JP2024076499A - Purification Module - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] The present invention aims to provide a purification module that is highly efficient and safe, in which the stagnation of the treated fluid in a predetermined space partitioned by the end of the case, the outer surface of the carrier, and the inner surface of the header is minimized. [Solution] The present invention provides a purification module comprising a cylindrical case, a carrier filled inside the case and partly extending from the end face of the case, and a header covering the end of the case and the extended carrier, the header being partitioned into a side portion facing the longitudinal surface of the carrier, a closing portion facing the radial surface of the carrier, and a boundary portion located between the side portion and the closing portion, and where A1 is the space formed between the side portion of the header and the extended carrier, and A2 is the space formed between the closing portion of the header and the extended carrier, A1 and A2 are in communication with each other. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a purification module.

Purification modules are used to remove target substances from the fluid being treated by utilizing the properties of the carrier packed inside. In addition to the carrier, purification modules generally consist of a cylindrical case and a header placed at the end of the case.

Solid or hollow porous fibers, i.e. solid threads or hollow threads, are often selected as carriers, but when these porous fibers are bundled and densely packed inside the case, the usual method is to bundle porous fibers longer than the axial length of the case and insert them into the case, then cut off the excess porous fibers that extend beyond the end face of the case. However, in order to avoid damage to the case, it is impossible to cut the bundle of porous fibers, i.e. the carrier, so that none of it extends beyond the end face of the case, and some of the carrier ends up extending beyond the end face of the case.

In this case, the header is positioned to cover both the end of the case and the slightly extended carrier, but it is usually designed with an inner diameter that is larger than the carrier and with a little leeway so as not to crush the carrier during placement.

As a result of constructing a purification module with a carrier extending from the end of the case and a header designed to be larger as described above, the purification module has a predetermined space that is partitioned by the end of the case, the outer surface of the carrier, and the inner surface of the header.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a purification module having such a space.

International Publication No. 2018/139145

However, in the space formed as described above, stagnation of the treated fluid occurs, and if the treated fluid is blood, for example, there is a concern that it may clot in the stagnation area, which may adversely affect the purification action of the purification module.

The present invention aims to provide a purification module that is highly efficient and safe, in which the stagnation area of the treated fluid in the above space is minimized.

To solve the above problems, the present invention provides a purification module that includes a cylindrical case, a carrier filled inside the case and partially extending from the end face of the case, and a header that covers the end of the case and the extended carrier, the header being divided into a side portion facing the longitudinal surface of the carrier, a blocking portion facing the radial surface of the carrier, and a boundary portion located between the side portion and the blocking portion, and where A1 is the space formed between the side portion of the header and the extended carrier, and A2 is the space formed between the blocking portion of the header and the extended carrier, A1 and A2 are in communication.

The present invention makes it possible to optimize the shape of the space formed inside the purification module with an extremely simple structure, and as a result, it is possible to provide a purification module with significantly improved reliability, safety, etc.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view illustrating one embodiment of a purification module of the present invention. 3A to 3C are partial vertical cross-sectional views showing several examples of tapered portions or tapers provided on a header included in the purification module of the present invention. 3A to 3C are partial vertical cross-sectional views showing several examples of tapered portions or taper configurations provided in a header included in the purification module of the present invention.

The module of the present invention requires a cylindrical case.

Materials for the cylindrical case include, for example, resin or metal. Among them, when the fluid to be treated by the purification module of the present invention is blood, resin is preferred because it is disposable. Examples of resins include polypropylene, polyethylene, polycarbonate, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS).

The module of the present invention requires a carrier that is filled inside the case and partially extends beyond the end face of the case.

Here, "end face of the case" refers to the face at the extreme end of the case that is perpendicular to the axial direction of the case.

The carrier filled inside the cylindrical case can be, for example, a bundle of multiple threads or multiple beads. However, a bundle of threads is preferred because it can secure a large surface area and the flow resistance is easy to control, and a bundle of threads made of porous fibers is even more preferred.

Examples of materials for the porous fibers or beads that make up the bundle of fibers that serves as the carrier include polymethyl methacrylate, polyacrylonitrile, polysulfone, polyethersulfone, polyarylethersulfone, polypropylene, polysulthylene, polycarbonate, cellulose, cellulose triacetate, and ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer. Among these, when the fluid to be treated by the purification module of the present invention is blood, polymethyl methacrylate, polyacrylonitrile, or cellulose, which have protein adsorption properties, are preferred. The form of the porous fibers may be either hollow fibers or solid fibers, or a combination (mixture) of these.

The diameter of the porous fibers that make up the bundle of fibers that serves as the carrier (inner diameter in the case of hollow fibers, outer diameter in the case of solid fibers) is preferably 10 to 1000 μm, more preferably 20 to 400 μm, and even more preferably 50 to 190 μm, in order to avoid damage during manufacturing while maintaining purification performance.

The purification module of the present invention requires a header that covers the end of the case and the extended carrier.

The header is positioned to cover both the end of the case and the extended carrier, but is designed with an inner diameter larger than the carrier so as not to crush the carrier. The header is preferably made of the same material as the cylindrical case.

The header of the purification module of the present invention is divided into a side portion facing the longitudinal surface of the carrier, a blocking portion facing the radial surface of the carrier, and a boundary portion located between the side portion and the blocking portion. In the purification module of the present invention, the space formed between the side portion of the header and the extended carrier is designated as A1, and the space formed between the blocking portion of the header and the extended carrier is designated as A2.

In the module of the present invention, it is necessary that A1 and A2 are in communication with each other. By having A1 and A2 in communication with each other, it is possible to reduce the stagnation of the treated fluid that occurs in each of these spaces.

The inner surface of the boundary portion in the header of the purification module of the present invention is preferably provided with a tapered portion whose diameter expands toward the outside in the radial direction of the carrier. By providing such a tapered portion, it is possible to further reduce the stagnation of the treated fluid in the space formed by the communication between A1 and A2.

The angle of the tapered portion as described above may be constant or may change along the way. The tapered portion as described above may be provided continuously or intermittently on the inner surface of the header boundary portion. When the tapered portion is provided intermittently, it is preferable that the tapered portions are provided at equal intervals so that the flow of the treated fluid in the space formed by the communication between A1 and A2 is smooth.

The inner surface of the boundary portion in the header of the purification module of the present invention is preferably tapered, with the diameter expanding toward the outside in the radial direction of the carrier. In other words, it is preferable that the inner surface of the boundary portion is tapered over the entire area. By providing such a taper, it is possible to further reduce the stagnation area of the treated fluid in the space formed by the communication between A1 and A2.

The tapered portion or taper as described above may be provided on both the header on the inlet side of the treated fluid and the header on the outlet side, or on only one side.

The header provided in the purification module of the present invention is preferably composed of a member H1 including the tapered portion or the taper, and another member H2. By making the tapered portion or taper a separate member, it becomes easier to mold and adjust the tapered portion or taper, and it is also possible to impart a separate function to the separate member H1.

It is preferable that the member H1 includes a filter portion that abuts against the radial surface of the carrier. By including the filter portion in the member H1, that is, by providing the member H1 including the taper with a filter function, it is possible to reduce the stagnation of the treated fluid in the space formed by the communication between the above A1 and the above A2, while optimizing the flow of the treated fluid flowing into or out of the carrier. For example, when the carrier is a bundle of fibers, the filter portion can be provided with the function of preventing leakage of the carrier by making the mesh size of the filter portion smaller than the diameter of the fibers (porous fibers) (inner diameter of the fibers in the case of hollow fibers, outer diameter of the fibers in the case of solid fibers).

The member H1 including the filter section may be provided on both the header on the inlet side of the treated fluid and the header on the outlet side of the treated fluid, or on only one side.

The material of the member H1 including the filter section is preferably the same as that of the cylindrical case and header.

Below, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view illustrating one embodiment of the purification module of the present invention. The purification module 100 comprises a cylindrical case 101, a carrier 102 that is filled inside the case 101 and partially extends from the end face of the case, and two headers 200 that cover both ends of the case 101 and the extending carrier 102, and each header 200 is provided with a communication port that leads to the inside of the purification module. There are no particular limitations on how the purification module is used, but for example, one communication port can be used as an inlet 201 for the fluid to be treated, and the other communication port can be used as an outlet 202 for the fluid to be treated.

The case 101 and the header 200 are preferably joined together so as to maintain airtightness. Methods for joining the case 101 and the header 200 include, for example, screwing, ultrasonic welding, adhesion using an adhesive, or a combination of these, but simple ultrasonic welding is preferred. Note that an elastic body such as an O-ring may be placed between the case 101 and the header 200 to improve airtightness.

The header 200 is divided into a blocking section 203, a side section 204, and a boundary section 205, and the space A1 (301) formed between the side section 204 and the extended carrier 102 is connected to the space A2 (302) formed between the blocking section 203 and the extended carrier 102.

Figure 2 is a partial vertical cross-sectional view showing several examples of tapered portions or tapers provided in a header included in the purification module of the present invention. The inner surface of the boundary portion 205 is provided with a tapered portion 208 whose diameter expands toward the outside in the radial direction of the carrier 102, or the inner surface of the boundary portion 205 is a taper 208 whose diameter expands toward the outside in the radial direction of the carrier 102.

Figure 3 is a partial vertical cross-sectional view showing several examples of tapered portions or taper configurations provided in the header of the semi-inventive purification module. The header 200 is composed of a member H1 (206) that includes a tapered portion or taper, and the other member H2 (207).

The purification module of the present invention can be used to purify water, blood, etc.

100 Purification module 101 Case 102 Carrier 200 Header 201 Inlet 202 Outlet 203 Blocking portion 204 Side portion 205 Boundary portion 206 Member H1
207 Member H2
208 Tapered portion or taper 301 Space A1
302 Space A2

Claims (5)

A cylindrical case,
a carrier filled inside the case and partly extending beyond an end face of the case;
a header covering the end of the case and the extended carrier;
The header is divided into a side portion facing a longitudinal surface of the carrier, a closing portion facing a radial surface of the carrier, and a boundary portion located between the side portion and the closing portion,
A1 is a space formed between the side portion of the header and the extended carrier,
When the space formed between the blocking portion of the header and the extended carrier is defined as A2,
A purification module, in which A1 and A2 are in communication with each other. The purification module according to claim 1, wherein the inner surface of the boundary portion of the header is provided with a tapered portion whose diameter expands toward the outside in the radial direction of the carrier. The purification module of claim 1, wherein the inner surface of the boundary portion of the header is tapered such that the diameter expands toward the outside in the radial direction of the carrier. The purification module according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the header is composed of a member H1 including the tapered portion or the taper, and a member H2 other than the tapered portion. The purification module according to claim 4, wherein the member H1 includes a filter portion that abuts against the radial surface of the carrier.

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