Patent ID: 8066953

Claim:
Apparatus for hydrolyzing biological material comprising in combination: a processing chamber capable of being pressurized and having at least one sealable port for receiving said biological material; means for introducing a chosen quantity of alkali into said chamber; means for introducing water into said chamber in an amount sufficient for forming a solution of the alkali effective for reacting with said biological material and for contacting a portion of said biological material; at least one rotating paddle disposed within said chamber for pounding said biological material into small pieces and for intimately mixing the small pieces of said biological material with the alkaline solution such that said biological material is liquefied; a heater/cooler/circulator for heating the solution and said biological material in said chamber to a chosen temperature effective for maintaining a boiling condition therein, and for cooling the resulting alkaline solution and liquefied biological material to form a solid mass; sealing structure for maintaining said chamber at a chosen pressure greater than atmospheric pressure; and structure for extracting by condensing and removing a chosen quantity of water from the alkaline solution and the liquefied biological material in said chamber and comprising a lower chamber formed between said processing chamber and an upper condensing surface and having a water outlet and communicating with said processing chamber to receive vapor exhaust therefrom, and an upper chamber formed between said condensing surface and a lid or cover having an entry port and an exit port communicating with a water chiller.