JPS585089B2 - water generator - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a water generation device that obtains water from moisture in gas.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, a device for producing fresh water using seawater as a raw material is well known as a seawater desalination device.

There is also a water reuse treatment device that processes wastewater such as sewage to a high degree to produce highly clear water that can be reused, but this can also be considered a water production device in the same category as a seawater desalination device. can.

That is, in all of these, water is obtained from a solution containing liquid water as a main component.

For this reason, since these water generation devices use liquid water as a raw material, they cannot naturally generate water in places such as deserts where liquid water cannot be obtained at all.

Therefore, there is a need for a water production system that can easily obtain water even in areas where liquid water cannot be obtained, such as deserts.
Such new water generating devices are being developed.

In other words, this new water generation device is a device that obtains water from moisture present in the atmosphere, and is a new water generation device that can generate water anywhere as long as the atmosphere exists.

Of course, it is impossible to create water if there is no moisture in the atmosphere, but statistical data on climate and the inventors' research show that even in the atmosphere of the huge desert in the central Arabian Peninsula, there is water in 1 m3 of air. Water of 3 to 4 g is present, and water generation is possible.

Therefore, human activities can be carried out by obtaining water in barren land, and by using this water as irrigation, it is also possible to cultivate plants.

In other words, this water production device contributes to expanding the living area of humans, and its significance is extremely large.

The basic principle of this water generator is that the first step is to adsorb atmospheric moisture onto an adsorbent, and the second step is to heat the adsorbent that has adsorbed this moisture to convert the adsorbed moisture into water vapor. This is desorbed as water and led to a condenser to turn it into water.

At this time, the adsorbent simultaneously loses water and regains its adsorption capacity, so that the adsorbent is repeatedly used to adsorb moisture from the atmosphere.

In this way, water in liquid phase can be continuously obtained from the atmosphere.

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an example of a water generating apparatus according to the prior art based on the above basic principle.

In the figure, 1A and 1B are respectively the adsorbent packed bed 1
a and a first and second storage section accommodating the adsorbent packed layer 1b; 2 is the first storage section for one person or the second storage section 1B;
3 is a suction-type blower as a means for sucking in moisture-containing gas such as air; 3 is a gas circulation path provided via the first accommodating portion 1A or the second accommodating portion 1B; 4 is a circulation path 3;
This is a circulation blower for urging the gas inside in the direction of arrow A in the figure.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a heater for heating the gas in the circulation path 3, and this heater 5 is for heating the adsorbent packed bed 1a or the adsorbent packed bed 1b to desorb the moisture adsorbed thereto. .

6 is a burner as a heating source, 7 is a combustion blower for feeding fuel or combustion air to the burner 6, 8 is a gas flow path branched from the circulation path 3, and 9 is water vapor in the flow path 8. 10 is a cooling blower for cooling the condenser 9; 11 is a water tank open to the atmosphere that stores the water obtained in the condenser 9; 12 is the produced water. .

13a, 13b. 14a, 14b, 15a, 15b, 1
Both 6a and 16b are valves that open and close gas flow paths.

Next, the operation will be explained.

In this prior art freshwater generation device, two storage units are provided, so when one storage unit is performing the adsorption process (first process), the other storage unit is performing the desorption process (second process). process), and after these processes are completed, the water generation process can be performed continuously by switching and repeating these processes alternately.

In the following explanation, the first storage section 1A is in the adsorption process,
The description will be made on the assumption that the second accommodating portion 1B is in the process of being attached and detached.

The adsorption process in the first storage section 1A is performed by the valve 13a.
, 14a, and valves 13b, 14b.

This is carried out by closing 15a and 16a and operating the blower 2 to suck air into the first storage section 1A and bring it into contact with the adsorbent packed bed 1a accommodated therein.

At this time, the moisture in the air is adsorbed by the adsorbent packed layer 1a, and the air that has lost moisture is removed by the valve 14a.
is discharged from the system.

In this way, the adsorption process is completed when the adsorbent packed bed 1a has sufficiently adsorbed water.

On the other hand, the attachment/detachment process in the second housing section 1B is
It is desirable that this be carried out in parallel with the adsorption process in the storage section 1A.

That is, valves 13b, 14b, 15a, 16
a is closed, the valves 15b and 16b are opened, and the gas (air) in the circulation path 3 is heated by the heater 5 and circulated by the circulation blower 4 in the direction of arrow A in the figure.

Then, this heated air heats the adsorbent packed layer 1b in the second storage section 1B, and attempts to desorb the moisture previously adsorbed on the adsorbent packed layer 1b by converting it into water vapor. It is something.

In this way, when water vapor is desorbed from the adsorbent packed bed 1b, the volume of gas in the circulation path 3 increases due to the generation of water vapor due to desorption and the high temperature, and the volume increases in this circulation path 3. The gas is discharged into the atmosphere through the condenser 9 together with the desorbed water vapor.

At this time, the water vapor in the gas flowing out from the circulation path 3 is condensed in the condenser 9 and stored in the water receiving tank 11, but the water vapor corresponding to the saturated vapor pressure determined by the temperature of the condenser 9 is
It is released into the atmosphere along with the air and becomes a loss.

However, the air that initially entered the second storage section 1B is small compared to the amount of water vapor to be desorbed, and of course, the amount is limited, so all of it is exhausted by the water vapor that is generated one after another, and the air is essentially In other words, only water vapor circulates in the circulation path 3.

In this state where there is only water vapor, the pressure inside the circulation path 3 is always approximately 1
It is atmospheric pressure.

Further, the only gas circulating in the circulation path 3 is water vapor, and an amount of water vapor equivalent to the desorbed water vapor is pushed out to the condenser 9, where it becomes water and is stored in the water receiving tank 11. .

In this way, the desorption process is completed when the water content of the adsorbent packed bed 1b has been sufficiently desorbed.

The adsorption process and desorption process as explained above are explained in the first part. By making the second storage parts 1A and 1B perform this process alternately, water can be continuously obtained from the moisture in the air.

By the way, this prior art water generation device uses a large number of pipes that serve as gas flow paths and many valves that open and close these flow paths, which makes the operation complicated and requires miniaturization.
There was a problem in that it was not easy to create a structure that could be transported.

Furthermore, in deserts and other areas where this type of water production equipment can demonstrate its true value, it is difficult to obtain electricity, let alone water, so it is necessary to conserve energy as much as possible.

Therefore, the pressure loss in the piping and valves, which increases the power consumption of the blowers 2 and 4, must be kept as small as possible, and the capacity of the cooling blower 10 should also be made as small as possible without reducing the condensing capacity of the condenser 9. This is desirable.

Even in terms of energy saving, the water generating device according to this prior art is not satisfactory and has problems.

This invention was made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and it almost eliminates the use of piping that serves as a gas flow path and valves that open and close this flow path, and also omits the blower for cooling the water production condenser. By creating a structure that allows for
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a small and portable water generating device.

FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing a freshwater generator according to the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line ■-■ in FIG. 2, and FIG. It is a sectional view taken along the line -■.

In the figure, 1A and 1B are first and second housing parts 17a, each of which is a tubular body with a square cross-sectional shape and accommodates an adsorbent packed layer 1a and an adsorbent packed layer 1b.
17b are gas flow ports provided in the upper side plates at both opening edges of the first storage section 1A, sandwiching the adsorbent packed layer 1a, respectively. Gas communication ports 3a are provided on the upper side plate of the first storage section 1A, and gas introduced through the communication ports 17a is heated. A heating chamber 3b is provided on the upper side plate of the second housing part 1B and heats the gas introduced through the flow port 17b, and 5a and 5b are gases in the heating chamber 3a and heating chamber 3b, respectively. The heater 18 is an air heater provided in common so as to communicate with the air discharge side opening of the first housing part 1A and the air discharge side opening of the second housing part 1B. The exhaust chamber 2 is installed near the air outlet opened in the upper part of the exhaust chamber 18, and is connected to the first housing part 1A or the second housing part 1A.
This is a suction type blower that sucks air through the housing part 1B.

9 is a condenser provided in the exhaust chamber 18 and configured to be cooled by the blower 2; 13a is the open end of the left and right side plates on the suction port side through which air is sucked into the first housing portion 1A by the blower 2; A suction side door 14a is attached to the left and right side plates of the exhaust port from which the air in the first housing section 1A is discharged by the blower 2, and the suction side door opens and closes the suction port like a double door. A discharge outlet side door that is attached and opens and closes this discharge outlet like a double door, 13
b and 14b are the suction port side door and the discharge port side door of the second storage section 1B, which are similar to the suction port side door 13a and the discharge port side door 14a of the first storage section 1A, respectively.

4a is a suction port side door 1 provided close to the flow port 17a;
3a and the discharge port side door 14a, the air heated in the heating chamber 3a is circulated through the circulation port 17a into the circulation path formed by the first storage section 1A and the heating chamber 3a, and the air heated in the heating chamber 3a is closed. a circulation blower for raising the temperature of the adsorbent and desorbing the moisture adsorbed on the adsorbent packed bed 1a;
Similar to the circulation blower 4a, b is provided close to the circulation port 17b and has a suction solar radiation 13b and a discharge port side door 14b.
By closing the heating chamber 3b, the heating chamber 3b is inserted into the circulation path formed by the second housing part 1B and the heating chamber 3b through the circulation port 17b.
The heated air is circulated in the adsorbent packed bed 1b.
This is a circulation blower that raises the temperature of the adsorbent and desorbs the moisture adsorbed on the adsorbent packed bed 1b.

8a and 8b each have one end connected to a circulation path formed by the first accommodating part 1A and the heating chamber 3a, and the second accommodating part 1B.
A gas flow path 19 is connected to the circulation path formed by the heating chamber 3b and the other end of the flow path 8a and the condenser 9.
A switching valve that can mutually switch the connection between the connection with the flow path 8b and the connection between the other end of the flow path 8b and the condenser 9, and 11, whose function is indicated by a dashed-dotted line, is an atmosphere opening that stores the water obtained in the condenser 9. The shaped water tank, 12 indicated by a dashed line, is produced water.

Next, the operation will be explained.

The operation of the fresh water generator of this embodiment is substantially similar to the operation of the prior art fresh water generator shown in FIG.

In the following description, it is assumed that the first housing part 1A is in the adsorption process and the second housing part 1B is in the desorption process.

In the adsorption process in the first storage section 1A, first,
The suction port side door 13a and the discharge port side door 14a of the first storage section 1A are opened, and the suction port side door 13 of the second storage section 1B is opened.
b and the discharge port side door 14b are closed, and the switching valve 19 is switched so that the flow path 8b and the condenser 9 are connected.

Next, the blower 2 is operated to blow air into the first storage section 1A.
The adsorption process is carried out by bringing the adsorbent into contact with the adsorbent packed bed 1a contained therein.

On the other hand, when the first accommodating part 1A is in the adsorption process, the second accommodating part 1B is in the desorption process.

This process of attaching and detaching the second housing portion 1B is performed using the circulation blower 4b.
is activated to circulate the air in the heating chamber 3b through the circulation path formed by the second storage section 1B and the heating chamber 3b while heating the air in the heating chamber 3b with the heater 5b. Heating the adsorbent packed layer 1b in the storage section 1B of No. 2,
The water vapor previously adsorbed on the adsorbent-filled bed 1b is converted into water vapor and desorbed.

In this way, the water vapor desorbed from the adsorbent packed bed 1b is circulated through the circulation formed by the second storage section 1B and the heating chamber 3b, as in the case of the prior art freshwater generator shown in FIG. It passes through the flow path 8b connected to the flow path and the switching valve 19, and reaches the condenser 9 cooled by the air sucked into the discharge chamber 18 from the first storage section 1A by the blower 2;
Here, it becomes water and is stored in the water receiving tank 11.

The above-mentioned adsorption process and desorption process are described in 1. Second housing part 1
By alternating steps A and 1B, water can be obtained continuously.

The water generator of the first embodiment uses almost no piping or valves for gas flow paths, unlike the prior art water generator shown in FIG. 1, so it is easy to operate. Moreover, it can be miniaturized and easily constructed to be transportable.

Moreover, since there is no pressure loss due to the piping and valves, and the cooling blower 10 for cooling the condenser 9 shown in FIG. 1 is not required, energy savings can be easily achieved.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a fresh water generator according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

The freshwater generator of this second embodiment is almost the same as the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2, except that the first storage section 1A and the second storage section 1B are stacked vertically. Since the operation is similar to that of the first embodiment, it goes without saying that it has the same effect as the first embodiment.

The first and second embodiments described above are merely examples of the present invention, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

For example, (a) the heating chambers 3a and 3b are placed in the first. Second accommodating section 1A.

1B on a side plate other than the upper side plate; (b) making the blower 2 a push-in type; and (c) inlet side door 13a.

13b and the discharge port side doors 14a and 14b, respectively, to be opened and closed like sliding doors, (2) to change the positional relationship between the blower 2 and the condenser 9, (e) to open and close the exhaust chamber 1.
8. Providing the air outlet to the outside on the side plate other than the upper part, (f) 1st. Second accommodating section 1A.

It is possible to provide the air inlet or outlet of air 1B on each side plate, and (g) to make the adsorbent-filled layers 1a and 1b cylindrical, etc., without any problem.

In addition, in the first and second embodiments, the first accommodating portion 1A
Although the cross-sectional shape of each of the second accommodating portion 1B is square, it does not necessarily have to be square, and other shapes may be used.

Furthermore, the exhaust chamber 18 that accommodates the blower 2 and the condenser 9,
1st. The cross-sectional shape of the portion connected to the second storage portions 1A and 1B is the same as that of the first storage portions 1A and 1B. There is no need to make the cross-sectional shape the same as that of the second accommodating portions 1A and 1B, and there is no need for the connection between them to be strongly integrated.

Adsorbent packed bed 1a used in the above first and second embodiments
, 1b adsorbent is Molecular Sieve 3A, Molecular Sieve 4A,
Zeolite such as 5A, 10X, 13X, silica gel, alumina gel, silica alumina, activated alumina,
Any material that is generally used as a solid adsorbent, such as activated carbon, activated bauxite, or activated clay, may be used.

Furthermore, adsorbents that are generally used as aqueous solutions, such as lithium bromide and lithium chloride, can be supported on a suitable carrier such as alumina or asbestos.

These adsorbents can be used in any shape such as particles, spheres, pellets, and tablets without any problem.

Furthermore, it is also possible to use a so-called parallel passage packed bed using a honeycomb-like adsorbent.

These adsorbents are selected by taking into consideration their adsorption properties, temperature and humidity, and the operating conditions for adsorption and desorption of these adsorbents are appropriately selected depending on the adsorbent used and are not particularly limited.

Furthermore, in the first and second embodiments described above, the water receiving tank 11 is open, but the water tank 11 is closed or initially opened so that the air in the circulation path is substantially expelled. The present invention can be applied to a device that is sealed after being replaced with desorbed water vapor, or to other modifications.

Furthermore, in the first and second embodiments, two first .
Although the case where the second accommodating parts 1A and 1B are provided has been described, it is not necessary to limit the number to two, and it goes without saying that the present invention can also be applied to a case where two or more accommodating parts are provided. .

In the above description, the present invention has been described with respect to the case where water is obtained using moisture in the atmosphere as a raw material, but it is not necessarily limited to the atmosphere.

As described above in detail, the fresh water generating apparatus of the present invention houses an adsorbent packed layer for moisture adsorption inside, and has gas inlet and outlet ports on both sides of the adsorbent filled layer. at least two accommodating parts having a door-shaped opening/closing means for respectively opening and closing the suction ports and the discharge ports of these accommodating parts, and a door-shaped opening/closing means connected to each of the suction ports (or discharge ports) of the two accommodating parts. a common supply (or exhaust) air chamber provided therein, and a supply means provided in the supply (or exhaust) chamber for supplying moisture-containing gas to the storage section in the adsorption process when the opening/closing means is opened; , a heating chamber which is provided to communicate with the suction port side and the discharge port side across the storage section and the adsorbent packed layer and heats the gas inside the storage section when the storage section is in the desorption process; and the opening/closing means. By closing the holder, the gas heated in the heating chamber is circulated through the circulation path formed by the storage section in the desorption process and the heating chamber to raise the temperature of the adsorbent packed bed. Circulation means for desorbing moisture adsorbed in the layer, and air supply (or exhaust) in or out of the air supply (or exhaust) chamber;
A condenser is provided outside the air chamber and connected to the air chamber, and is configured to condense the desorbed moisture cooled by the gas fed by the feeding means and introduced from the communication pipe opening to the circulation path, and alternately. In addition, when one of the storage units is in the adsorption process, the other storage unit is in the desorption process, so unlike the prior art water generation equipment, most piping and valves that serve as gas flow paths are used. Since the device can be constructed without the need for a device, it is not only easy to operate, but also compact and easy to transport.

Further, since there is no pressure loss due to the piping or valves, and a cooling blower for cooling the condenser is not required, energy savings can be easily achieved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an example of a water generation device according to the prior art, FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing a water generation device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line ■-■ in FIG. 3, and FIG. be. In the figure, 1A and 1B are storage parts, 1a and 1b are adsorbent packed beds, 2 is a blower (feeding means), 3a and 3b are heating chambers, 4a and 4
b are circulation blowers (circulation means), 5a and 5, respectively;
b is a heater, 9 is a condenser, 13a and 13b, respectively.
are the suction port side door (opening/closing means), 14a and 1, respectively.
4b is a discharge port side door (opening/closing means). Note that the same reference numerals in the figures indicate the same or corresponding parts.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 At least two storage units that house an adsorbent packed bed for moisture adsorption inside and have a gas inlet and a gas outlet on both sides of the adsorbent packed bed, respectively, and the above-mentioned suction of these storage units. A door-like opening/closing means for opening and closing the inlet and outlet, respectively, and a common supply (
or an exhaust) air chamber, a feeding means that is provided in the supply (or exhaust) air chamber and supplies moisture-containing gas to the storage section that is in the adsorption process when the opening/closing means is opened; A heating chamber is provided to communicate with the suction port side and the discharge port side across the adsorbent packed layer and heats the gas inside when the storage section is in the desorption process, and the heating chamber is closed by closing the opening/closing means. The gas heated in the heating chamber is circulated through the circulation path formed by the storage section in the desorption process and the heating chamber to raise the temperature of the adsorbent packed bed, so that the gas adsorbed by the adsorbent packed bed is heated. It has a circulation means for desorbing moisture, and alternately, when one of the accommodating parts is in the adsorption process, the other accommodating part is in the desorption process, and the water supply (
or the above air which is cooled by the gas provided in the exhaust air chamber or outside the supply (or exhaust) air chamber and connected thereto, and which is fed by the feeding means and introduced from the opening of the communication pipe to the circulation path. A water production device characterized by being equipped with a condenser that condenses desorbed water.