Patent ID: 7823503

Claim:
An apparatus for evaporative cooling of a liquid product, comprising: a vacuum chamber including a to wall and a bottom wall and divided into a first chamber centrally positioned with respect to the longitudinal axis of the vacuum chamber and a second chamber which concentrically surrounds the first chamber and in which both the first and second chambers are open towards the top wall of the vacuum chamber, and the first chamber has an outlet for condensed steam and the second chamber has an inlet for steamed product and an outlet for the product; a circulation circuit for coolant liquid, wherein the first chamber has an upper part located inside the vacuum chamber and a lower part located beneath the bottom wall of the vacuum chamber, and the lower part extends downwards below the bottom wall of the vacuum chamber so that the length of the lower part below the bottom wall is at least the same as the length of the upper part inside the vacuum chamber; and a coolant conduit positioned inside the lower part of the first chamber located below the bottom wall for delivering coolant to cool the condensed steam.