Surachet Sichamnan

This study presents the design and evaluation of an energy-efficient sukiyaki sauce stirrer incorporating thermosyphon technology to reduce both heating time and fuel consumption. The conventional method requires continuous stirring for 180 minutes to reach the target temperature of 85˚C, consuming approximately 3.5 kg of LPG. To address this inefficiency, a novel thermosyphon system was developed and integrated into the stirrer pot. The apparatus comprises twelve AISI 304 stainless steel thermosyphon tubes (25.4 mm OD, 54.5 cm length) mounted on a custom-built structure. Water was used as the working fluid, filled to 50% of the evaporator volume to facilitate effective heat transfer via phase change. Experimental testing, using a mixture of water and granulated sugar to simulate sukiyaki sauce, demonstrated that the target temperature was achieved in 80 minutes, reducing heating time by over 50% and saving 0.84 kg of LPG. The findings confirm that thermosyphon-assisted heat transfer, combined with active stirring, significantly enhances thermal efficiency and shortens the processing time. Notably, microbial testing conducted in accordance with the Ministry of Public Health’s standards revealed no contamination during production. This approach offers a promising, energy-conserving solution for food preparation processes, particularly in small scale or individually operated cooking applications.

This research presents an essential oil (EO) distillation method with improved efficiency, called recurrent water and steam distillation (RWASD), as well as the testing of a 500 L prototype essential oil distillation machine (500 L PDM). The raw material used was 100 kg of lime fruit. At each distillation time point, the test result was compared with that obtained via water and steam distillation (WASD), and different raw material grid configurations were taken into consideration. It was found that distillation using the RWASD method increased the amount of EO obtained from limes by 53.69 ± 2.68% (or 43.21 ± 2.16 mL) compared with WASD. The results of gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of bioactive compounds from the distilled EO revealed that important compounds were present in amounts close to the standards reported in many studies; namely, β-myrcene (2.72%), limonene (20.72%), α-phellandrene (1.27%), and terpinen-4-ol (3.04%). In addition, it was found that the temperature, state of saturated steam, and heat distribution during distillation were relatively constant. The results showed the design, construction, and heat loss error values of the 500 L PDM were 5.90 ± 0.29% and 7.83 ± 0.39%, respectively, leading to the use and percentage of useful heat energy to stabilize at 29,880 ± 1,494 kJ/s and 22.47 ± 1.12%, respectively. Additionally, the shape of the grid containing the raw material affects the temperature distribution and the amount of EO distilled, with values 10.14 ± 0.51% and 8.07 ± 0.40% higher for the normal grid (NS), respectively, as well as an exergy efficiency of 49.97 ± 2.49%. The highest values found for exergy in, exergy out, and exergy loss were 294.29 ± 14.71 kJ/s, 144.76 ± 7.23 kJ/s, and 150.22 ± 7.51 kJ/s, respectively. The obtained results can be further developed and expanded to promote the application of this method in SMEs, serving as basic information for the development of the EO distillation industry.

This research presents an improvement in the efficiency of essential oils (EO) distillation using a new distillation method called recurrent water and steam distillation (RWASD) used during testing with a 500-liter prototype essential oils distillation machine (500 L PDM). The raw material used was 100 kg of limes. In each distillation cycle, the test was compared with water and steam distillation (WASD) and tested with different raw material grid configurations. It was found that the distillation using the RWASD method increased the amount of EO from limes by 53.69% or 43.21 ml compared to WASD. The results of Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of bioactive compounds from the distilled EO found that the important compounds were still present in amounts close to the standards obtained from many research studies, namely β-Myrcene (2.72%), Limonene (20.72%), α-Phellandrene (1.27%), and Terpinen-4-ol (3.04%). In addition, it was found that the temperature, state of saturated steam, and heat distribution during the distillation were quite constant in both state and properties. Results showed the heat loss value including the design and construction error value of 500 L PDM were 8.41% and 4.66% respectively, leading to the use of the percentage of useful heat energy that stabilized at 29,880 kJ/s and 22.47% respectively. Additionally, the shape of the grid containing the raw material affects the heat temperature distribution and the amount of EO distilled at 10.14% and 8.07% for the value used with the normal grid (NS), resulting in the efficiency of exergy at 49.97% and the highest values found from exergy in, exergy out, and exergy loss at 294.29, 144.76, and 150.22 kJ/s respectively. The results from this test can be further developed and expanded to application in the SMEs industry, including serving as basic information for the development related to the EO distillation industry.

This research presents a case study of applying a thermosyphon for energy conservation in a chocolate temper process. The use of the thermosyphon, made of 304 stainless steel, aimed to achieve a uniform temperature distribution, control temperature and reduce electric consumption. The results show that processing time and electric consumption could be reduced by 10%. The quality of crystallisation and texture of the chocolate tempering exceeded manufacturing standards.

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This study aimed to enhance the efficiency of an essential oil distiller by using a convection rod sieve. Three types of rod sieves were used in this study: normal sieve (NS), convection short rod sieve (CSRS) and convection long rod sieve (CLRS). These sieves were installed in a 500 liter essential oil distiller, which was operated by water and steam distillation methods. Zingiber cassumunar was used as the raw material for extracting the essential oil. For each test cycle, 150 kg of the raw material was distilled for 8 h. The results obtained under the same conditions from the three sieves, CSRS, CLRS, and NS, were compared. The CSRS facilitated a faster penetration and dissipation of heat from the steam to the raw material. The results revealed that CSRS, which had a convection rod extending into the center of the sieve, could enhance the heat transfer rate by increasing the heat convection of the steam, which penetrated and dispersed into the raw material at 7.18 ± 0.35 kW. Furthermore, using CSRS with an essential oil distiller yielded maximum oil content of 2.12% (v/w) and 1.85% (w/w), which was higher than the oil obtained from CLRS and NS. The effectiveness of the essential oil distiller using a CSRS indicated that a maximum distillation efficiency of 85.94% was achieved, which was higher than that of CLRS and NS.