JP2005296845A - Liquid droplet forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus suitable for forming liquid droplets uniform in particle size in a commercial production scale. <P>SOLUTION: In this liquid droplet forming apparatus equipped with a liquid introducing part 6, a plate 1 having liquid jet orifices, a vibration partition wall 3 and an exciter 7, a large number of orifices are provided to a nozzle 2 without directly providing liquid jet orifices to the plate, and at least two nozzles 2 are provided to the plate 2 to provide orifices to the plate. By this constitution, passages of a liquid droplet protective agent can be ensured between the nozzles, and liquid droplets uniform in particle size are easily obtained in a commercial production scale. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a droplet production apparatus for producing droplets having a uniform particle diameter, and more particularly to an apparatus suitable for producing droplets having a uniform size particularly on a commercial production scale (large scale).

  Conventionally, when producing a large amount of liquid droplets, a technique has been adopted in which liquid is ejected using an orifice plate in which a large number of holes are directly provided in the plate. There are techniques that focus on the arrangement (for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-228707 proposes to reduce the contraction of the upward flow of droplets and to make the droplet diameter uniform by arranging a large number of holes in the annular region of the orifice plate. However, the orifice plate diameter is 100 mm, and the total number of orifice holes is 751, which is relatively small. Patent Document 2 proposes a method of reducing the contraction of the upward flow of droplets by directly forming holes in the radial area on the orifice plate. In this case, the number of holes is 100 or less, and it is not suitable for droplet production on a commercial production scale.

  On the other hand, for the purpose of producing droplets uniformly on a commercial production scale, an apparatus that produces droplets of uniform particle size on a commercial production scale by using a small shaker on an orifice plate with a large aperture. Some are provided (see, for example, Patent Document 3).

However, for example, there is no precedent regarding the structure of an orifice plate in a commercial production scale droplet manufacturing apparatus having an orifice plate with 1000 or more holes.
JP-A-3-249931 JP 2001-149765 A JP-A-5-345125

  It is well known that the vibration method is effective for producing droplets having a uniform particle size. On the other hand, in order to manufacture on a commercial production scale, it is usually the simplest solution to increase the number of holes (for example, 1000 holes or more). For this purpose, it is necessary to enlarge the plate. However, the combined use of the two methods of enlarging the vibration method and the plate has the following problems.

  If the holes are densely arranged in the plate, it is difficult to secure a passage for transporting a protective agent (dispersant) that protects droplets to the center of the plate in the slurry chamber. Therefore, it becomes difficult to obtain liquid droplets having a uniform particle diameter toward the center of the plate.

  When clogging occurs in the holes provided in the plate, maintenance such as device disassembly and hole cleaning is difficult, which is extremely disadvantageous in terms of economy.

  When a shaker is applied to the plate, there is a risk that a pressure wave intensity distribution may be formed. For example, when producing droplets having a uniform particle diameter of 300 μm or less by the vibration method, the vibration frequency needs to be increased to 1000 Hz or more. In this case, the pressure wave has a short wavelength, and the pressure wave intensity distribution may be generated on the plate (a place where the vibration is weak and a place where the vibration is weak) due to reflection of the pressure wave in the room or mutual interference. In addition, when increasing the supply amount of raw materials by increasing the number of holes for mass production, the propagation of pressure waves may be weakened by the flow due to the inflow of raw materials, or the intensity distribution of pressure waves may occur. In some cases, a droplet having a uniform particle diameter cannot be obtained at a certain position.

  Further, in order to increase the plate diameter, it is necessary to increase the plate thickness structurally, and it is difficult to process holes directly in the plate.

  The present invention solves these problems and provides an apparatus for producing a uniform particle size droplet from a commercial particle size droplet.

  As a result of intensive studies in view of the above problems, in a droplet manufacturing apparatus provided with a plate having holes for ejecting liquid, instead of directly providing holes in the plate, two or more nozzles having holes are installed in the plate. As a result, the inventors have found that the above problems can be solved, and have completed the present invention.

  Specifically, according to a first aspect of the present invention, in a droplet manufacturing apparatus including a liquid inlet and a plate having a hole for ejecting a droplet target liquid, the nozzle is provided with a hole for ejecting the droplet target liquid. It is related with the droplet manufacturing apparatus characterized by providing a hole in a plate by installing 2 or more in a plate. As a preferable aspect, the present invention relates to the above-described droplet manufacturing apparatus including a vibrating partition wall and a vibration exciter for applying vibration to the droplet target liquid. As a more preferred aspect, the present invention relates to the above-described droplet manufacturing apparatus comprising a plate having a larger diameter than the vibrating partition and a side wall connecting the plate and the vibrating partition.

  A second aspect of the present invention relates to a droplet manufactured by the droplet manufacturing apparatus described above.

  A third aspect of the present invention relates to a polymer bead characterized in that the droplet described above comprises a polymerizable monomer and is obtained from the droplet.

  According to the droplet manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to secure a passage for the droplet protective agent (dispersant) between the nozzles, and it becomes easy to obtain droplets having a uniform particle diameter on a commercial production scale. The nozzles on the plate can be removed individually for easy maintenance such as cleaning and hole repair. Only nozzles that are not usable can be replaced. It is also possible not to use the nozzle holes of the plate. In that case, if a closing plate is installed, the necessary number of nozzles can be used.

  The position of the nozzle installed on the plate can be arbitrarily changed. The nozzle can be arranged at an optimum position except for a position where it is difficult to obtain a droplet having a uniform particle diameter due to nonuniform pressure waves due to vibration.

  Since it is not necessary to drill holes directly in the plate, it is possible to design the device with a structurally required thickness of the plate.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a droplet manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, which is an example of an apparatus for generating droplets in a gas. The droplet manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is a droplet manufacturing apparatus including a liquid inlet 6 and a plate having a hole for ejecting a droplet target liquid. The nozzle 2 is provided with a hole for ejecting the droplet target liquid. The plate 1 is provided with holes by installing two or more nozzles 2 on the plate 1. Specifically, the droplet manufacturing apparatus includes a container 5, and the container 5 is a plate on one side. 1. The nozzle 2 includes a vibration partition wall 3, and includes a side wall 4 connecting the plate 1 and the vibration partition wall 3, and a liquid inlet 6 attached to the side wall. A space formed by the plate 1, the nozzle 2, the vibrating partition 3 and the side wall 4 is referred to as a chamber 11.

  Two or more nozzles 2 provided with a large number of holes for ejecting liquid droplets are attached to the plate 1. In the case of an apparatus for producing droplets on a commercial production scale, the total number of holes is preferably 300 or more. For example, all holes when producing droplets of 120 tons or more per month using a nozzle having a pore diameter of 0.17 mm The number is 1000 or more.

  2 is a structure in which a cylindrical portion having a side wall 4 having an inner diameter equal to the diameter of the diaphragm 3 and a cylindrical portion having a side wall 4 having an inner diameter equal to the diameter of the plate 1 are directly connected. A vibration exciter 7 is connected to the diaphragm 3. In order to produce a droplet having a more uniform particle diameter, the diaphragm 3 is provided with a vibration partition 3 for applying vibration to the droplet target liquid, and the vibrator 7 is applied. It is preferable to cut off the jet flow of the liquid subject to drop.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing another example of the uniform particle size droplet producing apparatus of the present invention, which is an apparatus for generating droplets in a gas. A plate 1 having a larger diameter than the diaphragm 3 and a side wall 4 connecting the plate 1 and the diaphragm 3 are provided. It is preferable to make the diaphragm 3 smaller than the aperture of the plate 1 because droplets can be produced economically and advantageously on a commercial scale using a small shaker. In FIG. 3, since the diameter of the plate 1 is larger than that of the diaphragm 3, the uniform particle size droplet manufacturing apparatus of the present invention may be provided with a cylindrical portion having the same diameter as the plate 1 between the plate 1 and the side wall 4. In addition, a cylindrical portion having the same diameter as that of the diaphragm 3 may be provided between the diaphragm 3 and the side wall 4.

  The vibration of the vibrator 7 is uniformly propagated to the chamber 11 by the vibration partition 3. It is preferably connected via a vibration isolator 8 so that the vibration of the vibration partition wall 3 does not directly propagate to the wall of the chamber 11. The diaphragm 3 is generally a diaphragm, and the diaphragm 3 will be described below as a representative of the diaphragm 3.

  The vibration of the diaphragm is given by a vibrator 7 connected to the diaphragm 3. The vibration propagates as a pressure pulse through the liquid droplet target liquid introduced from the liquid inlet 6 and filled in the chamber 11, and forms a surface wave on the surface of the liquid column 9 of the jet flow of the liquid droplet object liquid. The jet flow of the liquid to be dropped is cut by the surface wave having a constant vibration, and the liquid droplet 10 having a uniform size is generated.

  The vibration propagated to the liquid column 9 of the jet flow of the droplet target liquid is adjusted so that a pressure pulse measured by a pressure sensor (not shown) installed in the chamber 11 becomes a predetermined value. The predetermined value of the pressure pulse is obtained by feeding back the output of the pressure sensor to a controller (not shown) of the shaker 7 to automatically adjust the acceleration of the shaker, or by manually adjusting the output of the pressure sensor. Is set by a method of adjusting the acceleration of the shaker 7 or the like.

  Since the droplet size is usually a uniform droplet diameter between 0.05 and 5 mm, it is preferable to use a frequency of normal vibration of about 100 to 10000 Hz. For smaller droplets, the frequency may be 10000 Hz or more, or for larger droplets, the frequency may be 100 Hz or less.

  Details of the shape of the vibration isolator 8, the vibration exciter 7, and the chamber 11 are described in detail in JP-A-5-345125.

  In the above apparatus, the liquid droplet target liquid is introduced into the chamber 11 at a predetermined flow rate through the liquid inlet 6 via the flow rate adjusting device (not shown), and the liquid droplet target liquid filled in the chamber 11 is the plate. The liquid column 9 is ejected from the hole of the nozzle 2 installed in 1 so as to form a liquid column 9 in a laminar flow state. The ejected liquid column 9 is separated from the droplet 10 by the vibration propagating from the vibration plate 3 through the droplet target liquid. Become. The predetermined flow rate of the droplet target liquid is a flow rate at which the liquid column of the droplet target liquid ejected from the hole is ejected in a laminar state, and the density ρ, viscosity μ of the droplet target liquid, This is a flow rate that gives an ejection speed at which the dimensionless number Re = ρud / μ expressed by the diameter d of the liquid column (generally equal to the diameter of the hole) and the ejection flow velocity u = 10 to 2000. For example, when the hole diameter is d = 0.17 mm, the jet velocity u = 180 cm / sec is selected, and when d = 0.1 mm, the jet velocity 270 cm / sec is selected. The flow rate of the droplet target liquid is adjusted by, for example, the number of revolutions of a control valve connected to the flow meter of the droplet target liquid with a feedback circuit or the supply pump of the droplet target liquid. The droplet target liquid used in the present invention is not particularly limited, and includes organic solvents, aqueous solutions, polymerizable monomers, fine emulsions and suspensions. Among these, it is desirable to use a polymerizable monomer or a mixture thereof. As the polymerizable monomer, known monomers can be used. For example, styrene, o-methylstyrene, m-methylstyrene, p-methylstyrene, p-methoxystyrene, p-phenylstyrene, p-chlorostyrene, 3,4-dichlorostyrene, ethylstyrene, 2,4-dimethylstyrene, pn-butylstyrene, p-tert-butylstyrene, pn-hexylstyrene, pn-octylstyrene, pn- Styrene and its derivatives such as nonyl styrene and pn-decyl styrene, ethylenically unsaturated monoolefins such as ethylene, propylene, butylene and isobutylene, polyvinyl aroma such as divinylbenzene, divinyltoluene, divinylxylene and trivinylbenzene Group compounds, vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride, butyl bromide, fluorine Halogenated esters such as vinyl halides, vinyl esters of carboxylic acids such as vinyl acetate, vinyl propionate, vinyl benzoate, methacrylic acid, methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate, propyl methacrylate, n-butyl methacrylate, methacrylic acid N-octyl acid, dodecyl methacrylate, lauryl methacrylate, stearyl methacrylate, 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate, phenyl methacrylate, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, dimethylaminomethyl methacrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate, 2-methacrylic acid 2- Hydroxypropyl, glycidyl methacrylate, polyethylene glycol methacrylate, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, diethylene glycol dimethacrylate, polyethylene glycol dimethacrylate Methacrylic acid and its derivatives, such as 1,3-butylene glycol dimethacrylate, glycerol dimethacrylate, trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate, acrylic acid, methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, propyl acrylate, n-butyl acrylate , Isobutyl acrylate, n-octyl acrylate, dodecyl acrylate, stearyl acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, chloroethyl acrylate, phenyl acrylate, methoxyethyl acrylate, glycidyl acrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, acrylic 2-hydroxypropyl acid, polyethylene glycol acrylate, acrylic acid such as pentaerythritol triacrylate and derivatives thereof, allyl methacrylate, allyl glycidyl ether, triallyl iso Allyl compounds such as cyanurate and triallyl cyanurate, vinyl ethers such as vinyl methyl ether, vinyl ethyl ether, vinyl isobutyl ether, butanediol divinyl ether, diethylene glycol divinyl ether, vinyl methyl ketone, vinyl hexyl ketone, vinyl isopropenyl ketone, etc. Vinyl ketones, N-vinyl pyrrole, N-vinyl carbazole, N-vinyl compounds such as N-vinyl pyrrolidone, vinyl naphthalenes, acrylonitrile, methacrylonitrile, acrylamide, methacrylamide, methylene bisacrylamide, hydroxyethyl acrylamide, methylol acrylamide, etc. And polymerizable monomers such as acrylamide or methacrylamide. These can be used alone or in combination.

  Furthermore, the droplet target liquid may be a mixture of a polymerizable monomer and a polymerization initiator, a non-polymerizable liquid, a linear polymer, solid fine particles, and the like.

  For example, by using a mixture containing a polymerizable monomer and, if necessary, a non-polymerizable liquid, a linear polymer, a polymerization initiator, etc., as a droplet target liquid, and polymerizing the obtained droplets , Polymer beads can be obtained. In this case, the polymerizable monomer desirably contains at least one polymerizable monomer capable of forming a crosslinked polymer, and for example, those exemplified above can be used. Of these, styrene and its derivatives, and vinyl esters of carboxylic acid can be preferably used. The non-polymerizable liquid is not particularly limited, and for example, toluene, xylene, benzene, heptane, octane, hexane, cyclohexane, ethyl acetate, butyl acetate, alcohols, acetone, water, etc. are used alone or in combination depending on the purpose. can do. Although there is no restriction | limiting in particular also about a linear polymer, For example, the linear polymer containing the polymerizable monomer unit of the said illustration is mention | raise | lifted. In the case where the droplet target liquid contains solid fine particles, the particle size of the solid fine particles is preferably smaller than the holes through which the dispersed phase is ejected.

  A well-known thing can be used for a polymerization initiator, It is preferable to select according to the polymerizable monomer used. For example, lauroyl peroxide, benzoyl peroxide, t-butyl peroxybenzoate, isobutyl-t-butyl peroxycarbonate, butyl perbenzoate, 1,1-bis (t-butylperoxy) 3,3,5-trimethyl Organic peroxides such as cyclohexane, azo compounds such as azobisisobutyronitrile, azobisdimethylvaleronitrile, azobistrimethylpentane, azobiscyanovaleric acid, persulfates, hydrogen peroxide, or hydroperoxide Water-soluble radical polymerization initiators such as these can be used, and they can be used in combination. The polymerization initiator may be directly mixed with the liquid to be dropped.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing still another embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention, which uses two liquids that are sparingly soluble with each other, forms droplets of the other liquid in one liquid, and forms a droplet slurry. It is. This apparatus has a structure in which a frustoconical container 14 having a droplet supply port 12 and a slurry discharge port 13 is attached to the surface of the plate 1 of the apparatus shown in FIG. 3, and mutually insoluble liquids are used. An apparatus that forms droplets of one liquid (in this case, specific gravity is equal to or larger than that of the other) in the other liquid (in this case, specific gravity is equal to or smaller than that of the other). In the above-described apparatus, the liquid that is supplied from the liquid supply port 12 and fills the slurry chamber 15 in the container 14 is subject to liquid droplets that are hardly soluble in the liquid that fills the slurry chamber 15 by the above-described operation. The liquid is introduced from the liquid inlet 6 to produce droplets, and the slurry containing the droplets is recovered from the outlet 13.

  The liquid (continuous phase) to be filled in the slurry chamber 15 is not particularly limited as long as it is poorly soluble in the droplet target liquid (dispersed phase), and the solvent used in the continuous phase is not particularly limited. However, it is economical and has a low environmental impact. The continuous phase may contain a dispersant and salts. As the dispersant, those commonly used in suspension polymerization can be used. For example, gelatin, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyacrylamide, starch and other polymer dispersants, calcium phosphate, hydroxyapatite, magnesium pyrophosphate, etc. Inorganic salts that are hardly soluble in the continuous phase, and cellulose ethers such as carboxymethyl cellulose and hydroxyethyl cellulose can be used. In addition, when an inorganic salt that is hardly soluble in the continuous phase is used as a dispersant, it is preferable to use an anionic surfactant such as α-olefin sulfonic acid soda and dodecylbenzene sulfonic acid soda in combination.

  Hereinafter, the plate 1 and the nozzle 2 will be described. The shape of the plate 1 may be an arbitrary shape such as a square or a circle, and the arrangement of the nozzles 2 installed on the plate 1 may also be installed at an arbitrary position. The size of the plate 1 for producing droplets of uniform particle size on a commercial production scale is preferably about 200 to about 3000 mm. If it becomes larger than this, maintenance load such as nozzle installation work is heavy, it takes time, and it is often very disadvantageous in terms of economy. If the size is smaller than this, it is difficult to think of a commercial production scale, and the number of droplets is such that the uniformity of the droplets is not disturbed by the interaction of liquids that are directly perforated in the plate body and ejected from adjacent holes. The effect of implementing the present invention is small compared to the conventional method of arranging. If a flat portion is formed on the lower surface of the plate (opposite to the nozzle installation surface), bubbles may adhere, impeding pressure propagation, and making it difficult to produce droplets with a uniform particle size. Therefore, it is desirable that the periphery of the nozzle hole provided in the plate 1 be tapered so as not to form a flat portion. Furthermore, it is desirable to coat on it to prevent the adhesion of bubbles.

  In the case of the droplet manufacturing apparatus having the structure of FIG. 4, in order for the liquid (dispersant) filling the slurry chamber 15 in the container 14 supplied from the liquid supply port 12 to uniformly reach the center of the plate, the container 14 is The cylindrical plate 1 is preferably a circular plate, and the nozzles are preferably arranged at regular intervals on the center circumference. Any number of nozzle arrays may be arranged on the plate.

  A necessary number of through holes (hereinafter referred to as nozzle holes) matching the size of the nozzle 2 are formed at positions where the nozzle 2 is attached. When a plate having a large number of nozzle holes is used to produce droplets with a smaller number of nozzles, a closing plate is attached to the nozzle holes where no nozzles are installed. This makes it possible to produce the required amount of droplets. Further, the position where the vibration pressure pulse is weak and it is difficult to obtain a droplet having a uniform particle diameter is used as a closing plate, or a nozzle hole is formed by excluding that position in advance.

  When the nozzle 2 and the closing plate are installed on the plate, the plate 1 and the O-ring are sandwiched and fixed by tightening bolts, and sealed so that the liquid inside does not leak. The nozzle 2 is provided with two or more holes, and the number and arrangement are such that the uniformity of the droplets is not disturbed by the interaction of the liquid ejected from the adjacent holes.

  The shape of the nozzle 2 may be any shape such as a flat plate having an arbitrary shape such as a circle or a square, or a shape in which a circle or a square is convex and a flange is provided around it. The nozzle has a diameter of approximately 10 mm or more and 300 mm or less in order to perform cleaning and hole repair to remove clogging, because it is easy to handle and has a desirable size, and more preferably 30 to 100 mm. The number of holes to be given to the nozzle is not particularly limited, and can be appropriately selected according to the desired production scale. One nozzle has a number of about 2 to 1000, depending on the size of the nozzle. It is preferable to have a hole, and more preferably 30 or more and 300 or less.

  The droplets manufactured using the droplet manufacturing apparatus of the present invention preferably have a uniform particle size. The uniformity is preferably 80% or more, more preferably 85% or more, and most preferably 95% or more. Here, the uniformity in the present invention means that the obtained droplet is magnified and photographed with a stereomicroscope, and at least 100 droplets are image-processed to measure the droplet diameter, and the target particle diameter is ± 5 μm. It is a value expressed by weight% of droplets included in the particle size range.

  The polymer beads obtained from the droplets of the present invention comprising a polymerizable monomer also have good uniformity.

EXAMPLES Next, although this invention is demonstrated further in detail based on an Example, this invention is not limited to these Examples. The uniformity of the droplets in each example was measured by sampling the recovered slurry in a sealed glass cell, enlarging and photographing with a stereomicroscope, image processing, and measuring the droplet diameter. It is desirable to measure a large number of measurements in order to increase measurement accuracy. The droplets were converted to weight and evaluated by the weight% of the droplets included in the target particle size within ± 5 μm. The target uniformity was set at 98% or more.
(Example 1)
A droplet slurry production apparatus comprising two kinds of liquids on a commercial scale similar to that shown in FIG. 4 was used in the slurry chamber 15 having an inner diameter of 950 mm and a height of 2160 mm. A plate having a diameter of 509 mm was used. There is a nozzle hole with an inner diameter of 40 mm at the place where the nozzle is installed. In the present embodiment, 37 nozzles are attached. The nozzle is sealed with a plate and an O-ring, and is attached by tightening four points with bolts. The nozzle can have a hole in an outer diameter of 70 mm (including a flange width of 15 mm) and a diameter of 36 mm. The nozzle had 45 holes with an inner diameter of 0.17 mm, the distance between adjacent holes was 4 mm, and was arranged so that the uniformity of the droplets was not disturbed by the interaction of the liquid ejected from the holes. 37 nozzles were installed on the plate and used. The total number of holes is 1665. As shown in FIG. 5, the 37 nozzles are arranged in such a manner that one is arranged at the center of the plate, six are arranged concentrically with a radius of 78 mm from the center, 12 are arranged with a circle with a radius of 156 mm, and 18 are arranged in a circle with a radius of 234 mm. . The nozzles are arranged at equal distances on a concentric circle.

196 liters / hour of PVA aqueous solution (PVA concentration is 320 ppm dilute) is supplied to the slurry chamber, 246 liters / hour of styrene is supplied from the liquid inlet, and vibration of 800 Hz is applied by a vibrator. An O / W type aqueous solution / styrene droplet slurry was prepared. By applying the required intensity of vibration, uniform styrene droplets having a particle diameter of 450 μm were obtained at a ratio of 98% or more.
(Example 2)
A styrene droplet slurry was produced using a droplet slurry production apparatus composed of two types of liquids on a commercial scale similar to Example 1, except that the plate was configured to mount 23 nozzles. The nozzle had 148 holes with an inner diameter of 0.10 mm, the distance between adjacent holes was 2 mm, and was arranged so that the uniformity of the droplets was not disturbed by the interaction of the liquid ejected from the holes. 23 nozzles were installed on the plate and used. The total number of holes is 3404. As shown in FIG. 6, the nozzle arrangement of 23 nozzles was 1 at the center of the plate, 6 concentrically with a radius of 78 mm from the center, and 16 with a radius of 210 mm. The nozzles are arranged at equal distances on a concentric circle. Supply 206 liters / hour of PVA aqueous solution (a dilute PVA concentration of 320 ppm) to the slurry chamber, supply 257 liters / hour of styrene from the liquid inlet, and give vibration of 1990 Hz with a vibrator. An O / W type aqueous solution / styrene droplet slurry was prepared. By applying the required strength, uniform styrene droplets having a particle size of 270 μm were obtained at a ratio of 98% or more.
(Example 3)
The same droplet slurry production apparatus consisting of two kinds of liquids on a commercial scale as in Example 1 was used. The same plate and nozzle as used in Example 1 were used. 37 nozzles can be attached to the plate. The nozzle had 148 holes with an inner diameter of 0.10 mm, the distance between adjacent holes was 2 mm, and was arranged so that the uniformity of the droplets was not disturbed by the interaction of the liquid ejected from the holes. Twenty-two nozzles were installed on the plate for use. The remaining 15 were fitted with closing plates. The total number of holes is 3256. As shown in FIG. 7, the 22 nozzles were arranged in such a manner that one at the center of the plate, six in a concentric circle with a radius of 78 mm from the center, and 15 in a circle with a radius of 234 mm. A total of 15 closing plates, 12 in a circular shape with a radius of 156 mm and 3 in a circular shape with a radius of 234 mm, were attached. A 197 liter / hour PVA aqueous solution (a dilute PVA concentration of 320 ppm) was supplied to the slurry chamber, 246 liter / hour styrene was supplied from the liquid inlet, and a vibration of 1900 Hz was applied by a vibrator. An O / W type aqueous solution / styrene droplet slurry was prepared. By applying the required strength, uniform styrene droplets having a particle size of 270 μm were obtained at a ratio of 98% or more.
(Comparative Example 1)
The same droplet slurry production apparatus consisting of two kinds of liquids on a commercial scale as in Example 1 was used. In this comparative example, a nozzle was not used, but a hole was directly made in the plate. The plate used in this comparative example has 3367 holes with an inner diameter of 0.10 mm. The distance between adjacent holes was 2 mm, the same as in Example 2. 204 L / hr of PVA aqueous solution (PVA concentration is 320 ppm dilute) is supplied to the slurry chamber, 254 L / hr of styrene is supplied from the liquid inlet, and vibration of 1990 Hz is applied by a vibrator. An O / W type aqueous solution / styrene droplet slurry was prepared. Although the required strength was applied, uniform styrene droplets with a particle size of 270 μm accounted for 65%.

It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows one Example of this invention. It is arrangement | positioning schematic of the nozzle on the plate 1 which shows one Example 1 of this invention. It is arrangement | positioning schematic of the nozzle on the plate 1 which shows one Example 2 of this invention. It is arrangement | positioning schematic of the nozzle on the plate 1 which shows one Example 3 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Plate 2 Nozzle 3 Vibrating partition 4 Side wall 5 Container 6 Liquid inlet 7 Exciter 8 Vibration isolator 9 Liquid column 10 Droplet 11 Chamber 12 Liquid supply port 13 Slurry discharge port 14 Container 15 Slurry chamber

Claims (5)

  In a droplet manufacturing apparatus including a liquid inlet and a plate having a hole for ejecting a droplet target liquid, a nozzle for ejecting the droplet target liquid is provided in a nozzle, and two or more nozzles are installed in the plate. A droplet production apparatus comprising holes in a plate.   The droplet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a vibration partition wall and a vibrator for applying vibration to the droplet target liquid.   The droplet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising: a plate having a larger diameter than the vibration partition wall, and a side wall connecting the plate and the vibration partition wall.   The droplet manufactured by the droplet manufacturing apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-3.   5. The polymer beads according to claim 4, wherein the droplets comprise a polymerizable monomer and are obtained from the droplets.

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