Nitrogen blasting designed for beer shelf life boost
Vacuum Barrier Systems says after a decade’s worth of development, its Nitrojetter technology, which has now been developed to make use of dry ice, offers a method of lowering dissolved oxygen within bottlenecks with greater efficiency.
Nitrogen fobbing
According to the manufacturer, the fobbing process is an important step in reducing oxygen levels within carbonated beverages in order to extend shelf life both in terms of taste and colour.
In attempting to provide this service, Vacuum Barrier Systems says it Nitrojetter uses liquid nitrogen steam that is fired into the beverage through a special adaptable nozzle.
The company claims that the nitrogen causes foaming within the beverage that rises to the top of the container expelling air, and notably oxygen, within the bottle before capping takes place.
Ice time
In terms of development, a spokesperson for Vacuum Barrier Systems told BeverageDaily.com that it believed brewers were concerned at the level of foaming required for some alternative fobbing technologies like water jet systems.
“The jetting technology and our recently added dry ice dosing technology can avoid the need to over foam and still grant low dissolved oxygen values,” he claimed. “The main advantages are cleaner bottle necks - no fungi growth - beer loss reduction and less water treatment.”
While available for use in carbonated drink manufacture worldwide, the manufacturer says that the Nitrojetter is mainly used and designed for applications in brewing.
Although the group said that the use of nitrogen for fobbing is a rare development for processors, he also claimed that toxicity was not an issue regarding contact with the beverage as the gas is inert.
“Of course, since [liquid nitrogen] is dosed in liquid form it has required an extreme cool down,” stated the spokesperson. “Liquid nitrogen has a temperature of -196 degrees Celsius,which requires special insulation techniques [like vacuum] and specific training for the operators.”
Vacuum Barrier Systems says that in its role as a supplier, the group has also been able to provide sufficient training and equipment to ensure safe use of the technology.
As part of the Nitrojetter’s design, the manufacturer claims that the device is vacuum insulated to reduce heat loss during operation and also has a selectable nozzle to adapt to various liquid nitrogen stream capabilities.
