Abstract:
A method for sanitizing/sterilizing a container/enclosure for use in the food industry or the beverage industry comprising the steps of: providing a container and/or enclosure; providing an electromagnetic radiation source; controllably exposing the container and/or enclosure to electromagnetic radiation from the electromagnetic radiation source for a period of time; and at least one of sanitizing and sterilizing at least a portion of the container and/or enclosure with the electromagnetic radiation.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     Not Applicable 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates in general to a method for sanitizing/sterilizing a container and/or enclosure and, more particularly, to a method for sanitizing and/or sterilizing a container and/or enclosure via, for example, controlled exposure to high-intensity, pulsed electromagnetic radiation, including predetermined wavelengths of ultraviolet radiation. 
     2. Background Art 
     Containers, such as bottles, cans, cartons, etcetera and associated enclosures, such as caps, lids, covers, tabs, etcetera for use in association with the food and beverage industries have been known in the art for more than a century. Methods for sanitizing and/or sterilizing such containers/enclosures are likewise well known and have evolved over several decades. 
     For example, one conventional method for sanitizing and/or sterilizing a container prior to filling with a food or beverage product is to wash the container with an aqueous solution containing surfactants, anti-bacterial agents, anti-microbial agents, and/or anti-septic agents—just to name a few. Typically a container that has been exposed to such harsh chemicals, during a wash cycle, is subsequently rinsed one or more times in an attempt to remove any residual chemicals that were introduced into the container during a wash and/or rinse cycle. 
     While the above-identified conventional method for sanitizing and/or sterilizing a container is effective from a cleaning perspective, utilizing such a method is problematic for a plurality of reasons. By way of example, customer requirements regarding residual contamination from the wash cycle place extraordinary pressure upon filler device manufacturers to generate filler devices and associated operational standards which completely eliminate any wash cycle residual contamination. Essentially customers are requiring that, immediately prior to filling, the container is “neat” or free from even a single droplet of residual contamination—including water. To be sure, complying with such industry demands, whether initiated by a customer or by local, state and/or federal regulations has placed a premium on efficiently adapting to many pre-filling requirements. Obviously, the requirement of providing a “neat” or “nearly neat” container can be incredibly difficult with certain container configurations which have geometric shapes that enhance entrapment of residual fluids. By way of example, many bottles have inner peripheral geometries with curves and/or angles which facilitate retention of residual contamination—especially if the contaminant is water which has relatively “sticky” or relatively high adhesive properties. 
     The above-identified conventional sanitizing/sterilizing method is also very time consuming, creates environmental problems with regard to chemical waste disposal, and is expensive, thereby rendering it highly undesirable for a plurality of reasons. 
     It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method for sanitizing and/or sterilizing a container and/or enclosure via, for example, controlled exposure to high-intensity, pulsed electromagnetic radiation, including predetermined wavelengths of ultraviolet radiation to remedy and/or minimize the aforementioned problems and/or complications associated with conventional sanitizing and/or sterilizing methods for containers in the food and/or beverage industry. 
     These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent in light of the present specification, claims, and drawings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed to a method for sanitizing/sterilizing a container for use in the food industry or the beverage industry, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a container suitable for filling with food and/or beverage, wherein the container comprises: (1) a base having an inner surface and an outer surface; (2) at least one side wall having an inner surface and an outer surface; and (3) a containment region defined at least by the inner surface of the base and the inner surface of the at least one side wall; (b) providing an electromagnetic radiation source; (c) controllably exposing the containment region of the container to electromagnetic radiation from the electromagnetic radiation source for a period of time; and (d) at least one of sanitizing and/or sterilizing the containment region of the container with the electromagnetic radiation. 
     In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the step of providing an electromagnetic radiation source comprises providing an electromagnetic radiation source which is substantially mercury free as well as substantially free from generating ozone during operation of the same. 
     In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the step of controllably exposing the containment region of the container to electromagnetic radiation for a period of time comprises controllably exposing the containment region with pulsed electromagnetic radiation. In this embodiment the pulse duration is preferably less than approximately 5 milliseconds, and more preferably less than approximately 2 milliseconds. Such controlled exposure may include reflected and/or non-reflected external and/or internal exposure of the containment region relative to the electromagnetic radiation source. 
     In yet another aspect of the present invention, the containment region is preferably exposed to electromagnetic radiation for a total duration of less than approximately 30 seconds, and more preferably less than approximately 5 seconds. 
     In accordance with present invention, the containment region is preferably exposed to pulsed electromagnetic radiation having a percent transmission of less than approximately 80% at below approximately 240 nanometers to, in turn, facilitate avoiding undesired generation of any material amount of ozone. In this embodiment the predominant wavelength of electromagnetic radiation is preferably between approximately 240 nanometers and approximately 400 nanometers, and more preferably predominantly UV-B electromagnetic radiation (circa 254 nm). 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the step of sanitizing and/or sterilizing the containment region of the container with the electromagnetic radiation includes the step of providing a greater than approximately 3 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately 1 to approximately 10 seconds, and more preferably a 5 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately 3 to approximately 20 seconds, and most preferably a 5 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately 3 seconds. 
     In a further embodiment of the present invention, a reflective element (e.g. a substantially spherical reflective element) is provided for association within the container to enhance sanitization and/or sterilization of the containment region. 
     The present invention is also directed to a method for sanitizing/sterilizing an enclosure (e.g. cap) associable with a container for use in the food industry or the beverage industry, comprising the steps of: (a) providing an enclosure associable with a container suitable for filling with at least one of food and beverage, wherein the enclosure comprises an inner surface and an outer surface; (b) providing an electromagnetic radiation source; (c) controllably exposing at least one of the inner surface and the outer surface of the enclosure to electromagnetic radiation from the electromagnetic radiation source for a period of time; and (d) at least one of sanitizing and sterilizing at least one of the inner surface and the outer surface of the enclosure with the electromagnetic radiation. 
     The present invention is also directed to a method for sanitizing/sterilizing a container and enclosure for use in the food industry or the beverage industry, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a container suitable for filling with at least one of food and beverage wherein the container comprises: (1) a base having an inner surface and an outer surface; (2) at least one side wall having an inner surface and an outer surface; and (3) a containment region defined at least by the inner surface of the base and the inner surface of the at least one side wall; (b) providing an enclosure associable with the container wherein the enclosure comprises an inner surface and an outer surface; (c) providing an electromagnetic radiation source; (c) controllably exposing the containment region of the container and at least one of the inner surface and the outer surface of the enclosure to electromagnetic radiation from the electromagnetic radiation source for a period of time; and (d) at least one of sanitizing and sterilizing the containment region of the container and at least one of the inner surface and the outer surface of the enclosure with the electromagnetic radiation. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The invention will now be described with reference to the drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1  of the drawings is a schematic representation of a container and/or enclosure sanitized/sterilized in accordance with the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there will herein be described in detail several specific embodiments with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiments illustrated. 
     In accordance with the present invention, and as is shown in  FIG. 1 , a method for sanitizing/sterilizing a container  10  (e.g. a can, bottle, carton, etcetera) and/or an enclosure  30  (e.g. a cap, lid, cover, tab, etcetera) for use in the food industry or the beverage industry is disclosed which comprises a plurality of steps, the order of which is not paramount to the success of the invention. It will be understood that  FIG. 1  is merely a schematic representation of an embodiment of the present invention. As such, some of the components have been distorted from their actual scale for pictorial clarity. 
     First, a food or beverage container and/or enclosure is provided. A typical container generally includes a surface or ground engaging base  12  having an inner surface  14  and an outer surface  16 , one or more side walls  18  (e.g. two, three, four, five, ten—just to name a few) each having inner surfaces  20  and outer surfaces  22 , and a containment region  24  which is generally defined by the base and the side wall(s), and optionally a top and/or cap. A typical enclosure generally includes an inner surface  32  and an outer surface  34 . It will be understood that any one of a number of containers and/or enclosures are suitable for use in association with the present invention. Indeed, the only limitation being that the container and/or enclosure must be capable of being sanitized and/or sterilized with an electromagnetic radiation source. 
     Second, an electromagnetic radiation source  40  is provided, such as a pulsed ultraviolet (UV) source which is commercially available from, among other sources, Xenon Corporation. Preferably the electromagnetic radiation source emits radiation predominantly between approximately 240 nanometers and approximately 400 nanometers, and is preferably predominantly UV-B radiation. It will be understood that the electromagnetic radiation source may optionally be associated with a reflective element or member  50  (e.g. a parabolic mirror). 
     A pulsed wave energy source is important to the present invention because conventional, continuous wave operation generated from, for example, mercury lamps and others that use gamma radiation are problematic from both heat and toxicity perspectives. Examples of preferred pulse durations are less than approximately 5 milliseconds, and more preferably less than approximately 2 milliseconds. In addition to the radiation source preferably being “pulsed,” as compared to continuous, it is preferred that the electromagnetic radiation source be substantially free from generating toxic ozone during operation of the same. It will be understood that one way to generally preclude the generation of ozone is to utilize a source that comprises a raw transmission of less than approximately 80% at below approximately 240 nanometers. 
     Third, the container and/or enclosure is controllably exposed to electromagnetic radiation from, for example, a pulsed UV source for a period of time. While the specific period of time is dependent upon several factors, the preferred total exposure to electromagnetic radiation is less than approximately 30 seconds, and more preferably less than approximately 5 seconds—once again depending upon several factors including the power output of the electromagnetic radiation source, the distance between the container and/or enclosure and the electromagnetic radiation source, the material(s) that the container/enclosure is fabricated from, as well as the desired level of “cleanliness” (i.e. sanitization, sterilization, etcetera) of the container/enclosure—just to name a few factors. It will be understood that the inside and/or outside of the container and/or enclosure can be controllably exposed to the electromagnetic radiation source. 
     Fourth, the container (preferably the containment region) and/or the enclosure is sanitized and/or sterilized by the electromagnetic radiation. Preferably a 3 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately 1 to approximately 10 seconds is observed, more preferably a 5 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately 3 to approximately 20 seconds is observed, and most preferably a 5 Log reduction in undesirable matter in less than approximately 3 seconds is observed. 
     It will be understood that regardless of it ordinary meaning, the term “undesirable matter” will include microorganisms, bacteria, fungi, and/or any other neutralizable matter that is deemed unacceptable within the containment region of a container in the food and/or beverage industries. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, a reflective element  60  is provided which is at least partially introduced within the container during exposure to the electromagnetic radiation source to, in turn, enhance sanitization and/or sterilization of the containment region relative to the same without the reflective element. It will be understood that a substantially spherical reflective element provides heretofore unparalleled performance relative to sanitizing and/or sterilizing areas of the containment region which are otherwise difficult to expose a sufficient concentration of electromagnetic radiation without adversely effecting the container, such as thermal degradation of the same. 
     It will be understood that the sanitizing and/or sterilizing methods are suitable for use in association with either linear or rotary filler devices. It will be further understood that the terms “sanitizing” and “sterilizing” will be defined herein in accordance with traditional definitions within the food and/or beverage industries. 
     The foregoing description merely explains and illustrates the invention and the invention is not limited thereto except insofar as the appended claims are so limited, as those skilled in the art who have the disclosure before them will be able to make modifications without departing the scope of the invention.