Systems and methods have demonstrated the capability of rapidly cooling the contents of pods containing the ingredients for food and drinks.

Systems and apparatus for providing long-term cold storage of solid materials such as dry ice are disclosed. The solid materials are stored in a tank configured to maintain the materials in their solid state. The tank is designed with a port sufficiently large to facilitate ingress and egress of the solid materials. A cryogenic liquid is used within the tank to substantially prevent the solid materials from sticking to each other, and to maintain the solid materials at a low temperature.

A temperature regulating device for a beverage comprises an upper cover, a first barrel and a second barrel connected below the upper cover, wherein the upper cover is provided with an inlet and an outlet for a beverage to flow in and out; the second barrel is located in the first barrel; a cavity for receiving the beverage is formed between the first barrel and the second barrel; the inlet and the outlet are communicated with the cavity; a first chamber for storing media is formed in the second barrel; the upper cover is recessed inward in the middle to form an inner concave part; the inner concave part is funnel-shaped, the bottom of the funnel bulges upward to form a conical convex part, and there are a plurality of inlets machined on the wall surface of the inner concave part, and the second barrel is connected below the convex part; the beverage is directly inverted at the position of the concave part, and enters the interior of the cavity from the inlet, so that the pouring of the beverage becomes convenient, and basically no splash occurs; the design of the convex part plays a certain drainage role, further avoiding the splash and quickly adjusting the temperature.

Methods and apparatuses for transferring heat to and from multiple objects. Such a method entails placing objects in a vessel that contains a heat transfer fluid so that the objects contact the heat transfer fluid. The heat transfer fluid is at a temperature that is different from the temperature of the object, and is induced to circulate along a continuous flowpath. Each object is at least partially disposed in the flowpath of the heat transfer fluid, and each object is individually rotated about an axis of rotation thereof. The heat transfer fluid continues to circulate and the objects continue to rotate for a time sufficient to cause the temperatures of the objects to become closer to the heat transfer fluid temperature.

A rapid cooling system for processing food is disclosed which includes a heat exchanger adapted to receive a first coolant (Coolant-I) at a first temperature and eject Coolant-I at a second temperature, a cooling chamber disposed within the heat exchanger in thermal communication with the heat exchanger, the cooling chamber includes a first inlet adapted to receive a product at an elevated temperature (T1), a second inlet adapted to receive a second coolant (Coolant-II) at a low temperature (T2), and an outlet adapted to release a combination of the product and Coolant-II at a low temperature (T.sub.out) and pressure (P.sub.out), wherein cooling of the product from T1 to T.sub.out does not cause a phase change in the product.

A freezing device comprising a refrigeration base housing having a refrigeration system therein and a bottle receiver above the refrigeration base housing. The bottle receiver has a top opening for accepting a portion of a bottle of consumable beverage therein such that a top portion of the bottle is not encompassed by the bottle receiver. The bottle receiver has an air space between at least one sidewall of the bottle receiver and the bottle. The refrigeration system cools the space within the bottle receiver for freezing a bottom portion of the consumable beverage encompassed by the bottle receiver.

The invention relates to a method and an apparatus for preserving foods, such as fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, and the like. The foods are placed in a treatment chamber (3) and are kept in thermal exchange with an air flow cooled by a refrigerating unit. The air laps an electroscopic optimizer device (10), comprising at least one active element (20) adapted to generate an electrostatic charge because of the presence of different layers of materials (21, 22).

A method of and apparatus for accelerating the cooling of at least one beverage can and/or ice tray including at least one body that presents a thermal conductivity, defines a receiving receptacle preferably configured to form a minimum contact surface area of engagement with the can(s) and/or tray, and further including an air compressor operable to cause an airflow adjacent the can(s) and/or tray, so as to promote the accelerated cooling through conduction, and convection within a chilled compartment.

Disclosed are an in-line direct cryogenic method and system for cooling heated fluid food products, such as sauces. The method includes injecting cryogen directly into the fluid to be cooled while the flow rate of the fluid to be cooled is adjusted in response to downstream temperature measurements and while maintaining the injection rate of the cryogen into the fluid. According to the method the flow of the sauce is adjusted during the flow of the cryogen to achieve process stability, product uniformity and efficient use of the cryogen.

The present invention provides a refrigeration device, wherein a chamber structure is provided with a refrigeration space, and further fitted with a return outlet flow pipe and a return inlet flow pipe. Cold from a cold source produced by a refrigeration chip passes through a temperature equalization plate or a heat conducting pipe to enter the interior of a refrigeration space. A return inlet flow pipe of the refrigeration device is inserted into a beverage and used to input the beverage to the interior of the refrigeration space for cooling thereof. The beverage is then output from the inside of the refrigeration space through the return outlet flow pipe into a cup. The refrigeration device thus achieves fast cooling of a beverage to produce a cold drink. The refrigeration device can be applied in medical treatment, beds, and clothing, as well as medical equipment to provide a cooling function.