JP2009233512A - Method and apparatus for manufacturing hollow fiber membrane module - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a hollow fiber membrane module which does not generate the defective products of thread disturbance on the end face of the hollow fiber membrane module, by a method and an apparatus for adjusting the spread and breakage of the thread of the outer peripheral part of a hollow fiber membrane bundle end part. <P>SOLUTION: The method for manufacturing the hollow fiber membrane module includes inserting a hollow fiber membrane bundle to a case. After inserting the hollow fiber membrane bundle to the case, the hot air is jetted to the radial direction center of the hollow fiber membrane bundle to the almost entire outer peripheral surface of the hollow fiber membrane bundle projected from an opening at the end of a case, and thus the hollow fiber membrane is softly deformed and the bundle is arranged. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for producing a hollow fiber membrane module using a hollow fiber-like semipermeable membrane.

  As a representative device having functions such as filtration and dialysis using a hollow fiber membrane module, there is a hemodialyzer as shown in FIG. This is obtained by inserting several thousand to several tens of thousands of hollow fiber membranes into a cylindrical case, and fixing the hollow fiber membrane bundle and the case at both ends with a resin such as polyurethane (hereinafter referred to as a potting material). (The above fixing step is called potting). When fixing the hollow fiber membrane bundle and the case with the potting material, after inserting the hollow fiber membrane bundle into the case, the potting material leaks so as not to sandwich the hollow fiber membrane protruding from the opening of the case end. Attach caps to both ends of the case so that they do not. In the step of attaching the cap, if the yarn membrane on the outer peripheral portion of the end portion of the hollow fiber membrane bundle spreads, the hollow fiber membrane is sandwiched between the case end portion, or the cap inner peripheral surface and the hollow fiber membrane bundle Because of this frictional resistance, the hollow fiber membrane bundle is pushed into the case side when the cap is mounted, and the hollow fiber membrane is fixed to the case in an unfavorable state in actual use, such as buckling, bending or bending of the hollow fiber membrane. , There was a problem of generating defective products called yarn disturbance (remarkably worsening the flow resistance in the hollow fiber membrane).

  As a known technique for preventing yarn disturbance due to cap attachment, there is a method in which an adhesive tape or the like is wound around an outer peripheral end portion of a hollow fiber membrane bundle and bundled. Further, Patent Document 1 discloses a method of knitting a hollow fiber membrane and a warp using a hollow fiber membrane as a weft and a separate warp.

However, the technique of winding an adhesive tape around the outer periphery of a delicate hollow fiber membrane bundle has a high degree of difficulty and reduces productivity, and the adhesive tape becomes a consumable item, which has a problem in terms of cost. Further, the method of Document 1 requires a complicated technique of knitting a hollow fiber membrane and warp, and has the same problem as described above.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-103657

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and adjusts the spreading and folding of the yarn membrane at the outer peripheral portion of the end portion of the hollow fiber membrane bundle, that is, the outer peripheral portion of the end portion of the hollow fiber membrane bundle is adjusted. An object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a hollow fiber membrane module that does not cause defective yarn disturbance on the end face of the hollow fiber membrane module by bundling.

1. A method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module comprising a hollow fiber membrane bundle inserted into a case, wherein the hollow fiber membrane bundle projects from the end of the case after inserting the hollow fiber membrane bundle into the case. On the other hand, the method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module is characterized in that hot air is sprayed to the radial center of the hollow fiber membrane bundle.
2. 2. The method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to 1 above, wherein the hot air is jetted from the slit of a ring-shaped nozzle having a slit of 0.1 to 0.4 mm.
3. 3. The method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to 1 or 2 above, wherein the hot air nozzle injection temperature is 200 ° C to 400 ° C.
4). 4. The method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to any one of 1 to 3, wherein an injection pressure of the hot air is 60 KPa to 70 KPa.
5. The hot air is jetted while rocking at least one of the ring-shaped nozzle and the intermediate product in which the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted into the case in the longitudinal axis direction of the case. The manufacturing method of the hollow fiber membrane module in any one of said 1-4.
6). An apparatus for manufacturing a hollow fiber membrane module in which a hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted into a case, comprising: means for supporting the case in which the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted; and a hollow fiber membrane bundle protruding from an end of the case It has means for injecting hot air in the radial direction of the hollow fiber membrane bundle with respect to substantially the entire outer peripheral surface, and means for making the injection port of the hot air injection means approach or / and detach to the vicinity of the case end. An apparatus for manufacturing a hollow fiber membrane module.
7). 7. The apparatus for producing a hollow fiber membrane module as described in 6 above, wherein the means for injecting the hot air is a ring-shaped nozzle, and the slit width of the nozzle is 0.1 to 0.4 mm.
8). The above 6 or 7 has means for swinging at least one of the ring-shaped nozzle and the intermediate product in which the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted into the case in the axial direction of the case. The manufacturing apparatus of the hollow fiber membrane module of description.
9. 9. The hollow fiber according to any one of 6 to 8, wherein means for rotating the case with the hollow fiber membrane bundle inserted therein is provided with a means for rotating the case in the longitudinal direction center C. Membrane module manufacturing equipment.

  According to the present invention, as shown below, after inserting the hollow fiber membrane bundle into the case, hot air is blown to the center of the hollow fiber membrane bundle in the radial direction with respect to substantially the entire outer peripheral surface of the hollow fiber membrane bundle protruding from the case end. By injecting, the hollow fiber membrane is softly deformed and bundled by the heat and wind pressure of the hot air, so that in the process of attaching the cap, the hollow fiber membrane is not sandwiched between the case end and the cap, In addition, since the cap can be attached without disturbing the hollow fiber membrane, the potting material does not leak even if it is set in a centrifuge and cured. A method and apparatus for producing a hollow fiber membrane module can be provided.

  Hereinafter, although the manufacturing method of the hollow fiber membrane module of this invention and embodiment of a manufacturing apparatus are described in detail, the following preferable aspect and illustration are not limited to this case.

  The hollow fiber membrane bundle is a bundle of about several thousand to several tens of thousands of hollow fiber membranes. As the material of the hollow fiber membrane, cellulose-based, cellulose triacetate-based, polyamide-based, polyacrylonitrile-based, polyvinyl alcohol-based, polymethylmethacrylate-based, polysulfone-based, polyolefin-based, or the like is used.

  When the hollow fiber membranes are converged and inserted into a case, an intermediate product 3 before being cured with a potting material is obtained as shown in FIG.

  Next, using FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the radial direction toward the outer surface of the hollow fiber membrane bundle protruding from the case end in the present invention, that is, the radial center direction of the yarn bundle from substantially the entire outer periphery of the hollow fiber membrane bundle The method and apparatus for softly deforming the hollow fiber membranes and adjusting the hollow fiber membrane bundle by injecting hot air into the air by the heat and pressure of the hot air will be described.

  First, FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus of the present invention. An intermediate product in which a hollow fiber membrane bundle 1 made of several thousand to several tens of thousands of hollow fiber membranes, which is cut to a predetermined length, is inserted into a case 2 on a movement processing table 4 that is a means for supporting the case 2 3 is placed and moved to the hot air bundling processing position.

  At the hot air bundling processing position, nozzle units 5a and 5b, which are means for injecting hot air, are supported by a mechanism (not shown) that can reciprocate in the axial direction of the case 2 (indicated by an arrow X) and wait. ing. The nozzle units 5a and 5b may be formed by arranging individual nozzles in a ring shape. However, when the nozzle units are ring-shaped nozzles, hot air is blown from substantially the entire outer periphery of the hollow fiber membrane bundle toward the radial center of the hollow fiber membrane bundle. Since it is possible to inject, it is preferable.

  After the intermediate product 3 arrives at the hot air bundle processing position, the nozzle units 5a and 5b move to a position covering the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a protruding from the case 2, and the state shown in FIG.

  Next, it will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic enlarged view showing details of the manufacturing method and apparatus according to the present invention. The nozzle unit 5 is connected to a pipe 6 for supplying hot air from a hot air source (not shown) which is means for supplying hot air to means for injecting hot air. Here, the nozzle 7 is a ring-shaped nozzle and has a ring-shaped slit, and the slit is directed to the outer peripheral surface of the end portion of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a. That is, the end of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a heated and softened by hot air is corrected so that the wind pressure becomes a force to squeeze from the surroundings, and the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1 protruding from the opening at the case end is reduced in diameter, Can be bundled.

  Here, the slit width of the nozzle 7 is preferably 0.1 mm to 0.4 mm in order to uniformly inject hot air from the entire outer peripheral surface of the ring-shaped nozzle, and 0 in order to inject more uniformly. .1 mm to 0.2 mm is more preferable. Moreover, it is preferable that an injection pressure is 60 KPa-70 KPa at the point which acts the wind pressure sufficient to deform | transform the softened hollow fiber membrane bundle 1. FIG. In addition, as hot air, it is preferable to use air that can be easily supplied, and it is more preferable that the air be purified through a filter (not shown).

  Moreover, when the temperature of the hot air immediately after being injected from the nozzle outlet is the injection temperature, it is preferably 200 ° C. to 400 ° C. in that the hollow fiber membrane bundle can be softly deformed. It is more preferable that it is 300 to 400 degreeC at the point which can be softly deformed. Here, the injection temperature may be any temperature that softly deforms the hollow fiber membrane bundle, and the conditions may be appropriately set depending on the material of the hollow fiber membrane.

  Further, it is preferable to have means for swinging the nozzle 7 in the longitudinal direction of the case 2 (the direction of the arrow X in FIG. 2). By such means, the nozzle 7 is swung relative to the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1 once or several times. The amount of heat applied to the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a according to the number of oscillations and the moving speed of the nozzle 7 is preferably optimized depending on the physical properties of the hollow fiber membrane.

  Regarding the relationship between the swing and hot air injection timing, hot air is injected when moving from the case 2 side toward the outer end of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a in order to reduce the diameter of the end of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a. When returning, it is preferable not to inject.

  As a means for moving the nozzle 7 close to, away from, or swinging to the vicinity of the case end, the position accuracy can be improved, and the operation control parameters can be easily set and changed. It is preferable to use a combination of a stepping motor or a servo motor and a mechanism for converting the rotational motion of the motor to translational motion. Further, in order to blow the hot air substantially uniformly on the outer peripheral membrane at the end of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a, the intermediate product 3 of the processing table 4 is directly used as means for rotating the longitudinal axis C of the case 2 as the central axis. It is more preferable that a driving roller is provided in the supporting portion and the case 2 is rotated about the case axis C as the central axis.

  The manufacturing method and apparatus for oscillating the nozzle 7 have been described above, but the nozzle 7 may be fixed and the intermediate product 3 may be oscillated. Further, both the intermediate product 3 and the nozzle 7 may be swung. However, the manufacturing method and the mechanism of the apparatus for swinging the nozzle 7 are more preferable because they are the most simple and simple to control.

FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of the intermediate product 3 in which the above apparatus is used to adjust the spread and bending of the yarn to the outer periphery of the end portion of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1. The case 2 is equipped with a cap 8 for injecting a potting material for fixing the end of the hollow fiber membrane, which is the next step, to the case. Since the ends of the hollow fiber membrane 1a are bundled, the hollow fiber membrane is not pinched when the cap 8 is attached, and the yarn disturbance at the hollow fiber end 1a that does not insert properly into the cap does not occur.
FIG. 6 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of the intermediate product 3 during potting. When a potting material such as polyurethane is injected from the dialysate inlet / outlet 9 of the case 2 while rotating the intermediate product 3 fitted with the cap 8 around the rotation axis D by a potting device (not shown), the potting material is caused by centrifugal force. Moves to both ends of the case 2 and eventually hardens. After the potting material is cured (10 is a cured potting material), after removing the cap 8 and opening both ends of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1, after cutting the potting material outside the both end surfaces of the case 2, It is sent to the next process.

<Example 1>
A hollow fiber membrane made of polysulfone having an outer diameter of 280 μm and an inner diameter of 200 μm in a cylindrical case 2 made of polypropylene having a nozzle of 35 mm in diameter and having one nozzle near each end of the side surface The intermediate product 3 into which 9400 hollow fiber membrane bundles 1 were inserted was supported by a processing table 4 having a drive guide roller mechanism for rotating the case around the case axis C.

  While rotating the intermediate product 3 on the processing table 4 at 60 rpm, the ring-shaped nozzle 7 having a ring-shaped nozzle slit of 0.2 mm is swung in the direction of the case axis C at a speed of 13 mm / sec. Was moved three times from the case end toward the tip of the hollow fiber membrane bundle by injecting hot air (air) having an injection temperature of 400 ° C. and an injection pressure of 65 KPa onto the end of the hollow fiber membrane bundle.

About the hollow fiber membrane end bundle 1a after processing, the diameter of a circle whose radius is the distance from the end of the hollow fiber membrane bundle 1a to the tip of the hollow fiber membrane that is farthest from the center with respect to the intersection of the case axis C φB (FIG. 7) was compared. A hollow fiber membrane bundle having a larger maximum diameter φB is more likely to cause yarn disturbance at the hollow fiber end 1a. In addition, the cap 8 having an inlet diameter φA (FIG. 5) of 46 mm is actually attached, and using a centrifugal potting device, polyurethane is injected from nozzles near both ends of the case 2 so that both ends of the hollow fiber membrane bundle are covered. After fixing to the case, the cap was removed, and the potting material outside the both end faces of the case was cut. Here, as a result of examining the presence or absence of yarn disturbance in the hollow fiber end bundle, the diameter φB was 43 mm, and no yarn disturbance occurred.
<Example 2>
Using the apparatus having the same configuration as that in Example 1, the injection temperature was changed to 200 ° C., and the process of injecting hot air (air) with an injection pressure of 65 KPa onto the end of the hollow fiber membrane bundle was performed four times. As a result of the test, the diameter φB was 45 mm, and no yarn disturbance occurred.

As mentioned above, the result which shows that the apparatus in this invention has the effect which prevents yarn disturbance was obtained.
<Comparative Example 1>
As a result of the test for the hollow fiber membrane bundle not subjected to the treatment with hot air, the diameter φB was 47 mm, and pinching of the yarn after the cap was attached occurred at both ends of the hollow fiber membrane module, resulting in poor yarn disturbance.

  The method and apparatus for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to the present invention can be applied to a filtration device using a hollow fiber membrane, and is not limited to a hemodialyzer.

It is a schematic sectional drawing of the intermediate product of a general hollow fiber membrane module. It is a schematic cross section which shows the structure of the manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus of this invention. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating one embodiment of the present invention. It is a model enlarged view which shows the detail of this invention. It is the schematic sectional drawing which bundled the hollow fiber membrane bundle with the manufacturing method and apparatus by this invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic view of an intermediate product after curing the potting material according to the present invention. It is a figure explaining the definition of the diameter (phi) B of a hollow fiber membrane bundle.

Explanation of symbols

1: Hollow fiber membrane bundle 2: Case 3: Intermediate product 4: Treatment table 5: Nozzle unit 6: Pipe 7: Nozzle 8: Cap 9: Dialysate inlet / outlet 10: Potting material φA: Cap inlet diameter φB: Diameter C: Case Axis D: Center of rotation of potting device X: Axial direction (arrow)

Claims (9)

A method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module comprising a hollow fiber membrane bundle inserted into a case, wherein the hollow fiber membrane bundle projects from the end of the case after inserting the hollow fiber membrane bundle into the case. On the other hand, the method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module is characterized in that hot air is sprayed to the radial center of the hollow fiber membrane bundle. The method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to claim 1, wherein the hot air is sprayed from the slit of a ring-shaped nozzle having a slit of 0.1 to 0.4 mm. 3. The method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to claim 1, wherein a nozzle injection temperature of the hot air is 200 ° C. to 400 ° C. 3. The method for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an injection pressure of the hot air is 60 KPa to 70 KPa. The hot air is jetted while rocking at least one of the ring-shaped nozzle and the intermediate product in which the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted into the case in the longitudinal axis direction of the case. The manufacturing method of the hollow fiber membrane module in any one of Claims 1-4. An apparatus for manufacturing a hollow fiber membrane module in which a hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted into a case, comprising: means for supporting the case in which the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted; and a hollow fiber membrane bundle protruding from an end of the case It has means for injecting hot air in the radial direction of the hollow fiber membrane bundle with respect to substantially the entire outer peripheral surface, and means for making the injection port of the hot air injection means approach or / and detach to the vicinity of the case end. An apparatus for manufacturing a hollow fiber membrane module. The apparatus for producing a hollow fiber membrane module according to claim 6, wherein the means for injecting the hot air is a ring-shaped nozzle, and the slit width of the nozzle is 0.1 to 0.4 mm. The axial direction of the case has means for swinging at least one of the ring-shaped nozzle and an intermediate product in which the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted into the case. The manufacturing apparatus of the hollow fiber membrane module of description. The hollow according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that means for rotating the case in which the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted is provided with a center C as a center axis in the longitudinal direction of the case. Yarn membrane module manufacturing equipment.

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