Centec GmbH

By a combination of fluid density sensing and sound velocity measurement, the BEERMONITOR is used to determine alcohol and extract content. This allows calculating the degree of fermentation and the Original Gravity (OG) with extreme precision. For density measurement, the liquid flows through a U-shaped tube. While the tube is electronically excited to oscillate at resonance, the oscillation frequency is observed. Any change in the density has an impact on the detected signal and can thus be identified. At the same time the instrument measures the speed of a sound pulse between a transmitter and a receiver. The sound pulse is created by piezo-elements and moves perpendicular to the product flow. As a specific property of each liquid, the correlation between concentration and density resp. sound velocity can be described by a mathematical polynomial.

The BEERMONITOR is maintenance free and its compact design is a patent of Centec.

CARBOTEC NIR revolutionizes continuous dissolved CO₂ measurement in liquids. Designed for applications that require maximum sensitivity and high accuracy, this innovative device is ideally suited for breweries and soft drink plants. The new generation of CARBOTEC sensors is based on Attenuated Total Reflection (ATR) technology. While transmitting a sapphire glass crystal, near infrared (NIR) light is reflected several times at the surface. The surface of the crystal is in contact to the carbonated liquid. Since the CO₂ molecules in the liquid absorb the specific wavelength of the transmitting light, each reflection decreases the intensity according to the CO₂ content. The sensor is of extreme precision and provides “true” carbon dioxide content by quantifying the infrared absorption of the dissolved CO₂ only. The measurement result is not influenced by any other gases such as nitrogen in beer. Due to the lack of moving parts, the instrument is virtually maintenance free.

The Centec dealcoholization system DeAlcoTec is a sophisticated and highly efficient system for the removal of alcohol from beers. Incoming alcohol rich product is first gently heated by a heat exchanger to promote evaporation. It is then injected into the top of a specially designed evaporation column. At the bottom of the column exhaust vapours are also injected. They rise upwards inside the column counter current to the falling warm liquid, thereby removing the volatile alcohol components from the beer. The less volatile components in the beer fall to the column base where some are heated to produce more exhaust vapours for reuse in the system. The remaining alcohol-free product is pumped away and cooled for storage or further processing as required, e.g. for carbonation. The volatile flavours from the original product can be separated from the exhaust vapours in a special aroma recovery system and added back to enhance the taste of the finished beverage. If required, the alcohol vapours are concentrated, chilled and condensed to form liquid alcohol of up to 90 vol.% for use in other applications or for sale to industry as a food grade product.

For water treatment and purification, Centec offers various technologies designed according to the raw water quality and the specific requirements of the application. Our core competences comprise particle filtration, ion exchange, reverse osmosis, disinfection as well as innovative processes for water deaeration based on membranes and columns. The Centec column deaeration system DeGaS is a modular skid for removing oxygen from water at ambient temperature. For treatment in DeGaS, the liquid is injected at the top of the column. The column contains a matrix of structured packing comprising thin corrugated metal plates arranged so that the liquid takes multiple paths as it flows downwards through the column. This maximizes the transfer surface and the contact time between the liquid and the strip gas; CO₂ or N₂ may be used. The strip gas is fed into the bottom and flows upwards inside the column. The large partial pressure difference of O₂ forces the oxygen out of the liquid into the gas phase. This fundamental scientific principle is described by “Henry’s Law”. At the top of the column the removed O₂ leaves the system together with the undissolved CO₂ or N₂. For simultaneous disinfection of the water during deaeration, DeGaS can be equipped with a heat exchanger to heat the water to approx. 75°C. For manufacturing “still” beverages, DeGaS is typically operated with vacuum instead of strip gas.

OXYTRANS continuously measures the content of oxygen in liquids and gases. This device is designed for breweries and applications that require maximum sensitivity and high accuracy. The state of the art optical measurement technology is based on the effect of luminescence quenching. An indicator layer on a small glass component installed in the measuring head is illuminated with blue-green-light. When the indicator molecules absorb the incident light they are promoted to a higher energy state. After a certain time they convert back to a lower energy state during which a detectable red light is emitted. If O₂ is present the energy is transferred from the indicator molecules to the oxygen. The detected signal decreases according to the oxygen content.