JP2008246277A - Particulate fluid producing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a particulate fluid producing apparatus which can produce particulate fluid such as liquid droplets having more uniform size. <P>SOLUTION: The particulate fluid producing apparatus is equipped with: first pipeline for delivering first liquid; a delivery unit for intermittently delivering second liquid or gas by a predetermined amount at a time into the first liquid by vibrating a through hole for delivering the second liquid or gas into the first liquid in the first pipeline; and second pipeline for delivering second liquid or gas to the delivery unit, wherein the delivery unit is equipped with a cylindrical delivering body which has a closed top end and the through hole provided at a predetermined position and a vibration means for vibrating the delivering body. Further the delivering bodies are coaxially arranged in the first pipeline. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fine fluid generator, and more particularly, to a fine fluid generator that generates a fine fluid by discharging a small amount of a second liquid or gas into a first liquid.

  In recent years, there has been an increasing need to produce a fine fluid in the pharmaceutical field, food field, cosmetic field, and other fields. This fine fluid is generally formed by discharging a liquid or gas as a raw material from a nozzle having a minute opening diameter into an appropriate liquid.

  In particular, it has been proposed to apply ultrasonic vibration to the liquid or gas that becomes the nozzle or the fine fluid in order to promote the separation of the liquid or gas that becomes the fine fluid from the nozzle.

  Specifically, as schematically shown in FIG. 5, a flat plate 110 provided with a plurality of minute through holes 100 for forming droplets as a fine fluid is provided on a part of the side surface of the first pipe 120. The other side of the flat plate 110 is connected to a second pipe 130 for feeding a second liquid that does not mix with the first liquid in the first pipe 120, and the second pipe 130 fed from the second pipe 130 is connected to the second pipe 130. The two liquids are discharged into the first pipe 120 from the through hole 100 of the flat plate 110 (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In the first pipe 120, the first liquid is sent at a predetermined flow rate, and the second liquid discharged into the first pipe 120 is carried into the second liquid by being carried by the moving first liquid. Shear is generated to produce droplets of a predetermined size.

Further, the flat plate 110 is ultrasonically vibrated by the vibrator 140, so that the second liquid discharged from the through hole 100 is easily sheared. Vibrator 140 is attached to the tip of second pipe 130 and vibrates with the tip of second pipe 130 so that the flat plate can vibrate with a relatively simple structure.
JP 2007-023141 A

  However, when a flat plate provided with a plurality of through holes is simply vibrated to generate a droplet, which is a fine fluid, the amplitude at each position of the flat plate is likely to be different due to the influence of the deflection of the flat plate itself. The variation in the size of the droplets tends to increase.

  The present inventors have conducted research and development to produce a fine fluid such as droplets having a more uniform size, and have achieved the present invention.

  That is, in the fine fluid generator of the present invention, the first pipe for sending the first liquid and the through-hole for discharging the second liquid into the first liquid in the first pipe are vibrated, In a microfluidic fluid generating apparatus comprising: a discharger that intermittently discharges a second liquid into a first liquid by a predetermined amount; and a second pipe that supplies the second liquid to the discharger. Is provided with a cylindrical discharge body whose front end is closed and a through-hole is provided at a predetermined position, and vibration means for vibrating the discharge body.

Furthermore, the fine fluid generator of the present invention is also characterized by the following points. That is,
(1) The discharge body is arranged coaxially in the first pipe.
(2) The vibration means vibrates the discharge body at least in the length direction.
(3) The through hole is provided in the blocking wall that blocks the tip of the discharge body.
(4) The through hole is provided in the cylindrical peripheral wall of the discharge body.

  In the fine fluid generating apparatus of the present invention, the first pipe for sending the first liquid and the through-hole for discharging the second liquid or gas into the first liquid in the first pipe are vibrated, A fine fluid generating apparatus comprising: a discharger that intermittently discharges a second liquid or gas into a first liquid by a predetermined amount; and a second pipe that supplies the second liquid or gas to the discharger. The discharge device includes a cylindrical discharge body whose tip is closed and a through-hole is provided at a predetermined position, and vibration means that vibrates the discharge body, thereby reducing the influence of bending generated on the discharge body. And since it can suppress that variation arises in the vibration state of a discharge body, the size of the fine fluid formed by being discharged from a discharge body can be made uniform.

  In the fine fluid generating apparatus of the present invention, a first pipe for sending the first liquid, a discharger for discharging the second liquid or gas into the first liquid in the first pipe, and the discharger And a second pipe for feeding a second liquid or gas to the microfluidic fluid generating device, and in particular, the discharger has a cylindrical discharge body with a closed end and a through hole at a predetermined position. And a vibrating means for vibrating the discharge body.

  Thus, since the discharge body provided with the through hole for discharging the second liquid has a cylindrical shape, the discharge body itself can be made difficult to bend, so that the loss of vibration energy applied to the discharge body is reduced. In addition, since the ejection body can be vibrated uniformly, the size of the fine fluid formed by ejection from the ejection body can be made uniform.

  In particular, when the discharge body is coaxially arranged in the first pipe, the second liquid or gas can be discharged without greatly disturbing the flow of the first liquid, so the second from the through hole. Since the liquid or gas can be stably separated, the size of the formed fine fluid can be easily made uniform.

  In addition, the vibration means for vibrating the discharge body shears the second liquid or gas discharged from the discharge body by the first liquid flowing around the discharge body by vibrating the discharge body at least in the length direction. It is easy to produce an action, and further refinement of the fine fluid can be achieved.

  Furthermore, when the through hole is provided in the blocking wall that closes the tip of the discharge body, a fine through hole can be easily formed.

  Further, when the through holes are provided in the cylindrical peripheral wall of the discharge body, the generation efficiency of the fine fluid can be improved by forming more through holes.

  Note that, in the first pipe, the inner diameter on the downstream side of the discharge body is made smaller than the inner diameter of the discharge body portion, so that the discharge body does not exist on the downstream side of the discharge body, so that the first liquid has a low pressure region. By suppressing the local formation of the liquid and making the pressure around the discharge body uniform, the variation in the discharge amount of the second liquid discharged from the through hole can be suppressed, and more A uniform fine fluid can be generated.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a fine fluid generator A1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The fine fluid generating apparatus A1 includes a first pipe 10 for sending the first liquid, a discharger 20 for discharging the second liquid into the first liquid in the first pipe 10, and the discharger 20 And a second pipe 30 for feeding the second liquid.

  In the present embodiment, the first pipe 10 is provided with a bent portion 11 bent in an L shape for mounting the discharger 20, and an upstream pipe 10u located upstream of the bent portion 11 is provided with The downstream pipe 10d, which is downstream of the bent portion 11, is connected at a substantially right angle.

  The bent portion 11 is provided with a cylindrical mounting guide 12 along the longitudinal direction of the downstream pipe 10d. A female screw (not shown) is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the mounting guide 12 so that the discharger 20 can be mounted as will be described later.

  The discharger 20 includes a discharge body 21 composed of a cylindrical peripheral wall 21a and a blocking wall 21b that closes a front end opening of the peripheral wall 21a, and a piezo element 22 that is a vibration means for vibrating the discharge body 21. And a mounting tool 23 for mounting the discharge body 21 and the piezo element 22 to the tip of the second pipe 30.

  In the present embodiment, the discharge body 21 has a substantially cylindrical shape, the piezo element 22 has a ring shape having substantially the same diameter as the discharge body 21, and the mounting tool 23 is fitted into the discharge body 21 and the discharge body 21 inside. The cylinder is made possible. In the present embodiment, the discharge body 21 is made of metal, particularly stainless steel. The discharge body 21 is not limited to a substantially cylindrical shape, and may be a square tube shape, a polygonal tube shape, and the like. Further, the discharge body 21 gradually increases in diameter toward the tip, or gradually decreases in diameter toward the tip. May be. Further, the piezo element 22 is not limited to a ring shape, and may have an appropriate shape. Further, the piezo element 22 is not limited to the arrangement at the base end portion of the ejection body 21, and may be arranged at an appropriate position.

  On the peripheral wall 21a of the discharge body 21, a flange 24 for engaging with the mounting tool 23 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the base end edge.

  A plurality of through holes 25 are provided in the closing wall 21 b of the discharge body 21, and the second liquid fed to the discharge device 20 by the second pipe 30 is discharged into the first liquid in the first pipe 10. It is possible. By providing the through hole 25 in the flat blocking wall 21b, the fine through hole 25 can be easily formed.

  The size of the through-hole 25 can be set to an appropriate size in consideration of the size of the fine fluid to be generated. When fine fine fluid is generated, the size of the through-hole 25 is, for example, several tens μm to several hundred μm. be able to. The shape of the through hole 25 is not limited to a circle, and may be a triangular or quadrangular through hole, or a slit-like through hole. The through hole 25 is not limited to a through hole having a constant hole diameter, and may be a modified cross-sectional hole such as an expanded through hole having a gradually increased hole diameter. The number of the through holes 25 can be set to an appropriate number in consideration of the feeding amounts of the first liquid and the second liquid. In the case where a plurality of through holes 25 are provided, it is desirable that the interval between the through holes 25 be as large as possible.

  The piezo element 22 is vibrated in the length direction of the peripheral wall 21a by being energized by an energizing means (not shown). The vibrating means for vibrating the discharge body 21 is not limited to the piezo element 22, and a vibrator using a motor or the like may be used. Further, the vibration of the discharge body 21 by the piezo element 22 may include at least a component that vibrates in the length direction of the circumferential wall 21a, and may vibrate in the radial direction or circumferential direction of the circumferential wall 21a.

  The cylindrical mounting tool 23 is provided with a protruding piece 26 that engages with a flange 24 provided on the discharge body 21 on the inner surface of one end edge. In the present embodiment, the projecting piece 26 is provided in a ring shape along the inner peripheral surface of the mounting tool 23.

  Further, a female screw (not shown) is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the mounting tool 23, and the discharger 20 can be mounted on the second pipe 30 as described later using this female screw.

  Furthermore, on the outer peripheral surface of the mounting tool 23, a male screw (not shown) that is screwed with a female screw provided in the mounting guide 12 of the bent portion 11 in the first pipe 10 is provided. The discharger 20 can be attached to the first pipe 10 by being screwed into the female screw of the attachment guide 12.

  The second pipe 30 is provided with a fitting portion 31 that can be fitted into the hollow portion of the ring-shaped piezoelectric element 22 and the hollow portion of the peripheral wall 21a of the cylindrical discharge body 21 at the tip. A flange-like support wall 32 that contacts the piezo element 22 and supports the piezo element 22 is provided at the base end portion.

  In particular, a male screw (not shown) is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the support wall 32, and the male screw and the female screw on the inner peripheral surface of the mounting tool 23 are screwed together to connect the discharger 20 to the second pipe 30. It can be attached to.

  Therefore, in the fine fluid generator A1, the piezo element 22 and the discharge body 21 are attached to the fitting portion 31 of the second pipe 30, and then the attachment tool 23 is screwed to the support wall 32 of the second pipe 30. 20 is attached to the second pipe 30, and the attachment 23 of the discharger 20 is screwed to the attachment guide 12 of the bent portion 11 in the first pipe 10, so that the discharge body 21 is coaxial with the first pipe 10. Is arranged. In particular, in this embodiment, when the second pipe 30 is attached to the bent portion 11 of the first pipe 10 via the discharger 20, the second pipe 30 and the downstream pipe 10d are arranged in the same straight line. Wearing.

  The first pipe 10 and the second pipe 30 are provided with feed pumps (not shown) for feeding the first liquid and the second liquid, respectively. The second liquid is being fed.

  In the present embodiment, the first liquid is pure water, and the second liquid is a mixed liquid in which 80% by weight of dodecane liquid and 20% by weight of a surfactant are mixed. The piezoelectric element 22 was vibrated in the length direction of the peripheral wall 21a at a frequency of several tens of kHz or more.

  As described above, since the discharge body 21 provided with the through-hole 25 for discharging the second liquid is formed into a cylindrical shape, it is possible to suppress variation in the vibration state of the discharge body 21. The size of the fine fluid made of the second liquid or gas discharged from the holes 25 can be made uniform.

  Moreover, the shearing action of the first liquid flowing around the discharge body 21 on the second liquid discharged from the through hole 25 of the discharge body 21 by vibrating the discharge body 21 at least in the length direction of the peripheral wall 21a. Can be easily generated, and a finer fine particle fluid can be easily generated.

  Further, the first pipe 10 is provided with a reduced diameter portion 13 in which the inner diameter on the downstream side of the discharge body 21 is smaller than the inner diameter of the discharge body 21 portion, so that the discharge body 21 is located downstream of the discharge body 21. It can suppress that the area | region where a low pressure is locally formed in the 1st liquid by not existing. Accordingly, since the pressure of the first liquid around the discharge body 21 can be made almost constant, there is a variation in the discharge amount of the second liquid discharged from the through hole 25 into the first liquid. Therefore, it is possible to generate a more uniform fine fluid.

  In the above-described embodiment, the discharge body 21 integrally forms the peripheral wall 21a and the blocking wall 21b. However, the discharge body 21 is not limited to the case where the discharge body 21 is integrally formed. The discharge body 21 ′ may be configured by the peripheral wall 21a ′ and the blocking wall 21b ′.

  2 is the same as the microfluidic fluid generating device A1 of FIG. 1 except for the discharge body 21 ′, and the same reference numerals are used for the same components, and redundant description is omitted.

  In the microfluidic fluid generating device A2 of the present embodiment, the discharge body 21 ′ is brought into contact with the cylindrical peripheral wall 21a ′ for propagating the ultrasonic vibration applied by the piezoelectric element 22, and the front end of the peripheral wall 21a ′. The closed wall 21b 'and a cylindrical outer peripheral wall 21c' for supporting the closed wall 21b 'in contact with the peripheral wall 21a'.

  The outer peripheral wall 21c ′ is provided with a locking claw 27 ′ protruding inwardly toward the inner peripheral surface of the distal end edge, and a blocking wall inserted into the outer peripheral wall 21c ′ from the base end side of the outer peripheral wall 21c ′. 21b 'can be engaged.

  After the insertion of the blocking wall 21b ′, the peripheral wall 21a ′ is inserted into the outer peripheral wall 21c ′, and the blocking wall 21b ′ is sandwiched and fixed by the leading edge of the peripheral wall 21a ′ and the locking claw 27 ′.

  The peripheral wall 21a ′ has a shape inscribed in the inner peripheral surface of the outer peripheral surface wall 21c ′. To propagate.

  On the outer peripheral surface of the base end edge of the outer peripheral wall 21c ′, a flange 24 ′ for engaging with the mounting tool 23 is provided so as to project.

  In the present embodiment, the blocking wall 21b ′ is a porous plate obtained by shaping a porous body into a flat plate shape, and the second liquid can be discharged from fine holes provided in the porous plate. By using the holes of the perforated plate, it is equivalent to providing extremely fine through holes, and it is possible to generate a finer micronized fluid.

  The through hole 25 may be provided not only in the blocking wall 21b but also in the peripheral wall 21a "of the discharge body 21" as shown in FIG. 3 is the same as the microfluidic fluid generating apparatus A1 of FIG. 1 except for the discharge body 21 ″, and the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. .

  When the through-hole 25 "is provided in the peripheral wall 21a" of the discharge body 21 ", the peripheral wall 21a" has a larger area than the closed wall 21b ", and thus more through-holes 25" are provided. And the generation efficiency of the fine fluid can be improved.

  In particular, when a through hole 25 "is provided in the peripheral wall 21a" of the discharge body 21 ", the upstream pipe 10u of the first pipe 10 is connected to the downstream pipe 10d of the first pipe 10 as shown in FIG. The upstream side pipe 10u is provided along the tangential direction of the downstream side pipe 10d having a circular cross section as shown in the schematic end face of FIG. A spiral flow along the peripheral wall 21a "of the discharge body 21" can be generated in the first liquid in the pipe 10d.

  The spiral flow of the first liquid can easily cause a shearing action to occur in the second liquid discharged from the through hole 25 ″, so that it is possible to easily generate a finer fluid.

It is a longitudinal cross-sectional schematic diagram of the fine particle fluid production | generation apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional schematic diagram of the fine particle fluid production | generation apparatus which concerns on other embodiment. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional schematic diagram of the fine particle fluid production | generation apparatus which concerns on other embodiment. It is a cross-sectional end face schematic diagram of the microfluidic fluid generator concerning other embodiments. It is a schematic diagram of the conventional droplet production | generation apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

A1 Fine fluid generator
10 First piping
10u upstream piping
10d Downstream piping
11 Bend
12 Installation guide
13 Reduced diameter section
20 Dispenser
21 Discharge body
21a Perimeter wall
21b Blocking wall
22 Piezo elements
23 Wearing equipment
24 Flange
25 Through hole
26 Projection
30 Second piping
31 Insertion
32 Support wall

Claims (5)

A first pipe for sending the first liquid;
A through-hole for discharging the second liquid or gas into the first liquid in the first pipe is vibrated to intermittently pass the second liquid or gas into the first liquid by a predetermined amount. A dispenser for dispensing;
In the microfluidic fluid generating device including the second pipe for feeding the second liquid or gas to the discharger,
The discharge device includes a cylindrical discharge body whose tip is closed and the through hole is provided at a predetermined position, and vibration means for vibrating the discharge body.   The fine fluid generator according to claim 1, wherein the discharge body is coaxially disposed in the first pipe.   The fine fluid generating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the vibration unit vibrates the discharge body at least in a length direction.   The fine fluid generating apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the through hole is provided in a blocking wall that blocks a tip of the discharge body.   The fine fluid generator according to claim 3, wherein the through hole is provided in a cylindrical peripheral wall of the discharge body.

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