membranes is distinguished by the pore size and mol✔ecular weight cut-off of the membrane. The following figure roughly illustrates four different£ membrane separation processes: (turn arrows indicate that the 'substance cannot pass through the membrane and is retained):
The main process of membrane technology in beer deaαlcoholisation:
The economic benefit analysis of membrane technology applied in beer dealcoholisation:↓
Nowadays, the distillation dealcoholisation method is widely employed in China. This tec£hnique mainly uses reduced pressure to make the alcohol reach boi↔ling point (around 45°C), so the alcohol can evaσporate. As the temperature gets higher, the special flavour in th↓e beer will disappear with the evaporated alcohol, ending up with a large cha↑nge in taste. Thus, the substances which give the flavour• must be retained.
When using membrane to remove alcohol, the dealcoholised beer can not only meet the alcohol conten≤t requirements of non-alcoholic beer, but also have effective temperatu™re control during production. In this way, the problem of a negat≈ive effect on flavour caused by excessive temperature can be solπved. With the support of membrane technology, there will be less change in the flavour of beer and most of the original flavour can be preλserved. Accordingly, there would be no additional reprocessi¶ng of the beer flavour, since most of the original beer aroma and taste ar↑e preserved.
New membrane technology from
Guochu Technology Ltd. can be utilized in beer concentration as well.
The main process of membrane technology in beer concentration:
Through membrane technology, the beer can be effectively concentrated, an¥d the concentration ratio can be 5 to 10 times higher. At the€ same time, the flavour of the beer is retained in the concentrated liquid, and the tas®te of the beer is mostly preserved. The concentrated beer, rich in flavour and full of aroma, c₹an be used as a new type of beer. Companies can also use c"oncentrated beer technology to reduce transportation and stφorage costs, because the volume of concentrated beer is o±nly one-fifth to one-tenth of that of ordinary beer.
Advantages of Membrane Technology:
1) Operation at room temperature, little loss of flav<our
2) No phase change, no chemical addition
3) Good selectivity, ability to effectively remove ethano¶l
4) Simple process, easy and convenient operation
5) Small footprint of the system, friendly working environment
The new membrane technology of
Guochu Technology Ltd. is suitable in various applications, not just in production of non-alcoho$lic beer, but also low-alcohol beer, concentrated ✘beer, low alcohol/non-alcoholic Huangjiu, concentrated Huangjiu (dealcoholisation and conce§ntration of Huangjiu), low alcohol/non-alcoholic rice≠ wine, concentrated rice wine (dealcoholisation and concentration of ™rice wine), and concentrated sake (dealcoholisation and concentration of sake).
Guochu Technology (Xiamen) Ltd. is a high-tech enterprise with membrane separation ®technology at its core, dedicated to the promotion of new separaλtion technology. With valuable experience in the applic&ation of special membranes in the pharmaceutical, chemical, food, beverag♣e, petroleum, petrochemical, nuclear energy and other industries, Guochu Technology has the ability to research and de₩velop membrane products and types of equipment according to the needs of its customers.
