JP3239304B2 - Water purification equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus for purifying drinking water for domestic and commercial use.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, water purifiers that purify water using activated carbon or the like rather than using tap water as drinking water as they are are widely and widely used.

[0003]

However, in the case of such a conventionally used water purifier, when the life of the water purifier is increased and a substance such as an organic chlorine compound is physically adsorbed on the activated carbon, the activated water purifier is activated. Function deteriorates. In order to activate and regenerate the activated carbon whose function has been reduced, the adsorbed substance is desorbed.

[0004] A known method for removing adsorbed substances is to pass hot water or heated steam through a water purification tank. With such a desorption method, about 70% of the adsorbed substance can be desorbed, but it takes a long time and there is a problem in efficiency.

[0005] Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a water purification apparatus capable of regenerating an adsorbed substance by efficiently desorbing the adsorbed substance in a short time.

[0006]

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems.
In order to achieve this, the invention of claim 1 relies on the activity filled in the water purification tank.
When desorbing and regenerating substances adsorbed on charcoal,
Therefore, decompression means for depressurizing the inside of the water purification tank and heating steam
Equipped with a steam supply means for sending air, reducing the pressure inside the water purification tank and purifying the water.
Supply heating steam into the tank simultaneously or alternately several times.
It is configured to return. As a result, it is adsorbed on activated carbon
Can be reliably and efficiently desorbed. Ma
The invention according to claim 2 is the water purification device according to claim 1,
The decompression means is used to stop the supply of raw water and
Drainage pipe for drainage and drainage valve that opens drainage pipe when draining
The suction pressure in the water treatment tank is reduced by the
And a pressurizing aspirator. this
With the supply of raw water stopped by the aspirator
Drains the water in the water purifier from the drain pipe and receives the drain pressure.
The pressure inside the water purification tank is reduced by suction. Further, the invention of claim 3
Is the activated carbon in the water purifier according to claim 1 or 2.
Purifies UV lamps that decompose substances adsorbed on the surface with UV light
It is configured to be placed inside the tank. With this, activated carbon
Of the adsorbed material is decomposed, and the desorption of the adsorbed material is more effective
Done.

[0007]

[0008]

[0009]

[0010]

[0011]

[0012]

[0013]

[0014]

[0015]

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the water purification apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, a water purification apparatus 10 according to an embodiment
Has a main pipe line 11 that supplies tap water, which is raw water, from the hydrant to the outlet after use for purification.
A water purification tank 14 is provided in the main conduit 11.
In addition, a sterilization tank or the like may be provided in the main conduit 11, but the description thereof is omitted here. Activated carbon 16 is filled in the water purification tank 14 via the front and rear filters 15, and the raw water is passed through the activated carbon 16 to purify the water.

At the upstream inlet side of the water purification tank 14, the main pipeline 11
Has an electromagnetic water supply valve 1 that restricts water supply to the water purification tank 14.
2 is provided, and the supply of raw water to the water purification tank 20 can be stopped by closing the valve. A water injection valve 13 is provided in the main pipeline 11 at the downstream outlet side of the water purification tank 20, and the water injection valve 13 can be opened and used for use.

In the embodiment, a drain pipe 20 is provided on the inlet side of the water purification tank 14 as shown in the figure. An aspirator 22, which is a pressure reducing means referred to in the present invention, and a drain valve 23, which is an electromagnetic valve, are provided. Aspirator 22
Is a device for sucking air or other gas by a water flow as is well known, and in the embodiment, when draining from the water purification tank 14,
When the drain valve 23 is opened, it operates by receiving a water flow pressure generated in the drain pipe 20, and sucks the inside of the water purification tank 14 to reduce the pressure.

In the main pipe 11, the water is bypassed from the water purification tank 14 to the upstream of the water supply valve 12 and the aspirator 22.
Are connected by a bypass line 30. Therefore,
Raw water can be directly introduced into the aspirator 22 from the bypass line 30. The reason for introducing the raw water into the aspirator 22 is that the raw water pulls the water flow generated in the drainage pipe 20 due to the drainage from the water purification tank 14,
This is for effectively generating the water pressure.

On the other hand, the bypass line 30 and the downstream side of the water purification tank 14 are connected by a steam supply line 40 constituting steam supply means, and the steam supply line 40 has a heater device which also constitutes steam supply means. 41 are provided. The heater device 41 has a heating tank 42 in which the bypass line 30 is provided.
The raw water is introduced through a raw water introduction pipe 47 from the outlet. A heater 43 is wound around the outer periphery of the heating tank 42, and it is possible to heat and evaporate the raw water in the heating tank 42 by energizing the heater 43. The level of the raw water in the heating tank 42 is detected by a sensor 44, and a predetermined water level of the raw water is maintained to prevent the heating tank 42 from being idle. A first opening / closing valve 45 provided by an electromagnetic valve is provided in the raw water introduction pipe 47 on the upstream side of the heating tank 42, and a control device 50 based on the detection signal of the water level sensor 44
The opening / closing of the first opening / closing valve 45 is controlled by the operation signal from the controller, and the amount of raw water introduced into the heating tank 42 is adjusted. A second opening / closing valve 46 is provided between the heating tank 42 and the water purification tank 14 to limit the introduction of the heating steam sent from the heating tank 42 to the water purification tank 14.

As shown in the block diagram of the control circuit in FIG. 2, the control device 50 includes a CPU (central processing unit) 51 composed of a microcomputer and the like, and a timer circuit 52.
An operation signal is transmitted from the I / O port 53 to the electromagnetic valve type water supply valve 12 and the drain valve 23 of the external device to control the opening and closing of each valve, and receives a detection signal from the water level sensor 44. Various controls are possible such as sending an operation signal to the first and second opening / closing valves 45 and 46 to perform opening / closing control, and sending a control signal for turning on / off the power supply to the heater 43. Further, the timer circuit 52 can alternately repeat the two processes of reducing the pressure in the water purification tank 14 and supplying the heated steam several times at suitable intervals, as described later.

Next, the operation of the water purification apparatus according to the embodiment having the above configuration will be described with reference to the operation flowchart of FIG. 3 and the time chart of FIG.

During normal use, the tap water of the raw water is supplied to the main line 1
From 1 the water is sent to a water purification tank 14 where it contacts the activated carbon 16 and is purified. The purified water is used by operating the water injection valve 13 as a suitable drinking water or the like.

The long-term use of the activated carbon 1 in the water purification tank 14
If a substance such as an organic chlorine-based compound is physically adsorbed on 6, it is determined that it is not preferable for further use.
Various methods are conceivable for detecting the adsorbed substance. For example, a method of automatically detecting and comparing with a reference value by a computer control to determine whether the amount of adsorption is equal to or less than a fixed amount is adopted. Here, the method of determination is not particularly limited. Control device 5
From 0, an instruction to regenerate the activated carbon 16 is notified by, for example, a blinking method of an alarm lamp, and the control device 50 starts regeneration control in the next stage (step S1).

First, an OFF signal is sent from the control device 50 to the upstream water supply valve 12 of the main pipeline 11, the water supply valve 12 is closed, and the supply of raw water to the water purification tank 14 is stopped until then (step S2). Almost in synchronization with this, the ON signal is output to the drain valve 2
3 and the drain valve 23 is opened to start draining the water from the drain pipe 20 into the water purification tank 14 (step S3). Since the supply of raw water is stopped in the water purification tank 14, as the drainage proceeds, the pressure inside the water gradually decreases. At this time, the raw water bypassing the water purification tank 14 is supplied to the aspirator 22 by the bypass pipe 3.
The aspirator 22 is operated in accordance with the drainage of the drainage pipe 20, and the inside of the water purification tank 14 is sucked to reduce the pressure. In the water purification tank 14, the substances adsorbed on the activated carbon 16 due to the reduced pressure gradually desorb.

As shown in FIG. 4, the pressure reduction by the aspirator 22 is performed by the timer circuit 52 for a predetermined time T ₁ (step S 4), and is repeated at predetermined intervals alternately with the next heating steam supply (time T ₂ ). The repetition number N is set in the control device 50 in the CPU 51.

On the other hand, while the pressure in the water purification tank 14 is being reduced, the desorption of the substance proceeds in the activated carbon 16. For example, at the same time as the start of the depressurization, an ON signal is sent from the control device 50 to the first on-off valve 45, the first on-off valve 45 is opened, and the raw water that has bypassed the water purification tank 14 flows from the bypass line 30 into the raw water introduction line 47.
And is introduced into the heating tank 42 of the heater device 41. In the heater device 41, an energization signal is sent to the heater 43 at a timing when a predetermined amount of raw water is introduced into the heating tank 42, and the raw water in the heating tank 42 is heated and evaporated.

When the depressurization time T ₁ has elapsed, an ON signal is sent from the control device 50 to the second opening / closing valve 46 of the steam supply line 40, and the second opening / closing valve 46 is opened, and the heated steam is supplied from the heater device 41. It is introduced into the water purification tank 14 (step S5). By introducing heated steam into the water purification tank 14 under reduced pressure, desorption of the substance adsorbed on the activated carbon 16 by reduced pressure is further promoted. In other words, following the decompression time T ₁ repeats the steam supply to the set number of times N times alternately by time T ₂ (step S5). Thereby, desorption of the adsorbed substance can further enhance the regenerating effect in a short time.

During the heating of the raw water in the heating tank 42, the empty firing in a state where the raw water is exhausted is prevented. That is, in order to always keep the amount of raw water introduced into the heating tank 42 constant, the water level sensor 4
4 detects a predetermined raw water level, sends a signal to the control device 50, and receives an operation signal from the control device 50 to supply a raw water introduction line 47.
The opening and closing of the first on-off valve 45 is controlled, and control is performed such that the supply of raw water from the bypass pipe 30 to the heating tank 42 is not excessive or insufficient.

In the water purifier 10 of the present invention, as another embodiment, a three-way switching valve may be used instead of the electromagnetic first opening / closing valve 45. Further, an ultraviolet lamp (not shown) is disposed inside the water purification tank 14, and while the two steps of depressurization and steam supply are repeated several times as described above, the activated carbon 16 is irradiated with ultraviolet light concurrently therewith. In addition, it is possible to decompose the adsorbed substance and promote the desorption thereof to further increase the regeneration efficiency of the activated carbon 16.

[0032]

As described above, claims 1 and 2
According to the invention of Item 2, when the substance adsorbed on the activated carbon in the water purification tank is desorbed and regenerated , the pressure in the water purification tank and the pressure in the water purification tank are reduced.
A configuration in which heating steam is supplied simultaneously or alternately several times
The material adsorbed on the activated carbon
It can be efficiently desorbed. According to the invention of claim 3
In addition to the effects of the invention of claim 1 and the invention of claim 2,
The activated carbon is decomposed by ultraviolet light,
Is more effectively eliminated.

[0033]

[0034]

[0035]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of a water purification device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control device in the water purification apparatus of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an operation flowchart of the water purification apparatus of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a time chart of pressure reduction and supply of heated steam in the water purification apparatus of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

10: water purification tank, 11: main pipeline, 12, 23, 45,
46: solenoid on-off valve, 14: water purification tank, 16: activated carbon, 2
0: drainage pipe, 22: aspirator (decompression means), 30
... bypass line, 40 ... steam supply line, 41 ... heater device, 42 ... heating tank, 43 ... heater, 44 ... water level sensor,
45, 46: First and second on-off valves, 47: Raw water introduction pipeline.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) C02F 1/28 C02F 1/44 B01D 35/04

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] When a substance adsorbed on activated carbon filled in a water purification tank is desorbed and regenerated, decompression means for reducing the pressure in the water purification tank by drainage and a steam supply for feeding heated steam into the water purification tank are provided.
Supply means , decompression inside the water purification tank and heating and steaming inside the water purification tank.
A water purification apparatus characterized in that air supply is performed simultaneously or alternately several times . 2. The pressure reducing means stops supply of raw water.
Drainage line for draining water from the water purification tank
A drain valve that opens the water pipe and the drainage pressure of the drain pipe
The water purifier according to claim 1, further comprising: an aspirator that suctions the inside of the water tank to reduce the pressure . 3. The substance adsorbed on the activated carbon is decomposed by ultraviolet rays.
The water purifier according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an ultraviolet lamp is disposed in the water purifier.