JP4866331B2 - Composite particle manufacturing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a composite particle manufacturing apparatus for lowering a cylindrical heating furnace in a state where a plurality of particles are electrically attached, and fixing the particles to each other.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as this kind of composite particle manufacturing apparatus, one that manufactures composite particles by supplying granular powder in which a plurality of particles are aggregated together with combustion gas into a combustion flame is known (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP-A-2004-290730 (paragraphs [0022] and [0023], FIG. 2)

  However, in the conventional composite particle manufacturing apparatus described above, it is necessary to perform granulation in advance in order to obtain granular powder. That is, a solvent is added to a mixture of a plurality of particles to form a slurry, which is sprayed from a spray nozzle to form droplets, and the liquid component of the droplets needs to be dried and removed. There was a problem that it took.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the said situation, and it aims at provision of the composite particle manufacturing apparatus which can manufacture the composite particle which several particle | grains adhere | attached more simply than before.

  The composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to the invention of claim 1 made to achieve the above object lowers the inside of a cylindrical heating furnace in a state where a plurality of particles are electrically attached, and the particles are fixed to each other. In a composite particle manufacturing apparatus, a plurality of particle discharging devices that are disposed above a cylindrical heating furnace and that can discharge a predetermined amount of particles downward, and forcibly charging to discharge particles discharged from the particle discharging device The air pressure is applied to the particles discharged from the means and the particle discharge device, and the particles from all the particle discharge devices are collected directly above the cylindrical heating furnace or inside the upper portion of the cylindrical heating furnace and are electrically attached to each other. It is characterized in that it is provided with a wind pressure moving means for making it happen.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the forcible charging means and the wind pressure moving means are capable of blowing an ion wind of gaseous ions onto the particles discharged from the particle discharging apparatus. It is characterized by being used in a vessel.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the cylindrical heating furnace includes a plasma generation tube whose upper and lower ends are open, and a plasma flame is generated inside the plasma generation tube. Is a plasma generator that generates a plasma flame by supplying a working gas, a radical measuring device that measures the radicals in the plasma flame, and the supply amount of the plasma flame generating gas to the plasma torch so that the radicals have a constant value Or a plasma control device for adjusting supply pressure or power for generating plasma.

The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that, in the composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, the plasma flame generating gas supplied to the plasma generating tube is nitrogen.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein a plurality of particle discharge devices are housed and sealed in a sealing case having a gas supply port and a gas discharge port. A cylindrical heating furnace is passed through the bottom wall of the stop case, the lower opening of the cylindrical heating furnace is used as a gas discharge port, gas is supplied from the gas supply port into the sealing case, and the gas is used as the gas discharge port. It is characterized in that it is discharged to the outside of the sealing case through the lower opening of the cylindrical heating furnace.

[Invention of Claim 1]
According to the composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to the invention of claim 1 configured as described above, wind pressure is applied to the particles discharged downward from the particle discharging apparatus, and the plurality of particles are directly above the cylindrical heating furnace. Or it collects inside the upper part of a cylindrical heating furnace. Since any of the collected particles is charged by the forced charging means, the collected particles can be electrically attached to each other. And since the several particle | grains adhering to each other are heat-processed while descending a cylindrical heating furnace, it adheres to each other and a composite particle is manufactured, Therefore A composite particle can be manufactured more simply than before.

  Here, it is preferable to charge all of the plurality of particles, but even if any of the plurality of particles is charged and the rest is electrically neutral, the particles can be electrically attached to each other. is there. This is because even an electrically neutral particle attracts or repels an external positive charge, and electrons move (dielectric polarization) in the particle. Therefore, it is not necessary to charge the particles discharged from all the particle discharging devices.

[Invention of claim 2]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, gas ions adhere to the particles and are charged by spraying ion ions of the gas ions on the particles, so that the particles are destroyed as in the case of charging by collision or friction between the particles. It will not be done. Here, the gas ions may be, for example, ionized gas molecules in the air, or ionized gas molecules in another gas (for example, nitrogen gas).

[Invention of claim 3]
According to the invention of claim 3, particles can be melted by the heat of plasma to fix the particles together. Further, the plasma can be kept in a constant state, and the composite processing of particles can be performed stably.

[Invention of claim 4]
According to the invention of claim 4, it is possible to inject nitrogen ions into the particles or form a nitride film simultaneously with the fixation of the particles by the action of ions or radicals in the plasma.

[Invention of claim 5]
According to the invention of claim 5, the gas supplied from the gas supply port to the inside of the sealing case passes through the cylindrical heating furnace and is discharged from the gas discharge port of the lower opening to the outside of the sealing case. Thus, the plurality of particles that are collected and electrically attached directly above the cylindrical heating furnace can be reliably guided into the cylindrical heating furnace by the gas.

[First Embodiment]
Hereinafter, the composite particle manufacturing apparatus 100 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 1, the composite particle manufacturing apparatus 100 includes a plurality of particle discharging apparatuses 20 and 20 and a cylindrical heating furnace 70, which are accommodated in an apparatus accommodation case 101. The device storage case 101 is partitioned into an upper chamber 103 and a lower chamber 104 by an internal partition wall 102, the cylindrical heating furnace 70 is stored in the lower chamber 104, and the particle discharge devices 20, 20 are stored in the upper chamber 103. Contained. In the apparatus housing case 101, the upper part of the inner partition wall 102 that forms the upper chamber 103 corresponds to the “sealing case” of the present invention.

  The cylindrical heating furnace 70 is composed of a plasma generator. That is, a quartz plasma generating tube 71 suspended from the internal partition wall 102 and an induction coil 72 provided outside thereof are provided, and a power source 73 for applying high frequency power to the induction coil 72 is provided via a matching circuit 74. Connected.

  The plasma generating tube 71 has a cylindrical shape with both upper and lower ends open. Although not shown, the plasma generating tube 71 has a double tube structure, and cooling water or cooling gas is passed between the inner and outer tubes. A particle introduction tube 75 is connected to the upper end of the plasma generation tube 71. The particle introduction tube 75 stands upright from the internal partition wall 102 into the upper chamber 103 and opens upward. As shown in FIG. 2, the upper end of the particle introduction pipe 75 has a funnel shape, and the particles supplied from the particle discharge devices 20 and 20 are supplied to the carrier gas supplied from the gas supply port 105 into the upper chamber 103. At the same time, it can be introduced into the plasma generating tube 71.

  In addition, a plurality of gas introduction pipes for introducing a plasma flame generating gas (for example, hydrogen, helium, nitrogen, oxygen, neon, argon, and a mixed gas thereof) into the plasma generation pipe 71 in the particle introduction pipe 75. 76 is provided. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the gas introduction pipe 76 extends from a gas introduction port 76 </ b> A opened to the side of the particle introduction pipe 75 in the tangential direction of the inner peripheral surface of the particle introduction pipe 75. The plasma flame generating gas that has flowed into the particle introduction tube 75 through the tube 76 forms a swirl flow toward the lower surface opening of the plasma generation tube 71 together with the carrier gas introduced from the upper surface opening of the particle introduction tube 75. ing. Here, the lower surface opening of the plasma generation tube 71 corresponds to the “gas discharge port” of the present invention.

  In the present embodiment, a pair of gas introduction pipes 76 and 76 are provided at the upper end position and the lower end position of the particle introduction pipe 75, respectively. (Only the gas introduction pipe 76 is shown) is supplied with plasma flame generating gas at a constant flow rate. On the other hand, the flow rate of the plasma flame generating gas supplied to the lower gas introduction pipes 76 and 76 (only one of the gas introduction pipes 76 is shown in FIG. 2) can be changed by the gas flow valve 52. It has become. The gas in the lower chamber 104 is naturally exhausted from the exhaust port 106 (see FIG. 1).

  When high-frequency power is supplied to the induction coil 72 of the cylindrical heating furnace 70, the gas (carrier gas, plasma flame generating gas) in the plasma generating tube 71 is changed to a plasma state and a plasma flame F2 is generated. The particles are subjected to heat treatment in the course of the particles descending the core of the plasma flame F2. Specifically, the particles are melted by the heat of the plasma flame F2. It is also possible to inject ions into the particles by the action of ions or radicals in the plasma. Here, since the gas is swirling in the plasma generation tube 71 of the cylindrical heating furnace 70, it is possible to prevent molten particles from adhering to the inner wall surface of the plasma generation tube 71.

  In the vicinity of the lower end opening of the plasma generation tube 71, a radical measurement device 51 for measuring the amount of radicals in the plasma flame F2 is disposed. For example, the radical measuring device 51 irradiates the plasma flame F2 with an infrared laser having a specific wavelength, and uses the fact that the laser absorbs the radicals to change the intensity, thereby determining the density of the radicals in the plasma flame F2 and the like. While measuring, the measurement result is output to the control device 50 (corresponding to the “plasma control device” of the present invention). The control device 50 changes the opening of the gas flow valve 52 in accordance with the measured radical amount, and the flow rate of the plasma flame generating gas introduced into the plasma generation tube 71 so that the radical amount becomes substantially constant or Adjust supply pressure. Thereby, the plasma flame | frame F2 generate | occur | produced in the cylindrical heating furnace 70 can be hold | maintained to a fixed state, and the dispersion | variation in the heat processing with respect to particle | grains can be prevented. Here, the amount of radicals may be controlled by pulse-modulating high-frequency power for plasma generation applied to the induction coil 72 at a constant period and changing the duty ratio. Alternatively, when radicals in the plasma flame F2 are insufficient, radicals generated by a radical generation source (not shown) provided outside may be injected into the plasma flame F2.

  Here, the plasma generation method in the cylindrical heating furnace 70 is not limited to the above-described inductive coupling method (coil method), and may be a capacitive coupling method (parallel plate type). Further, plasma may be generated by microwaves, direct current, or glow discharge.

  Further, it is preferable to use either high temperature plasma or low temperature plasma depending on the material of the particles. High-temperature plasma is suitable for fusion bonding of particles with relatively high melting points such as metals and inorganic substances, and low-temperature plasma is used to improve adhesion by melting bonding and surface modification of particles with relatively low melting points such as organic and polymer. Is suitable.

  Furthermore, the cylindrical heating furnace 70 is not limited to the one that uses the heat of the plasma flame F2, and may use, for example, the heat of a combustible gas combustion flame (gas burner) or hot air. What is necessary is just to set suitably the heat source and temperature of the cylindrical heating furnace 70 according to the material of particle | grains. The above is the description regarding the cylindrical heating furnace 70.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the two particle discharging devices 20, 20 are arranged in a position away from the upper surface opening of the particle introduction tube 75 in the upper chamber 103 of the device housing case 101. As shown in FIG. 4, the particle discharging device 20 includes a particle group storage container 21 that stores particle groups. In the present embodiment, the particles discharged from the particle discharging devices 20 and 20 are of different types, but may be the same type. Further, any of inorganic particles (metal particles) and organic / polymer particles may be used.

  The particle group container 21 includes a large-diameter cylindrical portion 22, a small-diameter cylindrical portion 23, and a particle discharge cylindrical portion 24, and has a structure in which the diameter is reduced toward the lower side. The lower end portion of the side wall of the large diameter cylindrical portion 22 and the upper end portion of the side wall of the small diameter cylindrical portion 23 are connected by a flat horizontal step wall 25, and the particle discharge cylindrical portion 24 is outside the small diameter cylindrical portion 23. Are screwed and fixed. Then, the particles are discharged from the lower surface opening of the particle discharge cylinder portion 24.

  The upper end of the particle group storage container 21 (large diameter cylindrical portion 22) is open, and is closed by an upper end cap 26 screwed onto the outer peripheral surface of the upper end. A motor 27 that is driven and controlled by the control device 50 is fixedly placed at the center of the upper surface of the upper end cap 26. The rotary shaft 27A connected to the motor 27 extends through the upper end cap 26 along the central axis of the large diameter cylindrical portion 22 and the small diameter cylindrical portion 23. The rotating shaft 27A has a hexagonal columnar shape with a stepped lower side from the intermediate portion, and a container inner disk 28 is attached to the lower end portion of the thick shaft portion so as to be integrally rotatable.

  The in-container disk 28 is disposed so as to overlap the upper surface of the horizontal step wall 25, and loosely fits in the large-diameter cylindrical portion 22 so as to cover the upper surface opening of the small-diameter cylindrical portion 23 and the periphery of the horizontal step wall 25. is doing. Specifically, the container inner disk 28 is formed of a flat disk having a diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the large diameter cylindrical portion 22 and larger than the inner diameter of the small diameter cylindrical portion 23, and the upper surface of the horizontal step wall 25. It is mounted horizontally away from the top.

  In order to scrape the particles accumulated on the inner disk 28 into an annular gap between the peripheral edge of the inner disk 28 and the side wall of the large-diameter cylindrical part 22, the inner surface of the large-diameter cylindrical part 22 is waiting on the upper surface. A guide 29 is provided. As shown in FIG. 4, the upper surface standby guide 29 has a plate shape bent in an L shape. The horizontal plate 29A of the upper surface standby guide 29 is disposed adjacent to the upper surface of the in-container disk 28, and a vertical plate 29B extending vertically upward from the base end portion of the horizontal plate 29A is fixed to the upper end cap 26.

  Then, by attaching the flat surface on the front end side of the horizontal plate 29A to the side surface of the rotation shaft 27A, the horizontal plate 29A is inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the inner disc 28, and when the inner disc 28 is rotated, Particle groups on the inner disk 28 are dammed by the horizontal plate 29A and guided toward the outer edge of the inner disk 28. Further, since the base end portion of the horizontal plate 29A extends to the outer side position from the outer edge portion of the container inner disk 28, the particle group guided by the horizontal plate 29A is moved to the outer edge portion of the horizontal step wall 25, that is, the horizontal step wall. It is made to flow down to the annular deposition part 25A provided along the outer edge part of the container inner disk 28 among the upper surfaces of 25. Furthermore, since the upper surface standby guide 29 agitates the particle group in the particle group container 21, it is possible to prevent the particle group from solidifying in the large diameter cylindrical portion 22. Thereby, the particle group on the inner disk 28 can be stably flowed down to the annular deposition portion 25A.

  The particle group that has flowed down to the annular deposition portion 25 </ b> A by the upper surface standby guide 29 forms a mountain of particle groups having a predetermined angle of repose between the inner disk 28 and the horizontal step wall 25. The angle of repose of the peak of the particle group is constant depending on the type of the particle group, and it is possible to prevent an excessive particle group from being supplied from the inner disk 28 to the horizontal step wall 25. That is, the particle group can be dammed between the inner disk 28 and the upper surface of the horizontal step wall 25 so that the particle group does not collapse into the small diameter cylindrical portion 23.

  The crests of the particle group deposited on the annular deposition part 25A are scraped off by the container turning member 30 rotating in the large diameter cylindrical part 22 and sent to the small diameter cylindrical part 23. The in-container turning member 30 is fixed to the rotating shaft 27A, and as shown in FIG. 6, the cantilever-shaped granulated feathers 32 and the dusting feathers 33 are laterally extended from the axial center plate 31 through which the rotating shaft 27A passes. And is extended. The granulated wings 32 and the dust wings 33 rotate in a horizontal plane while being in sliding contact with the upper surface of the horizontal step wall 25 (see FIG. 5).

  The particle collection wing 32 has a bent structure in which a plurality of flat plates are connected so as to swell on the opposite side to the rotation direction of the swivel member 30 in the container (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 6), while the particle wing 33 The shaft member 31 extends straight from the shaft plate 31 toward the side wall of the large-diameter cylindrical portion 22 while being inclined with respect to the rotational direction of the turning member 30. Further, although not shown in the drawing, the particle collection wing 32 extends to a position where the tip thereof is adjacent to the side wall of the large-diameter cylindrical portion 22, and the particle wing 33 is shorter than that.

  Then, the particle group accumulated in the annular deposition portion 25A is guided to the center side by the particle collection blade 32 and sent to the small-diameter cylindrical portion 23. It moves to the outside and escapes, and when the granulated wings 32 pass next, it is taken into the small diameter cylindrical portion 23 and the pressure applied to the particle group in the small diameter cylindrical portion 23 is easily stabilized. Moreover, the particle collection wing 32 and the particle wing 33 cooperate to stir the particle group, and the effect of crushing the lump of the particle group in the annular deposition portion 25A is also achieved.

  As shown in FIG. 6, an auxiliary guide wall 34 that is obliquely cut and raised from the shaft center plate 31 is formed at the root portion of the granulation blade 32 of the shaft center plate 31 of the in-container turning member 30. The auxiliary guide wall 34 is inclined so as to gradually descend in the direction in which the particle group is guided by the particle collection blade 32. Then, the particle group that has been guided by the particle collection blade 32 and has reached the base end portion thereof is forcibly dropped to the small diameter cylindrical portion 23 by the auxiliary guide wall 34.

  The in-container turning member 30 is integrally provided with a plurality of turning legs 35 and 36 extending downward from the shaft center plate 31. As shown in FIG. 6, these swivel leg portions 35 and 36 are both disposed in the small diameter cylindrical portion 23 and can turn there.

  The first swivel legs 35 are provided in pairs on the root portion of the dust wings 33 and the root portion of the granule wings 32 of the axial center plate 31. The first swivel leg 35 has a band plate shape, and is slanted toward the rear of the swivel direction of the swivel member 30 in the container as it goes downward (specifically, about 30 degrees with respect to the vertical direction). Inclined and extended.

  The second swivel leg portion 36 hangs down from the root portion of the powdered wing 33 in the shaft center plate 31, and has a band plate shape having substantially the same width as the first swivel leg portion 35.

  These swivel legs 35 and 36 swirl within the small-diameter cylindrical portion 23, thereby preventing solidification and aggregation of the particle groups in the small-diameter cylindrical portion 23.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a pair of screen walls 37, 38 are provided in two upper and lower stages below the lower ends of the first and second swivel legs 35, 36 in the particle group container 21. It has been.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the upper screen wall 37 has a structure in which a plurality of particle passage holes 37A are formed through a thin disk. These particle passage holes 37A are closed by an arch formed by adhering (crosslinking) the particle groups fed from the large diameter cylindrical portion 22 to the small diameter cylindrical portion 23, and the particle group arch is collapsed. The size is such that the particles can pass through. Specifically, the arch is destroyed by the vibration of the ultrasonic transducer 37B attached to the upper screen wall 37, and the particles fall to the lower screen wall 38. In the present embodiment, the upper screen wall 37 is prepared in a plurality of types in which the size, number and arrangement of the particle passage holes 37A are different (see, for example, FIG. 11). It is possible to select and attach appropriately according to the above.

  On the other hand, the lower screen wall 38 is formed with only one particle passage hole 38A at the center. As shown in FIG. 9, the particle passage hole 38A has a mortar shape that is reduced in diameter downward, and as shown in FIG. 10, the pore diameter of the smallest diameter portion is about several times the average particle diameter of the particles P1. It has become. Thereby, particles can be discharged in a very small amount (for example, 1 to 3 particles). Here, the ultrasonic vibrator 38B is attached to the lower screen wall 38. If the particle passage hole 38A is clogged, the particles are forcibly dropped by the vibration of the ultrasonic vibrator 38B and clogged. Can be eliminated. As shown in FIG. 12, the lower screen wall 38 has a number of particle passage holes 38A that are several times the average particle diameter of the particles than the number of the particle passage holes 37A in the upper screen wall 37. Are also prepared, and can be selected and attached as appropriate.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the screen walls 37 and 38 can be inserted / removed through slits 24 </ b> A and 24 </ b> A opened on the side surfaces of the particle discharge cylinder portion 24. The lower screen wall 38 is sandwiched between the lower end portion of the portion 23 and the inner peripheral step surface of the particle discharge cylinder portion 24, and the peripheral portion of the lower screen wall 38 is a groove portion formed on the inner peripheral surface of the particle discharge cylinder portion 24. Is engaged. In addition, leakage of particles from the gaps between the slits 24A, 24A and the screen walls 37, 38 is prevented by a pair of O-rings that are in close contact with the screen walls 37, 38 sandwiched from the plate thickness direction. .

  As shown in FIG. 5, a scraper 40 is provided on the upper surface of the lower screen wall 38. The scraper 40 is detachably fixed to a lower end portion of a rotary shaft 27A (thin shaft portion) that penetrates the upper screen wall 37. As shown in FIG. 7, the scraper 40 includes a cylindrical portion 41 that fits on the outer side of the rotary shaft 27A, and a strip plate portion 42 that protrudes in a cantilevered manner from the lower surface of the cylindrical portion 41. The plate portion 42 is curved so as to swell toward the rear in the rotational direction. The scraper 40 swivels while being in sliding contact with the upper surface of the lower screen wall 38, scrapes particles that have passed through the upper screen 37 and dropped onto the lower screen wall 38 to the center thereof, and passes through the particle passage hole 38A. The particle discharging device 20 is configured to drop downward.

  The above is the description of the particle discharging devices 20 and 20. As shown in FIG. 13, each particle discharging device 20 is held above the weighing device 39 by a support base 39 </ b> B placed on the weighing device 39, and the amount of particles discharged from the particle discharging device 20 is as follows. The total weight reduction amount of the particle discharging device 20 is measured and output to the control device 50.

  Now, ionizers 85 and 85 (corresponding to the “ion generator” of the present invention) are provided below each particle discharging device 20. The ionizer 85 ionizes gas molecules in the gas by using corona discharge, for example, and generates positive or negative gas ions. Gas ion generation methods include methods using radiation and thermal ionization in addition to corona discharge, but their principles are known (see JIS B9929: 2006 “Method for Measuring Ion Density in Air”). The detailed explanation is omitted.

  The ionizer 85 generates a predetermined amount of gas ions, and injects a gas (ion wind) containing the gas ions from a nozzle 85A inserted into the apparatus housing case 101 at a predetermined pressure. As shown in FIG. 13, the nozzle 85 </ b> A is disposed on the side of the falling path of the particles falling from the particle discharging device 20 and directed toward the dropping path, and the ion wind is generated from the side of the particles in the middle of the dropping. Spray. Thereby, gas ions adhere to the particles and are charged positively or negatively.

  In the present embodiment, an ion wind containing positive gas ions is blown from the ionizer 85 to the particles falling from one (left side in FIG. 13) of the particle discharging device 20, and the other (right side in FIG. 13) particles. An ion wind containing negative gas ions is blown from the ionizer 85 to the particles supplied from the discharge device 20. The amount of gas ions generated by the ionizer 85 and the pressure or speed of the gas are set by the control device 50.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the nozzles 85A and 85A of both ionizers 85 and 85 are opposed to each other in the arrangement direction of the two particle discharge devices 20 and 20, and are ejected from the nozzles 85A and 85A of both ionizers 85 and 85. The ionized wind blows off charged particles toward particles of opposite polarity. Then, at the intermediate position between the two particle discharging devices 20, 20, that is, directly above the upper surface opening of the particle introduction tube 75, the particles charged with opposite polarities merge and are electrically attached (electrostatic adsorption). ), And a plurality of particles combined to form an integrated particle (hereinafter referred to as “combined particle”). The coalesced particles are guided to the cylindrical heating furnace 70 by the carrier gas supplied to the upper chamber 103 as described above, and the particles constituting the coalesced particles are melt-bonded in the process of descending the cylindrical heating furnace 70. It is compounded. The ion wind may be blown so that the plurality of particles blown off by the ion wind draw a parabola and gather inside the upper part of the particle introduction tube 75.

  Here, the coalesced particles before passing through the cylindrical heating furnace 70 may be in a form in which particles having opposite polarities are adsorbed on a one-to-one basis (see FIG. 14A), or one of the particles 1 Alternatively, a plurality of the other particles may be adsorbed with respect to each other (see FIGS. 14B to 14D). As shown in FIG. 14D, when a cylindrical heating furnace 70 is passed so that one particle is covered with a plurality of other particles, a so-called core shell structure (core and outer It is possible to produce composite particles having a two-layer structure comprising a shell. The form of the coalesced particles can be controlled by the particle size of the particles and the charge amount of the particles.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, ion wind (gas) is blown from the side to the particles dropped from the plurality of particle discharge devices 20, 20, and the plurality of particles are opened to the upper surface of the cylindrical heating furnace 70 by the wind pressure. Merge above. Since the gas ions contained in the ion wind (gas) adhere to each particle and are charged with opposite polarities, the merged particles can be electrostatically adsorbed. Then, since the electrostatically adsorbed coalesced particles are heated and melted while descending the cylindrical heating furnace 70, the composite particles can be manufactured more easily than before. In addition, since the particles are charged by attaching gaseous ions to the particles, the particles are not destroyed as in the case where a plurality of particles are charged by collision or friction.

[Second Embodiment]
This 2nd Embodiment differs in the point provided with the rolling granulation apparatus 11 below the lower surface opening of the cylindrical heating furnace 70 among the composite particle manufacturing apparatuses 100 from the said 1st Embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the rolling granulator 11 has a rotating pan 12 fixed to one end of a rotating shaft 13A inclined with respect to the direction of gravity (vertical direction), and a motor 13 connected to the other end of the rotating shaft 13A. ing. The rotary pan 12 is provided with a discharge port 12A opened obliquely upward, and has a conical cylinder shape with a diameter reduced from the discharge port 12A toward the bottom. The rotating shaft 13A is attached to the upper base 14A of the support board 14 so as to be inclined, and the upper base 14A is pivotally supported by the lower base 14B via a hinge 14C. The tilt angle of the rotary pan 12 (rotary shaft 13A) can be adjusted by an extendable shaft 14D sandwiched between one end of the lower base 14B and one end of the upper base 14A.

  The composite particles generated through the cylindrical heating furnace 70 fall to a position near the bottom of the rotary pan 12, and the composite particle group rolls in the rotary pan 12 by the rotation of the rotary pan 12. In the process, for example, a plurality of composite particles adhere to each other by a cross-linking action by the binder liquid sprayed in the rotary pan 12 and grow into a snowman type, and a granulated product is manufactured. In addition, the magnitude | size of a granulated material can be suitably changed by changing the inclination angle and rotational speed of the rotating pan 12 (rotating shaft 13A).

  Here, since the rotating pan 12 of the present embodiment has a conical cylinder shape, a difference in peripheral speed is caused by the difference in inner diameter, and small composite particles immediately after falling into the rotating pan 12 roll on the inner surface of the rotating pan 12. It moves to the bottom side, and rolls on the inner surface of the rotary pan 12 and moves to the discharge port 12A side as the granulation progresses and the size increases. The granulated product having a predetermined size overflows from the discharge port 12A and is naturally discharged. That is, a classification action occurs in the rotating pan 12 and the size of the granulated material can be made uniform. In addition, since the principle of this classification action is publicly known (Satoshi Sakashita, “Introductory Powder Trouble Engineering” (Industry Research Institute Co., Ltd., issued on October 1, 1998) “4.2 Container Rotating Gravity Flow” Detailed description will be omitted. According to the present embodiment, a granulated product in which a plurality of composite particles are combined can be produced. Here, if the adhesion of the composite particles is increased by combining the particles, granulation can be performed efficiently.

[Third Embodiment]
This 3rd Embodiment is shown by FIG. 16, and the point provided with the plasma torch 15 which injects the plasma flame | frame F1 to the particle group which rolls within the rotary pan 12 of the rolling granulator 11 is the above-mentioned. Different from the second embodiment.

  The plasma torch 15 has the same configuration as the cylindrical heating furnace 70 described above. That is, a quartz plasma generating tube 16 and an induction coil 17 provided on the outside thereof are provided, and a power source 18 for applying high-frequency power to the induction coil 17 is connected via a matching circuit 19. The plasma generating tube 16 has a cylindrical shape with an open bottom, and is inclined with respect to the vertical direction. Although not shown, the plasma generation tube 16 has a double tube structure, and cooling water or cooling gas is passed between the inner and outer tubes. A plasma flame generating gas (for example, hydrogen, helium, nitrogen, oxygen, neon, argon and a mixed gas thereof) is introduced into the inside of the plasma generating tube 16 from the upper end thereof, and in this state, a high frequency is supplied to the induction coil 17. When the electric power is supplied, the plasma flame generating gas is in a plasma state, and the plasma flame F1 is injected from the lower end opening of the plasma generating tube 16 into the rotary pan 12.

  The plasma torch 15 is arranged so that the tip of the plasma flame F1 is positioned on the surface of the composite particle group that rolls in the rotary pan 12. That is, among the composite particle group deposited in the rotary pan 12, it is difficult for the composite particles located near the inner surface of the rotary pan 12 to transmit the heat of the plasma flame F 1. It can prevent adhering to the inner wall surface. Further, by separating the tip of the plasma flame F1 having a relatively low temperature from the surface of the composite particle group, liquefaction and evaporation of the composite particles due to overheating can be prevented.

  Here, the plasma torch 15 has a relatively small particle size (unreacted that is not fixed to other composite particles) in the composite particle group in which the tip of the plasma flame F1 rolls in the rotary pan 12. It is more preferable to arrange at a position that preferentially strikes the composite particles. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 17, when the tip of the plasma frame F1 is positioned at the upper end portion of the composite particle group lifted upward by friction with the inner wall surface of the rotating pan 12, The plasma flame F1 is preferentially applied to the composite particles having a small particle size, and granulation can be performed efficiently.

  A radical measuring device 51 for measuring the amount of radicals in the plasma is disposed in the vicinity of the lower end opening of the plasma generating tube 16, and the measurement result is taken into the control device 50. The control device 50 changes the opening of the gas flow valve 52 in accordance with the measured radical amount, and the flow rate of the plasma flame generating gas introduced into the plasma generation tube 16 so that the radical amount becomes substantially constant or Adjust supply pressure. Thereby, the plasma flame | frame F1 generate | occur | produced in the plasma torch 15 can be hold | maintained to a fixed state, and the dispersion | variation in the property of a granulated material can be suppressed. Note that the amount of radicals may be controlled by changing the duty ratio by pulse-modulating high-frequency power with a constant period. Or you may make it inject | pour into the plasma flame | frame F1 the radical generate | occur | produced with the radical generation source not shown provided outside.

  In this rolling granulator 11, the surface portions of the composite particles can be melted and fixed to each other by the heat of the plasma flame F1, and the strength can be improved over the granulated material fixed with the binder liquid. . Alternatively, it is possible to perform granulation by modifying the surface of the composite particles by the action of ions or radicals in the plasma and enhancing the adhesion of the composite particles themselves.

  Here, in the case of granulating organic / polymer material particles using the plasma flame F1, the surface modification of the particles by the plasma flame F1 (formation of a crosslinked layer, introduction of reactive functional groups, etching, etc.) ) To improve the adhesion between particles and the wettability with respect to the binder liquid, as shown in FIG. 18, various ions (for example, helium ions, nitrogen ions, oxygen ions) are given to the rolling particles. An ion implantation nozzle 97 may be provided.

[Fourth Embodiment]
This 4th embodiment is shown in Drawing 19-Drawing 23, and differs in the composition of the particle group storage container in particle discharge device 20 from the above-mentioned embodiment. The particle group storage container 90 includes only one screen wall 91. As shown in FIG. 21, the screen wall 91 has a configuration in which a plurality of particle passage holes 91A are provided on the circumference centered on the rotation shaft 27A. The diameter of each particle passage hole 91A is a particle size. The size is several times the diameter.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the in-container turning member 95 has a structure in which the granulation blades 32 project from the shaft center plate 31 and the swivel legs 36 hang down. And swiveling while being in sliding contact with the upper surface of the horizontal step wall 25 to take in the particle group into the small diameter cylindrical part 23, and the swiveling leg part 36 is swung within the small diameter cylindrical part 23 to agitate the particle group in the small diameter cylindrical part 23. It is supposed to be.

  Further, the band plate portion 42 of the scraper 40 fixed to the lower end portion of the rotating shaft 27A is bent in a “<” shape so as to swell rearward in the rotational direction. Specifically, the belt plate portion 42 extends to the rear side in the rotation direction in parallel with the tangent line of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 41, and is a circle drawn by connecting the plurality of particle passage holes 91A (indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 21). It bends at the intersection with the circle shown) and extends straight outward in the radial direction.

The combination of the screen wall 91 and the scraper 40 is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 22, the scraper 40 including a pair of long and short strip plates 42, 42, and the strip plates 42. , 42 alternately cross the particle passage holes 91A (so that particles are not discharged simultaneously from the two particle passage holes 91A), or a combination with a screen wall 91 in which a plurality of particle passage holes 91A are arranged. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 23, a scraper 40 including a pair of strip plates 42 and 42 that extend straight from the position offset to the rear side in the rotational direction toward the inner surface of the small-diameter cylindrical portion 23, and each of the strips. A screen wall 91 in which a plurality of particle passage holes 91A are arranged so that the plate portions 42, 42 cross each particle passage hole 91A almost simultaneously (so that particles are discharged from the two particle passage holes 91A almost simultaneously); A combination of these may be used.
[Other Embodiments]

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, the embodiments described below are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and various other than the following can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. It can be changed and implemented.

  (1) In the second and third embodiments, as shown in FIG. 24, particle replenishment that directly supplies particles other than composite particles (hereinafter referred to as “coated particles” to distinguish them from composite particles) to the rotating pan 12. The apparatus 80 may be configured so that a granulated product in which the coated particles supplied from the particle replenishing device 80 adhere to the periphery of the composite particles dropped from the cylindrical heating furnace 70 as core particles may be manufactured.

  That is, the composite particles pass through the cylindrical heating furnace 70 and fall into the coated particle group in the rotating pan 12 in a molten state or a high temperature state just before melting. Then, the surrounding coated particles are melted by the heat of the composite particles, and a plurality of coated particles are fixed to the surface of the composite particles. And the granulated material by which the whole surface of the composite particle was covered with the some covering particle | grains by the rolling accompanying rotation of the rotation pan 12 is manufactured.

  At this time, the amount of particles replenished from the particle replenishing device 20 to the rotary pan 12 may be measured by the measuring device 39, or a method of controlling the replenishing amount of particles according to a calibration dose determined in advance may be used.

  (2) Although the rolling granulator 11 is provided in the second and third embodiments, other types of granulators may be used. For example, an agitation granulator, a compression granulator, or a fluidized bed granulator (a spouted bed granulator or a fluidized spouted bed granulator) may be used. The rolling granulator 11 is a so-called “inclined dish type” rolling granulator, but may be a rotary drum type rolling granulator. Furthermore, the centrifugal rolling type granulator 110 shown in FIG. 25 and the centrifugal rolling type fluidized bed granulator 120 shown in FIG. 26 may be used. The centrifugal rolling granulator 110 shown in FIG. 25 includes a rotating disk 112 that rotates horizontally inside a housing 111, and the rotating disk is rotated by centrifugal force that particles on the rotating disk 112 receive from the rotating disk 112. Head to the outer edge of 112. The particle group that has reached the outer edge of the rotating disk 112 is raised by the gas blown from the gap between the rotating disk 112 and the side wall of the housing 111 and returned to the center side of the rotating disk 112. In this way, granulation proceeds as the particles circulate in the housing 111. In addition, the centrifugal rolling fluidized bed granulator 120 shown in FIG. 26 has a screen structure in which the rotating disk 122 includes a plurality of vents 123. In addition to the above-described functions, Granulation proceeds by particles floating and fluidized by the gas jetted upward. Since these rolling granulators are publicly known (refer to the JPO homepage, “Standard Technology Collection” “Agricultural Chemical Formulation Technology (B-1- (4) Coating Technology)”), detailed description is omitted. To do.

  Then, instead of spraying the binder liquid by combining the plasma torch with the fluidized bed granulating apparatus, the centrifugal rolling type granulating apparatus 110, and the centrifugal rolling type fluidized bed granulating apparatus 120, the plasma flame F1 is injected. May be. Note that only the binder liquid may be used, or the plasma flame F1 and the binder liquid may be used in combination.

  (4) As shown in FIG. 27, if the gas in the lower chamber 104 is forcibly exhausted by the suction pump 98 connected to the exhaust port 106 so that the lower chamber 104 has a negative pressure, The introduction of particles into the cylindrical heating furnace 70 can be performed more smoothly.

  (5) As shown in FIG. 28, the composite particles that have passed through the cylindrical heating furnace 70 are collected and electrostatically adsorbed with the particles discharged from the particle discharging apparatus 20, and are again passed through the cylindrical heating furnace 70. Also good. If this is repeated, the composite particles can be gradually enlarged. That is, granulation can be performed.

  (6) In the above-described embodiment, two particle discharging devices 20 are provided. However, three or more particle discharging devices 20 may be provided to generate composite particles in which three or more different particles are combined. Good.

  (7) Any one of the plurality of particle discharge devices 20 is disposed right above the cylindrical heating furnace 70, and the other particle discharge device 20 is disposed on the side of the upper surface opening of the cylindrical heating furnace 70. The particles discharged downward from the other particle discharging device 20 are blown away from the upper part of the cylindrical heating furnace 70 toward the lower part of the cylindrical heating furnace 70, so that a plurality of particles are directly above the cylindrical heating furnace 70. Alternatively, electrostatic adsorption may be performed inside the upper part of the cylindrical heating furnace.

  (8) In the above embodiment, the ionizers 85 and 85 are arranged below the two particle discharge devices 20 and 20, respectively, but the ionizer 85 is provided only below the one particle discharge device 20 and the other particles are discharged. A nozzle that blows out gas that does not contain gas ions may be disposed below the discharge device 20. Here, even if the particles dropped from the other particle discharge device 20 are electrically neutral, if the particles dropped from one particle discharge device 20 are positively or negatively charged, they Can be electrostatically adsorbed. This is because even an electrically neutral particle attracts or repels an external positive charge, and electrons move (dielectric polarization) in the particle.

  (9) In the above-described embodiment, a cylindrical or bowl-shaped particle guide member that guides the particles discharged from the particle discharge devices 20 and 20 to the upper side of the particle introduction tube 75 may be provided. Then, the particles may be charged by contact or friction with the particle guide member.

  (10) As shown in FIG. 29, the cylindrical heating furnace 70 may be provided in multiple stages up and down.

  (11) As shown in FIG. 30, three first swivel legs 35 in the container swivel member 30 may be provided on each of the dust wing 33 side and the particle wing 32 side.

  (12) In the above embodiment, the particles are charged by an ionizer that ejects a gas containing gaseous ions from a nozzle. However, a known charging device is disposed in the movement path of the particles blown off by the gas. Processing may be performed.

  (13) In the above embodiment, the plasma is maintained in a constant state so that the amount of radicals in the plasma frames F1 and F2 is constant, but other parameters (ion density and electron density in the plasma) are The plasma frames F1 and F2 may be held in a constant state by controlling them to be constant.

  (14) At the top of the particle introduction tube 75, an ionizer 85 for binding particles is attached downward toward the upper end opening of the particle introduction tube 75, and electrostatic ion wind is constantly generated in the particle introduction tube 75. A gas wind pressure is applied to the particles discharged downward from the particle supply device 80, the particles are moved to the electrostatic ion wind of the particle introduction tube 75, and the particles are electrostatically adsorbed by the electrostatic ion wind to the particle introduction tube 75. The particles may be directly charged and electrostatically adsorbed to each other and guided to the particle introduction tube 75.

  (15) In the third embodiment, the granulation is performed using the plasma flame F1 in the rolling granulator 11, but the particles can be granulated without using the action of ions or radicals in the plasma. In the case of a granular material, it may be replaced with another heat source (for example, a heater or a gas burner).

  (16) In the above embodiment, the particles are supplied to a position near the bottom of the rotary pan 12, and the particle group rolls in the rotary pan 12 due to the rotation of the rotary pan 12. May be small and particles may not accompany the rotational speed of the rotary pan 12. In that case, an unevenness or a step may be provided on the inner surface particle contact surface of the rotating pan 12 to increase the frictional force. The degree of the particle contact surface unevenness and the step shape (concave only, convex only, depth, height, size, arrangement, shape) are adjusted in time according to the characteristics of the particle and become close to the rotation speed of the rotating pan 12. It is desirable to increase efficiency.

  (17) The plasma flame F2 in the cylindrical heating furnace 70 applies a voltage between a pair of parallel plate electrodes arranged in parallel, or between a needle electrode and a plate electrode, or between a line electrode and a plate electrode. May be generated. Further, the plasma generating tube 71 may be a capillary (capillary, capillary). The plasma generation mechanism and the torch shape may be selected and used according to the composite particle application and equipment configuration.

(18) The upper end cap 26 and the particle discharge cylinder 24 of the particle group container 21 are both fastened to the large diameter cylinder and the small diameter cylinder by screwing. The fastening structure may be.

  (19) As shown in FIG. 31, a crushing blade 96 is provided so as to be fitted to the upper part of the horizontal plate 29A in the rotating shaft 27A of the particle discharging device 20, and the rotating crushing blade 96 and the fixed horizontal plate 29A are used. A mechanism for crushing the mass of the aggregated granular material in the large diameter cylindrical portion 22 may be provided.

  (20) A spray nozzle for spraying a binder for binding particles is attached to the upper portion of the particle introduction tube 75 downwardly toward the upper end opening of the particle introduction tube 75, and sprays to the particle introduction tube 75 at all times or at appropriate times. Alternatively, a gas wind pressure may be applied to the particles discharged downward from the particle discharging device 20, and the particles may be electrostatically adsorbed to each other and sprayed with a binding agent to be guided to the particle introduction pipe 75. .

  (21) In order to increase the degree of binding of one or all of the particles in order to increase the degree of binding of the particles that are electrostatically adsorbed to each other by applying gas wind pressure to the particles discharged downward from the particle discharging device 20 Pre-processing may be performed.

1 is a conceptual diagram of a composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Cross section of particle introduction tube Top view of particle introduction tube Cross section of particle ejector Enlarged cross section of particle ejector Perspective view of revolving member in container Scraper perspective view Perspective view of upper screen wall Cross-sectional perspective view of lower screen wall Cross section of lower screen wall Perspective view of upper screen wall Perspective view of lower screen wall Front view of composite particle manufacturing equipment (A) Conceptual diagram of coalesced particles with two particles attached, (B) Conceptual diagram of coalesced particles with three particles attached, (C) Conceptual diagram of coalesced particles with five particles attached, (D) One Conceptual diagram of coalesced particles with particles covered by the other particle Conceptual diagram of composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to second embodiment Sectional drawing of the rolling granulation apparatus which concerns on 3rd Embodiment Front view showing the injection position of the plasma flame in the rotating container (A) Front view of rolling granulator equipped with ion implantation nozzle, (B) Front view showing its modification Sectional drawing of the particle group container which concerns on 4th Embodiment Perspective view of revolving member in container Top view of screen wall and scraper The top view which showed the modification of a screen wall and a scraper The top view which showed the modification of a screen wall and a scraper Conceptual diagram of composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to modification Schematic diagram of rolling granulator according to modification Schematic diagram of rolling granulator according to modification Conceptual diagram of composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to modification Conceptual diagram of composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to modification Conceptual diagram of composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to modification Partial sectional view of a particle group container provided with a container swivel member according to a modified example Side sectional view of particle discharger according to modification

Explanation of symbols

20 Particle ejector 50 Control device (plasma control device)
51 Radical measurement device 70 Cylindrical heating furnace (plasma generator)
71 Plasma generator tube 85 Ionizer (ion generator, forced charging means, wind pressure moving means)
100 Composite Particle Manufacturing Device 105 Gas Supply Port F2 Plasma Flame

Claims (5)

In the composite particle manufacturing apparatus in which the inside of the cylindrical heating furnace is lowered in a state where a plurality of particles are electrically attached, and the particles are fixed to each other.
A plurality of particle discharge devices disposed above the cylindrical heating furnace and capable of discharging a predetermined amount of particles downward;
Forced charging means for charging particles discharged from the particle discharging device;
A wind pressure is applied to the particles discharged from the particle discharge device, and the particles from all the particle discharge devices are collected directly above the cylindrical heating furnace or inside the upper portion of the cylindrical heating furnace and electrically connected to each other. An apparatus for producing composite particles, comprising: a wind pressure moving means for adhering.   The said forced charging means and the said wind pressure moving means were combined with the ion generator which can spray the ion wind of gaseous ion to the particle | grains discharged | emitted from the said particle | grain discharge | emission apparatus, The said generator is combined. Composite particle manufacturing equipment. The cylindrical heating furnace is a plasma generator that includes a plasma generating tube that is open at both upper and lower ends, and supplies a plasma flame generating gas inside the plasma generating tube to generate a plasma flame.
A radical measuring device that measures radicals in the plasma flame, and a plasma control device that adjusts the supply amount or supply pressure of plasma flame generating gas to the plasma torch or the power for generating plasma so that the radicals have a constant value. The composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: The composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the plasma flame generating gas supplied to the plasma generating tube is nitrogen . The plurality of particle discharge devices are accommodated in a sealing case having a gas supply port and a gas discharge port, and the cylindrical heating furnace is passed through the bottom wall of the sealing case. The lower opening is the gas outlet,
Gas is supplied into the sealing case from the gas supply port, and the gas is discharged to the outside of the sealing case through a lower opening of the cylindrical heating furnace as the gas discharge port. The composite particle manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein

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