Working procedure
1. Preheating section: The containers(bottles, cans, or pouches) enter the tunnel and pass through a preheating area,where it is gradually heated to the desired pasteurization temperature by hot water spraying onto the surface of the containers. This helps to reduce the thermal shock to the product when it enters the pasteurization section.
2.Pasteurization section: In this section, the surface of the container is continued sprayed with hot water to keep the product’s temperature between 93-98 degrees Celsius(200-208 degrees Fahrenheit), for a specific period of time. The temperature and holding time depend on the product being pasteurized and the desired level of microbial reduction.
3. Cooling Section: After pasteurization, the product enters a cooling section through the belt conveyor, where it is rapidly cooled to room temperature by spraying warm water and cold water.This helps preserve the product’s quality and flavor while ensuring its safety.
Application
lt is applied to pasteurizing and cooling of various bottled and canned beverages, tea drinks, dairy products, canned fruits and vegetables juice/sauce, etc. lt can also be used for the warming of carbonated drinks beverages
Capacity
customized
Industrial Tunnel Spray Sterilizer & Pasteurizer Cooling Machine
For large-scale beverage plants and food processing facilities, maintaining flavor profiles while achieving strict commercial sterility is a delicate balance. Zhongbo Machinery designs and manufactures heavy-duty, high-efficiency Tunnel Spray Sterilizers (also known as Tunnel Pasteursizers). Engineered for continuous post-packaging pasteurization, this automated system utilizes a multi-stage water temperature control layout to safely heat, pasteurize, and cool products, effectively eliminating micro-organisms while preventing thermal shock in glass containers.
Versatile Pasteurization for Diverse Packaging Matrix
Our industrial tunnel spray pasteurizer is designed to accommodate a wide spectrum of liquid processing and food packaging lines, ensuring uniform heat transfer across every unit:
- Beverage & Brewery Lines: Perfect for beer, carbonated soft drinks (CSD), kombucha, tea, and energy drinks filled in aluminum cans or glass bottles.
- Dairy & Juice Processing: Ideal for secondary sterilization of milk beverages, plant-based dairy, fruit juices, and functional drinks.
- Food & Condiment Jars: Extensively used for hot-filled pickles, sauces, jams, and preserved food packaged in tinplate cans or vacuum-sealed glass jars.
Why Leading Beverage Brands Choose Zhongbo Tunnel Sterilizers
- Multi-Zone Precise Temperature Control: Features distinct treatment zones (pre-heating, sterilizing, warm cooling, and cold cooling). By gradually shifting water spray temperatures, it prevents bottle breakage caused by thermal shock.
- Energy & Water Recycling Matrix: Equipped with an intelligent internal heat recovery loop. Water from the cooling zones is cross-circycled to pre-heat incoming products, drastically slashing steam and water consumption.
- Sanitary High-Volume Spray Nozzles: High-temperature, clog-resistant polymer or stainless steel wide-angle nozzles distribute water evenly over the top and sides of the packages, eliminating cold spots.
- Dynamic Conveyor Bed Grid: Heavy-duty polypropylene (PP) or stainless steel modular flush-grid belt ensures smooth container transition and prevents jams, optimizing 24/7 continuous production.
- Turnkey Automation System: Integrated with a Siemens PLC control system and intuitive HMI touchscreen, allowing operators to monitor temperature curves, adjust conveyor speed, and log production batch data in real-time.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) — Tunnel Spray Sterilizer
Q1: What types of packaging materials can be processed in a Tunnel Spray Sterilizer?
A: Our system is highly versatile and handles glass bottles, aluminum/tinplate cans, PET bottles, and jars. For PET bottles, the pasteurizing temperature is tightly regulated to prevent plastic deformation, while for glass bottles, we configure a gentle temperature gradient to eliminate the risk of thermal shattering.
Q2: What is the difference between a Tunnel Pasteurizer and a Retort Sterilizer?
A: A Retort (Autoclave) is a batch processing system that uses high pressure and temperatures above 100°C, ideal for low-acid foods. A Tunnel Pasteurizer is a continuous conveyor-driven system operating at atmospheric pressure (typically under 100°C). It is much better suited for high-capacity, automated beverage lines (such as beer or acidic juices) where seamless, uninterrupted line flow is required.
Q3: How does the system optimize water and steam consumption?
A: Zhongbo integrates a advanced energy-regeneration water circuit. The hot water draining from the product cooling stage is pumped back to the pre-heating stage to warm up cold incoming containers. This close-loop design reduces overall steam load by up to 35-40% and minimizes fresh water makeup requirements.
Q4: Can the tunnel length and width be customized to fit our existing workshop layout?
A: Yes, absolutely. Every tunnel spray sterilizer is 100% tailored. We design the overall footprint, number of temperature zones, belt width, and tunnel length based strictly on your target production capacity (bph/cph), container dimensions, filling temperature, and required Pasteurization Units (PU value).
Optimize Your Beverage Pasteurization Line Today
Need an accurate Pasteurization Unit (PU) calculation for your product formula? Or looking to upgrade to a water-saving continuous sterilization tunnel?
