Solving the can conundrum: how Bevcorp’s MicrO2 Blender benefits beverage processors

Filling carbonated beverages into cans is a tricky process. The liquid has to be cooled down enough so it doesn’t foam during injection, then warmed back up to prevent condensation – and all the while considerable pressure has to be maintained to keep the CO₂ in the can.

All of this has long added up to a costly process when it comes it utility bills – that is, until now.

The MicrO₂ Blender from JBT Bevcorp not only simplifies the field of blender design, it allows beverages to be filled at warmer temperatures than traditional systems, reducing residual oxygen and resulting in less foaming.

Building on the achievements of the original Bevcorp MicroBlend, the MicrO₂ Advantage Series Blender reduces oxygen and nitrogen levels in the blended product using a simpler process. The result are reduced blender and operating costs.

According to Bevcorp’s Director of Technology, Cezary Mroz, the MicrO₂ doesn’t just allow more carbonation to stay in the product, it also improves shelf life and flavor while at the same time delivering a more sustainable product. “Because carbonated beverages foam, they need to be refrigerated at very cold temperatures to make the CO₂ in the product less volatile,” he explains. “Cans then have to be warmed back up so they don’t condensate within the packaging.”

“The goal now is to find ways to raise the temperature of the product – every degree we are able to get closer to ambient temperatures saves money.”

Bevcorp Director of Operations, Jay Exley, takes up the story: “Once we inject the CO₂ into the beverage, we have to maintain a pressure between 42-90 psi, dependent on temperature and the volume of CO2 in the product, to keep it in there.

“With the MicrO₂, we have slowed the process down and got it to 57 degrees – and every degree means less energy is used.”

Whereas a traditional blender carbonates the water, then mixes in syrup and O₂, Exley says the MicrO₂ mixes the product first, then carbonates it, which makes it much more effective in its use of O₂. 

“The design of the MicrO₂ has also allowed us to eliminate extra motors and vacuum pumps, which saves on electricity,” he adds. “Customers can achieve thousands of dollars in savings in the first year after installing the MicrO₂.”

READ MORE about the benefits of using the Bevcorp MicrO₂ Advantage Series Blender