RU2521627C1 - Method of producing water with low content of deuterium - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: chemistry.

SUBSTANCE: method involves electrolysis of distilled water in an electrolysis cell to obtain deuterium-impoverished hydrogen on a gas-diffusion hydrogen cathode of the electrolysis cell, drying the obtained electrolysis gases, feeding the dried gases into a catalytic isotope exchange column to enrich hydrogen with deuterium and impoverish hydrogen with steam by feeding steam into the column from a steam generator which is supplied with distilled water from a feeder. The deuterium-rich hydrogen is fed by counterflow with steam for further ionisation, and the steam-impoverished hydrogen is fed into a condenser for steam condensation and further mineralisation of the deuterium-impoverished water.

EFFECT: efficient separation of hydrogen isotopes, obtaining a product of higher quality and low cost of the process.

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Description

The invention relates to a method for producing biologically active drinking water with a reduced content of deuterium in it by its isotopic separation into depleted and enriched in deuterium fractions.

Water from the point of view of chemistry is a substance consisting of H ₂ O molecules. There is no completely pure water in nature; it always contains mechanical, chemical and biological impurities.

The H ₂ O molecule consists of two elements, each of which is a mixture of isotopes. Hydrogen in nature is represented by two stable isotopes:

- protium (designation ¹ H or H);

- deuterium (designation ² H or D).

The natural content of isotopes ¹ H and ² N in natural objects is 99.985 and 0.015%. Light (rich in H or depleted in D) water has a high biological activity. The use of light water leads to the normalization of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, weight correction, elimination of toxins from the body, etc. The results of clinical trials proved [Lobyshev V.P., Kalinichenko L.P. Isotopic effects of D20 in biological systems. - M .: Nauka, 1978.] that the use of such water increases performance, physical activity, endurance and resistance of the body.

It is known that in light water changes the rate of chemical reactions, solvation of ions, their mobility, etc. Light water has a stimulating effect on living systems, significantly increases their activity, resistance to various negative factors, reproductive activity, improves and speeds up metabolism. For crops, the effect of light water is manifested in increased germination and productivity, for humans - in the healing effect. The reaction of biosystems when exposed to water may vary depending on quantitative and qualitative changes in the isotopic composition of water. The use of water with an increased concentration of heavy isotopes, in particular deuterium, causes pronounced toxic effects at the body level, limiting the possibility of its use for therapeutic and prophylactic purposes [Kushner D.J., Baker F., Dunstall T.G. Can. J. Physiol. Pharmacol, 1999. Feb. 77 (2): 79-88].

At the same time, positive biological activity of waters obtained using various technological processes belonging to the category of isotope-lungs with a decrease to one degree or another compared with the initial concentration of deuterium was recorded at different sites [M. G. Baryshev, A. A. .Basov, S.N. Bolotin, S.S. Jimak, D.V. Kashaev S.R. Fedosov, V.Yu. Frolov, D.I. Shashkov, D.A. Lysak, A.A. Timakov / / Evaluation of the antiradical activity of water with a modified isotopic composition using NMR, EPR and mass spectroscopy / Bulletin of the Russian Academy of Sciences. physical series, 2012, volume 76, No. 12, p. 1507-1510]. Those. quantitative and qualitative indicators of the isotopic composition of water significantly affect its effectiveness when using water as a solvent or ingredient. Therefore, the need is obvious, depending on the purpose of the regulation of the isotopic composition of water used by humans for technological processes, drinking, as part of medicines, cosmetics, hygiene, perfumes, etc.

The prior art for producing isotope-light water is represented by a number of patents for inventions No. 2031085, 2091335, 2091336, 2438765, 2438766 and utility models No. 113977, 97994, 106559, 101648 and others. There are also a number of physicochemical methods for changing the isotopic composition of hydrogen, part of the water [Andreev B.M. et al., Separation of stable isotopes by physicochemical methods. Moscow: Energo-atomizdat. 1982. pp. 44-49, 68-69, 75-79].

The closest in technical essence to the claimed invention is a patent for an invention RU No. 2438766. According to the prototype, a method for producing biologically active drinking water with a reduced deuterium content includes electrolysis of the distillate in the electrolysis cell, draining the obtained electrolysis gases, converting electrolysis gases to water, subsequent condensation of water vapor and its mineralization. The distillate is electrolyzed using catalytically active electrodes coated with a silver coating on the anode side and a Raney nickel coating on the anode side. The mixture of hydrogen and oxygen obtained at the outlet of the electrolyzer is dried, then fed to a gas diffusion separator with a palladium-silver membrane. Subsequent conversion of the separated gases to water is carried out in a hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell with ion-exchange membranes. In this case, the direct current generated by the fuel cell is directed to the input of the electrolyzer.

The disadvantages of the described method are:

- degradation of the electrodes occurring over time, caused by the recrystallization of the electrode coating from Raney nickel, which leads to a decrease in the separation coefficient of hydrogen isotopes, an increase in the polarization of the electrodes and, as a result, to an increase in the cost of electricity, which amounts to 80-90% of the cost of the manufactured product, by several times, during the service life, as well as to the increased content of deuterium in the produced water [Fedotiev NP and others. Applied electrochemistry. - L .: Chemistry 1967. p.346], which leads to increased cost of the resulting product and the deterioration of its quality;

- when implementing the method there are significant losses of electricity in the form of heat associated with the use of oxygen electrodes with high overvoltage, which lose significantly more electricity than hydrogen, which also leads to an increase in the cost of the resulting product;

- the oxygen-hydrogen fuel cell used in the prototype, as far as is known, is not yet mass-produced, and non-serial products are high-quality.

The objective of the proposed technical solution is:

1. An increase in the hydrogen isotope separation coefficient due to the replacement of dispersed electrodes of nickel and Raney silver with platinum dispersed catalytic electrodes having a long service life and low degradation associated with a low recrystallization rate of dispersed platinum metals, which also leads to a decrease in the polarization of the electrodes, and, as a result, to reduce electricity costs during the service life by several times;

2. Reducing energy losses in the form of heat when replacing oxygen electrodes with high overvoltage with hydrogen diffusion electrodes, that is, a reduction in cost compared to analogues and prototype;

3. The cost of the method due to the use of electrolysis only reversible hydrogen electrodes, cheap and having a large working resource.

To solve the technical problem, a method for producing water with a reduced deuterium content is proposed, including electrolysis of the distillate in the electrolysis cell, draining the obtained electrolysis gases, converting electrolysis gases into water, subsequent condensation of water vapor and its mineralization in the process of collecting deuterium-depleted water. In this case, the distillate is electrolyzed by producing deuterium-depleted hydrogen at the gas diffusion hydrogen cathode of the electrolyzer, followed by its countercurrent flow with water vapor to the catalytic isotope exchange column. Steam is supplied from a steam generator fed by a distilled water feeder to enrich hydrogen with deuterium and deplete it with water vapor in the column, further ionize the enriched hydrogen at the gas diffusion hydrogen anode of the electrolyzer, and condense the depleted water in the isotope exchange process in the condenser.

In Fig.1 shows a line that implements the proposed method.

The line contains: a power supply unit 1, electrically connected to the electrolyzer 2, the output of the cathode 3 of which is connected by a gas pipe to the input of the dryer 4. The dryer 4 is connected by a gas pipe to the gas input of the catalytic isotope exchange column 5, the gas output of which is connected to the input of the anode 6 of the cell 2. The distilled water feeder 7 is connected by a liquid pipe to a steam generator 8, which is coupled in the vapor phase to the steam inlet of the catalytic isotope exchange column 5. The steam output of column 5 is connected to the conde inlet nsator 9 connected by a liquid pipe to the deuterium depleted water collector 10.

The line is as follows.

The alternating three-phase current of the external electric network by the power supply unit 1 is converted to direct current and supplied to the electrolyzer 2, where distilled water is also supplied. The hydrogen formed in the electrolytic cell at cathode 3 with a reduced deuterium content to prevent reverse isotopic exchange of hydrogen with water vapor is fed through a gas pipeline to a dryer 4, where it is dried by a regenerated water-absorbing substance. Then, the dried hydrogen enters the catalytic isotope exchange column 5, where it exchanges deuterium with water vapor on the surface of the solid catalyst. After that, hydrogen, enriched in deuterium to a natural concentration, enters the anode 6 of the electrolyzer 2, where it is again ionized. Distilled water of a natural isotopic composition flows from feeder 7 to a steam generator, where it forms steam that enters the catalytic isotope exchange column 5, where deuterium and hydrogen are exchanged on the surface of a solid catalyst, and then through a steam line to condenser 9, from which deuterium-depleted water enters collection 10.

The exclusion from the electrochemical stage of the oxygen electrodes of the electrolyzer and the fuel cell, which, in comparison with hydrogen diffusion electrodes, have poor reversibility and high energy losses in the form of ohmic heat, reduces the energy costs of the electrolysis process by several times compared to the prototype. In this case, the process in the electrolyzer is actually reduced to the transfer of hydrogen from the cathode 3 to the anode 6, and along the path between the electrodes due to catalytic exchange with water vapor, water vapor with a reduced deuterium content is formed, which condenses and is discharged as the final product [V. Filshtikh / Fuel cells, M. Mir, 1968 p. 389]. In addition, the electrode materials used in the electrolysis process are technologically more developed and stable in the electrolysis process than in the prototype, and make it possible to obtain water in the single-stage electrolysis process that is several times more deuterium depleted than in the prototype [E. Justice, A. Winsel / Fuel cells // Publishing House of the World, M. 1964, p. 283-286], which makes it significantly biologically more active.

Thus, the proposed method is more efficient than the prototype, because allows you to get a better product. Moreover, significantly less energy and material consumption, i.e. less costly.

Claims (1)

A method of producing water with a reduced deuterium content, including electrolysis of the distillate in the electrolyzer, draining the obtained electrolysis gases, converting the electrolysis gases into water, subsequent condensation of water vapor and its mineralization in the process of collecting deuterium-depleted water, characterized in that the electrolysis of the distillate is carried out by obtaining deuterium-depleted hydrogen at the gas diffusion hydrogen cathode of the electrolyzer, followed by its countercurrent direction with water vapor supplied from the steam generator, fed by a distilled water feeder into a catalytic isotope exchange column for enriching hydrogen with deuterium and depleting it in water vapor, further ionizing the enriched hydrogen at the gas diffusion hydrogen anode of the electrolyzer and condensing the depleted water in the isotope exchange process in the condenser.

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