Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23K—FODDER
  • A23K20/00—Accessory food factors for animal feeding-stuffs
  • A23K20/10—Organic substances
  • A23K20/158—Fatty acids; Fats; Products containing oils or fats
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23K—FODDER
  • A23K10/00—Animal feeding-stuffs
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23K—FODDER
  • A23K40/00—Shaping or working-up of animal feeding-stuffs
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23K—FODDER
  • A23K40/00—Shaping or working-up of animal feeding-stuffs
  • A23K40/10—Shaping or working-up of animal feeding-stuffs by agglomeration; by granulation, e.g. making powders
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23K—FODDER
  • A23K50/00—Feeding-stuffs specially adapted for particular animals
  • A23K50/80—Feeding-stuffs specially adapted for particular animals for aquatic animals, e.g. fish, crustaceans or molluscs
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
  • A23N—MACHINES OR APPARATUS FOR TREATING HARVESTED FRUIT, VEGETABLES OR FLOWER BULBS IN BULK, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PEELING VEGETABLES OR FRUIT IN BULK; APPARATUS FOR PREPARING ANIMAL FEEDING- STUFFS
  • A23N17/00—Apparatus specially adapted for preparing animal feeding-stuffs
  • A23N17/005—Apparatus specially adapted for preparing animal feeding-stuffs for shaping by moulding, extrusion, pressing, e.g. pellet-mills

Definitions

• the present invention relates to aquaculture in general and more particularly to an apparatus and a method for producing an aquaculture feed.
• Aquaculture feeds of specific sizes are required at different growth stages of an aquatic organism. Very small aquatic organisms require feed particles of a very small size and the required size of the feed particles increases as the aquatic organisms grow.
• a drawback of conventional aquaculture feed production is difficulty in controlling the size of the feed particles produced. Consequently, feed particles with a wide size range are often produced using conventional aquaculture feed production methods.
• the present invention provides an apparatus for producing an aquaculture feed.
• the apparatus includes a divider having a plurality of perforations of a uniform size.
• the divider is arranged to receive a feed paste and to divide the feed paste into a plurality of feed portions to form a plurality of feed particles.
• a separator is arranged to separate the feed particles from the divider.
• the present invention provides a method for producing an aquaculture feed. The method includes providing a feed paste and dividing the feed paste into a plurality of feed portions with a divider having a plurality of perforations of a uniform size. A plurality of feed particles is formed with the feed portions and the feed particles are separated from the divider.
• FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus for producing an aquaculture feed in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention
• FIG. 2 is a magnified image of one embodiment of a divider that may be used in the apparatus for producing an aquaculture feed illustrated in FIG. 1 ;
• FIG. 3 is a schematic flow diagram illustrating a method for producing an aquaculture feed in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention
• FIG. 4 is a magnified image of aquaculture feeds of various sizes produced in accordance with embodiments of the present invention
• FIG. 5 is a further magnified image of one of the aquaculture feeds of FIG. 4.
• the apparatus 10 includes a divider 14 having a plurality of perforations or openings 16 of a uniform size.
• the divider 14 is arranged to receive a feed paste 18 and to divide the feed paste 18 into a plurality of feed portions 20 to form a plurality of feed particles 22.
• a separator 24 is arranged to separate the feed particles 22 from the divider 14.
• the divider 14 may be a sieve, a net or other perforated material.
• the material from which the divider 14 is made retains the pre-formed feed particles 22 in the perforations 16 and subsequently releases the feed particles 22 from the perforations 16 in response to stimulation by the separator 24.
• suitable materials include, but are not limited to, nylon, polyester, acrylic and stainless steel.
• the divider 14 is a net made up of a plurality of plastic strings 25, the interwoven plastic strings 25 defining the perforations 16.
• the perforations 16 help to separate the feed paste 18 into individual feed portions 20 preformed to a desired size of the feed particles 22, the desired size of the feed particles 22 corresponding to the size of the perforations 16.
• the size of the feed particles 22 in the aquaculture feed 12 may be controlled and the aquaculture feed 12 that is produced has uniformly sized feed particles 22 with a very narrow size distribution of within 10 micrometres ( ⁇ ) of the desired size.
• ⁇ micrometres
• this allows the feed particles 22 to be sized to suit specific growth stages of aquatic organisms simply by using a divider 14 having appropriately sized perforations 16. This flexibility in turn allows targeted delivery of the necessary nutrients at various stages of the life cycle of the aquatic organisms.
• the perforations 16 of the divider may have a size of between about 10 micrometres ( ⁇ ) and about 2000 ⁇ , producing feed particles 22 of corresponding sizes. In one embodiment, the perforations 16 of the divider 14 may have a size of between about 50 pm and about 800 Mm. In one particular embodiment, a divider 14 having perforations 16 of 150 pm may be used to produce feed particles 22 of a uniform size of 150 pm. In another embodiment, a divider 14 having perforations 16 of 50 pm may be used to produce feed particles 22 of a uniform size of 50 pm.
• the perforations 16 of the divider 14 help to shape the feed particles 22 as the feed portions 20 are retained in the perforations 16 whilst being dried and/or allowed to settle until the feed particles 22 are ready to be separated from the divider 14 without loss of shape.
• the divider 14 comprises a conveyor 14 that is arranged to continually receive the feed paste 18 and to continually convey the feed particles 22 to the separator 24.
• this allows the production process to be run continuously and this increases the efficiency of the aquaculture feed production.
• the conveyor 14 is in belt form. Nevertheless, it should be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the conveyor 14 is not limited to being implemented as a conveyor belt. In an alternative embodiment, the conveyor 14 may be a rotatable perforated disk.
• a spreader 26 is arranged to spread the feed paste 18 across the divider 14.
• the spreader 26 may be one or more scrapers that help spread the feed paste 8 evenly across the divider 14, reducing wastage and clumping of the subsequently formed feed particles 22. More particularly, the feed paste 18 may be pushed into the perforations 16 of the divider 14 by the one or more scrapers.
• the scrapers provided on both sides of the divider 14 help ensure that the feed paste 18 is well set into the perforations 16 of the divider 14 and that excess feed paste 18 is removed and distributed to other unfilled perforations 16 of the divider 14.
• a dryer 28 is arranged to remove moisture from the feed particles 22.
• the dryer 28 may be a chamber dryer.
• the feed particles 22 may be further dried to a required moisture content after separation from the divider 14. The further drying may take place in a fluidised bed dryer.
• the separator 24 in the embodiment shown comprises one or more first nozzles 24 arranged to direct a pressurised flow of a first fluid 30 at the divider 14 to dislodge the feed particles 22 from the divider 14.
• the first fluid 30 may be a gas such as, for example, air.
• the feed particles 22 are forced out of the perforations 16 of the divider 14 by gas pressure.
• the feed particles 22 may be separated from the divider 14 by other means such as, for example, ultrasonic vibration or mechanical separation.
• An example of a mechanical separation technique that may be employed involves pushing the feed particles 22 out from the perforations 16 of the divider 14 with, for example, a rubber roller or other suitable device.
• a cleaner 32 is arranged to remove waste 34 from the divider 14.
• the cleaner 32 comprises one or more second nozzles 32 arranged to direct a pressurised flow of a second fluid 36 at the divider 14 to dislodge the waste 34 from the divider 14.
• the second fluid 36 may be a gas such as, for example, air or a liquid such as, for example, water.
• leftover portions of the feed paste 18 are cleared from the divider 14 by gas pressure or liquid pressure, respectively, allowing the production process to re-start with a clean divider 14 that receives fresh feed paste 18. This helps ensure that the quality of the aquaculture feed 12 produced is not compromised.
• the second fluid 36 is a liquid
• one or more additional gas nozzles may be provided after the one or more second nozzles 32 to dry the divider 14 before re-starting the production process.
• the method 50 begins at step 52 by providing a feed paste 18.
• the feed paste 18 may include ingredients typical of an aquaculture feed formula.
• the aquaculture feed formula may be prepared into a paste form by mixing together individual ingredients of the aquaculture feed formula and then transforming the mixture into a paste by adding water and optionally a binder to increase the binding capacity of the feed particles 22 to prevent water soluble components of the aquaculture feed 12 leaching out into the water when fed to aquatic organisms.
• the feed paste 18 may also include, for example, classic feed ingredients such as larval fish or shrimp formula, a nutritional supplement such as vitamins, minerals, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and/or eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), a probiotic, a vaccine, a medicine such as an antibiotic or combinations thereof.
• suitable probiotics include, but are not limited to, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Paenibacillus macerans, Lactobacillus acidophilis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
• suitable vaccines include, but are not limited to, a vibriosis vaccine and a furunculosis vaccine.
• the feed paste 18 may include up to about 30 mass% of a lipid supplement.
• the lipid supplement may be an emulsion of highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA) containing high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA).
• HUFA highly unsaturated fatty acids
• DHA docosahexaenoic acid
• EPA eicosapentaenoic acid
• the lipid supplement provides a nutritional lipid boost and the high oil content also results in a neutrally buoyant particle that is more readily consumed by aquatic organisms.
• Such formulations with high oil inclusions may be used to replace conventional enriched live foods that are difficult to produce and that may be of the wrong size.
• the enriched feed particles may be directly fed to shrimp or fish larvae in combination with rotifers or Artemia.
• the feed paste 18 is divided into a plurality of feed portions 20 with a divider 14 having a plurality of perforations 16 of a uniform size. More particularly, the feed paste 18 is received in the uniformly-sized perforations 16 of the divider 14 and is thus separated into uniform feed portions 20 by the divider 14. Individual uniformly-sized feed particles 22 are thus preformed in the perforations 16 of the divider 14. In one embodiment, the perforations 16 of the divider 14 may have a size of between about 10 pm and about 2000 pm and the feed particles 22 that are formed are correspondingly sized.
• the feed paste 18 is spread across the divider 14 at step 56. This helps ensure that the perforations 16 of the divider 14 are completely and evenly filled with the feed paste 18.
• a plurality of feed particles 22 is formed with the feed portions 20.
• the feed particles 22 are formed when the feed portions 20 are sufficiently dried.
• moisture is removed from the feed particles 22 at step 60.
• the feed particles 22 may be dried before separation from the divider 14 or after separation. Drying to the desired moisture content of between about 4% and about 10% moisture may be performed by leaving the feed portions 20 in the perforations 16 of the divider 14 in a drying chamber.
• the feed particles 22 may first be partially dried before being separated from the divider 14 and then further dried on a belt or fluidized bed dryer.
• this allows the feed particles 22 to be dried at low temperatures as the drying time and temperature in both cases (whilst on the divider 14 or after separation from the divider 14) may be controlled. Drying at low temperatures is known to better preserve the nutritional value and the survival of heat sensitive ingredients such as vitamins.
• the feed particles 22 are separated from the divider 14. This may be by directing a pressurised flow of a first fluid 30 at the divider 14 to dislodge the feed particles 22 from the divider 14.
• the first fluid 30 may be a gas such as, for example, air.
• the feed particles 22 may be separated from the divider 14 by other means such as, for example, ultrasonic vibration or mechanical separation.
• waste 34 is removed from the divider 14 at step 64. This may be by directing a pressurised flow of a second fluid at the divider 14 to dislodge the waste 34 from the divider 14.
• the second fluid 36 may be a gas such as, for example, air or a liquid such as, for example, water.
• the divider 14 may be dried before re-starting the production process.
• the feed paste 22 may be continually provided to the divider 14 and the feed particles 22 that are formed may be continually conveyed to the separator 24 in a continues process via, for example, a conveyor belt system.
• FIG. 4 a magnified image of aquaculture feeds 12 of various sizes produced in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is shown.
• the feed particles 22 of the aquaculture feed 12 in the upper left quadrant have a size of 25 pm
• the feed particles 22 in the upper right quadrant have a size of 55 pm
• the feed particles 22 in the lower right quadrant have a size of 150 pm
• the feed particles 22 in the lower left quadrant have a size of 250 pm.
• the aquaculture feed 12 includes a plurality of uniformly sized feed particles 22.
• the feed particles 22 have a size of 150 pm.
• the present invention provides an apparatus and a method for producing an aquaculture feed of substantially uniform feed particle size.
• a uniform feed particle size makes it easier to target specific growth stages of an aquatic organism to be fed.
• the feed particles may have a wide size range, a portion of the aquaculture feed will be too large or too small for consumption and the unconsumed feed portion ends up polluting the water in the rearing tanks.
• the size of the feed particles may also be controlled to produce specifically sized feed particles for targeted delivery to aquatic organisms at various growth stages. The present invention allows production of one specific size of feed particles without loss of fines or unwanted sizes.
• feed particles may be produced without risk of obstructing the whole system as the feed particles that are not separated from the divider are cleaned out by a counter jet of air or water without blocking the whole system.
• the present invention is also operable with a feed paste having a high dry weight content and this translates into a high output.
• the aquaculture feed that is produced by the present invention may provide soft feed particles for larval shrimp, larval fish and/or other aquatic organisms and may serve as a partial or complete Artemia Nauplii, rotifer, other zooplankton or algae replacement or substitute and/or as a carrier for other feed ingredients or feed supplements such as, for example, specific nutrients, vitamins, oils, pro-biotics, vaccines, medicines, heat sensitive ingredients, water soluble ingredients and classic feed ingredients.
• the aquaculture feed that is produced by the present invention may also be used to replace conventional dry feeds.

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• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Polymers & Plastics (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Food Science & Technology (AREA)
• Zoology (AREA)
• Animal Husbandry (AREA)
• Insects & Arthropods (AREA)
• Marine Sciences & Fisheries (AREA)
• Birds (AREA)
• Fodder In General (AREA)
• Feed For Specific Animals (AREA)

Priority Applications (2)

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Citations (2)

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• 2016
  • 2016-12-05 WO PCT/SG2016/050589 patent/WO2018106180A1/en active Application Filing
• 2017
  • 2017-11-15 TW TW106139422A patent/TWI837081B/zh active

Patent Citations (2)

Non-Patent Citations (4)

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