JP2001008985A - Method and system for disposing medical waste - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To dispose medical wastes to which bacteria and impurities is stuck, e.g. plastic cases, injectors and the like discharged from medical institutions, hospitals and the like by sterilizing, melting and hardening so as to dispose them as general wastes. SOLUTION: It is composed of a shredder 2, a heating, sterilizing and shredding chamber 1, a heating and drying cylinder 10, a heating and melting cylinder 14 from which melted things are discharged, a molding and cooling chamber 19 that exchanges the melted things 17 and an empty case by a stainless-made ingot case 20, cools and discharges them, a cooling chamber 23 at which harmful steam and gases generated in each process are cooled and neutralized, and a neutralization chamber 25.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention sterilizes medical waste such as plastic containing a large amount of water such as a dialyzer discharged from hospitals and other medical institutions, and syringes and other plastics having bacteria and dirt attached thereto. The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for treating medical waste, which are reduced in solubility by melting and solidification and can be disposed of as general resin waste.

[0002] Medical waste discarded at medical institutions and inspection institutions may contain infectious dirt, cannot be handled in the same manner as general waste, and can be sterilized (sterilized) and reduced in volume. Various developments are being promoted with a focus on a method for efficiently performing the conversion.

[0003] For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 5-23657 relates to an apparatus for efficiently sterilizing and reducing the volume of medical waste such as used hemodialyzers. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. HEI 6-78983 discloses a device for melting and reducing the volume of a medical waste. The medical waste put in a container is crushed by a rotary blade, and high-pressure steam of 110 ° C or higher and 150 ° C or lower is used. A method is described in which the container is sterilized by filling the container for 10 minutes or more, and the exhaust air from the container is sterilized by a sterilizing filter.

[0004]

In the conventional method, for example, in the first case, medical waste must be stored in a dedicated container for storing processed materials, or large microwaves are used for melting plastics. The disadvantages are that the generator must be used, which makes it expensive, and that microwaves leaked outside have an adverse effect on precision medical equipment installed in the facility or medical equipment worn by patients. In the second case, there are drawbacks such as an increase in the size of the steam generator and an extremely small rate of volume reduction because medical waste is merely crushed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is possible to reliably remove harmful gases generated from medical waste such as plastic and to treat medical waste which has been outsourced to a hospital. The present invention has been made to provide a processing method and apparatus which can be disposed of in a facility of a medical testing institution, disposed of, sterilized, melted, and solidified, and easily disposed of as a general resin waste having a uniform shape which can be easily handled.

[0006]

The treatment method according to the present invention is a method for treating crushed and sterilized tanks at a temperature of 130 ° C to 150 ° C.
Heat sterilization and crushing by crushing with a double or triple shaft crusher while heating for about 5 minutes, 130 ° C while transferring crushed material containing a large amount of water by screw fiber Heating to ~ 150 ° C and heating and drying for about 20 to 30 minutes while transferring a distance of about 1500mm, similarly heating to 200 to 300 ° C while transferring a distance of about 2000mm, Heat melting treatment to melt, approximately 450mm x 300mm x 2
A mold cooling process for filling and holding in a 00 mm ingot case for cooling and fixing, a sterilizing cooling device for sterilizing and cooling water vapor generated in each process, and a ceramic filter, an alkali filter and an activated carbon filter for harmful gas were provided. It is characterized in that a neutralization treatment is performed in a neutralization tank.

[0007] The heat sterilization and crushing tank in the present invention comprises:
Equipped with a two-shaft or three-shaft crusher in the middle stage, a hopper for charging medical waste and an exhaust port for discharging steam and gas generated by heating are funnel-shaped below, Is formed, and a heater for heating is provided around the periphery, and the outer periphery is covered with a heat insulating material.

[0008] The heating and drying tube has an inlet connected to the outlet of the heat sterilization crushing tank at the upper end, and the inside of a cylindrical body having a funnel-shaped drying waste outlet and an outlet at the other end.
A screw fiber having a length of about mm is provided, and the crushed material having a high moisture content is dried while being slowly transferred over about 20 to 30 minutes. The harmful gas generated at that time is introduced into a neutralization tank described later through a pipe from an exhaust port.

[0009] The heating and melting cylinder is also provided with about 2
While transferring the dried and crushed material with a screw fiber having a length of 000 mm, the dried powder was heated to 160 to 230 ° C.
The melt is melted while being slowly transferred over about 0 minutes, and the melt is discharged from the melt outlet. In addition, harmful gas generated during the treatment is introduced into the neutralization tank as in the heat sterilization and crushing tank.

[0010] Further, the upper part of the molding cooling tank is connected to the above-mentioned melt discharge port, and a large number of approximately 450 mm x 300 mm x 200 mm ingot cases for molding and solidifying the melt into a predetermined shape are accommodated therein. Automatically moves when a certain amount is filled, and the next ingot case is replenished. In addition, harmful gas generated during the treatment is introduced into the neutralization tank.

The steam discharged from the heat sterilization and crushing tank is completely sterilized by a heater attached to a pipe near the discharge port, and the heat sterilization and crushing tank and the heating and drying cylinder are connected by a pipe to form a water layer in the cooling layer. And gas. The heating and melting cylinder that generates toxic gas, the molded cooling layer, the cooling layer, and the neutralization layer are connected by piping, and the toxic gas is made harmless by passing through a ceramic, an alkali filter, and an activated carbon filter, and is discharged into the atmosphere. The neutralization tank has a double structure that circulates cooling water around it, and cool harmless gas is released.

[0012] The medical waste to be treated according to the present invention is a dialyzer discharged from a medical facility or a medical-related inspection facility.
And waste containers used for excrement storage, such as syringes, colostomy, disposable diapers, and other disposable diapers, as well as other medical and medical waste. It is in a bulky state as it is.

In the final landfill for processing waste, plastics are large and bulky, so that the landfill is quickly filled, and it is difficult to secure a new landfill due to recent social conditions, and the amount of waste is reduced. Is urgent, and plastic does not rot or decompose like animal and plant waste, so it keeps its original shape forever. There is a drawback that is not performed effectively.

In the present invention, since the medical waste melted by the heat sterilization treatment is fixed in a fixed shape in the ingot case, the waste becomes compact without being bulky, and post-treatment such as disposal becomes easy. .

[0015]

Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. A heat sterilization crushing tank 1 has a double-shaft or three-shaft crusher 2 in the middle stage, and medical waste is disposed above. A hopper 4 for charging the object 3 and an exhaust port 5 for discharging steam and gas generated by heating are provided, and a crushed material discharge port 7 for discharging the crushed material 6 by forming a funnel-shaped lower part and discharging the crushed material 6 is formed. A heater 8 for heating is provided in the first embodiment, and the periphery is covered with a heat insulating material 9. In the figure, reference numeral 30 denotes a guide plate.

The heat-drying sterilization cylinder 10 has an inlet 11 above the end connected to the crushed material outlet 7 of the heat-sterilization crushing tank 1, and a funnel-shaped dry material outlet 12 and an exhaust port 5 at the other end. A screw fiber 15 having a diameter of about 200 mm and a length of 1500 mm is provided inside the cylindrical body having the crushed material, and the crushed material 6 having a high water content is slowly transferred and dried for about 20 to 30 minutes. Further, a heater 8 'for heating is provided around the cylindrical body,
Further, the whole is covered with a heat insulating material 9.

The heating / melting cylinder 14 connects the dry waste discharge port 12 and the introduction port 11 'of the heating / drying sterilization cylinder 10, and is provided with a screw fiber 15 having a length of about 150φ and 2,000 mm similarly provided inside. 20 while transferring the dried crushed material 16
The mixture is heated to 0 to 300 ° C. and melted for about 20 to 30 minutes, and the melt 17 is discharged from the melt discharge port 18.

The upper part of the cooling bath 19 is connected to the above-mentioned melt discharge port 18, and the inside thereof is formed to have a size of approximately 450 mm.times.300 mm.times.200 mm for forming and solidifying the melt into a predetermined shape.
The stainless steel ingot case 20 is stored, and when a predetermined amount of the molten medical waste is filled, it automatically moves in the discharge direction, and the empty ingot case 20 is continuously refilled. The size of the opening of the ingot case 20 is slightly larger than that of the bottom in order to facilitate the discharge of solids. When the ingot case 20 is filled with a predetermined amount of the melted medical waste, a weight sensor (not shown) is activated, and the conveyor moves a predetermined distance, and an appropriate transport method. The adoption of the device 31 is possible.

The heat sterilization and crushing tank 1 heats and sterilizes medical waste mainly composed of plastics, and crushes it with a powerful double-shaft or triple-shaft crusher 2 to evaporate water and effect sterilization. Increase the drying effect in the process. Also,
The heat sterilizing and crushing tank 1 has a closed structure in which the entire wall is covered with a wall except for a charging path 21 leading to the hopper-4. The medical waste is introduced into the tank from the side introduction path 21 via the hopper 4, is guided to the guide wall 25 inclined downward, and is efficiently crushed by the crusher 2.

Further, even if there are gas and foreign substances scattered at the time of crushing of the heat sterilization and crushing tank 1 discharged from the heat sterilization and crushing tank 1, the gas and foreign substances are completely removed by the heater 8 ″ attached to the pipe 22 near the exhaust port 5. The heat sterilization crushing tank 1 and the heat-drying sterilization cylinder 10 are connected by a pipe 22 and separated into water and gas in a cooling tank 23, and the water is discharged from a drain 27. The periphery of the cooling tank 26 is doubled. Circulating structure and no cooling water.
Heating and melting cylinder 1 where harmful gases are easily generated by high-temperature heating 1
4 and a cooling tank 23 in which a harmful gas may remain, which is connected to a neutralization tank 26 via a pipe 22, and the harmful gas is filtered into a ceramic filter 27, an alkali filter 38 and an activated carbon filter
It is rendered harmless by passing through 29 and released into the atmosphere. In the drawings, reference numeral 30 denotes a blower. Further, the neutralization tank 26 for collecting and neutralizing harmful gases has a double structure in which cooling water is circulated around the tank, and after cooling, discharges into the atmosphere.

[0021]

Embodiment 2 FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the present invention, in which the same elements as those in the above-mentioned embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicate description will be omitted. In this embodiment, the configuration of each part is basically the same as that of the first embodiment.
By appropriately configuring the connecting position of the heating / melting cylinder 14 and the molding / cooling tank 19 so that the moving direction of the processing object is alternated, it is possible to finish the product into a vertically long and compact product having a small installation area.

The present invention is constructed as described above, and the medical waste put in the heat sterilizing and crushing tank 1 is heated to 130 to 150 ° C.
The plastics are crushed into small pieces by a powerful two- or three-shaft crusher 2, and a large amount of water is efficiently discharged as steam into the cooling tank 23 through the exhaust port 5. The water is introduced, becomes aseptic water, and is discharged from the drain 24. On the other hand, since the plastics are finely crushed, the adhered contaminants are efficiently sterilized, and the moisture is quickly converted into water vapor and exhausted from the exhaust port 5, and various plastics having different melting points are present. Even in this case, since the process proceeds to the next step in a state of being mixed into small pieces, the heat in the heating and drying tube 10 can be easily conducted uniformly.
In the heating and drying cylinder 10, the temperature in the cylinder is 130 ° C. to 150 ° C.
While being heated to about 1,500 mm with a screw fiber 13 of about 1500 mm for 20 to 30 minutes while being dried. Dry medical waste is dried
It is introduced into the heating and melting cylinder 14 having a substantially same structure,
mm at a temperature of 160 ° C to 230 ° C for 20 to 3
It melts while moving slowly over 0 minutes and elutes from the melt outlet 18. The melt falls into the ingot case 20 and, when a predetermined amount is filled, is automatically transferred to a cooling step, and at the same time, an empty ingot case 20 is refilled.

When the filling in the ingot case 20 has cooled, it is discharged from the case. In the solidification using the ingot case 20, the same size and the same shape can be standardized, so that subsequent processes such as packing and loading can be standardized, and handling becomes easy. Furthermore, medical waste mainly composed of plastic is bulky at first, but is reduced in volume because it is melted and solidified. This eliminates the need for extensive land space for disposal.

In addition, assuming that harmful gas is generated during the treatment process, the respective processes are connected by piping, and the harmful gas is introduced into the neutralization tank, and the ceramic filter 27, the alkali filter 28 and the activated carbon filter 29 Is passed through, it is sanitary and safe, and releases a clean and odorless gas to the atmosphere.

[0025]

According to the method for treating medical waste of the present invention, even medical waste having a high water content, such as a dialyzer, can be completely sanitized by heat sterilization and pulverization, heat drying, and heat melting. In addition, since bulky plastics are compacted in a compact form, it can contribute to the effective use of landfills and other final disposal sites.
Also, even if the gas generated by sterilization contains harmful substances,
Since it is removed by the neutralization reaction, it can be reliably removed, and harmless and odorless gas can be released into the atmosphere. Furthermore, the processing apparatus of the present invention is composed of a powerful crusher, a drying apparatus and a melting apparatus combining a screw fiber and a heater, and a molding cooling tank capable of automatically discharging an ingot case. Is extremely simple, and the disposal of medical waste, which has been outsourced to date, can be set up in a limited facility within a hospital, and the waste processed at this facility can be disposed of as general waste. It has the feature of.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Heat sterilization crushing tank 2 Crusher 3 Medical waste 4 Hopper 5 Exhaust port 6 Crushed material 7 Crushed material discharge port 8, 8 ', 8 "Heater 9 Insulation material 10 Heat drying tube 11 Inlet 12 Dry matter Discharge port 13 Screw fiber 14 Heating and melting cylinder 15 Screw fiber 16 Dry crushed material 17 Melt 18 Melt discharge port 19 Molding cooling tank 20 Ingot case 21 Input path 22 Pipe 23 Cooling tank 24 Drain 25 Neutralization tank 26 Ceramic filter 27 Alkaline filter 28 Activated carbon filter 29 Blower 30 Guide plate 31 Ingot case transfer device

Claims (5)

[Claims] Claims 1. Heat sterilization and crushing treatment, heat drying treatment,
A medical waste treatment method comprising the steps of heating and melting treatment, molding cooling treatment, steam cooling and harmful gas neutralization treatment. (1) A double-shaft or triple-shaft crusher is provided in the middle stage, and a hopper for charging medical waste and an exhaust port for discharging steam and gas generated by heating are provided above, and a lower portion is provided below. A heating heater is provided around a casing formed with a crushed material discharge port for discharging the crushed material by squeezing into a funnel shape, and a heat sterilization crushing tank in which the outer periphery is covered with a heat insulating material. (2) A screw fiber is disposed inside a cylindrical body having an inlet connected to the crushed material discharge port above the end and having a funnel-shaped dry substance discharge port and an exhaust port at the other end. A heating / drying cylinder with a heater attached to the outer periphery and the periphery covered with a heat insulating material. (3) A screw fiber is disposed inside a cylindrical body having an inlet connected to the dried product outlet above the end and having a melt outlet and an outlet at the other end. A heating and melting tube with a heater attached to it and its surroundings covered with a heat insulating material. (4) A transfer mechanism for connecting the upper part to the melt discharge port, storing therein an ingot case for forming and solidifying the melt into a predetermined shape, sequentially feeding out a predetermined amount of the melt, and feeding an empty ingot case. Equipped molding cooling tank. (5) A cooling tank that collects and cools water vapor and harmful gas generated in the heat sterilization crushing tank and the heating and drying cylinder by cooling means such as circulating cooling water with a peripheral wall having a double structure. (6) A neutralization tank in which a ceramic filter, an alkali filter, and an activated carbon filter are disposed, and harmful gases generated in the heating and melting cylinder and the molding and cooling tank are collected and neutralized. A medical waste treatment apparatus configured as described above. 3. The medical waste treatment apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a sterilizing heater is provided in a part of the pipe for sterilizing gas and foreign substances released at the time of crushing. 4. The medical waste treatment apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the moving direction of the treated material in the heating / drying cylinder, the heating / melting cylinder, and the molding / cooling tank is alternated. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein when a predetermined weight of the molten material is stored in the ingot case, the sensor is actuated and sent first, and then an empty ingot case is supplied. The molding cooling tank according to claim 2, wherein