JP2001219050A - Fluidized bed granulating/coating apparatus and fluidized bed granulating/coating method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To continuously conduct the batch operation of each step of a fluidized bed granulating/coating process in the fluidized bed granulating/coating technique. SOLUTION: A plurality of functional stations 13 each having the individual step of the fluidized bed granulating/coating process are arranged in an upper treating pat 10 by disposing them at even intervals on the circumference. A plurality of granular particle-housing vessels 22 corresponding to the stations 13 are arranged in an intermediate housing part 20 under the part 10 by disposing them at even intervals on the circumference. Air supplying stations 31 corresponding to the vessels 22 are arranged in a lower air supplying part 30 under the part 20. The vessels 22 coating granular particles are successively advanced to the individual stations 13 and the granular particles are subjected to various kinds of treatments so that the granular particles are continuously granulated/ coated by a batch.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a granulation coating technique in which a granule is placed in a fluidized state and subjected to a process such as granulation, coating, mixing, stirring, or drying.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A fluidized bed apparatus can perform granulation coating and drying of pharmaceuticals, foods, etc. with a single apparatus.
Since it has a closed structure, it is a device suitable for GMP, and granules using this device are widely used because they are relatively porous, amorphous, and have good solubility.

[0003] There are many types of fluidized bed apparatuses (for example, see "Granulation Handbook" edited by the Japan Powder Industry Technology Association, published by Ohmsha, pages 283 to 348). (Including semi-continuous and continuous).

At present, in most cases for granulation of pharmaceuticals and the like,
A batch system is used. This is because the batch type is more suitable for obtaining a granulated product having a uniform particle diameter, and a sufficiently dried product can be obtained in a single device, so that the produced particles are transferred to another drying device. It is not necessary and is superior in GMP.

On the other hand, in the continuous method shown in, for example, “Granulation Handbook” p301, FIGS. 7 and 56 and p302 and FIGS. The classified granules are continuously discharged. This eliminates the need for independent steps before and after the main steps such as charging, premixing, heating, cooling, and discharging of the raw materials, and shortens the processing time. In addition, since a steady operation is theoretically possible, process control and management should be easy.

However, a continuous fluidized bed contains particles at all stages of granulation, and the particles are classified and discharged by a wind sieve. However, the classification effect is hard to be perfect, and the particles are discharged. It has disadvantages such as that the particle size distribution of the product is wide, and the granulated material is constantly discharged from the fluid chamber where the binder liquid is sprayed, so that a completely dried product cannot be obtained.

There have been proposals to improve these disadvantages. For example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-282629, a drying chamber is provided adjacent to a granulation chamber. However, although the drying chamber is effective, it does not contribute to the improvement of the particle size distribution. . Also, in the “Granulation Handbook” p303, FIGS. 7 and 59 and FIGS. 7 and 61, a sieve is provided to make the particle size uniform, but these are proposals as a system,
It cannot be said that it is an improvement of the apparatus itself, and after all, the non-uniformity of the product particle size in the continuous method remains as a fatal one.

In the case of a semi-continuous type, it can be said that the batch type apparatus can be intermittently charged and discharged, but its characteristics are located between the batch type and the continuous type. The relationship between the input / output amount and the processing amount (residence amount) is a method that is closer to either one. Therefore, the advantages and disadvantages are intermediate between the two.

[0009]

As described above, a batch-type apparatus is used for granulation and coating of pharmaceuticals due to such continuous drawbacks. With the increase in the size, there is a problem in scaling up the fluidized bed apparatus.

That is, when the size of the apparatus is increased, the time required for one batch becomes longer than that of a small machine, and the production capacity per unit time is not proportional to the charged amount and is lower than this. This means that while the charged amount increases in proportion to the cube of the size of the device, the amount of flowing air for maintaining the optimum flow state is proportional to the square (cross-sectional area) of the size of the device, and Because the drying speed is proportional to the amount of flowing air, the time required for drying increases in proportion to the size of the apparatus.

Further, in a large-sized apparatus, the bulk density of the granulated particles is increased, and the characteristics of the above-mentioned fluidized-bed granulated product are reduced. This is considered to be because the particles constantly repeat the motion of falling to the bottom even during the flow, so that the weight applied to the particles when temporarily accumulating is larger than that of a small machine.

In operation, as the size of the apparatus increases, it becomes more difficult to maintain a good flow state, and a poor flow state such as channeling, bubbling, or slugging tends to occur.

As described above, it is not preferable to increase the size of the fluidized bed apparatus to a certain degree or more. Therefore, when expanding the production scale, small apparatuses with a proven track record are installed in parallel to perform the same granulation processing. It will be implemented on multiple devices.

However, this method does not improve the floor space of the equipment and the production efficiency per worker with the expansion of the production scale, not only can not enjoy the advantages of mass production, but also the operating conditions between the equipment. There is a possibility that the unevenness of the quality of the granulated material due to the variation may become a problem. In a fluidized bed, the number of operating conditions is greater than in other granulation methods, and there are circumstances in which the effects of variations are more likely to be manifested than in other methods.

Therefore, while taking advantage of the advantages of the batch type apparatus,
The present inventors have determined that it is necessary to develop a continuous device that increases production capacity.

An object of the present invention is to provide a fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus in which the processes based on the respective steps constituting the fluidized bed granulation coating process are configured in a batch system, and the processes configured in the batch system are continuously performed. To be able to do it.

An object of the present invention is to make it possible to continuously perform a batch operation based on each step constituting a fluidized bed granulation coating process in a fluidized bed granulation coating method.

[0018]

According to the present invention, there is provided a fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus comprising: an intermediate storage section having a plurality of powdery material storage containers circulated by a circulating means; An upper processing unit having a plurality of function stations having a function of a process, and a lower air supply unit having an air supply station. When stopping at the function station, the upper connection port of the powder container is connected to the lower connection port of each function station of the upper processing unit, and the powder container is Is connected to an upper connection port of an air supply station of the lower air supply section.

The circulating means is, for example, a rotating means for rotating a plurality of the granular material storage containers provided at the same circumferential position from the center of rotation about the center of rotation. The plurality of functional stations include, for example, all or some of a raw material supply station, a granulation coating station, a drying station, and a product discharge station.

The raw material supply station and the product discharge station are characterized in that, for example, a raw material supply pipe and a product discharge pipe are configured to be the same stations provided so as to be selectively used. The granulation coating station and the drying station are, for example, connected to a common exhaust port via a chamber. The air supply station is, for example, divided into a fluidized bed formation air supply station and a product discharge air supply station.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a fluidized-bed granulating and coating apparatus having any one of the above-mentioned constitutions, wherein a container for storing a granular material is placed in an upper treatment section of the fluidized-bed granulated coating apparatus. By sequentially moving the function stations having the respective process functions constituting the fluidized bed granulation coating process and supplying air from the lower air supply section of the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus, It is characterized in that the granules are granulated and / or coated.

Typical examples of the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus of the present invention include, for example, a raw material supply step, a granulation step, and a drying step which constitute a fluidized bed granulation coating process.
For a functional station having a function such as a product discharging process, a plurality of powder and granular material storage containers provided at a position radiating from the rotation center are rotated around the rotation center by rotating means, and each functional station is sequentially turned on. By circulating and supplying air from the air supply station into the granular material container from below, the granular material in the granular material container can be granulated and coated.

In the fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus of the present invention, a batch type element can be obtained by sequentially circulating the granule containing containers containing the granules around the function station,
It is designed to incorporate continuous elements and to combine the advantages of both types.

By using the method of the present invention for granulating and coating a granular material in a fluidized bed state using the fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus having such a configuration, it is possible to ensure uniformity of the particle size while maintaining the uniformity of the particle size. Mass productivity in a continuous system can also be ensured.

[0025]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing the configuration of an apparatus main body of a fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a state during operation of the fluidized-bed granulation-coating apparatus. FIG. 3A is a plan view of an upper processing unit of the fluidized-bed granulation coating apparatus,
(B) is a sectional view thereof. FIG. 4A is a plan view of an intermediate storage section of the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus, and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view thereof. FIG. 5A is a plan view of a lower air supply section of the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus, and FIG. 5B is a sectional view thereof.

The fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus of the present invention comprises:
As shown in FIG. 1, an upper processing unit 10 including a plurality of function stations having functions of respective steps constituting a fluidized-bed granulation coating process, and provided below the upper processing unit 10 for accommodating powder and granules. Intermediate storage unit 20 in which a plurality of granular material storage containers are rotatably arranged at a radial position from a rotation center.
The intermediate storage unit 20 is provided below the intermediate storage unit 20.
And a lower air supply unit 30 that supplies air to the air supply unit.

As shown in FIG. 2, the upper processing unit 10 is supported and fixed at a predetermined height from the installation position by columns 11 to be fixed. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the upper processing unit 10 is provided with a chamber 12 at the center, and moves from the position of the chamber 12 to the radiation position, that is, the center chamber 1.
A plurality of functional stations 13 are provided on the same circumference that surrounds 2 and are equally spaced from each other.

1 and 3, the functional station 13 includes, in the clockwise direction, a material supply station 13a, a granulation coating station 13b, a granulation coating station 13c, a granulation coating station 13d, and a drying station. 13e, and a product discharge station 13f.

The raw material supply station 13a is formed as a straight cylinder having an upper end closed and a lower end directly opened to the lower connection port 13g.
An exhaust connection pipe 15 a communicating with the chamber 12 is connected. A damper 17 for adjusting the amount of passing air is provided in the exhaust connection pipe 15a.

Granulation coating station 13b, 1
As shown in FIG. 1, 3c and 13d are closed at the upper end, each is formed in a straight cylinder similar to the raw material supply station 13a, and a bag filter 16a and a spray gun 16b are provided inside the cylinder. Above the bag filter 16a, a pulse jet nozzle 16c for eliminating clogging of the bag filter 16a is provided. In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, exhaust connection pipes 15b, 15c, and 15d communicating with the chamber 12 are connected to the internal spaces of the granulation coating stations 13b, 13c, and 13d. , 15c and 15d are provided with a damper 17.

Granulation coating station 13b, 1
In 3c and 13d, for example, it may be configured to sequentially perform a step in which the granulation step is further divided, such as a preliminary granulation, a granulation 1 step, a granulation 2 step, and the like. Alternatively, these three stations may be configured to have the same granulation function. Further, granulation and coating may be performed in combination. Or,
Only the coating may be performed.

The drying station 13e is also formed as a straight cylinder having the same closed upper end as the raw material supply station 13a. Inside the cylinder, a bag filter 16a and a pulse jet nozzle 16 for eliminating clogging of the bag filter 16a are provided.
c is provided. Further, an exhaust connection pipe 15e that communicates with the chamber 12 is connected to the space in the cylinder, and a damper 17 is provided inside the exhaust connection pipe 15e.

An exhaust connection pipe 15 is provided inside each station.
Exhaust pipes 18 are provided in the chambers 12 communicated via a, 15b, 15c, 15d, and 15e, so that exhaust from each station can be exhausted to the outside of the fluidized bed granulation and coating apparatus main body. ing. At the time of exhausting, the opening / closing degree of the damper 17 is adjusted to adjust the amount of exhaust, or if necessary, a part of the damper 17 is used.
By closing, the station to be evacuated can be selected.

The product discharge station 13f is also formed in a straight cylinder substantially similar to the raw material supply station 13a, and a product transport pipe 19 is communicated from the ceiling side to the internal space as a product discharge pipe. Note that the product discharge station 13 f is not connected to the chamber 12 because a different exhaust pipe is used for the exhaust for forming the fluidized bed and the exhaust for discharging the product.

The functional station 13 includes a material supply station 13a and a product discharge station 13a.
f has been described as separate stations, but the raw material supply pipe 14 and the product transport pipe 19 are located in the same space.
Are connected to each other, and an on-off valve is provided for each, so that when one of them is used, the other is closed, so that the same station is provided with a raw material supply function and a product discharge function. Is also good.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the intermediate storage section 20 provided below the upper processing section 10 having the above structure is located at a position radiating from the center of rotation 21 and the position of each functional station 13 of the upper processing section 10. Corresponding to a plurality of granular material storage containers 2
2 are provided. The plurality of granular material storage containers 22 are all configured identically, and are formed in a substantially cylindrical shape including a straight cylindrical portion 22a and a conical cylindrical portion 22b following the straight cylindrical portion 22a. Straight tube part 22
An upper connection port 23a that is open as it is is formed above a, and a lower connection port 23b that is a narrow port that is opened as it is is formed below the conical cylindrical portion 22b.

The lower connection port 23b is provided with a powder fall prevention member 23c such as a perforated plate or a wire mesh, and the stored powder particles are moved while the powder container 22 moves to the next station. It is configured not to spill from the powder container 22.

The container 22 having the above-described structure includes a disk 24a having an upper connection port 23a opened, and a disk 24a having an upper connection port 23a.
The disk 24b having the opening 3b is opposed to each other, and the upper connection port 23a and the lower connection port 23b are made to correspond to each other, and the two connection ports are cylindrically connected by the straight cylindrical portion 22a and the conical cylindrical portion 22b. It is formed.

The disc 24b is rotated below the center of rotation 21 by, for example, a rotary shaft 25 that can be moved up and down by a motor 26, so that the disc 24b is rotated about the center of rotation 21. The granule container 22 rotates. The rotation is performed by the lower connection port 13g of each function station 13 of the upper processing unit 10 and the intermediate storage unit 2
It may be rotated so that the connection with the upper connection port 23a of the powder container 22 can be made connectable.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, a plurality of air supply stations 31 are provided in the lower air supply section 30 provided below the intermediate storage section 20. The plurality of air supply stations 31 are provided at each functional station 1 of the upper processing unit 10.
3 are provided. For example, in FIG. 5, an air supply station 31 is provided for each of the granulation coating stations 13b, 13c, 13d, the drying station 13e, and the product discharge station 13f. The corresponding air supply station 31 is unnecessary for the raw material supply station 13a.

In the case shown in FIG. 5, the fluidized bed forming air supply station 31 corresponds to the granulation coating stations 13b, 13c, 13d and the drying station 13e.
a, and a product discharge air supply station 31b is provided corresponding to the product discharge station 13f. A plurality of fluidized bed formation air supply stations 31a
(31) is communicated with the common chamber 32, and the product discharge air supply station 31b is independently constructed without being communicated with the chamber 32.

An air supply pipe 33 is connected to the chamber 32, and is connected to an external air supply source (not shown) via an air supply port 33 a so that air can be supplied from the air supply station 31. A dedicated air supply pipe 34 is also connected to the product discharge air supply station 31b, and an air supply port 34a is provided.
, Air for product discharge can be blown to the product discharge air supply station 31b.

In the case shown in FIG. 5, the chamber 32
Are formed in a ring shape, so that a plurality of fluidized bed forming air supply stations 31a communicating therewith can be supplied more uniformly than in a case of simply forming a box shape.

A plurality of fluidized bed forming air supply stations 31
a are formed in the same straight cylindrical shape, and the upper cylindrical end side is opened as it is with a diameter corresponding to the lower connecting port 23b of the granular material storage container 22 to form an upper connecting port 35. The lower cylinder end is closed, and an air supply connection pipe 36a that communicates with the inside of the cylinder exits from the side. The air supply connection pipe 36a is connected to the chamber 32 via a flexible tube 36b in the middle.

The fluidized bed formation air supply station 31a and the product discharge air supply station 31b having the above-described structure are provided on the surface of the disk 37 with the upper connection port 35 in accordance with the lower connection port 23b provided on the disk 24b of the intermediate storage section 20. The upper connection port 35 may be used as an opening end to form a straight cylinder directly below, close the cylinder end, and provide the air supply connection pipe 36a on the side.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, of the plurality of fluidized bed forming air supply stations 31a, two of the fluidized bed forming air supply stations 31a which are located opposite to each other.
The lower end of the fluidized bed formation air supply station 31a is
Supported by a vertically movable cylinder 38, as described later,
When rotating the intermediate storage section 20, the lower air supply section 30 can be lowered.

A method of granulating and coating a granular material using the fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus having the above configuration will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cylinder 38 is first raised so that each functional station 13 of the upper processing section 10 and each of the granular material storage containers 22 of the intermediate storage section 20 are moved.
And the air supply station 31 of the lower air supply unit 30 are brought into a state where their respective connection ports are aligned. That is, the lower connection port 13g of each functional station 31 and the upper connection port 23a of the granular material storage container 22, the lower connection port 23b of the granular material storage container 22, and the upper connection port 35 of the air supply station 31.
Are connected to each other. At this time, an anti-shake pin 27 is attached to the lower part of the motor 26 so that the center axis of the intermediate storage section 20 does not shake.

In this state, the raw material powder is supplied through the raw material supply pipe 14 into the raw material supply station 13a. In the raw material supply station 13a, the lower connection port 13g is connected to the upper connection port 23a of the granular material storage container 22 of the intermediate storage portion 20 while the lower connection port 13g is kept open. Supplied. In addition,
At the lower opening 23a of the powder container 22, a material drop prevention member 23c such as a perforated plate or a wire mesh is provided, so that the raw material does not fall.

After a predetermined amount of raw material is supplied into the powder container 22, the lower air supply unit 30 is lowered by the cylinder 38 so that a space is provided between the lower air supply unit 30 and the intermediate storage unit 20. At the same time, the rotary shaft 25 configured to be able to move up and down is lowered to separate the intermediate storage section 20 from the upper processing section 10. By lowering the rotation shaft 25 and the cylinder 38, as shown in FIG. 6, the upper processing unit 10, the intermediate storage unit 20, the lower air supply unit 30
The intermediate housing portion 20 can be rotated with a space between each of them.

In this state, the rotating shaft 25 is
Is rotated to advance each granular material container 22 to the adjacent function station 13. The rotation is as shown in FIG.
What is necessary is just to rotate at a rotation angle of 60 degrees.

That is, the powder container 22 containing the powder at the raw material supply station 13a is advanced to the next granulation coating station 13b. Since the plurality of granular material storage containers 22 are provided corresponding to the respective function stations 13, when one granular material storage container 22 advances to the adjacent functional station 13, the other granular material storage containers 22 are simultaneously stored. The container 22 will also proceed to the next functional station 13.

In the granulation coating station 13b, the lower connection port 13g of the functional station 13, the upper connection port 23a of the granular material container 22, the granular material container 22
And the upper connection port 35 of the air supply station 31 are aligned with each other. In this state,
The rotary shaft 25 and the cylinder 38 are raised, and the lower connection port 13g of the functional station 13, the upper connection port 23a of the granular material storage container 22, and the lower connection port 23b of the granular material storage container 22 are set.
And the upper connection port 35 of the air supply station 31 are brought into close contact with each other to ensure connection.

In the above description, the granulation coating station 13b has been described, but the other functional stations 13 also include the functional station 13 of the upper processing unit 10, the powder and granular material container 22 of the intermediate storage unit 20, The connection between the respective connection ports of the air supply station 31 of the lower air supply unit 30 is performed in the same manner as the granulation coating station 13b.

The granule container 22 thus advanced to the granulation coating station 13b receives air from the fluidized bed forming air supply station 31a, and flows the granules in the granule container 22. Make layers. While maintaining the fluidized bed state, a suitable spray liquid is sprayed from a spray gun 16b provided in the granulation coating station 13b to perform preliminary granulation for a predetermined time.

On the other hand, during the preliminary granulation,
In the same manner as described above, the powdery material as the raw material is supplied to the empty powdery material container 22 that has come to the raw material supply station 13a.

After the completion of the pre-granulation in the granulation coating station 13b, the granule storage container 22 for storing the pre-granulated granules is rotated in the same manner as described above, so that the next granulation is performed. The process proceeds to the coating station 13c.

In the granulation coating station 13c, the pre-granulated powder is subjected to granulation in the next stage, one granulation step. Granulation 1 at granulation coating station 13c
While the process is being performed, pre-granulation of the granular material is newly performed in the granulation coating station 13b immediately before. At the same time, the raw material is supplied into the empty powder container 22 at the raw material supply station 13a.

After the granulation 1 step is completed at the granulation coating station 13c, the granule container 22 for accommodating the granules after the granulation 1 step is rotated, and the next granulation is carried out as described above. Proceed to step 13d for grain coating station.

In the granulation coating station 13d, the granule after the completion of the granulation 1 step is subjected to the next stage of the granulation 2 step. Granulation 2 at granulation coating station 13d
While the process is being performed, one granulation process is newly performed on the granules after the completion of the preliminary granulation in the granulation coating station 13c immediately before. Furthermore, in the immediately preceding granulation coating station 13b, preliminary granulation of the powder is newly performed. In addition, the raw material supply station 13
In a, the raw material is supplied into the empty powder container 22.

After the granulation 2 step is completed at the granulation coating station 13d, the powder and granular material container 22 for storing the powder and granules after the completion of the granulation 2 step is rotated, and the next step is performed as described above. To the drying station 13e.

In the drying station 13e, the granules having undergone the two granulation processes are dried with the air supplied from the fluidized bed forming air supply station 31a below. While such drying is being performed in the drying station 13e, the granulation coating station 13d is performing the granulation 2 step on the powder that has completed the granulation 1 step. In the granulation coating station 13c immediately before, one granulation process is newly performed on the granules after the completion of the preliminary granulation. further,
In the immediately preceding granulation coating station 13b, pre-granulation of the powder is newly performed. At the same time, the raw material is supplied into the empty powder container 22 at the raw material supply station 13a.

As described above, in each of the granulation coating stations 13b, 13c, and 13d, the granules obtained through the preliminary granulation, the granulation 1 step, and the granulation 2 step are sequentially processed by the drying station 13e. The product is dried. By rotating the powder-particle storage container 22 for storing such a product, the adjacent product discharge station 1 is rotated in the manner described above.
Proceed to step 3f.

In the product discharge station 13f, the product in the powder container 22 is pneumatically transported through the product transport pipe 19 to, for example, a product storage tank by the air supplied from the product discharge air supply station 31b. You.

In this manner, the product discharge station 13
In e, the product in the granular material storage container 22 is discharged, and the inside of the granular material storage container 22 is emptied.

On the other hand, in the drying station 13e immediately before the product discharge station 13f, the powders and granules after the two granulation processes are transferred to the lower fluidized bed forming air supply station 31a.
It is dried by the air supplied from. Granulation coating station 13 immediately before drying station 13e
In d, the granulation 2 step is performed on the granules after the 1st granulation step. In the granulation coating station 13c immediately before the granulation coating station 13d, one granulation process is newly performed on the granules after the preliminary granulation. Furthermore, in the granulation coating station 13b immediately before,
Preliminary granulation of the granular material is newly performed. At the same time, the raw material is supplied into the empty powder container 22 at the raw material supply station 13a.

The container 22 emptied by discharging the product is then rotated as described above and advanced to the raw material supply station 13a. That is, the raw material supply station 13a, the granulation coating stations 13b, 13c, 13d, the drying station 13
e, a series of function stations 13 of the product discharge station 13f is cycled to return to the original raw material supply station 13a.
Will be back. In this way, the required amount of granulation coating can be performed by rotating the intermediate storage unit 20 as many times as necessary.

The present invention need not be limited to the above-described embodiment, but may be variously modified without departing from the gist of the invention.

For example, in the above description, the case where the rotation of the intermediate housing portion 20 is performed by rotating the motor 26 about the rotation center 21 has been described. For example, as shown in FIG. May be brought into contact with a drive roll 40 that can be rotated and stopped by a motor 39 to be rotated. In such a configuration, the rotating shaft 25 may be configured to support the rotation so as to be able to move up and down.

In the above description, the function station 13 has six
Although the case where a plurality of functional stations 13 are provided has been described, the number of such functional stations 13 may be arbitrarily set as needed. That is, more than six or at least it does not matter.

In the above description, three granulation coating stations are provided. However, two granulation coating stations and two drying stations may be provided. That is, the process can be freely allocated to a plurality of functional stations.

For example, one raw material supply station, two granulation coating stations, one drying station, one product discharge station, and one washing station for a powder and granular material container may be set. Good.

In the above description, the case where the functional stations, the granular material storage containers, and the air supply stations are arranged so as to go around the same circle once around the center of rotation has been described. You may arrange so that it may go round or more.

In the above description, the function station, the powder container, and the air supply station are provided at equal intervals around the center of rotation about the rotation center. Irregular intervals may be set as long as the stations can be made to correspond to each other.

In the above description, there has been described a configuration in which each function station, the powdery material container, and the air supply station are provided on the circumference around the center of rotation and are rotated in a rotary manner. It may be configured to circulate or to circulate on a rectangular locus. In short, the function stations, the powder container, and the air supply station may be arranged on the circulation trajectory like a single stroke.

By adopting an elliptical trajectory other than the ring trajectory, for example, the number of function stations set on the trajectory can be increased, and the production of the product in a state in which the process is further subdivided can be advanced. Each function station and each air supply station are provided on a trajectory other than such a ring trajectory, and for sequentially moving the granular material storage container between the function station and the air supply station, a conventionally known moving means such as a conveyor system is used. Adopt it.

In the above description, the configuration in which the powdery material container sequentially advances through the functional stations one step at a time has been described. You may. By adopting such a configuration, different types of granulation can be performed together.

For example, the granulation process using the granule A and the granulation process using the granule B are performed by combining the granule A raw material supply station, the granule B raw material supply station, the granule A Granulation coating station, granule B granulation coating station, granule A drying station, granule B drying station, product discharge station for products using granule A, product discharge station for products using granule B 8 in total
By providing the function stations in order, different products using the granules A and B can be produced in parallel.

In the above description, the granulation coating station and the drying station in the upper processing section, and the plurality of fluidized bed forming air supply stations in the lower air supply section are provided so that common exhaust and common air supply can be performed through the respective chambers. Although the configuration has been described, the configuration may be such that exhaust and air supply are performed individually for each of the functional stations.

In the above description, the configuration in which the upper processing section and the lower air supply section are fixed and the intermediate storage section is rotated has been described. For example, one or both of the upper processing section and the lower air supply section may be connected to the intermediate processing section. By rotating the housing in a direction opposite to the rotation direction, the time for stepping to the next station can be shortened.

In the above description, a case has been described in which each functional station is divided into functions of raw material supply, granulation coating, drying, and product discharge, and granulation coating is performed by sequentially passing these functions. By selective use of functional stations, the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus of the present invention may be used for a single operation purpose of, for example, drying only, or stirring only, granulation only, coating only. .

In the above description, each functional station is defined as a raw material supply station, a granulation coating station,
Although the case where the drying station and the product discharging station are configured has been described, other functional stations may be added to the configuration as needed. For example, a configuration may be adopted in which a mixing station for performing mixing is provided between the raw material supply station and the granulation coating station. In such a configuration, as described above, the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus of the present invention can be used for a single operation purpose of mixing only.

[0083]

According to the present invention, the fluidized bed granulation coating can be performed by continuously rotating the granular material container around each functional station, so that the production efficiency is improved as compared with the case of batch production. Can be done.

In the present invention, since the granular material container is circulated through the function stations as many times as necessary to perform the fluidized bed granulation coating, the elements of the batch production system and the continuous production system The two elements coexist, and have both advantages, and can also eliminate the disadvantages of both.

In the present invention, the expansion of the production scale can be achieved by increasing the number of patrols of each functional station of the granular material container, so that the same quality granulated product can be obtained regardless of the production scale. There is no need to scale up the equipment at each stage of research, trial production, and production, and there is almost no need to change operating conditions and the like, making it easier to shift to each of the above stages.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing an example of a main body configuration of a fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an operation state of the fluidized-bed granulation-coating apparatus of the present embodiment.

FIG. 3A is a plan view of an upper processing section of the fluidized-bed granulation coating apparatus of the present embodiment, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view thereof.

FIG. 4A is a plan view of an intermediate storage section of the fluidized-bed granulating and coating apparatus of the present embodiment, and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view thereof.

FIG. 5A is a plan view of a lower air supply section of the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus of the present embodiment, and FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view thereof.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a rotation state of an intermediate storage section of the fluidized-bed granulated coating apparatus according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 7A is a plan view showing a modification of the rotation configuration of the intermediate storage section of the fluidized-bed granulation coating apparatus, and FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional view thereof.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Upper processing part 11 Prop 12 Chamber 13 Function station 13a Raw material supply station 13b Granulation coating station 13c Granulation coating station 13d Granulation coating station 13e Drying station 13f Product discharge station 13g Lower connection port 14 Raw material supply pipe 15a Exhaust connection pipe 15b Exhaust connection pipe 15c Exhaust connection pipe 15d Exhaust connection pipe 15e Exhaust connection pipe 16a Bag filter 16b Spray gun 16c Pulse jet nozzle 17 Damper 18 Exhaust pipe 19 Product transport pipe 20 Intermediate storage unit 21 Rotation center 22 Particles Body container 22a Straight tube portion 22b Conical tube portion 23a Upper connection port 23b Lower connection port 23c Powder fall prevention member 24a Disk 24b Disk 25 Rotation axis 26 Motor 27 Anti-shake pin 30 Lower air supply unit 31 Air supply station 32 Chamber 33 Air supply pipe 33a Air supply port 34 Air supply pipe 34a Air supply port 35 Upper connection port 36a Air supply connection pipe 36b Flexible tube 38 Cylinder 39 Motor 40 Drive roll

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Shigetsu Takei 2-14-2 Takadanobaba, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo F-Term Industry Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 4G004 BA02 KA03

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An intermediate storage section having a plurality of granular material storage containers circulated by a circulating means, and an upper processing section having a plurality of function stations having functions of respective steps constituting a fluidized bed granulation coating process. A lower air supply unit having an air supply station, wherein the powdery and granular material storage container of the intermediate storage unit is circulated while being stopped for each functional station by the circulating means, and is stopped at the functional station. Connect the upper connection port of the powder container to the lower connection port of each functional station of the upper processing unit, and connect the lower connection port of the powder container to the air supply station of the lower air supply unit. A fluidized-bed granulation-coating apparatus characterized by being connected to an upper connection port. 2. The fluidized-bed granulating and coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circulating means includes a plurality of the powder and granular material storage containers provided at the same circumferential position from a rotation center. A fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus, characterized in that the means is a rotating means for rotating the fluidized bed. 3. The fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of functional stations include all or a part of a raw material supply station, a granulation coating station, a drying station, and a product discharge station. A fluidized-bed granulation coating apparatus characterized by having: 4. The fluidized-bed granulating and coating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the raw material supply station and the product discharge station are the same stations in which a raw material supply pipe and a product discharge pipe are provided so as to be selectively used. A fluidized-bed granulation-coating apparatus characterized in that: 5. The fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the granulating coating station and the drying station are connected to a common exhaust port via a chamber. Granulation coating equipment. 6. The fluidized bed granulating and coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the air supply station is divided into a fluidized bed formation air supply station and a product discharge air supply station. A fluidized-bed granulation-coating apparatus characterized by being applied. 7. A fluidized-bed granulating and coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the fluidized-bed granulating and coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is used to load a granule-containing container containing granules into the fluidized-bed granulated coating apparatus. By sequentially moving the function stations having the respective process functions constituting the fluidized bed granulation coating process of the upper processing unit and supplying air from the lower air supply unit of the fluidized bed granulation coating apparatus, the granular material storage container A fluidized-bed granulation and coating method, wherein the granules are granulated and / or coated.