JP2001296099A - Aerosol composition for cleaning air conditioning heat exchanger fins - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an aerosol composition for cleaning air conditioning heat exchanger fins by which the air conditioning heat exchanger fins can be easily cleaned without deteriorating the hydrophilic property of the surfaces of the fins. SOLUTION: The aerosol component for cleaning the air conditioning heat exchanger fins includes solution having a hydrophilic property imparting component, a hydrophilic organic solvent and a surface active agent contained in water and an injection agent. The rate of the contained solution is preferably 60 to 99 mass % and the rate of the injection agent is preferably 1 to 40 mass % The hydrophilic property imparting component comprises at least one of inorganic powder and water soluble high polymer compound. The rate of the contained hydrophilic property imparting component is 0.05 to 7.0 mass %. The rate of the contained hydrophilic organic solvent is 1.0 to 35.0 mass %. The rate of the contained surface-active agent preferably ranges from 0.05 to 1.0 mass %.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins used in air conditioners.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a heat exchange fin provided in an air conditioner, when hemispherical water droplets are formed on the surface by the dew condensation water, the effective heat exchange area is greatly reduced and the heat exchange fins are formed along the surface. Air flow is impeded, and dust,
Since other dirt is likely to adhere, the heat exchange efficiency is greatly reduced. Therefore, in order to prevent the formation of such water droplets, the surface of the heat exchange fin for air conditioning is usually provided on the surface.
For example, a hydrophilic treatment is performed by forming a coating made of titanium oxide or the like. In the heat exchange fins subjected to such hydrophilic treatment, the dew condensation water forms a thin water film along the surface and flows, so that the attached dust and the like smoothly flow down to the drain. Become. However, even with the air-conditioning heat exchange fins that have been subjected to the hydrophilic treatment, the hydrophilicity is reduced, the adhesion of dirt, etc. occurs over time, and the heat exchange efficiency is reduced. It is necessary to wash.

Conventionally, when cleaning the heat exchange fins for air conditioning, for example, as described in JP-A-63-295700 or JP-A-2-99599,
In a state in which an appropriate liquid cleaning agent is directly contacted with the surface of the fin removed from the air conditioner by means of immersion or the like, it is left for, for example, several tens of minutes to several hours. Then, a physical cleaning action such as rubbing is applied, followed by washing with water and drying. However, such a cleaning method has a problem that a complicated operation is required, and a considerably long cleaning agent contact time is required, so that a long time is required for cleaning.

[0004] Further, in order to obtain a high cleaning effect, a cleaning agent containing a large amount of an organic solvent is also known. However, when such a cleaning agent is used, the hydrophilic coating is eroded by cleaning and the air-conditioning agent is used. There is a problem that the hydrophilicity of the surface of the heat exchange fins is reduced.Furthermore, depending on the components of the cleaning agent, the fin itself is damaged by chemically attacking the base material formed of a heat conductive metal such as aluminum. Problem.

[0005]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made based on the above circumstances, and its object is to provide:
An aerosol for cleaning air-conditioning heat-exchange fins that can easily and reliably clean the air-conditioning heat-exchange fins in a short time, and that can obtain a sufficient hydrophilic state on the surface of the fins after the cleaning. It is to provide a composition.

[0006]

The aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning of the present invention comprises a stock solution containing a hydrophilicity-imparting component, a hydrophilic organic solvent, a surfactant and water, and a propellant. And is characterized by containing. In this aerosol composition, the content ratio of the stock solution is 60 to 9
It is preferably 9% by mass, and the content ratio of the propellant is preferably 1 to 40% by mass.

The hydrophilicity-imparting component is preferably composed of at least one of an inorganic powder and a water-soluble polymer compound, and the content ratio of the hydrophilicity-imparting component is preferably 0.05 to 7.0% by mass.

When the content ratio of the hydrophilic organic solvent is 1.0 to 3
It is preferably 5.0% by mass, and the content ratio of the surfactant is preferably 0.05 to 1.0% by mass.

[0009]

According to the aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning as described above, the physical cleaning action is achieved by ejecting the contents by the action of the propellant and colliding with the fins.
Both the hydrophilic organic solvent contained in the undiluted solution and the chemical cleaning action of the surfactant can remove dirt such as oil and dust attached to the surface of the fin with high efficiency. It is only necessary to perform a direct injection operation toward the target fin surface,
The desired cleaning can be performed very easily and in a short time. Moreover, since the content ratio of the hydrophilic organic solvent in the stock solution is relatively small, even when the surface of the fin is provided with a hydrophilic coating, it is not impaired. Since the hydrophilicity is imparted by attaching the hydrophilicity imparting component, the entire surface of the fin can be brought into a state having sufficient hydrophilicity.

[0010]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail. In the present invention, based on water, while containing a hydrophilicity-imparting component consisting of at least one of an inorganic powder and a water-soluble polymer compound, a surfactant and a hydrophilic organic solvent are added to form a stock solution. By combining this stock solution with a propellant, an aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning is obtained.

<Water> Water forms a base as a medium for dissolving or dispersing components of another stock solution in a stock solution, and usually, purified water or ion-exchanged water is used. The content ratio of water is a ratio as a residue of other essential components and auxiliary components, and in practice, for example, is preferably 40 to 99% by mass, and particularly preferably 50 to 95% by mass.

<Hydrophilicity-imparting component> The hydrophilicity-imparting component imparts hydrophilicity by adhering and remaining on the surface of the applied air-conditioning heat exchange fins, thereby imparting hydrophilicity. It is a component that has the effect of restoring the hydrophilicity of a certain location, and as a result, bringing the entire surface of the fin after washing into a sufficiently hydrophilic state. As such a hydrophilicity imparting component, one or both of an inorganic powder and a water-soluble polymer compound can be used. Specific examples of the inorganic powder include, for example, silica powder, titanium oxide powder, and the like. Specific examples of the water-soluble polymer compound include, for example, methyl cellulose, hydroxymethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, gelatin, xanthan gum, and the like. be able to. The content ratio of the hydrophilicity-imparting component is preferably from 0.05 to 7.0% by mass, and particularly preferably from 0.1 to 5.0% by mass. If this content ratio is less than 0.05% by mass, it is difficult to bring the surface of the fin after washing into a sufficiently hydrophilic state. On the other hand, even if it is larger than 7.0% by mass, a large effect is obtained. You cannot get the improvement.

<Hydrophilic Organic Solvent> When applied to the fin, the hydrophilic organic solvent dissolves oil adhering to the surface of the fin together with a surfactant to be described later, and is chemically washed to facilitate its removal. It has an action. As the hydrophilic organic solvent, a monohydric alcohol can be preferably used, and specific examples thereof include, for example, methanol, ethanol, propanol, butanol, and isopropanol. Particularly, ethanol is preferably used. The content ratio of the hydrophilic organic solvent is 1.0 to
It is preferably 35.0% by mass, and 5.0 to 35.
Particularly preferably, it is 0% by mass. When the content is less than 1.0% by mass, a sufficient chemical cleaning effect cannot be obtained, and thus a sufficient cleaning effect cannot be obtained. On the other hand, when the content is more than 35.0% by mass, In
Irrespective of the action of the hydrophilicity-imparting component, the hydrophilic coating applied to the surface of the fin may be affected.

<Surfactant> The surfactant has a chemical cleaning action together with the hydrophilic organic solvent.
It has a chemical cleaning action of facilitating the removal of dirt on the surface of the fin by an emulsifying action, and also has a function as a stabilizer of each component in the aerosol composition. The surfactant is not particularly limited, and a cationic surfactant, a nonionic surfactant, an anionic surfactant, and an amphoteric surfactant can be used. Particularly, a nonionic surfactant is used. Can be preferably used.

Specific examples of the nonionic surfactant include:
Examples thereof include polyoxyethylene alkyl ethers such as polyoxyethylene lauryl ether, polyoxyethylene polyoxypropylene alkyl ether, sorbitan monolaurate, and sorbitan fatty acid esters. These can be used alone or in combination of two or more, but it is particularly preferable to use sorbitan monolaurate, polyoxyethylene lauryl ether, polyoxyethylene polyoxypropylene cetyl ether. The content of the above surfactant is preferably 0.05 to 1.0% by mass,
It is preferably about 0.5% by mass. If the content is less than 0.05% by mass, sufficient chemical cleaning action cannot be obtained. If the content is more than 1.0% by mass, the residual fin remains on the surface of the fin after cleaning. It may cause stains, and the hydrophilic coating applied to the surface of the fin may be affected by the action of the hydrophilicity-imparting component.

<Undiluted Solution> The undiluted solution comprising the above essential components in the present invention is characterized in that it has a particularly small content ratio of a hydrophilic organic solvent and contains a hydrophilicity-imparting component. When combined, an aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning is obtained. Into this stock solution, in addition to the above-mentioned essential components, if necessary, other various substances or compounds can be added as auxiliary components in appropriate amounts. Examples of such auxiliary components include a pH adjuster, a bactericide, a deodorant, a quality preservative, and others.

<PH adjuster> The pH adjuster adjusts the entire composition to neutral, weakly alkaline or weakly acidic. By adjusting the pH in this manner, the pH of the composition is increased. There is no danger of corrosion of the aerosol container. As the pH adjuster, for example, an alkali agent can be used, and specific examples thereof include potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, and an amino compound having an amino group. Among these, it is particularly preferable to use an amino compound having an amino group, and specific examples thereof include, for example, triethanolamine, aminomethylpropanol, diisopropanolamine, diethanolamine, and triisopropanolamine. These can be used alone or in combination of two or more. The content ratio of the pH adjusting agent in the stock solution is such that the whole of the composition has a pH of 6.0 to 8.0.
It is preferable that the ratio be adjusted to the range of 5.

Further, as a bactericide, for example, isopropylmethylphenol or the like can be used, and as a deodorant, for example, a green tea extract or the like can be used.

<Propellant> In the present invention, the propellant is not particularly limited, and for example, liquefied petroleum gas, dimethyl ether, compressed gas and the like can be preferably used. Specific examples of the liquefied petroleum gas include, for example, propane, butane, pentane, isopropane, isobutane, isopentane, and the like, and specific examples of the compressed gas include, for example, air, nitrogen gas, carbon dioxide gas,
Oxygen gas, helium gas, argon gas, neon gas and the like can be mentioned, and they can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

When liquefied petroleum gas is used as the propellant, the content of the propellant is preferably from 1 to 30% by mass, more preferably from 1 to 20% by mass, and dimethyl ether is used. 1 to 30% by mass
, And particularly preferably 1 to 20% by mass, and when a compressed gas is used, 1.0 to 5.
It is preferably 0% by mass, and particularly preferably 1.0 to 3.0% by mass. If the content of the propellant is too small, a sufficient physical cleaning action cannot be obtained, while if it is too large, the content of the stock solution in the entire aerosol composition will be too small. Therefore, there is a possibility that a sufficient chemical cleaning action cannot be obtained.

The aerosol composition comprising the stock solution and the propellant having the above-described structure is filled into a pressure-resistant aerosol container to obtain an aerosol product for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning. According to the aerosol product for cleaning air-conditioning heat exchange fins, when the aerosol product is sprayed onto the surface of the air-conditioning heat exchange fins and applied, the physical cleaning action is caused by the injected content colliding with the fin surface. The dirt adhering to the surface of the fin can be easily cleaned by both the organic solvent and the chemical cleaning action of the hydrophilic organic solvent and the surfactant, and the aerosol product is directed toward the fin. Therefore, the desired cleaning can be performed in a short time without soiling the hands because only the spraying operation needs to be performed directly. When liquefied petroleum gas or dimethyl ether is used as a propellant, a cleaning action due to its solubility is also exhibited. In addition, since a sufficient washing action is obtained as described above, it is unnecessary to increase the content ratio of the hydrophilic organic solvent, and therefore, the hydrophilicity of the fin is sufficiently prevented from being impaired.

Further, the hydrophilicity imparting component contained in the undiluted solution adheres to the surface of the fin, so that the hydrophilicity is imparted and the hydrophilicity of the portion where the hydrophilicity is reduced is restored. Thus, a state in which the entire surface of the fin has sufficient hydrophilicity after washing is obtained. As a result, the condensed water forms a thin water film along the surface of the fin and flows, and therefore, the attached dust and the like also smoothly flow down to the drain, thereby maintaining good heat exchange efficiency. Therefore, it is possible to surely exert a preferable effect that dirt does not easily adhere again.

[0023]

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described.
The present invention is not limited by these. <Examples 1 to 3 and Reference Examples 1 to 3> According to the formulations shown in Tables 1 and 2, a stock solution was prepared by mixing each stock solution component, and an aerosol composition comprising this stock solution and a propellant was used in a pressure-resistant aerosol container. An aerosol product for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning was prepared by filling the inside. Example 1 and Reference Example 1 are cases where liquefied petroleum gas was used as the propellant, and Example 2 and Reference Example 2 were cases where nitrogen gas was used as the propellant. Examples 3 and Reference Example 3 Shows the case where carbon dioxide gas was used as the propellant. Reference Example 1
Each of Nos. 1 to 3 is the case where the stock solution does not contain a hydrophilicity-imparting component and the content ratio of the hydrophilic organic solvent in the stock solution is large.

Each of the aerosol products according to Examples and Reference Examples was subjected to the following tests to evaluate the performance. <Cleaning Test (1)> A heat-exchange fin for air-conditioning, which was used under a normal condition for a certain period and was adhered with dirt such as dust, was prepared as Sample 1. Each aerosol product was kept in a thermostat set at a temperature of 25 ° C. for 30 minutes or more, and was shaken sufficiently immediately before spraying, and the contents were halved in a 20 cm vertical 20 cm horizontal area of the surface of the sample 1. The area covered with the film was sprayed for 10 seconds from a position 15 cm away from the film, and the fin was dried as it was for cleaning. Then, the state of the surface of the sample 1 after the cleaning is determined by comparing the cleaning area cleaned by the aerosol product with the non-cleaning area covered with the film, which has not been subjected to the cleaning action, by peeling the film. The cleaning effect was evaluated. Specifically, the cleaning area and the non-cleaning area on the surface of the sample 1 are visually compared, and a case where no dirt remains in the cleaning area is “large”, and a small amount of dirt remains in the cleaning area. The sample was evaluated as “existent” when it was tested, and “none” when there was no significant difference in stains in the cleaned region compared to the non-cleaned region and no clear cleaning effect was observed.

<Cleaning test (2)> The surface has a viscosity of 70S.
Of liquid paraffin was uniformly applied, 10 cm long, 1 horizontal
An aluminum plate having a size of 0 cm was prepared as Sample 2. Each aerosol product is kept in a thermostat set at a temperature of 25 ° C. for 30 minutes or more, and then shaken well,
The injection distance of 15 cm to the surface of sample 2 is 15
The contents were washed by spraying the contents for seconds. Then, based on the weight difference between the weight W ₂ of the sample 2 after the washing and the weight W ₁ of the sample 2 before the washing, a ratio of the removal of the liquid paraffin applied to the surface of the sample 2 by the injection of the aerosol product. α was calculated using the following calculation formula, and thereby the cleaning effect was obtained.

[0026]

Α = {1 − [(W ₁ −W ₂ ) / W ₁ ]} × 100 (%)

<Hydrophilicity test> An unused air-conditioning heat exchange fin having a surface coated with a hydrophilic coating of titanium oxide was prepared as Sample 3. Each aerosol product was kept in a thermostat set at a temperature of 25 ° C. for 30 minutes or more and then shaken sufficiently, and the surface of the sample 3 was washed by spraying the aerosol product. Water droplets are formed on the surface of the sample 3 before and after the cleaning, and the contact angles thereof are measured. Based on the contact angle of the sample 3 before the cleaning, a change in the degree of the contact angle after the cleaning is determined. When the contact angle after washing was reduced, that is, when the hydrophilicity on the surface of the sample 3 was improved, "」 "was obtained. When the contact angle was increased, that is, when the hydrophilicity on the surface of the sample 3 was reduced. It was evaluated as "x".

[0028]

[Table 1]

[0029]

[Table 2]

From the results shown in Tables 1 and 2, Example 1
According to the cleaning aerosol products according to any one of (1) to (3),
It is clear that an excellent cleaning effect can be obtained for the air-conditioning heat exchange fins, and that the fins after application have a small contact angle so that a sufficient hydrophilic state is maintained. On the other hand, the cleaning aerosol products of Reference Examples 1 to 3 had a cleaning effect equivalent to that of Examples 1 to 3,
It is clear that the air-conditioning heat exchange fins after the washing have a large contact angle and the hydrophilic state is reduced.

As described above, according to the aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning of the present invention, the aerosol composition as a whole is excellent despite the small content of the hydrophilic organic solvent. It is clear that it has a cleaning effect. Furthermore, since the stock solution contains a hydrophilicity-imparting component, it is clear that hydrophilicity is imparted. As a result, it is understood that in the air-conditioning heat exchange fins washed with the aerosol composition, the hydrophilicity on the surface is improved without being reduced, and excellent heat exchange efficiency is maintained. .

[0032]

According to the aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning as described above, the physical cleaning action is achieved by spraying the contents by the action of the propellant and colliding with the fins, and the aerosol composition contained in the stock solution. Both the hydrophilic organic solvent and the chemical cleaning action of the surfactant can remove dirt such as oil and dust attached to the surface of the fin with high efficiency. Since it is only necessary to perform the spraying operation directly on the surface of the fin to be cleaned, the desired cleaning can be performed very easily and in a short time. Moreover, since the content ratio of the hydrophilic organic solvent in the stock solution is relatively small, even when the surface of the fin is provided with a hydrophilic coating, it is not impaired. Since the hydrophilicity is imparted by attaching the hydrophilicity imparting component, the entire surface of the fin can be brought into a state having sufficient hydrophilicity.

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat II (reference) // C09K 3/30 C09K 3/30 CE

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An aerosol composition for cleaning air-conditioning heat exchange fins, comprising a stock solution containing a hydrophilicity-imparting component, a hydrophilic organic solvent and a surfactant in water, and a propellant. object. 2. The aerosol according to claim 1, wherein the content of the stock solution is 60 to 99% by mass and the content of the propellant is 1 to 40% by mass. Composition. 3. The aerosol composition according to claim 1, wherein the hydrophilicity imparting component comprises at least one of an inorganic powder and a water-soluble polymer compound. 4. The content ratio of the hydrophilicity imparting component is 0.05 to
The aerosol composition for cleaning air-conditioning heat exchange fins according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the mass is 7.0% by mass. 5. The content ratio of the hydrophilic organic solvent is from 1.0 to 3
The aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the composition is 5.0% by mass. 6. The surfactant content of 0.05 to 1.
The aerosol composition for cleaning heat exchange fins for air conditioning according to any one of claims 1 to 5, which is 0% by mass.