JP2005211746A - Air cleaning element and air cleaning device provided with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air cleaning element capable of effectively cleaning a contamination component resulting from an inanimate object and contaminant resulting from microorganisms, i.e., an allergen component such as mold and acarids. <P>SOLUTION: The air cleaning element is provided with an ion generation element 4 for generating positive and negative ions at an ion generation electrode; an electric dust-collection device 7 having a discharge electrode 5 and a counter electrode 6 opposed thereto; and a fan means 3 for feeding the positive and negative ions generated at the ion generation element 4 to the electric dust-collection device 7. The contamination component mainly resulting from the inanimate object is removed by the electric dust-collection device 7 and the contaminant resulting from mold, variable pollen (allergen component) of Japan cedar and cypress and organisms, i.e., acarids (allergen component) is inactivated. The contamination component resulting from the inactivated organism is removed by the electric dust-collection device 7 completely similarly to the contamination caused by the inanimate object. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention is effective for both inanimate dirt such as dust (lint and dust) and biological dirt such as mold, airborne bacteria, virus, pollen, and mite allergen components present in the air. TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an air purification element that can be removed and inactivated and an air purification device including the same.

  As a method of capturing and removing dust from airborne particles, a method using an electrostatic precipitator has been proposed.

  As shown in Patent Document 1, the electrostatic dust collection method includes an ionization unit (charging unit) for charging dust that is airborne particles in the air by discharge (mainly corona discharge), and the charged dust using Coulomb force. And a collector part (dust collecting part) that adheres to the dust collecting plate, and collects suspended particles passing between the ionization part and the collector part to the collector part by discharge. Dust is collected by charging the dust positively or negatively by discharging.

  This electric dust collection method does not require heating, has the advantages of low power consumption, has a small pressure loss, and has a low running cost. Moreover, since the particle component existing in the space can be removed to a particle size as small as several nanometers, there is an advantage that fine particles smaller than the filter type which is a general method can be removed.

  However, this electric dust collection method has a great effect on the removal of inanimate dirt such as dust (thread waste and dust) floating in the air. No effect of removing or inactivating allergens, viruses, pollen or mites. Contamination causes caused by organisms such as pollen (allergen component) and mites (allergen component) such as mold, cedar and cypress adversely affect humans, so there is a limit to the single use method of the electrostatic dust collection method.

  Therefore, as an electric dust collection method that also removes molds, airborne bacteria, pollen and mite allergen components, a filter unit is provided in addition to the electrostatic dust collection unit. There are also proposed methods for removing and inactivating them.

  As this conventional example, for example, Patent Document 2 proposes a method of attaching, applying, impregnating, and mixing a synthetic resin material containing an iodine compound resin or an iodine compound resin. Conventionally, it has been known that the iodine component has a bactericidal action, and the dust particles collected by the dust collecting electrode are killed or prevented from breeding by the bactericidal power of the iodine compound resin.

  As another conventional example, as shown in Patent Document 3, a method is known in which a photocatalyst such as titanium oxide (TiO 2) is supported on a filter portion and sterilized by irradiating the photocatalyst with light.

In addition to the electric dust collection method described above, dirt in the air (particularly pollutants caused by organisms such as pollen (allergen component) and mites (allergen component) such as mold, cedar and cypress) is removed. As an effective method for inactivation, as disclosed in Patent Document 4, a technique is also disclosed in which positive and negative ions are generated by plasma discharge and released into the air.
JP 2000-202324 A JP 2001-137742 A JP 2003-144972 A JP 2002-95731 A

  However, as described above, the air purification apparatus provided with the electric dust collector has a great effect on inanimate dirt such as dust (thread waste and dust) floating in the air. However, there is no effect of removing or inactivating airborne microbes, viruses, pollen, and mite allergens, and removal and inactivation of biological pollution causes that adversely affect the human body such as infections and allergies. However, there is a problem that it is released into the space while maintaining the activity.

  In the electric dust collection method, a filter is further provided to prevent damage to the electrodes and suppress the occurrence of sparks, and the collected dust (dust) and dust (dust) can be attached to the filter portion and removed. In the case of biological dirt such as pollen (allergen component) and mites (allergen component) such as mold, cedar and cypress adhering to this filter part, even if it can be removed by adsorbing to the filter part by electric dust collection method The activity of adversely affecting the human body remains maintained on the filter surface.

  Therefore, when the power of the electrostatic precipitator is turned off, or when the filter is removed from the electrostatic precipitator in order to clean the filter, an excessive shock is momentarily applied to the electrostatic precipitator itself. In some cases, dirt components caused by organisms such as pollen (allergen component) and mites (allergen component) such as mold, cedar and cypress collected in the filter part have separated from the surface of the filter again and maintained the activity. There is a possibility that it will be released into the space as it is.

  In this way, if the cause of the biological contamination caused by the attached organism is removed at once, it will be instantaneously released into the space at an extremely high concentration. The negative effects on existing humans are extremely large.

  Also, as in Patent Document 2, when processing such as adding, applying, impregnating, and confusing the iodine component as the filter structure, it is necessary to produce a special dedicated filter different from the normal one, and the manufacturing cost The problem of rising.

  Furthermore, in the case of the filter method using the photocatalyst, which is another method described above, in order for the photocatalyst to exert its effect, it is necessary to separately install a light source for irradiating the surface of the photocatalyst. Therefore, it becomes difficult to make the air purification device compact.

  On the other hand, as shown in Patent Document 4, in an air purification device that generates positive and negative ions by plasma discharge and releases them into the air, pollen (allergen component) such as mold, airborne bacteria, cedar and cypress, Although it can remove and inactivate the cause of biological contamination such as mites (allergen components), it is not suitable for inanimate contamination causes such as dust floating in the air (dust and dust). We cannot expect big effect.

  Therefore, as described above, in the current air purification elements, there are inanimate causes of contamination such as dust (thread waste and dust) in the air, mold, airborne bacteria, viruses, pollen, At present, it is impossible to effectively remove and inactivate both causes of biological contamination such as mite allergen components.

  In view of the above, the present invention can remove the cause of contamination due to inanimate organisms, and cause contamination caused by organisms such as mold, airborne bacteria, pollen (allergen components) such as cedar and cypress, and mites (allergen components). An object of the present invention is to provide an air purifying element capable of removing and inactivating air and an air purifying apparatus equipped with the air purifying element.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is generated by an ion generating element that generates positive and negative ions at an ion generating electrode, an electric dust collector having a discharge electrode and a counter electrode opposite to the discharge electrode, and the ion generating element. There is provided an air purification element comprising air blowing means for supplying positive and negative ions to the electric dust collector.

  In the above-described configuration of the present invention, it is possible to remove the cause of contamination mainly caused by inanimate objects by the electric dust collector. In addition, positive and negative ions generated from the ion generating element can remove and inactivate causes of contamination caused by organisms such as mold, airborne bacteria, pollen (allergen component) and mites (allergen component) such as cedar and cypress. It becomes possible. Due to the positive and negative ions, the soil components caused by these inactivated organisms are removed by the electrostatic precipitator in exactly the same manner as the inanimate soils.

  You may provide a filter part in an electric dust collector. The cause of contamination caused by organisms such as pollen (allergen component) and mites (allergen component) such as mold, cedar and cypress adhering to this filter part is already inactivated by positive and negative ions generated from the ion generating element. It has become. Therefore, the impact on the human body is small, even if the electrostatic precipitator suddenly stops due to some unexpected influence such as an impact or a power failure, or if the electrostatic precipitator is momentarily impacted, Even if the cause of biological contamination once collected in the filter section is detached from the filter section and re-released into the space, the cause of biological contamination has already been inactivated, so allergies and infections to the human body It does not have a serious effect of causing illness.

  Furthermore, in the control unit that drives and controls the ion generating element, the ratio of generating positive and negative ions can be freely changed by changing the waveform of the voltage applied to the ion generating element and the driving method.

That is, when considering the ions generated from the ion generating element,
A) When it contains only positive ions (or the generation rate of positive ions is higher than that of negative ions),
B) When it contains only negative ions (or negative ions are generated more than positive ions),
C) When containing both positive ions and negative ions in almost the same quantity,
It can be classified into the following three conditions.

  A) When containing only positive ions (or when the generation rate of positive ions is higher than that of negative ions), or b) When containing only negative ions (or when the generation rate of negative ions is higher than that of positive ions) In some cases, the effect of removing and inactivating airborne bacteria, viruses, pollen, and mite allergens is reduced. However, the dust collection efficiency of the electrostatic precipitator can be increased by sending air in a state where there are many such ions to the precipitator.

  Normally, in order to increase the particulate removal efficiency of the electrostatic precipitator, the electric field strength between the discharge electrode and the counter electrode constituting the electrostatic precipitator is increased, and the degree to which the particulates that are dirt in the air are charged is increased. However, if the ratio of corona discharge is increased, in some cases, there arises a conflicting problem that ozone that is harmful to the human body and emits a bad odor is generated. Since the electric dust collector cannot remove ozone itself, there is a problem in increasing the electric field strength in order to improve the dust collection efficiency, and there is a limit.

  Therefore, by supplying negative ions or positive ions generated from the ion generating element to the electrostatic precipitator, it is possible to increase the dust collection efficiency while suppressing the generation of ozone without increasing the electric field strength between the electrodes. .

  Moreover, when positive ions and negative ions generated from an ion generating element having an ion generating electrode are spread between the discharge electrode and the counter electrode of the electrostatic precipitator, the substance floating between the discharge electrode and the counter electrode Is ionized. As a result, it is possible to exhibit a synergistic effect that the charged fine particles increase and the dust collection efficiency by the electric dust collector is improved.

  Therefore, in the air purifying element of the present invention and the air purifying apparatus including the air purifying element, the electrostatic precipitator unit is continuously operated under a constant condition, while the ion generating element generating method generates positive and negative ions. Is activated to generate positive ions and negative ions at the same concentration, and operates under conditions that remove and inactivate allergen components of airborne bacteria, viruses, pollen and mites, and positive ions or An operation method such as operating the ion generating element so as to increase the concentration of negative ions and increasing the negative or positive charge amount in the electrode of the electrostatic precipitator to increase the dust collection efficiency may be repeated as appropriate. Done.

  As described above, according to the present invention, in the air purification element and the air purification apparatus having both the electrostatic precipitator and the ion generating element and the air blowing means, the inanimate pollution cause floating in the air, the biological The removal / inactivation effect for both of the causes of contamination can be shown, and a comfortable air purification action can be shown.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an air purifying element showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an ion generating element, FIG. 3 is a waveform diagram showing an example of a pulse voltage waveform applied to the ion generating element, and FIG. It is a schematic diagram of an electric dust collector.

  As shown in the figure, an air purifying element 1 according to the present invention includes an air collecting means 3 comprising an air blowing means 3, an ion generating element 4 having an ion generating electrode, a discharge electrode 5 and a counter electrode 6 in an outer frame 2. The dust device 7 is combined. This air purification element 1 can be incorporated in a duct (not shown) and used as an air purification device, for example, in a facility where animals are raised and produced.

  The outer frame 2 is formed in, for example, a cylindrical shape (a square cylindrical shape, a cylindrical shape, a D-shaped cylindrical shape, etc.), and is used to fix the blower 3, the ion generating element 4, and the electrostatic precipitator 7. belongs to. The shape of the outer frame 2 is not particularly limited, but it is desirable that the outer frame 2 has a shape that allows air to be effectively fed from the blowing means 3. The blowing means 3, the ion generating element 4, and the electrostatic precipitator 7 are sequentially arranged in the outer frame 2 from the upstream side to the downstream side in the blowing direction.

  The air blowing means 3 plays a role of supplying air A containing inanimate or biological dirt to the outer frame by the ion generating element 4 or the electric dust collector 7. The blower means 3 is composed of a blower motor and a blower fan, for example.

  The ion generating element 4 is a very small element of about 5 cm × 3 cm × 2 cm, and can be easily attached anywhere in any place. As shown in FIG. 2, the ion generating element 4 includes a dielectric electrode 11 provided on the back side of the dielectric 10, and an ion generating electrode 12 provided on the surface of the dielectric 10 so as to face the dielectric electrode 11. It has. The ion generating electrode 12 is made of a metal tungsten having a high resistance to a discharge phenomenon. In FIG. 2, the ion generating electrode 12 is formed in a net shape, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a known needle shape or the like may be used. Furthermore, in order to generate positive and negative ions more effectively, an electrode pattern shape, an edge shape, a material, and the like can be appropriately determined.

  The ion generating electrode 12 and the dielectric electrode 11 are connected to a high voltage pulse driving circuit 14 through a lead wire 13. The high voltage pulse drive circuit 14 is formed inside the ion generating element 4. A control unit 16 that drives and controls the high-voltage pulse drive circuit 14 is provided.

  The controller 16 drives the high voltage pulse drive circuit 14 and applies a pulse voltage having a peak value of 2.7 kV, for example, between positive and negative voltages between the ion generating electrode 12 and the induction electrode 11. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, the air A passes through the ion generating element 4 and is discharged as air A <b> 1 including positive and negative ions generated from the ion generating electrode 12 and sufficiently containing positive and negative ions. . At this time, the air blowing means 3 is used together to create an air flow.

  The air A1 sufficiently containing ions can control the ion species contained by the driving method of the high-pressure pulse driving circuit 14. For example, in the case where both positive ions and negative ions are contained at the same concentration, when ions are released into the air, an inactivation effect on mold and allergen components is exhibited. Further, when the air contains a balance of negative ions and positive ions in a non-uniform state, the air is further supplied to the electrostatic precipitator 7 in a state containing a large amount of positive ions or negative ions. The dust collection efficiency can be increased.

Further, by changing the waveform of the voltage applied to the ion generating element 4 and the driving method, the ratio of generating positive and negative ions can be freely changed. That is, consider ions generated from the ion generating element 4. as follows,
A) When it contains only positive ions (or the generation rate of positive ions is higher than that of negative ions),
B) When it contains only negative ions (or negative ions are generated more than positive ions),
C) When containing both positive ions and negative ions in almost the same quantity,
It can be classified into the following three conditions.

  By appropriately changing the voltage waveform applied to the ion generating element 4, it can be changed to any one of a), b) and c).

  Of these three conditions, the largest effect of inactivating viruses, molds and airborne bacteria in the space is when c) contains both positive ions and negative ions in approximately the same quantity. Furthermore, it is most effective when the concentration of positive ions and negative ions is generated without excess or deficiency.

  FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of a voltage waveform formed by the high voltage pulse driving circuit when positive ions and negative ions are released into the space at the same concentration. The waveform of the pulse voltage applied to the ion generation electrode 12 and the induction electrode 11 of the ion generation element 4 is a pulse voltage on a sine wave that gradually decays for T1 seconds, and then a rest time of T2 seconds is set. Yes. Repeat this cycle.

  The condition of the pulse voltage in the normal operation mode of the ion generating element 4 is that the frequency of the sine wave is 20 kHz and the repetition period of the pulse is 60 Hz. Further, T1 is 1 millisecond, T2 is about 15.7 milliseconds (3000 / 60-1), and the applied peak voltages are +2.7 kV for the positive voltage and −2.7 kV for the negative voltage.

  Here, since the pulse voltage having the same absolute value of the positive voltage and the negative voltage is applied, the concentration of the positive ion and the negative ion is the same, but the high voltage pulse driving is performed by the signal from the control unit 16. By controlling the circuit 14, the voltage waveform can be changed as appropriate, and the concentration balance between negative ions and positive ions can be changed (for example, the concentration of positive ions can be increased or the concentration of negative ions can be increased). .

The effect of positive and negative ions is described in detail in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-95731, but here is a brief description. The principle of operation of the ion generating element is that ions that generate ions by forming a plasma region. When an alternating high voltage (in many cases, a pulse voltage) is applied between the electrodes of the ion generating element having the generating electrode, positive ions and negative ions are generated from the ion generating electrode by discharge. H ⁺ (H ₂ O) _m (m is an arbitrary natural number) is generated as the positive ion, and O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) _n (n is an arbitrary natural number) is generated most stably as the negative ion. . The ionic species have been confirmed by precise measurement by mass spectrometry.

When these positive ions and negative ions are simultaneously generated in the air, a chemical reaction occurs to generate hydrogen peroxide H ₂ O ₂ or a hydroxy radical / OH which is an active species. These hydrogen oxides H ₂ O ₂ or hydroxy radicals · OH exhibit extremely strong activity, and can thereby remove and inactivate allergens of airborne bacteria, viruses, pollen and mites.

  Therefore, in order to exhibit the above-mentioned effect, both positive ions and negative ions must be supplied to the space. Further, in order to spread the above-described effects to the space, it is necessary to release air containing positive and negative ions to the space. Therefore, a method of providing the blowing means 3 and spreading the ions from the air flow from the blowing means 3 is provided. Is preferred.

  Next, the electric dust collector 7 will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the electrostatic precipitator 7 includes a discharge electrode 5 for generating a corona discharge phenomenon, and a counter electrode 6 disposed so as to face the discharge electrode 5, and these electrodes are the high-voltage power supply circuit 23. It is connected to the. The high voltage power supply circuit 23 is controlled by the control unit 16. The type of discharge is not particularly limited, but a corona discharge phenomenon using a needle-type discharge electrode is often used.

  The discharge electrode 5 is composed of, for example, needle-like electrodes arranged at a constant interval (the interval is often about several centimeters), and a wire using tungsten, which is a metal that is difficult to oxidize, for example. The A high voltage of about 10 kV, for example, direct current is applied to the needle-like electrode and the wire.

  The counter electrode 6 is composed of a pair of electrode plates arranged in parallel with the discharge electrode 5 at an interval. The counter electrode 6 is grounded.

  The basic operation principle is that when the air blowing means 3 is operated and the high voltage power supply circuit 23 is driven, an electric field is applied between the discharge electrode 5 and the counter electrode 6 to generate discharge. When the air A1 supplied by the blower 3 passes between these electrodes 5 and 6, the fine particles contained therein are positively charged. The positively charged fine particles are electrostatically attached to the counter electrode 6 by the Coulomb force generated by the electric field between the electrodes, and the air A1 that has passed through the electrostatic precipitator 7 is released as clean air A2. It will be. Thus, the electric dust collector 7 collects dust by charging the dust using the discharge phenomenon. In addition, in order to avoid that microparticles | fine-particles adhere directly to the counter electrode 6 by this operation | movement, the filter part 24 can be provided in the counter electrode 6. FIG.

  The control unit 16 includes a microcomputer, and can execute the following two operation modes.

(First operation mode)
The first operation mode is an operation mode that has a particularly large effect on inanimate soils among inanimate soils and biological soils in the air. For inanimate dirt, the electrostatic precipitator 7 is more effective in sharing the roles of the ion generating element 4 and the electrostatic precipitator 7. Therefore, the electric dust collector 7 is driven. Although this alone has a sufficient removal effect against inanimate dirt, the ion generating element 4 is further driven to increase the generation rate of negative ions or positive ions among positive and negative ions.

  At this time, air containing a large amount of positive ions or negative ions is carried to the electrostatic precipitator 7 by the blowing means 3. Positive ions or negative ions are electrostatically adsorbed to the counter electrode 6 by the electric field between the electrodes while colliding with inorganic dust in the electrostatic precipitator 7. That is, positive ions or negative ions generated from the ion generating element 4 increase the number of charged fine particles between the electrodes 5 and 6 in the electrostatic precipitator 7 and increase the number of electrostatically adsorbed particles. It will be. Therefore, the removal efficiency is higher than when the electrostatic precipitator 7 is driven alone.

  In order to increase the generation rate of either positive ions or negative ions from the ion generating element 4, electrostatic adsorption to inorganic dust is performed by changing the direction of the electric field applied to the electrostatic precipitator 7 depending on the ion species. It is possible to maintain good efficiency.

(Second operation mode)
The second operation mode is an operation mode that has a particularly large effect on biological dirt among abiotic dirt and biological dirt in the air. In this case, positive and negative ions are effective for pollutants caused by organisms such as pollen (allergen component) and mites (allergen component) such as mold, cedar and cypress. Become. Therefore, the ion generating element 4 can be inactivated by the driving state in which the generation rate of positive and negative ions is substantially the same, so that dirt caused by these organisms can be inactivated.

  The inactivated biological dirt is conveyed to the electrostatic precipitator 7 by the air blowing means 3 along with the air flow, and is exactly the same as the inanimate dirt between the electrodes 5 and 6 of the electrostatic precipitator 7. Adsorb electrostatically.

  These first operation mode and second operation mode are appropriately changed by the control unit 16 and act so that the space is the cleanest (both abiotic and biological contamination causes). The operation mode may be changed at regular intervals, or a separate sensor may be provided, and the control unit 16 can receive the signal from the sensor and change the operation mode accordingly.

  Thus, in this embodiment, by combining the air blowing means 3, the ion generating element 4, and the electric dust collector 7, both inanimate dirt and biological dirt floating in the air are obtained. The effect of removing can be exhibited and a comfortable air cleaning action can be shown.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Of course, correction and a change can be added within the scope of the present invention.

The schematic diagram of the air purification element which shows embodiment of this invention Schematic diagram of ion generator The figure which shows an example of the pulse voltage waveform applied to an ion generating element Outline diagram of electric dust collector

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air purification element 2 Outer frame 3 Blowing means 4 Ion generation element 5 Discharge electrode 6 Counter electrode 7 Electric dust collector 10 Dielectric body 11 Dielectric electrode 12 Ion generation electrode 13 Lead wire 14 High voltage pulse drive circuit 16 Control part 23 High voltage power supply circuit 24 Filter section

Claims (8)

An ion generating element that generates positive and negative ions at the ion generating electrode, an electrostatic precipitator having a discharge electrode and a counter electrode facing the discharge electrode, and supplying positive and negative ions generated by the ion generating element to the electric precipitator An air purifying element comprising: The air purification element according to claim 1, wherein the ion generation element is disposed upstream of the electrostatic precipitator in the air blowing direction.

The air purification element according to claim 1, further comprising a control unit that controls driving of the ion generation element, and the control unit is capable of adjusting a generation balance of positive ions and negative ions. The air purification element according to claim 3, wherein the control unit sets the generation balance of positive ions and negative ions generated from the ion generation element to be substantially the same. The air purification element according to claim 3, wherein the control unit sets a concentration of any one of positive ions and negative ions generated from the ion generation element to be large. The controller controls a first operation mode in which the concentration of positive ions and negative ions generated from the ion generating element is substantially the same, and the concentration of any one of the positive ions and the negative ions. The air purifying element according to claim 3, wherein the air purifying element is operated in combination with a second operation mode that is operated so as to be increased. The air purification element according to claim 6, wherein the control unit changes the first operation mode and the second operation mode of the ion generation element at regular intervals. An air purification device comprising the air purification element according to claim 1.

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