Method of Manufacture a Drinking Straw from Grass

Abstract

The invention discloses a method for preparing straws from grass stems, which adopts a green and environmentally friendly method technology, takes the Lepironia articulata, known as grey sedge stems, baking soda, and hydrogen peroxide water as raw materials, and prepares the drinking straws under specific processing conditions. The method of the invention mainly comprises two aspects: firstly, the preparation of grass stems after being harvested from the field, and secondly, the process of turning grass stems into drinking straws is prepared from the membrane removal and cleaning processes using baking soda and hydrogen peroxide solution. According to the invention, the manufacturing processes are ecologically friendly and produce commercial straw products with zero waste, the technology disclosed by the invention has the advantages of environmental protection, low cost, and has great industrial application value.

Claims

1. A process for manufacturing drinking straws from grass as a sole material comprising the step of sanitizing said drinking straws, providing a cleaning operation to produce said drinking straws, and placing said drinking straws in a vacuum chamber while maintaining the temperature from about 25° C. to 45° C.

2. The process according to claim 1, wherein stems of said grass are sanitized in a temperature from about 20° C. to about 30° C.

3. The process according to claim 2, wherein the grass stems are sanitized in a concentration of an oxygen-based solution which is maintained from about 4% to 10% in volume.

4. The process according to claim 2, wherein the grass stems are sanitized in an oxygen-based solution which is used until all the contaminants are removed but the sanitization process cannot be longer than 15 minutes.

5. The process according to claim 1, wherein stems of said grass are soaked in a cleaning solution during the cleaning process and the temperature of the solution bath is maintained at about from 35° C. to 45° C. wherein no external heat is applied.

6. The process according to claim 5, wherein the grass stems are soaked in a concentration of an oxidation solution from about 15% to about 20% in volume.

7. The process according to claim 6, wherein the grass stems are soaked in the oxidation solution from about 100 minutes to 200 minutes.

8. The process according to claim 1, wherein stems of said grass are thereafter dried in the vacuum chamber with a pressure maintained at about 30 psi to 45 psi.

9. The process according to claim 8, wherein the grass stems are thereafter dried in the vacuum chamber, the temperature is maintained at about 30° C. to 45° C.

10. The process according to claim 8, wherein the grass stems are thereafter dried in the vacuum chamber, the duration of the drying process is kept from about 180 minutes to about 300 minutes.

Description

DRAWINGS

[0009] The invention is better understood by reference to the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the appended drawing.

[0010] FIG. 1 is a photographic of the straw product in its ‘fresh form’ produced with the present invention.

[0011] FIG. 2 is a photographic of the straw product in its ‘dry form’ produced with the present invention.

[0012] FIG. 3 is an embodiment of the manufacturing process of the grass straws, and shows a flow diagram representing the steps involved in the process of making the grass straws from grass stems with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0013] In the first embodiment of the invention, a collecting stray is provided. The collecting stray is comprised of a cleaning means (2) to remove foreign contamination such as soil, dead leaves, and other undesirable matters introduced to or on already on the grass stems. In this embodiment of the invention, the water jet (1) or other liquid spraying nozzle is employed to discharge the cleaning solution (2) along the grass stem to physically remove soiled objects. Preferably, the cleaning solution used should contain a slow oxygen releaser to reduce the odor on the grass stem. In this certain embodiment, the sanitizing process should be between 5 to 10 minutes in time and should not last any longer than 15 minutes.

[0014] In an embodiment of the invention, sanitized stems (3) are placed in the cleaning tank to be soaked for an extended amount of time where the membrane inside softens and gets ready to be removed. In this embodiment of the invention, the soaking solution (4) used should contain the slow oxygen released agent and an activator agent (5) to boost the efficacy of the process.

[0015] The soaking time for the grass stems in this embodiment of the invention should be from 100 to 200 minutes and it is preferable that the tank is kept insulated (6).

[0016] The cleaned grass stems (7) are later moved to a conveyor belt for cleaning as stated in the next process which is optional. The cleaned steam, in this embodiment of the invention, is packed as ‘fresh straw’ or moved to the drying chamber where the stems are dried under heat and pressure to draw the moisture out. The prolonged heating process is kept under vacuumed environment and (8) at low temperature (9) to preserve the shape, color, and texture of the finish products.