JP2002337799A - Liquid tank - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid tank usable in a gravity-free or micro gravity state, lightweight, low in manufacturing cost and provided with a liquid capture mechanism. SOLUTION: This liquid tank is provided with a tank body 20 disposed in the gravity-free or micro gravity state and formed with a discharge part 50 at the spherical bottom part; a box-like liquid trap 30 installed at the bottom part in the tank body 20 and connecting the inside of the tank body 20 to the discharge part 50; and a liquid capturing thin plate 40 provided along the inner surface in the tank body 20 from the liquid trap 30 and guiding liquid in the tank body 20 to the liquid trap 30.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid tank for storing a liquid in a zero gravity or microgravity environment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a liquid tank arranged in a zero gravity or microgravity environment, such as a geostationary satellite, gas-liquid separation cannot be performed by gravity, so that a channel mesh type liquid capture utilizing a capillary phenomenon is used. A mechanism is adopted. The channel mesh type is a mechanism in which a channel (flow path) provided with a metal mesh is provided in a tank, a liquid is captured by utilizing the capillary phenomenon of the metal mesh, and the liquid is introduced into the channel. By arranging from eight to eight, the liquid can be captured even when acceleration in any direction is applied to the tank.

[0003]

However, in the channel mesh type liquid trapping mechanism, the welding work for fixing the metal mesh to the channel is troublesome, which not only increases the manufacturing cost but also increases the manufacturing cost of the metal mesh. Since the weight is large, there is a problem that the weight of the entire tank is increased.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid tank having a liquid capturing mechanism that can be used under zero gravity or microgravity, is lightweight, and has low manufacturing cost. And

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a liquid tank according to the first aspect of the present invention is arranged in a zero gravity or microgravity environment, and has a tank body having a discharge portion formed at a bottom portion; A box-shaped liquid trap that is installed at the bottom of the tank body and connects the inside of the tank body and the discharge unit, and is provided along the inner surface of the tank body from the liquid trap to transfer the liquid in the tank body to the liquid. And a liquid capturing thin plate guided to the trap.
According to the present invention, the liquid in the tank body is guided into the liquid trap by the surface tension difference due to the difference in the radius of curvature of the free interface of the liquid in contact with the liquid capturing thin plate, and the liquid can be stored in the liquid trap. The liquid in the tank body can be discharged to the outside of the tank even under zero gravity or microgravity. Furthermore, since the liquid capturing mechanism uses a liquid capturing thin plate that is lightweight and small in manufacturing cost, it is possible to realize a lightweight and inexpensive liquid tank.

A liquid tank according to a second aspect of the present invention is the liquid tank according to the first aspect, wherein the bottom of the liquid trap is formed in a spherical shape having a smaller radius of curvature than the bottom of the tank body. Features. According to this invention, the inner surface of the bottom of the tank body having a large radius of curvature,
Between the outer surface of the bottom of the liquid trap with a small radius of curvature,
A gap is formed that becomes smaller as it approaches the connection between the tank body and the liquid trap. Therefore, the liquid in the tank main body is guided by the surface tension to the smaller gap, that is, the connection portion between the tank main body and the liquid trap, so that the liquid in the tank main body can be efficiently stored in the liquid trap. .

A liquid tank according to a third aspect of the present invention is the liquid tank according to the first or second aspect, further comprising: a liquid trap and a discharge portion provided vertically in a central portion of the liquid trap. It is characterized by comprising a tubular member having a liquid discharge hole communicating therewith, and a plurality of plate members radiating from the tubular member. According to the present invention, a gap is formed between the plate-like members arranged radially, the gap becoming smaller as approaching the central tubular member, so that the liquid in the liquid trap closes the liquid discharge hole of the tubular member. So that it is trapped around the tubular member. Therefore,
When the inside of the liquid trap is pressurized by pressurizing the inside of the tank body, the liquid collected around the tubular member is pressed out of the tank through the liquid discharge hole, so that the liquid in the liquid trap can be easily discharged from the tank. Can be discharged to

In the liquid tank according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the upper surface of the liquid trap is formed in a spherical shape, and the gap between the inner wall surface of the upper surface of the liquid trap and the plate-like member increases on the upper side as it approaches the tubular member. It is characterized in that it is formed so that it is smaller on the side and lower on the side and smaller on the lower side as it approaches the tubular member. According to the present invention, a gap is formed between the inner wall surface of the liquid trap and the end portion of the plate-like member, the gap gradually decreasing from the central portion of the upper surface to the central portion of the lower surface through the side surface. The liquid adhering to is guided to the lower center along this gap. Therefore, in the liquid trap, the liquid is collected at the lower center, while the gas is moved to the upper outside, so that gas-liquid separation in the liquid trap becomes possible.

A liquid tank according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the liquid capturing thin plate is fixed to the liquid trap with a gap provided between the thin plate and the inner surface of the tank body. According to the present invention, since the liquid capturing thin plate is provided without being fixed to the tank body, it is not affected by expansion and contraction due to the pressure and temperature difference of the tank body. Therefore, there is no need to secure sufficient strength to prevent breakage due to stress, and a thin and lightweight liquid capturing thin plate can be used, so that a lightweight and inexpensive liquid tank can be realized.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a liquid tank 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a liquid trap 30 in which liquid is temporarily stored to be discharged from the liquid tank 10, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the trap 30. The liquid tank 10 is for a thruster propellant of a geostationary satellite, and has a spherical tank body 20.
And an upper surface 31 and a lower surface 3 each formed in a spherical shape.
Box-shaped liquid trap 3 consisting of a cylindrical side surface 33 and a cylindrical side surface 33
0 and a liquid capturing thin plate 40 provided along the inner surface of the tank body 20.

The liquid tank 10 is accelerated in the front, rear, left and right directions in the figure by driving a thruster for controlling the attitude of the geostationary satellite. In FIG. 1, the liquid is indicated by hatching, the state of the liquid when the liquid tank 10 is accelerated rightward is shown in the left half, and the state of the liquid in the zero gravity state where the liquid tank 10 is stationary is shown in the right half. Is shown in That is, since the liquid in the liquid tank 10 is accelerated, the liquid moves to the vicinity of the outer peripheral line crossing the center of the sphere along the horizontal direction of the figure of the tank body 20, and connects the vicinity of the equator to the liquid trap 30. The liquid capturing thin plate 40 is arranged as described above.

The tank body 20 has a discharge portion 5 at the center of the bottom.
0 is formed, and a vent 60 is formed at the top. The discharge part 50 is one end of a liquid passage for discharging the liquid in the tank body 20 to the outside of the tank and supplying the liquid to a thruster engine (not shown). They are communicated via the connected liquid trap 30. The vent 60 is one end of a gas passage for sending gas into the tank main body 20 and discharging gas from the tank main body 20 to the outside of the tank. In addition, by making the tank body 20 a rotationally symmetric body, the liquid is easily collected by the inertial force when the liquid tank 10 is accelerated, so that the liquid is easily collected. Although a rotationally symmetric body that easily collects liquid is formed in a spherical shape in the present embodiment, a conical shape or the like may be used. In addition, a liquid discharge unit 21 is provided in the tank body 20 at a position where the liquid collects.
By providing this discharge part 21, the liquid tank 10
Can be drained out of the tank and supplied to the thruster when is accelerated.

The liquid capturing thin plate 40 is formed of an arc-shaped thin plate along the inner surface of the tank main body 20, and one end of the liquid trap 30 is provided with a gap provided between the thin plate 40 and the inner surface of the tank main body 20. It is fixed so as to be continuous with the lower surface 32. The liquid capturing thin plate 40 guides the liquid by a difference in surface tension due to a difference in the radius of curvature of the free interface of the liquid in contact. In order to efficiently capture the liquid, it is preferable that the liquid capturing thin plate 40 is provided at a position where the liquid moves and collects due to inertial force, that is, at a side opposite to the acceleration direction in which the liquid tank 10 receives. In the present embodiment, since it is assumed that the liquid tank 10 is accelerated in the left-right direction shown in FIG. 1, the liquid tank 10 is provided at two opposite positions on the left and right sides. It is desirable to provide them appropriately according to the conditions. Further, in the present embodiment, the liquid trapping thin plate 40 is moved from the vicinity of the position where the liquid is collected to the liquid trap 30.
By forming an arc shape of about 90 ° until it continues to
The weight of the entire device is reduced.

Further, since the liquid capturing thin plate 40 is configured to provide a gap between itself and the inner surface of the tank main body 20, even if the tank main body 20 expands and contracts due to an internal pressure or a temperature change, the deformation is transmitted. Since there is no need to increase the thickness, it is not necessary to increase the plate thickness in order to maintain the strength, and the entire device can be reduced in weight.

The liquid trap 30, as shown in FIG.
This is a rotationally symmetrical body having an axis coincident with the vertical axis of the tank main body 20 as a center of rotation, and includes an upper surface 31 and a lower surface 32 each formed in a spherical shape, and a cylindrical side surface 33. The discharge unit 50 is connected.
The lower surface 32 is formed in a spherical shape having a smaller radius of curvature than the bottom of the tank body 20, and the outer wall surface of the lower surface 32 and the inner wall surface of the bottom of the tank body 20 become closer to the outer periphery from the center (near the discharge unit 50). The interval is larger. The liquid between the inner wall surface at the bottom of the tank body 20 is collected in the smaller gap, that is, in the center of the liquid trap 30, and is guided into the liquid trap 30 from the liquid introduction hole 34.

Further, the lower surface 32 is provided with a liquid introduction hole 34 for introducing a liquid from the inside of the tank body 20 into the liquid trap 30, and the liquid capturing thin plate 40 is connected to the liquid introduction hole 34. Is fixed at one end.
The upper surface 31 is provided with a vent 35 for discharging gas from the liquid trap 30 into the tank body 20.
The vent 35 is desirably provided at a position where gas is collected in the liquid trap 30, and is provided above the outer peripheral side of the liquid trap 30 in the present embodiment.

In the liquid trap 30, a tubular member 36 is provided at the center in the vertical direction, and a plurality of plate members 37 (16 in this embodiment) are radiated from the tubular member 36.
It is standing. As shown in FIG. 3, a gap is formed between the radially arranged plate-like members 37, which becomes smaller as approaching the central tubular member 36, as shown in FIG. 3. Is collected around the tubular member 36. The number of the plate-like members 37 is preferably determined in consideration of the liquid-collecting effect and the weight, since the larger the number, the better the liquid-collecting effect and the greater the weight.

The plate-like member 37 has a shape in which an upper side 37a and a lower side 37b are formed in an arc shape and side sides 37c are formed in a straight line. The gap between the upper surface of the trap 30 and the inner wall surface is larger on the upper side 37a of the plate-like member 37 as it approaches the tubular member 36, smaller on the side 37c, and smaller on the lower side 37c.
7b, it is formed to be smaller as it approaches the tubular member 36. That is, the gap with the inner wall surface of the liquid trap 30 gradually decreases from the upper central portion to the lower central portion via the side surface. Therefore, due to surface tension,
The liquid adhered to the inner wall surface of the liquid trap 30 is guided along the inner wall surface to the smaller gap, that is, to the lower center in the liquid trap 30. As the liquid is collected, the gas in the liquid trap 30 is moved to the outer peripheral side of the upper portion, so that the vent 35 of the liquid trap 30 is provided around this.

The tubular member 36 is provided with a liquid discharge hole 36a for communicating the inside of the liquid trap 30 with the discharge part 50. Further, at the lower end of the tubular member 36, a bottom plate 38 that separates the discharge unit 50 from the inside of the liquid trap 30 is provided. The bottom plate 38 is formed in a flange shape that does not obstruct the opening of the tubular member 36, and communicates the inside of the liquid trap 30 and the discharge unit 50 by a plurality of liquid discharge holes 38a. The liquid collected by the plate-like member 37 toward the lower center, that is, around the tubular member 36 and the bottom plate 38, closes the liquid discharge hole 36a of the tubular member 36 and the liquid discharge hole 38a of the bottom plate 38, so that the liquid discharge holes 36a, 38
When the inside of the liquid trap 30 is pressurized in a state in which the liquid a is closed with the liquid, the collected liquid is discharged to the liquid discharge holes 36a, 3a.
8a is pressed out of the tank.

The liquid tank 10 configured as described above
A process in which the liquid stored in the inside is collected and discharged out of the tank will be described. First, the gas is sent from the vent 60 into the tank body 20, so that the liquid tank 10 is pressurized through the liquid introduction hole 34 or the vent 35, and the liquid contained in the liquid trap 30 is discharged to the discharge unit 50. From the tank. When the thruster is driven by using the discharged liquid and acceleration in the right direction in FIG. 1 is applied to the liquid tank 10, the liquid in the tank body 20 is in a direction opposite to the acceleration direction during acceleration, that is, in FIG. Moves to the left of and is not introduced into the liquid trap 30.
The liquid trap 30 has a capacity sufficient to allow one drive of the thruster. When a shortage of liquid in the liquid trap 30 occurs, the liquid is unevenly distributed during acceleration as shown in the left half of FIG.
The liquid can also be discharged from the discharge unit 21 provided at 0.

When the driving of the thruster is completed, the liquid tank 1
When zero becomes zero gravity, as shown in the right half of FIG.
The liquid, from the portion that was in contact with the liquid capturing thin plate 40,
The liquid is guided to the liquid trap 30 by the surface tension difference due to the difference in the radius of curvature of the free interface, and is guided into the liquid trap 30 from the liquid introduction hole 34 while pulling the portion not in contact with the liquid capturing thin plate 40 with viscosity. Further, the inner wall surface at the bottom of the tank body 20 and the lower surface 3 of the liquid trap 30 are formed.
The liquid that has entered between them moves to the center where the distance between them is small due to surface tension. The liquid introduced into the liquid trap 30 is collected around the tubular member 36 by the plate-like member 37, and enters the above-described standby state where the liquid can be discharged out of the tank. When the liquid is introduced into the liquid trap 30, the gas in the liquid trap 30 is discharged from the vent 35 to the tank body 20.

It should be noted that the shapes, combinations, and the like of the components shown in the above-described embodiment are merely examples, and can be variously changed based on design requirements without departing from the spirit of the present invention. In the illustration, the liquid tank 10
The liquid capturing thin plate 40 is provided on a half circumference of the tank body 20 in order to cope with the acceleration direction of the tank body and to reduce the weight. It may be.

[0023]

As described above, according to the liquid tank according to the first aspect of the present invention, the difference in surface tension due to the difference in the radius of curvature of the free interface of the liquid in contact with the thin plate for liquid capture can be obtained.
Since the liquid in the tank main body is guided into the liquid trap and the liquid can be stored in the liquid trap, the liquid in the tank main body can be discharged out of the tank even under zero gravity or microgravity. Further, since the liquid capturing mechanism is not a channel mesh type which is heavy and takes a lot of time to manufacture, but a thin liquid capturing plate which is lightweight and low in manufacturing cost is used, a lightweight and inexpensive liquid tank can be realized. .

According to the liquid tank of the present invention, the tank body and the liquid trap are located between the inner surface of the bottom of the tank body having a large radius of curvature and the outer surface of the bottom of the liquid trap having a small radius of curvature. A gap is formed, which becomes smaller as approaching the connection portion. Therefore, the liquid in the tank body is guided by the surface tension to the smaller gap, that is, the connection portion between the tank body and the liquid trap,
The liquid in the tank body can be easily and efficiently contained in the liquid trap.

According to the liquid tank according to the third aspect of the present invention, a gap is formed between the radially arranged plate-like members, the gap becoming smaller as approaching the central tubular member. Is collected around the tubular member so as to close the liquid discharge hole of the tubular member. Therefore,
When the inside of the tank body is pressurized and the inside of the liquid trap is pressurized, the liquid collected around the tubular member is pushed out of the tank through the liquid discharge hole, so it is difficult to discharge gas, and it is easy and efficient. The liquid in the liquid trap can be discharged out of the tank.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the gap between the inner wall surface of the liquid trap and the end of the plate member gradually decreases from the center of the upper surface to the center of the lower surface through the side surface. Is formed, the liquid adhering to the wall surface in the liquid trap is guided to the lower center along this gap. Therefore, while the liquid is collected in the lower center in the liquid trap, the gas is moved to the outside of the upper part, so that gas-liquid separation in the liquid trap becomes easy, and an efficient liquid tank can be realized.

According to the liquid tank according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the thin plate for capturing liquid is provided without being fixed to the tank body, it is not affected by expansion and contraction due to the pressure and temperature difference of the tank body. . Therefore, there is no need to secure sufficient strength to prevent breakage due to stress, and a thin and lightweight liquid capturing thin plate can be used, so that a lightweight and inexpensive liquid tank can be realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of a liquid tank according to the present invention, in which the left half of the figure shows the state of the liquid when the liquid tank is accelerated rightward in the figure; The half is a diagram showing the state of the liquid at the time of weightlessness.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part showing details of a liquid trap of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Liquid tank 20 Tank main body 21 Discharge part 30 Liquid trap 34 Liquid introduction hole 36 Tubular member 36a Liquid discharge hole 37 Plate member 40 Liquid capture thin plate 50 Discharge part

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (72) Keisuke Yamada, Inventor Keisuke Yamada 229 Togaya, Mizuho-cho, Nishitama-gun, Tokyo Ishikawashima Harima Heavy Industries, Ltd. Mizuho Plant (72) Inventor Mayumi Kitamura 229 Ishi Kawashima Harima Heavy Industries, Ltd. Mizuho Plant F-term (reference) 3E070 AA04 AB01 GB04 GB09 GB20

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A liquid tank arranged in a zero gravity or microgravity environment, comprising: a tank main body having a discharge section formed at a bottom; and a tank main body disposed at a bottom inside the tank main body; A box-shaped liquid trap for connecting to a discharge section; and a liquid capturing thin plate provided along the inner surface of the tank body from the liquid trap and guiding the liquid in the tank body to the liquid trap. A liquid tank characterized by the following. 2. The liquid tank according to claim 1, wherein the bottom of the liquid trap is formed in a spherical shape having a smaller radius of curvature than the bottom of the tank body. 3. A tubular member provided in a vertical direction at a central portion in the liquid trap and having a liquid discharge hole communicating the inside of the liquid trap and the discharge portion, and a plurality of radially erected members are erected from the tubular member. The liquid tank according to claim 1, further comprising a plate-shaped member. 4. An upper surface of the liquid trap is formed in a spherical shape, and a gap between an inner wall surface of the upper surface of the liquid trap and the plate-like member is larger on the upper side as it gets closer to the tubular member, and becomes smaller on the side side as it goes down. 4. The liquid tank according to claim 3, wherein the lower side is formed so as to become smaller as approaching the tubular member. 5. The liquid tank according to claim 2, wherein the liquid capturing thin plate is fixed to the liquid trap with a gap provided between the thin plate and the inner surface of the tank body.