JP2019120094A - Oil absorber - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an oil absorber that can easily be shaped into different shapes and that has simple composition and is superior in handleability.SOLUTION: This oil absorber 10 is made by mixing and heating a natural organic material with a water-repellent property under dry environments and thermal fusion polyester fibers followed by solidifying and drying them. The oil absorber 10 can selectively absorb oil only under environments, for example, in which oil and water are mixed. Since the oil absorber is made of a material that does not cause detrimental substances when burned, options of disposal methods for the oil absorber 10 after the oil absorber absorbed oil increase. Furthermore, this oil absorber 10 is lightweight because it is dry, has great safety and is unlikely to deteriorate. Also, a member such as a core material for holding the shape of the oil absorber 10 is unnecessary and therefore the oil absorber 10 can easily be shaped into different shapes.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to oil absorbers. More particularly, it relates to an oil absorber for wicking oil in the external environment.

  BACKGROUND Conventionally, oil absorbers are known for absorbing and recovering oil that has leaked or leaked to the external environment. An oil absorber of this type is disclosed, for example, in Patent Document 1. The oil absorption mat (oil absorber) described in Patent Document 1 is prepared by sticking an adhesive core on peat paper. More specifically, the oil-absorbing mat described in Patent Document 1 is manufactured as follows. That is, peat moss and fibers such as pulp and polyester are put into water and stirred. And the oil absorption mat | matte is created by sticking the adhesive core currently used for clothes etc. on the peat paper which put this in the type | mold and was dried. According to Patent Document 1, it is possible to quickly and safely recover oil spilled on the sea or on water by using this oil absorbing mat.

JP 2000-226844 A

  However, in the oil-absorbing mat described in Patent Document 1, since the mixture of peat moss and fibers does not have sufficient strength by itself, it is necessary to attach and reinforce the adhesive core as described above. In other words, if there is no adhesive core, the oil absorbing mat will break up. As described above, in the oil absorption mat described in Patent Document 1, since the adhesive core as a core material for holding the shape of the oil absorption mat is used, it is difficult to freely form it into various shapes. there were.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and the potential object thereof is to provide an oil absorber which can be easily formed into various shapes, has a simple composition, and is excellent in handleability. It is.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is as described above, and next, means for solving the problem will be described.

  In a first aspect of the present invention, an oil absorbent is obtained by solidifying and drying a mixture of a natural organic material having water repellency in a dry environment and a heat-fusible polyester fiber, and drying the mixture. Provided.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the oil absorber according to the first aspect, the oil absorber is in the form of a mat having flexibility.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the oil absorber according to the second aspect, the thickness of the oil absorber is 1 cm or more and 8 cm or less.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the oil absorber according to the first aspect, the oil absorber is block-like or ball-like.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the oil absorber according to any one of the first to the fourth aspects, the natural organic material is peat moss, coconut fiber, humus, bark compost, bark, and It contains at least one of wool.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the oil absorber according to the fifth aspect, the natural organic material is peat moss.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the oil absorber according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the total content of the natural organic material is 85% by volume based on the volume of the oil absorber. The total content of the heat fusible polyester fibers is 0.5% by volume or more and 15% by volume or less.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the oil absorber according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, the water content of the oil absorber is 0% or more and 10% or less.

  According to the first to eighth aspects of the present invention, an oil absorber which can be easily formed into various shapes, has a simple composition, and is excellent in handleability is provided.

  In particular, according to the first aspect of the present application, only the oil can be selectively absorbed by the oil absorber under an environment where oil and water are mixed, for example. In addition, since the oil absorber is made of a material that does not generate harmful substances even if it is incinerated, there are more options for treating the oil absorber after absorbing the oil. Furthermore, since this oil absorber is dried, it is lightweight, highly safe, and difficult to deteriorate. In addition, a member such as a core material for holding the shape of the oil absorber is unnecessary, and the oil absorber can be easily formed into various shapes.

  In particular, according to the second aspect of the present invention, since the oil absorber is formed in a mat shape, it is easy to handle. For example, the oil absorber can be easily recovered after absorbing the oil floating on the water surface. Also, it can be cut with scissors or the like as needed to absorb the oil and used in an appropriate size. In addition, it is also possible to use the oil absorber by winding it around a connection portion or the like of a pipe where oil may leak.

  In particular, according to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to realize an oil absorber which is easy to dry in the drying step during production and which is excellent in handleability.

  In particular, according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when recovering oil floating on the water surface, for example, the oil can be absorbed with a larger surface area by floating the plurality of oil absorbers on the water surface. Therefore, oil can be sucked efficiently.

  In particular, according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the oil absorber can be made of a safe material that does not generate harmful substances even when incinerated, etc., and the handling at the time of disposal such as disposal after absorbing oil Becomes easy.

  In particular, according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the oil absorber can be manufactured inexpensively. Also, the oil can be absorbed particularly efficiently.

  In particular, according to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to secure sufficient strength to the extent that the oil absorber does not separate while suppressing the content of the heat-fusible polyester fiber to a low level.

  In particular, according to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the natural organic material can fully exhibit the property of absorbing oil.

It is a perspective view of an oil absorber concerning a 1st embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the manufacturing process of an oil absorber. It is a figure which shows the oil absorber which concerns on 2nd Embodiment.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<1. First embodiment>
First, an oil absorber 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the outer shape of an oil absorber 10 according to the present embodiment. The oil absorber 10 is for absorbing and recovering the oil that has leaked or leaked to the external environment.

  The oil absorber 10 is used for absorbing and recovering the oil floating on the water surface such as the sea surface or the lake surface, which has flowed out from the tanker, the oil storage tank, the factory or the like due to any accident or illegal dumping. The oil absorber 10 after absorbing the oil is disposed of by being incinerated or the like.

  The type of oil absorbed by the oil absorber 10 is not particularly limited. The oil absorber 10 can absorb various types of oil including engine oil, lubricating oil and the like.

  The oil absorber 10 is manufactured by mixing and heating a natural organic material and a heat-fusible polyester fiber, and solidifying and drying. The manufacturing process of the oil absorber 10 will be described in detail later.

  That is, the oil absorber 10 contains a natural organic material and a heat-fusible polyester fiber as a composition. Of these compositions, natural organic materials are formulated as lipophilic substances that absorb the oil of the external environment. Further, among these compositions, the heat fusible polyester fiber is blended as a substance for connecting the fine particles of the natural organic material and maintaining the strength of the oil absorber 10. In other words, the heat-fusible polyester fiber is mixed with the oil absorber 10 as a binder in order to prevent the oil absorber 10 from being separated or broken.

  As the natural organic material contained in the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment, various known materials can be adopted, but it is assumed that the material is as easy to conform to oil as possible and has a low affinity to water. Is desirable. Specifically, the natural organic material included in the oil absorber 10 can include at least one of peat moss, coconut fiber, humus, bark compost, bark, and wool. More preferably, the natural organic material included in the oil absorber 10 contains peat moss at least in part. Specifically, the natural organic material can be peat from which mosses such as sphagnum rotted. The oil absorber 10 can selectively absorb only oil in an environment where oil and water are mixed by including the above-mentioned natural organic material as a composition.

  The heat-fusible polyester fiber contained in the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment has a fiber-forming polymer (first component) having a relatively high melting point or softening point and a fiber-forming polymer of the first component. And a thermoplastic polymer (second component) having a melting point or a softening point lower than 20 ° C. Various known materials can be adopted as the fiber-forming polymer contained as the first component in the heat-fusible polyester fiber of the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment, and specific examples will be given as follows: It is possible to use polyethylene terephthalate or polybutylene terephthalate. Moreover, although various well-known substances can be employ | adopted as a thermoplastic polymer contained as a 2nd component to the heat-fusible polyester fiber of the oil absorber 10 of this embodiment, For example, modified polyester (Co It is possible to use polymerized polyester etc.). The oil absorber 10 can maintain the shape of the oil absorber 10 by including the heat fusible polyester fiber as described above as a composition.

  In the oil absorber 10, the total content of the above-mentioned natural organic material is 85% by volume to 99.5% by volume with respect to the dry volume of the oil absorber 10, and the heat fusible polyester fiber These compositions are blended so that the total content is 0.5% by volume or more and 15% by volume or less. More preferably, the total content of the above-mentioned natural organic material is 95% by volume, and the total content of the heat-fusible polyester fibers is 5% by volume with respect to the dry volume of the oil absorber 10. , Formulated. According to this compounding ratio, it is possible to secure sufficient strength not to cause the oil absorber 10 to disintegrate while suppressing the content of the heat-fusible polyester fiber which tends to be generally expensive.

  Below, the manufacturing process of the oil absorber 10 is demonstrated in order, referring FIG. FIG. 2 shows a manufacturing flow of the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment.

  First, the above-mentioned natural organic material and heat-fusible polyester are mixed uniformly (step S1).

  Subsequently, the mixture in which the composition is mixed in step S1 is filled in a mold such as a mold (step S2). In the present embodiment, the internal space is filled in a mat-like mold. The internal space of the mold of this embodiment is a plate having a thickness of 1 cm or more and 8 cm or less.

  Subsequently, the mixture filled in the mold in step S2 is heat-treated to melt the thermally fusible polyester fiber (step S3). The method of this heat treatment and the apparatus used therefor are not particularly limited. For example, a heating / drying apparatus represented by an autoclave, a high frequency dielectric heating apparatus such as a microwave oven, a mold provided with a heating means, a steam heating apparatus, or the like may be used.

  Subsequently, by lowering the temperature of the mixture heated in step S3, the fibers of the heat-fusible polyester fiber, and the fibers and the fine particles of the natural organic material are adhered (step S4). At this time, adhesion is smoothly performed by cooling to a temperature below the melting point or softening point of the thermoplastic polymer of the second component. This solidifies the mixture.

  Subsequently, the mixture solidified in step S4 is taken out of the mold (step S5).

  Finally, the mixture taken out of the mold in step S4 is dried until the water content in the mixture becomes 0% or more and 10% or less, more preferably 0% or more and 3% or less (step S6) ). The method of this drying treatment and the apparatus used therefor are not particularly limited. For example, drying may be performed by applying hot air from a fan to the surface. The oil absorber 10 is finished by drying until the water content is in the above range.

  The oil absorber 10 manufactured by the above manufacturing process can be floated on the sea surface, for example, in order to absorb and recover the oil floating on the sea surface due to an accident or the like.

  The oil absorber 10 floated on the sea surface contains fine particles of a natural organic material. Specifically, when the natural organic material is peat moss, the particles of the peat moss are porous. Since this peat moss is dried in the manufacturing process (step S6), it is in a state of having water repellency. The porous pores of this peat moss absorb oil present in the external environment (ambient). Since the oil gets into the pores, the oil that has been once absorbed is not released again to the external environment unless the oil absorber 10 absorbs the oil excessively. As a result, it is possible to selectively absorb only the oil and efficiently recover the oil floating on the sea surface, without letting the oil absorber 10 absorb the seawater.

  The oil absorber 10 after floating on the sea surface and absorbing oil is collected in a mat shape as described above, so for example, it can be easily recovered by attaching a rope or the like and pulling it to draw it on a ship etc. it can. Thus, the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment is excellent in handleability. However, the method of recovering the oil absorber 10 is not limited to this. For example, instead of this, a rod or the like may be used to guide the ship toward the ship.

  Further, since no harmful substance is generated when any composition of the oil absorber 10 is incinerated, the oil absorber 10 after absorbing the oil can be disposed of by various methods. Specifically, the oil absorber 10 can be incinerated by an incinerator or the like and disposed of. As described above, since the oil absorber 10 is made of a material that is less likely to generate harmful substances, it has high safety and is hard to deteriorate.

  Furthermore, the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment is mainly composed of a natural organic material such as peat moss, which is easily available on the market. Therefore, the oil absorber 10 can be manufactured at low cost, and moreover, it is possible to exhibit good oil absorption performance.

  And since the oil absorber 10 of this embodiment is dried by the manufacturing process (step S6), there are few moisture contents, it is lightweight, and handling is easy. In addition, natural organic materials such as peat moss contained in the oil absorber 10 are in a dry state and thus exhibit water repellency and hardly absorb seawater even if floated on the sea surface. Therefore, it can be kept floating on the sea surface for a long time without sinking to the seabed, and oil can be absorbed continuously.

  Moreover, since the oil absorber 10 of this embodiment is shape | molded by the appropriate thickness, it has a softness | flexibility. Therefore, it is possible to use it by intentionally bending in addition to floating on the sea surface etc. as described above. Specifically, it is also possible to wind the oil absorber 10 in the circumferential direction and use it at a connection part of a pipe or the like where oil may leak in a factory or the like. Also in this case, the oil that has leaked to the outside of the pipe is suitably absorbed by the natural organic material of the oil absorber 10.

  More specifically, the thickness of the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment is 1 cm or more and 8 cm or less. As a result, even when drying in the manufacturing process (step S6), it does not require much time, and the oil absorber 10 can be finished by rapid drying. Thus, the oil absorber 10 excellent in handling property is realizable by setting it as appropriate thickness.

  Moreover, since the oil absorbent body 10 of this embodiment is solidified by being melt-bonded by the heat-fusible polyester fiber, the strength is not excessively high. Therefore, depending on the amount of oil present in the external environment, it can be used by cutting it with scissors or the like and cutting it into a section. In FIG. 1, a state in which a part of the oil absorber 10 is cut with scissors or the like and cut into sections is indicated by a broken line. Thus, the oil absorber 10 can be used in various shapes and can be used fluidly.

  On the other hand, the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment is melt-bonded by the meltable polyester fiber, so that the strength that can maintain the shape constant is secured. Thereby, in order to maintain the shape of oil absorber 10, it is not necessary to provide a member like a core material, and oil absorber 10 can be freely formed in various shapes.

  Further, in the oil absorber 10 of the present embodiment, the water content is set to a low ratio as described above. Thereby, at the time of use of the oil absorber 10, the natural organic material is in a state of having water repellency, and therefore, it is possible to sufficiently exhibit the property of sucking oil (lipophilicity).

<2. Second embodiment>
Next, an oil absorber 20 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows the outer shape of the oil absorber 20 according to the present embodiment.

  The composition of the oil absorber 20 according to the second embodiment is the same as the composition of the oil absorber 10 according to the first embodiment. However, the oil absorber 20 according to the second embodiment is different from the oil absorber 10 according to the first embodiment in that the oil absorber 20 is formed in a block shape. The oil absorbent body 20 is manufactured in the same manufacturing process as that shown in the first embodiment by molding using a plurality of block-shaped molds instead of the above-described plate-shaped molds. .

  However, the method of molding the oil absorbent body 20 is not limited to the above-mentioned method, and for example, after forming into a mat like the oil absorbent body 10 of the first embodiment instead of this, it is cut A plurality of blocks may be used.

  When recovering oil suspended on the sea surface using such an oil absorber 20, the oil absorber 20 is brought into contact with oil with a large surface area by floating a plurality of block-shaped oil absorbers 20 on the sea surface It can be done. Thereby, oil can be sucked efficiently.

  In addition, the method of recovering the oil absorber 20 after absorbing the oil is not limited, but for example, it may be scooped with a net or the like.

<3. Modified example>
As mentioned above, although the preferred embodiment of the present invention was described, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment.

  In said embodiment, the example etc. which use the oil absorbers 10 and 20 in order to collect | recover the oil which floats on the water surface were shown. However, the application of the oil absorber is not limited to the examples described above, and can be used for other applications. As a specific example, an oil absorber may be disposed below a ventilation fan in a factory or home to absorb the oil dropped from the ventilation fan.

  In the second embodiment described above, the oil absorber 20 is in the form of a plurality of blocks, and an example of the shape is shown in FIG. However, the shape of the oil absorber is not limited to that shown in the drawings, and may be, for example, a cube or a ball instead.

  In the first embodiment described above, the ratio of the first component to the second component forming the heat-fusible polyester fiber of the oil absorber 10 is not particularly mentioned. However, it is particularly preferable to set the ratio of the second component to 80% or more. With such a ratio, the heat fusible polyester fiber is sufficiently melted in the heating step (step S3).

  In the above first embodiment, the melting point or the softening point of the thermoplastic polymer which is the second component contained in the heat-fusible polyester fiber of the oil absorber 10 was not specifically mentioned, however, The melting point or softening point of the second component is particularly preferably 130 ° C. or less. When the melting point or the softening point of the second component is in such a numerical value range, the mixture of the above-mentioned natural organic material and the heat fusible polyester fiber is smoothly heated without excessively heating or cooling. It becomes possible to perform fusion bonding.

  In the first embodiment described above, the thickness of the oil absorber 10 is set to 1 cm or more and 8 cm or less, whereby the drying step (step S6) can be easily performed. However, instead of this, for example, a plurality of 3 cm thick oil absorbers 10 are manufactured according to the above-described manufacturing process, respectively, and then the plurality of oil absorbers 10 are stacked in the thickness direction to thicken oil thicker than 8 cm. It may be an absorber. According to such a method, it is possible to produce an oil absorber having a relatively large thickness while preventing a long time from being taken in the drying step.

  In addition, the detailed configuration and shape of the oil absorber, the detailed composition and the like may be different from the specific example shown in the present application. Moreover, you may combine suitably each element and each composition which appeared in said embodiment and modification as long as contradiction does not arise.

10 Oil Absorber (First Embodiment)
20 Oil Absorber (Second Embodiment)

Claims (8)

  An oil absorbent which is solidified by mixing and heating a natural organic material having water repellency in a dry environment and a heat-fusible polyester fiber, and drying it. An oil absorber according to claim 1, wherein
An oil absorber which is in the form of a mat having flexibility. The oil absorber according to claim 2, wherein
The oil absorber, wherein the thickness of the oil absorber is 1 cm or more and 8 cm or less. An oil absorber according to claim 1, wherein
Oil absorbers that are block-like or ball-like. The oil absorber according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The natural organic material is an oil absorber comprising at least one of peat moss, coconut fiber, humus, bark compost, bark and wool. The oil absorber according to claim 5, wherein
The oil absorber, wherein the natural organic material is peat moss. An oil absorber according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein
The total content of the natural organic material relative to the volume of the oil absorber is 85% by volume or more and 99.5% by volume or less, and the total content of the heat fusible polyester fibers is 0.5% by volume or more An oil absorber having a volume of 15% by volume or less. An oil absorber according to any one of claims 1 to 7, which is:
An oil absorber, wherein the water content of the oil absorber is 0% or more and 10% or less.

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