JPH0326385A - Device for treating photographic processing waste - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To fix the temp. of the air passing through a vaporization medium in a main case before an air cooler by balancing the heat output of an air heating means provided in the main case with the heat input of the air cooler in a condensation part. CONSTITUTION:A waste tank 3 is set in the closed main case 2, the lower part of an endless belt 4 as the vaporization medium is dipped in the waste in the tank 3, the waste is entrained by the rotating belt and vaporized, the circulating air having a sufficient content of vaporized water is cooled below the dew point by the cooler 8 of a refrigerator, and the condensed water is dropped into a receiver 9. The air freed of moisture passes through the air heater 6, is heated and then passes through the endless belt 4 to vaporize the water in the waste depositing on the belt. The temp. of air is detected by a temp. sensor 25 after the belt 4 and before the cooler 8, and the air heater 6 is controlled by a controller 28 to adjust the temp. close to the sensor 25 to 20-25 deg.C.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus used for concentrating photographic processing waste liquid.

[Conventional technology]

The waste liquid produced by photographic processing cannot be disposed of in rivers or the like to prevent pollution, so the actual situation is that the waste liquid produced by photographic processing must be disposed of by specialized companies. Most of the photographic processing waste liquid is water, so if the photographic processing waste liquid is concentrated or solidified, the storage amount can be kept in a very small amount, which simplifies storage space and subsequent processing, making it easier to outsource to specialized companies. Expenses will also be significantly reduced.

As an apparatus for this purpose, there is a photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus that separates solid content contained in the photographic processing waste liquid from water.

The photographic processing waste liquid processing device has a main body case equipped with an intake port and an exhaust port, and includes a storage means for storing the waste liquid, a means for heating and evaporating the waste liquid, a means for supplying the waste liquid to the evaporation means, and a means for condensing the above liquid. and/or means for sending air to the heating evaporation means through the heat exchange means. (Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 63-19655, Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication No. 63-1963-
107795] However, when heating and evaporating waste liquid, conventional equipment
By increasing the waste liquid temperature to 0 to 90°C to promote evaporation, ammonium thiosulfate and sulfite, which are commonly used as fixing solutions and bleach-fixing solutions for photographic processing solutions, decompose due to the high temperature, producing sulfur dioxide gas and hydrogen sulfide. , harmful or extremely foul-smelling gases such as ammonia gas are generated. and,
If these gases are released outside the device from the exhaust port on the main body case, they will contaminate the atmosphere around the device. It requires secondary processing equipment such as a mechanism, a deodorant supply means, an assimilate supply means, etc., and the entire apparatus becomes a very complicated and large apparatus, and its operation is also complicated.

Furthermore, in order to improve evaporation efficiency, a large evaporation means is provided, which increases the size of the device and increases power consumption.

Furthermore, there is a problem in that the temperature and humidity inside the main body change, and the processing quality and processing capacity of the collected water, such as pH and COD, change.

By solving the above problems, the waste liquid is attached to the evaporation medium partially immersed in the photographic processing waste liquid inside the sealed main body case as a compact and highly efficient photographic processing waste liquid treatment device that does not require a secondary processing device. Alternatively, a photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus may be considered, which includes an evaporation section that impregnates the waste liquid and evaporates it by exposing it to air, and an air cooler that condenses the evaporated water.

In this case, thermal economy can be achieved by using the cooling section and heat radiating section of the refrigeration system as an air cooler that condenses moisture in the air and an air heater that heats the air thereafter.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Although it is advantageous in terms of thermal economy when the cooler and heat radiator of a refrigeration system are used together as an air cooler and air heater, the amount of heat absorbed by the cooler is actually higher than the amount of heat generated in the heat radiator. The problem is that the temperature of the air tends to rise gradually, and the waste liquid processing capacity changes and the processing quality becomes inconsistent, and corrosion occurs inside the device due to the high temperature inside the main body case. There is.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus that can maintain a constant temperature of the air after the evaporation medium passes through the main body case and before passing through the air cooler.

[Means and effects for solving the problems] The above-mentioned object of the present invention is to attach or impregnate an evaporation medium partially immersed in photographic processing waste liquid in a substantially sealed main body case so that the waste liquid is released into the air. A photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus has an evaporation section that exposes and evaporates water, and an air cooler that cools and condenses the evaporated water, the air cooler being a cooler of a refrigeration device, and a heat dissipation section of the refrigeration device. This is achieved by a photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus which is provided outside the main body case and further provided with an air heating means inside the main body case.

In other words, by adjusting the calorific value of the air heating means to a calorific value that is out of heat balance with the heat absorbed by the air cooler in the condensing section, the temperature of the air after passing through the evaporative medium in the main body case and before passing through the air cooler can be adjusted. can be maintained constant.

The refrigeration system according to the present invention has a cooler, a heat radiation section, a compressor, and an expansion valve, and has a structure in which a refrigerant is circulated through these.

Since the air temperature in the evaporator in the photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus can be maintained at the set temperature, the photographic processing waste liquid does not decompose. Therefore, generation of harmful or malodorous gas can be significantly suppressed, and water in the waste liquid can be evaporated and condensed.

In the present invention, in order to condense moisture in the air, it is necessary to lower the temperature of the air after passing through the evaporating medium to below the dew point temperature, so a cooler of a refrigeration system is used as the sitting air cooler in the condensing section. The heat radiation section of the refrigeration device is provided outside the photographic processing waste liquid treatment device, and heat is radiated by air cooling or water cooling.

The air inside the main body case, especially after passing through the evaporation medium and before passing through the cooler, is first heated to 15 to 30 degrees Celsius, preferably 20 to 25 degrees Celsius, by an air heating means while the temperature is detected by a temperature sensor.
The air that has been heated to .degree. C. and then has its moisture removed by an air cooler is heated by an air heating means whose calorific value is adjusted to return to its original temperature. As an air heating means,
For example, an electric heater or a steam heater is used.

The evaporation medium in the present invention is preferably a cloth-like endless belt that rotates and has air permeability, and its material includes nonflammable inorganic fibers such as carbon and glass fibers, aramid fibers, and the like. Further, in order to attach or impregnate a large amount of waste liquid, a woven fabric having a mesh structure or a three-dimensional structure is preferable. These are Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61156501 and Japanese Patent Application No. 632 filed by the present applicant.
It is disclosed in the specification of No. 04807 and the like.

In the present invention, it is preferable to circulate the air within the apparatus using a fan, and in this case, the direction of circulation may be either parallel or perpendicular to the evaporation surface of the evaporation medium, with the perpendicular direction being preferred.

In addition, in the present invention, a substantially sealed main body case means that the air inside the main body case, and in some cases malodorous It means something that is separated from the outside world to the extent that air does not leak outside.

The condensed water obtained by this photographic processing waste liquid treatment apparatus can be subjected to simple treatment (for example, pH adjustment) if necessary, and then drained to the sewer.

Further, the concentrated photographic processing waste liquid obtained by the present photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus can be recovered and heated and incinerated. When the concentrated waste liquid is removed from the waste liquid tank, it can be easily removed by opening a stopper provided at the bottom of the waste liquid tank. When extracting the concentrated waste liquid, a solidifying agent can be used to solidify the concentrated waste liquid in order to improve transportability and ease of handling after extraction. The solidifying agents used are described in detail in Japanese Patent Application No. 1-96435, No. 1-96436, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 1983-1961-231548.

Further, the photographic processing waste liquid in the present invention may be any waste liquid after performing photographic processing such as development (color, black and white), bleaching, bleach-fixing, and stabilization.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to this example.

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of an embodiment of the photographic processing waste liquid treatment apparatus of the present invention.

A waste liquid tank 3 for storing photographic processing waste liquid is installed in a sealed main body case 2 of a photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus 1 so as to be removable from the main body case. The waste liquid tank 3 can be replenished with waste liquid from outside the main body case 2 using a pipe 31 and a valve 32. The level of waste liquid in the waste liquid tank 3 can be controlled separately (not shown).

The endless belt 4 as an evaporation medium has a mesh structure made of glass fiber and rotates with its evaporation surface perpendicular to the circulating air.

The lower part of the endless belt 4 is immersed in the waste liquid in the waste liquid tank 3, and the waste liquid is pumped up by rotation.

In this embodiment, two endless belts 4 are provided and driven independently, but by driving a plurality of endless belts 4 in a superimposed manner via a spacer, the endless belts 4 can be driven without changing the evaporation efficiency. The installation area can be reduced.

The waste liquid pumped up by the endless pelt 4 evaporates, and the evaporated moisture is contained in the air.

The refrigeration system included in this apparatus includes a cooler 8, a heat radiation section 72, a compressor 7L and an expansion valve 73, and is configured to circulate refrigerant to these.

The circulating air containing sufficient evaporated moisture is cooled below the dew point by a cooler (condenser) 8 of the refrigeration system, and the condensed moisture falls into a receiver 9. The heat radiation section 72 of the refrigeration device radiates heat outside the photographic processing waste liquid processing device.

Next to the cooler 8 is a circulation fan l1, which cooperates with the evaporation fan 5 to circulate the air.

The condensed water collected in the receiver 9 is taken out of the main body case 2 of the device and disposed of or reused.

The cooled air from which moisture has been removed is heated by an evaporation fan 5 through an air heater 6, and then passes through an endless belt 4 to evaporate moisture in the waste liquid adhering to the endless belt 4.

The air heater 6 serves to reliably stabilize the reception of water evaporated from the waste liquid by heating the air to a predetermined temperature and lowering the humidity of the air.

A temperature sensor 25 is provided above the waste liquid tank 3 to detect the temperature of the air in the evaporation section, and this temperature sensor 25 is connected to a controller . The temperature sensor 25 is preferably provided immediately before the cooler 8 on the downstream side of the evaporation section.

The temperature sensor 25 detects the temperature of the air after passing through the endless belt and before passing through the cooler, and the controller 28 detects the temperature of the air near the temperature sensor 25 of 15 to 30 degrees Celsius, preferably 20 to 2 degrees Celsius.
The operation of the air heater 6 is controlled so that the temperature is 5°C.

Further, the compressor 71 and heat radiation section 72 of the refrigeration system are provided outside the main body case 2. 'Therefore, when the apparatus is operated in a state where outside air is not drawn into the closed main body case 2 as in the case of this apparatus, the residual heat of the motor does not affect the heat balance for heating and cooling the air used for evaporation.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus of the present invention, the main body case is configured to be airtight, moisture in the air is condensed by the cooler of the freezing device, and then the amount of heat equal to the amount of heat absorbed from the air by the cooler is absorbed. By applying the heat to the air using the air heating means, the temperature of the air after passing through the evaporative medium in the main body case and before passing through the cooler can be kept constant. Therefore, the processing quality of the photographic processing waste liquid can be made constant.

In addition, by maintaining the air temperature at 15 to 30°C, preferably 20 to 25°C after passing through the evaporation medium in the device and before passing through the cooler, the generation of harmful or extremely malodorous gases, which has been a problem in the past, can be avoided. This makes it possible to simplify the secondary processing device and make it more compact. Furthermore, corrosion can be prevented by increasing the temperature inside the device.

Therefore, it is possible to provide a waste liquid treatment apparatus that is compact and has high processing efficiency, and it has also become possible to integrate the waste liquid treatment apparatus with an automatic developing apparatus or to incorporate it into the automatic developing apparatus.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of an embodiment of the photographic processing waste liquid treatment apparatus of the present invention. 11 12 Reference numeral l in the figure Photo processing waste liquid processing device 2 Main body case 3 Waste liquid tank 4 Endless belt 5 - Evaporation fan 6 Air heater 8 - Air cooler 9 Receiver 1l Circulation fan 25 Temperature sensor 28 Controller 31 Piping 32 Valve 71 Compressor 72 Heat dissipation part 73 Expansion valve procedure amendment 1.1 Bullfighting j5 Liupingwei 1 year patent application No. 160809 2. Name of the invention: Photographic processing waste liquid treatment device 3, person who makes corrections: Name of patent applicant (520) Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd. 4. Agent address: 5-3-8-1 Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100. Date of amendment order: (voluntary) 8. Contents of the amendment The column "Detailed description of the invention" is amended as follows. (1) rl5-30°C on page 6, lines 14-15 of the specification
, preferably 20-25°C" is corrected to "10-40°C, preferably 15-30°C, more preferably 20-25°C." (2) Circular page 8, lines 13-16: ``Furthermore, the photographic processing waste liquid in the present invention may be waste liquid.J is corrected as follows. , the atmospheric pressure inside the main body case is lower than 760 mmHg, preferably 1 to '700+++ mHg, more preferably 5 to 400 mmHg, and even more preferably 10 to 30 mm.
Water may be evaporated from the waste liquid by reducing the pressure to Hg, and the evaporated water may be condensed. Further, the photographic processing waste liquid in the present invention may be any waste liquid after performing photographic processing such as development (color, black and white), bleaching, bleach-fixing, fixing, water washing, stabilization, etc. All of these treated waste liquids may be treated as a mixture, or may be treated individually. Furthermore, the waste liquids from the water washing process and the stabilizing process may be mixed, the waste liquids from the developing process, fixing process and bleaching process may be mixed and processed individually, or they may be mixed and processed in other combinations. The waste liquid may contain various processing liquids used in photographic processing of light-sensitive materials, and these processing liquids will be explained below. The color developing solution used for developing the photosensitive material is preferably an alkaline aqueous solution containing an aromatic primary amine color developing agent as a main component. As this color developing agent, p-phenolic compounds are also useful, but p-phenylene diamine compounds are preferably used, and a typical example thereof is 3-methyl-4-acino-N,N-diethyl. Aniline, 3-methyl-4-agono-N-ethyl-N-β-hydroxyethylaniline, 3-methyl-4-agono-N-
Examples thereof include ethyl-N-β-methanesulfonadoethylaniline, 3-methyl-4-amino-N-ethyl-N-β-methoxyethylaniline, and their sulfates, hydrochlorides, or p-toluenesulfonates. Two or more of these b compounds can be used in combination depending on the purpose. The color developer may contain pH buffering agents such as alkali metal carbonates, borates or phosphates, bromide salts, iodide salts,
Development inhibitors or antifoggants such as henzimidazoles, penzothiazoles or mercap 1 compounds are generally included. In addition, if necessary, hydroxyl, diethyl hydrazine, sulfite hydrazines, phenylcetacarbazides, triethanolamine, catechol sulfonic acids, triethylenediamine (1,4-diazabicyclo[2, 2, 2
] Various preservatives such as octane), organic solvents such as ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol, development accelerators such as benzyl alcohol, polyethylene glycol, quaternary ammonium salts, and amines, dye-forming couplers, competitive couplers, sodium boron. fogging agents such as hydride, auxiliary developing agents such as 1-phenyl-3-viladuridone, viscosity-imparting agents, agonopolycarboxylic acids,
Various chelating agents such as aminobolyphosphonic acid, alkylphosphonic acid, and phosphonocarboxylic acid, such as ethylenedia≧ntetraacetic acid, nitrilotriacetic acid, diethylenetrianepentaacetic acid, cyclohexanediagonetetraacetic acid,
Hydroxyethyl ichnodiacetic acid, l-hydroxyethylidene-1,1-diphosphonic acid, nitrilo-N,N,N-
}rimethylenephosphonic acid, ethylenediamine-N,N,
Representative examples include N',N'-tetramethylenephosboxylic acid, ethylene diane di(0-hydroxyphenylacetic acid), and salts thereof. Further, when performing reversal processing, black and white development is usually performed and then color development is performed. This black and white developer contains known black and white developing agents such as dihydroxybenzenes such as hydroquinone, 3-virazolidones such as -phenyl-3-pyrazolidone, or agonophenols such as N-methyl-p-aminophenol. It can be used alone or in combination. The pll of these color developing solutions and black and white developing solutions is 9 to 12.
It is common that Although the amount of replenishment of these developing solutions depends on the color photographic light-sensitive material being processed, it is generally less than 3 liters per square meter of light-sensitive material, and by reducing the bromide ion concentration in the replenishing solution,
It can also be shifted below mf. When reducing the amount of replenishment, it is preferable to prevent evaporation of the liquid and air oxidation by reducing the area of contact with the air in the processing tank. Furthermore, the amount of replenishment can be reduced by using means for suppressing the accumulation of bromide ions in the developer. After color development, the photographic emulsion layer is usually bleached. The bleaching process may be performed simultaneously with the fixing process (bleach-fixing process), or may be performed separately. Furthermore, in order to speed up the processing, a bleach-fixing treatment may be performed after the bleaching treatment. Furthermore, treatment in two continuous bleach-fixing baths, fixing treatment before bleach-fixing treatment, or bleaching treatment after bleach-fixing treatment can be carried out as desired depending on the purpose. Examples of bleaching agents include iron (■), cobalt (■),
Compounds of polyvalent metals such as chromium (■) and copper (II), peracids, quinones, nitro compounds, and the like are used. Typical bleaching agents include ferricyanide; dichromate; iron (
III) or organic complex salts of cobalt (I[I), such as ethylene diakonetetraacetic acid, diethylene triakonepentaacetic acid, cyclohexanediaminetetraacetic acid, methyliminodiacetic acid, 1,3-diaminopropanetetraacetic acid, glycol ether diagonatetetraacetic acid , etc. or complex salts of citric acid, tartaric acid, malic acid, etc.; persulfates; bromates; permanganates; nitrobenzenes, etc. can be used. Among these, iron(III) aminobocarboxylic acid complex salts and persulfates, including iron(I) ethylenediaminetetraacetate complex salts, are preferable from the viewpoint of rapid processing and prevention of environmental pollution. Furthermore, the iron(1) anoboricarboxylate complex salts are particularly useful in both bleach and bleach-fix solutions. The pH of bleaching solutions or bleach-fixing solutions using these iron(III) anopolycarboxylic acid complexes is usually 5.5 to 8, but in order to speed up the processing, it can be processed at an even lower pl+. . A bleach accelerator may be used in the bleaching solution, bleach-fixing solution, and their prebaths, if necessary. Specific examples of useful bleach accelerators are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,893. No. 858, West German Patent No. L290,812, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 53-95,630, Research Disclosure No. 17, 129 (1
Compounds having a merkabut group or a disulfide bond described in J.P. 1978-140, etc.;
Thiazolidine derivatives described in US Pat. No. 3.7
Thiourea derivatives described in No. 06,561; JP-A-58-
16,235; West German Patent No. 2, 7
48. Polyoxyethylene compounds described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 430, polyamine compounds described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 45-8836, and odorant ions can be used. Among these, compounds having a mercabuto group or a disulfide group are preferred from the viewpoint of a large promoting effect, and are particularly preferred as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,893.858.
No., West German Patent No. 1,290.812, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1983-9
The compounds described in No. 5,630 are preferred. Also preferred are the compounds described in US Pat. No. 4,552,834. These bleach accelerators may be added to the light-sensitive material. These bleach accelerators are particularly effective when bleach-fixing color light-sensitive materials for photography. Examples of fixing agents include thiosulfates, thiocyanates, thioether compounds, thioureas, and large amounts of iodide salts, but thiosulfates are commonly used, and ammonium thiosulfate is the most commonly used. Can be used widely. Preservatives used after bleach-fixing are preferably sulfites, bisulfites, sulfinic acids, or carbonyl bisulfite adducts. Silver halide color photographic materials are generally subjected to water washing and/or stabilization steps after desilvering treatment. The amount of water used in the washing process depends on the characteristics of the photosensitive material (for example, depending on the materials used such as couplers), the application, the temperature of the washing water, the number of washing tanks (number of stages), the replenishment method such as countercurrent or forward flow, and various other conditions. Can be set over a wide range. Among these, the relationship between the number of flushing tanks and the amount of water in the multistage countercurrent method is described in the Journal of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers.
al of the Society of Moti
on Picture and Televfsion
Engineers) Vol. 64, pp. 248-253 (
It can be determined by the method described in May 1955 issue). According to the multi-stage countercurrent method described in the above-mentioned literature, the amount of water used for washing can be significantly reduced, but due to the increased residence time of the water in the tank, bacteria will grow and floating matter will adhere to the photosensitive material. Problems such as this arise. In the processing of the color light-sensitive materials, as a solution to such problems, the method of reducing calcium ions and magnesium ions described in JP-A No. 62-288,838 can be used very effectively. Also, JP-A-57-8, 542
Chlorinated disinfectants such as isothiazolone compounds, cyabendazole, chlorinated sodium isocyanurate, and other penzotriazur mentioned in the issue, "Chemistry of antibacterial and fungicidal agents" by Hiroshi Horiguchi, edited by Sanitation Technology Association. It is also possible to use the fungicides described in "Sterilization, sterilization, and anti-mold technology of microorganisms" and "Encyclopedia of anti-bacterial and anti-mold agents" edited by the Japanese Society of Anti-bacterial and Anti-fungal agents. The pH of the washing water in the processing of the photosensitive material is 4 to 9, preferably 5 to 8. The washing water temperature and washing time can be set in various ways depending on the characteristics of the photosensitive material, its use, etc., but generally it is 20 seconds to 10 minutes at 15 to 45°C, preferably 25 to 10 minutes.
A range of 30 seconds to 5 minutes at 40°C is selected. Furthermore, instead of washing with water, the photosensitive material can be directly processed with a stabilizing solution. In such stabilization treatment, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 57-8,543, 58-14,
No. 834, 60-220. All known methods described in No. 345 can be used. Further, following the water washing treatment, a further stabilization treatment may be carried out, such as a stabilizing bath containing formalin and a surfactant, which is used as a final bath for color photosensitive materials for photography. . Various chelating agents and antifungal agents can also be added to this stabilizing bath. The overflow liquid resulting from the water washing and/or replenishment of the stabilizing liquid can also be reused in other processes such as the desilvering process. The silver halide color light-sensitive material may contain a color developing agent for the purpose of simplifying and speeding up processing. In order to incorporate the color developing agent, it is preferable to use various precursors of the color developing agent. For example, indoaniline compounds described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,342,597, U.S. Pat. No. 3,342,59
No. 9, Research Disclosure No. 14,850 and Research Disclosure No. 15, 159, Symf base type compounds, Research Disclosure No. 1
No. 3,924, the aldol compounds described in U.S. Pat.
Metal salt complex described in No. 719.492, JP-A-53-13
5. Examples include urethane compounds described in No. 628. -1- The silver halide color light-sensitive material may contain various 1-phenyl-3-
Virazolitons may be incorporated. Typical compounds are disclosed in JP-A No. 56-64, 339, No. 5714.4547.
No. 58-115, 438, etc. The compounds contained in the above-mentioned photosensitive materials are eluted from the photosensitive materials into the processing solution during processing of the photosensitive materials, and therefore these compounds are not included in the waste solution generated when such photosensitive materials are processed. ing. The various processing solutions mentioned above are used at 10°C to 50°C. Normally, the standard temperature is 33°C to 38°C, but higher temperatures can be used to accelerate the processing and shorten the processing time.
Conversely, it is possible to improve the image quality and the stability of the processing solution by lowering the temperature. Furthermore, in order to save silver on photosensitive materials, treatment using Kobal 1 intensification or hydrogen peroxide intensification described in West German Patent No. 2,226.770 or U.S. Patent No. 3,674.499 may be carried out. good. (3) Specification x4g lines 9-10 and page 12 8-9
Line 1: “15-30°C, preferably 20-25°C”
is corrected to 10-40°C, preferably 15-30°C, more preferably 20-25°C.

Claims (1)

[Claims] Inside the main body case, which is substantially sealed, there is an evaporation section that attaches or impregnates waste liquid to an evaporation medium partially immersed in photographic processing waste liquid and exposes the waste liquid to air to evaporate it, and an evaporation section that evaporates the waste liquid by cooling it and condensing the evaporated water. A photographic processing waste liquid processing apparatus having an air cooler for cooling, wherein the air cooler is a cooler for a refrigeration apparatus, a heat dissipation part of the refrigeration apparatus is provided outside the main body case, and an air heating means is further provided inside the main body case. Photographic processing waste liquid treatment equipment installed