JP3557712B2 - Method and apparatus for detecting defect position of hollow fiber membrane module - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
[Industrial applications]
According to the present invention, after a bundle of hollow fiber membranes is loaded in a case and sealed at an end of the case, a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane module (poor sealing, breakage of the hollow fiber membrane, etc.) at the sealing portion end face. The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for detecting a position.
[0002]
[Prior art]
After loading the bundle of hollow fiber membranes into the case and sealing the case at the end, the applicant first made the invention as a method of detecting the position of the defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane module at the end face of the sealing portion. There is one announced in Japanese Patent Application No. 4-316480.
[0003]
The method of detecting a defect position of a hollow fiber membrane module disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 4-316480 is shown in FIG. 3, and its outline will be described below.
[0004]
Reference numeral 101 denotes a hollow fiber membrane module, in which a large number of hollow fiber membranes 102 are bundled into a U shape, and the hollow fiber membrane bundle 103 is inserted into a case 104 having both ends opened. The gap between the hollow fiber membranes 102 and the gap between the hollow fiber membranes 102 and the case 104 are sealed and fixed with the sealing material 105 at the portions, and the ends of the sealed and fixed hollow fiber membranes 102 and the hardened seals. The end member of each hollow fiber membrane 102 is opened by cutting the stopper material 105 together, and a hollow fiber membrane opening end face 106 as a sealing end face is formed. Filtration is performed by passing through the fiber membrane 102 and flowing out from the opening end face 106 of the hollow fiber membrane opening.
[0005]
The defect position detection device 110 includes an optical unit 112 for scanning the laser beam 111 from the side in the plane direction of the hollow fiber membrane opening end face 106 facing upward, and a laser beam provided on the hollow fiber membrane opening end face 106. A dark room 115 having holes 114 for facilitating viewing of the scattered light 113 generated by the air 111 and sucking air; a CCD camera 116 provided above the dark room 115 for detecting the scattered light 113; And a position analysis personal computer 117 for obtaining
[0006]
In the method for detecting a defect of the hollow fiber membrane module after sealing, first, a negative pressure is applied to the inside of the dark chamber 115 to create an airflow of air flowing upward from the hollow fiber membrane opening end face 106. If the hollow fiber membrane 102 has a defect such as poor sealing or breakage of the hollow fiber membrane, fine particles such as dust in the air pass through the broken point or the like without being filtered by the hollow fiber membrane 102 and are directly converted into an air flow. Includes and leaks. When the laser beam 111 is applied from the side, the laser beam 111 is scattered when it hits fine particles such as dust, and can be confirmed by the CCD camera 116. The position of the defective hollow fiber membrane (the open position on the end face of the sealing portion) can be known from the position.
[0007]
In addition, a sealing material is dropped on the opening end face of the hollow fiber membrane that has been found to have a defect, thereby covering the defective hollow fiber membrane with the end face, thereby repairing the defect of the hollow fiber membrane module.
[0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In this method, as shown in FIG. 4, when the hollow fiber membrane 102a having a defect is sealed and fixed at an end of the case 104 at an angle, the air flow flowing out of the hollow fiber membrane 102a having the defect 130a is also inclined obliquely along the hollow fiber membrane 102a. Further, the laser beam 111 passes away from the hollow fiber membrane opening end face 106 by a predetermined distance. For this reason, when the position 131 where the laser beam 111 collides with the fine particles in the airflow that flows obliquely and emits scattered light is viewed with a CCD camera, as shown in the position 102 c on the hollow fiber membrane opening end surface 106. It looks and shifts from the position 102b on the opening end face of the hollow fiber membrane 102a having the defect.
[0009]
This means that it is possible to confirm that there is a defective hollow fiber membrane, but that an error occurs when specifying the position of the defective hollow fiber membrane on the open end face. In this case, the defect cannot be repaired with high accuracy by dropping the sealing material.
[0010]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art. It is an object of the present invention to improve the method of detecting a defect in a hollow fiber membrane module disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 4-316480. Is to improve the accuracy of detecting a defect position on the end face of the opening.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a bundle of hollow fiber membranes is loaded into a case, and a sealed portion is formed in a state where the ends of the bundle of hollow fiber membranes are opened at the ends of the case. Then, with respect to the hollow fiber membrane module in which the inside and the outside of the case are separated by the sealing portion, an airflow flowing from the end surface of the sealing portion through each hollow fiber membrane from the inside of the case to the outside is formed, and A method for detecting the position of a defective portion of a hollow fiber membrane module on an end face of a sealing portion by optically detecting fine particles such as dust passing through a defective portion of a hollow fiber membrane therein, wherein: A commutator is provided close to the outside, and optical detection is performed after the airflow passes through the commutator.
[0012]
A bundle of hollow fiber membranes is loaded into a case, and a sealed portion is formed at the end of the case with the ends of the bundles of hollow fiber membranes opened, and the inside and outside of the case are separated by the sealed portion. With respect to the hollow fiber membrane module thus formed, an airflow flowing from the inside of the case to the outside through each hollow fiber membrane and from the end face of the sealing portion is formed, and dust or the like passing through a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane in the airflow is formed. In a device for detecting the position of a defective portion of a hollow fiber membrane module on an end face of a sealing portion by a detecting means for optically detecting fine particles, a commutator in which a large number of flow straightening tubes are assembled is provided outside the end face of the sealing portion. It is characterized by being provided close to.
[0013]
Further, it is preferable that the straightening tube is formed by at least three walls.
[0014]
[Action]
In the present invention configured as described above, the commutator is provided close to the outside of the end face of the sealing portion of the hollow fiber membrane module. The airflow which is inclined and flows along the hollow fiber membrane as it is is corrected by passing through a commutator in a direction perpendicular to the end face of the sealing portion, that is, in the direction of the CCD camera as a component of the detection means, so that scattering is performed. The position where light is generated and the position of the end face of the sealing portion of the defective hollow fiber membrane can be overlapped and checked without any deviation.
[0015]
Further, since the commutator is formed by assembling a large number of flow straightening tubes, the airflow flowing out of the end face of the sealing portion can flow out in a stable state without being diffused by passing through the flow straightening tubes.
[0016]
Furthermore, since the rectifying tube is formed by at least three walls, and the pitch between the walls forming the rectifying tube is reduced, each rectifying tube can be manufactured to be extremely small. Identification can be performed with high accuracy.
[0017]
Furthermore, when a commutator is installed on the end face of the sealing portion of the hollow fiber membrane, the non-detection portion, that is, the end face of the sealing portion is darkened, the contrast with the generated scattered light is made clear, and the reliability of detection by the CCD camera is improved. Improve.
[0018]
【Example】
Hereinafter, a method and an apparatus for detecting a defect position of a hollow fiber membrane module according to the present invention will be described based on the illustrated embodiment.
[0019]
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a hollow fiber membrane module. Although not shown, a number of hollow fiber membranes are bundled into a U-shape, and the hollow fiber membrane bundle is inserted into a case 4 having both ends opened. The gap between the hollow fiber membranes and the gap between the hollow fiber membrane and the case 4 were sealed and fixed with a sealing material at one open end, and the ends of the sealed and fixed hollow fiber membranes were cured. The sealing material is cut together, the ends of the hollow fiber membranes are opened, and a hollow fiber membrane opening end face 6 is formed as an end face of the sealing portion. Filtration is performed by passing through the membrane and flowing out from the opening end face 6 of the hollow fiber membrane.
[0020]
In this embodiment, the above-mentioned hollow fiber membrane module 1 is disposed so that the opening end face 6 side faces the defect position detecting means 10 for defect detection. 2a is one of many hollow fiber membranes, which is a hollow fiber membrane having a defect.
[0021]
Reference numeral 40 denotes a commutator which is a main part of the present invention, which is provided immediately above the open end face 6 of the hollow fiber membrane module 1 and straightens the direction of the airflow flowing out from the open end face of each hollow fiber membrane. It serves to align upwards.
[0022]
The commutator 40 is obtained from the general concept that a plurality of rectifier tubes 41 are assembled, and various specific embodiments are developed. The diameter of each rectifier tube 41 has the following value. desirable. That is, if the diameter is too large, the sealing material for repairing the defect may be dripped to the hollow fiber membrane having no defect, thereby affecting the water flow rate of the hollow fiber membrane module 1. In practice, it is desirable that the maximum is 5 mm or less, preferably 1 mm.
[0023]
Further, in order to correct the flow of the airflow, the length of the tube is practically minimum and is desirably at least three times the diameter, preferably at least five times the diameter.
[0024]
The size of the commutator 40 on the plane must be at least the same as the size of the portion to be detected of the hollow fiber membrane module 1 to be detected (the size of the surface in which the bundle of hollow fiber membranes is embedded with the sealing material). In practice, however, in order for the airflow passing through the commutator 40 from the opening end face 6 of the hollow fiber membrane module 1 to achieve a neat flow state at the outer periphery thereof, the outer periphery of the commutator 40 is hollow. It is desirable that the outer diameter of the detection target portion of the thread membrane module 1 be larger by about 10 mm in the radial direction (outward).
[0025]
Next, the detection means 10 for detecting the position of the defect, which is not shown (same configuration as in FIG. 3 of the conventional example), slightly separates the laser beam 11 from the side in the direction of the upper surface of the commutator 40 from the side. An optical unit for scanning, a hollow fiber membrane module 1, a CCD camera 16 provided above the commutator 40 for detecting the scattered light 13, and an opening end face 6 of the hollow fiber membrane module 1 from the position of the scattered light 13. And a position analysis personal computer 17 for determining the position of the defect above.
[0026]
In addition, it is necessary to provide a device for generating an airflow that flows upward in FIG. 1 from the inside of the case 4 through the hollow fiber membrane, and for this purpose, a dark room is provided on the commutator 40 and air is provided in the upper part. , Or a method of applying pressure to the case 4 to push out air.
[0027]
In the method of detecting a defect of the hollow fiber membrane module after sealing, first, an air flow that flows upward through the commutator 40 from the hollow fiber membrane opening end face 6 is created by the above-described suction or extrusion. For example, if the hollow fiber membrane has a defect such as defective sealing or breakage of the hollow fiber membrane as in the case of the defective hollow fiber membrane 2a, fine particles such as dust in the air are not filtered by the hollow fiber membrane and are directly passed through the air flow. Includes and leaks.
[0028]
When the laser beam 11 is applied from the side, the laser beam 11 is scattered when hitting fine particles such as dust, and can be confirmed by the CCD camera 16, so that the presence of a defect can be known.
[0029]
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1, the defective hollow fiber membrane 2A is sealed and fixed at the sealing portion while being inclined, and even if air is sent out from the opening end of the hollow fiber membrane 2A, it is immediately above. Since the commutator 40 straightens the air flow upward by the straightening tube 41 which faces straight up and down, the air flow rises straight up and the diffusion can be reduced.
[0030]
Then, a generation position 14 of the scattered light 13 generated by the collision of the laser beam 11 with fine particles such as dust contained in the air flow, which escapes from the filtration, and the hollow fiber from which the air flow containing the dust etc. has flown out. The position 15 at the end of the film is accurately coincident with the position when viewed with the upper CCD camera.
[0031]
The position is analyzed and stored by the personal computer 17, and the end of the damaged hollow fiber membrane can be closed by dropping the sealing material at the position later to repair the defect of the hollow fiber membrane module. .
[0032]
As a secondary effect, even if the scattered light 13 is irradiated on the commutator 40, the reflected light is reflected and absorbed inside each rectifier tube, so that there is no reflected light reflected on the CCD camera 16 and the generation of the scattered light 13 is generated. High contrast is obtained between the position and other parts, and high accuracy can be achieved also in image processing.
[0033]
FIG. 2 is a view of the commutator 40 viewed from the S1-S1 plane in FIG. The commutator 40a shown in FIG. 2A is obtained by stacking a plurality of rectifying plates 53 in which a corrugated plate 51 is attached to a flat plate 52, and the shape of each rectifying tube through which an air flow passes is formed by three walls. In the commutator 40b shown in FIG. 2B, the shape of each flow straightening tube 54 has a honeycomb shape formed by six walls.
[0034]
By reducing the pitch between the walls forming the mountain-shaped or honeycomb-shaped rectifying tubes, each rectifying tube can be made extremely small, so that the position where scattered light is generated can be specified with high accuracy.
[0035]
The rectifying tube may be a round or square pipe or the like, and a plurality of such pipes may be bundled without any transparency. In this case, the accuracy of specifying the position where the scattered light is generated may be slightly deteriorated by the thickness of the wall of each pipe, but the accuracy can be improved by making the wall thinner.
[0036]
Further, as a specific example, the material of the commutator is a thin aluminum plate, the pitch (diameter of each straightening tube) is 1 mm, the thickness (length of each tube) is 10 mm, and the thickness of the thin aluminum plate wall is The height is 0. Although a 2 mm one was used, it is not limited to the dimensions and shape of the embodiment.
[0037]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, an airflow that flows from the inside of the case to the outside through each hollow fiber membrane is formed, and fine particles such as dust that have passed through a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane are optically formed in the airflow. In the method of detecting a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane module from the outside of the sealing portion end face, a commutator is provided close to the outside of the sealing portion end face, and the commutator is passed through the airflow. Since the optical detection is performed later, it is possible to accurately detect the defect position on the end face of the sealing portion of the hollow fiber membrane having the defect.
[0038]
In the device for detecting a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane module, there is no deviation between the position detected by the detecting means and the position of the end face of the sealing portion of the defective hollow fiber membrane.
[0039]
Further, since the commutator is formed by assembling a large number of flow straightening tubes, the airflow flowing out from the end face of the sealing portion can flow out in a stable state without being diffused by passing through the flow straightening tubes.
[0040]
Furthermore, since the rectifying tube is formed by at least three walls, and the pitch between the walls forming the rectifying tube is reduced, each rectifying tube can be manufactured to be extremely small. Identification can be performed with high accuracy.
[0041]
Furthermore, when a commutator is installed on the end face of the sealing portion of the hollow fiber membrane, the non-detection portion, that is, the end face of the sealing portion is darkened, the contrast with the generated scattered light is made clear, and the reliability of detection by the CCD camera is improved. Can be improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view of a method for detecting a defect of a hollow fiber membrane module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram of a commutator viewed from a fluid passage direction.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of a configuration of a conventional method for detecting a defect of a hollow fiber membrane module.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory view for explaining that an error occurs in defect position detection in a conventional method for detecting a defect in a hollow fiber membrane module.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Hollow fiber membrane module 2a Defective hollow fiber membrane 4 Case 6 Sealing part end face (hollow fiber membrane opening end face)
11 laser beam 13 confusion light 40, 40a, 40b commutator 51 corrugated plate 52 flat plate

Claims (3)

A bundle of hollow fiber membranes is loaded into a case, and a sealed portion is formed at the end of the case with the ends of the bundles of hollow fiber membranes opened, and the inside and outside of the case are separated by the sealed portion. With respect to the hollow fiber membrane module thus formed, an airflow flowing from the inside of the case to the outside through each hollow fiber membrane and from the end face of the sealing portion is formed, and dust or the like passing through a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane in the airflow is formed. In a method for detecting the position of a defective portion of a hollow fiber membrane module on an end face of a sealing portion by optically detecting fine particles,
A hollow fiber, wherein a straightener is formed by assembling a plurality of straight straightening tubes close to an end face of the sealing portion, and optical detection is performed after passing the straightener through the commutator. Defect position detection method for membrane modules. A bundle of hollow fiber membranes is loaded into a case, and a sealed portion is formed at the end of the case with the ends of the bundles of hollow fiber membranes opened, and the inside and outside of the case are separated by the sealed portion. With respect to the hollow fiber membrane module thus formed, an airflow flowing from the inside of the case to the outside through each hollow fiber membrane and from the end face of the sealing portion is formed, and dust or the like passing through a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane in the airflow is formed. In a device for detecting the position of a defective portion of the hollow fiber membrane module on the end face of the sealing portion by a detecting means for optically detecting the fine particles,
A defect position detecting device for a hollow fiber membrane module, wherein a commutator in which a number of flow straightening tubes are assembled is provided close to the outside of the end face of the sealing portion. The defect position detecting device for a hollow fiber membrane module according to claim 2, wherein the straightening tube is formed by at least three walls.

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