JP2014014741A - Cleaning method and cleaning device for coping with low environmental load - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a further practical cleaning method in a low environmental load, a cleaning unit for executing its method, and a cleaning device incorporated with its cleaning unit.SOLUTION: A cleaning method executes shower treatment while supplying its liquid to a treatment object by generating a microbubble in electrolytic alkaline water as a cleaning liquid, and a cleaning unit comprises: a storage tank 102 for storing the electrolytic alkaline water as the cleaning liquid on the inside; a pump 104 for circulating the cleaning liquid; a microbubble generating nozzle 103 for generating the microbubble; and a shower nozzle 114 for executing the shower treatment, and the cleaning device comprises: a cleaning unit 200-2 for cleaning the treatment object; a rinse unit 200-3 for removing the cleaning liquid stuck to the treatment object; and a drying unit 200-4 for draining and drying the treatment object, and uses the cleaning unit as the cleaning unit 200-2.

Description

  The present invention uses various plate-like material substrates (for example, glass substrates for flat panel displays) in a field in which a cleaning liquid containing a trace amount of inorganic alkali can be applied to a cleaning process in a manufacturing process. The present invention relates to a cleaning method and a cleaning apparatus that can cope with a low environmental load.

  In recent years, technologies such as electrolytic alkaline water and microbubbles have been developed for the purpose of reducing the environmental load in the cleaning field. Cleaning methods and cleaning apparatuses that apply these technologies include, for example, the following: It is disclosed in the patent literature.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a cleaning method combining electrolytic alkaline water, microbubbles, and ultrasonic waves as a cleaning liquid, and a cleaning apparatus for performing the cleaning method.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a cleaning method that combines electrolytic alkaline water, microbubbles, and brushes as a cleaning liquid, and a cleaning device that incorporates the cleaning method.

JP 2010-137134 A JP 2010-137135 A

  A cleaning method and a cleaning apparatus combining physical actions such as known electrolytic alkaline water, microbubbles, and brushes are disclosed as described above. However, in Patent Document 1, the cleaning time is long. In particular, in the case of a single-wafer type apparatus, there is a problem in terms of processing capability. Further, in Patent Document 2, brush processing which is contact cleaning is applied, but generally there is a difficulty in maintenance management of the brush, and if the management is insufficient, scratches or the like are caused on the object to be processed. There is a problem.

  Therefore, the present invention solves these problems and implements a cleaning method capable of ensuring sufficient cleaning power in a short cleaning time and not causing scratches on the object to be processed, and the method thereof. It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning unit and a cleaning device incorporating the cleaning unit.

  The cleaning method of the present invention includes a step of generating microbubbles in electrolytic alkaline water as a cleaning liquid, and a shower processing step while supplying microbubble electrolytic alkaline water to an object to be processed.

  The cleaning unit of the present invention for carrying out this cleaning method includes a storage tank for storing electrolytic alkaline water as a cleaning liquid, a pump for circulating the cleaning liquid, and a microbubble for generating microbubbles. A generation nozzle and a shower nozzle for showering an object to be processed are provided.

  Furthermore, the cleaning apparatus of the present invention includes a cleaning unit for cleaning the object to be processed, a rinse unit for removing the cleaning liquid adhering to the object to be processed, and a drying unit for draining and drying the object to be processed. In the apparatus, the above-described cleaning unit is used as the cleaning unit.

  The present invention resides in a cleaning method combining electrolytic alkaline water, microbubbles, and a shower, and a cleaning apparatus incorporating the cleaning method.

  According to the cleaning method of the present invention, it is possible to sufficiently secure cleaning power such as degreasing and particle removal in a cleaning time of about several seconds for an object to be processed of various plate-shaped material substrates. Furthermore, according to the cleaning method of the present invention, scratches are not generated because non-contact cleaning is performed. The liquid temperature does not need to be as high as normal temperature (about 25 ° C.), and the consumption of electrolytic alkaline water as a cleaning liquid due to evaporation or the like can be reduced.

  Furthermore, since electrolytic alkaline water contains only a trace amount of inorganic substance and its main component is water, according to the cleaning method of the present invention, unlike conventional non-aqueous and semi-aqueous cleaning liquids. The environmental load is extremely low.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the Example of the washing | cleaning unit of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the test piece preparation method. It is a figure for demonstrating shower cleaning. It is a figure for demonstrating the degreasing capability by the combination of a washing | cleaning liquid, a microbubble, and a shower. It is a figure for demonstrating the Example of the washing | cleaning apparatus of this invention.

  In the cleaning method of the present invention, first, microbubbles are generated in the electrolytic alkaline water using electrolytic alkaline water having a liquid temperature of room temperature (about 25 ° C.) as the cleaning liquid, and the microbubbles in which the microbubbles are generated are generated. While supplying bubble electrolytic alkaline water to the object to be treated, the object to be treated is subjected to a shower treatment.

  And in the washing | cleaning unit of this invention for implementing this method, while being equipped with the storage tank for storing the electrolytic alkaline water as a washing | cleaning liquid inside, the pump for circulating a washing | cleaning liquid, and the micro for generating a microbubble A bubble generating nozzle is provided, and a shower nozzle for performing a shower process on the object to be processed is further provided.

  The cleaning apparatus of the present invention includes a cleaning unit for cleaning the object to be processed, a rinsing unit for removing the cleaning liquid adhering to the object to be processed, and a drying unit for draining and drying the object to be processed. The above-described cleaning unit is used as the cleaning unit.

  An embodiment of the cleaning method of the present invention will be described. In the cleaning method of this embodiment, first, electrolytic alkaline water is stored in a storage tank, microbubbles are generated in the electrolytic alkaline water, and the microbubble electrolytic alkaline water is used. Supply to the workpiece.

  Then, the treatment object is subjected to a shower treatment while supplying the microbubble electrolytic alkaline water, thereby removing oils and fats and particles adhering to the treatment object. At this time, the temperature of the electrolytic alkaline water as the cleaning liquid is set to a room temperature of about 25 ° C.

  Next, an embodiment of the cleaning unit of the present invention for carrying out this cleaning method will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of the cleaning unit 100 of the present embodiment.

  And the washing | cleaning unit 100 of a present Example is the storage tank 102, the microbubble generation nozzle 103, the reliable pump 104 even if gas mixes, the heat exchanger 105 for adjusting the temperature of washing | cleaning liquid, and constant temperature. A water circulation device 106, a water flow meter 107, a gas flow meter 108, a ball valve 109, a needle valve 111, pressure gauges 112 and 113, a splash prevention cover 110, and a shower nozzle 114 are provided. In the storage tank 102, electrolytic alkaline water is stored as the cleaning liquid 101.

  The cleaning liquid 101 is circulated by the pump 104, and is adjusted to a predetermined pressure and flow rate by inverter control of the ball valve 109, the needle valve 111, and the pump 104.

  Here, in the equipment configuration of the cleaning unit 100, the indicated value of the pressure gauge 112 is -0.02 MPa, the indicated value of the pressure gauge 113 is 0.4 MPa, the indicated value of the water flow meter 107 is 18 L / min, and for gas The indicated value of the flow meter 108 is 0.5 NL / min, and the shower nozzle cleaning liquid flow rate is about 5 m / s.

  Further, the liquid temperature is adjusted to 25 ° C. by the heat exchanger 105 and the constant temperature water circulation device 106. As a result, the cleaning liquid 101 has a cloudy appearance.

  Next, the evaluation results of the cleaning method of this example will be described. In the evaluation of the cleaning method of this example, the detergency as the degreasing ability is the water droplet contact by the portable contact angle meter PCA-1 manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd. It was set as the evaluation method judged by a corner.

  In addition, the cleaning power as the particle removal capability has the effect of peeling off particles adhering to the object to be processed and preventing re-adhesion to the object due to the adhesion of particles to the microbubbles if there is a degreasing ability. Therefore, degreasing ability and particle removal ability were judged to be equivalent.

  The test piece preparation method will be described with reference to FIG. 2. First, a clean test piece (water droplet contact angle of 10 ° or less) is prepared and left in the atmosphere for contamination (the test piece posture is horizontal and the standing time is a parameter). Thereafter, shower cleaning, rinsing with city water, draining with an air gun and drying were performed to evaluate the degreasing ability. And the glass substrate (100mmx100mmx0.7mmt) was used for the test piece.

  Next, the cleaning method of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 3. First, a linear resin shower nozzle is fixedly installed. The shower nozzle is provided with a plurality of 1 mmφ holes so that the flow rate of the cleaning liquid is about 5 m / s. The test piece (glass substrate) is installed at a position where the gap with the shower nozzle is about 100 mm and is a mechanism capable of scanning. In this embodiment, the scanning speed is set so that the cleaning time is about 2 seconds.

  FIG. 4 shows the test piece (glass substrate) standing time in the atmosphere and the water droplet contact angle before and after the shower cleaning in the electrolytic alkaline water cleaning liquid having a liquid temperature of 25 ° C. and a pH of about 10.8. Since the test piece before being left in the atmosphere is cleaned to a water droplet contact angle of 10 ° or less using a detergent, the water droplet contact angle after washing is sufficiently satisfactory.

  As described above, the cleaning method performed by combining the electrolytic alkaline water as the cleaning liquid 101, the cleaning liquid circulation pump 104, the microbubble generation nozzle 103, and the shower nozzle 114 is a short time treatment of about 2 seconds at a liquid temperature of 25 ° C. and non-contact. It has been found that even with cleaning, the cleaning power can be sufficiently exerted. This can be said to be a cleaning method that can be easily incorporated into a single-wafer processing apparatus.

  Next, an embodiment of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 5. The cleaning apparatus of this embodiment removes a cleaning unit for cleaning the object to be processed and a cleaning liquid adhering to the object to be processed. In a cleaning apparatus including a rinsing unit for cleaning and a drying unit for draining and drying an object to be processed, the above-described cleaning unit is used as the cleaning unit. That is, the cleaning apparatus incorporates a cleaning unit for carrying out a cleaning method using a combination of microbubbles and shower rings while using electrolytic alkaline water as a cleaning liquid.

  And in this embodiment, it is a single wafer cleaning device that performs cleaning processing while conveying the workpiece in a horizontal or inclined posture, and is optimally suited for low environmental load cleaning processing of various plate-like material substrates. It is a device.

  The basic configuration 200 is a loader 200-1, a cleaning unit 200-2, a rinse unit 200-3, a drying unit 200-4, an unloader 200-5, and a roller transport mechanism 200-6. Incorporated into the cleaning unit 200-2.

  Here, the workpiece postures in the loader and unloader are generally horizontal, but when the workpiece postures in the cleaning units 200-2 to 200-4 are also horizontal, contamination due to contact with the workpieces. If the roller material, etc., with as little as possible is taken into consideration, the roller transport mechanism can be manufactured without any particular trouble.

  However, as the object to be processed becomes larger or thinner, a liquid pool is generated on the object to be processed, the impact force due to showering is weakened, and the cleaning power tends to decrease. Increases the amount of liquid taken out.

  Therefore, when the object to be processed is large or thin, as a method for dealing with the phenomenon as described above, it is common to process the object to be inclined, which is a so-called inclined conveyance method. In such a case, between the loader 200-1 and the cleaning unit 200-2 or inside the loader 200-1 or inside the cleaning unit 200-2, and between the drying unit 200-4 and the unloader 200-5, or the drying unit. It is necessary to provide a workpiece posture changing mechanism inside 200-4 or inside unloader 200-5.

  In addition, the rinse unit 200-3 is manufactured with the contents of existing techniques such as spraying with pure water and showering alone or in combination.

  Furthermore, the drying unit 200-4 is manufactured by an air knife method or the like that is an existing technology.

  The cleaning unit 200-2 includes a process chamber having a shower nozzle 201 and a roller 202 for conveying an object to be processed therein, a microbubble generating nozzle 203, circulation of electrolytic alkaline water 215, and a gas therein. , A heat exchanger 206 and a constant temperature water circulation unit 207 for adjusting the temperature of the electrolytic alkaline water 215 to room temperature, a storage tank 204 for optimally establishing a circulation system, and a process flowing into this It is manufactured with a structure of a dirt collecting unit 214 and an electrolytic alkaline water supply unit 213 for removing dirt (oil, particles, etc.) from the chamber.

  In addition, it may replace with an electrolytic alkaline water supply unit and may arrange | position an electrolytic alkaline water manufacturing apparatus. The microbubble generating nozzle 203 needs to adjust the circulation system to the optimum flow rate and pressure depending on the type and the like. For this purpose, a water flow rate detector 208, pressure detectors 209 and 210, a gas flow rate detector 211, and a reduced pressure detector 212 are provided.

  In FIG. 5, one shower nozzle 201 arranged in the process chamber is illustrated. However, if a plurality of shower nozzles 201 are arranged, it is a matter of course that superior shower processing is achieved. The piping system in this case may be branched between the microbubble generating nozzle 203 and the shower nozzle 201.

  Furthermore, depending on the object to be processed, back surface cleaning may be required, but this can be easily achieved by the arrangement of shower nozzles 201 (upward shower).

  The load on the environment is only a small amount of oil generated from the dirt collection unit 214 because the cleaning unit 200-2 uses microbubble electrolytic alkaline water at room temperature and a circulation system. Here, the collection of dirt can be dealt with by applying an existing technique such as coalescer, UF membrane system or the like. A predetermined amount of rinse liquid is discharged from the rinse unit 200-3. If it sees from the residual liquid (electrolytic alkaline water) of a to-be-processed object, it will be diluted with a large amount of rinse liquids (pure water), and it can be set as the waste_water | drain which cleared the water pollution prevention method drainage standard.

  The present invention is characterized by a combination of electrolytic alkaline water, microbubbles, and shower ring, thereby enabling cleaning such as degreasing and particle removal for various objects to be processed. The present invention can be applied to all types of cleaning corresponding to a low environmental load using various plate-like material substrates in a field where a cleaning liquid contained in a trace amount can be applied to a manufacturing process cleaning process.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Cleaning unit 101 Cleaning liquid 102 Storage tank 103 Micro bubble generation nozzle 104 Pump 105 Heat exchanger 106 Constant temperature water circulation device 107 Water flow meter 108 Gas flow meter 109 Ball valve 110 Spatter prevention cover 111 Needle valve 112, 113 Pressure gauge 114 Shower nozzle 200 Cleaning Device 201 Shower Nozzle 202 Roller 203 Micro Bubble Generation Nozzle 204 Storage Tank 205 Pump 206 Heat Exchanger 207 Constant Temperature Water Circulation Unit 208 Water Flow Rate Detector 209, 210 Pressure Detector 211 Gas Flow Rate Detector 212 Decompression Detector 213 Electrolytic Alkaline Water Supply Unit 214 Dirt recovery unit 215 Electrolytic alkaline water

Claims (4)

  A cleaning method, wherein microbubbles are generated in electrolytic alkaline water as a cleaning liquid, and the shower treatment is performed while supplying the liquid to an object to be processed with a shower nozzle.   The cleaning method according to claim 1, wherein the temperature of the electrolytic alkaline water as the cleaning liquid is normal temperature (about 25 ° C.). A cleaning unit for carrying out the cleaning method according to claim 1,
A storage tank for storing electrolytic alkaline water as a cleaning liquid therein, a pump for circulating the cleaning liquid, a microbubble generating nozzle for generating microbubbles, a shower nozzle for showering an object to be processed, A cleaning unit comprising:   In the cleaning apparatus comprising a cleaning unit for cleaning the object to be processed, a rinse unit for removing the cleaning liquid adhering to the object to be processed, and a drying unit for draining and drying the object to be processed, the cleaning unit is A cleaning apparatus using the cleaning unit according to claim 3.

Images