KR102262981B1 - Water Generator to Pre-treat Incoming Air - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus for generating drinkable water from water vapor contained in air. The apparatus for generating water in accordance with the present invention comprises: a condenser in which a high-temperature gaseous refrigerant is liquefied into a low-temperature liquid refrigerant to releases heat to the outside; an evaporator which converts the water vapor in the air into liquid water by absorbing the external heat while the liquid refrigerant supplied from the condenser is vaporized into a gaseous refrigerant; a compressor which compresses the gaseous refrigerant supplied from the evaporator and transfers the compressed gaseous refrigerant to the condenser; a water collecting tank which collects and stores the water generated in the evaporator; a filter unit which purifies the water in the water collecting tank; a purified water supply tank which stores the water purified by the filter unit; and an incoming air pre-processing unit which pre-treats the external incoming air using wastewater generated by the filter unit and provides the pre-treated incoming air to the evaporator. In accordance with the present invention, the incoming air is pre-treated in the wastewater discharged from the filter unit, such that the humidity of the incoming air is increased. Therefore, a lot of water is generated even when the temperature of the evaporator is lowered.

Description

Water Generator to Pre-treat Incoming Air

The present invention relates to a water generating apparatus, and more particularly, to an apparatus for generating drinkable water from water vapor contained in air.

In general, air contains a lot of water in the form of water vapor, and when water vapor meets a relatively low temperature object, it is condensed and converted into water.

The device for generating water by condensing water vapor contained in air includes a compressor that compresses a refrigerant, a condenser that condenses the compressed refrigerant to dissipate heat to the surroundings, and an evaporator that absorbs heat from the surroundings by evaporating the condensed refrigerant. Consists of. When the air containing moisture flows in from the outside and passes through the evaporator, the moisture in the air is condensed and collected by the evaporator, and the moisture-removed air is discharged as hot and dry air while passing through the condenser.

On the other hand, in order to use the water condensed in the evaporator as drinking water, it is necessary to remove harmful components in the water, so a reverse osmosis filter is usually used. In this reverse osmosis filter, 4 liters of water must be discarded to obtain 1 liter of purified water. That is, although water vapor in the air is converted using energy, a lot of water is consumed in the process of making drinking water by purifying, so there is a problem in that the water generation efficiency is low compared to the energy consumed.

Korean Patent Publication No. 10-1305891 (Air water system equipped with an air purifier)

An object of the present invention, derived to solve these conventional problems, is to provide a water generating device having high water generating efficiency compared to energy consumed.

One aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is a device for generating water by collecting water in the air, a condenser for discharging heat to the outside while a high-temperature gas refrigerant is liquefied into a low-temperature liquid refrigerant, and from the condenser An evaporator that absorbs external heat while the supplied liquid refrigerant is vaporized into a gaseous refrigerant and converts water vapor in the air flowing in from the outside into liquid water, a compressor that compresses the gaseous refrigerant supplied from the evaporator and sends it to the condenser; A water collecting tank for collecting and storing the water generated in the evaporator, a filter unit for purifying the water in the water collecting tank, a purified water supply tank for storing the water purified by the filter unit, and the wastewater generated by the filter unit. and an inlet air pre-processing unit that pre-treats external inlet air and provides the air to the evaporator.

Preferably, the inlet air pre-processing unit stores the wastewater generated by the filter unit, and includes a water storage tank having an air inlet through which the external inlet air is introduced and an air outlet communicating with the evaporator.

Preferably, it is installed at the front end of the inlet air pre-processing unit, and further includes an electric dust collecting filter provided to the air inlet after removing dust from the external inlet air. In addition, in the filter unit, a micro filter, a pre-carbon filter, a hollow fiber filter, a reverse osmosis filter, and a post-carbon filter are sequentially connected.

Preferably, the inlet air pre-processing unit further includes a water replacement unit for measuring the contamination level of the discharged water stored in the water storage tank and replacing the discharged water. In addition, the inlet air pre-processing unit further includes a water pump for supplying the discharged water generated in the filter unit to the water storage tank. The water storage tank is configured to exchange heat with air passing through the evaporator. In addition, the inlet air pretreatment unit has one end communicating with the air inlet and the other end installed adjacent to the bottom of the water storage tank, and further comprising an air guide unit for allowing outside air introduced into the air inlet to pass through the water outlet. do. In addition, the inlet air pretreatment unit is installed adjacent to the bottom of the water storage tank and further includes an ultrasonic vibrator for vaporizing the water discharge. In addition, the inlet air pretreatment unit further includes an ultraviolet sterilizer installed on the upper portion of the water storage tank.

According to the present invention, since the inlet air is pre-treated in the wastewater discharged from the filter unit, the humidity of the inlet air is increased, so that a lot of water is generated even if the temperature of the evaporator is lowered. That is, the amount of water produced is increased compared to the energy consumed. In addition, since dust and the like of the inlet air are removed in advance by the water discharge, the burden on the filter for water purification can be reduced, and cleaner water can be finally obtained.

1 is a block diagram of an apparatus for generating water according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an exemplary view of the inlet air pre-processing unit shown in FIG. 1 .

Specific structural or functional descriptions presented in the embodiments of the present invention are only exemplified for the purpose of describing embodiments according to the concept of the present invention, and the embodiments according to the concept of the present invention may be implemented in various forms. In addition, it should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments described herein, and should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Meanwhile, in the present invention, terms such as first and/or second may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited to the above terms. The above terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from other components, for example, within the scope without departing from the scope of rights according to the concept of the present invention, the first component may be named as the second component, Similarly, the second component may also be referred to as the first component.

When a component is referred to as being “connected” or “connected” to another component, it should be understood that it may be directly connected or connected to the other component, but other components may exist in between. something to do. On the other hand, when an element is referred to as being “directly connected” or “in direct contact with” another element, it should be understood that no other element is present in the middle. Other expressions for describing the relationship between elements, that is, expressions such as "between" and "immediately between" or "adjacent to" and "directly adjacent to", should be interpreted similarly.

The terms used herein are used only to describe specific embodiments, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The singular expression includes the plural expression unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. As used herein, terms such as "comprises" or "have" are intended to designate the presence of an embodied feature, number, step, action, component, part, or combination thereof, one or more other features or numbers, It should be understood that the possibility of the presence or addition of steps, operations, components, parts or combinations thereof is not precluded in advance.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram of a water generating apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the water generating device 100 includes an evaporator 102 , a compressor 104 , and a condenser 106 sequentially connected by a refrigerant pipe 101 . In addition, the water generating apparatus 100 includes a water collecting tank 118 , a filter unit 130 , a purified water supply tank 138 , and an inlet air pretreatment unit 200 .

The condenser 106 liquefies the gaseous refrigerant into a liquid refrigerant so that the refrigerant radiates heat to the outside. The expansion valve 108 expands the liquid refrigerant made in the condenser 108 so that it becomes low-temperature and low-pressure, and supplies it to the evaporator 102 . The evaporator 102 vaporizes the liquid refrigerant supplied from the expansion valve 108 into a gaseous refrigerant so that the refrigerant absorbs external heat to convert water vapor in the air into liquid water. The compressor 106 compresses the gaseous refrigerant supplied from the evaporator 102 to a high pressure and sends it to the condenser 106 .

The electrostatic precipitation filter 114 reduces the degree of contamination of the water generated in the evaporator 102 by dust or the like by removing dust or the like in the air introduced from the outside. The fan 116 introduces air from the outside and exhausts it through the evaporator 102 and the condenser 108 .

A water collecting tank 118 for storing the water collected by the evaporator 102 is installed at the lower portion of the evaporator 102 inside the housing 150 . The water collected in the water collecting tank 118 is supplied to the evaporator 102 via the evaporator 102 and the activated carbon fiber filter 122 . Water from the evaporator 102 is supplied to the filter unit 130 through a pump 128 . The evaporator 102 is provided with an ozone sterilizer 126 .

In the filter unit 130 , a micro filter, a pre-carbon filter, a hollow fiber filter, a reverse osmosis filter, and a post-carbon filter may be sequentially connected. The water that has passed through the filter unit 130 is supplied back to the evaporator 102 by a resupply pipe 134 . A mineral supply unit 136 for supplying minerals to filtered pure water is connected to one side of the filter unit 130 . A purified water supply tank 138 for storing filtered water is installed at one side of the mineral supply unit 136 . In the purified water supply tank 138 , a water purification processing unit 142 and an ultraviolet sterilizer 140 for heating or cooling water and supplying it are connected and installed. The water passing through the filter unit 130 may be supplied back to the evaporator 102 by a resupply pipe 134 connected through the three-way valve 132 .

A solar panel 144 and a battery 146 are installed outside the housing 150 . The battery 146 stores power generated by the solar panel 144 and supplies power to the compressor 104 , the pump 120 , the water purification unit 142 , the ultraviolet sterilizer 140 , the ultrasonic vibrator 216 , and the like. do.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary view of the inlet air pre-processing unit 200 shown in FIG. 1 . As shown, the inlet air pre-processing unit 200 of this embodiment includes a water storage tank 202, a sensor unit 214, an air guide unit 220, an ultrasonic vibrator 222, an ultraviolet sterilizer 224, and a cooling unit ( 226) is provided.

The water storage tank 202 stores the wastewater generated by the filter unit 130 as water for inlet air pretreatment. The water storage tank 202 has an air inlet 204 through which external inflow air is introduced, and an air outlet 206 communicating with the evaporator 102 . The water reservoir 202 is connected to the filter unit 130 through a water supply pipe 208 attached to the water inlet 210 . The wastewater stored in the water storage tank 202 is discharged to the outside through the water discharge pipe 216 installed under the water storage tank 202 .

The electrostatic precipitation filter 114 is installed at the front end of the inlet air pre-processing unit 200 . The electrostatic precipitation filter 114 removes dust from the external inlet air, and the dust-removed inlet air is guided to the air inlet 204 .

The water pump 212 is installed in the water supply pipe 208 , and supplies wastewater generated in the filter unit 130 to the water storage tank 202 .

The water replacement unit includes a sensor unit 214 , a water discharge pipe 216 , and a water discharge valve 218 . The sensor unit 214 senses the contamination level and water level of the discharge water stored in the water storage tank 202, and the water discharge valve 218 when the level of contamination is too severe to be suitable for pre-treatment of the inflow air or when the water level of the discharge water is too high. ) to open the water discharge pipe 216 so that the water discharge is discharged.

One end of the air guide unit 220 communicates with the air inlet 204 and the other end is installed adjacent to the bottom of the water storage tank 202 . The air guide unit 220 allows the external air introduced into the air inlet 204 to pass through the discharge water stored in the water storage tank 202 .

The ultrasonic vibrator 222 is installed adjacent to the bottom of the water storage tank 202 . The ultrasonic vibrator 222 vaporizes the wastewater stored in the water storage tank 202 .

The cooling unit 226 is installed in such a way as to contact the periphery of the air outlet 206 of the water storage tank 202 to heat exchange with the water storage tank 202 . A flow path may be formed in the cooling unit 226 through the evaporator 102 to pass the dry and cooled air. Due to this, the humidity of the external air introduced into the air inlet 204 is increased due to water discharge, and the temperature of the cooling unit 226 is decreased to a state in which condensation can occur easily.

The UV sterilizer 224 is installed on the water storage tank 202 . The ultraviolet sterilizer 224 prevents the water stored in the water storage tank 202 from decaying by microorganisms or the like.

In the present embodiment, the wastewater generated in the water purification process of the water filter unit 130 is utilized provided to the inlet air preprocessor 200 , but water, rainwater, etc. generated by the evaporator 102 may be utilized. Since the water generated in the evaporator 102 should be used as drinking water, it may not be desirable to be utilized in the inlet air pre-processing unit 200 . Rainwater may be undesirable as it requires a separate facility for storage.

Hereinafter, the operation of this embodiment will be described in detail.

When the fan 116 installed inside the housing 150 operates, the air introduced through the electric dust filter 114 passes through the inlet air pre-processing unit 200 to decrease the temperature and increase the humidity. When the air discharged from the air outlet 206 of the inlet air pre-processing unit 200 comes into contact with the evaporator 102 , the gaseous water vapor in the air is converted into liquid water. The water thus generated falls and is collected in the water collecting tank 118 .

The gaseous refrigerant compressed to a high pressure in the compressor 104 is converted into a solid liquid refrigerant in the condenser 106 . The high-pressure liquid refrigerant is expanded by the expansion valve 108 to become a low-pressure liquid refrigerant and is supplied to the evaporator 102 , while the phase transition to the gaseous refrigerant in the evaporator 102 is lowered by lowering the temperature of the external air. Water vapor contained in the air turns into water.

When supplied to the water storage tank 124 using a pump 201 installed on one side of the water collecting tank 118, it is first filtered through an activated carbon fiber filter 122, and an ozone sterilizer 126 is installed in the water storage tank 124. The provided and stored water is sterilized by ozone.

The water in the water storage tank 124 sequentially passes through the micro filter, the free carbon filter, the hollow fiber filter, the reverse osmosis filter, and the post carbon filter constituting the filter unit 130 through the pump 128 to remove foreign substances. The filter unit 130 filters only a portion of the water supplied from the water storage tank 124 and then delivers it to the purified water supply tank 138 .

Most of the water is discharged from the filter unit 130 , and the discharged water is stored in the water storage tank 202 through the water supply pipe 208 installed on one side of the filter unit 130 . The wastewater stored in the water storage tank 202 flows by the water pump 212 . The inflow air passing through the electrostatic precipitation filter 114 flows into the water storage tank 202 through the air inlet 204 , and is guided by the air guide unit 220 to pass through the discharge water. The humidity of the air passing through the wastewater increases as dust and the like are removed. The ultrasonic vibrator 222 vaporizes the water discharge to further increase the humidity of the air flowing out through the air outlet 206 . The cooling unit 226 is provided by feeding back dry and cold air via the evaporator 102 . Since the cooling unit 226 is installed adjacent to the air outlet 206 , the temperature of the air flowing out through the air outlet 206 is lowered. In this way, the air whose humidity is increased and the temperature has decreased is provided to the evaporator 102 through the air outlet 206 . Therefore, even if the temperature of the evaporator 102 is lowered, a relatively large amount of water is generated, so that the water generation efficiency is increased compared to the energy consumed.

Since the water that has passed through the filter unit 130 is pure water that does not contain nutrients, it passes through the mineral supply unit 136 to dissolve the minerals in the pure water. The mineral supply unit 136 is filled with mineral balls sintered into a mixture in which various components are mixed inside the cylinder. The mineral ball is formed by mixing a magnesium (Mg) piece with a mixed powder of carbon powder and magnetite ore powder, kneading it with water, and then sintering it. Magnetite, also called magnetite, has strong magnetism, so it not only makes water molecules into hexagonal shapes, but also contains manganese and magnesium, so it is advantageous for converting water into reduced water. When the water passing through the mineral supply unit 136 is supplied to the purified water supply tank 138 and then supplied to the user through the water purification processing unit 142 that heats or cools the water, the purified water supplied with minerals is supplied to the user. will become Part of the water that has passed through the filter unit 130 is supplied back to the water storage tank 124 by the resupply pipe 134 connected through the three-way valve 132 to solve the problem of contamination of purified water when not in use. .

The present invention described above is not limited by the above-described embodiments and the accompanying drawings, and it is common in the technical field to which the present invention pertains that various substitutions, modifications and changes are possible without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. It will be clear to those who have the knowledge of

100: water generating device 101: refrigerant pipe
102: evaporator 104: compressor
106: condenser 108: expansion valve
109: condenser tank 114: electric dust filter
116: fan 118: water tank
120: pump 122: activated carbon fiber filter
124: water tank 126: ozone sterilizer
128: pump 130: filter unit
132: 3-way valve 134: resupply pipe
136: mineral supply unit 138: purified water supply tank
140: UV sterilizer 142: water purification processing unit
144: solar panel 146: battery
150: housing 200: inlet air pre-processing unit
202: water storage tank 204: air inlet
206: air outlet 208: water supply pipe
210: water inlet 212: water pump
214: sensor unit 220: air guide unit
222: ultrasonic vibrator 224: ultraviolet sterilizer
226: cooling unit

Claims (10)

In the device for generating water by collecting water in the air,
A condenser that emits heat to the outside as a high-temperature gas refrigerant is liquefied into a low-temperature liquid refrigerant;
an evaporator for absorbing external heat while the liquid refrigerant supplied from the condenser is vaporized into a gaseous refrigerant to convert water vapor in the air flowing in from the outside into liquid water;
a compressor that compresses the gas refrigerant supplied from the evaporator and sends it to the condenser;
A water collecting passage for collecting and storing the water generated in the evaporator;
a filter unit for purifying the water in the water collecting tank;
a purified water supply tank for storing water purified by the filter unit;
and an inlet air pre-processing unit provided to the evaporator after raising the humidity by pre-treating the external inlet air using the waste water generated by the filter unit,
The inlet air pre-processing unit stores the wastewater generated by the filter unit, and includes a water storage tank having an air inlet through which the external inlet air is introduced and an air outlet communicating with the evaporator.
delete According to claim 1,
and an electrostatic precipitation filter installed at the front end of the inlet air pre-processing unit and provided to the air inlet after removing dust from the external inlet air.
According to claim 1,
The inlet air pre-processing unit further comprises a water replacement unit for replacing the discharged water by measuring the degree of contamination of the discharged water stored in the water storage tank.
According to claim 1,
The inlet air pre-processing unit further comprises a water pump for supplying the discharged water generated by the filter unit to the water storage tank.
According to claim 1,
The water storage tank is configured to exchange heat with the air passing through the evaporator.
According to claim 1,
The inlet air pre-processing unit further includes an air guide part having one end communicating with the air inlet and the other end installed adjacent to the bottom of the water storage tank, and allowing outside air introduced into the air inlet to pass through the water outlet A water generating device.
According to claim 1,
The inlet air pre-processing unit is installed adjacent to the bottom of the water storage tank, water generating device characterized in that it further comprises an ultrasonic vibrator for vaporizing the water discharge.
According to claim 1,
The filter unit is a water generating device, characterized in that the micro-filter, pre-carbon, hollow fiber, reverse osmosis, and post-carbon filter are sequentially connected.
According to claim 1,
The inlet air pretreatment unit water generating device, characterized in that it further comprises an ultraviolet sterilizer installed on the upper portion of the water storage tank.

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