KR100346571B1 - Oxygen supply devices - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an oxygen supply apparatus including an air pump for compressing air, a cooling system for cooling the compressed air, and a gas separation membrane for generating oxygen from the cooled air.

In addition, the oxygen supply device of the present invention is characterized in that the cooling system is composed of a heat exchanger and a cooling fan and the air introduced from the air pump is cooled by a cooling fan while being transferred along the heat exchanger.

According to the present invention, by cooling the high-temperature compressed air generated in the air pump and supplying the gas separation membrane, the oxygen generation efficiency of the gas separation membrane can be increased and the durability of the device can be increased.

Description

Oxygen supply devices

The present invention relates to an oxygen supply device using a gas separation membrane, and more particularly, after cooling the air compressed by the air pump to enter the gas separation membrane to generate oxygen, and the generated oxygen in automobiles, offices, workplaces and businesses By supplying to the back, the present invention relates to an oxygen supply device that can provide a comfortable indoor space and working space.

As the oxygen supply increases, human beings improve their physical and mental abilities and demand a pleasant environment for their behavior. Therefore, it is necessary to supply oxygen for work efficiency, safe work and operation depending on the indoor environment of offices, businesses, workplaces and vehicles. Therefore, in recent years, various oxygen generation methods have been developed as a means for living such a comfortable life.

Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2000-63883 discloses a method for producing a high concentration of oxygen by gas separation of oxygen present in the air by using a hollow fiber membrane gas separation membrane. However, the method includes a heater and a dryer to remove moisture present in the air, which increases the air temperature in the apparatus because the heater and the dryer are used as heat sources to remove moisture, thereby increasing the hollow fiber membrane gas. There is a problem in reducing the oxygen generation efficiency of the separator.

In addition, U.S. Patent Publication No. 6,113,484 discloses a method of generating oxygen using a gas separation membrane and supplying the generated oxygen to a vehicle interior, but this is simply generated by compressing air outside the vehicle and supplying it to the gas separation membrane. There is a problem that the performance of the gas separation membrane is reduced due to the reduction in efficiency of the gas separation membrane, the temperature of the vehicle engine and its peripherals.

The present invention is to improve the above-mentioned problems by using a cooling system composed of a heat exchanger and a cooling fan the compressed air and the temperature rises by the heat of compression and mechanical heat generated by the air pump for compressing the air and the compressed air and The technical problem is to reduce the temperature of the air pump to increase the oxygen generation efficiency of the gas separation membrane.

1 is a block diagram of a gas separation oxygen supply device having a cooling device according to the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

2: air pump 4: first filter

6: heat exchanger 8: cooling fan

10 controller 12 second filter

14 gas separation membrane 16 oxygen sensor

18: gas discharge hole 20: oxygen discharge hole

22 air inlet 24 cooling system

The present invention for achieving the above technical problem is characterized in that it comprises an air pump for compressing air, a cooling system for cooling the compressed air and a gas separation membrane for generating oxygen from the cooled air.

In addition, the present invention is characterized in that the cooling system is composed of a heat exchanger and a cooling fan and the air introduced from the air pump is cooled by a cooling fan while being transferred along the heat exchanger.

In the present invention, any gas separation membrane can be used as long as it can generate oxygen. Gas separation membranes or methods for their preparation that meet these requirements are well known in the art.

In certain preferred embodiments, the gas separation membranes that can be used in the oxygen generator of the present invention are silicone, polyimide, polyamide, cellulose acetate, polysulfone, polyvinyl alcohol, polyphenyloxide, polybutyl acrylate and mixtures of two or more thereof A gas produced by dissolving a polymer selected from the group consisting of in a solvent, casting the formed mixture or spinning through a nozzle to form a film, solidifying the formed film, washing and drying the solidified film, and optionally heat treating or coating the dried film. It includes a separator.

The novel gas separation membrane according to the invention can be in any form. That is, the separation membrane of the present invention can be prepared as a single membrane (homogeneous membrane), a composite membrane or an asymmetric membrane. These membranes can be in the form of flat plates, hollow tubes, hollow fibers, spiral wounds, and the like, and it is well known to produce membranes in this form. In addition, an organic metal compound selected from the group consisting of carbonates, nitrates, acetates, halides and acetylacetonates of nickel, cobalt, ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, titanium, iron, copper and chromium is added to the primary or secondary polymer melt. It can be used to improve the performance of the membrane.

The polymer used to prepare the novel gas separation membrane according to the present invention may be 10 to 40% by weight, preferably 15 to 25% by weight with respect to the solvent, the organometallic compound is 0.1 to 10% by weight with respect to the solvent, Preferably 0.5 to 5% by weight can be used.

Solvents used to prepare the novel gas separation membrane according to the present invention include tetrahydrofuran, alcohols (eg, 1,2-butanol, 1,2-pentanol, 1,3-pentanol) or derivatives thereof, alkyl acetates. (Eg, ethyl acetate, methyl acetate) or derivatives thereof, trichloroethane, acetate, and the like.

When preparing the novel gas separation membrane according to the present invention, a surfactant may additionally be used as an additive to improve the resolution of the membrane. Surfactants include, for example, copolymers of polyoxyethylene and polyoxypropylene, polyoxyethylene alkyl phenyl ethers, polyoxyethylene alkyl ethers, and the like. Its use amount is about 0.1 to 10% by weight.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a view illustrating a configuration of an oxygen supply apparatus equipped with a cooling system according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the oxygen supply device of the present invention includes an air pump 2 for compressing air, and a first filter for removing pollen, dust, moisture, dust, etc., in which the compressed air flows into the air ( 4), a heat exchanger 6 for cooling the compressed air that has passed through the first filter 4, and a fan 8 for cooling the heat exchanger 6 are provided, which has passed through the heat exchanger 6. A second filter 12 for removing volatile organic compounds, odor gases and other contaminants present in the compressed air, a controller 10 for controlling the amount of compressed air flowing into the second filter 12, and a room And an oxygen sensor 16 for measuring oxygen concentration and delivering the measured information to the controller 10 and a gas separation membrane 6 for separating oxygen and exhaust gas from the compressed air passing through the second filter. . Here, the exhaust gas refers to air excluding separated oxygen, that is, air containing a large amount of nitrogen.

The air pump 2 of the present invention compresses the external air and provides a driving force to allow air to flow into the device, thereby flowing air into the device as a separate device, such as a blower or a fan. No device is needed to provide the pressure required for gas separation of the gas separation membrane 14.

The first filter 4 of the present invention is for removing moisture, dust, pollen, etc. contained in the air, and activated carbon and carbon fiber may be used. On the other hand, when removing particulate matter such as dust and pollen, it is advantageous to use a porous filter to prevent clogging due to accumulation of particulate matter that may occur inside the filter.

Since the compressed air passing through the first filter 4 rises to a high temperature when the air pump 2 compresses the air, the compressed air is mixed into the cooling system 24 to cool the heat and cooled. 24 consists of a heat exchanger 6 and a fan 8. Compressed air is transferred to the inside of the heat exchanger (6), and air flows to the outside by the cooling fan (8). Here, the cooling system 24 may be any device that cools the high temperature heat introduced from the compression pump 2, and it may be air-cooled that can be manufactured in various forms while occupying less volume in terms of economical aspects and space utilization. Heat exchanger 6 is preferred. Meanwhile, in order to cool the compressed air transferred into the heat exchanger 6, external air is supplied by a cooling fan 8 formed to be adjacent to the heat exchanger 6, and the supplied air is supplied to the heat exchanger 6. The compressed air is cooled while passing through the outside air surface. Preferably, the air pump 2 is positioned at the rear of the heat exchanger 6 so that the air cooled by the heat exchanger 6 again cools the air pump 2. Cooling can increase the cooling efficiency.

As described above, the cooling system 24 lowers the temperature of the compressed air to prevent an increase in the voids of the hollow fiber membrane gas separation membrane 14 which may occur due to high temperature compressed air, and condensation of moisture generated when the air is cooled. It is possible to prevent the deterioration of the gas separation membrane 14 due to the oxygen generation efficiency of the gas separation membrane 14 to the maximum.

On the other hand, the compressed air passing through the heat exchanger (6) is moved to the second filter 12 via the controller 10 capable of adjusting the flow rate.

The above-described controller 10 is set to adjust the flow rate, which is compared to the oxygen concentration measurement value measured by the oxygen sensor 16 installed on one side of the room at the initial setting of the oxygen concentration below the set value. In order to flow the compressed air introduced from the heat exchanger (6) to the second filter 12, and to prevent the compressed air from flowing to the second filter (12) at an oxygen concentration above the set value.

The second filter 12 according to the present invention is filled with carbon, carbon fiber and / or silver activated carbon for the purpose of removing volatile organic compounds, odor gas and dust, and minimizes the pressure drop of compressed air. Honeycomb, ceramic foam, and metallic foam may be used for the purpose, but is not limited thereto.

The compressed air passing through the second filter 12 is led to a gas separation membrane 14 that substantially generates oxygen. Such a gas separation membrane may be used in any form. Preferably, the hollow fiber membrane separation membrane 36 or the spiral wound gas separation membrane 36 may be used, and the material may be made of a polymer and an organic metal compound. good.

The separated oxygen is moved to a predetermined oxygen distribution device provided in the room through the oxygen discharge hole 20 formed at one side of the gas separation membrane 14 to supply oxygen, and separated by the gas separation membrane 14. Exhaust gas except oxygen is discharged to outside air through the exhaust gas discharge hole 18. Here, the exhaust gas refers to air excluding separated oxygen, that is, gas containing a large amount of nitrogen.

The oxygen supply device of the present invention having such a configuration and operation can be installed and used in an air conditioner of an office, an air conditioner of an office, an air conditioner, and the like.

In particular, since the oxygen supply device of the present invention can be manufactured in a package form in which the above components are placed in a predetermined case space, the oxygen supply device can be mounted on one side of a bonnet of a vehicle or used in a space between a trunk or a trunk and a rear seat.

The packaged oxygen supply device is composed of the air pump 2, the first and second filters 4 and 12, the cooling system 22, the controller 10 and the gas separation membrane 14 described above. One side of the controller 10 is formed with a connecting member for receiving an electrical signal of the oxygen sensor 16 installed in the vehicle interior.

The above-described components are placed in a case having a predetermined space and a hole is formed at one side of the case to allow air to communicate with the inside and outside of the case, and is connected to the oxygen discharge hole 20 of the gas separation membrane 14. And a hole to discharge oxygen outside the case and a hole connected to the exhaust gas discharge hole 18 of the gas separation membrane 14 to discharge the exhaust gas to the outside of the case. Here, the hole connected to the oxygen discharge hole 20 is connected to the pipe leading to the interior of the car to supply oxygen to the room, and the hole connected to the exhaust gas discharge hole 18 is connected to the outside air of the car is fastened to the exhaust gas Discharge to the outside. Meanwhile, among the components placed inside the case, the first and second filters 4 and 12 and the controller 10 may be added or subtracted according to the purpose.

The oxygen supply device of the present invention manufactured in the form of a package is provided with a power supply member for supplying power to one outside of the case, and the power supply member is an on-off switch located at one side of a driver's seat of the vehicle. Connected to allow the driver to apply power, and supplies power to the air pump 2 and the cooling fan 8 and the controller 10 provided on one side of the case. On the other hand, the oxygen generated from the gas separation membrane 14 for generating oxygen by the above-described method is delivered to the room along the pipe connected to the oxygen discharge hole 20 to guide the oxygen into the vehicle interior, gas separation membrane 14 The exhaust gas generated from the exhaust gas is discharged through a pipe installed to be connected to the exhaust gas discharge hole 18 and guided to the outside of the vehicle. In addition, the oxygen sensor 16 is installed on one side of the vehicle interior to measure the oxygen concentration of the oxygen sensor 16, and then transfers the information measured from the oxygen sensor 16 to the controller 10 provided inside the case. The amount of oxygen generated is controlled.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail through examples. However, the following examples are only for illustrating the present invention in detail and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention by these examples.

<Example 1>

As shown in FIG. 1, a carbon filter is connected to one side of an air pump through which compressed air is discharged, and a heat exchanger and a cooling fan are installed at one side of the carbon filter. One side of the heat exchanger was installed with a carbon fiber filter, and the compressed air passing through the carbon fiber filter was led to a gas separation membrane. Here, the operating pressure of the air pump ² is 4Kg _f / cm ² , the flow rate of compressed air discharged from the air pump 2 is 14L / min, the flow rate of oxygen discharged from the gas separation membrane 14 is 4L / min, In addition, the gas separation membrane 14 used was made of a hollow fiber membrane made of 3,500 pieces of polysiloxane used yarn having a length of 400 mm.

On the other hand, for the performance test of the cooling system consisting of the heat exchanger (6) and the cooling fan (8) performed the same operation with the heat exchanger (6) and cooling fan (8) removed from the components and compare the results Was intended.

In order to measure the oxygen concentration, the oxygen concentration was measured using an oxygen concentration meter (Max-O ₂ ,).

The oxygen generation amount of the gas separation membrane 14 operated as described above was 40% on average, and the results are shown in Table 1.

<Example 2>

The same method and conditions as in Example 1 were carried out, but the gas separation membrane used was made of 3500 Praxair hollow fibers 400 mm long.

The results are shown in Table 1.

Oxygen generation concentration (%) according to whether cooling device is installed Uptime 20 minutes 60 minutes 90 minutes 120 minutes 150 minutes 180 minutes 240 minutes 300 minutes practice Cooler Mount 36.1 36 36 35.9 36 36 36 36 Example 1 Without cooler 35 34.2 33.5 32 31 30 30 29.4 practice Equipped with cold air 40.1 40 40 40 40.2 40.1 40.1 40 Example 2 Without cooler 40 39 37.3 35 34 32 30 28

<Example 3>

In a 500 ml reactor, 25 g of polysulfone (PS, Udel P-3500, AMOCO Co., Ltd.) was dissolved in 78.7 ml of tetrahydrofuran (THF, Aldrich) as a solvent. ₅ g of [P (C ₆ H ₅ ) ₃ ] ₃ , Aldrich) was added. The mixture was cast using an automatic membrane making machine (IMOTO 301) under the conditions of driving stroke 150 mm, application speed 30 mm / sec, 55 bar (125.7 μm). The film was evaporated and dried slowly in a dryer and then dried in a vacuum oven (80 ° C.) for at least 24 hours to remove residual solvent. The dried membrane was coated with a 5 wt% silicone solution using the above-mentioned automatic membrane manufacturing apparatus (No. 3 bar (6.86 μm), and then dried under the same conditions as the above drying procedure. 88 μm.

Permeability and selectivity of the prepared membrane was measured using a gas permeability measuring device (Millipoa film holder 90mm, YY3009000). The oxygen / nitrogen selectivity of the gas separation membrane prepared according to the present invention was found to be 3.8 (GPU, x10 ⁻⁴ cm ³ / cm ² .sec.cmHg).

In the oxygen generator, the separation membrane was used as the gas separation membrane, and the discharge oxygen concentration change was measured in the same manner as in Example 1. The results are reported in Table 2 below.

Uptime (min) Discharged oxygen concentration (%) 0.5 38.1 One 38.4 2 38.4 3 38.5 4 38.5 5 38.5 6 38.5 7 38.6 8 38.7 9 38.7 10 38.7 15 38.7 20 38.8

As described above, those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention can be implemented in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features. Therefore, the above-described embodiments are to be understood as illustrative in all respects and not as restrictive. The scope of the present invention should be construed that all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the appended claims and their equivalents, rather than the detailed description, are included in the scope of the present invention.

The present invention by compressing the outside air through the filter to remove the pollutants and odor gas contained in the air to generate oxygen to supply to offices, businesses, workplaces and car interiors, soot, dust and pollutants By providing a fresh air without air, not only can you create a comfortable indoor air, but also heat generated during the compression of the air to the heat exchanger and the cooling fan to increase the life of the device, increase the efficiency, and prevent the trouble of the device.

Claims (3)

An air pump (2) for compressing air, a cooling system (24) for cooling the compressed air, and a gas separation membrane (14) for generating oxygen from the cooled air. The cooling system (24) according to claim 1, wherein the cooling system (24) consists of a heat exchanger (6) and a cooling fan (8), and the air introduced from the air pump (2) is transferred to the cooling fan (8) while being transported along the heat exchanger (6). Oxygen supply device characterized in that cooled by. The method of claim 1, The gas separation membrane 14 dissolves a polymer selected from the group consisting of silicone, polyimide, polyamide, cellulose acetate, polysulfone, polyvinyl alcohol, polyphenyloxide, polybutyl acrylate and a mixture of two or more thereof in a solvent, A mixture formed by adding an organometallic compound selected from the group consisting of carbonates, nitrates, acetates, halides and acetylacetonates of nickel, cobalt, ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, titanium, iron, copper and chromium to the resulting melt; Casting or spinning through a nozzle to form a membrane, solidify the formed membrane, wash and dry the solidified membrane, and optionally a gas separation membrane prepared by heat treatment or coating the dried membrane.