JP7400656B2 - fluid sterilizer - Google Patents

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to fluid sterilization devices.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, fluid sterilizers have been known that sterilize fluids such as water using ultraviolet light emitted from a light source such as an LED (for example, see Patent Document 1). In a device using such a light source, a heat dissipation structure is important for suppressing deterioration of the light source and reduction in light intensity due to temperature rise.

According to Patent Document 1, the heat generated by the light source is efficiently dissipated by a heat sink provided in the light source module device, and is also conducted to a cylindrical body serving as a fluid sterilization section of a fluid sterilization device, so that the heat is radiated by the fluid. It is said that heat is also dissipated.

JP2020-89462A

However, according to Patent Document 1, a heat sink is used to dissipate heat from the light source, and the size of the heat sink is large, so it is not suitable for downsizing the fluid sterilization device. In addition, in order to efficiently dissipate heat from the cylinder to the fluid, the cylinder must have high thermal conductivity, which narrows the range of choices for the material of the cylinder and may impede weight reduction. There is.

An object of the present invention is to provide a fluid sterilizer that sterilizes fluids such as water by irradiating it with ultraviolet light, which has a structure that can effectively dissipate heat generated by a light source, and which is compact and lightweight. An object of the present invention is to provide a possible fluid sterilization device.

In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention provides the following fluid sterilization devices [1] to [6].

[1] It has a flow path for flowing the fluid to be sterilized, an inlet for causing the fluid to flow into the flow path, and an outlet for causing the fluid to flow out from the flow path, and has a lengthwise direction. A light source that emits ultraviolet light is housed in a base body that has a channel tube with an opening at one end and a protrusion that protrudes toward the light extraction side, and the protrusion is fitted inside the opening to provide the an ultraviolet light irradiation module that irradiates the ultraviolet light into the flow path, which is fixed to one end of the flow path; an annular cooling member for cooling the light source by dissipating heat from the light source to the fluid, the cooling member being exposed to the flow pipe and the protrusion; A fluid sterilizing device that prevents leakage of the fluid from an interface between the flow path tube and the protrusion.
[2] The flow pipe has a cylindrical member therein for dividing the flow path, one end of the cylindrical member in the length direction faces the inlet, and the other end faces the ultraviolet light. The fluid facing the irradiation module and flowing in from the inlet passes through the inside of the cylindrical member, passes through a region outside the cylindrical member where the cooling member is exposed, and flows out from the outlet. , The fluid sterilization device according to [1] above, wherein the light emitted from the ultraviolet light irradiation module is irradiated inside the cylindrical member.
[3] The cylindrical member causes the fluid flowing inside the cylindrical member, whose position in the longitudinal direction of the flow pipe is farther from the outlet than the cooling member, to flow to the outside of the cylindrical member. The fluid sterilization device according to [2] above, wherein the fluid sterilization device has a hole for the purpose of sterilization, and the area of the hole is larger than the area of the inlet and the outlet.
[4] The fluid sterilization device according to [2] or [3] above, wherein the cylindrical member is made of fluororesin.
[5] The end of the cylindrical member on the inflow port side has a hole through which the fluid passes at a position apart from the center thereof, and is formed by a flat diffusion plate that diffuses the fluid flowing in from the inflow port. The fluid sterilization device according to any one of [2] to [4] above, which is covered.
[6] The fluid sterilization device according to any one of [1] to [6] above, wherein the flow path tube is made of resin.

According to the present invention, there is provided a fluid sterilizer that sterilizes fluids such as water by irradiating ultraviolet light, which is compact and lightweight while having a structure that can effectively release heat generated by a light source. A possible fluid sterilization device can be provided.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fluid sterilization device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the fluid sterilization device taken along its length. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a cooling member included in the fluid sterilization device. FIG. 4(a) is a side view of a cylindrical member included in the fluid sterilization device. FIG. 4(b) is a cross-sectional view of the cylindrical member taken along cutting line AA shown in FIG. 4(a). FIG. 5 is a plan view of a diffusion plate included in the fluid sterilization device.

[Embodiment]
(Configuration of fluid sterilizer)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fluid sterilization device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the fluid sterilization device 1 taken along its longitudinal direction.

The fluid sterilizer 1 is a device for sterilizing fluid (mainly liquids such as water) and suppressing the propagation of bacteria. A flow pipe 10 has an inlet 102 for causing the fluid to flow in, an outlet 103 for causing fluid to flow out from the flow channel 101, and an ultraviolet ray inside the flow channel 101 fixed to one end in the length direction of the flow pipe 10. The ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 that irradiates light and the light source included in the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 provided inside the flow path tube 10 and exposed to the flow path 101 are cooled by dissipating the heat of the light source to the fluid. An annular (cylindrical) cooling member 12 is provided.

The flow pipe 10 has an opening 104 at one end in the longitudinal direction (left-right direction in FIG. 2) into which the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is fitted. The inlet 102 is provided at the end of the flow pipe 10 opposite to the opening 104, and the outlet 103 is provided on the side surface of the flow pipe 10. For example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inlet 102 and the outlet 103 of the flow pipe 10 have an outwardly protruding tubular shape to which a tube for flowing fluid can be connected. The shape of the flow path pipe 10 is typically a circular tube shape as shown in FIG.

The ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 includes a light emitting element 111 as a light source that emits ultraviolet light, a substrate 112 having wiring on which the light emitting element 111 is mounted, and a base 113 that accommodates the light emitting element 111 and the substrate 112.

The base body 113 has a protrusion 114 that protrudes toward the light extraction side, and by fitting the protrusion 114 inside the opening 104 of the flow pipe 10, the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is attached to one end of the flow pipe 10. is fixed. Since the base body 113 is closely fitted into the flow pipe 10 , it has a shape corresponding to the shape of the flow pipe 10 . Further, the shape of the protrusion 114 is typically annular. For example, when the flow pipe 10 has a circular pipe shape, the planar shape of the base body 113 (the shape seen from the flow pipe 10 side) is circular, and the protrusion 114 has an annular shape.

In the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 , the light emitting element 111 and the substrate 112 are housed in a recess 115 of a base 113 , and the opening surface of the recess 115 is covered with a waterproof film 116 . As a result, the space in which the light emitting element 111 of the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is mounted is sealed, preventing fluid from entering. Moreover, the ultraviolet light emitted from the light emitting element 111 is transmitted through the waterproof film 116 and extracted.

The ultraviolet light emitted by the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 (light emitting element 111) is, for example, ultraviolet light in a wavelength range called UV-A (400 to 315 nm), ultraviolet light in a wavelength range called UV-B (315 to 280 nm), or ultraviolet light in a wavelength range called UV-B (315 to 280 nm). , ultraviolet light (hereinafter referred to as UVC light) in a wavelength range (less than 280 nm) called UV-C, and among these, UVC light is preferred because it has the highest sterilizing effect.

The light emitting element 111 is, for example, an LED chip (Light Emitting Diode) or an LD chip (Laser Diode) that emits ultraviolet light, and may include a lens for adjusting light distribution.

The waterproof film 116 is made of a material such as fluororesin that transmits ultraviolet light emitted by the light emitting element 111. Further, instead of the waterproof film 116, a plate made of a material that transmits ultraviolet light emitted by the light emitting element 111, such as a quartz glass plate, may be used.

The method of fixing the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 to the channel pipe 10 is not particularly limited. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 has a protrusion 115 on the side surface of the base body 113, and the channel tube 10 has an L-shaped linear hole 105 through which the protrusion 115 passes. When the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is inserted into the opening 104 of the flow pipe 10 and then twisted in the circumferential direction, the protrusion 115 enters the curved part of the hole 105, and the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is inserted into the flow pipe 10. The ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is fixed to the flow pipe 10 by the restoring force of the compressed seal parts 151 to 153, which will be described later. Note that the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 may be fixed to the channel pipe 10 using other methods such as screwing.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the cooling member 12. The cooling member 12 has both a sealing function that prevents fluid from leaking from the interface between the flow pipe 10 and the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11, and a cooling function that cools the light emitting element 111 by dissipating the heat of the light emitting element 111 into the fluid. The cooling member 12 is preferably made of a material with high thermal conductivity, such as aluminum, copper, or stainless steel, in order to enhance the cooling effect. Further, in order to effectively exhibit the cooling effect, it is preferable that the thermal conductivity is higher than that of the flow path pipe 10 which is also in contact with the fluid.

The cooling member 12 is installed inside the flow pipe 10 and the protrusion 114 of the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 so as to be in contact with the protrusion 114 . The cooling member 12 is sealed between the flow pipe 10 and the protrusion 114 by annular seal parts 151 and 152 such as O-rings, and fluid leakage from the interface between the flow pipe 10 and the protrusion 114 is prevented. is prevented.

Specifically, along the longitudinal direction of the flow pipe 10 (the insertion direction of the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11), the flow pipe 10 and the cooling member 12 sandwich the seal component 151, and the cooling member 12 and the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 When the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is inserted into the flow path tube 10 with the sealing component 152 sandwiched between the base bodies 113 of the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11, the sealing component 151 and the sealing component 152 are compressed to produce a sealing effect. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, a waterproof film 116 may be sandwiched and fixed between the seal component 152 and the base 113.

The outer side surface 121 of the annular cooling member 12 is in contact with the inner side surface of the protrusion 114 of the base 113, and heat generated in the light emitting element 111 is transmitted to the cooling member 12 via the substrate 112 and the base 113. Moreover, since the inner side surface 122 of the cooling member 12 is exposed to the flow path 101, it comes into contact with the fluid flowing through the flow path 101, and can transfer the heat of the cooling member 12 to the fluid. Therefore, using the cooling member 12, the heat generated in the light emitting element 111 can be effectively released to the fluid. That is, the light emitting element 111 can be cooled by the cooling member 12.

Since the heat generated in the light emitting element 111 can be effectively released to the fluid by the cooling member 12, there is no need to use the flow pipe 10 for heat radiation, and there is no need for the flow pipe 10 to have high thermal conductivity. . Therefore, in the fluid sterilization device 1, there is a wide range of material selection for the flow path tube 10, and for example, lightweight resin can be used as the material for the flow path tube 10 to reduce the weight of the fluid sterilization device 1. . For example, the specific gravity of aluminum is 2.7, and the specific gravity of polycarbonate resin is 1.2. By using polycarbonate resin as the material for the flow pipe 10 instead of aluminum, which has excellent thermal conductivity, the fluid sterilization device 1 can be significantly increased. It can be made lighter.

As shown in FIG. 2, the flow pipe 10 may have a cylindrical member 13 inside that defines the flow path 101. One end of the cylindrical member 13 in the length direction faces the inlet 102, and the other end faces the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11.

The fluid flowing in from the inlet 102 passes through the inside of the cylindrical member 13 (the area surrounded by the side surface 131 on the inside of the cylindrical member 13), and then passes through the outside of the cylindrical member 13 (the area surrounded by the side surface 131 on the inside of the cylindrical member 13). It flows out from the outlet 103 through the area where the cooling member 12 is exposed (the area between the side surface 132 and the inner surface of the flow pipe 10). Then, the light emitted from the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 is irradiated onto the inside of the cylindrical member 13. In this way, by using the cylindrical member 13, the flow path 101 is divided into a section inside the cylindrical member 13 where ultraviolet light is irradiated and a section outside the cylindrical member 13 where the cooling member 12 is cooled. sterilization and cooling of the light emitting element 111 can be performed efficiently.

The cylindrical member 13 has a hole 133 for causing the fluid flowing inside the cylindrical member 13 to flow to the outside of the cylindrical member 13. Since the hole 133 is located farther from the outlet 103 in the longitudinal direction of the flow pipe 10 than the cooling member 12, the fluid that has passed through the hole 133 passes through the area where the cooling member 12 is exposed and takes away the heat from the cooling member 12. After that, the outlet 103 is reached.

FIG. 4(a) is a side view of the cylindrical member 13. FIG. 4(b) is a cross-sectional view of the cylindrical member 13 taken along the cutting line AA shown in FIG. 4(a). The number of holes 133 may be one or more. In the example shown in FIG. 4, four holes 133 are provided at equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the cylindrical member 13. In order to suppress a decrease in the flow velocity of the fluid in the flow pipe 10 and an increase in the pressure in the flow pipe 10, the area of the hole 133 (if a plurality of holes 133 are provided, the total area) It is preferable that the area is larger than the area of the inlet 102 and the outlet 103.

The cylindrical member 13 is made of a material with high resistance and reflectance to ultraviolet light, such as fluororesin, in order to efficiently reflect the ultraviolet light emitted from the ultraviolet light irradiation module 14 on the inner surface 131 and effectively sterilize the fluid. It is preferable to consist of. Examples of such fluororesins include PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), PFA (perfluoroalkoxyalkane), PVF (polyvinyl fluoride), and PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride).

In particular, by using PTFE, which has excellent reflectivity for UVC light, as the material for the cylindrical member 13, fluid can be effectively sterilized using the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 that emits UVC light.

Furthermore, since the cylindrical member 13 blocks most of the ultraviolet light directed toward the inner surface of the flow pipe 10, deterioration of the flow pipe 10 due to exposure to ultraviolet light can be suppressed. For example, even when a resin that does not have high resistance to ultraviolet light is used as the material for the flow path tube 10, the decrease in life can be suppressed.

Since the shape of the cylindrical member 13 is a simple cylindrical shape, commercially available general-purpose fluororesin pipes can be used almost as is, and even if expensive fluororesin is used as the material, the cost will be reduced. can be suppressed.

In particular, PTFE, a fluororesin with excellent reflectivity for UVC light, has a very high melt viscosity and cannot be processed by normal melt processing.In order to process it into the desired shape, PTFE powder must be compressed and fired. It is necessary to cut from the block manufactured by the method, and the material and processing costs are very high. If a general-purpose PTFE pipe can be used, cutting from a PTFE block is not required, so when PTFE is used as the material for the cylindrical member 13, the effect of reducing manufacturing costs will be greater.

The end of the cylindrical member 13 on the inlet 103 side, that is, the fluid inlet of the cylindrical member 13, is preferably covered with a flat diffusion plate 14, as shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the diffusion plate 14. The diffusion plate 14 has a plurality of holes 141 through which fluid passes, at positions apart from its center, and diffuses the fluid flowing in from the inlet 102. The hole 141 is not provided at the center of the diffusion plate 14, but is provided near the outer periphery of the diffusion plate 14 or at a position in contact with the outer periphery. 13 near the inner side surface 131.

In general, the flow velocity of fluid flowing through a flow channel becomes smaller as it approaches the inner wall of the flow channel due to frictional resistance, and the difference between the flow velocity at the center of the flow channel and the center of the flow channel increases. By flowing near the side surface 131 (inner wall), the flow velocity near the side surface 131 of the cylindrical member 13 can be relatively increased, and the difference in flow velocity between the vicinity of the center of the cylindrical member 13 and the vicinity of the side surface 131 can be reduced. As a result, the residence time of the fluid in the flow path 101 is averaged, so that variations in the irradiation time of ultraviolet light due to differences in the fluid flow path are reduced, and sterilization can be performed efficiently.

In order to suppress a decrease in the flow rate of the fluid in the flow pipe 10 and an increase in the pressure inside the flow pipe 10, the total area of the holes 141 is preferably larger than the areas of the inlet 102 and the outlet 103. Further, in order to flow the fluid as evenly as possible near the side surface 131 of the cylindrical member 13, it is preferable that the plurality of holes 141 be arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the diffusion plate 14.

In order to increase the sterilization efficiency, it is preferable that the diffusion plate 14 is made of a fluororesin that reflects the light emitted from the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11, similarly to the cylindrical member 13. In particular, by using PTFE as the material for the diffusion plate 14, sterilization can be effectively performed using the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 that emits UVC light.

In addition, when the diffusion plate 14 is used, since the diffusion plate 14 blocks most of the ultraviolet light directed toward the vicinity of the inlet 102 of the flow path tube 10, the cylindrical member 13 and the diffusion plate 14 prevent the exposure of the flow path tube 10 to ultraviolet light. The deterioration due to this can be more effectively suppressed.

The method of fixing the diffusion plate 14 to the fluid sterilizer 1 is not particularly limited. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the diffusion plate 14 can be sandwiched and fixed between the inner surface of the flow pipe 10 and the end of the cylindrical member 13. By inserting the ultraviolet light irradiation module 11 into the opening 104 of the flow pipe 10, the cylindrical member 13 is pushed in, and the diffusion plate 14 is sandwiched between the inner surface of the flow pipe 10 and the end of the cylindrical member 13. and fixed. In this case, if an annular sealing part 153 such as an O-ring surrounding the diffusion plate 14 is used, the sealing part 153 is sandwiched together with the diffusion plate 14 between the inner surface of the flow path pipe 10 and the end of the cylindrical member 13, and its restoring force This makes it possible to securely fix the cylindrical member 13 and prevent the fluid flowing in from the inlet 102 from flowing directly to the outside of the cylindrical member 13.

Note that a diffusion member having a three-dimensional shape may be used instead of the flat diffusion plate 14, but since a flat plate is structurally simpler, it requires cutting from an expensive fluororesin, especially a block. Manufacturing costs can be reduced when PTFE is used as the material.

(Effects of embodiment)
According to the fluid sterilization device 1 according to the embodiment described above, the light emitting element 111 can be effectively cooled using the cooling member 12. The cooling member 12 fits within the flow pipe 10, and because the cooling function of the cooling member 12 is high, there is no need to use large cooling parts such as a heat sink, so it is possible to downsize the fluid sterilizer 1. It is. Furthermore, by using the cooling member 12, it is possible to cool the light emitting element 111 by dissipating heat to the fluid even if the flow pipe 10 does not have high thermal conductivity. There is a wide range of choices; for example, the weight of the fluid sterilizer 1 can be reduced by using a lightweight resin as the material for the flow path pipe 10.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. Furthermore, the constituent elements of the embodiments described above can be arbitrarily combined without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Furthermore, the above embodiments do not limit the claimed invention. Furthermore, it should be noted that not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential for solving the problems of the invention.

1 Fluid sterilizer 10 Channel tube 101 Channel 102 Inlet 103 Outlet 104 Opening 11 Ultraviolet light irradiation module 111 Light emitting element 113 Base 114 Projection 12 Cooling member 13 Cylindrical member 133 Hole 14 Diffusion plate 141 Hole

Claims (5)

It has a flow path for flowing the fluid to be sterilized, an inlet for causing the fluid to flow into the flow path, and an outlet for causing the fluid to flow out from the flow path, and at one end in the length direction. a flow pipe provided with an opening;
A light source that emits ultraviolet light is accommodated in a base body having a protrusion that protrudes toward the light extraction side, and the protrusion is fitted into the inside of the opening to be fixed to one end of the flow channel. an ultraviolet light irradiation module that irradiates the ultraviolet light to;
An annular ring is provided inside the flow pipe and the protrusion, in contact with the protrusion and exposed to the flow path, for cooling the light source by dissipating the heat of the light source to the fluid. a cooling member;
The cooling member is compressed by being compressed by the flow pipe and the cooling member, and the cooling member and the base body along the longitudinal direction of the flow pipe, so that the cooling member is compressed by the flow pipe and the protrusion. a seal component that is sealed between the flow path pipe and the protrusion to prevent leakage of the fluid from the interface between the flow path pipe and the protrusion;
a cylindrical member provided inside the flow path tube, with one lengthwise end facing the inlet and the other end facing the ultraviolet light irradiation module, for dividing the flow path;
Equipped with
The fluid flowing in from the inlet passes through the inside of the cylindrical member, passes through a region outside the cylindrical member where the cooling member is exposed, and flows out from the outlet;
Light emitted from the ultraviolet light irradiation module is irradiated onto the inside of the cylindrical member.
Fluid sterilizer. The cylindrical member has a hole for causing the fluid flowing inside the cylindrical member to flow to the outside of the cylindrical member, the position of the flow pipe being further from the outlet in the longitudinal direction than the cooling member. has
The area of the hole is larger than the area of the inlet and the outlet,
The fluid sterilization device according to claim 1 . the cylindrical member is made of fluororesin;
The fluid sterilization device according to claim 1 or 2 . An end of the cylindrical member on the inflow port side is covered with a flat diffusion plate that has a hole through which the fluid passes at a position away from the center of the cylindrical member, and that diffuses the fluid that flows in from the inflow port. ,
A fluid sterilization device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 . the flow path tube is made of resin,
A fluid sterilization device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 .

Images