JPH04288437A - Air supply method whose temperature and humidity is accurately controlled - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To supply sir where the fluctuation range of temperature and humidity is precisely controlled in a fine range of specific % RH respectively. CONSTITUTION:The open air 1 is dehumidified by means of a dehumidifier 2 and temperature-controlled by means of a cooler 4 or a heater 5 as well. This temperature- controlled air is humidified by means of a quick humidification response humidification device 6 under control. This humidified air 7 is supplied. A reference 11 and a heater 5 are actuated by the indication of a temperature indication controller 10 which measures the supply air 7 by means of a temperature. The refrigerant is fed to the cooler 4 by the operation of the refrigerator 11 while the supply air is measured by a humidity sensor 12 and the quick humidification response humidification device 6 is operated by the indication of the humidity indication controller 13. It is necessary to operate the quick himudification response humidification device 6 promptly and accurately by the indication of the humidity indication controller 13. Therefore, some mm thick water layer should preferably cover the top of a horizontal plate-like heating medium in a stabilized manner so as to promtly respond to the intermission of the power source for the plate-like heating medium and heat and evaporate water intermittently.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of supplying air whose temperature and humidity are precisely controlled.

0002

[Prior Art] Conventionally, for example, fine adjustment of temperature and humidity in a clean room or semiconductor device manufacturing process is performed by combining dehumidification and humidification as well as heating and cooling at the same time to produce air that has been adjusted to the desired temperature and humidity. A continuous feeding method is used.

0003

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] Currently, there is an established technology for controlling indoor temperature within a minute range of about ±0.1°C using a heat source and a temperature sensor. The technology for fine adjustment of relative humidity with respect to temperature is not well established. Advances in dehumidification technology have made it possible to meet the demand for lowering air humidity as much as possible.
In the area of humidification, attempts have been made to heat and evaporate water into the air, to scatter fine water droplets into the air using ultrasonic waves, and to wet cloth or other moisture-absorbing materials with water and evaporate water from their surfaces. However, there is no established method for intermittent humidification to accurately and quickly maintain a constant humidity in response to fluctuations in the indoor humidity, and current humidity control is limited to a relative humidity of 60%, for example. In this case, the range is ±5%. Moreover, in the fields of current semiconductor manufacturing processes, film manufacturing processes, drug manufacturing processes, precision environmental testing equipment, etc., the temperature can be adjusted within a wide temperature range by about ±0.1°C.
There is an increasing desire to keep the relative humidity within a microscopic range of ±1% or less and to continuously supply fresh air whose temperature and humidity are precisely controlled.

0004

[Means for Solving the Problems] In response to the above-mentioned needs, the present invention enables the temperature of supply air to be precisely adjusted within a fluctuation range of ±0.1 °C when the temperature is 20 °C, and at the same time The present invention provides a temperature/humidity control device that can precisely adjust the relative humidity within a range of ±0.6% within the range of RH10% to RH80%. The temperature of dry air 3 is adjusted by a cooler 4 and/or a heater 5, and the air 3 is humidified by a rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 to supply air 7 to a predetermined temperature and humidity into a room 8. It was designed to do so.

[0005] Here, the temperature of the supply air 7 is measured by a temperature sensor 9 and fed back to a temperature indicating regulator 10.
The refrigerator 11 and the heater 5 are operated according to the instructions from the temperature indicating regulator 10, and the refrigerant is sent to the cooler 4 and continuously adjusted by the operation of the refrigerator 11, and the humidity of the supply air 7 is measured by the humidity sensor 12. The humidity is then fed back to the humidity indicating regulator 13, and the rapid humidification responsive humidifying device 6 is operated according to the instructions from the humidity indicating regulator 13 to continuously adjust the humidity within a predetermined range. The refrigerator 11 may be operated at all times regardless of the temperature indicating regulator 10.

[0006] The humidifying device 6 needs to operate quickly and accurately according to instructions from a humidity indicating controller 13 operated by a humidity sensor 12. For example, a patent filed by the present applicant dated January 26, 1991 As shown in the application "Rapid Humidification Responsive Float Type Humidifier", a thin layer of water several millimeters deep is stably covered on the top surface of the horizontal sheet heating element, and the power supply to the sheet heating element is interrupted. It is preferable to heat and evaporate a thin layer of water intermittently in response to rapid response.

[0007]

[Embodiment] As shown in FIG. 2, the cylinder has a cylindrical shape, and a large number of small through holes 15 pass through the cylinder from one end surface to the other end surface, and the surface of the small through holes is capable of reversibly adsorbing and desorbing moisture. A dehumidifying rotor 16 containing the agent is prepared. This dehumidifying rotor 16 is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 1-25614, Japanese Patent Applications No. 60-86969 and Japanese Patent Application No. 62-1 filed by the present applicant.
It can be obtained by the method shown in No. 45873.

Seal plates 18, 18 provided with three separators 19, 19, 19 are applied to both end surfaces of the dehumidifying rotor 16 to separate it into a processing zone 20, a regeneration zone 21, and a purge zone 22, and a duct is connected to each zone. (not shown) is installed, the dehumidifying rotor 16 rotates while sliding on both seal plates 18, 18, and the outside air 1 is sent to the processing zone 20 of the dehumidifying rotor 16, and a part 23 of the outside air 1 is transferred to the purge zone. The dehumidifier 2 is obtained by configuring the dehumidifier 2 to be supplied to the regeneration zone 22, heated by the heater 24, and then introduced to the regeneration zone 21 as regeneration air 17. If a particularly low dew point is not required, the purge zone 22 is not necessarily required.

[0009] Instead of the honeycomb type dehumidifier described above, a refrigerating type dehumidifier using the dew point method can also be used, but the honeycomb type dehumidifier can obtain dry air with a low dew point of -50°C to -70°C. On the other hand, a refrigerating dehumidifier cannot provide dry air with a dew point of 7°C or lower.

An example of the rapid humidification responsive humidifying device 6 is as shown in FIG. After fixing the body 28, floats 29, 29... are attached to the four corners of the side walls 25, 25..., and the tray 27 is fixed as shown in FIG.
A heat insulating material 30 is attached to the bottom of the heating element 28, and the heating element 28 is floated on water contained in a container 31, and the buoyancy of the float is adjusted so that a thin layer 32 of water with a depth of 1 mm to several mm is formed stably on the upper surface of the sheet heating element 28. It is meant to be covered. In the figure, 33 and 33 are lead wires connected to the resistance wire of the planar heating element 28, and 34 is the container 31.
A pipe that replenishes water when the water inside evaporates and decreases.
35 is a float switch which automatically supplies water when its height drops to a predetermined position 35a, supplies water, and stops water supply when its height rises to a predetermined position 35, for example.

FIG. 1 shows an example of an apparatus for supplying air whose temperature and humidity are precisely controlled according to the present invention, using the dehumidifier 2 and the rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 described above.

As shown in FIG. 1, outside air 1 passes through a dehumidifier 2, a cooler 4, a heater 5, a rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6, and a supply air 7 is introduced into a room 8 through a duct. A fan 36 is provided in a part of the fan 36. The arrangement order of the cooler 4, heater 5, and rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 can be arbitrarily selected. In the dehumidifier 2, most of the outside air 1 is passed through the treatment zone as described above, and in the rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6, the entire rapid humidification responsive humidifier shown in FIG. so that it passes above the water surface.

A temperature sensor 9 is provided in a part of the passage of the supply air 7, and the signal from the temperature sensor 9 is fed back to a temperature indicating controller 10, so that the temperature of the supply air 7 is kept within a predetermined range based on the signal. The heater 5 is turned on and off to keep the temperature of the supply air 7 constant. Further, a humidity sensor 12 is provided in a part of the passage of the air supply 7, and the signal from the humidity sensor 12 is fed back to the humidity indicator controller 13, and upon receiving the signal, the rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 is turned on and off, and the humidity sensor 12 is fed back to the humidity indicator controller 13. Maintain constant humidity. Reciprocating pipes 37, 37 are provided between the refrigerator 11 and the cooler 4 so that the refrigerant circulates.

It is preferable to provide a pre-cooler 14 before the outside air 1 is introduced into the dehumidifier 2. In this case, reciprocating pipes 38 and 38 are provided so that a part of the refrigerant in the refrigerator 11 circulates between it and the precooler 14. Or cooler 4
may be omitted and the refrigerant may be circulated only to the break cooler 14.

[0015]

[Operation] The dehumidifying rotor 16 of the dehumidifier 2 is driven to rotate in the direction of the arrow in FIG. After being cooled to approximately a predetermined temperature by the cooler 4, the temperature is adjusted by the heater 5, humidified by the rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6, and fed as supply air 7 into the room 8 whose temperature and humidity are to be adjusted. When a refrigeration type dehumidifier is used as the dehumidifier 2, the refrigerator 11, the cooler 4, and the pre-cooler 14 are not required, and the air after passing through the dehumidifier 2 is directly sent to the heater 5 and the rapid humidification responsive humidifier. do.

The temperature of the supply air 7 is measured by the temperature sensor 9 and fed back to the temperature indicating regulator 10, and the refrigerator 11 and the heater 5 are controlled according to the instructions of the temperature indicating regulator 10.
By operating the refrigerator 11, the refrigerant is sent to the cooler 4 and/or the precooler 14.
and/or adjusting the temperature of the air entering the humidifier 6 in cooperation with the precooler 14 and the heater 5. Especially when the temperature of the outside air 1 is high, the refrigerator 11 is always operated and the heater 5
The temperature of the supply air 7 may be adjusted by. Conversely, when the outside air temperature is low, the temperature of the supply air 7 can be adjusted using only the heater 5. In addition, the humidity of the air supply 7 is detected by the humidity sensor 12.
The humidity is measured and fed back to the humidity indicator controller 13, and the rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 is activated according to the instructions from the humidity indicator controller 13, and the thin layer of water 32 on the top surface of the planar heating element 28 is instantaneously removed. The air 3 is heated and evaporated to a desired relative humidity, and when the supplied air 7 reaches the desired relative humidity, the air is humidified by heating and evaporating the water 32 via the humidity indicator controller 13 according to a command from the humidity sensor 12. stop instantly.

[0017]

Effects of the Invention Since the present invention is constructed as described above, the temperature of the air 7 to be supplied is set in the temperature indicating regulator 10, the temperature of the supply air 7 is constantly captured by the temperature sensor 9, and the temperature indicating regulator 10 and the temperature indication controller 10
By operating the cooler 4 and/or pre-cooler 14 and heater 5 according to instructions from Humidity indicator controller 1 for humidity of air 7
3, the humidity of the air supply 7 is constantly captured by the humidity sensor 12, the humidity of the air supply 7 is fed back to the humidity indicator regulator 13, and the rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 is operated according to the instructions of the humidity indicator regulator 13. Relative humidity RH of 20
It is possible to achieve a remarkable effect that has not been seen in the past, in that it can be precisely and quickly adjusted in the range of ±0.2 to 1.0% RH in the range of 80% RH.

Using the dehumidifier shown in FIG. 2 and the rapid humidification responsive humidifier shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, outside air 1 under various conditions is
Some data of the air supply 7 obtained by processing according to the present invention are shown below. (1) Indication value Temperature 25.0℃ Relative humidity 50
%

(2) Indication value Temperature 23.0°C
Relative humidity 60%

(3) Indication value temperature 23.0°C
relative humidity 10%

(4) Indication value temperature 20.0°C
relative humidity 10%

(5) Indication value Temperature 20.0°C
relative humidity 10%

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an overview of an example of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of a dehumidifier.

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an example of a rapid humidification responsive humidification device.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing essential parts of an example of a rapid humidification responsive humidification device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1. Outside air 2　Dehumidifier 4 Cooler 5 Heater 6 Rapid humidification responsive humidification device 7 Air supply 9 Temperature sensor 10 Temperature indicator controller 12 Humidity sensor 13 Humidity indicator controller

Claims (4)

[Claims] Claims: 1. Outside air 1 is dehumidified by a dehumidifier 2, the temperature of the obtained dry air 3 is adjusted by a cooler 4 and/or a heater 5, and the supply air 7 is humidified by a rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 and then supplied to a room. The temperature of the supply air 7 is measured by a temperature sensor 9, and the refrigerator 11 and heater 5 are operated according to the instructions from the temperature indicator controller 10. Send to 4,
The humidity of the supply air 7 is measured by a humidity sensor 12, and the rapid humidification responsive humidifier 6 is operated according to instructions from a humidity indicator controller 13, thereby maintaining the supply air 7 at a predetermined temperature and humidity. , a method of supplying air with precisely controlled temperature and humidity. 2. The method for supplying air whose temperature and humidity are precisely controlled according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerator 11 is operated at all times. 3. A structure according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein part or all of the refrigerant sent from the refrigerator 11 is sent to the pre-cooler 14, and the outside air 1 is cooled by the pre-cooler 14 and then sent to the dehumidifier 2. A method of supplying air with precisely controlled temperature and humidity. Claim 4: A large number of small through holes 1 extending from one end surface to the other end surface.
a cylindrical dehumidifying rotor 16 that passes through the dehumidifying rotor 16; and a sealing plate 18 that slides on both end surfaces of the dehumidifying rotor 16 to allow the treated air 1 and the regenerated air 17 to separate and pass through the dehumidifying rotor 16. 4. A method for supplying air whose temperature and humidity are precisely controlled according to claims 1 to 3, wherein a dehumidifier 2 comprising: