"MATERIAL FOR ZOOTECHNICAL USE"

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention concerns a material for zootechnical use, to be used in animal litters or at the bottom of cages for small domestic animals such as cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, dogs, birds.

In particular the present invention concerns a material for zootechnical use such as pellets and or pellet granulate, with a sanitizing and deodorant effect.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Materials are known for zootechnical use, described for example in documents US-A-3.059.615, US-A-3.923.005, US-A-2009/090304 and US-A-4.405.354, used in animal litters for small domestic animals or small cages to define a zone where the animal can perform its bodily functions inside a domestic environment without causing annoyance.

The material for zootechnical use must have a high absorbent capacity in order to absorb, as much as possible, the animal excreta.

Generally, for animals that can circulate freely in the domestic environment, such as cats and dogs, it is known to provide an open receptacle inside which the material for zootechnical use, such as a litter, is put.

On the contrary, in the case of animals that cannot circulate freely in the domestic environment, it is known to provide cages inside which the animals live, for example in the case of birds. The cages are generally provided with a bottom that is at least partly covered by the material for zootechnical use as above that is introduced.

It is known to make the material for zootechnical use, for example, with clays and silicates, with the capacity to absorb the excreta.

One disadvantage of this known solution is that it is impossible to dispose of and degrade the material for zootechnical use easily, and it must consequently be subjected to one or more specific treatments.

It is known to make material for zootechnical use based on absorbent flour, particularly wood flour which is suitably agglomerated to have a specific shape, such as for example a micro-cylinder. The micro-cylinders break up in contact with the excreta, absorb the liquid fraction and incorporate the solid fraction. Another known solution provides to make the material for zootechnical use directly in granules.

The material for zootechnical use is therefore able to absorb and incorporate the urine or excrement produced by the animals.

One disadvantage of these known solutions is that they do not abate unpleasant smells, which remain unaltered until the material for zootechnical use is changed.

Therefore, in order to keep domestic hygiene and that of the animal at a high level, it is known to change the material for zootechnical use frequently, partly or totally regenerating it with new material and/or removing the excreta frequently.

However, it is not always possible to perform these operations regularly or very frequently, which consequently entails a proliferation of smells and/or bacteria which reduce the hygiene of the home environment.

Document US-A-3.059.615 describes a litter for poultry and suchlike which provides an action to acidify the material of the litter to a pH of 3.5, in order to eliminate Salmonella infection, and to obtain a sterilizing effect that occurs up to pH 6.5: after this value, the effect ceases.

The base of the litter consists of cellulose materials of various types: dried grasses, hay, sawdust, granulated corncob, thin wood chip, cereal or peanut skins, etc.

Acids and/or their salts are added to the litter base, until a very acidic pH is obtained: the additives are first diluted in water, then sprayed onto the base product, which will then be dried.

In this patent application, some example applications are described that take the product to a low pH after drying.

This solution, however, is particularly complex since its objective is to reach an extremely low final pH of the material, which sterilizes the litter.

Document US-A-3.923.005 describes a solution for a litter with a base consisting of dried alfalfa and a starchy material, such as wheat bran which contains about 15-20% starch.

Sodium phosphate, which is a mineral additive, is added to the mixture of alfalfa and bran, with the function of increasing durability and reducing the final density of the product: it reacts with raw materials to improve the texture of the extruded product.

Sodium phosphate therefore has no specific function after production, and is only a technological additive in the course of the process.

The litter described in US-A-3.923.005 is obtained with an extrusion process that provides to mix the whole product with abundant water and/or steam to obtain a semiliquid dough which, worked in a series of zones of a cylinder by a worm screw divided into sectors with different shape and pitch, makes the starches gelatinize.

The product exits along the axis of the machine through a front draw-plate: at exit there is a series of blades that cut the pellets to the desired length.

Extrusion requires high temperatures and pressures, for example from 130- 180°C and from 30 bar to 60 bar, and a final stage of drying in the oven.

This technology allows to increase the digestibility of the organic substances for animal food first, and human food afterward. Moreover, its particular conformation allows to use draw-plates with holes of very different shapes.

The production process also provides a step of airing the pellets obtained, to eliminate the residual smell of alfalfa.

However, this process is particularly complex and costly in terms of times and costs. In fact, the extrusion process requires very high temperatures and pressures and a quantity of water added at the beginning that can vary from 20% to 60%.

Furthermore, the airing step requires the product to be stored for an extremely long time, requiring large spaces for its temporary storage.

Document US-A-2009/090304 describes a litter in powder form or fine granules for livestock, in particular cattle and horses.

The base of the litter consists of straw, sawdust, sand or dried manure.

The additive is a mixture almost totally based on clay, with the addition of extremely small quantities of chlorite and a sodium bisulfate (acidifier) or a percarbonate (oxidant), where the first - after reaction with the chlorite - if in excess can also act to abate the residual ammonia, while the second has no ammonia abating effect, but only germicidal.

The function of the acid salt, sodium bisulfate, is to react with the chlorine salt in the presence of liquids to produce an agent with a germicidal effect. The litter thus obtained can also have the effect of blocking the ammonia, although this is secondary compared with the germicidal effect, if the acid salt is in excess compared with the chlorine salt.

On the contrary, if the oxidant salt sodium percarbonate is used, the ammonia abating effect does not take place.

This litter is in powder form, which causes the dispersion of very fine particles into the environment.

The mixture of chlorite and an acid salt or oxidant, in contact with liquids, produces a compound with a wide germicidal spectrum.

The final product consists of a floury base and an additive mixture in powder form. Obtaining a final product in powder form is particularly disadvantageous for the application to which the present invention refers.

Document US-A-4.405.354 describes a composition suitable to eliminate smells from waste material, in which a possible application also concerns pellets or mixtures of powders for litters. The composition comprises phosphorus acids in various formulations and sulfur acids in its various variants, and their mono salts and substitutes of alkaline and alkaline-earth metals.

The salts mentioned in this document have an acid pH which can neutralize basic substances like ammonia. However, some of the components (e.g. hypophosphorus, sulfur) can emit toxic gases if they react with other substances (e.g. alkaline metals and ammonia) and therefore they cannot be used for products that can come into contact with living beings.

The composition thus obtained can be sprayed or added to litters already prepared, and therefore must be suitably distributed when the litter is prepared by the operators.

This makes the operations to prepare the litter extremely complicated and laborious for the operators.

One purpose of the present invention is therefore to obtain a material for zootechnical use with a deodorant effect, in order to reduce said unpleasant smells.

Another purpose of the present invention is to obtain a material for zootechnical use also having a sanitizing effect, in order to reduce, or even eliminate, the proliferation of bacteria, improving the level of hygiene of the home environment.

Another purpose of the present invention is to obtain a material for zootechnical use that can be produced with low costs.

Another purpose of the present invention is to obtain a material for zootechnical use that is easy to dispose of and recycle.

The Applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is set forth and characterized in the independent claim, while the dependent claims describe other characteristics of the invention or variants to the main inventive idea.

In accordance with the above purposes, the present invention concerns a material for zootechnical use, with a base of absorbent flours, comprising one or more sanitizing additives selected from sodium and/or potassium mineral salts.

Using the sanitizing additives, in contact with animal excreta, allows to neutralize the bad smell and to reduce the pH.

However, the present invention does not intend to reduce the pH to very low values, that is, less than pH 4, and does not sanitize the litter. In fact, the sanitizing additives act to inhibit the growth of bacteria and enzymes that produce the formation of volatile ammonia.

Furthermore, the sanitizing additives do not substantially modify the pH of the absorbent flours and are produced with a definitive recipe, without needing further additions of other ingredients.

The ammonia abating effect is largely given by the wood base (cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin) and the additive serves to control possible excessive growths of bacteria, thus obtaining a biostatic effect, not biocidal.

In particular, the sanitizing additives bind the ammonia contained in the excreta and neutralize it.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the sanitizing additives are chosen from monosodium phosphate, sodium bisulfate, monopotassium phosphate, potassium bisulfate which, in suitable conditions, have an acidity sufficient to limit bacterial proliferation and neutralize the ammonia produced by the urine.

The present invention also concerns a method to obtain a material for zootechnical use that provides to mix absorbent flours with one or more sanitizing additives selected from sodium and/or potassium mineral salts.

These and other aspects, characteristics and advantages of the present disclosure will be better understood with reference to the following description of specific forms of embodiment, supplied by way of non-restrictive example, and to the attached claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME FORMS OF EMBODIMENT

We shall now refer in detail to the various forms of embodiment of the present invention, of which one or more examples are shown in the attached drawing. Each example is supplied by way of illustration of the invention and shall not be understood as a limitation thereof. For example, the characteristics shown or described insomuch as they are part of one form of embodiment can be adopted on, or in association with, other forms of embodiment to produce another form of embodiment. It is understood that the present invention shall include all such modifications and variants.

Forms of embodiment described here concern a material for zootechnical use, used in litters or as the bottom inside cages for small domestic animals.

The material for zootechnical use according to the present invention is configured to incorporate and/or absorb animal excreta and at the same time to limit the proliferation of smells.

The material for zootechnical use can have a base of absorbent flours and can comprise one or more sanitizing additives which can be selected from sodium and/or potassium mineral salts.

In some forms of embodiment, the sanitizing additives can be chosen from monosodium phosphate (NaH ₂ PO ₄ ), sodium bisulfate (NaHSO ₄ ), monopotassium phosphate (KH ₂ PO ₄ ) or potassium bisulfate (KHS0 ₄ ).

The sanitizing additive, or sanitizing additives if more than one is provided, do not exceed a concentration of 5%, preferably around 2-3% of the overall litter. These mineral salts advantageously cause a sanitizing and deodorant effect, lowering the pH of the excreta produced by the animals and creating acid conditions sufficient to limit bacterial proliferation.

In fact, when they enter into contact with liquid excreta, mineral salts break up, developing ions with weak acidity.

They are therefore able to neutralize the basic volatile ammonia present in the excreta (urine), responsible for the unpleasant smells.

The sanitizing additives described are salts of phosphorus and sulfuric acid, which can be used equally to control the development of bad smells and bacteria, but are not compatible for zootechnical use. In fact, these acids have high reactivity to organic substances, which makes them particularly dangerous for direct contact with animals.

In this way, the material for zootechnical use is able to perform a deodorant action and to counter unpleasant smells. Furthermore, the mineral salts, reacting with the ammonia, can form specific substances such as phosphates and sulfates of ammonia which, if discharged on fields, land or similar surfaces can also have a favorable fertilizing effect.

According to possible forms of embodiment, each sanitizing additive used can be provided between 0.5% and 5% w/w with respect to a total mass of material for zootechnical use. In particular, between 1% and 4% w/w, since this range allows to maximize the action of the sanitizing additives in both high and low concentrations of excreta. Examples of quantities of mineral salts are 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, 2%, 2.5%, 3%, 3.5%, 4%, 4.5%, 5%.

In forms of embodiment described here the material for zootechnical use comprises only one type of sanitizing additive.

According to other forms of embodiment of the present invention, the material for zootechnical use comprises several different types of sanitizing additive.

In some forms of embodiment, which can be combined with all the forms of embodiment described here, the material for zootechnical use can comprise a mixture of sodium mineral salts, or a mixture of potassium mineral salts, or a mixture of sodium and potassium mineral salts.

In some forms of embodiment, each sanitizing additive can be present in the quantities indicated above. The choice of the type of sanitizing additive to be used, and its quantity in the mixture, depends on the pH to which the material for zootechnical use is to operate. In fact the different sanitizing additives reported above are effective at different pH values, therefore they can react as a function of the variation in acidity given by the urine, its quantity during the day and the animal's health.

The quantity and/or type of mineral salts used can be chosen depending on the desired deodorant and sanitizing effect.

The finished product can have a pH between 5 and 6, and its function is to quickly absorb the liquids and to inhibit enzymatic transformation of urea into ammonia, but the absorbent effect is given only by the mixture of woods.

In some forms of embodiment of the present invention, the absorbent flour can be wood-based and can be produced starting from wood masses with high absorbent properties, for example determined by high porosity. The use of wood- based flours allows to increase the absorption capacities considerably, compared with the use of other types of materials.

In other forms of embodiment, it can also be advantageous to add absorbent flours based on cereals and/or their seeds, which have a liquid absorption speed similar to wood flours. Cereal-based flours can also be configured to accelerate the neutralization of the excreta.

In some forms of embodiment, the absorbent flour can be chosen from a group with an absorption capacity of more than 300% in weight.

In this way, the material for zootechnical use is able to absorb great quantities of liquid, such as urine, which come into contact with the absorbent flour, to ensure that the litter and/or the bottom of the cages where the material for zootechnical use is disposed remain dry.

Merely by way of example, the wood-based absorbent flour can be obtained by suitably working beech wood, fir or a combination of the two.

In forms of embodiment described here, the material for zootechnical use comprises a combination of absorbent flours, chosen from wood-based and cereal-based flours, or alternatively it can comprise only one of them.

The absorbent flours constitute the base of the litter and, in possible forms of embodiment, it can be a dry mixture of at least two types of wood with different grain size, with sizes bigger than 500 μηι, and suitably selected and de-powdered. The choice of two types of wood with different grain size allows to obtain an absorption of the animal excreta that is diversified over time and therefore allows a first type of wood flour to absorb the excreta immediately, and a second type of flour to absorb the excreta in a temporally diversified way, for example to absorb what is released by the first type of wood flour.

The absorbent flour and the sanitizing additives can be mixed together to make a composition with a homogeneous mass that can subsequently be pelletized, conferring a pellet shape on the material for zootechnical use.

The mixing of the absorbent flour, or absorbent flours if more than one is provided, with the sanitizing additives is carried out dry, that is, without the addition of water. This solution drastically simplifies the production process compared with the known processes described above, and also reduces production times.

According to a possible solution, the production process for making the pellets is pelletizing. In this case the production process starts from low-humidity flours (on average 10%- 12%) which, either alone or in a mixture, enter into a machine usually called "pellet mill" which compresses them dry and makes the pellets come out through a circular draw-plate comprising hundreds of holes, almost always round.

In its passage through the draw-plate the temperature of the product can reach 90-100°C for 1 -2 seconds, then the product is simply cooled in a silo in a current of air and already after one hour it can be packed.

The process is therefore carried out substantially at ambient temperature.

According to a possible solution, the pellets can also be obtained with a combination of the techniques of pressing and pelletizing.

In some forms of embodiment, the material for zootechnical use in the form of pellets can be reduced into granules by crumbling and sieving, to eliminate the powders or granules with sizes similar to dust, to obtain material for zootechnical use in a granular or crumbled form.

In some forms of embodiment, which can be combined with all the forms of embodiment described here, the material for zootechnical use can be in the form of pellets or alternatively granular (crumbled). In some forms of embodiment, the material for zootechnical use in the form of pellets can have a diameter comprised between 2 and 8 mm, in particular from 4 to 6.5 millimeters, and a length from 3 to 40 mm, in particular from 5 to 20 millimeters.

In forms of embodiment described here, the material for zootechnical use in granular or crumbled form can have a mean size between 500 μηι and 5000 μιη, in particular between 800 μΐΉ and 4700 μπι. Below this range, when the zootechnical material is introduced into the litter or bottom of the cage, a cloud of zootechnical material could form, defined by its light and small fraction, which can cause inconvenience: this effect is known as "smoking dust". On the contrary, above this range, almost whole pieces of pellet may be seen, which have a negative esthetic appearance and absorb the excreta more slowly. Examples of grain sizes are 500 μηι, 800 μηι, 1 100 μηι, 1400 μιη, 1700 μπι, 2000 μηι, 2300 μηι, 2600 μηι, 2900 μηι, 3200 μπι, 3500 μΐΉ, 3800 μηι, 4100 μιη, 4400 μιη, 4700 μιη, 5000 μπι.

The sanitizing additive or sanitizing additives are mixed with the wood-flour base before being sent to the draw-plate to produce the pellet.

The pellet thus obtained is cooled, granulated and sieved to eliminate powders, and aired before packing: this allows to remove the volatile powder that forms due to chafing during the transport steps.

According to a possible solution, the operations to mix the absorbent flour with the sanitizing additives, the pelletizing, cooling and subsequent packing operations are carried out continuously inside the same production plant. In this case no intermediate storage zones are provided for the temporary storage and cooling of materials as provided in solutions known in the state of the art.

The mean size of the material for zootechnical use can therefore be such as to maximize the absorbent effect and at the same time to allow easy removal and binding after use.

Furthermore, the size of the material for zootechnical use is such as to guarantee easy disposal, for example in domestic sewers, which are then treated in specific plants for sewage, without causing any damage. In particular, the salts that have reacted with the ammonia have properties such that they can be discharged inside domestic sewers and are then sent to specific sewage treatment plants, without causing any damage to the plant.

The material for zootechnical use according to the present invention can also have a mean apparent density between 420 g/1 and 680 g/1. Examples of mean apparent density are 420 g/1, 440 g/1, 460 g/1, 480 g/1, 500 g/1, 520 g/1, 540 g/1, 560 g/1, 580 g/1, 600 g/1, 620 g/1, 640 g/1, 660 g/1, 680 g/1.

It is clear that modifications and/or additions of parts may be made to the material for zootechnical use as described heretofore, without departing from the field and scope of the present invention.

It is also clear that, although the present invention has been described with reference to some specific examples, a person of skill in the art shall certainly be able to achieve many other equivalent forms of material for zootechnical use, having the characteristics as set forth in the claims and hence all coming within the field of protection defined thereby.