JP2003329346A - Snow-making machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a snow-making machine for generating true snow even at an atmospheric temperature higher than the freezing point. <P>SOLUTION: In this snow-making machine, blocking cooled air of temperatures below the freezing point is fed into a substantially cylindrical hollow shape to form a blocked space, a spray nozzle is disposed in a hollow part of the blocked space, water and cooled air of temperatures below the freezing point are mixed and sprayed from the spray nozzle to generate very small water droplets, and snow is generated from the very small water droplets. Cooled air is dried by a drying means, and cooled by a cooling means at temperatures below the freezing point. Alternatively, blocking cooled air is dried by the drying means, and re-cooled by the cooling means at temperatures below the freezing point. The blocked space is tapered. Dry air is fed between the spray flow of the very small water droplets by the spray nozzle and the flow of the blocking cooled air. A thickening means to thicken snow generated in the blocked space by spraying water toward the blocked space is provided around the blocked space. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a snowmaking machine capable of making snow not only below freezing but also at room temperature.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a snowmaking machine is installed in a ski resort, and when sufficient snowfall cannot be obtained, the snowmaking machine artificially generates snow to generate a snow surface. .

Such a snowmaking machine sprays mist-like water from a nozzle to make water into snow crystals by the outside air below freezing.
Since the cold energy of the atmosphere is used, it is possible to produce a large amount of snow in a short time. However, if the outside temperature is −
It is known that snowmaking is difficult in a temperature range higher than 3 ° C.

For these reasons, in recent years, ice produced by using an ice-making machine is crushed into fine particles to artificially approximate the state of snow. When such an ice making machine is used, it is possible to artificially generate a snow surface even when the temperature is higher than the freezing point and snowfall by the snow making machine cannot be expected, and it is possible to enjoy skiing or snowboarding. can do.

Such a snow making machine is not a snow making machine, which is called a snow making machine, but is a so-called ice making machine, which produces a fine ice block that looks like snow. In the following, a snow making machine that produces such fine ice blocks will be referred to as an ice making machine for convenience.

In an ice making machine, a cooling medium liquid cooled below freezing is brought into contact with a metallic cooling plate to cool the cooling plate, and water is made to flow down to the cooling plate to generate ice on the surface of the cooling plate. When it has grown to a size, the ice is desorbed from the cooling plate to form an ice block, and the ice block is crushed to form a fine ice block.

[0007]

However, in the ice making machine,
Since the natural energy in the atmosphere cannot be used as energy for ice making, and a huge amount of electric power is required to pulverize and disperse water from ice and ice into snow, the running cost is unimaginable. Most ski resorts were reluctant to hire.

[0008] In addition, by using an ice making machine, snow can be produced in any temperature range, but it takes about one month to make enough snow to make it possible to ski. Since 50 to 60% of snow is melted, there is a problem that wasteful energy is wasted.

On the other hand, in the conventional water spray type snowmaking machine, the heat of vaporization of water can be used, so that snowmaking can be performed with relatively low power consumption, and the snowmaking amount when the conditions are good. It is possible to use 10 times or more of the ice making machine type, but there is a problem that the temperature needs to be -3 ° C or lower at least in the temperature range where snowmaking operation can be actually performed. In particular, due to the recent warming phenomenon, it was almost impossible to operate a water spray type snowmaking machine when snow was really needed to open a ski resort in November.

Therefore, the present inventors have conducted research to develop a snow making machine capable of producing a large amount of snow with a small amount of power consumption even at temperatures higher than the freezing point, and have accomplished the present invention. is there. In the present invention, the term "snow" is used to refer to ice in a hexagonal crystalline state and is different from granular ice blocks in a state in which ice is crushed.

[0011]

In the snow making machine of the present invention, a shielding space is formed by supplying shielding cooling air having a temperature below freezing to a hollow cylindrical shape, and a hollow portion of the shielding space. A spray nozzle is provided in the spray nozzle, and water and cooling air at a temperature below freezing are mixed and sprayed from the spray nozzle to generate fine water droplets in a supercooled state, and the fine water droplets are crystallized in a shielded space to snow. It was decided to generate.

Further, it is also characterized by the following points. That is, (1) the cooling air must be dehumidified air. (2) The cooling air is air that has been dehumidified and cooled after the shielding cooling air is sucked and compressed. (3) The shielded space has a tapered shape. (4) Dry air is supplied between the spray air stream of fine water droplets from the spray nozzle and the air stream of the shielding cooling air. (5) A bloat enlargement means is provided around the shielded space to enlarge the snow generated in the shielded space by spraying water toward the shielded space.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The snow making machine of the present invention has a basic structure to reproduce the atmosphere above the altitude of 5000 m or more in a snowy area in Japan, especially the so-called winter general condition of -36 ° C or less in winter. It is a composed snow machine.

That is, in the snow making machine of the present invention, the shielding air having a temperature below the freezing point is supplied to the hollow cylindrical shape to form the cylindrical shielded space, and the hollow portion of the shielded space is formed. As a snowmaking machine, which is equipped with a spray nozzle, generates fine water droplets that are supercooled by mixing and spraying water and cooling air from the spray nozzle, and instantly freezes the fine water droplets to generate snow crystals. There is something.

In particular, the cooling air for shielding is below freezing, specifically -100 to 0 ° C, most preferably -60 to -15.
The temperature is set to ℃, which makes it possible to maintain the temperature inside the shielded space below the freezing point temperature.

Further, the shielding cooling air is dehumidified, specifically, a low dew point air generating process for generating air whose dew point is lowered by a forced cooling process by a heat exchanger such as a coil type, panel type or fin type. Therefore, it is desirable to keep low humidity and low dew point.

The water supplied to the spray nozzle is preferably low temperature water having a water temperature of -5 to 20 ° C, and most preferably -3 to 8 ° C in this range. In addition,
Water having a water temperature of 0 ° C. or lower is supercooled water.

Further, like the shielding cooling air, the cooling air to be supplied to the spray nozzle is preferably dehumidified by the dehumidification process, that is, the forced cooling process by the heat exchanger. Is also below freezing, specifically -100 to 0 ° C, most preferably -60 to
It is preferably -15 ° C. In addition, in the cooling air,
You may use the dry air whose dew-point temperature which expresses humidity is -40--60 degreeC equivalent.

When the cooling air is jetted from the spray nozzle, the cooling air has a temperature drop due to adiabatic expansion, and fine water droplets generated by being sprayed from the spray nozzle by the air having a temperature below freezing flowing in the shielded space. Is supercooled and the fine water droplets are solidified to generate ice crystals that become snow.

In particular, since the size of fine water droplets in a supercooled state is as small as about 20 μm to 1 mm, the heat of vaporization and evaporation and the rapid heat transfer by the shielding cooling air cause crystallization of snow in the air. Occur. Therefore, even when the outside air temperature is higher than 0 ° C, the fine water droplets sprayed from the spray nozzle into the cooling air flowing into the hollow part in the shielded space can generate real snow in the shielded hollow part regardless of the outside air temperature. Can be

By subjecting the cooling air to the above-mentioned dehumidification treatment so that the cooling air has low humidity, fine water droplets are rapidly vaporized in extremely dry low temperature air, that is, air having a low dew point. By removing the heat, crystallization due to sublimation condensation can be promoted.

In addition to this, since it is possible to increase the temperature drop due to the adiabatic expansion of the cooling air when the cooling air is ejected from the spray nozzle, it is possible to improve the snow production efficiency.

When the shielding cooling air is sucked and compressed by a compressor or the like as the cooling air, and the compressed air is dehumidified and cooled, Air with lower humidity can be generated, and snow generation efficiency can be improved.

Further, since the dehumidifying efficiency can be improved by pre-compressing with a compressor or the like, a small-capacity dehumidifying device can be used as a dehumidifying means for performing dehumidifying treatment provided on the downstream side. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of frost in the cooling device as a cooling unit that recools the air.

When the shielding space is tapered, the tip of the shielding space can be closed with the cooling air for shielding. Therefore, it is possible to sufficiently promote supercooling while advancing the fine water droplets generated by the spray nozzle in the spray direction, and it is possible to maintain the temperature inside the shielded space below the freezing point, and reliably generate snow in the shielded space. can do.

In particular, since the air flow of the cooling air for shielding, which advances in the air supply direction, eventually diffuses outward, the flow of the fine water droplets sprayed from the spray nozzle by supplying the taper-shaped air. You can keep going straight as much as possible. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the fine water droplets from diffusing outwardly and coming into contact with the outside air, and the fine water droplets once crystallized returning to the liquid state.

Further, when dry air is sent between the atomizing air stream of fine water droplets by the atomizing nozzle and the air stream of the cooling air for shielding, the dew point temperature in the shielding space can be further lowered, and evaporation is performed. Since the vaporization is promoted, the snow production efficiency can be improved.

Further, by providing a bloating means around the shielded space for enlarging the snow generated in the shielded space by spraying water toward the shielded space, the snow generated in the shielded space is , It will cross the fog layer formed by the fog generated by the enlargement means, and it will come into contact with the water droplets that make up the fog in the fog layer, and it will be possible to replenish the snow with the raw material water that will be the source of the snow .

When the raw material water is supplied with the raw material water at a temperature below the freezing point, the supplied raw material water is crystallized, so that the crystals can be enlarged and a sufficiently large size of snow is produced. be able to.

In particular, by making the snow larger than a predetermined size, it is possible to make it difficult to melt at a normal temperature higher than 0 ° C., and it is possible to form a snow surface made of real snow under the normal temperature.

In addition, since the fine water droplets sprayed from the spray nozzles do not have a sufficient amount of water, the seed water is in a state where snow can occur but the snow cannot be turned into seeds. It is also possible to increase the amount of snow generated by being able to supply snow.

[0032]

The snowmaking machine of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, a snowmaking machine A of the present invention includes a shielding cooling air generation unit 1 that generates shielding cooling air at a temperature below freezing and a cooling air generation unit 2 that generates cooling air at a temperature below freezing. And, the shielding cooling air generated by the shielding cooling air generation unit 1 is sent in a substantially cylindrical shape to generate the shielding space 3, and the cooling air generation unit 2 generates the shielding space 3 in the substantially cylindrical shape. The cooling water and the water are mixed and sprayed to generate snow, and the water generating unit 4 is configured to include the snow generating unit 4, and the water supplying unit 5 that supplies the snow generating unit 4 with the raw material water that becomes snow.

Further, in the snow making machine A, snow crystals generated in the shielded space 3 by spraying the raw material water, which is the raw material of snow, to the shielded space 3 from the periphery of the shielded space 3. The increase portion 6 is provided to increase the amount of snow produced as a result of the increase in the size of the snow. Particularly, in this embodiment, two increasing portions 6 are provided to increase the increasing effect.

Although not shown, the shielding cooling air generating unit 1, the cooling air generating unit 2, the snow generating unit 4, the water supply unit 5,
A control unit is provided to interlock the increasing units 6 with each other.
It is configured to smoothly generate snow under the control of the control unit.

In the following, the structure of each part of the snow making machine A will be described first, and finally the snow making method by the snow making machine A will be described.

(1) About Snow Generating Unit 4 As shown in the front view of FIG. 2A and the vertical sectional view of FIG. 2B, the snow generating unit 4 is generated by the shielding cooling air generating unit 1. A substantially cylindrical fixed hood body attached to the tip of the shielding cooling air supply pipe 10 for supplying the shielding cooling air to the snow producing part 4.
41, a substantially cylindrical movable hood body 42 that is fitted in the tip end portion of the fixed hood body 41 so as to be able to move forward and backward, and a bottomed substantially cylindrical interior provided inside the fixed hood body 41 and the movable hood body 42. A hood body 43, a dry air air supply pipe 44 connected to the inner hood body 43 to supply dry air into the inner hood body 43, and the fixed hood body 41 is inserted into the fixed hood body 41 from the outside, It is composed of a spray nozzle 45 attached to the tip of the cooling air supply pipe 20 inserted into the inner hood body 43.

At the tip of the shielding cooling air supply pipe 10 to which the fixed hood body 41 is attached, the shielding cooling air supply pipe 10 is provided.
In order to match the pipe diameter of the fixed hood body 41 with the pipe diameter of the fixed hood body 41, a diameter-expanded portion 10b having a diameter-expanded shape is provided toward the tip.
An attachment flange 10a used for attachment to the fixed hood body 41 is provided at the tip of the protrusion.

At the rear end of the fixed hood body 41 having a substantially cylindrical shape, a mounting flange 10 at the tip of the cooling air supply pipe 10 for shielding is provided.
A mounting flange 41a that abuts against a is provided so as to project, and the mounting flanges 10a and 41a are configured to abut and overlap each other for mounting.

The tip of the fixed hood body 41 was fitted into a substantially cylindrical movable hood body 42, and the movable hood body 42 was fitted to the fixed hood body 41.

In particular, the movable hood body 42 is the fixed hood body 41.
The movable hood body 42 is prevented from coming off from the fixed hood body 41 in the following manner. That is, the outer peripheral surface of the fixed hood body 41 is provided with a locking flange 41b projecting outward, and the rear end of the movable hood body 42 is provided with a rear end flange 42b projecting outward. , The fixing bolt 46 is inserted into the bolt penetration hole provided in the locking flange 41b, and the fixing bolt 46 is also directly inserted into the bolt penetration hole provided in the rear end flange 42b to engage the fixing bolt 46. The stop nut 47 is screwed on, and the movable hood body 42 is locked by the locking nut 47.

At the tip of the movable hood body 42, an outer guide peripheral wall 42a having a diameter reduced toward the tip is provided, and the shielding air fed from the shielding cooling air supply pipe 10 into the fixed hood body 41 is shielded. The cooling air is designed to be delivered in a tapered shape.

Inside the fixed hood body 41 and the movable hood body 42, an inner hood body 43 having a substantially cylindrical shape with a bottom is arranged. In particular, a plurality of air conditioning fins 48 extending substantially parallel to the extending direction of the inner hood body 43 are provided on the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the inner hood body 43 so as to project. The protruding dimension of the air conditioning fins 48 was such that, when the inner hood body 43 was installed inside the fixed hood body 41, the protruding edges of the air conditioning fins 48 contacted the inner side surfaces of the fixed hood body 41. As a result, the air-conditioning fins 48 themselves can be used as guides, and when the inner hood body 43 is installed inside the fixed hood body 41, the central axis of the inner hood body 43 is substantially aligned with the central axis of the fixed hood body 41. Can be set up. The air-conditioning fins 48 may project inwardly on the inner surface of the peripheral wall of the fixed hood body 41 instead of projecting on the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the inner hood body 43.

The inner hood body 43 is installed in the fixed hood body 41 with the bottom wall 43b as the side of the cooling air supply pipe 10 for shielding.
Therefore, the shielding cooling air is not sent to the inside of the inner hood body 43, and the shielding cooling air is configured to be sent between the peripheral wall of the inner hood body 43 and the peripheral wall of the fixed hood body 41. did.

Further, an inner guide peripheral wall 43a having a diameter reduced toward the front end is provided at the front end portion on the opening side of the inner hood body 43.
The cooling air for shielding, which is supplied between the peripheral wall of the inner hood body 43 and the peripheral wall of the fixed hood body 41, is sent in a tapered cylindrical shape by the outer guide peripheral wall 42a and the inner guide peripheral wall 43a. It was constructed so as to form the shielded space 3. That is, the shielding cooling air is used to generate the cylindrical air curtain 3a having a reduced diameter in the air supply direction, thereby forming the shielding space 3.

Further, a dry air air supply pipe 44 is connected to the inner hood body 43, the dry air is fed into the inner hood body 43, and the dry air is fed from the inner hood body 43. . In this embodiment, the dry air supply pipe 44 is a fixed hood body.
It is inserted into the fixed hood body 41 by penetrating the peripheral wall of 41, the dry air air supply pipe 44 tip is connected to the bottom wall 43b of the inner hood body 43, and the dry air is approximately parallel to the extending direction of the inner hood body 43. Configured to deliver air. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 44a is an air-jet nozzle that blows dry air.

The dry air supply pipe 44 was connected to a dry air generator (not shown) so that dry air could be supplied. Here, dry air is air of low humidity. further,
Desirably, the dry air is cold air.

The cooling air supply pipe 20 having the spray nozzle 45 attached to the tip thereof is a pipe for supplying the cooling air generated by the cooling air generator 2 to the spray nozzle 45. In the case of this embodiment, the fixed hood body is used. It is inserted through the peripheral wall of 41 to the substantially central portion of the fixed hood body 41, and is bent at a substantially right angle at the substantially central portion of the fixed hood body 41 so that the fixed hood body 41 has a central axis of the fixed hood body 41. It was configured to be extended in the distal direction, further penetrated through the bottom wall 43b of the inner hood body 43 and inserted into the inner hood body 43, and the spray nozzle 45 was positioned immediately in front of the opening surface 43c of the inner hood body 43.

That is, the spray nozzle 45 is a fixed hood body.
It is located not only on the central axis of 41 but also on the central axis of the inner hood body 43, and the spray nozzle 45 is a fixed hood body.
The spraying is performed substantially parallel to the extending direction of the inner hood body 41 and the inner hood body 43.

A two-fluid nozzle is used as the spray nozzle 45, and a water supply pipe 50 connected to a midway portion of the cooling air air supply pipe 20.
Water is supplied from the water supply unit 5 to the cooling air air supply pipe 20 via the water supply system, and the cooling air and water are supplied to the spray nozzle 45 while being mixed with each other to spray fine water droplets.

In the present embodiment, the water supply pipe 50 is constructed so as to penetrate the peripheral wall of the fixed hood body 41 and be inserted into the fixed hood body 41 so as to be connected to the middle portion of the cooling air supply pipe 20. However, the connection position between the water supply pipe 50 and the cooling air air supply pipe 20 is not particularly limited as long as the mixed fluid of water and cooling air can be supplied to the spray nozzle 45.

Further, in the present embodiment, the fixed hood body 41
The cooling air supply pipe 20 in the inside is provided with a locking flange 20a projecting, and the inner hood body 43 is fixed by connecting the bottom wall 43b of the inner hood body 43 to the locking flange 20a. It was In FIG. 2, 20b is a locking flange 20a and a bottom wall 43.
It is a fixture that connects and fixes with b.

In the present embodiment, the shielding space 3 is generated by the shielding air, but the shielding space 3 is generated by the cylindrical air curtain 3a having a diameter reduced in the air feeding direction. However, the shielding space 3 can be generated. If so, it is not limited to the above-mentioned configuration, for example, a plurality of fuming nozzles 44a for blowing dry air around the spray nozzle 45 is provided to surround the spray nozzle 4, and further, the periphery thereof is provided with shielding cooling. A plurality of nozzles 44a for injecting air are arranged to form the spray nozzle 4 and the air injection nozzle 44.
It may be configured to surround a and to create a shielded space 3.

(2) About Shielding Cooling Air Generating Unit 1 As shown in FIG. 1, the shielding cooling air generating unit 1 is blown by the blowing device 11 for sucking the outside air and feeding it by pressure. And a cooling device 12 for cooling the air. In particular, the cooling device 12 cools the air to a temperature below the freezing point to generate the shielding cooling air, and the snow is generated through the shielding cooling air supply pipe 10 that connects the cooling device 12 and the snow generator 4 to each other. It was configured to supply cooling air for shielding to the section 4. In FIG. 1, 13 is an air supply pipe that connects the air blower 11 and the cooling device 12 to each other.

In the air blower 11, the temperature of the air sent from the air blower 11 rises because the sucked outside air is sent under pressure. The blower 11 used in the present embodiment is one that pressurizes air to be pressurized to about 0.03 MPa, and when the outside air of about 10 ° C. is sucked, the air to be pumped has a temperature of about 30 to 40 ° C. Becomes

Cooling device 12 for cooling the hot air
A cooling fin (not shown) is provided in the
The air sent under pressure is cooled by bringing it into contact with the cooling fins. In the case of the present embodiment, the cooling fins are cooled to about −30 ° C. by using the refrigerant sent from the refrigerant cooling device 14, and the cooling fins are brought into contact with the air sent under pressure from the air blower 11 − It was cooled to about 20 ° C. to obtain cooling air for shielding. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 15 is a refrigerant supply pipe, which is configured to supply the refrigerant from the refrigerant cooling device 14 to the cooling device 12, while the refrigerant sent to the cooling device 12 is a refrigerant return (not shown). It was configured to be returned to the refrigerant cooling device 14 via a pipe to circulate the refrigerant.

When the cooling device 12 is operated, water in the air is condensed and frozen in the cooling fins to cause frost, which may cause clogging of the cooling fins. Therefore, it is desirable to periodically stop the operation of the cooling device 12 and perform the defrosting process of the cooling fins.

In the defrosting process, the cooling of the cooling fins by the refrigerant is stopped, and the high-temperature air pressure-fed from the air blower 11 is sent to the cooling fins, so that the heating device can be easily installed without providing a separate heating device. It can be carried out.

As described above, since the cooling device 12 is stopped due to the periodic defrosting process, in the present embodiment,
As a cooling device 12, a first cooling device 12a and a second cooling device 12b are installed in parallel, and the first cooling device 12a and the second cooling device 12b are alternately operated to continuously generate shielding cooling air. Configured.

That is, when the first cooling device 12a is operated, the second cooling device 12b which is stopped is operated.
First, a part of the high-temperature air pressure-fed by the blower device 11 is blown to perform defrosting processing, and conversely, when the second cooling device 12b is operated, the operation is stopped. Cooling system
A part of the high temperature air pressure-fed from the air blower 11 was fed to the 12a to perform the defrosting process.

The timing for carrying out the defrosting process depends on the blower.
11 and the first cooling device 12a and the second cooling device 12b are performed based on the output value of the pressure sensor 16 provided in the air supply pipe 13 that connects and communicates with each other. If the control unit detects that
The control unit determines that the cooling fins are clogged with frost, and switches the cooling device to be operated.

Note that it is not always necessary to install a plurality of cooling devices 12 and operate them alternately. It is possible to perform defrosting processing for one cooling device 12 at predetermined time intervals and to intermittently supply the cooling air for shielding. It may be configured to generate.

The cooling device 12 may not only cool the air as described above, but may also dehumidify it to reduce the humidity of the cooling air for shielding. Alternatively, a dehumidifying device may be provided separately from the cooling device 12 and configured to dehumidify the cooling air for shielding.

(3) Cooling Air Generating Unit 2 As shown in FIG. 1, the cooling air generating unit 2 sucks and compresses the shielding cooling air generated by the shielding cooling air generating unit 1 by suction and compression. The apparatus 21 includes a device 21, a drying device 22 for drying the air compressed and compressed by the suction compression device 21, and a cooling device 23 for cooling the air dried by the drying device 22. In particular, the cooling air generated by cooling to the sub-zero temperature in the cooling processing device 23 is sent to the snow producing part 4 via the cooling air supply pipe 20 that connects the cooling processing device 23 and the snow producing part 4 to each other. I configured it to be noticeable.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 24 is a shielding cooling air distribution pipe, one end of which is connected to the shielding cooling air supply pipe 10 and the other end of which is connected to the suction compression device 21 and shielded by the suction compression device 21. It is configured to supply cooling air for the vehicle. 25 is a suction compression device
Reference numeral 21 is a compressed compressed air air supply pipe connecting the drying processing device 22 to each other, and reference numeral 26 is a dried compressed air supply pipe connecting the drying processing device 22 and the cooling processing device 23 to each other.

In the present embodiment, the suction compression device 21 is configured to suck the shielding cooling air generated by the shielding cooling air generating section 1 through the shielding cooling air distribution pipe 24.
It is not always necessary to suck the shielding cooling air generated by the shielding cooling air generation unit 1, and the outside air may be directly sucked. However, when the shielding cooling air generated by the shielding cooling air generation unit 1 is sucked, the efficiency of cooling and dehumidifying the air in the suction compression device 21 can be improved, and as a result, the snow generation efficiency is improved. be able to.

The suction / compression device 21 has a built-in air compressor (not shown), and in the case of the present embodiment, it is constructed so as to pressurize the air to about 0.7 Mpa and send it under pressure. It should be noted that the temperature of the air rises due to the pressurization and compression, and in the case of the present embodiment, the temperature of the sucked air of about -20 ° C rises to about 10 ° C. The rate of increase is about 30 ° C.

The drying treatment device 22 is a drying device having a ventilation passage in which a dehumidifying agent such as activated alumina is arranged, and the compressed air compressed by the suction compression device 21 is compressed by the compressed air supply pipe 25. The moisture in the air is adsorbed and removed by the dehumidifying material by sending air to the drying treatment device 22 through the drying treatment device 22, and the drying treatment is performed. The drying treatment is not limited to the one using a dehumidifying agent, and an appropriate dehumidifying means may be used.

The cooling processing device 23 is a device provided with cooling fins (not shown) like the cooling device 12 described above.
Pressurized compressed air that has been dry-processed by the dry processing device 22 is brought into contact with the cooling fins by sending the dry pressurized compressed air to the cooling processing device 23 through the dried pressurized compressed air supply pipe 26. The dried pressurized compressed air was cooled to a temperature below freezing to generate cooling air. In the present embodiment, the dried pressurized compressed air was cooled to about -20 ° C. in the cooling processing device 23 and used as the cooling air.

That is, in this way, the temperature is -20 ° C.
The cooling air having a temperature of about 0.7 MPa is generated, and the cooling air is supplied to the snow generating unit 4 through the cooling air supply pipe 20. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 27 denotes a cooling air supply control valve provided in the middle of the cooling air supply pipe 20 for controlling opening / closing based on the control of the control unit to supply the cooling air to the snow generating unit 4. Configured to control the qi.

Although not shown, the cooling processing device 23
An appropriate cooling fin cooling device for cooling the cooling fins is provided in the same manner as the cooling device 12 described above. The cooling processing device 23 is not limited to the device using the cooling fins, and may be an appropriate device capable of cooling the dried compressed compressed air.

(4) Water Supply Section 5 As shown in FIG. 1, the water supply section 5 includes a water storage tank 51 that stores water and a water supply pump that sucks water from the water storage tank 51 and sends the water to the snow producing section 4. 52 and composed. Water pump 52
The water pumped by suction by the water pump 52 and the snow generator 4
It is configured to supply air to the snow producing unit 4 via a water supply pipe 50 that connects and communicates with. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 53 is a water absorption pipe that connects and connects the water storage tank 51 and the water supply pump 52. A check valve 54 was provided in the water supply pipe 50 to prevent backflow of water.

In this embodiment, the water supply pump 52 has a water
To 0.9Mpa, 0.2m ³Water can be sent at / min
I used one. As a result, as described above, the water supply pipe
50 is connected to the cooling air supply pipe 20, and the same cooling air supply pipe is connected.
When water is sent to the inside of 20, the inside of the cooling air supply pipe 20 is sent by pressure.
Water flows back through the water supply pipe 50 by the cooling air that has been received.
To prevent that.

The water supplied to the snow producing section 4 is desirably at a temperature of several degrees Celsius close to 0 degrees Celsius as described above, and the water storage tank 51 is provided with a water cooling device. It may be configured to cool the water of 51 to a temperature of several degrees Celsius. Further, in order to facilitate the crystallization of water in the snow producing part 4, the water may be water such as magnetized water or activated water that is easily crystallized.

A water supply control valve 55 is provided in the water supply pipe 50, and the water supply control valve 55 is controlled to open and close based on the control of the control unit, thereby controlling the supply of water to the snow producing unit 4. Configured to do so.

(5) Increasing Portion 6 In the case of this embodiment, the increasing portion 6 is a ring-shaped spray water supply pipe 61, as shown in FIG. Spray nozzle 62 for increasing the amount at the required position on the surface
It was configured by arranging a plurality of.

As shown in FIG. 1, a water supply pipe 61 for spraying is connected to a water intake pipe 60 having the other end connected to a branch portion 63 provided in the water supply pipe 50 so that the water pumped by a water supply pump 52 is supplied. It is also possible to feed the water for spraying 61 through the water intake 60.

The amount increasing spray nozzle 62 provided in the spray water supply pipe 61 is a one-fluid nozzle in this embodiment, and the water supplied to the spray water supply pipe 61 is used as the raw material water, as shown in FIG.
It is configured to be capable of spraying inward of the spray water supply pipe 61.

As shown in FIG. 1, the increasing portion 6 is installed at a position where the shield space formed by the snow generating portion 4 is inserted into the ring inner space 64 of the ring-shaped spray water supply pipe 61, It is configured to spray water from the periphery of the shielded space to the shielded space by the increasing spray nozzle 62.

The increasing unit 6 is not limited to the above-mentioned ring-shaped spray water supply pipe 61, and the increasing spray nozzle 62 is arranged around the shielded space.
Any form may be used as long as water can be sprayed from the same amount spray nozzle 62 toward the shielded space.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 65 denotes a spray water supply control valve provided in the middle of the water intake pipe 60, which is opened / closed under the control of the control unit to supply water to the spray water supply pipe 61. Configured to control.

(6) Snow Making Method by Snow Making Machine A The snow making method by the snow making machine A having the above-described structure will be described below.

First, by supplying the shielding cooling air to the snow producing portion 4 through the shielding cooling air supply pipe 10, the shielding cooling air is supplied to the outer guide peripheral wall 42a and the inner guide peripheral wall 43a. The air is sent to form a tapered cylindrical shape to form the shielded space 3.

In the case of the present embodiment, the shielding cooling air is air which is cooled to about −20 ° C. by the shielding cooling air generating section 1 and is pressurized to about 0.03 MPa by the blower 11. The shielding cooling air is used to generate the air curtain 3a, and the shielding air is shielded from the outside air.

In particular, since the shielding space 3 is tapered by the outer guide peripheral wall 42a and the inner guide peripheral wall 43a, the tip of the shielding space 3 can be closed with the cooling air for shielding, and the inside of the shielding space 3 can be covered with snow. It is possible to maintain the temperature below the freezing point at which the formation of

Next, the cooling air is sent to the snow producing section 4 via the cooling air supply pipe 20 and the water is supplied via the water supply pipe 50 to cool the spray nozzle 45 into the shielded space 3. A fine fluid droplet 3b is generated by spraying a mixed fluid of air and water.

At this time, in the present embodiment, the cooling air is pressure-fed by the cooling air generation section 2 at a pressure of about 0.7 MPa at about −20 ° C., while the water is fed by the water supply section 5 at a pressure of about 0.9 MPa. As a result, 0.2 m ³ / min is fed under pressure, and a substantially uniform fine water droplet 3 b can be sprayed from the spray nozzle 45.

Therefore, when the mixed fluid of cooling air and water is sprayed from the spray nozzle 45, a large adiabatic expansion occurs in the cooling air, causing a further temperature drop in the cooling air and supercooling the fine water droplets 3b. It is in a state. In the case of this embodiment, the temperature in the vicinity of the spray nozzle 45 is lowered to about -60 ° C. When the cooling air is ejected from the spray nozzle 45, it is desirable that the cooling air has a temperature of about −60 to −40 ° C. due to adiabatic expansion.

Since the fine water droplets 3b in the supercooled state are extremely small, due to the evaporation heat of vaporization and the rapid heat transfer, the development into crystals instantaneously progresses and the crystals crystallize within 50 cm after the nozzle injection to form snow crystals. By receiving the repulsion of the shielded air flow, it levitates in the shielded space 3, comes into contact with the water droplets floating in a supercooled state, and the crystals increase while taking in these water droplets. Therefore, even when the temperature is higher than 0 ° C, the spray nozzle 45
It is possible to generate snow from the fine water droplets 3b sprayed from.

In particular, since the cooling air is dried in the cooling air generator 2, the fine water droplets 3b are in a state of being easily vaporized rapidly. Further, the temperature decrease due to the adiabatic expansion of the cooling air can be further increased to improve the snow production efficiency. Moreover, the inner hood body 43
Since a dry air air supply pipe 44 is connected to this, and the dry air 3c is sent from the inner hood body 43 substantially in parallel with the spray direction of the spray nozzle 45, the dew point temperature in the shielded space 3 is lowered. It can be kept and the efficiency of snow production can be improved.

Further, by spraying the raw material water onto the snow generated in the shielded space 3 from the increasing spray nozzle 62 of the increasing portion 6 as described above, the snow in the shielded space 3 is misty raw material. Since water can be supplied and the inside of the shielded space 3 is below freezing, crystallization also occurs in the supplied raw water,
As a result, the snow crystals can be enlarged. This is a bloating means. By enlarging the snow crystals, it is possible to increase the amount of generated snow and make it difficult to melt in a temperature environment where the temperature is higher than 0 ° C. In particular, if the outside air temperature is about +2 to 3 ° C., it is possible to grow up to several millimeters of hail.

By installing a plurality of increasing parts 6, the increasing effect can be improved as much as possible.

The numerical values of the temperature, pressure and the like shown in the above-mentioned embodiment are just one embodiment, and are not limited to the above-mentioned numerical values, and the snow production amount by the snow making machine A and the ambient temperature are not limited. It may be set to a numerical value that is a good generation condition depending on the above conditions.

In the snow making machine A of the present embodiment, it is prevented that the water remaining in the water supply pipe 50 and the water intake pipe 60 is frozen when the snow making work is stopped and the pipes 50, 60 are damaged. Therefore, the water remaining in the water supply pipe 50 and the water intake pipe 60 is configured to be discharged.

Particularly, in the case of this embodiment, the cooling air supply pipe
The middle part of 20 and the middle part of the water supply pipe 50 and the middle part of the intake pipe 60 are connected to each other by the air supply pipe for drainage 70, and the air supply pipe for drainage 70
Cooling air generation unit 2 for water supply pipe 50 and intake pipe 60
The cooling air is supplied, and the air pressure of the cooling air is used to perform drainage. In FIG. 1, 71 is a drainage air supply pipe 70.
Is a drainage air supply control valve that controls the supply of cooling air to the air.

[0095]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the shielding cooling air having a temperature below the freezing point is supplied to the hollow substantially cylindrical shape to form the shielding space, and the hollow space of the shielding space is sprayed. By arranging a nozzle, water and cooling air having a temperature below the freezing point are mixed and sprayed from the spray nozzle to generate fine water droplets in a supercooled state, and snow is generated from the fine water droplets. Real snow can be generated even if the outside temperature is 0 ° C or higher. Moreover, power consumption can be reduced to at least ⅓ or less of that of the conventional ice making machine, and power saving can be achieved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, by using the dehumidified air as the cooling air, the cooling air can be made into the low-humidity cooling air, and the cooling air is ejected from the spray nozzle. Since the temperature drop due to the adiabatic expansion of the cooling air at that time can be increased, the snow production efficiency can be improved.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the shielding cooling air is sucked and compressed, and the dehumidifying process is performed and the cooled cooling air is used as the cooling air. By performing a drying process and a cooling process on the cooling air for use, the humidity of the cooling air can be further reduced, and the temperature drop due to the adiabatic expansion of the cooling air when the cooling air is ejected from the spray nozzle is further reduced. By making it larger, the snow production efficiency can be further improved.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the shielding space is tapered, the tip portion of the shielding space can be closed by the cooling air for shielding, and the temperature inside the shielding space can be maintained below the freezing point. Can be

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the dew point temperature in the shielded space is lowered by supplying the dry air between the spraying air stream of the fine water droplets by the spraying nozzle and the air stream of the cooling air for shielding. It is possible to improve the snow production efficiency.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the enlarging means for enlarging the snow generated in the shielded space by spraying water toward the shielded space is provided around the shielded space. The amount of snow generated in the shielded space can be increased, and the snowmaking efficiency can be improved.
Moreover, it is possible to prevent the generated snow from melting in a short time by enlarging the snow crystals, so that the snow state can be maintained for a long time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a snow making machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 (a) is a front view of a snow producing section of the snow making machine according to the present invention, and (b) is a vertical sectional view of the snow producing section.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an increasing portion of the snowmaking machine according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

A snowmaking machine 1 Shielding cooling air generator 10 Shielding cooling air supply pipe 11 Blower 12 Cooling system 2 Cooling air generator 20 Cooling air supply pipe 21 Suction compressor 22 Drying equipment 23 Cooling equipment 3 Shielded space 4 Snow generator 41 Fixed hood body 42 Movable hood body 43 Internal hood body 44 Dry air supply piping 45 spray nozzle 48 rectifying fins 5 water supply department 50 water piping 51 water tank 52 Water pump 6 increase section 60 Intake piping 61 Water pipe for spraying 62 Spray nozzle for increasing volume 70 Drainage air supply pipe 71 Drainage air supply control valve

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A shielded cooling air having a temperature below the freezing point is supplied to a hollow cylindrical shape to form a shielded space, and
A spray nozzle is arranged in the hollow part of the shielded space, and fine water droplets in a supercooled state are generated by mixing and spraying water and cooling air at a temperature below freezing from the spray nozzle, and the fine water droplets are contained in the shielded space. A snowmaking machine characterized by being crystallized in order to generate snow. 2. The snowmaking machine according to claim 1, wherein the cooling air is dehumidified air. 3. The snowmaking machine according to claim 1, wherein the cooling air is air that has been dehumidified and cooled after suctioning and compressing the shielding cooling air. 4. The snowmaking machine according to claim 1, wherein the shielded space has a tapered shape. 5. The manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein dry air is supplied between the spray air flow of the fine water droplets by the spray nozzle and the air flow of the cooling air for shielding. Snow machine. 6. The enlargement means for enlarging the snow generated in the shielded space by spraying water toward the shielded space is provided around the shielded space.
The snowmaking machine according to any one of to 5.