KR102536052B1 - Air pulification device using microalgae - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an air purifying device using microalgae. An air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention includes an air inlet through which air is supplied, a diffuser connected to the air inlet and dispersing the introduced air, a reservoir connected to the diffuser and purifying the introduced air, and the reservoir It includes an air outlet for discharging the connected and purified air to the outside of the device, and the reservoir includes a plurality of spiral reactors equipped with microalgae and an LED device, so that carbon dioxide can be processed in high density and oxygen can be generated with high efficiency. .

Description

Air purification device using microalgae {AIR PULIFICATION DEVICE USING MICROALGAE}

The present invention relates to an air purifying device capable of generating oxygen without toxic by-products by using the high photosynthetic efficiency of microalgae.

Indiscriminate development of the downtown area has caused many problems such as extreme air pollution and the heat island phenomenon in which the temperature inside the city rises. In particular, issues related to air quality, including fine dust, which has recently become a problem, are becoming more prominent.

Fine dust refers to particulate matter that floats or scatters in the atmosphere, and is generated a lot when burning fossil fuels such as coal or oil, or from exhaust gases such as factories or automobiles. Therefore, as the development of urban areas progresses, the problem of fine dust caused by air pollution is getting worse.

Therefore, various technologies are being proposed to solve problems related to air quality containing fine dust. In particular, interest in eco-friendly technologies using bio is growing, and among bio technologies, photosynthesis of microalgae is used to purify the air. technique has been proposed.

Compared to other photosynthetic organisms, microalgae can be produced in large quantities through large-scale bioprocesses because they capture carbon dioxide and grow cells faster and are easier to artificially culture. Since microalgae are regarded as a biofactory capable of producing other useful substances as well as a resource for biofuel, it seems that they can be applied in various fields.

In this regard, Korean Patent Registration No. 10-2191454 (published date: 2020.12.09) relates to a culture fluid circulation system of an air purifier using microalgae, a culture fluid filtration unit for filtering the culture fluid contained in the culture tank of the air cleaner, and the above A culture solution filling unit for filling a culture solution in a culture tank is disclosed, and air is purified by contacting the outside air with the culture solution in which microalgae are cultured.

However, the above-mentioned prior literature has a problem in that a filter is provided and the filter must be periodically replaced or washed, and by-products are generated due to the filtering process, and it is difficult for the user to manage the circulation system.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an air purifying device using microalgae capable of improving the photosynthetic efficiency of microalgae without generating consumables such as filters and by-products.

The objects of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned objects, and other objects and advantages of the present invention not mentioned above can be understood by the following description and will be more clearly understood by the examples of the present invention. It will also be readily apparent that the objects and advantages of the present invention may be realized by means of the instrumentalities and combinations indicated in the claims.

In order to solve the above-described technical problem, the present invention is provided with a reactor equipped with microalgae and an LED device for photosynthesis of microalgae, and the contact time between air introduced from the outside and microalgae by forming the shape of the reactor in a spiral shape. can be made as long as possible, providing an air purifying device using microalgae capable of generating oxygen with high efficiency compared to the area.

Specifically, the present invention provides an air inlet through which air is supplied; a diffuser connected to the air inlet and dispersing the introduced air; a reservoir connected to the diffuser and purifying the introduced air; and an air outlet connected to the reservoir and discharging purified air to the outside of the device, wherein the reservoir includes a plurality of spiral reactors having microalgae and a plurality of LED devices.

In this case, the plurality of reactors may be disposed alternately with the plurality of LED devices or may be arranged to surround the LED devices.

In the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention, air is preferably supplied from the bottom of the spiral reactor, and purified air is discharged from the top of the spiral reactor.

The microalgae are composed of Spirulina, Schizochytrium, Chlorella sp., Dunaliella, Nannochloropsis sp. and Isocrysis galbana. It may be one or more selected from the group.

The wavelength of the light of the LED device may be 430 ~ 640 nm to maximize the photosynthetic action of microalgae.

In the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention, the air inlet may further include an air pump to facilitate the introduction of ambient air.

In addition, in the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention, the air outlet may further include a one-way valve to prevent a reverse flow of the air purified in the reservoir.

The air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention utilizes microalgae, which have a similar action to plants, to generate oxygen in a nature-friendly manner, and can prevent toxic by-products such as ozone from being generated during oxygen generation.

In addition, the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention can increase photosynthetic efficiency by using a spiral reactor and an LED device, thereby removing harmful substances in the air, removing carbon dioxide, and generating oxygen.

Furthermore, the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention is provided by immobilizing microalgae in a bead form or fixing to a fiber, so that oxygen can be generated with high efficiency, carbon dioxide can be treated at a high density, and management is easy. there is

In addition to the effects described above, specific effects of the present invention will be described together while explaining specific details for carrying out the present invention.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.
2 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a reactor and an LED device including a reservoir in an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.
3 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of a reactor and an LED device included in a reservoir in an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.
4 is a schematic diagram showing a flat type reactor.
5 is a photograph showing the immobilized form of microalgae provided in the reactor in the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.
6 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of a reactor and an LED device included in a reservoir in an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.

The above objects, features and advantages will be described later in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and accordingly, those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs will be able to easily implement the technical spirit of the present invention. In describing the present invention, if it is determined that the detailed description of the known technology related to the present invention may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention, the detailed description will be omitted. Hereinafter, preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are used to indicate the same or similar components.

Although first, second, etc. are used to describe various components, these components are not limited by these terms, of course. These terms are only used to distinguish one component from another component, and unless otherwise stated, the first component may be the second component, of course.

Throughout the specification, unless otherwise stated, each element may be singular or plural.

Singular expressions used herein include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this application, terms such as "consisting of" or "comprising" should not be construed as necessarily including all of the various components or steps described in the specification, and some of the components or some of the steps It should be construed that it may not be included, or may further include additional components or steps.

Hereinafter, an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention will be described.

The present invention is an air inlet through which air is supplied;

a diffuser connected to the air inlet and dispersing the introduced air;

a reservoir connected to the diffuser and purifying the introduced air; and

An air outlet connected to the reservoir and discharging purified air; includes,

The reservoir provides an air purifying device using microalgae, characterized in that it includes a plurality of spiral reactors and an LED device equipped with microalgae.

The air purifying apparatus using microalgae according to the present invention utilizes microalgae, which are very small-sized microorganisms such as bacteria that have a similar action to plants, and can implement a high efficiency air purification rate compared to the space occupied.

In addition, the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention uses microalgae to naturally generate oxygen in the device, and when oxygen is generated, it is possible to prevent the generation of toxic by-products such as ozone.

In addition, the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention can increase photosynthetic efficiency by using a spiral reactor and an LED device, thereby removing harmful substances in the air, removing carbon dioxide, and generating oxygen.

Furthermore, the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention has the advantage of being able to generate oxygen with high efficiency, process carbon dioxide at a high density, and easily manage by fixing microalgae in a bead form or by fixing them to fibers.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , an air purifying device 100 using microalgae according to the present invention includes an air inlet 110, a diffuser 120, a reservoir 130, and an air outlet 140.

The air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention mimics the air purifying principle of plants, and has the advantage of being able to efficiently purify air in a small space in an eco-friendly manner like plants.

The air inlet 110 is included to supply ambient air, that is, indoor air, and the diffuser 120 is connected to the air inlet 110 and disperses the air introduced into the air inlet 110 .

In addition, the diffuser 120 is provided to evenly disperse the air introduced into the plurality of reactors included in the reservoir 130 to increase the efficiency of removing harmful substances and carbon dioxide and generating oxygen.

The air outlet 140 is connected to the reservoir 130 and provided to discharge purified air to the outside.

In addition, in the air purifying device 100 using microalgae according to the present invention, the air inlet 110 may further include an air pump 112 for facilitating the introduction of ambient air, and the air outlet 140 ) may further include a one-way valve 142 for preventing the reverse flow of air purified in the reservoir 130.

2 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of a reactor and an LED device including a reservoir in an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, in the air purifying device 100 using microalgae according to the present invention, the reservoir 130 includes a reactor 132 and an LED device 134, and the reactor 130 is a spiral and is attached to the reactor. An LED device 134 is provided for the photosynthetic action of the microalgae provided.

The microalgae are organisms responsible for half of the major photosynthetic production processes on Earth and are likened to biological factories that produce a variety of potentially useful substances using sunlight.

Microalgae mass production technology began with the cultivation of chlorella in Japan in the 1960s, and the cultivation and recovery of Spirulina in Mexico in the 1970s. After that, commercialization was progressed in earnest by producing β-carotene from Dunaliella in Australia. Subsequently, plants for producing microalgae such as Dunaliella were built in the United States and Israel, and in India, a Hemarococcus fluviaris culture plant was built for the production of astaxanthin useful as a food coloring and antioxidant.

Most of the currently commercially produced microalgae (Chlorella, Spirulina, Dunaliella) grow in a highly selective environment, and thus are characterized by not being contaminated by other species (algae, protozoa) even in open culture. In other words, chlorella grows in a nutrient-rich medium, spirulina grows in an environment with high pH and bicarbonate concentration, and Dunaliella grows in a very high salinity environment. On the other hand, most other microalgal species without selective advantages for growing environments must be produced in closed culture.

Therefore, in the air purifying device according to the present invention, the spiral reactor is provided with a culture medium in which microalgae are cultured, and the microalgae used are Spirulina, Schizochytrium, Chlorella sp., Dunali It may be at least one selected from the group consisting of Dunaliella, Nannochloropsis sp., and Isocrysis galbana.

In the air purifying device 100 using microalgae according to the present invention, the reactor 132 is provided in a spiral shape, so that the supplied air naturally exits upward at an angle in the reactor, and as a result, the supplied air and the microalgae The contact time between the two is as long as possible.

With the light of the LED device 134 around the reactor 132, the microalgae perform photosynthesis to remove carbon dioxide and release oxygen. It is preferable that the light wavelength of the LED device is in the range of 430 to 640 nm so that the photosynthesis of microalgae can proceed very actively.

In addition, the spiral reactor 132 may be provided in plurality to improve the photosynthetic efficiency of microalgae, and as the spiral reactor 132 is provided in plurality, the LED device 134 may be provided in plurality, and the The spiral reactor 132 and the LED device 134 may be provided alternately. Photosynthetic efficiency of microalgae can be improved by having the structure as described above.

Air introduced through the diffuser 120 is supplied into a reactor equipped with liquid and microalgae, and as the air passes through the liquid, carbon dioxide contained in the air is removed and oxygen is generated by photosynthesis of the microalgae.

3 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of a reactor including a reservoir and an LED device in an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3 , the plurality of spiral reactors 132 may be arranged to surround the LED device 134 . As the plurality of spiral reactors 132 are arranged to surround the LED device 134, photosynthetic efficiency of microalgae provided in the reactor can be improved.

The above-described embodiment is suitable for a small air purifying device on a desk, requires a small number of LED devices, and is easy to clean and manage the reactor.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention includes a spiral reactor, and as the supplied air naturally rises from the bottom of the spiral reactor to the top of the reactor, the power to remove air There is no need for this, and the supplied air can escape naturally through the upper part of the reactor.

4 is a schematic diagram showing a flat type reactor. A liquid containing microalgae is supplied to the flat reactor of FIG. 4, and air is supplied in the direction of the arrow.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the curvature tube of the flat type reactor, the air 10 sticks to the upper wall of the flat type reactor and does not move in the forward direction, so there is a problem in that the air 10 is trapped, and even when washing the inside of the reactor The liquid containing microalgae does not flow out properly, so there is a problem in cleaning and maintenance.

The air purification device using microalgae according to the present invention can remove carbon dioxide at high density and generate oxygen with high efficiency by maximally increasing the photosynthetic action of microalgae, which are very small entities close to bacteria, in a different way from conventional reactors. , Air introduced from the outside can photosynthesize with high efficiency by having sufficient contact time with microalgae in the reactor.

5 is a photograph showing the immobilized form of microalgae provided in the reactor in the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.

5 (a) shows a general floating form of microalgae, (b) shows a bead form to which microalgae are fixed, and (c) shows a fiber to which microalgae are fixed.

In relation to this, the cell immobilization may be in the form of matrix carrier or microcarrier, or dissolved in a support or bound on a support.

As shown in FIG. 5, in the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention, the microalgae provided in the reactor are immobilized in a cell immobilization method, thereby securing stable air purification efficiency and an efficient module for optimizing culture conditions. structural design is possible.

In addition, the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention can generate oxygen by immobilizing microalgae in a bead form or by fixing them to fibers, can treat carbon dioxide at a high density, and has the advantage of easy management.

6 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of a reactor and an LED device included in a reservoir in an air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 6, air is introduced into the lower portion of the reactor 132, and a culture medium 136 in which microalgae are cultured is provided in the reactor 132, and an LED device ( 134) is provided.

The microalgae included in the culture solution 136 are immobilized, and the air introduced from the bottom of the reactor 132 naturally rises to the top of the reactor 132, so there is no need for power to discharge the air.

In addition, since air is introduced from the upper part to the lower part of the reactor 132, the contact time of the carbon dioxide in the air with the microalgae included in the culture medium 136 is maximized, so that photosynthetic efficiency can be increased.

As described above, in the air purifying device using microalgae according to the present invention, the microalgae provided in the reactor 132 are immobilized in a cell immobilization method, so that stable air purifying efficiency can be secured and efficient optimization of culture conditions can be achieved. Modular structure design is possible.

As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to the drawings illustrated, but the present invention is not limited by the embodiments and drawings disclosed in this specification, and various modifications are made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. It is obvious that variations can be made. In addition, although the operational effects according to the configuration of the present invention have not been explicitly described and described while describing the embodiments of the present invention, it is natural that the effects predictable by the corresponding configuration should also be recognized.

10: air
100: air purifier
110: air inlet
112: air pump
120: diffuser
130: reservoir
132: reactor
134: LED device
136: culture medium
140: air outlet
142: one-way valve

Claims (8)

an air inlet through which air is supplied;
a diffuser connected to the air inlet and dispersing the introduced air;
a reservoir connected to the diffuser and purifying the introduced air; and
An air outlet connected to the reservoir and discharging the purified air to the outside; includes,
The reservoir includes a plurality of spiral reactors and a plurality of LED devices equipped with microalgae,
Each of the plurality of spiral reactors has a flow path branched from the diffuser and is disposed in parallel to each other in the reservoir, and air is introduced into the bottom of the plurality of spiral reactors and moves from the bottom to the top of the plurality of spiral reactors, Air purification device using microalgae, characterized in that discharged to the top of the plurality of spiral reactors. According to claim 1,
The plurality of spiral reactors are air purifying devices using microalgae, characterized in that arranged alternately with the LED device or arranged to surround the LED device. According to claim 1,
The air purifying device using microalgae, characterized in that the air is supplied from the bottom of the spiral reactor, and the purified air is discharged from the top of the spiral reactor. According to claim 1,
The microalgae are composed of Spirulina, Schizochytrium, Chlorella sp., Dunaliella, Nannochloropsis sp. and Isocrysis galbana. Air purifying device using microalgae, characterized in that at least one selected from the group. According to claim 1,
The air purifying device using microalgae, characterized in that the microalgae are in the form of matrix carriers or microcarriers, dissolved in a support or bound on a support. According to claim 1,
The air purifying device using microalgae, characterized in that the wavelength of light of the LED device is 430 ~ 640 nm. According to claim 1,
The air inlet further comprises an air pump for facilitating the inflow of ambient air. According to claim 1,
The air outlet further comprises a one-way valve for preventing the reverse flow of air purified in the reservoir.

Images