JP7455566B2 - Gas removal concentrator - Google Patents

Description

The present invention uses an adsorption honeycomb rotor carrying an adsorbent that can be regenerated at low temperatures to adsorb and desorb by temperature difference in order to remove or concentrate a target substance from a target gas composed of various gas components. When low-temperature regeneration is possible in the gas removal concentrator, the regeneration gas is heated only by raising the temperature with a regeneration blower for blowing the regeneration gas, instead of using a regeneration heater or the like as the normal regeneration gas heating means. This invention relates to a gas removal concentrator that can achieve energy savings by eliminating the energy required for

Conventionally, as a device capable of separating and removing gaseous substances to be removed from air to be treated in a concentrated state at low temperatures, a breathable adsorption honeycomb rotor holding an amine-based absorbent has been used, for example, as seen in Patent Document 1. An absorption type removal/concentration device is known that can secure the material recovery rate of the device while suppressing the regeneration energy by separating the target substance using the enthalpy difference between the air to be treated and the air for regeneration. Furthermore, by regenerating at low temperatures, problems such as oxidative deterioration and odor of the amine absorbent are reduced.

Regarding low-temperature regeneration, Patent Document 2 discloses a low-temperature regeneration desiccant dehumidifier. The low-temperature regenerating desiccant dehumidifier uses a desiccant rotor that carries an adsorbent such as a polymer sorbent, and in the cooling mode, the desiccant rotor can be regenerated by using the energy of the return air as regenerative energy, so the heating at the front stage of the regeneration inlet is reduced. The hot water coil, which is the source, is not required for basic operation and is energy saving. The hot water coil before the regeneration inlet acts as a return air preheater to heat the return air used for regeneration when the dehumidifying capacity of the cold/hot water coil before the treatment inlet is insufficient in cooling mode. Regenerate to ensure dehumidification ability. On the other hand, in the heating mode, the processing side and the regeneration side of the desiccant rotor in the cooling mode are switched, the outside air is passed through the hot water coil and heated, and the humidified air is supplied indoors.

JP 2017-154063 Publication Patent No. 5669587

What is disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a cooling coil, a heating coil, a Bertier element, an electric heater, a steam heater, a condenser of a heat pump, and an evaporator as a temperature adjustment means for heating regeneration air. ), and although it is low-temperature regeneration, it requires energy for heating.

The method described in Patent Document 2 basically does not require a hot water coil, which is a regenerated air heating means, in the cooling mode, but when the dehumidification capacity of the cold/hot water coil before the processing inlet is insufficient, or when the heating means is used during heating. As such, a hot water coil is required, and a heating means must be provided.

In view of this situation, the main problem of the present invention is to use a blower as a heating means to raise the temperature of the regeneration gas in a gas removal concentration device using an adsorption honeycomb rotor carrying an adsorbent that can be regenerated at a low temperature. It is an object of the present invention to provide a gas removal concentrator that can reduce regeneration energy and running costs without requiring a heating means such as a regeneration heater or a hot water coil by utilizing the temperature increase caused by the above. In the present invention, "low-temperature regeneration" refers to regeneration using a regeneration gas at a temperature of 50 degrees Celsius or lower (hereinafter, all temperatures are referred to as "Celsius").

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has an adsorption honeycomb rotor, the adsorption honeycomb rotor is divided into at least a processing zone and a regeneration zone, and the processing target gas is ventilated into the processing zone. The target substance contained in the gas is adsorbed by the honeycomb and separated and removed from the gas to be treated.In the regeneration zone, the regeneration gas is passed through the gas, so that the target substance adsorbed by the honeycomb in the treatment zone is desorbed by the regeneration gas. This is a gas removal and concentration device that regenerates the supported adsorbent in the rotor.It is a gas removal and concentration device that regenerates the supported adsorbent in the rotor.Instead of using a regeneration heater or the like as a regeneration heating means, it heats only by raising the temperature with a regeneration blower. This makes it possible to achieve energy savings by eliminating the need for energy.

The gas removal/concentration device of the present invention is configured as described above, and by ventilating the gas to be treated into the treatment zone, the target substance contained in the gas to be treated is adsorbed to the honeycomb and separated and removed from the gas to be treated. In the regeneration zone, the target substance adsorbed by the honeycomb in the treatment zone is desorbed and concentrated by the regeneration air by passing the regeneration gas, thereby regenerating the supported adsorbent in the rotor portion. When regenerating this honeycomb, if low-temperature regeneration is possible, no heating means such as a regeneration heater is required, and heating is performed only by raising the temperature with a regeneration blower, so energy for heating is not required and energy savings can be achieved. Running costs can be reduced.

For example, in the gas removal concentration device according to the present invention, even if an amine-based absorbent whose performance tends to deteriorate due to temperature is used as an adsorbent that can be regenerated at a low temperature, oxidative deterioration and odor of the absorbent can be suppressed. Additionally, it can be easily operated even in environments without utilities such as heat pumps or hot water. Furthermore, since no regenerative heater or heat exchanger is required, the entire device can be made smaller, leading to lower initial costs.

FIG. 1 is a flow diagram in Embodiment 1 of the gas removal concentrator of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart in Embodiment 2 of the gas removal concentrator of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a flow diagram in Embodiment 3 of the gas removal concentrator of the present invention.

The present invention has an adsorption honeycomb rotor supporting an adsorbent that can be regenerated at low temperatures, and the adsorption honeycomb rotor is divided into at least a processing zone and a regeneration zone. A configuration in which the gas to be treated is ventilated through the processing zone to separate and remove the target substance from the gas to be treated, and the regeneration gas heated through a regeneration blower is ventilated into the regeneration zone to desorb the adsorbed target substance. It is set as.

Embodiment 1 of the gas removal concentrator of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 1 is an adsorption honeycomb rotor, which is made by corrugating a non-flammable sheet such as ceramic fiber paper or glass fiber paper and winding it into a rotor shape.It is an adsorbent that can be regenerated at low temperatures at temperatures below 50 degrees Celsius. For example, an amine-based solid absorbent is supported. The adsorption honeycomb rotor 1 is divided into a processing zone 2, a regeneration zone 3, and a purge zone 4, and by rotating the adsorption honeycomb rotor 1 in this order, the target substance is continuously removed and concentrated from the gas to be processed.

By ventilating the gas to be treated into the treatment zone 2, the target substance, such as carbon dioxide, contained in the gas to be treated is adsorbed by the honeycomb and separated and removed from the gas to be treated, thereby reducing the concentration of the target substance, and the treatment blower 5 to the supply destination or exhaust. By branching off a part of the gas supplied to the processing zone and ventilating it to the purge zone 4, the gas temperature increases. Furthermore, the gas that has passed through the purge zone 4 is passed through the regeneration blower 6, and the heated regeneration gas is ventilated into the regeneration zone 3, so that the target substance adsorbed on the honeycomb is desorbed into the regeneration gas, and the concentrated target substance is desorbed into the regeneration gas. A gas containing a substance is delivered or exhausted to a destination.

As described in Patent Document 2, not only dehumidification devices but also devices using an adsorption honeycomb rotor usually have a blower disposed on the regeneration outlet side. One reason for this is that a regeneration heater or the like is placed as a heating means on the regeneration inlet side, but in the case of removal applications where the processing outlet gas is supplied to the supply destination, the regeneration This is because the inlet and the regeneration outlet are under negative pressure, and the amount of leakage of the target substance desorbed from the regeneration side to the treatment side is reduced, so that the removal efficiency of the target substance at the treatment outlet side is improved.

On the other hand, the regeneration blower 6 of Example 1 according to the present invention is placed on the regeneration inlet side. In the case of concentration applications where the regeneration outlet gas is supplied to the supply destination, the treatment inlet and treatment outlet are under negative pressure relative to the regeneration inlet and regeneration outlet, and the gas on the treatment side with a low target substance concentration is transferred from the treatment side to the regeneration side. Since the amount of leakage is reduced, the concentration performance is improved. However, in removal applications, since the processing outlet gas from which the target substance has been removed is supplied to the supply destination, leakage may occur from the regeneration inlet side to the processing outlet side, resulting in poor removal efficiency. Therefore, a purge zone 4 is provided after the regeneration zone 3 along the rotor rotation direction to reduce leakage between the processing side and the regeneration side.

If the air that has passed through the blower is passed directly into the duct, the uneven flow may cause wind noise. In building air conditioning, wind noise causes noise and can be a fatal problem. In Example 1, on the regeneration side, the regeneration gas after passing through the regeneration blower 6 is ventilated to the adsorption honeycomb rotor 1, so that the flow is rectified, and the sound absorption effect of the adsorption honeycomb rotor 1 reduces wind noise. Therefore, it is possible to reduce noise and vibration when the gas removal concentration device according to the present invention is installed indoors, and the device can be installed in a machine room or the like.

The temperature increase caused by a blower varies depending on the type of blower. In the case of a centrifugal blower such as a plug fan or turbo fan, the temperature is about 3°C, but in the case of a blower that can generate high static pressure (for example, a vortex blower such as a vortex blower), the temperature rises by 10°C or more. For example, if the outside air is 20°C, the temperature will rise to about 30°C after passing through the purge. Thereafter, the temperature is further increased by 3 to 10°C through a blower.

Buildings in subtropical regions such as Thailand and Singapore have little hot water supply, and in order to obtain heating gas for regeneration, heating with electric heaters, exhaust heat from heat pumps, or exhaust heat from chillers is required. The gas removal concentrator according to the present invention does not require these, and can cover the regeneration inlet temperature only by raising the temperature using a blower, so it can be particularly effective in subtropical regions where hot water is not expected.

In the present invention, the adsorbent is required to have the property of being able to desorb the target substance even at a low temperature of 50° C. or lower. When the target substance is carbon dioxide, for example, an amine-supported solid absorbent is used as the adsorbent, and regeneration at low temperatures has the effect of reducing thermal deterioration and extending the life of the adsorption honeycomb rotor. Furthermore, it is possible to suppress the generation of odors such as amine odors from the adsorption honeycomb rotor due to decomposition of amines.

The present invention is not limited to the flow shown in FIG. 1, and may be configured to introduce a part of the processing outlet gas that has passed through the processing zone 2, outside air, return air from the room, etc. into the purge zone 4. Furthermore, a configuration may be adopted in which either or both of the processing side and the reproduction side are circulated.

Further, if necessary, a pre-cooler, an after-cooler, a humidity adjusting means, etc. may be provided, and the processing blower 5 may be installed on the processing inlet side. Note that blowers other than the regeneration blower 6 may be arranged at appropriate locations and may be added as needed.

Furthermore, the purge zone may be eliminated and only the processing zone and regeneration zone may be provided.
In this case, leakage from the regeneration side to the processing side becomes a problem. For example, if the target substance is carbon dioxide, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the outside air is as low as about 450 ppm, so even if the outside air leaks to the processing outlet side, the The carbon dioxide concentration at the outlet only increases by several tens of ppm. By weighing up the initial cost and establishing a purge zone, we can make a proposal tailored to your needs.

In the flow according to the second embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 2, the difference from the first embodiment is that a pre-purge zone 7 is provided. In this way, by providing the pre-purge zone 7 before the regeneration zone 3 and the purge zone 4 after it, leakage can be further reduced.

The flow of gas in FIG. 2 is basically the same as that in FIG. 1, but the gas that has passed through the purge zone 4 and the gas that has passed through the pre-purge zone 7 are mixed and passed through the regeneration blower 6 to raise the temperature. , ventilate the regeneration zone 3.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the flow shown in FIG. 2, and a configuration may be adopted in which a part of the processing outlet gas that has passed through the processing zone 2, outside air, or return air from indoors is introduced into the purge zone 4. . Similarly, not only outside air but also return air from the room, a portion of the gas introduced into the processing zone, a portion of the processing outlet gas that has passed through the processing zone, etc. may be introduced into the pre-purge 7. The configuration may be such that gas circulates between the purge zone 4 and the pre-purge zone 7. Furthermore, a configuration may be adopted in which either or both of the processing side and the reproduction side are circulated.

Further, if necessary, a pre-cooler, an after-cooler, a humidity adjusting means, etc. may be provided. Note that blowers other than the regeneration blower 6 may be arranged at appropriate locations and may be added as needed.

In the flow according to the third embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 3, the difference from the second embodiment is that a part of the regeneration outlet gas is introduced into the pre-purge zone 7. When concentrating the target substance, the concentration can be further increased by circulating a portion of the regeneration outlet gas.

The regeneration outlet chamber of the chamber (not shown), which is a means of separating the zones, eliminates the zone partition between the pre-purge inlet and the regeneration outlet, and returns a portion of the regeneration outlet gas within the chamber directly to the pre-purge inlet. If configured, it will lead to a reduction in the cost of the chamber. Note that the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and a configuration may be adopted in which a part of the gas that has passed through the regeneration outlet chamber is introduced from outside the chamber through a duct into the pre-purge inlet.

The present invention is not limited to the flow shown in FIG. 3, and may be configured to introduce a part of the processing outlet gas that has passed through the processing zone 2, outside air, return air from the room, etc. into the purge zone 4.

If necessary, a precooler, aftercooler, humidity control means, etc. may be provided. Note that blowers other than the regeneration blower 6 may be placed in appropriate locations and added as needed. Furthermore, the treatment side may be circulated.

Furthermore, an air volume adjustment device such as a damper or a valve is installed on either or both of the piping that sends gas from the outlet of the purge zone 4 and the outlet of the pre-purge zone 7 to the regeneration blower 6 in FIGS. 2 and 3 to control the air volume. It may be configured to be able to control the target substance removal performance on the processing outlet side and the target substance concentration performance on the regeneration outlet side.

In many cases, a general dehumidifying device or a device such as the one according to the present invention is integrally equipped with a control panel. Normally, the temperature inside the control panel increases due to heat generated by internal devices, etc., which may lead to malfunction of the control panel, so a small fan or the like is provided for cooling. In order to recover heat for this temperature increase, an air intake port is provided on the control panel, an air outlet is provided on the opposite side, and piping is provided from the air intake port to the purge inlet and outlet. Good too. Furthermore, for example, the piping may be made to pass near the motor of each blower to recover the heat emitted from each motor to the outside. Note that when the air outlet is not provided with a purge zone, it may be configured to provide a pipe connected to the regeneration zone inlet.

In the flow shown in FIG. 1, a carbon dioxide removal and concentration experiment was conducted using a gas removal and concentration device equipped with an adsorption honeycomb rotor with a diameter of 200 mm and a thickness of 200 mm. The concentration of carbon dioxide supplied to the treatment inlet side and the purge inlet side was set to about 500 ppm, which is the atmospheric condition. The device can be used with the equipment that makes up the flow shown in Figure 1 (pattern 1), or in addition to those equipment, an air intake port is provided on the control panel, and an air outlet is provided on the opposite side of the control panel. In a configuration where piping is installed that connects the purge inlet to the purge inlet, and the piping passes near the motors of the processing blower and regeneration blower, the heat inside the control panel and the heat from each motor is recovered (pattern The two patterns of 2) were compared. As a result, in the device of pattern 2 configured to recover heat, the purge inlet temperature increased by 3° C. or more, and the temperature of the gas passing through the regeneration blower increased by 2° C. or more compared to the device of pattern 1. As a result, the concentrated concentration of carbon dioxide on the regeneration outlet side in pattern 2 increased by 50 ppm compared to pattern 1. Furthermore, the running cost required to recover carbon dioxide per kg was reduced by 10% in the case of pattern 2 compared to pattern 1.

For the air intake of the control panel in this experiment, an opening with a dust filter attached was provided at the bottom of the door of the control panel facing the outside of the device, and for the air outlet, an opening with a dust removal filter was installed at the bottom of the door of the control panel facing the inside of the device. Installed at the top of the mounting section. However, the present invention is not limited to the above position of the control panel, and the air intake port may be provided on the side surface of the lower part of the control panel, or the air outlet port may be provided on the ceiling of the control panel. In short, the configuration should be such that the maximum amount of heat generated can be recovered by adjusting the arrangement of equipment in the control panel, air flow, etc. Further, when the device is installed outdoors, a louver or a louver may be installed to prevent rainwater from entering the control panel.

The present invention provides a gas removal concentrator using an adsorption honeycomb rotor carrying an adsorbent that can be regenerated at low temperatures. Since the heating is performed at a temperature increase of Furthermore, since no regeneration heater or heat exchanger is required, the entire device can be made smaller, leading to lower initial costs.

1 Adsorption honeycomb rotor 2 Processing zone 3 Regeneration zone 4 Purge zone 5 Processing blower 6 Regeneration blower 7 Pre-purge zone

Claims (7)

It has an adsorption honeycomb rotor that supports an adsorbent that can be regenerated at a low temperature of 50° C. or less , the adsorption honeycomb rotor is divided into at least a processing zone and a regeneration zone, the processing target gas is ventilated into the processing zone, and the target substance is transferred to the honeycomb rotor. The gas removal and concentration device is configured to remove the target substance adsorbed by the honeycomb and desorb the target substance adsorbed by the honeycomb by passing the regeneration gas through the regeneration zone, the regeneration blower being disposed on the regeneration inlet side. . A gas removal and concentration device characterized in that a regeneration heating means is not required by heating only by temperature increase by the regeneration blower . 2. The gas removal and concentration device according to claim 1, wherein the adsorption honeycomb rotor includes a purge zone provided after the regeneration zone. 2. The gas removal and concentration device according to claim 1, wherein the adsorption honeycomb rotor is provided with a pre-purge zone before the regeneration zone and a purge zone after the regeneration zone. 4. The gas removal and concentration device according to claim 3, wherein in the adsorption honeycomb rotor, a part of the outlet gas of the regeneration zone is introduced into the inlet of the prepurge zone. The gas removal concentration device according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the air volume of the outlet gas of the purge zone and/or the outlet gas of the pre-purge zone is controlled by an air volume adjustment device. Device. The gas removal concentrator according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the control panel is provided with an air inlet and an air outlet, and from the air outlet to the regeneration zone inlet, the purge zone inlet, and the purge zone inlet. A gas removal concentrator characterized in that a pipe is provided that passes through at least one outlet of a purge zone. 7. The gas removal/concentration apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the piping passes through the vicinity of a motor of a processing blower and/or a regeneration blower.

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