JP2006320826A - Ultrasonic washing method and its apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ultrasonic washing apparatus washing the wall face of a water storage tank while moving, requiring no specific mechanism, device, nor specific power mechanism, and requiring a little space. <P>SOLUTION: An ultrasonic vibrator unit 1 is composed of an ultrasonic transducer device 5 having an ultrasonic radiation face 3, an exclusive float 7 imparting buoyancy to the ultrasonic transducer device 5, a winder 15 of a wire 21 suspending the ultrasonic transducer device 5, and a positioning stay 23 regulating a space between the ultrasonic radiation face 3 and a washing object wall face. Multiple ultrasonic transducer units 1 are suspended with the wire 21 of the winder 15 and floated on the water surface, to integrally form the ultrasonic washing apparatus by serially connecting the units, and the washing object wall face of the water storage tank is washed using the ultrasonic washing apparatus. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention is intended to prevent contamination that has occurred chemically or biologically on water-contacting walls such as water tanks and containers that store liquids, or water-contacting walls such as structures existing in liquids. The present invention relates to an ultrasonic cleaning method and apparatus for effectively and efficiently cleaning using a physical action of sound waves.

  In a nuclear power plant, a fuel-replacement pool-like stainless steel water tank (cavity) is provided in a nuclear reactor, and when the fuel is changed, the cavity is filled with water and the fuel is transported underwater. And after the fuel change, the water in the cavitation is extracted and processed, but since the radioactive material adheres to the inner wall surface of the cavitation and is contaminated, the radioactive material must be removed by cleaning the inner wall. Don't be.

  Therefore, in order to solve the above problem, in a nuclear power plant, an adhesive exclusive sheet or the like is directly attached to the stainless steel surface before filling the fuel replacement pool-like stainless steel tank with the fuel replacement water so that the fuel is changed. A method for preventing radioactive suspended matters generated at the time of replacement from adhering to the stainless steel surface has been performed.

  This method is to prevent the dirt from directly attaching by peeling off the adhesive sheet attached at the time of washing the water tank after draining water, but the adhesive paste remains on the wall surface when the adhesive sheet is removed. There is a high possibility of adverse effects such as stress corrosion cracking due to the effect of residual glue during operation of the nuclear power plant.

  The wall surface is also cleaned by the use of the adhesive sheet and the dedicated cleaning device for cleaning the wall surface, which consists of a conventional rotating brush, etc. Fresh water is necessary and the equipment itself is large, so it is necessary to work while lifting it with an overhead crane, etc., making it difficult to operate the crane along the wall and moving heavy objects that require simultaneous progress. .

  Furthermore, the work to remove the adhesive sheet is work after draining, and it becomes dangerous work at a height of several tens of meters, or when removing the dried adhesive sheet due to the attachment of radioactive suspended solids after draining water Since the contaminants adhering to the vibration dissipate in the air and cause air pollution, strict protective equipment is required, and there are problems regarding the deterioration of the work environment and work safety.

Currently, in cleaning using ultrasonic waves, a fixed or movable ultrasonic cleaning apparatus incorporating an ultrasonic transducer is used.
Fixed ultrasonic cleaning equipment:
Many of the current ultrasonic cleaning apparatuses are a cleaning tank in which a so-called vibrator is fixed and used in which an ultrasonic vibrator is fixed in advance on the inner surface or the outer surface of the bottom of a relatively small liquid storage tank. Is offered as.

Movable ultrasonic cleaning device:
In the method of moving the ultrasonic vibrator, for example, in a pool-like water tank such as a nuclear fuel exchange tank at a nuclear power plant, an ultrasonic vibrator provided with a floating body is installed on the water tank by a power unit. A device is known which moves horizontally on the rails, and further fixes the vibrator and the power unit to the fixing device and cleans the wall surface in a zigzag manner in accordance with draining of the water tank (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ).

Japanese Patent Publication No.56-12838

  In the conventional fixed ultrasonic cleaning apparatus, the object to be cleaned is placed in a water tank functioning as a water storage tank, and only the object to be cleaned is cleaned, and is immersed in the inner wall of a large-scale water tank or in a liquid. The demand for cleaning the dirt adhering to the outer wall surface of the structure is difficult by the method of using the ultrasonic vibrator fixed to the water tank.

  Further, the movable ultrasonic cleaning device of Patent Document 1 requires the installation of a special attachment mechanism such as a fixing device for moving the device stably and reliably, and a rail and a power device for moving the device. Actually, it is difficult to secure a space for installing these special attachment mechanisms such as these fixing devices and rails for movement.

  Furthermore, in recent years, in nuclear power plants, for the purpose of extending the power generation period and reducing power generation costs, measures such as shortening the period of periodic inspections performed by shutting down the reactor are being implemented. Even when an existing crane moving rail is used, the drive device for moving the device always moves back and forth in the upper part of the pool during cleaning, so the rail is dangerous and entry must be restricted. However, it was difficult to satisfy the requirement of performing the safety work by shortening the period.

  In addition, since the cleaning method must be performed while scanning zigzag according to the drainage of the aquarium, installation of a dedicated hose such as a clean water supply hose for cleaning to prevent the removed dirt from reattaching to the cleaning surface These installations are also problematic in that, similarly, process interference with a plurality of other work processes occurs, making implementation difficult.

  In view of the above circumstances, for example, in the case of cleaning the stainless steel wall surface of a pool tank for fuel replacement in the nuclear power plant described above, the present invention cleans the vertical wall surface of interest by installing an ultrasonic vibrator device. It is intended to be able to be installed in a small installation space without requiring a special mechanism or power device for moving or a fixing mechanism or rail for stably fixing the device itself when moving it. To do.

  The present invention includes an ultrasonic transducer device having an ultrasonic radiation surface, a dedicated float for imparting buoyancy to the ultrasonic transducer device, a wire winder for suspending the ultrasonic transducer device, and the ultrasonic wave And a positioning stay that regulates a distance between the radiation surface and the wall surface to be cleaned.

  The present invention includes an ultrasonic transducer device having an ultrasonic radiation surface, a dedicated float for imparting buoyancy to the ultrasonic transducer device, a wire winder for suspending the ultrasonic transducer device, and the ultrasonic wave A plurality of ultrasonic transducer units each having a positioning stay that regulates the distance between the radiation surface and the wall surface to be cleaned are arranged in series, and the ultrasonic transducer units are connected and integrated. It is characterized by.

  The ultrasonic transducer unit of the present invention is characterized in that it is connected in an endless shape or a single line shape via a connecting means. The ultrasonic transducer device according to the present invention is provided with a propulsive force generating means for discharging pressure water.

  The present invention relates to an ultrasonic cleaning method for cleaning a wall to be cleaned of a water storage tank containing a liquid by an ultrasonic cleaning apparatus having an ultrasonic vibrator device with a dedicated float; Floating on the water surface while suspending with a wire of a winder, and driving the ultrasonic cleaning device, the process of making the ultrasonic radiation surface of the ultrasonic transducer device face the wall to be cleaned through a positioning stay, The process of starting draining of the water tank, and after starting the drain of the water tank, the ultrasonic cleaning device while loosening the wire in accordance with the drop in the water level and bringing the positioning stay into contact with the wall surface to be cleaned And a step of lowering in a vertical direction.

  The present invention uses an ultrasonic cleaning device in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducer units with dedicated floats are connected in series and integrated, and an ultrasonic cleaning device for cleaning a wall to be cleaned of a water storage tank containing liquid. A ultrasonic cleaning method, wherein each ultrasonic transducer unit is floated on a water surface while being suspended by a wire of a winder, and an ultrasonic radiation surface of each ultrasonic transducer unit is placed on a wall to be cleaned via a positioning stay. The process of making it face, the process of starting the ultrasonic cleaning device, the process of starting draining the water tank, and after starting the water draining of the water tank, loosen the wires in accordance with the lowering of the water level, And a step of lowering the sound wave transducer unit in the vertical direction.

  A plurality of ultrasonic transducer units according to the present invention are connected in an endless shape or in a single line shape corresponding to the planar view shape of the wall surface to be cleaned. The present invention provides a pressure water from a propulsive force generating means as an auxiliary tool for preventing separation from the vicinity of the wall surface in accordance with the shape and weight of the ultrasonic vibration device when descending along the wall surface to be cleaned. The position of the ultrasonic cleaning device is adjusted.

  The ultrasonic cleaning apparatus according to the present invention is a simple apparatus in which an ultrasonic generator and a small winder for suspending an ultrasonic cleaning apparatus installed in a water storage tank are installed above a liquid storage tank such as water. It can be installed according to the mounting method. Therefore, there is an advantage that it can be installed in a smaller installation space, and the safety of the work place and the efficient use of the work place can be achieved.

  Further, since the ultrasonic transducer unit in water is installed in a moored state by a hanging wire discharged from the winder, the device itself is adjusted in accordance with the water draining speed from the position at the time of water draining, for example. The wall surface can be cleaned at a time in the vertical direction by its own weight.

  In the ultrasonic cleaning method of the present invention, it is not necessary to install a special power device for moving the ultrasonic cleaning device along the wall surface. By this suspension method, the underwater weight of the cleaning device, the attachment position of the wire, And since the force with respect to the wall surface direction is determined by the downward hanging distance, a special device that always keeps the device close to the vicinity of the wall surface is not required. Therefore, the mechanism of the device itself can be simplified, and it is effective for improving the maintenance or improving the efficiency of the work itself without requiring a complicated procedure for installing the device.

  Since the ultrasonic cleaning apparatus of the present invention is an apparatus that uses individual ultrasonic transducer devices called unit units connected in a chain shape (endless shape), the direction on the horizontal line of the wall surface to be cleaned is determined. By covering all, it is possible to clean the target cleaning surface at a time by moving it down along the wall surface, and there is an advantage that the cleaning time can be greatly shortened.

  The present invention has a structure in which an ultrasonic transducer unit is used by connecting a plurality of ultrasonic transducer units in a distance on a plane line of a wall surface to be cleaned. Therefore, by appropriately adjusting the number of ultrasonic transducer units to be connected, it is highly compatible with water tanks with various other planar shapes, such as washing the inner wall of a large storage tank, swimming pools, etc. Cleaning of the inner wall surface or cleaning of the outer wall surface of the ship's hull can be considered as a range of use, and there are industrial advantages such as improvement of work safety and efficiency.

  In the best mode for carrying out the invention, the total extension distance obtained by tracing the planar shape (curved surface or flat surface) of the wall surface to be cleaned such as a water tank by the individual ultrasonic transducer units to be connected is divided into appropriate lengths. Appropriate length, dedicated wall surface to be cleaned and appropriate shape and buoyancy according to the type and nature of the liquid to be stored, and equivalent to the total extension distance of the planar shape of the target wall surface to be cleaned Connected so that the distance to be cleaned can be cleaned. Moreover, they are attached in a moored state so as to be hung vertically downward by a wire discharged from a winder having a function capable of winding with an appropriate force, which is individually installed on the upper part of the water tank.

  When the apparatus installed as described above is drained of a water tank, for example, the wall surface is cleaned by simultaneously lowering it in accordance with the draining speed. Alternatively, the wall surface or the like is cleaned by adjusting the buoyancy with a weight or the like and lowering it while submerging the vicinity of the wall surface.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
The ultrasonic cleaning device 30 includes an ultrasonic transducer unit 1. The ultrasonic transducer unit 1 includes an ultrasonic transducer device 5 having an ultrasonic radiation surface 3 and a dedicated float 7 connected to the upper surface side of the ultrasonic transducer device 5.

  On the upper surface 7a of the dedicated float 7, a wire fixing portion 11 and a power cable waterproof connection portion 13 are provided. A dedicated wire 17 for suspension of the winder 15 is fixed to the wire fixing portion 11.

  A distal end portion of a power cable 21 of an ultrasonic transmitter 19 is fixed to the connecting portion 13, and the ultrasonic transmitter 19 is connected to the ultrasonic transducer device 5 through the power cable 21. On the left and right side surfaces 7b of the dedicated float 7, a positioning stay 23, a connecting device stopper 25, and a connecting member 27 are provided.

  The positioning stay 23 is provided on the front surface 7c side of the dedicated float 7, and includes a base portion 23a and a rotating roller contact portion 23b. The abutting portion 23b protrudes in a predetermined length, for example, several centimeters to several tens of centimeters, in the extending surface direction of the side surface 7b. The amount of protrusion is appropriately selected as necessary.

  The connecting device stopper 25 is provided at a substantially central portion of the side surface 7 b, and the connecting device 12 is fixed to the stopper 25. The connecting member 27 is provided on each of the positioning stay 23 side and the fastener 25 side, and the dedicated float 7 is connected to the ultrasonic transducer device 5 by the connecting member 27. Further, the connecting member 27 adjusts and determines the angle of the ultrasonic radiation surface of the ultrasonic vibration device 5 with respect to the cleaning target wall surface 13a.

  The dedicated float 7 is formed in a rectangular shape, and its buoyancy is adjusted so that the upper surface of the ultrasonic transducer device 5 floats horizontally at a constant water level slightly below the water surface WL. The thickness, the size of the buoyancy, etc. are appropriately selected as necessary.

  The small pump 9 as the propulsive force generating means is built in or connected to the ultrasonic transducer device 5 and its water supply port 9a is on the ultrasonic radiation surface 3 side. The small pump 9 discharges the pressure water from the water supply port 9a in the direction of the arrow WJ and assists the position adjustment of the ultrasonic transducer unit 1, but is not necessarily provided.

Next, the usage method of this ultrasonic cleaning apparatus 30 is demonstrated.
When the wall surface to be cleaned is narrow, such as the inner wall surface of a small water tank, an ultrasonic cleaning device consisting of one ultrasonic transducer unit 1 is used. However, the wall surface to be cleaned, like the inner wall surface of a large water tank, is used. Is wide, an ultrasonic cleaning apparatus in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducer units 1 are connected and integrated is used. Here, the latter case will be described. The water storage tank refers to a container for storing a liquid, and the liquid is not limited to water.

  A plurality of ultrasonic transducer units 1 are connected in series via a connecting device 12 to form a chain-like (endless) ultrasonic cleaning device 30 corresponding to the plan view shape of the wall surface 13a to be cleaned. The length of the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 is the horizontal length of the wall surface 13a to be cleaned of a large water tank, for example, a fuel-replaceable pool-like water tank (cavity) 28 of the nuclear reactor G, that is, the length of the water tank 28 Although it corresponds to the inner peripheral length, the length is appropriately selected as necessary.

The ultrasonic cleaning device 30 does not necessarily need to be endless. For example, a plurality of ultrasonic transducer units 1 may be arranged in series and connected to form a single line (straight line or curve). .
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 is placed in the water w while the ultrasonic radiation surface 3 of the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 is opposed to the wall surface 13 a to be cleaned and the wire 17 of the winder 15 is loosened. And float in the water surface WL.

  At this time, since the contact portion 23b of the positioning stay 23 of each ultrasonic transducer unit 1 is in contact with the wall surface 13a to be cleaned, each ultrasonic transducer unit 1 is the same distance, for example, 30 cm. It is away from the wall surface 13a. Therefore, the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 is moored in a state substantially similar to the planar view shape of the wall surface 13a to be cleaned, that is, the inner wall shape of the water storage tank 28 as a whole.

  The ultrasonic transmitter 19 is started to drive the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 to start cleaning the wall surface 13a to be cleaned and to start draining the cavitating 28. Then, since the water surface WL descends, when the wire 17 is loosened in accordance with the descending speed, each ultrasonic transducer unit 1 descends in the vertical direction while pressing the cleaning target wall surface 13a with the positioning stay 23. Therefore, the entire circumference of the cleaning target wall surface 13a on the same horizontal plane can be simultaneously cleaned in accordance with the water draining speed.

  As described above, the positioning stay 23 of each ultrasonic transducer unit 1 maintains an appropriate distance between the wall surface 13a to be cleaned and the ultrasonic radiation surface 3, and the unit 1 is discharged from the winder 15. The ultrasonic transducer unit 1 cleans the combined force of the weight in the water and the lifting force so that the ultrasonic transducer device 5 descends without leaving the cleaning target wall surface 13a. It can be used effectively as a force pushing in the direction of the target wall surface 13a, and cleaning using the action of ultrasonic waves can be performed while lowering the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 along the cleaning target wall surface 13a when the cavitating 28 is drained. it can.

  The resultant force to the wall surface 13a to be cleaned includes the length of the positioning stay 23, the weight of the ultrasonic transducer unit 1 in water, the attachment position of the dedicated wire 17 discharged from the winder 15 and the ultrasonic transducer unit 1, and The force in the direction of the cleaning target wall surface 13 a of the ultrasonic transducer device 5 is determined by the force lifted upward by the dedicated wire 17. When the ultrasonic transducer unit 1 is separated from the cleaning target wall surface 13a due to the ultrasonic vibration pressure radiated from the ultrasonic transducer unit 1, the small pump 9 is driven and the direction of the arrow WJ from the water supply port 9a is driven. The pressure water is discharged to obtain a driving force toward the cleaning target wall surface 13a, thereby generating an auxiliary force on the cleaning target wall surface 13a and stopping the position of the ultrasonic transducer unit 1 at an appropriate position. Can do.

  In this manner, the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 can be performed at a time in accordance with the cleaning water draining process at the time of cleaning cleaning at the time of draining the refueling pool-like water storage tank 28 of the nuclear power plant. . At the end of the cleaning operation, the ultrasonic cleaning device 30 that has reached the bottom is washed with water, stored in a dedicated case, and lifted up.

  Also, installation requires only simple operations such as installation of the power cable 21 and the ultrasonic transmitter 19 to each ultrasonic transducer unit 1. Furthermore, about the water tank upper apparatus installation place, space saving can be achieved and work interference can be minimized even in a work process parallel to other work.

  This ultrasonic cleaning device can be installed easily by a simple and simple mechanism that does not interfere with other work processes performed simultaneously in the upper part of the reservoir tank for fuel replacement even during cleaning. Is possible. In addition, the ultrasonic cleaning device (decontamination device) can reliably perform effective cleaning that does not deteriorate the work environment by using the physical action of ultrasonic waves and can eliminate dangerous work that is a work at high places. Economic effect is demonstrated.

Furthermore, this ultrasonic cleaning apparatus can be used effectively for cleaning the wall surfaces of large water tanks other than nuclear power plants or the outer wall surfaces of hull outer wall surfaces and structures existing in water.
In addition, this ultrasonic cleaning apparatus is easy to handle and maintain, and has versatility that can accommodate various shapes of the cleaning surface in the horizontal direction from the viewpoint of storage and economy when not necessary.

  The present invention mainly uses the action of ultrasonic waves on a wetted surface such as a vertical wall such as a large water tank, and each ultrasonic transducer unit has an outer peripheral distance on the plane of the target container, By designing according to the liquidity of the liquid, it is possible to achieve a significant increase in the efficiency of the cleaning operation corresponding to any shape.

  In addition, the present invention is installed as a series of devices in which these ultrasonic transducer units are connected in multiples and connected to the shape of the horizontal section of the water tank, and are suspended vertically according to the drainage during the cleaning operation. Although the target wall surface can be washed at once according to the drop in the water surface, it can be easily installed because there is no special mechanism or device in the installation space and the installation space of the device at this time, It can be used to clean the water-contacting walls of large tanks, such as tank-type tanks that do not have installation space, such as cleaning fuel-retaining pool-like tanks at nuclear power plants.

It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention and is a perspective view of an ultrasonic transducer | vibrator unit. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the use condition of an ultrasonic transducer | vibrator unit. It is a top view which shows the use condition of the ultrasonic cleaning apparatus which connected multiple ultrasonic transducer | vibrator units. FIG. 3 is a plan view of FIG. 2.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ultrasonic vibrator unit 3 Ultrasonic radiation surface 5 Ultrasonic vibrator apparatus 7 Dedicated float 12 Coupling device 15 Winding machine 19 Ultrasonic transmitter 23 Positioning stay 25 Coupling device fastener 30 Ultrasonic cleaning apparatus

Claims (8)

  Ultrasonic vibrator device having an ultrasonic radiation surface, a dedicated float for imparting buoyancy to the ultrasonic vibrator device, a wire winder for suspending the ultrasonic vibrator device, and the ultrasonic radiation surface and cleaning An ultrasonic cleaning apparatus comprising: a positioning stay that regulates a distance from a target wall surface.   Ultrasonic vibrator device having an ultrasonic radiation surface, a dedicated float for imparting buoyancy to the ultrasonic vibrator device, a wire winder for suspending the ultrasonic vibrator device, and the ultrasonic radiation surface and cleaning A plurality of ultrasonic transducer units each including a positioning stay that regulates a distance from a target wall surface are arranged in series, and the ultrasonic transducer units are connected and integrated. Ultrasonic cleaning device.   3. The ultrasonic cleaning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the ultrasonic transducer units are connected in an endless shape or a single line shape via a connecting means.   4. The ultrasonic cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a propulsive force generating means for discharging pressure water is provided in the ultrasonic vibrator device. An ultrasonic cleaning method for cleaning a wall to be cleaned of a water storage tank containing a liquid by an ultrasonic cleaning device including an ultrasonic vibrator device with a dedicated float;
Floating the ultrasonic cleaning device on the water surface while suspending it with a wire of a winder, and making the ultrasonic radiation surface of the ultrasonic transducer device face the wall to be cleaned through a positioning stay;
While driving the ultrasonic cleaning device, starting a drain of the water tank,
After starting the drainage of the water tank, loosening the wire in accordance with the descent of the water level, the process of lowering the ultrasonic cleaning device in the vertical direction while contacting the positioning stay with the wall surface to be cleaned,
An ultrasonic cleaning method comprising: An ultrasonic cleaning method that cleans the wall to be cleaned of a water storage tank containing liquid using an ultrasonic cleaning device in which multiple ultrasonic transducer units with dedicated floats are connected in series and integrated. There;
Floating each ultrasonic transducer unit on the water surface while suspending with a wire of a winder, and making the ultrasonic radiation surface of each ultrasonic transducer unit face the wall to be cleaned through a positioning stay;
While driving the ultrasonic cleaning device, starting a drain of the water tank,
After starting the drainage of the water tank, loosening the wire in accordance with the descent of the water level, the process of lowering each ultrasonic transducer unit in the vertical direction,
An ultrasonic cleaning method comprising:   The ultrasonic cleaning method according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of ultrasonic transducer units are formed in a chain shape or a single line shape corresponding to a planar view shape of the wall surface to be cleaned.   The ultrasonic cleaning method according to claim 5 or 6, wherein pressure water is discharged from the propulsion force generating means and the position of the ultrasonic cleaning device is adjusted.

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