Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C49/00—Blow-moulding, i.e. blowing a preform or parison to a desired shape within a mould; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C49/42—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
  • B29C49/78—Measuring, controlling or regulating
  • B29C49/783—Measuring, controlling or regulating blowing pressure
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
  • H02K—DYNAMO-ELECTRIC MACHINES
  • H02K7/00—Arrangements for handling mechanical energy structurally associated with dynamo-electric machines, e.g. structural association with mechanical driving motors or auxiliary dynamo-electric machines
  • H02K7/18—Structural association of electric generators with mechanical driving motors, e.g. with turbines
  • H02K7/1807—Rotary generators
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
  • B29C—SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING
  • B29C49/00—Blow-moulding, i.e. blowing a preform or parison to a desired shape within a mould; Apparatus therefor
  • B29C49/42—Component parts, details or accessories; Auxiliary operations
  • B29C49/4284—Means for recycling or reusing auxiliaries or materials, e.g. blowing fluids or energy
  • B29C49/4287—Means for recycling or reusing auxiliaries or materials, e.g. blowing fluids or energy for use outside the blow-moulding apparatus, e.g. generating power or as pressurized plant air
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02P—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS
  • Y02P70/00—Climate change mitigation technologies in the production process for final industrial or consumer products
  • Y02P70/10—Greenhouse gas [GHG] capture, material saving, heat recovery or other energy efficient measures, e.g. motor control, characterised by manufacturing processes, e.g. for rolling metal or metal working

Definitions

• the present invention relates to an apparatus for recovering and converting the pneumatic energy in discharged air, coming from the blow cavities of blow mold machines used to produce plastic containers, for example bottles.
• Prior art
• a reciprocating engine connected to the reactor to receive a reactor effluent so as to operate the pistons of the reciprocating engine by means of the expansion of said effluent
• the pistons of the reciprocating engine in turn drive a crankshaft by means of a universal joint that can supply power to compressors or drive a generator to produce electricity.
• single-stage machine for producing containers such as bottles, jars, etc, means a single machine that performs the injection and subsequent stretching and blow forming processes to transform PET granules into the blown container.
• blow machine means, instead, a machine that performs a heating process and subsequent stretching and blow forming processes to transform pre-formed workpieces, obtained separately using an injection machine, into blown containers.
• a main purpose of the present invention is to produce an apparatus for recovering and converting the pneumatic energy in the discharged air, coming from the blow cavities of blow mold machines used to make plastic containers, that allows the discharged air to be recovered and made available at a predetermined average pressure and the subsequent conversion of the recovered pneumatic energy into electrical energy.
• Another purpose of the device according to the invention is to optimize the energy recovery and conversion process, so as to obtain the highest possible level of efficiency.
• the present invention achieves the purposes described above with an apparatus for recovering and converting the pneumatic energy in the discharged air, coming from the blow cavities of blow mold machines used to make plastic containers that, in accordance with that set forth in claim 1 , recovery means for recovering said discharged air leaving the blow cavities of said blow mold machines at a first pressure and means of converting said pneumatic energy into electrical energy, said converting means being arranged downstream of said recovery means.
• the recovery of the discharged air advantageously involves the use of pneumatic valves and sensors capable of following the pressure profile of the compressed air, during the pressure let-down of the blow cavities, and making said air available at a predetermined average pressure to be used again.
• a further advantage consists of the fact that the apparatus, according to the present invention, comprises frequency controlling means to allow on the one hand the optimization of efficiency by adjusting the angular speed of the pneumatic motor, and on the other the synchronization of the electrical energy that is obtained at the appropriate voltage and frequency values so that it can be transferred to the supply mains.
• FIG. 1 shows a side view of the recovery and conversion apparatus according to the invention
• Fig. 2 shows a view from the top of the apparatus in Fig. 1 ;
• Fig. 3 shows a graph with the performance trend of the apparatus according to the invention. Detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention
• an apparatus for recovering and converting the pneumatic energy in the discharged air, coming from the blow cavities of single-stage or blow machines used to produce containers, comprising:
• the means for recovering the blowing air comprise a system, comprising in particular pneumatic valves and sensors, capable of following the pressure profile of the compressed air during the pressure let-down of the blow cavities.
• Said recovery means advantageously, make the recovered discharged air available at a predetermined average pressure, preferably varying within a range of between 10 and 12 bar, so that it can be adjusted by suitable controlling means to a predetermined constant pressure, preferably equal to approximately 6 ⁇ 7 bar, to achieve an optimum supply to the pneumatic motor.
• the means of converting the pneumatic energy in the recovered discharged air comprise: - an inlet duct 1 through which the recovered air is fed at said predetermined constant pressure;
• the pneumatic motor 2 connected by means of the connecting joint 3 to the generator 4, for example an asynchronous motor, is driven by the discharged air, recovered and adjusted to the predetermined constant pressure and fed through the inlet duct 1 on the apparatus, and transfers the energy to the asynchronous motor converting the residual pneumatic energy in the compressed air into electrical energy. Once it has been re-used, said air is discharged from the apparatus through the outlet 5.
• the generator 4 for example an asynchronous motor
• air that is discharged through the outlet 5, while not containing any pneumatic energy is nonetheless dry air and can thus be re-used a second time and sent, for example, by means of suitable conveying means to the cabinet to keep the dew point down or to a dryer to dry the grains of plastic material prior to extrusion.
• the electronic means of control and automation in the case of the generator consisting of an asynchronous motor, comprise:
• EMC electromagnetic compatibility filter
• - a second frequency converter for transferring the converted energy to the mains
• - electromechanical devices for controlling and protecting the equipment of the apparatus, such as switches, sectioning devices, fuses, etc.;
• the first frequency converter supplies the asynchronous motor and, thanks to the use of suitable algorithms and settings stored on the electronic board, controls the angular speed of the pneumatic motor by operating the electrical generator.
• the electrical energy regeneration process is optimized, to achieve a level of efficiency of approximately 90%.
• the second frequency converter converts the electrical energy generated by the electrical generator 4, synchronizing it to the appropriate voltage and frequency values so that it can be transferred to the electrical supply system.
• the method developed to optimize the regenerated power is based on balancing the pneumatic and electrical energy, so that, developing the respective equations, the optimal value of the percentage of use of the generator is expressed as a function of the pressure supplied to the pneumatic motor.
• the levels of efficiency thus obtained and measured remain very high across the system's entire main operating range, corresponding to between approx. 1500 and 2300 rpm, preferably equal to or more than 2000 rpm, as illustrated in the diagram in Fig. 3.
• Said diagram illustrates the performance of the apparatus according to the invention when the number of rpm changes at a nominal controlled pneumatic motor supply pressure of 6 bar.
• the curve 6 represents the performance trend of the energy recovery and conversion apparatus.
• the curves 7, 8 and 9 represent, respectively, the mechanical power trend, the regenerated power trend and the difference between said mechanical and regenerated powers, i.e. the power dissipated during the operation of the apparatus.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Power Engineering (AREA)
• Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Separation, Recovery Or Treatment Of Waste Materials Containing Plastics (AREA)
• Fluid-Pressure Circuits (AREA)
• Moulds For Moulding Plastics Or The Like (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

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Family Applications (1)

Country Status (4)

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Family Cites Families (6)

• 2005
  • 2005-08-05 IT IT000431A patent/ITRM20050431A1/it unknown
• 2006
  • 2006-08-02 CN CNA2006800285705A patent/CN101237984A/zh active Pending
  • 2006-08-02 EP EP06792642A patent/EP1919691A2/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2006-08-02 WO PCT/EP2006/064945 patent/WO2007017429A2/en active Application Filing

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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