JPH03165887A - Water purifier - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prolong the service life of a filter medium and to facilitate back washing by assembling a water purifier having a purified water storage part, a means of returning purified water to the filter medium composed of hollow fiber membranes, a means of closing the purified water outlet side of the purified water storage part at the time of return and a drain part. CONSTITUTION:Water sent from a communicating hole to a connecting pipe 63 moves a ball 66 in a change-over valve V backward against a spring 65 to block a drain pipe 68 and the water flows in a purifying cartridge 7 through a plug 64 and a connecting plug 73. In the cartridge 7, the water is purified with activated carbon 75 and hollow fiber membranes 76. The purified water enters a cylinder 8 through a connecting plug 81 and moves a piston 85 upward against a spring 87 to open a purified water discharge hole 82 and the purified water is discharged from the hole 82. This water purifier makes it possible to discharge substances stuck to a filter medium composed of the hollow fiber membranes by filtration with the medium into the drain part by back washing.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to a water purifier equipped with a filter medium, particularly a filter medium made of a hollow fiber membrane.

[Conventional technology]

In recent years, water purifiers that use hollow fiber membranes as filter media have been attracting attention. This hollow fiber membrane has minute pores of 0.1 to 0.01μ on its wall surface, and these holes can be used to pass water from the outer wall of the hollow fiber membrane to the inner space of the hollow fiber membrane. Because of the filtration, even bacteria can be removed. In the case of filters using such a filter medium, as mentioned above, since the filtration is carried out using the fine pores, clogging due to removed substances occurs early.
No. 391, JP-A No. 62-30507, or JP-A No. 62-79809 discloses that by performing backwashing in which water is flowed in the opposite direction to that during passing, it is possible to prevent adhesion to the outer wall surface of the hollow fiber membrane. This allows foreign substances to be washed away.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, in the water purifiers disclosed in the above-mentioned publications, since the water used for backwashing is raw water, that is, water containing foreign matter, foreign matter will adhere to the inner wall surface of the hollow fiber membrane at this time.
If the backwashing time is too long, there is a risk that the inner wall will become clogged, and the next time the water is purified, foreign matter adhering to the inner wall will be mixed with the purified water. The present invention has been made in view of these points, and its purpose is to be able to wash away by backwashing the substances that adhere to the filter medium made of hollow fiber membranes and cause clogging. To provide a water purifier that can extend the life of a filter medium and prevent backwashing from causing new problems.

[Means to solve the problem]

In a water purifier equipped with a hollow fiber membrane as a filter medium, the present invention provides a purified water storage section that is arranged between the filter medium and the purified water outlet and stores purified water that has passed through the filter medium, and a purified water storage section that stores purified water that has passed through the filter medium. a closing means for closing the purified water outlet side of the purified water storage section at the time of return, and a drainage section located on the raw water supply side of the filter medium arrangement section and opened at the time of return, The above-mentioned return means is characterized in that it is formed as a spring member that operates with a spring force that opposes the water flow direction when purified water is sprayed. [Function] 3 According to the present invention, backwashing for preventing clogging of the filter medium is performed.
Because this process uses purified water that has been purified with a filter medium, there is no chance of foreign matter adhering to the filter medium during backwashing.Also, when returning purified water that has been purified with a filter medium, if you stop discharging purified water, the spring The return means, which are designed as actuated parts, automatically carry out the backwashing with purified water. [Embodiment] The present invention will be described in detail below based on the illustrated embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, this water purifier is composed of a purification unit A and a switching unit B. Starting with the switching unit B that switches the waterway, the switching unit L-B, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, has a main body 1 made of synthetic resin and formed into a cylindrical shape with vertical openings; A mounting nut 50 that is attached to the top of the main body 1, a lever 2 that is attached to the side of the main body 1, and the main body 1
It consists of a water discharge plate 4 attached to the lower surface of the main body 1, and a cylindrical rotary valve 3 housed within the main body 1. 4. The upper end of the main body 1 is used as an attachment part for attachment to a water faucet (not shown). The main body 1 is provided with an inlet l1 that communicates with the faucet on its upper surface, and this inlet 11
A tube 51 surrounding the tube 51 stands upright, and a gasket 53 for attaching a faucet and a gasket 54 for stopping water are disposed inside the tube 51, and a male screw screwed into the mounting nut 50 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the tube 5l. is cut. Once the mounting nut 50 removed from the main body 1 is pushed through the water faucet, the auxiliary fitting 52 is locked to the tip of the faucet, and in this state, the tip of the water faucet is inserted into the tube 51 and the mounting nut 50 is inserted. When screwed into the cylinder 51 and tightened, the main body 1 is attached to the faucet, and at the same time,
The distal end surface of the faucet is pressed against the packing 53. The auxiliary fixture 52 shown in Fig. 5 is for attachment to a faucet with a male thread at the tip, and the auxiliary fixture 52 according to the shape of the faucet is used to attach it to the faucet. . The center of the main body 1 is formed as a valve chamber 13 having a circular longitudinal section and opening on one side. This valve chamber 13 is a part in which the rotary valve 3 is housed, and is open upward through the inflow port 11, and as shown in FIG. 2nd outlet 1
5 are formed respectively, and a cylindrical portion 1 surrounding the first outlet 14 is formed.
8 is formed hanging down. A communication port 17 whose one end opens into the inner part of the valve chamber 13 is formed on the side surface of the main body 1 opposite to the side surface on which the lever 2 is disposed. The water discharge plate 4 attached to the lower surface of the main body 1 has a water discharge port 41 with a rectifying wire mesh 44 arranged in the center and a large number of small holes 42 around the periphery for discharging water in the form of a shower. It is attached to the main body 1 by screwing into a male thread formed on a partition member 45 which is fixed to the lower end of the cylindrical portion 18 by means such as ultrasonic welding. The ring-shaped partition member 45 located between the cylindrical portion 18 and the water discharge plate 4 is provided with an M baffle 46 and a rectifying rib 47 at its center via a plurality of ribs, 1st
The flow path from the outflow port 14 to the water discharge port 41 is separated from the external space of the valve chamber 13 and the cylindrical portion 18 in the main body 1. The rotary valve 3 housed in the valve chamber 13 is composed of a shaft 31 and a cylindrical portion 32 formed integrally with the shaft 31, and is suspended from the water stop packing 54 along the inlet 11. A large first inlet 33, a small second inlet 34, and an outlet 36 are opened on the circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion 32, with which the lower end of the thin cylindrical hanging piece 55 comes into elastic contact. . Although the first inlet port 33 and the outlet port 36 are connected inside the cylindrical portion 32, the second inlet port 34 is separated by a partition wall 37 and the communication port 17 is separated from these two by a partition wall 37.
It communicates with the end face on the inner side of the valve chamber l3 where is located. Further, a plurality of recesses 39 arranged in the circumferential direction are provided on the peripheral surface of the end portion of the cylindrical portion 32 of the rotary valve 3. This recess 39 is biased by a spring 58 and engaged with a hole 59 protruding into the valve chamber 13, thereby giving a click to the rotation of the rotary valve 3, and causing the rotary valve to rotate in each of the four states described below. 7.3 positioning is performed. The rotary valve 3 is attached to the main body 1 by a holding plate 57. The holding plate 57 through which the shaft 31 of the rotary valve 3 passes is attached to the main body 1 by screwing it into a female thread formed on the inner peripheral surface of the opening opening on the side surface of the main body 1 of the valve chamber 13. Preventing it from coming out of the valve chamber 13. The lever 2 has a fitting part with the non-circular tip of the shaft 3l of the rotary valve 3 which penetrates the presser plate 57 and protrudes to the outside. It is fixed to the rotary valve 3 by a screw 58 screwed into the rotary valve 3. In the figure, 24 is a cap that hides the screw 58. Now, by operating the lever 2, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the second inlet 34 in the rotary valve 3 is connected to the inlet 1.
1, water supplied from the faucet is sent to the communication port 17. Also, by operating the lever 2, the first
If the inlet 33 faces the inlet 11 and the outlet 36 communicates with the second outlet 15, water from the inlet 11 will flow between the first inlet 33, the outlet 36, and the second outlet 15. After passing through the second outlet 15 and hitting the upper surface of the circumference of the ring-shaped partition member 45, the particles are scattered, and then the small holes 4 of the water discharge plate 4 are scattered.
2, it is released as a shower-like flow. Further, when the inlet 11 and the first inlet 33 of the rotary valve 3 communicate with each other, and the outlet 36 and the first outlet 14 communicate with each other, water from the inlet 11 flows through the first outlet 14.
After hitting the buffer piece 46 of the partition member 45 and weakening the flow velocity, the water is rectified by the rectifying ribs 47 and the rectifying wire mesh 44 and is discharged from the water outlet 41. When the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 32 of the rotary valve 3 contacts the cylindrical hanging piece 55 to close the inlet 11, water from the faucet is stopped here. On the other hand, the purification unit A is composed of a case 6, a purification cartridge 7 housed in the case 6, and a cylinder part 8 connected to the case 6, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. It has become something that has been done. The case 6 consists of a bottomed cylindrical case body 60 and a lid 61 that closes the upper opening of the case body 60. A plug 64 is attached to the lower part of the case body 60, and a connecting pipe 63 is attached to the plug 64. and a drain pipe 68,
The connecting pipe 63 is connected to the communication port 17 in the switching unit B via a tube 62, and the drain pipe 68 is connected to a drain tube 69. The plug 64 is connected to a ball 66 and a pair of valve seats 6.
A switching valve V consisting of 7, 67 and a spring 65 is built in. This switching valve V is normally operated by bringing the ball 65 into contact with the valve seat 67 on the connecting pipe 63 side under the bias of the spring 65.
The plug 64 and the drain pipe 68 are made to communicate with each other, and when water is sent from the communication port 17, the ball 65 retreats due to the water pressure and comes into contact with the valve seat 67 on the drain pipe 68 side. Then, the connecting pipe 63 and the plug 64 are brought into communication. The purification cartridge 7 consists of a cylindrical case 70, upper and lower lids 71 and 72 attached to the upper and lower openings of the cylindrical case 70, activated carbon 75 and a hollow fiber membrane 76 housed in the cylindrical case 70, and a filter medium. These activated carbon 75 and hollow fiber membrane 7
6, the activated carbon 75 is loaded in the lower part of the cylindrical case 70, and the hollow fiber membrane 76 is loaded in the upper part of the cylindrical case 70 in the form of a bundle. In the figure, 74 is a nonwoven fabric that prevents the activated carbon 75 from leaking, and 77 is an air intake hole 77 formed at the top of the purification cartridge 7 so as to open upward, and is opened and closed by a ball 78. This purification cartridge 7 has a lower lid 7.
The connecting plug 73 protruding from 2 is inserted into the plug 64 and connected to the plug 64. The cylinder part 8 consists of a cylinder body 80, which has a connection plug 81 on the bottom surface that is inserted into the center opening of the lid 61 of the case 6, and a cover 83 that closes the top opening of the cylinder body 80, and is located at the center in the vertical direction. A piston 85 is disposed within the cylinder body 80, which has a purified water outlet 82 formed on the side surface thereof. The purified water outlet 82 is opened and closed by the vertical movement of the piston 85. Further, between the cover 83 and the upper surface of the piston 85, there is a spring 8 that biases the piston 85 downward.
7 are arranged. However, in this water purifier, the switching unit B operates as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 by operating the lever 2.
When the second inlet 34 of the rotary valve 3 is brought into communication with the inlet 11, water supplied from the faucet is sent from the second inlet 34 of the rotary valve 3 to the purification unit A side. The water sent from the communication port 17 to the connecting pipe 63 is
As shown in the figure, the ball 66 in the switching valve V is
5 closes the drain pipe 68 and flows into the purification cartridge 7 through the plug 64 and the connecting plug 73. After being treated by the activated carbon 75 and the hollow fiber membrane 76, the water flows through the connecting plug 81. The water enters the cylinder part 8, moves the piston 85 upward against the spring 87, opens the purified water outlet 82, and is discharged from the purified water outlet 82. 12 At this time, the air intake hole 95 provided in the purification cartridge 7 is in a closed state due to the movement of the ball 78 due to water pressure. Furthermore, if the tap water pressure is extremely high or if the hollow fiber membrane 76 is clogged and the internal pressure inside the case 6 becomes high, the valve chamber 1 of the switching unit B as shown in FIG. The pressure regulating valve 28 arranged in the lower part of the back moves backward against the pressure regulating spring 29, and the small hole 4 of the water discharge plate 4 is closed.
Let water leak from 2. In the purified water discharge state described above, if the water supply to the purification unit A side is stopped by operating the lever 2 in the switching unit B, the ball 66 in the switching valve V is biased by the spring 65 as shown in FIG. to close the connecting pipe 63 and open the drain pipe 68, and the cylinder part 8
The piston 85 disposed at is pushed down by the force of the spring 87. For this purpose, the piston 1 of the cylinder part 8 is
Initially, some of the purified water stored in the lower space below the pipe 85, that is, in the purified water storage section 9, is discharged from the purified water outlet 82, but when the piston 85 closes the purified water outlet 82, The water then flows in the opposite direction inside the purification cartridge 7, washing away foreign matter adhering to the outer wall of the hollow fiber membrane 76, and discharging it through the drain pipe 68. When the piston 85 reaches the bottom dead center, forced backwashing will stop, but from this point on, water pressure will no longer be applied to the ball 78 disposed in the air intake hole 77, and the air intake hole 77 is opened to allow air to flow in, so that all the water in the purification car I ridge 7 is discharged through the drain pipe 68. There is no risk of odor generation due to anaerobic bacteria.

【Effect of the invention】

As described above, in the present invention, by performing backwashing in which water flows in the opposite direction to the original water flow, substances that have been filtered through the filter medium made of hollow fiber membranes and adhered to the filter medium are removed to the drainage section. It can be washed away and removes the substances that clog the filter media, which reduces the short lifespan due to clogging that is a problem with filter media made of hollow fiber membranes. It is something that can be eliminated,
Moreover, this backwashing is performed by returning purified water collected in a purified water storage section installed between the filter medium and the purified water outlet to the R material side, so the water used for backwashing may contaminate the filter medium. There is no possibility of foreign matter adhering to the water, and the next time the purified water is discharged, clean purified water without any foreign matter mixed in can be discharged. By using the purified water in the purified water storage section located between the two, it is possible to always secure a certain amount of purified water necessary for backwashing, and to minimize water waste due to backwashing. Moreover, since the above-mentioned return means is formed to operate with a spring member having a spring force that opposes the direction of the water flow when discharging purified water, the return means is activated when discharging purified water is stopped. Since it works automatically to perform backwashing with purified water, the user does not need to be conscious of backwashing, and as a result, the life of the filter medium can be reliably extended.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of one embodiment of the present invention when discharging purified water;
The figure is a vertical cross-sectional view of the same as above during backwashing, and Figure 3 is a side view of the same as above.
4 and 5 are a cross-sectional view and a vertical cross-sectional view of the same switching unit, in which A is a purification unit, 9 is a purified water storage section,
76 is a hollow fiber membrane, 82 is a purified water outlet, 85 is a piston, 87 is a spring, and V is a switching valve.

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In a water purifier equipped with a hollow fiber membrane as a filter medium, a purified water storage section is arranged between the filter medium and the purified water outlet to collect purified water that has passed through the filter medium, and the purified water in the purified water storage section is returned to the filter medium side. A return means, a closing means for closing the purified water outlet side of the purified water storage section at the time of return, and a drainage section located on the raw water supply side of the filter medium arrangement section and opened at the time of return, and the return means 1. A water purifier, characterized in that the water purifier is configured to operate with a spring member having a spring force that opposes the direction of water flow when purified water is discharged.