JP2011022313A - Apparatus for recycling glass substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus for recycling a glass substrate which has a function of excellent maintainability and prevents a resist or ITO peeled material, which is likely to cause trouble, from being deposited again on a conveying system, in the apparatus for using a sheet feeding system to recycle a glass substrate which is produced in the manufacturing process of a color filter substrate and does not satisfy the quality standard. <P>SOLUTION: In the apparatus for recycling the glass substrate, a defective color filter substrate produced in the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate by successively forming a light shielding layer comprising at least photosensitive black resin, one or a plurality of colored pixel layers comprising a photosensitive colored resin and a transparent electrode layer comprising an ITO film is carried on a conveying part comprising a rotating conveying roller, and is treated with an acid solution and/or an alkaline solution and washed with water to be recycled. A squeegee for scraping the deposit on the surface of the conveying roller is mounted in press-contact on a position not in contact with the substrate below the conveying roller. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a glass substrate regeneration device such as a color filter substrate used in a color liquid crystal display device, and more specifically, from a defective substrate that does not meet the quality standards generated in the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate, to transparent conductive material. The present invention relates to a glass substrate recycling apparatus for peeling, removing and cleaning a film or a resin film.

  In general, a color liquid crystal display device is configured by enclosing a liquid crystal between a color filter substrate having a polarizing plate on the outside and an element substrate. Then, a voltage is applied to each pixel between the color filter substrate and the element substrate side to control transmission / non-transmission of light, and the transmitted light is displayed on the screen as display light.

  The color filter substrate includes a transparent glass substrate as a structural support, and the opposite side (back side) of the screen observer is divided into a large number of pixel regions, and the inter-pixel region located at the boundary between the pixel region and the pixel region. Is provided with a pattern of a light shielding layer (black matrix: hereinafter abbreviated as BM), and colored pixels are arranged in each of the pixel regions. The colored pixels color the transmitted light for each pixel, and generally, three colored pixels of red (R), green (G), and blue (B) corresponding to the three primary colors of light are arranged. The BM prevents the mixed color of transmitted light colored in these colors. Conventionally, a metal chromium film has been used, but in recent years, a photosensitive resin in which a black pigment such as carbon black is dispersed is used. It has become mainstream.

  The color filter substrate is provided with an overcoat layer that fills the steps due to the colored pixels, or after polishing and planarizing the surface, an ITO transparent electrode is provided, and further, PS (Photo Spacer) / A VA (Vertical Alignment) is provided and sent to the liquid crystal panel manufacturing process.

  As a typical manufacturing method of a color filter substrate, a photolithography technique using a color material in which a pigment is dispersed in a photosensitive resin is used. As a general manufacturing process, starting from the introduction of a glass substrate, the process proceeds to the formation of BM and the formation of R, G, and B colored pixels. Coating, drying of solvent, pre-baking, pattern exposure, development, post-baking, and inspection are repeated, and furthermore, formation of ITO transparent electrode by sputtering method, formation of PS / VA by photolithography technology, and a very long manufacturing process .

  The color filter substrate is required to have high reliability. However, in the middle of the long manufacturing process as described above, there are cases where defects such as adhesion and mixing of foreign matters such as dust and resin debris, pinholes and chipping of patterns occur. . Color filter substrates that do not meet quality standards are discarded, but those that have no defects such as scratches on the glass itself have been regenerated and reused as glass substrates.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, by immersing in a predetermined stripping solution, one or more of the films are selectively selected from the outer layer side of the glass substrate on which a plurality of BMs, colored pixels, ITO films and the like are sequentially formed. A method for reclaiming a glass substrate to be removed is disclosed. However, in the conventional method for regenerating a glass substrate by immersion shown in Patent Document 1, the glass substrate itself may be damaged because it takes 20 to 2 hours for immersion in the stripping solution. In addition, the removal of the color filter film is incomplete, and there is a problem that a polishing process on the surface of the glass substrate is required in addition to the steps of the prior art. In particular, due to the increase in size of glass substrates accompanying the recent spread of large-screen liquid crystal televisions, for example, large glass substrates that are as thin as 1 mm or less and have a side length of 1 to 2 m or more are used for transportation, immersion in a stripping solution, and cleaning devices. A great load and cost are required, and there is a problem that the value and cost merit of reusing the regenerated glass substrate cannot be obtained.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a method of regenerating a glass substrate by removing a molded product on the glass substrate with an acid while conveying defective color filters one by one or plurally in parallel. In a glass recycling process using a single-wafer transport method, it is common to peel in order from the upper layer of the color filter film, and it is necessary to change the regeneration processing time, processing temperature, and chemical solution depending on the defect generation process of the substrate to be recycled. There is. The chemical solution is roughly divided into an alkali treatment for peeling the resist portion and an acid treatment for etching the ITO film. In this single-wafer conveyance method, there are problems such as removal of resist and ITO exfoliation material generated in the regeneration process to the conveyance system, transfer to the substrate to be regenerated, and adherence of the removal material to generate foreign matter. For this reason, in the water washing process, it is necessary to remove dirt from the lower side as well as from the upper side of the substrate. Furthermore, it is necessary to periodically clean the removed matter adhering to the transport system, and the maintainability is poor.

  The application of color liquid crystal display devices to large LCD TVs, personal computers, various monitors and mobile devices is expanding rapidly, and demands for cost reduction of color filter substrates, which account for a large percentage of the liquid crystal panel price structure, are severe. It has become. Therefore, in the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate, when something that does not satisfy the quality standard occurs, the glass substrate is efficiently regenerated in a short time by removing the BM, the colored pixels or the ITO film, and polishing. There is a need for an easy-to-maintain and efficient glass substrate recycling apparatus that can be re-entered and reused in the color filter manufacturing process without post-treatment by the method.

JP 2003-279915 A JP 2005-189679 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and causes a problem in a reproducing apparatus using a single wafer conveyance system for a glass substrate that does not satisfy quality standards generated in the manufacturing process of a color filter substrate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a glass substrate recycling apparatus having a function excellent in maintainability by preventing removable substances such as resist and ITO exfoliation obtained from reattaching to the transport system.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a light shielding layer made of at least a photosensitive black resin, one or more colored pixel layers made of a photosensitive colored resin, and a transparent electrode layer made of an ITO film are sequentially formed on a glass substrate. The defective substrate of the color filter substrate generated in the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate is carried and conveyed on the upper part of the conveyance unit composed of a conveyance roller that rotates one by one, and is subjected to acid solution treatment and / or alkali solution treatment, In the glass substrate recycling apparatus for regenerating by washing with water, a squeegee that scrapes off the deposits on the surface of the transport roller is press-contacted at a position not in contact with the substrate on the lower side of the transport roller. This is a glass substrate recycling apparatus.

Further, the invention according to claim 2 of the present invention is the glass substrate recycling apparatus according to claim 1, which has a function of receiving and collecting the removed material scraped by the squeegee.

  In the glass recycling apparatus using the single wafer conveyance method, the acid solution treatment, the alkali solution treatment, the water washing treatment, and the removal product in each process are carried in a state where they adhere to the conveyance roller. According to the glass substrate recycling apparatus of the present invention, the squeegee is installed on the transport roller to scrape the removed material and prevent reattachment. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a malfunction due to the reprocessing of the removed object on the substrate and the problem of bringing the removed object to another process, and the glass substrate can be reliably regenerated. In particular, in the case of having a circulation system with acid, alkali, and water washing, it is possible to prevent a decrease in peeling ability and generation of precipitates, and to effectively collect removed materials. The load of water can be expected to be reduced, and the amount of water used for washing can be greatly reduced.

Schematic explaining a dipping method and a single wafer conveyance system in the regeneration method of a glass substrate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Schematic explaining one Embodiment of the reproducing | regenerating apparatus of the glass substrate of this invention with a perspective view and a cross section. Explanatory drawing which shows an example of the reproduction | regeneration process of the glass substrate for color filters, and process content.

  Hereinafter, a glass substrate recycling apparatus of the present invention will be described based on one embodiment.

  The glass substrate recycling apparatus of the present invention is not an immersion method in which a plurality of substrates shown in FIG. 1A are immersed at the same time, but as shown in FIG. A single-wafer conveyance system that sequentially processes each sheet is used. In the glass substrate recycling apparatus of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2 (a), the defective substrate 1 of the color filter substrate to be reproduced is carried one by one on the upper part of the conveying unit 20 composed of the rotating conveying roller 2. Then, the glass substrate is regenerated by passing each process of acid solution treatment, alkali solution treatment, and water washing treatment while being conveyed.

  FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram illustrating an enlarged part of a cross section of the transport unit 20. The defective substrate to be regenerated is transported horizontally or obliquely while being held by the upper part of the rotating transport roller 2, and the acid or alkaline stripping solution 6 is fed from the stripping solution discharge nozzle 60 to the color on the glass substrate 1. By discharging to the filter film 5, the color filter film 5 is peeled off and removed, and then further washed in the water washing step. A squeegee 3 that scrapes off deposits on the surface of the transport roller is press-contacted at a position where it does not come into contact with the substrate below the transport roller 2, and a part of the removed material 50 peeled off from the glass substrate 1 is made of the glass substrate. Even if it turns down and adheres to the surface of the transport roller 2, the removed object 50 is scraped off with the squeegee 3, and the removed object 50 scraped off with the removed object receiver 4 is received. It collects in the removal thing collection tank 40. Note that the squeegee 3 and the removed object receiver 4 do not have to be installed on all the transport rollers, and are preferably installed around a position where the removed object wraps around the lower part of the glass substrate. The squeegee uses an ordinary elastomer squeegee made of elastomer or a resin plate with excellent wear resistance such as ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene, polyacetal, or polytetrafluoroethylene in order to scrape the removed material by pressing against the transport roller. It is preferable.

  According to the present invention, a color filter substrate that is a target for regenerating a glass substrate is, for example, a light shielding made of a photosensitive black resin in which carbon black is blended with an acrylic resin on a glass substrate by a known photolithography method. Layer (black matrix: BM), R, G, B colored pixel layers made of photosensitive colored resin in which red, green and blue pigments are dispersed and blended in acrylic resin, and a transparent electrode layer made of ITO film are sequentially formed. And a color filter substrate on which a PS / VA layer is formed.

  The color filter substrate that does not satisfy the quality standard after forming the AS / VA layer having the above-described configuration is regenerated as a glass substrate through the process shown in FIG. 3 using the single wafer conveyance type glass substrate regeneration apparatus of the present invention. First, the PS / VA layer on the uppermost layer of the color filter substrate is peeled off by alkali treatment (1), brush cleaning, and water rinse. Next, after the ITO film is peeled off by acid treatment and rinsing with water, the RGB / BM layer is peeled off by alkali treatment (2), brush washing and rinsing with water, and finally the cleaning residue remaining on the glass substrate is brushed. Removed by washing and dried by draining.

  In the glass substrate recycling apparatus of the present invention, in the alkali treatment, a substrate similar to a developing apparatus used in a normal photolithography process is maintained by maintaining an aqueous stripping solution having a known composition at a constant temperature between 40 and 80 ° C. A squeegee was installed at a constant speed of about 500 to 1000 mm / min as a shower with a pressure of 0.05 to 0.15 MPa using a processing unit in which a plurality of stripping liquid discharge nozzles were arranged in multiple rows in the traveling direction. It is discharged, peeled, removed, and washed onto a color filter film on a substrate to be reproduced that is horizontally or obliquely conveyed by a conveyance unit comprising conveyance rollers. In addition, the processing unit which has arrange | positioned stripping solution discharge nozzle is selected from the length ensured for 1 to 10 minutes as processing time which the aqueous stripping solution is contacting the resin film on a glass substrate. In addition, the acid treatment is performed using an aqueous etching solution having a known composition such as ferric chloride in the same apparatus as the alkali treatment described above. Following the treatment with the aqueous stripping solution and the etching solution, the glass substrate is washed with water, and the surface is contacted and washed with a conventional bristle brush, followed by washing, draining and drying to regenerate the glass substrate. To complete. The regenerated glass substrate is picked up, checked for quality by visual inspection or the like, and again put into the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate.

  According to the glass substrate recycling apparatus of the present invention, a glass substrate that has no back surface contamination and can be reused without being polished is installed with a squeegee similar to a development line used in a conventional color filter manufacturing process. Because it can be efficiently and inexpensively recycled using a processing device having a transport unit made up of transport rollers, a large glass substrate with a mother glass size of 6th, 8th or 10th generation is used. This is very effective for regenerating the glass substrate of the color filter substrate.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Glass substrate 2 ... Conveyance roller 20 ... Conveyance part
3 ... Squeegee 4 ... Removal receptacle 40 ... Removal collection tank
5 ... Color filter film 50 ... Removal 6 ... Stripping solution
60 ... Stripping liquid discharge nozzle

Claims (2)

Occurs in the manufacturing process of the color filter substrate in which a light shielding layer made of at least a photosensitive black resin, one or more colored pixel layers made of a photosensitive colored resin, and a transparent electrode layer made of an ITO film are sequentially formed on a glass substrate. A glass substrate regenerator that regenerates the defective substrate of the color filter substrate by carrying it on the upper part of a conveying unit composed of a conveying roller that rotates one by one, and regenerating it by acid solution treatment and / or alkali solution treatment and water washing treatment. In
A glass substrate recycling apparatus, wherein a squeegee for scraping off the deposits on the surface of the transport roller is press-contacted at a position not in contact with the substrate below the transport roller.   The apparatus for recycling a glass substrate according to claim 1, which has a function of receiving and collecting the removed material scraped off by the squeegee.