JP2013084536A - Active species emission unit and active species emission device employing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve both an increased active species emission amount and a reduced size by achieving high density and high output corona discharge while increasing insulation properties between a needle electrode and a counter electrode to maintain safety, so that an active species emission is caused in a wider range.SOLUTION: An active species emission unit includes: a case having a cylindrical or box shape; a discharge electrode, a tip side of which is inserted through an opening at one end of the case into the case; and semiconducting parts arranged to face each other in the vicinity of the tip side of the discharge electrode. The semiconducting parts have a hole arranged at a portion facing the tip side of the discharge electrode. Voltage is applied from a power source unit to the semiconducting parts and the discharge electrode to cause an active species emission by a corona discharge.

Description

  The present invention relates to an active species generator that uses corona discharge to sterilize and deodorize indoor spaces.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, devices that generate ozone, negative ions, etc. using corona discharge are known. The configuration includes a needle electrode and a ground electrode, and a high voltage is applied between the needle electrode and the ground electrode to cause a corona discharge at the tip of the needle electrode. By this corona discharge, ozone and negative ions are generated. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In addition, active species generators have been developed that supply active species such as radicals into the air and purify the air by the cleaning action of the active species.

  This kind of active species generating device has a main body case, a needle electrode, a counter electrode facing the needle electrode, a power source for applying a voltage to the needle electrode and the counter electrode, and a surface of the counter electrode. It was the structure provided with the provided adsorption | suction means.

JP 2004-18348 A

  In the conventional device described in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to increase the distance between the needle electrode as the discharge electrode and the ground electrode as the counter electrode in order to prevent the spark of the discharge. In addition, since the needle electrode and the earth electrode are arranged in parallel, the direction of ionic wind generation and the site of corona discharge are shifted, and the generated active species such as ozone cannot be efficiently diffused. It was difficult to increase the amount of seeds generated.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an active species generating unit and an active species generating apparatus capable of increasing the amount of active species generated by reducing the distance between the discharge electrode and the counter electrode while preventing discharge sparks. .

  In order to achieve this object, the present invention provides a cylindrical or box-like case portion, a discharge electrode having its tip end inserted into the case portion from one end opening of the case portion, and the discharge electrode A semiconductive portion disposed in the vicinity of the distal end side, the semiconductive portion having a hole disposed in a portion facing the distal end side of the discharge electrode, and the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode include a power source. A configuration is adopted in which active species are generated by corona discharge by applying a voltage from the section, thereby achieving the intended purpose.

  As described above, the present invention has a cylindrical or box-like case portion, a discharge electrode with the tip side inserted into the case portion from one end opening of the case portion, and the vicinity of the tip side of the discharge electrode. A semiconductive portion, and the semiconductive portion has a hole disposed at a portion facing the tip side of the discharge electrode, and a voltage is applied to the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode from a power supply portion. Since the active species are generated by corona discharge, the distance between the discharge electrode and the counter electrode can be reduced and the generation amount of active species can be increased while preventing sparking of the discharge.

  That is, in the present invention, by applying a voltage from the power supply unit to the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode to generate active species by corona discharge, the distance between the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode can be reduced. Since the discharge current increases, the amount of active species generated can be increased.

  In addition, since the semiconductive portion has a hole in a portion facing the vicinity of the tip end side of the discharge electrode, and the periphery of the hole is used as a discharge region and active species is generated around the hole, air passing through the hole The active species generated can be supplied, and the generated active species can be diffused by utilizing the ionic wind efficiently. Further, it is not necessary to provide a plurality of semiconductive portions and discharge electrodes, and the apparatus can be miniaturized.

  In addition, by applying a voltage from the power supply unit to the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode to generate active species by corona discharge, the distance between the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode can be reduced, and the device can be further downsized. Is.

  Further, in the present invention, a discharge electrode in which the tip end side is inserted into the case portion from one end opening of the cylindrical case portion, and a semiconducting portion disposed opposite to the vicinity of the tip end side of the discharge electrode are provided. As a result, even when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion, the current flowing between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion is the end surface of the hole from the discharge electrode to the semiconductive portion, that is, from the inner circumference side to the semiconductive portion. After flowing in the surface direction, it reaches the outer peripheral side end surface (power connection portion) of the semiconductive portion.

  That is, even when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion, the creepage distance between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion is increased, and electrons flow over a longer distance through the semiconductive portion. The spark discharge due to the momentary short circuit is unlikely to occur, and as a result, the safety can be improved.

  Moreover, since the creeping distance between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion is increased, the discharge range is widened, and active species are generated from a wider range, so that safety can be improved. Further, since active species with high concentration are not generated intensively, the active species can be released continuously without causing deterioration of the semiconductive portion.

  Furthermore, water is required when hydrogen peroxide is generated as an active species. When the current flows in the semiconductive portion, the semiconductive portion generates heat due to electrical resistance, so that the air near the semiconductive portion is warmed. Moisture moves to the warmed air from the surrounding unwarmed air due to the relative humidity difference, and the retained moisture in the warmed air increases. In particular, since a large amount of current flows around the hole of the semiconductive portion, the amount of heat generated is large, and the amount of moisture retained in the air is increasing. An active species generating unit that produces an effect of increasing the amount of active species by effectively using moisture in the air by generating corona discharge in a region where the amount of water around the hole is increased, and an activity using the active species generating unit A seed generator can be provided.

1 is a perspective view of an indoor area where an active species generator according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention is installed. Cross section of the active species generator Cross section of the active species generator Cross-sectional view of the same active species generation unit Exploded perspective view of the same active species generating unit Disassembled perspective view of conductive part and insulating substrate of same active species generating unit Graph showing the relationship between the surface resistivity of the semiconductive part and the spark distance in the same active species generator Graph showing the relationship between discharge distance and voltage in the active species generator Conceptual diagram of how electrons flow in the semiconductive part and conductive part of the same active species generating unit Sectional view in which the conductive part and insulating substrate of the active species generation unit are cut Diagram showing the concept of positive corona discharge in the same active species generator The figure which shows the concept of the minus corona discharge in the same activated species generator Side sectional view of insulating substrate and adsorption means in the same active species generator Side sectional view showing insulating substrate, adsorption means, discharge electrode, counter electrode, and support member in the same active species generator A perspective view showing an insulating substrate, a discharge electrode, and a support member in the active species generator Development view showing configurations of insulating substrate, counter electrode, and support member Top view when the insulating substrate is viewed from the counter electrode side Diagram showing the concept of positive corona discharge in the same active species generator Side sectional view showing insulating substrate, adsorption means, discharge electrode, counter electrode, and support member in the same active species generator The figure which shows the concept of the minus corona discharge in the same activated species generator

(Embodiment 1)
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an active species generator 3 is arranged on the floor 2 of the room 1. The active species generator 3 supplies the active species such as radicals to the air in the room, and thereby cleans the air by the cleaning action of the active species. In addition, by applying air containing active species to clothes, curtains, etc., effects such as deodorization and sterilization of clothes and curtains can be expected.

  FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the active species generator 3 in FIG. FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the active species generator 3 having a different component arrangement from that of FIG.

  The active species generator 3 includes a main body case 6 having an intake port 4 and an exhaust port 5, a blowing means 7 and an active species generation unit 8 in the main body case 6.

  The main body case 6 is divided into an air passage portion 10 that communicates the intake port 4 and the exhaust port 5 and a space portion 11 by a partition plate portion 9 that is positioned substantially in the center.

  The air blowing means 7 is formed of an electric motor 12 fixed to the partition plate portion 9 of the main body case 6, a blade portion 13 that is rotated by the electric motor 12, and a casing portion 14 that surrounds the blade portion 13. The suction port 15 of the casing part 14 faces the intake port 4 of the main body case 6. The air sucked from the intake port 4 by the blowing means 7 is blown to the exhaust port 5 through a part of the active species generating unit 8.

  In FIG. 3, the active species generating unit 8 is positioned so as to have an opening upward along the air blowing path. However, the active species generating unit 8 only needs to be blown into the room on the wind. The position and orientation of is not limited to this location. For example, the active species generating unit 8 itself may be disposed outside the air blowing path in the main body case 6 and may be provided with an active species discharge port in the air blowing path. The active species generating unit 8 may be arranged upstream of the air blowing means 7. A plurality of active species generating units 8 may be provided.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the active species generating unit 8 includes an insulating substrate 16, a discharge electrode 17 disposed on one surface of the insulating substrate 16 so as to face the hole portion 21, and the insulating substrate 16. A semiconductive coating 18 provided on the inner surface of the hole 21 and the surface of the insulating substrate 16 on the discharge electrode 17 side, and a conductive portion 23 provided so as to cover the outer periphery of the semiconductive coating 18; The power source connecting portion 19 is electrically connected to the conductive portion 23, and the power source portion 20 (described in FIGS. 2 and 3) for applying a voltage to the power source connecting portion 19 and the discharge electrode 17 is formed. Here, the semiconductive portion is composed of an insulating substrate 16 and a semiconductive coating 18.

  In addition, it is possible to increase the active species component without providing the hole 21. As described in the conventional patent document, when the needle electrode and the ground electrode are arranged in parallel, the corona discharge region is generated biased toward the ground electrode from the needle electrode, so the discharge region becomes small. On the other hand, when the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion are arranged to face each other in a substantially vertical direction as in the present invention, a corona discharge region having a conical extension as viewed from the needle is formed, so the range of the corona discharge region is widened. , More active species can be generated. When the hole portion 21 is provided, corona discharge is generated toward the end surface of the hole portion 21, and therefore, how the corona discharge spreads can be changed by changing the diameter of the hole portion 21.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the insulating substrate 16 has a flat plate-like hole portion 21 having an opening at the center, and the end portion of the insulating substrate 16 is partitioned by a support member 22. It is fixed to the plate part 9.

  The shape of the support member 22 and the fixed lid 24 when assembled may be a cylinder shape through which air can pass linearly, or a box shape having an opening through which air is introduced from the side surface and discharged from the upper surface. . FIG. 2 shows a configuration in which air is introduced from the lower surface and discharged from the side surface as a box shape. FIG. 3 shows a configuration in which air is introduced from the lower surface and discharged from the upper surface as a cylindrical shape.

  In the component arrangement of FIG. 3, the hole portion 21 faces the exhaust port 5 of the main body case 6, and a part of the air sucked from the intake port 4 by the air blowing means 7 passes around the discharge electrode 17, The air is sent to the exhaust port 5 through the hole 21.

  FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view of the active species generating unit 8. FIG. 5 shows an exploded perspective view of the active species generating unit 8. FIG. 6 shows an exploded perspective view of the conductive portion 23 and the insulating substrate 16 of the active species generating unit 8.

  As described above, the active species generating unit 8 includes the insulating substrate 16, the discharge electrode 17 disposed opposite to the hole 21 on one surface of the insulating substrate 16, and the holes 21 of the insulating substrate 16. A semiconductive coating 18 provided on the inner surface and the surface on the discharge electrode 17 side of the insulating substrate 16 and having an effect of increasing the amount of moisture in the vicinity by generating heat by passing an electric current, and the semiconductive coating 18 is provided with a conductive portion 23 provided so as to be electrically connected so as to cover the outer peripheral portion of 18, a power supply connecting portion 19 electrically connected to the conductive portion 23, and a power supply portion 20. The power connection 19 is made of stainless steel such as SUS, aluminum, gold, silver, copper, or the like. In addition, it is not restricted to these, What is necessary is just a conductive material.

  The active species generation unit 8 includes a support member 22 that holds the discharge electrode 17, an insulating substrate 16, and a fixed lid 24. The support member 22 is fixed to the partition plate portion 9 (described in FIGS. 2 and 3).

  The insulating substrate 16 has a rectangular flat plate shape, and has a hole 21 that is opened substantially at the center. Note that the shape of the insulating substrate may be circular or polygonal.

The insulating substrate 16 may be an inorganic substrate that is not easily corroded by ozone or radicals, or a fluororesin, and may be a ceramic substrate or a resin substrate such as fluorine. As the ceramic substrate, an oxide containing Si, Al, Zn, Ti, Mg, a composite oxide, a carbide, a nitride, or the like can be used. Alumina is preferable from the viewpoint of cost and availability. The surface resistivity of the insulating substrate 16 is preferably 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □ or more.

  The discharge electrode 17 has a rod shape or a needle shape, extends in the vertical direction from the bottom surface of the support member 22, and faces one surface of the insulating substrate 16. The support member 22 may be ventilated with multiple openings. The tip of the discharge electrode 17 is located outside the hole 21 and on the substantially central axis of the hole 21 with a predetermined distance of several millimeters to several tens of millimeters from the insulating substrate 16. . The term “substantially on the central axis” refers to an axis that passes through the center of the hole 21 and is perpendicular to the insulating substrate 16. The material of the discharge electrode 17 is stainless steel such as SUS that causes corona discharge, tungsten, titanium, Ni—Cr alloy, or the like. If discharge is possible, an electrode containing carbon, tin, SiC, or the like may be used.

  The tip of the discharge electrode can use a sharp conical shape, a cylindrical shape, a hemispherical shape, or the like. When a sharp tip is used, since discharge concentration is likely to occur, corona discharge can be performed at a relatively low voltage. When the shape of the needle tip is cylindrical or hemispherical, charge concentration does not occur in a specific portion. Therefore, corona discharge does not occur unless a high voltage is applied compared to the needle shape, but since the corona discharge is continued with the charges dispersed, the discharge electrode should be less likely to deteriorate for a long time than the needle shape. Can do. This is because the sharp needle tip is likely to cause melting of the metal and concentration of dust due to the concentration of charges.

As shown in FIG. 6, the semiconductive coating 18 is provided on the surface on one side of the insulating substrate 16, that is, on the surface facing the discharge electrode 17 and the inner surface of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16. It has been. When viewed from the discharge electrode 17 side, the shape of the semiconductive coating 18 is a ring shape. The surface resistivity of the semiconductive coating 18 is preferably 10 ⁶ Ω / □ to 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □.

  There are the following two types of methods for measuring the surface resistivity. In this embodiment, method 1 was used.

In Method 1, a cylindrical main electrode and a ring-shaped counter electrode are placed on a test piece so as to surround the main electrode, and a contact resistance is set between the main electrode and the test piece. To reduce, sandwich conductive rubber. Next, the main electrode is applied to the ground side, and 1000 V is applied to the counter electrode, the current flowing between them is measured to calculate the surface resistance R, the distance L in the direction of current flow on the test piece, and the direction perpendicular to the current flow direction The surface resistivity ρs is obtained from the electrode length W.
ρs = R × L / W
The unit of surface resistivity is [Ω / □] or simply [Ω], but in this patent, [Ω / □] is used, which is easy to distinguish from a simple resistance value.

  Method 2 is to apply a conductive tape of the same length at a certain distance in parallel to both sides of the test piece, and each tape becomes the main electrode and the counter electrode in Method 1, and on the side that becomes the main electrode as well. Is applied to the ground and 1000 V is applied to the counter electrode side, and the surface resistance R is calculated from the surface resistance R calculated from the current flowing between them, the distance L between the conductive tapes, and the length W of the conductive tape. taking measurement.

  Here, a mechanism for increasing the amount of active species generated will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 7 shows the relationship between the surface resistivity of the semiconductive coating 18 and the spark distance when -8 kV is applied to the discharge electrode 17 and the power supply connecting portion 19 in the configuration of the active species generating unit of this example. . The surface resistivity is expressed in logarithm, and the spark distance is the shortest spatial distance between the discharge electrode 17 and the semiconductive coating 18. In the range where the surface resistivity is lower than 10 ⁶ Ω / □, the spark distance is 6 mm. That is, the active species generating unit needs to have a structure in which the discharge electrode 17 and the semiconductive coating 18 are separated from each other by 6 mm, and the apparatus cannot be reduced in size.

On the other hand, in the range where the surface resistivity is 10 ⁶ Ω / □ or more, the spark distance is 0 mm and no spark is generated. Therefore, the distance between the discharge electrode 17 and the semiconductive coating 18 can be 6 mm or less, and the active species generating unit can be downsized. The provision of the semiconductive coating 18 in the vicinity of the distal end side of the discharge electrode 17 means that, for example, when −8 kV is applied, the distance between the discharge electrode 17 and the semiconductive coating 18 is 6 mm or less. Of 6 mm is set by the applied voltage.

  FIG. 8 shows the relationship of the discharge distance to the voltage when the discharge current is constant. The discharge distance is the shortest distance between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion. The discharge current indicates the intensity of discharge, and the amount of active species generated increases as the discharge current increases. Under conditions where the discharge distance is narrow, the discharge current can be increased and the amount of active species generated can be increased by slightly increasing the voltage. For example, at a discharge distance of 3 mm, the discharge current can be increased about 6 times from 5 μA to 30 μA by increasing the voltage from −3.5 kV to −4.0 kV by 0.5 kV. On the other hand, when the discharge distance is 10 mm, even if the voltage is increased from −6.1 kV to −6.6 kV by 0.5 kV, the discharge current only changes from 5 μA to 10 μA and increases only about twice.

That is, as explained in FIG. 7, if the surface resistivity is 10 ⁶ Ω / □ or more and the discharge distance can be shortened, the discharge current can be greatly increased with a slight voltage change, and the corona discharge can be output at a high output. To increase the amount of active species generated.

  It is desirable that the tip of the discharge electrode 17 is disposed on the substantially central axis of the hole 21. When a high voltage is applied to the semiconductive coating 18 electrically connected to the discharge electrode 17 and the power supply connection portion 19, the current flowing between the discharge electrode 17 and the semiconductive coating 18 is semiconductive. The power source connecting portion 19 is reached from the outer peripheral surface of the hole portion 21 of the coating 18 through the conductive portion 23. That is, since the semiconductive coating 18 is located around the discharge electrode 17 in the circumferential direction, the current is dispersed over a wide range of the semiconductive coating 18, and as described in the effect of the invention. In addition, air in the vicinity of the semiconductive coating 18 has an increased amount of water due to heat generation in a wide range and is dispersed and discharged in the wide range, so that active species can be stably generated as a result. is there.

  The cross-sectional shape at the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the shape of the hole of the semiconductive coating 18 may be the same type. For example, when a discharge electrode 17 having a cylindrical or hemispherical tip is used for a circular hole, the discharge electrode 17 is centered since the cross-sectional shape of the tip of the discharge portion is circular. As a result, the discharge occurs in a wide range in the circumferential direction. As a result, compared to the case where the needle-like discharge electrode 17 having a sharp tip is used, local discharge concentration is less likely to occur, the deterioration of the discharge electrode 17 can be suppressed, and as a result, active species are stably generated. It can be made to.

  Furthermore, since the current is dispersed over a wide range of the semiconductive coating 18, the amount of active species such as OH radicals generated increases. Further, since active species with high concentration are not generated intensively, the active species can be released continuously without causing deterioration of the semiconductive portion.

  In addition, since the amount of active species can be increased by effectively using moisture in the air, it is not necessary to use an adsorbent such as zeolite for collecting moisture, and the adsorbent is not deteriorated. The active species generating unit is excellent in safety and sustainability. The shape of the hole may be a square, a polygon, or an ellipse instead of a circle.

  In addition, although the structure which consists of the insulating board | substrate 16 provided with the semiconductive film | membrane, the semiconductive coating | cover 18, the electroconductive part 23, and the power supply connection part 19 was demonstrated as an electrode which receives the discharge of the discharge electrode 17, Only the semiconductive coating 18 and the power connection 19 may be used. That is, a configuration in which a perforated flat plate-like semiconductive coating 18 having the same shape as that of the insulating substrate 16 is electrically connected to the power supply connection portion 19 may be employed. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to provide an active species releasing unit that has a simple structure and is easy to assemble. Furthermore, by reducing the thickness of the conductive portion and the insulating substrate, a smaller active species generating unit can be obtained.

  In FIG. 6, a conductive portion 23 is provided at a position covering the outer peripheral portion of the surface in the vicinity of the peripheral portion of the semiconductive coating 18, and this conductive portion 23 is electrically connected to the power supply connection portion 19 and the semiconductive coating 18. It is what. At this time, the shortest distance from the discharge electrode 17 to the conductive portion 23 is longer than the shortest distance from the discharge electrode 17 to the semiconductive coating 18. In the example of FIG. 6, the conductive portion 23 is a rectangular metal flat plate, and has a through hole 25 that is larger than the outer periphery of the hole portion 21 and smaller than the outer periphery of the semiconductive coating 18.

  With this configuration, the current flowing between the discharge electrode 17 and the electrode terminal 19 flows from the discharge electrode 17 through the semiconductive coating 18 that covers the inner surface of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16, for example. It flows through the semiconductive coating 18 covering one surface of the insulating substrate 16, and then finally reaches the power supply connecting portion 19 through the conductive portion 23. That is, since the creepage distance is long, spark discharge does not occur as a result, and safety can be improved.

Here, the surface resistivity of the conductive portion 23 is smaller than the surface resistivity of the semiconductive coating 18. Specifically, the surface resistivity of the semiconductive coating 18 is 10 ⁶ Ω / □ or more and less than 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □, and the surface resistivity of the conductive portion 23 is less than 10 ⁶ Ω / □. The surface resistivity of the power supply connecting portion 19 is desirably 10 ⁻¹ Ω / □ or less.

  Next, the effect when the conductive portion 23 is provided will be described. FIG. 9 shows a conceptual diagram of how the electrons flow in the semiconductive portion and the conductive portion of the active species generating unit. (A) is a case where the conductive portion 23 is not provided, and (B) is a case where the conductive portion 23 is provided. Assuming that electrons generated by corona discharge from the discharge electrode 17 reach the point P of the semiconductive coating 18 covering the inner surface of the hole 21, the electrons flow from the point P through the semiconductive coating 18 to form a straight line. Thus, the power connection 19 is reached. On the other hand, assuming that the electrons have reached the point Q, the electrons reach the power supply connection portion 19 from the point Q through the periphery of the hole 21 at the shortest distance. Thus, in the case where (A) the conductive portion 23 is not present, the electron density is more likely to occur in the semiconductive surface, and the resulting active species is likely to be partially affected.

  On the other hand, when (B) the conductive portion 23 is present, both the electrons that have reached the point R and the electrons that have reached the point S tend to flow in the direction of diffusing from the hole 21 in the outer circumferential direction. That is, since electrons are uniformly diffused in the semiconductive coating 18 and the generation of active species is also uniformly generated, the amount of active species generated can be increased. In addition, since local concentration of the electron density does not occur, it is possible to obtain an effect that partial deterioration of the semiconductive portion hardly occurs.

  The conductive portion 23 is located approximately equidistant from the center of the hole portion 21. Specifically, it is a ring shape that is electrically connected at a position extending from the outer periphery of the hole portion 21 of the semiconductive coating 18 to the outside at an approximately equal distance, and the conductive portion 23 is located at the peripheral portion. is there. That is, the conductive portion 23 is located at an approximately equal distance from the tip of the discharge electrode 17.

  As a result, since the conductive portion 23 is located at an approximately equal distance from the outer periphery of the hole portion 21, when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode 17 and the power supply connection portion 19, the gap between the discharge electrode 17 and the power supply connection portion 19 is achieved. The current that flows through the current flows easily around the entire circumference of the conductive portion 23. Further, the current flowing to the peripheral edge of the semiconductive coating 18 has a surface resistivity of the conductive portion 23 smaller than the surface resistivity of the semiconductive coating 18. It becomes easy to reach the connection part 19.

  That is, the current is uniformly distributed over a wide range of the semiconductive coating 18, and further, the current flows so as to spread to the conductive portion 23 located at the peripheral portion of the semiconductive coating 18, so that the semiconductive coating is obtained. Since current concentrates in a narrow range of 18 and active species are not intensively generated and no heat is generated locally, deterioration of the semiconductive coating 18 can be suppressed. In addition, since the current is dispersed over a wide range of the semiconductive coating 18, the amount of OH radicals generated increases.

  The conductive portion 23 is preferably a metal flat plate. The conductive portion 23 can also be formed by printing with a conductive ink containing Ag, Cu, carbon, or the like, but deterioration of the conductive ink becomes a problem when used for a long period of time. If it is a metal flat plate, since the oxidation stability with respect to the active seed | species produced | generated by discharge is excellent compared with ink, as a result, an active seed | species can be generated stably.

The conductive portion 23 is preferably made of any one of SUS316L, SUS316, SUS304, and aluminum subjected to alumite treatment. This is because these metals have high resistance to active species such as ozone, and thus are resistant to corrosion by active species such as ozone and can improve the durability of the conductive portion 23. In addition, the electroconductive part 23 should just be an electroconductive raw material without being restricted to these. The surface resistivity of the conductive portion 23 is desirably 10 ⁻¹ Ω / □ or less.

  The power supply connecting portion 19 is provided in contact with the other surface located on the back side of one surface of the insulating substrate 16 or the outer peripheral surface between one surface and the other surface of the insulating substrate 16. May be. As a result, when electrons flowing from the discharge electrode 17 flow along the surface of the insulating substrate 16, a so-called creepage distance, which is a distance traveled by the electrons, increases, so that spark discharge hardly occurs. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when the power supply connection portion 19 is provided on the surface of the insulating substrate 16, it is necessary to arrange the power connection portion 19 in a state in which a sufficient creepage distance is secured.

  The semiconductive coating 18 may be a ceramic insulating substrate 16 and a surface of the insulating substrate 16 on the discharge electrode 17 side provided with a semiconductive coating. Moreover, the semiconductive coating may form a curved surface such that the film thickness increases toward the middle of the expanding slope of the hole 21 of the semiconductive coating 18.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the surface of the insulating substrate 16 is covered with a semiconductive semiconductive coating 18. A curved surface is formed so as to increase in thickness toward the middle 27 of the inclined surface 26 of the hole 21 to cover the expanded inclined surface 26. Such a structure can be formed by the following procedure.

  The semiconductive coating 18 is obtained by applying semiconductive ink to the surface of the insulating substrate 16 with a squeegee by screen printing. The semiconductive ink contains a conductive agent such as tin oxide and an adhesive such as glass powder, and the above components are mixed or dissolved in a solvent.

  When the squeegee passes through the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16 through the screen, the semiconductive ink is pushed out to the expanding inclined surface 26 of the hole 21, and the extruded semiconductive ink is A curved surface is formed such that the film thickness increases toward the middle 27 of the slope of the 21 spread inclined surface 26, thereby covering the spread inclined surface 26. Therefore, the semiconductive coating 18 forms a curved surface such that the film thickness increases toward the middle 27 of the expanding inclined surface 26 of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16.

  As described above, the widened inclined surface 26 of the hole 21 is covered with the semiconductive coating 18. Thereby, compared with the case where the opening edge of the hole part 21 does not incline, the area of the opening edge which opposes the front-end | tip of the discharge electrode 17, ie, the area of the expansion inclination surface 26 increases. As a result, the surface area of the semiconductive coating 18 covering the spread inclined surface 26 facing the tip of the discharge electrode 17 also increases. Moreover, the abundance of the conductive agent bonded on the spread inclined surface 26 increases.

  As a result, the area for receiving the electrons emitted from the tip of the discharge electrode 17 is increased, and the heat generation area of the semiconductive coating 18 is increased, so that more water is decomposed by corona discharge, and the active species By increasing the generation amount, the purification action by the active species can be improved.

  The adhesive only needs to adhere the conductive agent particles and the insulating substrate 16. As an adhesive, glass powder, colloidal silica, silicate compound, titanate compound, or the like may be used. Glass powder is preferably chemically inert and oxidation resistant. Alumina, zirconia, titania powder or fluororesin particles may be used. The size of the adhesive is preferably larger than the conductive material particles in order to stabilize the shape, and is preferably about 2 to 100 times the size of the conductive material.

  As the conductive agent particles, tin oxide is preferable because of its stability against oxidation and availability, and other oxide conductive materials such as ZnO, PbO2, CdO, In2O3, Tl2O3, Ga2O3, and Fe3O4, and composite oxides thereof. Things can be used. You may use what doped Sb etc. to the tin oxide (SnO2) as a electrically conductive agent.

The composition ratio in the case of using SnO2 as a conductive agent and glass as an adhesive as the semiconductive coating 18 is 1:13 to 1: 1, that is, the conductive agent is 7 to 50%, and the glass is 93 to 50. % Is preferable, and from the viewpoint of strength, glass as an adhesive is required to be 50% or more, and in order to have semiconductivity, that is, surface resistivity of 10 ⁶ to 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □, 20% or more of the conductive agent should be added. Is desirable.

  In order to bond the conductive material, heat treatment may be applied to volatilize the solvent of the adhesive and promote oxidative polymerization. For example, the semiconductive ink is first applied to the surface of the insulating substrate 16 by screen printing with a squeegee. Next, the insulating substrate 16 coated with ink is placed in a heating furnace to raise the temperature. At this time, it is good to hold at a temperature of around 100 ° C. for which the solvent tends to volatilize for a certain period of time. Furthermore, according to the kind of adhesive agent, it heats to the temperature which an adhesive agent hardens | cures, and temperature holding is performed. For example, when colloidal silica is used as the adhesive, the curing temperature is preferably 180 ° C. or higher, and preferably 400 ° C. to 700 ° C.

  When glass is used as an adhesive, glass powder is mixed with an appropriate solvent, and the prepared semiconductive ink is printed on the insulating substrate 16 and heated to a temperature at which the glass melts. A method for creating a state in which a conductive agent is dispersed is exemplified. In the case of glass powder containing an alkali component, the temperature is preferably about 600 ° C to 800 ° C. In the case of glass powder containing no alkali, it is preferable to set the temperature to about 850 ° C. to 950 ° C. By holding these temperatures for 10 minutes or more, the adhesive is cured and the conductive material can be fixed. Note that a conductive material and an adhesive may be attached to the periphery of the insulating substrate by a method of dipping and drying the insulating substrate in ink prepared by mixing tin oxide and glass.

  Here, the case where a positive voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 11, when a discharge voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 by the power supply unit 20 at a plus of about 3 to 10 KV, a strong electric field is formed on the surface of the discharge electrode 17. Since a positive high voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17, free electrons existing in the air flow in. At this time, since the semiconductive coating 18 is in a minus state, as a result, electrons move from the semiconductive coating 18 to the discharge electrode 17 due to the movement of the electrons. This state is corona discharge, and OH radicals (an example of active species) are generated by the corona discharge force as described later. Here, a sufficient amount of active species can be generated by applying a voltage of 3 to 10 KV. Although active species are generated even at 10 kV or higher, side effects such as deterioration of the discharge needle occur, so it is desirable to use at 10 kV or lower. Moreover, since discharge may become unstable if it is less than 3 kV, it is desirable to use it at 3 kV or more.

More specifically, since a current flows through the semiconductive coating 18, the semiconductive coating 18 generates heat due to electrical resistance, so that the air near the semiconductive coating 18 is warmed. Moisture moves to the warmed air from the surrounding unwarmed air due to the relative humidity difference, and the retained moisture in the warmed air increases. In particular, since a large amount of current flows around the hole 21 of the semiconductive coating 18, the amount of heat generated is large, and the amount of moisture retained in the air increases. When moisture is present, H ₂ O ₂ and OH radicals increase in addition to active species such as ozone and O ₂ −. By generating corona discharge in a region where the amount of moisture around the hole is increased, it is possible to effectively utilize moisture in the air and further increase the amount of active species. Further, since an adsorbent such as zeolite is not used for collecting moisture, an effect that the adsorbent does not deteriorate can be obtained.

  When a positive high voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 to perform a positive corona discharge, the electrons of the semiconductive coating 18 are attracted to the discharge electrode 17 with a strong force and try to jump out of the surface. When electrons ejected from the surface collide with oxygen molecules in the air near the semiconductive coating 18, an anion of oxygen molecules in a state where one electron is added to the oxygen molecules is generated. Thereafter, oxygen molecule anions react with water molecules present around the semiconductive coating 18 to generate active species such as OH radicals. Since corona discharge occurs in the vicinity of the semiconductive portion where the amount of moisture is increased, moisture easily reacts with electrons, so that generation of OH radicals is facilitated.

  If the outer shape of the conductive portion 23 is substantially the same rectangular shape as the inside of the support member 22, the conductive portion 23 can be easily positioned in the assembly process of the active species generating unit 8.

  In this embodiment, the discharge electrode 17 is applied positively, but the voltage applied to the discharge electrode 17 may be positive or negative.

  Next, a case where a negative voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 as shown in FIG. 12 will be described. When a discharge voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 by the power supply unit 20 at minus about 3 to 10 KV, a strong electric field is formed on the surface of the discharge electrode 17. Since a negative high voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17, free electrons are released into the air. The semiconductive coating 18 is on the positive side. As a result, a current flows from the semiconductive coating 18 to the discharge electrode 17 due to the movement of the electrons.

Electrons released into the air from the discharge electrode 17 in FIG. 12 are attracted to the strong electric field of the semiconductive coating 18 with a strong force, so that the electrons move at high speed and collide with molecules in the air. At this time, when electrons moving at high speed collide with oxygen molecules in the air, an anion of oxygen molecules in which one electron is added to the oxygen molecules is generated. When moisture is present, H ₂ O ₂ and OH radicals increase in addition to active species such as ozone and O ₂ −. Oxygen molecule anions react with water molecules present around the semiconductive coating 18 to generate active species such as OH radicals. Since corona discharge occurs in the vicinity of the semiconductive portion where the amount of moisture is increased, moisture easily reacts with electrons, so that generation of OH radicals is facilitated.

  Further, in this way, electrons flow in the surface direction between the discharge electrode 17 and the power supply connection portion 19 via the semiconductive coating 18, so that the creeping distance is increased and current is transmitted through the surface of the insulating substrate 16. It will flow.

  An air flow called an ion wind is generated from the tip of the discharge electrode 17. This airflow flows from the tip of the discharge electrode 17 toward the insulating substrate 16. Since the insulating substrate 16 is provided with the hole 21, the generated active species such as OH radicals pass through the hole 21 along the ion wind and are released. As described above, the semiconductive portion is provided in the vicinity of the distal end side of the discharge electrode, and the semiconductive portion has a hole disposed in a portion facing the distal end side of the discharge electrode, thereby providing moisture. Since the air containing is always supplied by the force of the ion wind and escapes from the hole portion 21, the moisture is continuously decomposed and the active species can be stably generated.

  In the configuration shown in FIG. 3, room air flows from the intake port 4 of the main body case 6 due to the flow of the airflow, passes through the periphery of the discharge electrode 17, and passes through the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16. Exhaust airflow discharged from 5 into the room is generated.

  In this case, the air blowing means 7 described with reference to FIG. 2 may not be provided, and the active species generating device 3 can be reduced in size, and can be installed on a table or the like regardless of the installation location.

  Here, the active species such as OH radicals generated as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 are exhausted from the active species generator 3 into the room on the exhaust airflow. By supplying air containing active species such as OH radicals into the room, bacteria in the air can be inactivated. Moreover, the deodorizing effect can be exhibited by decomposing and removing the odor in the air. In addition, by applying air containing active species to clothes, curtains, etc., effects such as deodorization and sterilization of clothes and curtains can be expected.

(Embodiment 2)
In the present embodiment, suction means 18a is used in place of the semiconductive coating 18 in FIGS. 2 and 3 of the first embodiment, and the same parts as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. The detailed explanation is omitted.

  The active species generating unit 8 includes an insulating substrate 16, a discharge electrode 17 disposed so as to face the insulating substrate 16, an adsorption means 18 a in contact with the insulating substrate 16, and a counter electrode 19 a as a power connection 19. , And the power supply unit 20.

The insulative substrate 16 has a flat plate-like hole 21 that is open at substantially the center, and the end of the insulative substrate 16 is fixed to the partition plate portion 9 of the main body case via the support member 22. In the component arrangement of FIG. 2, a part of the air sucked from the intake port 4 by the blower 7 passes through the periphery of the discharge electrode 17 and is blown to the exhaust port 5 through the hole 21. In the component arrangement of FIG. 3, the hole portion 21 faces the exhaust port 5 of the main body case 6, and a part of the air sucked from the intake port 4 by the air blowing means 7 passes around the discharge electrode 17, The air is sent to the exhaust port 5 through the hole 21. The insulating substrate 16 may be a ceramic substrate or a resin substrate such as fluorine. The ceramic substrate may be a substrate containing any one of silica, aluminum, and magnesium, or an alumina substrate. This is because an inorganic material or a fluororesin that is not easily corroded by ozone or radicals may be used. The surface resistivity of the insulating substrate 16 is desirably 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □ or more.

  The discharge electrode 17 has a rod shape, faces one side of the insulating substrate 16 and the hole 21, and is disposed on the windward side of the insulating substrate 16. In the arrangement of FIG. 3, the rod-shaped discharge electrode 17 extends in parallel with the blowing direction of the air blown by the blowing means 7. And the front-end | tip of the discharge electrode 17 is located in the outer side of the hole part 21, and on the approximate center extension line of the said hole part at a predetermined distance of about several millimeters-tens of millimeters from the insulating substrate 16. is there. The material of the discharge electrode 17 is SUS, tungsten, or the like that causes corona discharge.

The counter electrode 19 a is formed of stainless steel such as SUS, aluminum, gold, silver, copper, or the like, and is fixed to the peripheral edge of the insulating substrate 16. In addition, it is not restricted to these, What is necessary is just a conductive material. The surface resistivity of the counter electrode 19a is desirably 10 ⁻¹ Ω / □ or less.

  The power supply unit 20 is located in the space 11 of the main body case 6 and applies a voltage to the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a.

The suction means 18 a is provided on the surface on one side of the insulating substrate 16, that is, on the windward surface of the insulating substrate 16 and the inner surface of the hole 21, and is in contact with the counter electrode 19 a. The surface resistivity of the adsorption means 18a is preferably 10 ⁶ to 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □.

  This will be described with reference to FIGS. 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17. FIG. 13 is a side sectional view of the insulating substrate 16 and the suction means 18a. FIG. 14 is a side sectional view showing the insulating substrate 16, the suction means 18a, the discharge electrode 17, the counter electrode 19a, and the support member 22 in the component arrangement of FIG. FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing the insulating substrate 16, the discharge electrode 17, and the support member 22. FIG. 16 is a development view showing the configuration of the insulating substrate 16, the discharge electrode 17, the counter electrode 19 a, and the support member 22. FIG. 17 is a plan view of the insulating substrate 16 as viewed from the discharge electrode 17 side.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the adsorbing means 18 a is formed of an adsorbent 28 that adsorbs moisture in the vicinity of the insulating substrate 16, and an adhesive 29 that adheres the adsorbent 28 and the insulating substrate 16. The adsorbent 28 is a zeolite having an average particle diameter of about 0.5 micrometers to several tens of micrometers for adsorbing water and having pores 30 on the surface.

  In addition, although the zeolite was mentioned as an example as the adsorbent 28, the adsorbent 28 has nano-level pores 30, and the pores 30 in which water vapor can be condensed in the pores by the so-called Kelvin capillary condensation phenomenon. As long as it is a porous structure having a structure having any of the above, silica, zeolite, desiccite, allophane, imogolite, etc. may be included. Further, porous alumina, porous silica, or porous titania that adsorbs water by using gaps between particles may be used. The adsorbent 28 adsorbs water vapor in the air to the pores 30, but adsorbs water vapor in the air if the pores 30 have an average particle diameter that is difficult to be filled with the particles of the adhesive 29. Can do. The adsorbent 28 may have an average particle size larger than that of the adhesive 29.

  The adhesive 29 is colloidal silica that bonds the adsorbent 28 and the insulating substrate 16. The adhesive 29 may have an average particle size smaller than the average particle size of the adsorbent 28 such as zeolite and larger than the pores 30 opened on the surface of the zeolite. If the pores 30 are not blocked, glass powder or a silicate compound may be used as the adhesive 29.

  Here, a case where a positive voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 as shown in FIG. 18 will be described. As shown in FIG. 18, when a discharge voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 by the power supply unit 20 at about 3 to 10 kV plus, a strong electric field is formed on the surface of the discharge electrode 17. Since a positive high voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17, free electrons existing in the air flow in. At this time, since the counter electrode 19a is in a minus state, electrons move from the counter electrode 19a to the discharge electrode 17 as a result of movement of the electrons. This state is corona discharge, and OH radicals (an example of active species) are generated by the corona discharge force as described later.

  More specifically, the ceramic insulating substrate 16 and the adsorbent 28 are bonded by an adhesive 29. It is known that the surface of the adsorbent 28 has nano-level pores 30, and moisture in the air adsorbs moisture by condensing water vapor in the pores 30 (Kelvin capillary condensation). phenomenon). As a result, moisture in the air is adsorbed by the adsorption means 18a such as zeolite, and electrons easily flow. When a positive high voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 to perform a positive corona discharge, the electrons in the adsorbent 28 are attracted to the discharge electrode 17 with a strong force, so that the electrons move at a high speed. When an electron collides with an oxygen molecule near the adsorbent 28, an anion of the oxygen molecule in a state where one electron is added to the oxygen molecule is generated. Thereafter, oxygen molecule anions react with water molecules adsorbed on the surface of the insulating substrate 16 to generate active species such as OH radicals. Since corona discharge occurs around the adsorbed moisture, the moisture easily reacts with the electrons, so that OH radicals can be more easily generated.

  The feature of this embodiment is that the inner surface of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16 and the one surface of the insulating substrate 16 are provided with adsorption means 18a, and the tip of the discharge electrode 17 is outside the hole 21. And it is a point located on the approximate center extension line of the hole 21. Thereby, when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a, the current flowing between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a is changed from the discharge electrode 17 to the periphery of the discharge electrode 17 provided on the insulating substrate 16. After flowing through the suction means 18a located at the position, the counter electrode 19a is reached.

  That is, since the suction means 18a is located around the discharge electrode 17 in the circumferential direction, the current is dispersed over a wide range of the suction means 18a, and the discharge is dispersed over a wide range. The seed can be stably generated. Further, since the discharge portion of the cylindrical rod-shaped discharge electrode 17 has a circular cross-sectional shape at the tip, a discharge is generated by being dispersed in a wide range in the circumferential direction around the discharge electrode 17. As a result, compared to the case where a needle-like discharge electrode having a sharp tip is used, local discharge concentration is less likely to occur, deterioration of the discharge electrode 17 can be suppressed, and active species are stably generated as a result. It is something that can be done. Further, since the current is dispersed over a wide range of the adsorption means 18a, the amount of active species such as OH radicals generated increases.

  It should be noted that the action and effect described above due to the tip of the discharge electrode 17 being located outside the hole portion 21 and on the substantially central extension line of the hole portion 21 is the semiconductive coating 18 instead of the adsorption means 18a. The same is achieved in the first embodiment using the above.

  In this embodiment, the discharge electrode 17 is applied positively, but the voltage applied to the discharge electrode 17 may be positive or negative.

  In this embodiment, the suction means 18a is provided on a part of the surface of the insulating substrate 16, but the suction means 18a may be provided on the entire surface of the insulating substrate 16 or on the side surface. . Thereby, the water adsorb | sucked by the adsorption | suction means 18a can be decomposed | disassembled efficiently.

  In addition, since the tip of the discharge electrode 17 is located approximately at the center of the outer side of the hole portion 21, even when the discharge electrode 17 is bent, the tip of the discharge electrode 17 does not directly contact the suction means 18a, thereby improving safety. To do.

  In addition, the tip of the discharge electrode 17 may be positioned at the approximate center of the outer side of the hole portion 21, and the distance between the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the suction means 18a may be a predetermined distance. By setting the predetermined distance to a distance at which no spark is generated, the occurrence of spark can be suppressed even when the discharge electrode 17 is bent.

  Further, the effect that the tip of the discharge electrode 17 is positioned at the approximate center of the outside of the hole 21 will be described with reference to FIG. The distance between the extension line extending the end of the discharge electrode 17 toward the central axis of the hole 21 and the end of the suction means 18a is a, and the vertical distance between the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the end of the suction means 18a is b. Let L be the distance between the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the end of the suction means 18a.

Let Δd be the displacement distance when the discharge electrode 17 is displaced due to vibration during use of the apparatus or due to an error during installation. When the tip of the discharge electrode 17 is inward of the hole 21 (distance b = 0 mm or less), when the discharge electrode is displaced by a displacement Δd, the distance L between the discharge electrode 17 and the end of the suction means 18a is a−Δ. Since only d is approached, the discharge is not generated uniformly, and the generation amount of active species may be reduced. If the displacement Δd is further increased, the discharge electrode 17 and the suction means 18a may come into contact with each other, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of safety, such as the occurrence of sparks when a high voltage is applied. On the other hand, when the tip of the discharge electrode 17 is outside the hole portion 21 (the distance b is greater than 0 mm), the distance L between the discharge electrode 17 and the end portion of the suction means 18a is {(a−Δd) ² + b ^2. } The relationship of ^1/2 can be expressed, and the change in the distance L can be reduced as compared with the case where the discharge electrode is inward. In this case, since the discharge electrode 17 and the suction means do not contact, a safer state can be achieved.

  For example, consider a case where the discharge electrode is displaced by Δd = 1 mm in a hole having a distance a = 5 mm. When the discharge electrode 17 is inward (distance b = 0 mm), the distance L changes by about 1 mm. On the other hand, when the discharge electrode 17 is located outward (distance b = 5 mm), the distance L remains at a change of 7.07-6.40 = 0.67 mm. As described above, by positioning the discharge electrode at approximately the center on the outer side, the change amount of the gap L when the needle is deformed can be reduced, the amount of active species generated is less likely to change, and the reliability is improved. it can.

  The discharge electrode 17 is formed of a single material. Thereby, the durability of the discharge electrode 17 can be improved as compared with the case where a treatment such as plating is performed.

  The cross-sectional shape at the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the shape of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16 are the same type. Specifically, the cross-sectional shape of the discharge electrode 17 and the shape of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16 are circular.

  That is, the distance between the periphery of the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the inner surface of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16 is uniform. As a result, the current is dispersed over a wide range of the adsorption means 18a, and the discharge portion of the discharge electrode 17 is similarly dispersed and discharged from the wide range of the discharge electrode 17, so that deterioration in the discharge electrode 17 is suppressed. As a result, active species can be stably generated.

  Further, the thickness dimension of the suction means 18 a on the inner surface of the hole 21 is larger than the thickness dimension of the suction means 18 a on the one surface of the insulating substrate 16. Accordingly, the amount of moisture adsorbed on the adsorption means 18a on the inner surface of the hole 21 is larger than the adsorption means 18a on the one surface of the insulating substrate 16, and the adsorption means 18a on the inner surface of the hole 21 Current flows more easily than the suction means 18a on the one surface.

  The current that flows between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a due to corona discharge tends to flow along the shortest path from the discharge electrode 17 to the counter electrode 19a that is a conductor. However, the adsorption means 18a on the inner surface of the hole 21 is farther from the tip of the discharge electrode 17 than the adsorption means 18a on the one surface of the insulating substrate 16, but the adsorbed moisture amount is large. Therefore, current flows more easily than the surface of one surface of the insulating substrate 16. That is, the current that flows between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a due to corona discharge does not flow only to the adsorption means 18a on the surface of the one surface of the insulating substrate 16 with the shortest path, but on the inner surface of the hole 21 that is not the shortest path. It is considered that it easily flows to the adsorption means 18a. That is, since the current is easily dispersed over a wide range of the entire adsorption unit 18a, the amount of OH radicals generated is increased.

  The distance between the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a is longer than the distance between the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the suction means 18a. Specifically, the current flowing between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a flows, for example, from the discharge electrode 17 through the suction means 18a covering the inner surface of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16 and then through the inner surface. Thus, it flows on one surface of the insulating substrate 16 and finally reaches the counter electrode 19a. That is, since the creeping distance is long, spark discharge does not occur as a result, and safety can be improved. .

  The counter electrode 19a is provided in contact with the other surface located on the back side of one surface of the insulating substrate 16, that is, the leeward side surface, or the outer peripheral surface between the one surface and the other surface of the insulating substrate 16. It may be. As a result, when electrons flowing from the discharge electrode 17 flow along the surface of the insulating substrate 16, a so-called creepage distance, which is a distance traveled by the electrons, is increased, so that spark discharge is less likely to occur.

  However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when the counter electrode 19a is provided on the surface of the insulating substrate 16, it is necessary to arrange the counter electrode 19a in a state in which a sufficient creeping distance is secured.

  Next, a case where a negative voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 as shown in FIG. 20 will be described. When a discharge voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17 by a power supply at about minus 3 to 10 KV, a strong electric field is formed on the surface of the discharge electrode 17. Since a negative high voltage is applied to the discharge electrode 17, free electrons are released into the air. The insulating substrate 16 in contact with the counter electrode 19a is on the plus side. As a result, a current flows from the counter electrode 19a to the discharge electrode 17 due to the movement of the electrons.

  The electrons emitted from the discharge electrode 17 in FIG. 20 to the air are attracted to the strong electric field of the counter electrode 19a with a strong force, so that the electrons move at high speed and collide with molecules in the air. At this time, when electrons moving at high speed collide with oxygen molecules in the air, an oxygen molecule anion in which one electron is added to the oxygen molecule is generated. Thereafter, oxygen molecular anions react with water molecules adsorbed on the surface of the insulating substrate to generate OH radicals.

  By performing the so-called negative corona discharge, which is a discharge from the discharge electrode 17 applied to the negative as described above, the moisture around the adsorption means 18a reacts with electrons, thereby making it easier to generate OH radicals. It is.

  Further, as described above, electrons flow in the surface direction between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a via the adsorption means 18a, so that the creepage distance becomes long and current flows through the surface of the insulating substrate 16 through the surface. .

  As described above, the OH radicals (active species) generated as shown in FIG. 9 and FIG. 11 are discharged into the room from the exhaust port 5 of the active species generator 3 by the blowing from the blowing means 7 of FIG. 2 or FIG. . By supplying the air containing the OH radicals into the room 1, the bacteria in the air can be inactivated. Moreover, the deodorizing effect can be exhibited by decomposing and removing the odor in the air.

  The feature of the present embodiment is that the insulating substrate 16 has a hole 21, the discharge electrode 17 faces the hole 21, and is close to the inner surface of the hole 21 and the one surface of the insulating substrate 16. The adsorbing means 18a for adsorbing water is provided, and a conductive portion 23 is provided at the peripheral portion of the adsorbing means 18a, and the conductive portion 23 is electrically connected to the counter electrode 19a. Thus, when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a, the current flowing between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a first causes the discharge electrode 17 provided on the insulating substrate 16 from the discharge electrode 17. Then, after flowing through the suction means 18a located around the periphery, and then through the conductive portion 23 located at the peripheral edge of the suction means 18a, it reaches the counter electrode 19a.

  That is, since the suction means 18a is located around the discharge electrode 17 in the circumferential direction, the current is dispersed over a wide range of the suction means 18a, and the discharge is dispersed over a wide range. The seed can be stably generated over a wide range. Further, since the discharge portion of the cylindrical rod-shaped discharge electrode 17 has a circular cross-sectional shape at the tip, a discharge is generated by being dispersed in a wide range in the circumferential direction around the discharge electrode 17. As a result, compared to the case where a needle-like discharge electrode having a sharp tip is used, local discharge concentration is less likely to occur, deterioration of the discharge electrode 17 can be suppressed, and active species are stably generated as a result. It is something that can be done. Further, since the current flows so as to spread to the conductive portion 23 located at the peripheral portion of the adsorption unit 18a, the current concentrates in a narrow range of the adsorption unit 18a, and the adsorption unit 18a does not intensively generate active species. Deterioration can also be suppressed.

  In addition, the conductive portion 23 is located approximately equidistant from the center of the hole portion 21. Specifically, it has a ring shape extending substantially equidistant from the outer periphery of the hole 21 of the suction means 18a, and the conductive portion 23 is located on this peripheral edge. That is, the conductive portion 23 is located at an approximately equal distance from the tip of the discharge electrode 17.

  As a result, the conductive portion 23 is located at an approximately equal distance from the outer periphery of the hole portion 21, and thus flows between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19 a when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19 a. The current easily flows uniformly around the entire conductive portion 23. In other words, the current is uniformly distributed over a wide range of the suction means 18a, and further, the current flows so as to spread to the conductive portion 23 located at the peripheral edge of the suction means 18a, so that the current concentrates in a narrow range of the suction means 18a. The deterioration of the adsorbing means 18a can be suppressed without intensively generating active species. It should be noted that the above-described action and effect due to the conductive portion 23 being located at an approximately equal distance from the outer periphery of the hole portion 21 is the same as in the first embodiment in which the semiconductive coating 18 is used instead of the suction means 18a. Demonstrated.

  In addition, since the current is dispersed over a wide range of the adsorption means 18a, the amount of OH radicals generated increases.

  In addition, the distance between the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19 a is longer than the distance between the tip of the discharge electrode 17 and the conductive portion 23. Specifically, the current flowing between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a flows, for example, after flowing from the discharge electrode 17 through the suction means 18a covering the inner surface of the hole 21 of the insulating substrate 16 and then passing through the inner surface. Then, it flows on one surface of the insulating substrate 16 and finally reaches the counter electrode 19a via the conductive portion 23. That is, since the creeping distance is long, spark discharge does not occur as a result, Safety can be improved.

Further, the surface resistivity of the conductive portion 23 is smaller than the surface resistivity of the suction means 18a. Specifically, the surface resistivity of the suction means 18a is 10 ⁶ to 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □, the surface resistivity of the conductive portion 23 is 10 ⁶ or less, and the surface resistivity of the counter electrode 19a is 10 ^-1 or less is desirable.

  When a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a, the current flowing between the discharge electrode 17 and the counter electrode 19a first flows from the discharge electrode 17 to the periphery of the discharge electrode 17 provided on the insulating substrate 16. After flowing through the adsorbing means 18a positioned, and then flowing through the conductive portion 23 positioned at the peripheral edge of the adsorbing means 18a, it reaches the counter electrode 19a. Here, the current that has flowed to the periphery of the suction means 18a reaches the counter electrode 19a via the conductive portion 23 because the surface resistivity of the conductive portion 23 is smaller than the surface resistivity of the suction means 18a. It becomes easy.

  That is, the current is distributed over a wide range of the suction means 18a and further flows so as to spread to the conductive portion 23 located at the peripheral edge of the suction means 18a, so that the current is concentrated in a narrow range of the suction means 18a. Thus, the deterioration of the adsorbing means 18a can be suppressed without generating active species.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the conductive portion 23 is covered with an insulating coating portion 31 (not shown in FIG. 17 in order to avoid complication of the drawing). Specifically, the surface of the conductive portion 23 facing the discharge electrode 17 is covered with the insulating coating portion 31. Thereby, it is possible to suppress a current from flowing directly from the discharge electrode 17 to the conductive portion 23. The insulating coating 31 is formed of glass, fluororesin, or the like, and is coated using a method of bonding an insulating tape such as fluororesin / vinyl chloride resin, a method of applying a glass paste / ceramic adhesive, and drying and baking. can do.

  In addition, it is not restricted to these, What is necessary is just an insulating material. The insulating coating 31 may extend inward and cover a part of the suction means. Thereby, since the insulation coating part 31 also covers the contact surface of the adsorption | suction means 18a and the electroconductive part 23, it can suppress that an electric current flows into the electroconductive part 23 from the discharge electrode 17 further. Note that the voltage applied to the discharge electrode 17 may be positive or negative.

  As described above, the present invention has a cylindrical or box-like case portion, a discharge electrode with the tip side inserted into the case portion from one end opening of the case portion, and the vicinity of the tip side of the discharge electrode. A semiconductive portion, and the semiconductive portion has a hole disposed at a portion facing the tip side of the discharge electrode, and a voltage is applied to the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode from a power supply portion. Since the active species are generated by corona discharge, the distance between the discharge electrode and the counter electrode can be reduced and the generation amount of active species can be increased while preventing sparking of the discharge.

  That is, in the present invention, by applying a voltage from the power supply unit to the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode to generate active species by corona discharge, the distance between the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode can be reduced. Since the discharge current increases, the amount of active species generated can be increased.

  In addition, since the semiconductive portion has a hole at a portion facing the tip side of the discharge electrode, and the periphery of the hole is used as a discharge region and active species is generated around the hole, the air passing through the hole is The generated active species can be supplied, and the generated active species can be diffused by efficiently using the ionic wind. Further, it is not necessary to provide a plurality of semiconductive portions and discharge electrodes, and the apparatus can be miniaturized.

  In addition, by applying a voltage from the power supply unit to the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode to generate active species by corona discharge, the distance between the semiconductive portion and the discharge electrode can be reduced, and the device can be further downsized. Is.

  Further, in the present invention, a discharge electrode in which the tip end side is inserted into the case portion from one end opening of the cylindrical case portion, and a semiconducting portion disposed opposite to the vicinity of the tip end side of the discharge electrode are provided. As a result, even when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion, the current flowing between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion is the end surface of the hole from the discharge electrode to the semiconductive portion, that is, from the inner circumference side to the semiconductive portion. After flowing in the surface direction, it reaches the outer peripheral side end surface (power connection portion) of the semiconductive portion.

  That is, even when a high voltage is applied between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion, the creepage distance between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion is increased, and electrons flow over a longer distance through the semiconductive portion. The spark discharge due to the momentary short circuit is unlikely to occur, and as a result, the safety can be improved.

  Moreover, since the creeping distance between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive portion is increased, the discharge range is widened, and active species are generated from a wider range, so that safety can be improved. Further, since active species with high concentration are not generated intensively, the active species can be released continuously without causing deterioration of the semiconductive portion.

  Furthermore, since a current flows in the semiconductive portion, the semiconductive portion generates heat due to electrical resistance, so that the air near the semiconductive portion is warmed. Moisture moves to the warmed air from the surrounding unwarmed air due to the relative humidity difference, and the retained moisture in the warmed air increases. In particular, since a large amount of current flows around the hole of the semiconductive portion, the amount of heat generated is large, and the amount of moisture retained in the air is increasing. By generating corona discharge in a region where the amount of water around the hole is increased, the effect of increasing the amount of active species by effectively using the water in the air can be obtained.

  Therefore, utilization as an active species generating unit and an active species generating apparatus using the same is expected.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Room 2 Floor 3 Active species generator 4 Intake port 5 Exhaust port 6 Main body case 7 Blowing means 8 Active species generation unit 9 Partition plate part 10 Air passage part 11 Space part 12 Electric motor 13 Blade part 14 Casing part 15 Inlet 16 Insulation Conductive substrate 17 Discharge electrode 18 Semi-conductive coating 18a Adsorption means 19 Power supply connection portion 19a Counter electrode 20 Power supply portion 21 Hole portion 22 Support member 23 Conductive portion 24 Fixing lid 25 Through-hole 26 Expanding inclined surface 27 Middle 28 Adsorbent 29 Adhesive 30 Pore 31 Insulation coating

Claims (18)

A cylindrical or box-like case,
A discharge electrode in which the tip side is inserted from one end opening of the case portion into the case portion,
A semiconducting portion disposed in the vicinity of the front end side of the discharge electrode and opposed to the discharge electrode in a substantially vertical direction;
The semiconductive part has a power connection part in the vicinity of the outer periphery,
An active species generating unit for generating an active species by corona discharge by applying a voltage from a power source to the power connection portion and the discharge electrode of the semiconductive portion. The active species generating unit according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductive portion contains glass, an organic substance, and a conductive agent. 3. The active species generating unit according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductive portion has a surface resistivity of 10 ⁶ Ω / □ or more and less than 10 ¹⁰ Ω / □. The active species generating unit according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the semiconductive portion has a hole in a portion facing the tip side of the discharge electrode. 5. A conductive part is provided on a peripheral part of the semiconductive part and / or a surface in the vicinity of the peripheral part, and the semiconductive part applies a voltage from a power supply part through the conductive part. The active species generating unit according to any one of the above. 6. The active species generating unit according to claim 5, wherein the conductive portions are substantially equidistant from the center of the hole. The active species generating unit according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the conductive portion is made of a metal flat plate. The active species generating unit according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the surface resistivity of the conductive portion is smaller than the surface resistivity of the semiconductive portion. The active species generating unit according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the discharge electrode is located on a substantially central axis of the hole of the semiconductive portion. The active species generating unit according to claim 9, wherein the tip of the discharge electrode is positioned outside the hole. 11. The active species generating unit according to claim 5, wherein the cross-sectional shape of the tip of the discharge electrode and the shape of the hole of the semiconductive portion are the same type. The active species generating unit according to claim 5, wherein the hole of the semiconductive portion has a circular shape. The semiconductive portion includes a ceramic insulating substrate, and a semiconductive coating on the inner surface of the hole and the surface on the discharge electrode side of the insulating substrate. The active species generating unit according to one. The semiconductive portion includes an insulating substrate made of ceramic, an inner surface of the hole, and one surface of the insulating substrate, and suction means. Active species generating unit. The active species generating unit according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the semiconductive coating or adsorbing means forms a curved surface such that the film thickness increases toward the middle of the expanding slope of the hole. . The thickness dimension of the suction means on the inner surface of the hole is
The active species generating unit according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the active species generating unit is larger than a thickness dimension of the adsorption means on one surface of the insulating substrate. 16. The active species generating unit according to claim 1, wherein the power source applies a positive or negative voltage of 3 to 10 KV between the discharge electrode and the semiconductive (power source connection) part. . A body case having an air inlet and an air outlet;
In the main body case, air blowing means and the active species generating unit according to any one of claims 1 to 17 are provided,
The air sucked from the air inlet of the main body case by the blowing means is sent to the active species generating unit,
An active species generating apparatus characterized in that air containing active species generated by the active species generating unit is blown out from the exhaust port.

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