EP2601327A1

EP2601327A1 - Vacuum substrate treatment system having an emergency cooling device

Info

Publication number: EP2601327A1
Application number: EP11757634.8A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Hubertus Von Der Waydbrink
Original assignee: Von Ardenne Anlagentechnik GmbH
Current assignee: Von Ardenne GmbH
Priority date: 2011-09-16
Filing date: 2011-09-16
Publication date: 2013-06-12
Also published as: WO2013037423A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a vacuum substrate treatment system, comprising a system chamber having at least one system component that can be cooled and a cooling device for the system component that can be cooled. Said cooling device comprises a coolant circuit, which is connected to the system component that can be cooled and has at least one first coolant pump that can be driven by a first drive device. The invention is characterised in that the cooling device further comprises an emergency cooling device, which comprises a branch of the coolant circuit extending parallel to the first coolant pump and in which at least one second coolant pump is arranged that can be driven by a second drive device, and the second drive device can be operated with compressed gas.

Description

Vacuum substrate treatment plant with emergency cooling device

The invention relates to an emergency cooling device, in particular for vacuum systems such as substrate coating systems, and a vacuum system with such Notkühleinrichtung.

In vacuum substrate treatment plants in the field of thin-film technologies, for example

Coating systems, etching systems, etc., are released in the interior of the system chamber due to the high energy conversion during operation, large amounts of heat. This heat must be continually diverted from the plant chamber to the

temperature-sensitive components of the plant like

For example, bearings, gaskets, etc., and to

Do not damage the treated substrates themselves.

For this purpose, the vacuum system usually comprises at least one coolant circuit, which is conducted inside the plant chamber by an active heat source (generated heat) such as a magnetron, a heater and the like and / or by a passive heat source (system component to be protected, which absorbs radiant heat) such as

Bearing of a transport device, flap valves, orifices, chamber walls between adjacent chambers and the like is passed. This coolant circuit usually has at least one coolant pump outside the installation chamber, which is driven by a drive device, usually an electric motor, is drivable and the

Coolant in the coolant circuit between the heat source in the interior of the plant chamber and a heat sink outside the plant chamber, such as a heat exchanger circulate.

In modern vacuum substrate treatment plants the

described type are characterized by the running in it

Process temperatures reached around 600 ° C. Here, a thermally stable and highly productive operation must be ensured, which means, among other things, that the cooling

refrigeration system components must be secured under all circumstances.

In the event of a power failure, all moving parts (e.g., substrate transport means, rotatable tubular magnetron) come to a standstill and the circulation of the coolant is interrupted. This causes the heat sources to continue to give off heat due to their high temperature, so that the cooling water boils within a few seconds,

Plant components such as coolant lines burst and the plant causes devastating damage.

An object of the invention is to cool the system components to be cooled even in the case

ensure that the power and / or the electrically driven pumps themselves fail. This object is achieved by a vacuum substrate treatment system having the features of independent claim 1, an emergency cooling device having the features of independent claim 4 and a use having the features of independent claim 11. In the dependent claims are advantageous embodiments and

Further developments described.

It was searched for a usable in case of power failure, safely available energy source and found that

Pressure vessels with dry air (CDA) or nitrogen, which are usually part of the system anyway and serve to ventilate the plant chamber, could provide pressure for hours and thus drive energy. From this

developed the proposals proposed here, explained in more detail below.

First, a vacuum substrate treatment plant

proposed, comprising a plant chamber with at least one coolable system component and a

Cooling device for the coolable system component, one connected to the coolable system component

Coolant circuit with at least a first

Coolant pump includes that through a first

Drive device is driven, the

Cooling device further comprises an emergency cooling device with a running parallel to the first coolant pump branch of the coolant circuit, in which at least one second coolant pump is arranged, which is drivable by a second drive means, and the second

Drive device is operated by compressed gas.

According to a first embodiment, the second

Drive device connected by a gas supply line with a provided for ventilation of the vacuum substrate treatment system compressed gas reservoir of the vacuum substrate treatment system. It is understood, however, that the

Notkühleinrichtung also connected to another source of pressurized gas, such as a compressor, and yet could be used advantageously for emergency cooling of the vacuum substrate treatment system, without departing from the spirit. Such a compressor could for example by an internal combustion engine

be powered or powered by an electric motor that uses its power from an emergency generator or relates to another electrical energy storage.

Furthermore, an emergency cooling device for a

Coolant circuit, which at least a first

Coolant pump and at least a first

Drive device has proposed, wherein the proposed emergency cooling device at least a second coolant pump with a suction port and a

Pressure port which is drivable by a second drive means comprises, and wherein at the suction port and at the pressure port of the second coolant pump

Connecting lines are mounted and arranged so that the second coolant pump parallel to the first

Coolant pump can be connected to the coolant circuit and wherein the second drive means is operated by compressed gas.

As in a power failure, the

Primary cooling device, which is the circulating

Cooling system water cools, fails or can fail for other reasons, a coolant pump while maintaining the coolant circulation. However, the coolant may heat up improperly. The in the plant

stored heat must be dissipated to a heat sink. That can in the case of a double-walled plant

(Cooling water circulates within the double wall) the

Heat capacity of the container and the cooling water itself. Depending on the circumstances, it may be necessary to the heat sink in the form of additional water tank

realize. The heat capacity of the heat sink must be chosen so that the resulting increase in temperature of the circulating cooling water can not cause damage.

As will be explained in more detail below, is the

Emergency cooling device taken in itself already suitable to safely operate a coolant circuit of a vacuum substrate treatment plant even in case of power failure, For example, by such emergency cooling device to a

Vacuum Substrate Treatment System is provided and connected to the coolant circuit in the manner described. For this purpose, it can be provided, for example, that the at least one second coolant pump, the at least one second drive device as well as all connecting and connecting lines for the coolant and the compressed gas and optionally further components of the

Emergency cooling device, to the following even closer

are received, mounted on a common base frame and the connection lines have connection ends for releasable connection to a coolant circuit, so that the emergency cooling device as a whole movable as an assembly, i. optionally positionable and transportable.

This makes it possible to retrofit an emergency cooling device of the type described on an existing vacuum substrate treatment plant to this

make fail-safe, or even to position the emergency cooling device, if necessary, at a certain point of the vacuum substrate treatment plant, where this

Emergency cooling device is needed.

According to a further embodiment it is provided that the second drive device is connected by a gas supply line with a compressed gas reservoir. As already described above, the compressed gas reservoir may be an already existing pressure vessel of a vacuum substrate treatment plant. For example, nitrogen is often available in LPG tanks. Depending on the size of the system, it may be necessary to provide very large gas flows over many hours. In nitrogen LPG tanks such large amounts of gas can be stored. However, the proposed emergency cooling device is also suitable for use with other cooling devices as a redundant cooling system, of course also in other areas than the thin-film technologies. Other compressed gas sources can be used as an energy source, as has also already been explained in connection with the proposed vacuum substrate treatment plant.

In a specific embodiment, it may be provided that the second coolant pump is a double diaphragm pump and the second drive device is a pressure change mechanism integrated into the double diaphragm pump.

Double diaphragm pumps are known per se and they are available with electric motors, internal combustion engines or the direct

Drive through a pressurized gas, wherein in the double diaphragm pump, a pressure change mechanism is integrated, which allows the two membranes act alternately as a suction member and as a pressure member. Such pumps belong to the group of

Positive displacement pumps and work as follows:

The compressed gas is controlled by an automatic

Pressure change mechanism in the form of an air control valve, which switches, as soon as a membrane has reached the end position, through one of two directional openings directed to the right or left air chamber of the pump. The pump has two fluid chambers, two air chambers and two diaphragms. In each chamber pair are the liquid chamber and the

Air chamber separated by the flexible membrane.

Once compressed gas is in the air chamber, depending on the switching state of the pressure change mechanism arranged in the pump, the air pressure at the back of this air chamber limiting membrane is effective, so that the coolant from the adjacent to the membrane

Liquid chamber in the outlet pipe (pressure port) is pressed. Because the two membranes are connected by a connecting shaft

are connected to each other at the same time

opposite second diaphragm to the center of the pump

pulled, whereby there is a suction stroke, which sucks coolant through the inlet pipe (suction port) in the liquid adjacent to this second membrane chamber.

While a membrane by the compressed air the product

displaced, the other membrane creates a negative pressure by being withdrawn. As a result, the coolant flows into the liquid chamber and is in the next stroke

repressed .

By ball valves, the diaphragm chamber is alternately closed and opened. These ball valves arranged in the suction ports and pressure ports of the pump open and close, depending on the direction in which the respective diaphragm moves to fill the one fluid chamber (suction side), the other fluid chamber to empty (pressure side) and at the same time the return of coolant to block. At the end of the shaft stroke, the pressure swing mechanism automatically changes the air pressure to the opposite side to reverse the action of the pump.

An alternative embodiment provides that the second coolant pump has a rotating conveying member, as is the case for example in centrifugal pumps, screw pumps and the like, and the second drive means is an air motor, which may be designed for example as a piston engine or screw motor. There are also

Air motors according to the principle of a rotary vane pump. At the emergency cooling device can increase the

Delivery and two or more second coolant pump to be arranged parallel to each other. It can be for each Coolant pump to be provided its own drive means or a common drive means for all parallel coolant pumps can be used.

It can further be provided that arranged in the coolant circuit, a differential pressure sensor and with a in the

Gas supply arranged, automatic shut-off valve is connected. The differential pressure sensor can

Advantageously in the first branch of the coolant circuit, in which the first coolant pump is arranged to be arranged and so a havariebenntten stoppage of the first coolant pump due to the then missing

Detect pressure difference between flow and return. As a result, the automatic shut-off valve is triggered, which then releases the gas supply from the pressure reservoir to the second coolant pump in fractions of a second, so that it begins to operate and thus the coolant continues to circulate.

The here proposed use of a compressed gas reservoir of a vacuum substrate treatment system for driving a coolant pump of the vacuum substrate treatment system

makes it possible that in case of failure in case of power failure and consequent stoppage of the cooling device nevertheless an emergency cooling takes place, which prevents catastrophic property and personal injury. This can be done advantageously by one of the variants of an emergency cooling device proposed here, which

is correspondingly connected to the cooling circuit of the vacuum substrate treatment system and the compressed gas reservoir, so that the emergency cooling automatically assumes the role of the failed electric coolant pump.

The invention is based on

Embodiments and accompanying drawings closer explained. Show

1 shows an embodiment of an emergency cooling device, which is designed as a transportable assembly,

Fig. 2 in a schematic representation of a

Embodiment of a vacuum substrate treatment plant with a coolant circuit and an emergency cooling device according to FIG. 1, and

Fig. 3 in a schematic representation a simplified

Embodiment of a vacuum substrate treatment plant with a coolant circuit and an emergency cooling device.

In the exemplary embodiment, which is shown in different views in FIG. 1 and whose integration into an existing coolant circuit 24 of a vacuum substrate treatment plant in FIG. 2 is shown schematically, is an emergency cooling device 25, the

Components are arranged on a common base frame 6 and the connecting lines manifold 1 and manifold return 4 are formed for releasable connection to the coolant circuit 24 and their

Connecting line gas supply line 8 is formed for releasable connection with a compressed gas reservoir 23, so that this Notkühleinrichtung 25 can be positioned and arbitrarily

is transportable.

The emergency cooling device 25 is connected to the manifold flow 1 and the manifold return 4, the purposes of maintenance by shut-off valves 32 are lockable, parallel to

Coolant circuit 24 of the main cooling device of the vacuum substrate treatment system connected. This

Coolant circuit 24 extends through one or more system components 16 to be cooled in the interior of the system chamber 15. In the coolant circuit 24, a first coolant pump 17 with a first Drive device 18 and a check valve 26th

arranged the coolant through a flow

(solid line) and a return (dashed line)

Line) between the heat source 16 and a heat sink 19 circulates. The heat sink 19 is in the schematic

Representation of Fig. 2 shown as a cooler.

Of course, this heat sink may also be a double wall of the installation chamber 15 or a heat exchanger, via which the heat dissipated by the heat source 16 is delivered to a secondary circuit.

In the emergency cooling device 25 four drivable by compressed gas double diaphragm pumps 2 are hydraulically connected in parallel. The double-diaphragm pumps 2 combine in each case the function of a second coolant pump 20 and a second drive means 21 driving the second coolant pump 20

Notkühleinrichtung with a coolant circuit 24, all four double diaphragm pumps 2 are hydraulically connected in parallel to the first, electrically driven coolant pump 17 and first drive means 18 of the coolant circuit 24 and take over a collection function when the first coolant pump 17 and / or the first

Drive device 18 fails. A between the flow 1 (solid line) and the return 4 (dashed

Line) of the emergency cooling device 25 arranged

Differential pressure switch 31 generates a signal which can detect the control device of the vacuum substrate treatment system, not shown here, whether the

Double diaphragm pumps 2 work or not. With the connections of the headers 1

(solid line) and return 4 (dashed line), the emergency cooling device 25 is connected to the coolant circuit 24 of the vacuum substrate treatment system, which extends inside the system chamber 15. The four driven by compressed gas double diaphragm pumps 2 are also pneumatically connected in parallel. In this case, the inflow of compressed gas for each double diaphragm pump 2 is separately lockable by a respective pressure gas shut-off valve 27. Each connected between two manifolds 1.4 double diaphragm pumps 2 are the input side through the

Gas supply line 8 with compressed gas, for example nitrogen or CDA (compressed dried air = dried compressed air),

fed, which is discharged via the exhaust pipe 7, after the gas has passed through the double diaphragm pumps 2.

There, where the compressed gas via the gas supply line 8 to the

Notkühler is introduced, allows the three-way shut-off valve 9 a separation of the entire

Emergency cooling device of two alternative gas feeders 8 for two different compressed gas sources 23, for example, two belonging to the plant pressure tanks for nitrogen (N2) and CDA. The shut-off valve 9 is designed here as a three-way shut-off valve and therefore allows the optional connection of one of the two compressed gas reservoir 23. In the supply lines of the two compressed gas reservoirs 23 are each a pressure gauge (for example, pressure gauge) 28 and one each

Pressure switch 29 is arranged, which generates a warning signal when the gas pressure is too low. The compressed gas reservoir 23 for nitrogen (N2) also has two

Level sensors 30 for the minimum and maximum

Level on which generate a warning signal when the

Level of the compressed gas reservoir 23 falls below the minimum level or exceeds the maximum level.

This is followed by three in parallel branches of the

Pipeline arranged shut-off valves 10, 11, 12, each of which, either independently and independently of the respective other two shut-off valves allow or block the gas flow optional. The mechanical shut-off valve 10 is over the

Trigger line 13 controlled independently. The trigger lines 13 are connected to the flow (solid line) and the

Return (dashed line) of the coolant circuit 24 connected and lead the coolant with each

applied pressure to the mechanical shut-off valve 10 zoom. The current during operation of the main cooling device applied differential pressure between flow and return of the

Coolant circuit 24 acts on a in the interior of the

mechanical shut-off valve 10 arranged membrane and this keeps the shut-off valve 10 is closed. Is that sinking?

Differential pressure between flow and return of the

Coolant circuit 24 from because the main cooling device has failed, so causes a force acting on the membrane in the interior of the check valve 10 spring, that

Shut-off valve 10 opens, so that the compressed gas to the

Double diaphragm pumps 2 are routed and these begin to work.

The electropneumatic shut-off valve 11, however, switched electrically via the trigger line 14. For this purpose, between the flow and return of the coolant circuit 24 a

electrical differential pressure switch 22 connected, whose signal output is connected to the shut-off valve 11. The fitting during operation of the main cooling device

Differential pressure between flow and return of the

Coolant circuit 24 causes an electrical

Signal present. As long as this electrical signal on

Shut-off valve 11 is applied, this is a through

pneumatic pressure reservoir, which is arranged in the interior of the mechanical shut-off valve 10, kept closed.

Decreases the differential pressure between flow and return of the coolant circuit 24, because the main cooling device has failed, so there is no electrical signal from

Differential pressure switch 22 on, the pneumatic

Pressure reservoir empties and the shut-off valve 11 opens, so that the compressed gas is directed to the double diaphragm pumps 2 and these begin to work.

In addition to the two automatic working

Shut-off valves 10 and 11, the emergency cooling device can be switched on and off by the parallel to these two shut-off valves 10, 11 arranged manual shut-off valve 12.

The emergency cooling device described has made it possible to access energetically usable resources on vacuum substrate treatment systems which can be used for emergency operation of the cooling device, as well as a detector which can operate without current and which recognizes the standstill of the coolant as being critical from the particular risk situation in vacuum substrate treatment systems and the emergency cooling device starts up.

Fig. 3 shows a simple embodiment of a

Cooling device with an emergency cooling device on one

Vacuum Substrate Treatment Facilities.

In a plant chamber 15 of a vacuum substrate treatment plant are a heat source 16 in the form of a system component to be cooled and a heat sink 19 in the form of a cooler through which a belonging to a cooling means coolant circuit 24 extends. The cooling device further includes a

Emergency cooling device 25, which is parallel to the in the

Coolant circuit 24 arranged first coolant pump 17, which is driven by a first drive means 18 in the form of an electric motor, extending branch, in which a second coolant pump 20, which is driven by a second drive means 21 in the form of an air motor, is arranged.

The second coolant pump 20 is replaced by a second Drive device 21 driven, which by a

Compressed gas is operable. This pressurized gas is provided by a compressed gas reservoir 23, which is part of the vacuum substrate treatment system and normally for

Ventilation of the system chamber 15 is used.

The arranged in the coolant circuit 24

Differential pressure switch 22 detects a stoppage of the first coolant pump 17, for example, due to a power failure, and then causes a shut-off valve 9, which is arranged in the gas supply line 8 between compressed gas reservoir 23 and second drive means 21, is opened, so that the second coolant pump 20 with compressed gas is supplied, whereby the coolant is further circulated despite the stoppage of the first coolant pump and thereby the cooling of the heat source 16 is ensured.

List of reference headers

diaphragm pumps

pulsation dampers

Manifold return

vent valve

base frame

exhaust port

gas supply

shut-off valve

Mechanical shut-off valve

Electric shut-off valve

Manual shut-off valve

Trigger line for 10

Trigger line for 11

conditioning chamber

Heat source (e.g., plant component to be cooled) first coolant pump

first drive device

Heat sink (e.g., heat exchanger, radiator)

second coolant pump

second drive device Differential Pressure Switch

Pressure gas reservoir

Coolant circuit

Notkühleinrichtung

check valve

shut-off valve

pressure gauge

pressure switch

level sensor

Differential Pressure Switch

shut-off valve

Claims

Vacuum substrate treatment system, comprising a plant chamber with at least one coolable

Plant component and a cooling device for the coolable system component, the one with the

connected to coolable plant component

Coolant circuit with at least a first

Coolant pump includes that through a first

Drive device is driven, thereby

characterized in that the cooling device further comprises an emergency cooling device with a branch of the pump running parallel to the first coolant pump

Coolant circuit comprises, in which at least one second coolant pump is arranged, which is drivable by a second drive means, and the second drive means is operated by compressed gas.

Vacuum substrate treatment system according to claim 1, characterized in that the second

Drive device by a gas supply line with a provided for ventilation of the vacuum substrate treatment system compressed gas reservoir of the vacuum Substrate treatment plant is connected.

3. Vacuum substrate treatment system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the

Emergency cooling device according to one of claims 4 to 10 is formed.

4. Notkühleinrichtung for a coolant circuit, which has at least a first coolant pump and at least one first drive means, the Notkühleinrichtung comprising at least a second coolant pump with a suction port and a pressure port by a second

Drive device is driven, wherein attached to the suction port and to the pressure port of the second coolant pump connecting lines and are arranged so that the second coolant pump parallel to the first coolant pump with the

Coolant circuit is connectable and wherein the second drive means is operated by compressed gas.

5. emergency cooling device according to claim 4, characterized

characterized in that the second drive means is connected by a gas supply line to a compressed gas reservoir.

6. emergency cooling device according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the second coolant pump is a double diaphragm pump and the second

Drive device is a pressure change mechanism integrated in the double diaphragm pump.

7. emergency cooling device according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the second coolant pump has a rotating conveyor member and the second

Drive device is an air motor.

8. emergency cooling device according to one of claims 4 to 7, characterized in that at least two second coolant pumps are arranged parallel to each other

9. emergency cooling device according to one of claims 4 to 8, characterized in that arranged in the coolant circuit, a differential pressure sensor and arranged with a in the gas supply line, automatic

Shut-off valve is connected.

10. emergency cooling device according to one of claims 4 to 8, characterized in that the at least one second coolant pump, the at least one second drive means and all connecting and connecting lines for the coolant and the compressed gas on a common base frame

are attached and the connecting cables

Having connecting ends for releasably connecting to a coolant circuit, so that the

Notkühleinrichtung is movable as an assembly.

11. Use of a compressed gas reservoir of a vacuum substrate treatment plant for driving a

Coolant pump of the vacuum substrate treatment plant