JP2014179426A - Vacuum impregnation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vacuum impregnation apparatus in which floating of an electrolyte container can be suppressed when injecting the electrolyte.SOLUTION: A vacuum impregnation apparatus for injecting electrolyte into the electrolyte container of an electrolytic capacitor by vacuum differential pressure method includes a vacuum chamber, an electrolyte vessel arranged in the vacuum chamber and housing the electrolyte, a vacuum pump for evacuating the vacuum chamber, a support mechanism for supporting an electrolyte container in the vacuum chamber so that a portion of the electrolyte container, including an inlet, is immersed in the electrolyte in the electrolyte container, at such a position that the corner periphery, where the inlet of the electrolyte container is arranged, becomes the lowermost point, and a gas introduction mechanism for introducing gas into the vacuum chamber under vacuum state, while immersing the inlet in the electrolyte.

Description

  The present invention relates to a vacuum impregnation apparatus for injecting an electrolytic solution into an electrolytic solution container of an electrolytic capacitor.

  A means for injecting a liquid into a container using a vacuum differential pressure method is generally used. Also in the manufacture of an electrolytic capacitor, a vacuum differential pressure method is employed to inject an electrolytic solution into an electrolytic solution container (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2003-217991 A

  However, since the volume of a normal electrolytic capacitor is small, there has been a problem that the electrolytic solution container is lifted by buoyancy generated when the electrolytic solution container is immersed in the electrolytic solution. When the electrolytic solution container is lifted, the injection port arranged in the electrolytic solution container is separated from the electrolytic solution, and a sufficient amount of electrolytic solution is not injected into the electrolytic solution container.

  In view of the above problems, the present invention provides a vacuum impregnation apparatus capable of suppressing the lifting of an electrolytic solution container during injection of electrolytic solution.

    According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vacuum impregnation apparatus for injecting an electrolytic solution into an electrolytic solution container of an electrolytic capacitor by a vacuum differential pressure method, comprising: (a) a vacuum chamber; and (b) disposed in the vacuum chamber. (B) a vacuum pump that evacuates the inside of the vacuum chamber, and (d) a position in which the periphery of the corner where the inlet of the electrolyte container is disposed is the lowest position, and A support mechanism for supporting the electrolyte container in the vacuum chamber so that a part of the electrolyte container including the inlet is immersed in the electrolyte in the electrolyte tank, and (e) the inlet is immersed in the electrolyte, There is provided a vacuum impregnation apparatus including a gas introduction mechanism for introducing gas into a vacuum chamber in a vacuum state.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the vacuum impregnation apparatus which can suppress the lift of the electrolyte solution container at the time of electrolyte solution injection | pouring can be provided.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the vacuum impregnation apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is typical sectional drawing which shows the structural example of an electrolytic capacitor. It is a schematic diagram which shows the example of the electrolyte solution container used for the vacuum impregnation apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of the electrolyte solution container used for the vacuum impregnation apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the further another example of the electrolyte solution container used for the vacuum impregnation apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description of the drawings, the same or similar parts are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals. Further, the following embodiments exemplify apparatuses and methods for embodying the technical idea of the present invention, and the technical idea of the present invention is the structure, arrangement, etc. of the component parts described below. It is not something specific. The technical idea of the present invention can be variously modified within the scope of the claims.

  A vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is a vacuum impregnation apparatus that injects an electrolytic solution into an electrolytic solution container 20 of an electrolytic capacitor by a vacuum differential pressure method. As shown in FIG. 1, the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 includes a vacuum chamber 11, an electrolytic solution tank 12 that is disposed in the vacuum chamber 11 and stores the electrolytic solution 100, and a vacuum pump 13 that evacuates the vacuum chamber 11. The support mechanism 14 that supports the electrolyte container 20 in the vacuum chamber 11 and the gas introduction mechanism 15 that introduces gas into the vacuum chamber 11 in a vacuum state are provided. The electrolytic capacitor is, for example, an electric double layer capacitor.

  The support mechanism 14 has a posture in which the periphery of the corner portion where the injection port 200 of the electrolyte solution container 20 is disposed is the lowest position, and a part of the electrolyte solution container 20 including the injection port 200 is electrolyzed in the electrolyte solution tank 12. The electrolytic solution container is supported so as to be immersed in the liquid 100. At this time, the electrolytic solution container 20 is disposed so that the upper end portion of the injection port 200 is located immediately below the liquid surface of the electrolytic solution 100. As will be described later, the gas introduction mechanism 15 introduces nitrogen gas or the like into the vacuum chamber 11 in a state where the injection port 200 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100. As described above, the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 is an apparatus that injects the electrolytic solution 100 into the electrolytic solution container 20 using reduced pressure.

  In the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1, the electrolytic solution tank 12 is moved up and down by the elevating mechanism 16 so that the inlet 200 of the electrolytic solution container 20 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100 in the electrolytic solution tank 12. The position of the tank 12 is adjusted. The position of the electrolytic solution tank 12 may be fixed and the electrolytic solution container 20 may be moved up and down.

  The electrolytic solution container 20 shown in FIG. 1 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the injection port 200 is formed on a surface adjacent to one of the corners of the electrolytic solution container 20. The support mechanism 14 supports the electrolytic solution container 20 so that the periphery of the corner where the injection port 200 is disposed is at the lowest position. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 1, the electrolytic solution container 20 is supported in an oblique posture so that the bottom surface of the electrolytic solution container 20 forms a certain angle with respect to the liquid surface of the electrolytic solution 100. A part of the electrolytic solution container 20 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100. In order to reduce the buoyancy generated in the electrolytic solution container 20, the smaller the volume immersed in the electrolytic solution 100, the better. For this reason, it is preferable that the angle formed between the liquid surface of the electrolytic solution 100 and the bottom surface of the electrolytic solution container 20 is about 45 degrees.

  By supporting the electrolytic solution container 20 in an oblique posture, the electrolytic solution container 20 is electrolyzed compared to the case where the electrolytic solution container 20 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100 so that the bottom surface of the electrolytic solution container 20 is parallel to the liquid surface of the electrolytic solution 100. Buoyancy generated in the liquid container 20 can be reduced. Furthermore, since only a part of the electrolytic solution container 20 needs to be immersed in the electrolytic solution 100, the buoyancy generated in the electrolytic solution container 20 is smaller than when the entire electrolytic solution container 20 is immersed.

  An example of the structure of the electrolytic solution container 20 is shown in FIG. A positive electrode 21 and a negative electrode 22 are disposed inside the electrolytic solution container 20 filled with the electrolytic solution 100, and the positive electrode 21 and the negative electrode 22 are separated by a separator 23. A positive electrode 210 is connected to the positive electrode 21, and a part of the positive electrode 210 is drawn out of the electrolyte container 20. A negative electrode 220 is connected to the negative electrode 22, and a part of the negative electrode 220 is drawn out of the electrolyte container 20. The positive electrode 21 and the negative electrode 22 are made of, for example, activated carbon, and the positive electrode 210 and the negative electrode 220 are made of aluminum (Al) or copper (Cu).

  The interval between the positive electrode 21 and the negative electrode 22 is, for example, several tens of μm, and the volume of the electrolytic solution container 20 is small. Thus, since the electrolytic solution container 20 is small and light, when the electrolytic solution container 20 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100, the electrolytic solution container 20 is likely to float.

  The injection port 200 is arranged as a hole having a diameter of 0.1 mm or more and 2 mm or less, for example. When the diameter of the injection port 200 is too small, the electrolyte solution 100 is not easily injected into the electrolyte solution container 20. On the other hand, when the diameter of the injection port 200 is too large, problems such as the lid that closes the injection port 200 come off during the manufacturing process of the electrolytic capacitor are likely to occur. For this reason, it is preferable that the diameter of the inlet 200 is about 1 mm, for example.

  Below, the example of the method of filling the electrolyte solution 100 into the electrolyte solution container 20 with the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 is demonstrated.

  First, the electrolytic solution container 20 is stored in the vacuum chamber 11 in a posture in which the periphery of the corner where the injection port 200 is disposed is the lowest position. Next, the vacuum chamber 11 is evacuated by evacuation by the vacuum pump 13. The pressure in the vacuum chamber 11 is about several Pascals, for example. Thereafter, the electrolyte tank 12 is raised by the elevating mechanism 16 so that the inlet 200 is immersed in the electrolyte 100 in the electrolyte tank 12.

  A gas is introduced into the vacuum chamber 11 in a vacuum state by the gas introduction mechanism 15 while the inlet is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100. The introduced gas is nitrogen gas or the like. For example, the flow rate of the introduced gas is adjusted so that the pressure in the vacuum chamber 11 becomes atmospheric pressure or atmospheric pressure or higher. As a result, the electrolytic solution 100 is injected into the electrolytic solution container 20 through the injection port 200. Thereby, a sufficient amount of the electrolytic solution 100 is injected into the electrolytic solution container 20.

  In addition, by investigating the relationship between the amount of the electrolyte solution 100 injected into the electrolyte solution container 20 and the injection time in advance, the injection amount of the electrolyte solution 100 into the electrolyte solution container 20 is controlled by the injection time. be able to.

  In order to make the buoyancy as small as possible, it is preferable that the volume of the electrolytic solution container 20 in the electrolytic solution 100 is as small as possible. Moreover, as already stated, the diameter of the inlet 200 of the electrolytic solution container 20 is about 0.1 mm to 2 mm. For this reason, it is preferable that the raising / lowering mechanism 16 has the precision which can adjust the position of the electrolyte tank 12 in a unit of about 0.1 mm. For example, the position of the electrolytic solution tank 12 is maintained so that the position of the electrolytic solution 100 is always kept constant by monitoring the liquid level of the electrolytic solution 100 in the electrolytic solution tank 12 by an imaging device (not shown). Is adjusted. Thereby, the position of the liquid surface of the electrolyte solution 100 is set so that the injection port 200 is immersed in the electrolyte solution 100. As the electrolytic solution 100 is injected into the electrolytic solution container 20, the liquid level of the electrolytic solution 100 in the electrolytic solution tank 12 decreases. For this reason, the position of the electrolytic solution container 20 is set such that the injection port 200 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100 until the electrolytic solution container 20 is completely filled with the electrolytic solution 100. In addition, you may raise the electrolyte solution tank 12 according to the fall of the liquid level of the electrolyte solution 100 in the electrolyte solution tank 12. FIG.

  As described above, in the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the electrolytic solution 100 is injected into the electrolytic solution container 20 with a small buoyancy acting on the electrolytic solution container 20. As a result, according to the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1, lifting of the electrolyte container 20 due to buoyancy during injection of the electrolyte is suppressed, and a sufficient amount of the electrolyte 100 can be injected into the electrolyte container 20.

  In addition, since it is not necessary to provide the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 with a mechanism for preventing the electrolyte container 20 from rising, the structure of the vacuum impregnation apparatus 1 can be prevented from becoming complicated. Furthermore, since a mechanism for preventing the electrolytic solution container 20 from floating is not necessary, automation of the electrolytic capacitor production line can be facilitated.

  In order to reduce the buoyancy acting on the electrolytic solution container 20, only a part of the electrolytic solution container 20 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100. For this reason, there is little quantity of the electrolyte solution 100 adhering to the outer side of the electrolyte solution container 20, and the time required for the process of wiping the electrolyte solution 100 adhering to the outer side of the electrolyte solution container 20 is shortened. Moreover, the consumption of the expensive electrolyte solution 100 can be suppressed by reducing the quantity of the electrolyte solution 100 to wipe off.

<Modification>
The case where the electrolytic solution container 20 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape has been described above. The shape of the electrolytic solution container 20 may be other than a rectangular parallelepiped shape, for example, a cylindrical shape or a conical shape.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of a cylindrical electrolyte container 20. The electrolyte container 20 shown in FIG. 3 is an example in which the injection port 200 is disposed near the bottom surface of the side surface. By holding the electrolyte container 20 shown in FIG. 3 obliquely so that the injection port 200 is immersed in the electrolyte 100, the electrolyte container 20 is prevented from being lifted by buoyancy. For this reason, the injection port 200 does not leave the electrolytic solution 100, and a sufficient amount of the electrolytic solution 100 can be injected into the electrolytic solution container 20.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of a truncated conical electrolyte container 20. In the electrolytic solution container 20 shown in FIG. 4, the injection port 200 is arranged on the side surface near the truncated surface. As shown in FIG. 4, buoyancy is suppressed by holding the electrolytic solution container 20 obliquely so that the injection port 200 is immersed in the electrolytic solution 100, and the injection port 200 does not leave the electrolytic solution 100.

(Other embodiments)
As mentioned above, although this invention was described by embodiment, it should not be understood that the description and drawing which form a part of this indication limit this invention. From this disclosure, various alternative embodiments, examples and operational techniques will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

  In the description of the embodiment described above, an example in which there is one injection port 200 provided in the electrolytic solution container 20 is shown, but a plurality of injection ports 200 may be provided in the electrolytic solution container 20. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, injection ports 200 may be arranged on a plurality of surfaces of a rectangular parallelepiped electrolyte container 20.

  As described above, the present invention naturally includes various embodiments not described herein. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention is defined only by the invention specifying matters according to the scope of claims reasonable from the above description.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vacuum impregnation apparatus 11 ... Vacuum chamber 12 ... Electrolyte tank 13 ... Vacuum pump 14 ... Support mechanism 15 ... Gas introduction mechanism 16 ... Lifting mechanism 20 ... Electrolyte container 21 ... Positive electrode 22 ... Negative electrode 23 ... Separator 100 ... Electrolyte 200 ... Inlet 210 ... Positive electrode 220 ... Negative electrode

Claims (6)

A vacuum impregnation apparatus for injecting an electrolytic solution into an electrolytic solution container of an electrolytic capacitor by a vacuum differential pressure method,
A vacuum chamber;
An electrolyte bath disposed in the vacuum chamber and containing an electrolyte solution;
A vacuum pump for evacuating the vacuum chamber;
The position around the corner where the inlet of the electrolyte container is disposed is the lowest position, and a part of the electrolyte container including the inlet is immersed in the electrolyte in the electrolyte tank. A support mechanism for supporting the electrolyte solution container in the vacuum chamber;
A vacuum impregnation apparatus comprising: a gas introduction mechanism for introducing a gas into the vacuum chamber in a vacuum state in a state where the injection port is immersed in the electrolytic solution.   The vacuum impregnation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electrolyte container has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the injection port is formed on a surface adjacent to one of the corners of the electrolyte container.   2. The vacuum impregnation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electrolytic solution container has a cylindrical shape, and the injection port is disposed near a bottom surface of a side surface of the electrolytic solution container.   The vacuum impregnation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electrolyte container has a truncated conical shape, and the injection port is disposed in the vicinity of a truncated surface on a side surface of the electrolyte container.   The vacuum impregnation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the injection port is a hole having a diameter of 0.1 mm or more and 2 mm or less.   The vacuum impregnation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the inlets are formed in the electrolyte container.

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