JPH0364169B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a deodorizing device for a refrigerator or the like for removing odor components contained in the air inside the refrigerator or the like.

(Prior Art) Generally, in refrigerators, when odor is generated from food stored in the refrigerator, there is a problem that the odor fills the refrigerator or adheres to other foods.

Conventionally, the following methods have been used to solve such problems. In other words, for example, an adsorbent such as activated carbon is used to adsorb and remove odor components contained in the air inside the refrigerator, or an ozone generator and a catalyst are installed, and the ozone generator generates odor. There is a system in which the ozone is reacted with odor components in the air inside the refrigerator, the odor components are removed by oxidative decomposition, and the remaining ozone is decomposed and removed by a catalyst.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) However, among the above-mentioned methods, the former only uses an adsorbent to adsorb odor components, and the adsorption capacity of the adsorbent is limited, so the life of the deodorizing function is short. There is a drawback. On the other hand, the latter method requires an ozone generator as well as a catalyst to decompose the residual ozone that is harmful to the human body, so it has the disadvantage of a complex structure as a whole.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a deodorizing device for a refrigerator or the like that has a long deodorizing function and has a simple structure.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention is a deodorizing method that adsorbs odor components and oxidizes and decomposes them by heating them in a circulation path through which air circulates inside a refrigerator or the like. A heater is provided near the deodorizing body to heat the deodorizing body by controlling the conduction/cutting, and the cover member, which is made of a material with high thermal conductivity and has a large number of through holes, is deodorized. It is distinctive in that it is placed so as to cover the surface of the body.

(Function) According to the above means, the air passing through the circulation path comes into contact with the deodorizing body through the through holes of the cover member, and the odor components contained in the air are adsorbed by the deodorizing body. Then, when the heater is energized and the deodorizing body is heated by the heater, the adsorbed odor components are desorbed and oxidized and decomposed and removed. At this time, since the surface of the deodorizing body is covered with a covering member having high thermal conductivity, the deodorizing body is heated as uniformly as possible by the heat conduction of the covering member. Therefore, in this case, the adsorption function of the deodorizer is regenerated by heating the heater, so the deodorizing function has a long lifespan, unlike those that simply adsorb.
Since the deodorizing body is heated at as uniform a temperature as possible through the cover member, desorption and oxidative decomposition of odor components are efficiently performed. Further, since the deodorizing body is covered by the cover member, even if the deodorizing body is damaged, it can be prevented from falling and scattering. Furthermore, the overall structure is simpler than that using an ozone generator.

(Example) An example in which the present invention is applied to a refrigerator will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, in Fig. 1, 1 is the refrigerator main body,
2 and 3 are a freezer compartment and a refrigerator compartment formed therein, and 4 and 5 are doors, respectively. 6 is a cooler disposed in a cooler chamber 7 at the back of the freezer compartment 2, and 8 is a fan disposed above the cooler 6. When the fan 8 is driven, a part of the air cooled by the cooler 6 is supplied into the freezer compartment 2 from the supply port 9, and the air inside the freezer compartment 2 is transferred to the return duct 1.
The inside of the freezer compartment 2 is cooled by being circulated such that the air is returned to the cooler compartment 7 via the cooler 6, and a part of the air cooled by the cooler 6 is circulated through the
is supplied into the refrigerator compartment 3 via the refrigerator compartment 3, and the refrigerator compartment 3
The air inside the refrigerator compartment 3 is circulated through the return duct 12 and returned to the refrigerator compartment 7.
The inside is cooled down. In this case, the cooler chamber 7,
Freezer compartment 2 and return duct 10
The cooler chamber 7, the supply duct 11, the refrigerator compartment 3, and the return duct 12 constitute a circuit through which the air inside the refrigerator compartment 3 circulates.

13 is a defrosting heater disposed below the cooler 6 in the lower part of the cooler chamber 7, and this is a glass tube heater having a heater wire 13b provided inside a glass tube 13a as shown in FIG. Consisting of a cooler 6
Electricity is controlled to be energized only during defrosting, and turned off at other times. 14 is a cover provided on the defrosting heater 13 so as to cover it from above, and this is made of a metal plate such as aluminum having heat resistance and water resistance.
As shown in the figure, it is formed in the shape of a shallow container with an open bottom, and prevents defrosting water from splashing onto the defrosting heater 13 when the cooler 6 is defrosted. 15 is a deodorizing body, which includes an adsorbent layer 15a made of an adsorbent such as activated carbon or silica (silicon dioxide);
It has a two-layer structure with a catalyst layer 15b made of platinum or nickel provided on the surface of this adsorbent layer 15a. Here, this deodorizing body 15 is formed by sintering an adsorbent to form a plate-shaped adsorbent layer 15a, and after immersing this adsorbent layer 15a in a catalyst solution to adhere the catalyst to the surface. A catalyst layer 15b is formed on the surface of the adsorbent layer 15a by heat treatment. Further, the adsorbent layer 15a and the catalyst layer 15b are each porous so that air can flow therethrough. The deodorizing body 15 is supported and fixed to the inner surface of the cover 14 by a support 17 via a heat insulating material 16 made of glass fiber or the like, and is provided near the upper part of the defrosting heater 13. Reference numeral 18 denotes a covering member, such as a wire mesh, made of a material with high thermal conductivity and having a large number of through holes, and is provided to cover the surface of the deodorizing body 15, as shown in FIG.

Now, in the above configuration, during the cooling operation, the air inside the refrigerator is circulated through the cooler chamber 7, the freezing chamber 2, and the return duct 10 by the blowing action of the fan 8, and the air inside the refrigerator is circulated through the cooler chamber 7, the supply duct 11. ,
It is circulated through the refrigerator compartment 3 and the return duct 12. At this time, the air passing through the cooler chamber 7 is
The odor components contained in the air come into contact with the deodorizing body 15 through the through holes 8, and the odor components contained in the air are absorbed into the adsorbent layer 15 of the deodorizing body 15.
It is adsorbed and removed by a.

On the other hand, when the defrosting operation is started, the operation of the cooler 6 and the fan 8 is stopped, while the defrosting heater 1
3 is energized and generates heat. The heat generated by the defrosting heater 13 heats the cooler 6 to perform defrosting, and at the same time, the deodorizing body 15 is heated. At this time, since the surface of the deodorizing body 15 is covered with the wire mesh 18, the deodorizing body 15 is heated as uniformly as possible due to heat conduction through the wire mesh 18. In the heated deodorizing body 15, the odor components adsorbed by the adsorbent of the adsorbent layer 15a are desorbed, and at the same time, the odor components are oxidized and decomposed in the catalyst layer 15b and removed. By heating the deodorizing body 15 in this manner, the adsorption function, that is, the deodorizing function is regenerated. At this time, the cover 14 plays a role of efficiently heating the deodorizing body 15 by confining the heat from the defrosting heater 13 downward, and also plays the role of efficiently heating the deodorizing body 15 and the defrosting heater 13 from the defrosting body 15 and the defrosting heater 13. Prevents water from splashing on it. The heat insulating material 16 allows the heat of the deodorizing body 15 to pass through the cover 14.
This also prevents heat shock of the deodorizing body 15 due to rapid cooling of the cover 14 caused by defrosting water falling onto the cover 14. Further, the wire mesh 18 prevents the deodorizing body 15 from falling and scattering in the event that the deodorizing body 15 is damaged.

Then, when the defrosting operation is finished and the cooling operation is restarted, and the temperature of the deodorizing body 15 decreases, the odor components contained in the air inside the refrigerator are adsorbed and removed by the deodorizing body 15, as described above. become.

According to the embodiment described above, the deodorizing function of the deodorizing body 15 is regenerated by the heating of the defrosting heater 13, and therefore, the life of the deodorizing function is long, unlike the case where the deodorizing body 15 is simply adsorbed by an adsorbent. Moreover, the deodorizing body 15
Since the surface is covered with a wire mesh 18, the deodorizing body 15 is heated as evenly as possible by the heat conduction of the wire mesh 18 when heated by the defrosting heater 13, and therefore the deodorizing body 15 is heated only locally. is prevented, and desorption and oxidative decomposition of odor components are efficiently performed. Moreover, the wire mesh 18 can prevent the deodorizing body 15 from falling and scattering even if it should be damaged. Furthermore, it goes without saying that the deodorizing device of the present invention has a simpler structure than one using an ozone generator. Moreover, according to this embodiment, the deodorizing body 15
Since the defrosting heater 13 is used as a heater for heating, there is also an advantage that there is no need to separately provide a dedicated heater.

In the above embodiment, the defrosting heater 13 was used as a heater for heating the deodorizing body 15, but a dedicated heater is provided and this heater is preferably controlled to be turned on and off in synchronization with the defrosting heater 13. It's okay. Further, the deodorizing body 15 does not have a two-layer structure, but may have a single-layer structure in which an adsorbent and a catalyst are mixed together and bonded and solidified. Instead, the deodorizing body 15 may be made of a material having higher thermal conductivity than the deodorizing body 15, such as ceramic.

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above description, the present invention adsorbs and heats odor components in the circulation path in which air inside a refrigerator or the like circulates, thereby oxidizing and decomposing the odor components. A deodorizing body is provided, a heater is provided in the vicinity of the deodorizing body to heat the deodorizing body by controlling the supply of electricity to the deodorizing body, and a cover member made of a material with high thermal conductivity and having a large number of through holes is provided. Since it is arranged so as to cover the surface of the deodorizing body, the deodorizing function has a long life, and the structure is simple.
The deodorizing body can be heated as uniformly as possible, improving the decomposition efficiency of odor components, and even if the deodorizing body should be damaged, it can prevent the deodorizing body from falling and scattering, which is an excellent effect.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional side view of the upper part of the refrigerator when it is installed in the refrigerator, FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional side view of the main parts, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged cutaway front view of the same. , FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the main part seen from below. In the drawing, 1 is the refrigerator main body, 6 is a cooler, 13 is a defrosting heater (heater), 14 is a cover, 15 is a deodorizing body, 15a is an adsorbent layer, 15b is a catalyst layer, 18
indicates a wire mesh (covering member).

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A deodorizing body installed in the circulation path through which air circulates inside a refrigerator, etc., adsorbs odor components, and oxidizes and decomposes the odor components by being heated; a heater that heats the deodorizing body by heating the deodorizing body; and a covering member that is made of a material with high thermal conductivity and has a large number of through holes and is arranged to cover the surface of the deodorizing body. Deodorizing equipment such as.