THE ROTHO PERISTALTIC PUMP

An innovative technology for wineries and growers

Rotho Peristaltic Pump, unlike other pumps, maintains the highest respect for the product pumped and its total integrity up to the discharge end of the pump, be it wine-must at any stage of the winemaking process or pomace, de-stemmed grapes or whole grapes.
This is a very important feature that guarantees superior quality, as working with whole grapes produces the finest must that express the characteristics of the terroir at their best, without causing highly undesirable taste defects in the final product, like the green and vegetable and vegetation notes typical of grape skin maltreatment.

Among other things, the use of a pump like the Rotho pump means that the grapes and in particular the grape skins remain intact, which, in practical terms, significantly reduces the amount of lees during the operations of the static decantation of the must.

Principles

The basic principle of the Peristaltic hose Rotho pump traces back to human “peristalsis” a term referring to the alternating contraction and relaxation of muscles around a tube to force the contents through it.

An elastomeric tube is squeezed along a length by rollers that push the fluid contained within. The tube’s restitution after squeezing produces a vacuum that draws fluid continuously into the tube.
This creates a gentle pumping action that doesn’t cause any damage to the product.

The pump employs a rotor with rollers mounted on it that continually compress and occlude some portion of the tube. This action moves the fluid through the tube with a constant rate of displacement for each revolution of the rotor, enabling a precise measurement of the volume of fluid pumped through the tube.

Advantage

• no oxidation of the product
• no contamination due to lubrication
• no crushing of stems, berries or seeds
• totally sealed pumping system
• self-priming from -8.5M
• can be reversed and run in either direction
• can be operated dry without damage
• no seals or check valves to cause obstructions or wear
• able to dose bentonite solutions, enzymes, glycerine etc.

A Multi Purpose Pump

Another big advantage of this pump is it can be employed for 365 days a year for several jobs inside the wineries.

In fact, it can be used for the first winery process by the feeder for solids parts like whole clusters, destemmed-crushed and red fermented. After that period the Rotho can be transformed to pump liquids such as filling barriques or filling bottles, therefore becoming useful all year.

• White Wine Processes: Comparative tests have shown that more than 50% of the whole berries being pumped pass through the ROTHO pumps totally intact and without damage. Tests have shown that when pumping white whole berries, crushed berries or whole clusters with the Rotho system there is a 10-15% lower polyphenol content than with traditional systems.
• Red Wine Processes: Ideal for pumping over during fermentation with a total control of exposure to oxygen. Oxygen can either be minimized or added if desired. The gentle pumping action does not damage solids during pumpovers, which results in superior colour and aromatics qualities. Comparisons have shown that when a ROTHO pump is used for the entire RED winemaking cycle there is a considerable reduction (from 20 to 50%) in the quantity of LEES produced compared to other processes.
• Red Fermented: The gentle ROTHO system does not cause any change in the liquids or solids being pumped-no aeration or contamination. The Rotho pumping system is the only one that can rapidly and gently empty the Ganimede type of fermenter without any problems due to plugging caused by seeds or skins and without any damage to the product.
• Feeding Chillers: Gentle ROTHO pumping action does not cause emulsification, which can change solubility characteristics. In addition, when equipped with a variable speed control, the ROTHO pump is able to optimize the thermal exchange and solubility characteristics. Gentle ROTHO pumping action does not cause extraction of undesirable tannins, pectins and lignins.
• Barrels Work: Gentle ROTHO pumping action is ideal for feeding a bottling line or filling barrels. The complete line of Rotho pumps also includes small pumps for filling and emptying barrels without any foaming, mixing or contamination
• General Pumping Operations: In the bottling plant the Rotho peristaltic pump is able to feed the filler so delicate and in proportion to what it requires, by the frequency inverter which receives an analog signal from the filling machine and modulates the flow gently continuously without any pulsations pressure thus avoiding the use of harmful by-pass and recirculation systems product.
• Dosing of Enzymes and Chemical Products: The Rotho pump is able to dose enzymes, bentonite, glycerine, etc. with an accuracy of from 0.5 to 1.0% for very effective wine or must treatment with less maintenance cost due to the Rotho pump’s excellent resistance to abrasion.
• Dosing of Water Based Sulphurous Anhydride: The Rotho pump can very effectively dose water based sulphurous anhydride with an accuracy of from 0.5 to 1.0% because of its chemical resistance and the positive shutoff of the roller-tube interface. This can be accomplished without any valves and without any off gassing, even when the pump is stopped.