Control of bubble size in a carbonated liquid

Abstract

Cans, bottles and/or other containers used to hold a carbonated beverage can include internal features to promote and/or control bubble formation.

1 . An article of manufacture, comprising:
 a container having an internal surface defining an internal volume;   a carbonated liquid beverage sealed within the internal volume;   a closed outlet located on the beverage container, the outlet configured for opening and positioned on the container so as to permit draining of the beverage from the internal volume through the outlet after opening of the outlet; and   a baffle located within the beverage container, wherein
 the baffle is attached to portions of the internal surface and defines a passage separated from a remainder of the internal volume, wherein the passage has a volume less than the remainder of the internal volume, and 
 a fluid path between the outlet and the remainder of the internal volume extends through the passage. 
   
     
     
         2 . The article of manufacture of  claim 1 , wherein the fluid path is the only fluid path between the outlet and the remainder of the internal volume extends through the passage. 
     
     
         3 . The article of manufacture of  claim 1 , wherein the container comprises a metal can. 
     
     
         4 . The article of manufacture of  claim 3 , wherein the baffle is vertically oriented when the can base is resting on a flat surface. 
     
     
         5 . The article of manufacture of  claim 1 , wherein the passage comprises walls formed by a face of the baffle and a portion of the container internal surface, and wherein at least one of the passage walls comprises a plurality of surface features configured to perform at least one of the following operations upon opening of the outlet and draining of the beverage from the internal volume:
 promoting nucleation, and   slowing movement of bubbles through the passage.   
     
     
         6 . The article of manufacture of  claim 5 , wherein the surface features comprise at least one of short hair-like projections, small bumps, pits and surface indentations. 
     
     
         7 . The article of manufacture of  claim 5 , wherein the surface features comprise linear protrusions, the linear protrusions comprising at least one of ribs, ridges or riblets. 
     
     
         8 . The article of manufacture of  claim 7 , wherein the linear protrusions comprise discontinuous linear protrusions separated by interruptions. 
     
     
         9 . The article of manufacture of  claim 7 , wherein the linear protrusions are oriented in a direction generally parallel to a direction of flow through the passage when the beverage is drained from the internal volume. 
     
     
         10 . The article of manufacture of  claim 7 , wherein the linear protrusions are oriented in a direction generally perpendicular to a direction of flow through the passage when the beverage is drained from the internal volume. 
     
     
         11 . The article of manufacture of  claim 7 , wherein the linear protrusions are oriented in directions generally at angles to a direction of flow through the passage when the beverage is drained from the internal volume, the angles being neither perpendicular nor parallel to the direction of flow. 
     
     
         12 . An article of manufacture, comprising:
 a container having a base, a sidewall and a top, internal surfaces of the base, sidewall and top defining an internal volume;   a carbonated liquid beverage sealed within the internal volume;   a closed outlet located on the top portion, the outlet configured for opening so as to permit draining of the beverage from the internal volume through the outlet after opening of the outlet; and   a plurality of surface features formed on at least one of an internal surface of the sidewall and an internal surface of the top adjacent the outlet, said surface features sized and positioned so as to reduce viscous drag of the beverage flowing over the surface features when the outlet is opened and the beverage is drained from the internal volume.   
     
     
         13 . The article of manufacture of  claim 12 , wherein the plurality of surface features comprise riblets. 
     
     
         14 . The article of manufacture of  claim 13 , wherein
 the container is a bottle, the top portion includes a neck and the outlet is located at a top end of the neck, and   the riblets are located in the neck.   
     
     
         15 . The article of manufacture of  claim 14 , wherein the riblets are oriented in a direction generally parallel to a direction of primary flow through the neck when the beverage is drained from the bottle. 
     
     
         16 . The article of manufacture of  claim 14 , wherein the riblets are oriented in directions neither perpendicular nor parallel to a direction of primary flow through the neck when the beverage is drained from the bottle. 
     
     
         17 . The article of manufacture of  claim 13 , wherein a first portion of the riblets have ridges respectively aligned with grooves of a second portion of the riblets. 
     
     
         18 . The article of manufacture of  claim 13 , wherein a first portion of the riblets have non-uniform cross-sections relative a second portion of the riblets. 
     
     
         19 . The article of manufacture of  claim 13 , wherein a first portion of the riblets have longer lengths relative a second portion of the riblets. 
     
     
         20 . The article of manufacture of  claim 13 , wherein the riblets have cross-sectional elevations of between 0.1 and 0.5 millimeters. 
     
     
         21 . The article of manufacture of  claim 12 , wherein the plurality of surface features comprise dimples. 
     
     
         22 . An article of manufacture, comprising:
 a container having a base, a sidewall and a top, internal surfaces of the base, sidewall and top defining an internal volume;   a carbonated liquid beverage sealed within the internal volume;   a closed outlet located on the top portion, the outlet configured for opening so as to permit draining of the beverage from the internal volume through the outlet after opening of the outlet; and   a plurality of sharply pointed projections attached to and extending upward from the internal base surface into the beverage.   
     
     
         23 . The article of manufacture of  claim 22 , wherein the projections have conical shapes. 
     
     
         24 . The article of manufacture of  claim 22 , wherein the projections comprise spires. 
     
     
         25 . The article of manufacture of  claim 24 , wherein the spires terminate in points. 
     
     
         26 . The article of manufacture of  claim 24 , wherein the spires are hollow and terminate in sharp edges. 
     
     
         27 . The article of manufacture of  claim 26 , wherein the spires comprise spires having differing heights. 
     
     
         28 . A method, comprising:
 inserting a stretch rod into a heated plastic preform having a neck portion, wherein
 the neck portion is secured relative to an axis of motion of the stretch rod, and 
 the stretch rod includes a tip having cavities formed therein, the cavities having shapes corresponding to sharp pointed extensions; 
   pushing the stretch rod tip against an inner bottom region of a preform so as to force heated plastic of the preform into the cavities; and   blowing a gas into the stretched preform so as to create a bottle having the sharp pointed extensions formed in an interior bottom surface thereof.   
     
     
         29 . An article of manufacture, comprising
 a container having a base, a sidewall and a top, wherein internal surfaces of the base, sidewall and top define an internal volume, and wherein at least the base internal surface is formed from a first material;   a carbonated liquid beverage sealed within the internal volume;   a closed outlet located on the container, the outlet configured for opening so as to permit draining of the beverage from the internal volume through the outlet after opening of the outlet; and   a plurality of discrete nucleating elements embedded in the internal base surface and exposed to the beverage, wherein
 each of the discrete nucleating elements is formed from a second material, 
 the second material is different from the first material, 
 each of the discrete nucleating elements is configured to promote nucleation upon opening of the outlet. 
   
     
     
         30 . The article of manufacture of  claim 29 , wherein the container is a bottle, the first material is plastic, the second material is silica, and the discrete nucleating elements comprise sand-sized particles. 
     
     
         31 . The article of manufacture of  claim 29 , wherein the container is a bottle, the first material is a first plastic, the second material is a second plastic, and the discrete nucleating elements comprise particles of the second plastic. 
     
     
         32 . The article of manufacture of  claim 29 , wherein the container is a bottle, the first material is a first plastic and the discrete nucleating elements comprise insoluble fibers. 
     
     
         33 . An article of manufacture, comprising:
 a container having a base, a sidewall and a top, internal surfaces of the base, sidewall and top defining an internal volume;   a carbonated liquid beverage sealed within the internal volume; and   a nucleating structure located within the internal volume and including a plurality of surfaces exposed to the beverage, at least one of the nucleating structure exposed surfaces having nucleation surface features thereon, the nucleation surface features comprising at least one of scratches, roughened regions and sharp edges.   
     
     
         34 . The article of manufacture of  claim 33 , wherein the nucleating structure divides the internal volume in first and second volumes, the first volume being above the nucleating structure and the second volume being below the nucleating structure, the first and second volumes being in fluid communication with one another. 
     
     
         35 . The article of manufacture of  claim 34 , wherein the exposed surfaces include a first surface having the nucleation surface features thereon and facing the second volume, a smooth second surface facing the first volume, and the nucleating structure includes an aperture between the first and second surfaces. 
     
     
         36 . The article of manufacture of  claim 35 , wherein the first surface is concave and the second surface is convex.