JP5087039B2 - Water purification cartridge and water purifier - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention has a filter medium made of activated carbon molded into a cylindrical shape having a hollow flow path therein, a first lid portion that presses one end surface of the filter medium, and an opening that is connected to the hollow flow path. The present invention relates to a water purification cartridge comprising a second lid portion that presses the other end surface of the filter medium.

Usually, in a water purification cartridge having a cylindrical filter medium having a hollow channel inside, an outer filter is provided on the outer peripheral surface excluding one end surface and the other end surface of the filter medium, and an inner filter is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the hollow channel. (See Patent Document 1). In such a water purification cartridge, raw water is filtered in the process of circulating through the inside of the filter medium from the radially outer side to the inner side of the cylindrical filter medium, and downstream as purified water through a hollow channel inside the filter medium. Led.
In addition, when the filter medium is granular activated carbon or the like, the inner filter leaks a part of the granular activated carbon that breaks down into pieces of the filter medium together with purified water through the hollow channel. It comes to prevent.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-212555

  In the above-described water purification cartridge, in order to prevent the filter medium fragments from leaking to the downstream side, an inner filter must be provided on the inner wall of the hollow flow path formed inside the filter medium, increasing the number of parts, There was a problem that the structure was complicated and it took time to manufacture.

  This invention is made | formed in view of said subject, The objective exists in the point which provides the water purifier which can prevent that a filter medium leaks outside by simple structure, and a water purifier provided with the same. .

The water purification cartridge of the present invention includes a filter medium made of activated carbon molded into a cylindrical shape having a hollow channel therein, a first lid portion that presses one end surface of the filter medium, and an opening portion that is connected to the hollow channel. And a second lid portion that presses the other end surface of the filter medium,
The characteristic configuration is that the outer surface of the filter medium is formed in a bag shape while being sandwiched between the one end surface of the filter medium and the first lid portion and between the other end surface of the filter medium and the second lid portion. An outer surface covering member covering the
After the raw water is circulated through the filter medium in the radial direction and filtered and guided to the hollow flow path, the raw water is guided to the outside through the outer surface covering member at the opening of the second lid, or The second lid portion is guided to the hollow flow path from the opening, and after passing through the filter medium in the radial direction and being filtered, is guided to the outside through the outer surface covering member.

As described above, in the filter medium having a hollow flow path, especially the filter medium located in the vicinity of the inner surface of the hollow flow path may be broken by a long-term use or the like, and the broken pieces of the filter medium may be mixed with purified water. According to the above characteristic configuration, it is appropriate that the outer surface covering member that covers the outer surface of the filter medium in a bag shape can reliably capture the fragments of the filter medium, and that the fragments of the filter medium and the like are mixed with the purified water guided downstream. Can be prevented. Here, the outer surface includes at least an outer surface provided along the axial direction of the filter medium and both end surfaces thereof.
Further, in the water purification cartridge of the present invention, the outer surface of the filter medium is covered in a bag shape with the outer surface covering member, so that the filter medium collapses and leaks downstream without providing an inner filter or the like on the inner surface of the hollow channel. It can prevent suitably. Thereby, it is not necessary to provide a separate filter on the inner surface of the hollow passage of the filter medium in particular, and the number of parts can be suppressed, and a water purification cartridge can be manufactured by a relatively simple process with a simple configuration.

  The further characteristic structure of the water purification cartridge of this invention exists in the point that all the outer surfaces except the said one end surface and the said other end surface become the inflow surface of raw | natural water.

In the conventional water purification cartridge, in order to support the filter member radially inward on the outer surface of the filter medium, the filter member is supported by contacting the first cover portion and the second cover portion with the outer surface of the filter medium in the radial direction. In such a water purification cartridge, since the filtration area through which raw water circulates is reduced by the collar, the filtration function of the cylindrical filter medium has not been sufficiently exhibited.
On the other hand, in the water purification cartridge of the present invention, since the outer surface covering member that covers the outer surface of the filter medium in a bag shape is provided, it is not necessary to provide the filter member as described above, and the first lid portion and the second lid portion are not provided. There is no need to provide a flange or the like on the outside in the radial direction.
That is, in the water purification cartridge of the present invention, as in the above-described characteristic configuration, the filter medium can have all of the outer surfaces except the one end surface and the other end surface as the raw water inflow surface. Thereby, raw | natural water can be distribute | circulated and filtered to the inner side or outer side of the radial direction of a filter medium from all the outer surfaces except the one end surface and other end surface of a filter medium, ie, an outer surface. As a result, the outer surface, which is the filtration area of the filter medium formed in a cylindrical shape, all functions as an effective filtration area, and the filtration function of the filter medium formed in the cylindrical shape is effectively exhibited.

The further characteristic structure of the water purification cartridge of this invention exists in the point which the said outer surface covering member consists of a nonwoven fabric, and the edge parts of the nonwoven fabric sheet adhere to each other by heat welding, and become the said bag shape.
The above non-woven fabric, synthesis in basis weight (areal density) of ^{15g / m 2 ~60g / m 2} , polypropylene fibers, polyvinyl alcohol fibers, polyacrylonitrile fibers, polyvinyl chloride fibers, polyethylene fibers It is preferably a fiber.

  According to the above characteristic configuration, the outer surface covering member that covers the outer surface of the filter medium in a bag shape is formed of a non-woven fabric that is less likely to be damaged even if the raw water is passed for a relatively long period of time. Can continue to be properly captured. In addition, since the end portions of the outer surface covering member are attached to each other by heat welding, the outer surface of the filter medium can be covered in a bag shape by a relatively simple method.

  A further characteristic configuration of the water purification cartridge according to the present invention is that the outer surface covering member is formed by spraying a fibrous organic polymer substance on the outer surface of the filter medium.

  According to the above characteristic configuration, the substantially continuous fibrous organic polymer material is sprayed on the outer surface of the filter medium, and they are fused together to form the outer surface covering member. Can be formed. Thereby, especially the outer surface of a filter medium can be reinforced appropriately and it can control effectively that a filter medium collapses.

  The characteristic structure of the water purifier provided with the water purification cartridge of the present invention is that the first lid and the second lid are pressed toward the filter medium in the axial direction of the filter medium.

  According to the above characteristic configuration, the first lid portion and the second lid portion are pressed from the outside toward the filter medium side in the axial direction of the filter medium, so that the outer surface covering member becomes the first lid section and the filter medium by the pressing force. It is possible to realize a water purifier that is appropriately held between the one end surface of the second lid portion and the other end surface of the second lid portion and the filter medium.

It is sectional drawing which shows embodiment of the water purification cartridge of this invention and a shower head type water purifier provided with the same. It is an expanded sectional view of the water purification cartridge of the present invention. It is sectional drawing of the water purification cartridge of this invention produced by the electrospinning method, and a shower head type water purifier provided with the same. It is sectional drawing which shows embodiment of the water purification cartridge of this invention, and a countertop type water purifier provided with the same.

[First Embodiment]
1st Embodiment of the water purification cartridge 10 of this invention and the shower head type water purifier 100 provided with the same is described based on FIG.1 and FIG.2.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention includes a filter medium 1 made of activated carbon formed into a cylindrical shape having a hollow channel 7 therein, and a first end that presses and supports one end surface of the filter medium 1. The lid 30 includes an opening 32 communicating with the hollow flow path 7 and a second lid 31 that presses and supports the other end surface of the filter medium 1.

  The filter medium 1 is formed by mixing granular activated carbon and fibrous activated carbon with a binder into a cylindrical shape having a hollow channel 7 inside. Specifically, for example, to form a hollow cylindrical filter medium 1 (120 mm in length in the axial direction, 7 mm in inner diameter, 28 mm in outer diameter), 20 g of activated carbon (WHA60 / 140N: manufactured by Nippon Environment Chemicals), 2 g of polyethylene resin (GUR2105: manufactured by Ticona) as a binder is mixed, sealed in a molding container, pressurized at 0.5 Mpa, heated at 180 ° C. for 50 minutes, cooled and molded. .

The first lid portion 30 includes a convex portion 51 that contacts the inner peripheral surface of the hollow flow path 7 of the filter medium 1 and positions the filter medium 1 in the radial direction.
The second lid portion 31 is provided with an opening portion 32 that is connected to the hollow flow path 7 provided inside the filter medium 1. The opening 32 includes an annular flange 50 that contacts the inner peripheral surface of the hollow flow path 7 of the filter medium 1 and positions the filter medium 1 in the radial direction. Further, an annular support portion 52 is provided on the side opposite to the filter material 1 of the second lid portion 31 in the axial direction of the filter material 1 and is looped to the annular support portion 38 of the showerhead water purification discharge portion 34 described later. Yes. The annular support portion 52 is provided with a second O-ring 42 that fits in a second concave groove portion 43 provided along the outer periphery in the circumferential direction, and between the annular support portion 38 of the shower head water purification discharge pipe portion 34. It is designed to seal.

As shown in FIG. 2, the outer surface of the filter medium 1 described above is provided with an outer surface covering member 2 that covers it on the bag. Here, the outer surface includes at least an outer surface provided along the axial direction of the filter medium 1 and both end surfaces thereof. The outer surface covering member 2 is configured to cover portions where the hollow flow path 7 is formed on both end surfaces of the filter medium 1. And the said filter medium 1 is hold | maintained the position in the state clamped between the one end surface of the filter medium 1, and the 1st cover part 30, and between the other end surface of the filter medium 1, and the 2nd cover part 31. The
In the present embodiment, the outer surface covering member 2 is made of a nonwoven fabric or the like, and its end portions are joined together by heat welding or the like to form a bag shape.

  In the present embodiment, the water purification cartridge 10 is configured to be insertable into the shower head main body 33 with the first lid portion 30 as an upstream side and the second lid portion 31 as a downstream side.

As shown in FIG. 1, the shower head main body 33 has a downstream end portion 37 on the downstream side in the flow direction of raw water, and an upstream end portion 40 of the shower head purified water outflow portion 34 is threadedly connected thereto. It is configured as follows.
The downstream end portion 37 of the shower head main body 33 has a first concave groove portion 35 provided along the outer periphery thereof, and is configured by fitting a first O-ring 36 therein. The first O-ring 36 has a function of sealing between the downstream end portion 37 of the shower head body 33 and the upstream end portion 40 of the shower head purified water outflow portion 34 when screwed. .
The shower head purified water outflow portion 34 is provided with an annular support portion 38 that is fitted on the second lid portion 31 of the purified water cartridge 10 to position the purified water cartridge 10 in the radial direction. Further, a pressing support portion 39 is provided for pressing the second lid portion 31 of the water purification cartridge 10 in the axial direction from the downstream side to the upstream side to position the water purification cartridge 10 in the axial direction.

When the purified water cartridge 10 is inserted into the shower head body 33 and the shower head purified water outflow portion 34 is screwed to the shower head body 33, the raw water is guided between the purified water cartridge 10 and the shower head body 33, The filter medium 1 is circulated in the radial direction through the outer surface covering member 2 and filtered, flows through the hollow flow path 7 inside the filter medium 1, and is again opened through the outer surface covering member 2 through the opening of the second lid portion 31. 32 to the inside of the shower head clean water outflow portion 34.
Thereby, the debris and the like of the filter medium 1 are surely captured by the outer surface covering member 2 that covers the outer surface of the filter medium 1 in a bag shape, and the debris and the like of the filter medium 1 are mixed with the purified water guided downstream. Can be prevented appropriately.

[Comparative test]
The performance comparison test between the above-described water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention and the conventional water purification cartridge and the test results will be described below.
In the conventional water purification cartridge, a covering member is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the filter medium 1 as an outer filter by heat-sealing, and the filter medium is a 10 mm-high bottle provided in advance on the first lid portion 30 and the second lid portion 31. The water purification cartridge 10 according to the present invention is externally supported by a portion (not shown), and as described above, all the outer surfaces (outer surfaces) except the one end surface and the other end surface of the filter medium 1 are raw water. It will be the inflow surface. That is, the inflow area of the raw water of the water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention is configured to be larger than the inflow area of the raw water of the conventional water purification cartridge.
In this test, the filter medium 1 to be used is as shown below, and the same one is used in the water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention and the conventional water purification cartridge.
The filter medium 1 is 70% by weight of pitch-based activated carbon fiber (Adol Co., Ltd .: A-15) and 23% by weight of pitch-based general-purpose carbon fiber (Osaka Gas Chemical Co., Ltd .: DonaCarbo S) as a reinforcing material. And 7% by weight of acrylic fiber as a heat-meltable fiber. The shape is such that the outer diameter is 26 mm, the inner diameter is 9 mm, and the height is 120 mm. And on the outer surface of the said filter medium 1, Unitika Ltd. make: Elves S0503WDO-1050 is provided as the outer surface covering member 2. The water purification cartridge of the present invention covered the outer surface of the filter medium in a bag shape with the outer surface covering member 2, and the conventional water purification cartridge covered the outer peripheral surface of the filter medium 1 with the outer surface covering member 2.
〔Test conditions〕
With respect to the conventional water purification cartridge equipped with the filter medium 1 as described above and the water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention, a predetermined amount of test water (free residual chlorine concentration: 2 ppm) is passed from the outer surface of the filter medium 1 to the filter medium 1 in the radial direction. The accumulated flow rate until the free residual chlorine removal rate of the purified water after passing through the filter medium 1 dropped to 80% (free residual chlorine concentration: 0.4 ppm) was measured.
〔Test results〕
As a result of the above test, the accumulated flow rate of the test water that reduces the residual chlorine removal rate of the purified water to 80% or less is 1510 L when filtered using a conventional water purification cartridge, whereas the water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention is When used and filtered, it was 1800 L.
From this, it was proved that the water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention was able to improve the filtration performance as compared with the conventional one.

[Another embodiment]

(A) In the said embodiment, the said water purification cartridge 10 is comprised so that it can insert in the shower head main body 33 in the state which made the said 1st cover part 30 the upstream and made the said 2nd cover part 31 the downstream. Although shown here, separately, the second lid 31 may be inserted into the shower head body 33 with the second lid 31 on the upstream side and the first lid 30 on the downstream side.
In this case, the raw water is guided to the hollow flow path 7 from the opening 32 of the second lid portion 31, flows through the filter medium 1 radially outward, is filtered, and then passes through the outer surface covering member 2. Then, it is led between the shower head main body 33 and the water purification cartridge 10 and then led to the shower head water purification unit 34 side.

(B) As shown in FIG. 4, the water purification cartridge 10 of this invention can be applied suitably also to a countertop type water purifier, The embodiment is shown below. In addition, about the structure demonstrated in the said embodiment, it shall attach | subject the same code | symbol and may omit description.
The water purifier 100 in the present embodiment is configured as a counter top type water purifier installed in a kitchen counter, and raw water is supplied from the switching valve 61 connected to the faucet 60 and the switching valve 61 through the water supply hose 62. A water purifier main body 63, a water purification cartridge 10 that filters raw water received from the water purifier main body 63, and a water purification discharge pipe 64 that guides the purified water filtered by the water purification cartridge 10 to the outside through the water purification outlet 65 are provided. .
The switching valve supplies the raw water received from the faucet 60 through the water supply hose 62 to the water purifier main body 63 by the switching lever 61 and supplies the purified water to the outside from the purified water discharge pipe 64 and the raw water received from the faucet. It is configured to be switchable to a state of discharging from a shower port (not shown).

  The water purifier main body 63 includes a cylindrical main body casing member 66 and a connection joint member 67 provided below the main body casing member 66 to which the water supply hose 62 is connected. A water supply path 68 through which the raw water supplied from the water supply hose 62 circulates is provided.

  The water purification cartridge 10 of the present invention has a cylindrical housing bottom portion 70 that is connected to the water supply path 68 of the connection joint member 67, one end connected to the cylindrical housing bottom portion 70, and the other water purification outlet 65. Is surrounded by a cylindrical casing 69 having a discharge opening 71 that is connected in communication therewith. In the water purification cartridge 10, the opening portion 32 of the second lid portion 31 communicates with the discharge pipe opening portion 71 of the cylindrical housing 69, and the first lid portion 30 contacts the cylindrical housing bottom portion 70. Arranged.

  Also in the present embodiment, the filter medium 1 is covered in a bag shape with the outer surface covering member 2 described above, and it is preferable to prevent the filter medium debris that has collapsed due to the deterioration of the filter medium 1 from being led to the downstream side.

  In the purified water supply state, the raw water is supplied from the water supply hose 62 through the water supply path 68 provided in the connection joint member 67 of the water purifier body to the cylindrical housing 69 and the cylindrical housing bottom 70 and the water purification cartridge 10. The filter medium 1 of the water purification cartridge 10 is circulated from the outside to the inside in the radial direction, filtered and guided to the hollow flow path 7, and the opening 32 of the second lid 31, the cylindrical housing 69 The discharge pipe opening 71 and the purified water discharge port 65 are circulated in the order of description, and are guided to the outside from the purified water discharge pipe 64.

(C) In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the outer surface covering member 2 of the present embodiment can be formed of an organic polymer material using the following method in addition to the nonwoven fabric described above. In this case, a convex portion 51 is formed on the first lid portion 30 of the water purification cartridge 10 so that the outer surface covering member 2 made of an organic polymer substance can be formed at the formation site of the hollow flow path 7 on both end faces of the filter medium 1. It is desirable to adopt a configuration in which the second lid portion 31 is not provided with the annular flange 50.
That is, the outer surface covering member 2 can be formed by spraying an organic polymer material onto the outer surface of the filter medium 1 by electrospinning, and attaching it in a fibrous form. As the organic polymer material, for example, a material melted and sprayed at a high temperature can be suitably used. As the organic polymer material to be melted, for example, polyethylene terephthalate which is a thermoplastic polymer, polyamide such as 66 nylon, and the like are preferably used.
Moreover, an organic polymer substance that can be dissolved in an organic solvent can also be suitably used. For example, a mixed solution of dichloromethane and trifluoroacetic acid can be applied to polyethylene terephthalate, and formic acid or dimethylacetamide can be applied to polyamide such as 66 nylon as a solvent.

  In addition to the electrospinning method, the outer surface covering member 2 can be formed by attaching an organic polymer substance to the outer surface of the filter medium 1 by applying pressure to the filter medium 1. In this case, the component weight ratio of polypropylene (melting point 162 ° C.) as the core component and ethylene-propylene-butene-1 terpolymer (melting point 133 ° C.) as the sheath component is 60:40, and the fiber thickness is 320 dtex. The outer surface covering member 2 is formed with respect to the outer surface of the filter medium 1 by putting 3.0 g of the sheath-core type thermoadhesive composite monofilament cut into 10 mm (ES fiber) in a container together with the filter medium 1 and pressurizing it. .

  In addition to the electrospinning method, the outer surface covering member 2 can be formed by adhering an organic polymer substance to the filter medium 1 to the outer surface of the filter medium 1 by suction. In this case, the component weight ratio of polypropylene (melting point 162 ° C.) as the core component and ethylene-propylene-butene-1 terpolymer (melting point 133 ° C.) as the sheath component is 60:40, and the fiber thickness is 320 dtex. 3.0 g of a sheath-core type thermoadhesive composite monofilament cut to 10 mm (ES fiber) is dispersed in 30 times the weight of water and placed in a container together with the filter medium 1. Thereafter, the organic polymer substance is sucked to the outside with a suction pump or the like while passing through the filter medium 1, so that the fibrous polymer compound is adhered to the surface of the filter medium 1, and water as a solvent is externally applied. The outer surface covering member 2 is formed on the outer surface of the filter medium 1.

  The water purification cartridge of the present invention and the water purifier provided with the same can be effectively used as a water purification cartridge and a water purifier that can prevent the filter medium from leaking to the outside with a simple configuration.

1: Filter medium 2: Outer surface covering member 7: Hollow flow path 30: 1st cover part 31: 2nd cover part 32: Opening part 35: 1st concave groove part 36: 1st O-ring 42: 2nd O-ring 43: 1st 2 concave groove part 100: water purifier

Claims (5)

A filter medium made of activated carbon molded into a cylindrical shape having a hollow flow path therein, a first lid for pressing one end surface of the filter medium, and an opening communicating with the hollow flow path. A water purification cartridge comprising a second lid for pressing the end face,
An outer surface covering member that covers the outer surface of the filter medium in a bag shape while being sandwiched between the one end surface of the filter medium and the first lid portion and between the other end surface of the filter medium and the second lid portion. With
Raw water is filtered through the front filter material in the radial direction and guided to the hollow flow path, and then guided to the outside via the outer surface covering member at the opening of the second lid, or A water purification cartridge guided to the hollow flow path from the opening of the second lid, circulated through the filter medium in the radial direction and filtered, and then guided to the outside through the outer surface covering member.   2. The water purification cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the outer surface of the filter medium excluding the one end surface and the other end surface is an inflow surface of raw water.   3. The water purification cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the outer surface covering member is made of a non-woven fabric, and ends of the non-woven fabric sheet adhere to each other by heat welding to form the bag shape.   The water purification cartridge according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the outer surface covering member is formed by spraying a fibrous organic polymer material onto the outer surface of the filter medium.   It is a water purifier provided with the water purification cartridge in any one of the said Claim 1 thru | or 4, Comprising: The purified water by which the said 1st cover part and the said 2nd cover part are pressed to the filter medium side in the axial center direction of the said filter medium. vessel.

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