JPH0687952B2 - Deodorizer for refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

Description: [Object of the invention] (Field of industrial application) The present invention relates to a deodorizing device for a refrigerator for removing a malodorous component contained in the air in the refrigerator.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, as this type of deodorizing device, for example, an adsorbent such as activated carbon is used to adsorb a malodorous component contained in the air inside the chamber, or an ozone generator and a catalyst are provided. There is a method in which ozone generated from an ozone generator is reacted with air in the refrigerator to decompose and remove a malodorous component contained in the air in the refrigerator, and the remaining ozone is decomposed by a catalyst.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, the former one of the above-mentioned ones has a short life of the deodorizing function because it simply adsorbs the malodorous component by the adsorbent, while the latter one is In addition to the need for an ozone generator, it also requires a catalyst for decomposing the rest of ozone that is harmful to the human body, and thus has a drawback that the structure is complicated as a whole.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a deodorizing device for a refrigerator having a long deodorizing function life and a simple structure.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention provides a deodorizing body having an adsorbent layer and a thermal decomposition catalyst layer in a circulation path in which air in a refrigerator is circulated. , A heater for intermittently heating the deodorant body under the control of electrical connection and disconnection is provided, and the temperature of the thermal decomposition catalyst layer of the deodorant body is raised earlier than that of the adsorbent layer when heated by the heater. It has a feature where it is placed.

(Operation) In the case of the above, when the heater is deenergized, the malodorous component contained in the air passing through the circulation path is adsorbed by the adsorbent layer of the deodorizing body, and the heater is energized to deodorize by the heater. When the body is heated, the malodorous components adsorbed on the adsorbent layer are released, and the malodorous components are decomposed and removed by reacting with the thermal decomposition catalyst layer. So for this one,
Since the adsorption function of the adsorbent layer is regenerated by the heating of the heater, the deodorizing function has a long life, unlike the case of simply adsorbing, and the ozone is composed of the deodorizing body and the heater. The structure is simpler than that using a generator.

(Embodiment) An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a refrigerator will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5.

First, in FIG. 1, 1 is a refrigerator main body, and 2 and 3
Is a freezer compartment and a refrigerating compartment formed therein, and 4 and 5 are doors, respectively. Reference numeral 6 denotes a cooler arranged in the cooler room 7 at the back of the freezing room 2, and 8 denotes a fan arranged above the cooler 6. When the fan 8 is driven, part of the air cooled by the cooler 6 is supplied from the supply port 9 into the freezer compartment 2, and the air in the freezer compartment 2 is passed through the return duct 10 to the cooler compartment. It is circulated so that it is returned to the 7 side,
Moreover, a part of the air cooled by the cooler 6 is a supply duct.
It is circulated so that it is supplied into the refrigerating compartment 3 via 11 and the air in the refrigerating compartment 3 is returned to the cooler compartment 7 via the return duct 12. And in this case, the cooler room
7, the freezer compartment 2 and the return duct 10 constitute a circulation path through which the air in the freezer compartment 2 circulates, and the cooler compartment 7, the supply duct 11, the refrigerating compartment 3 and the return duct 12 allow the air in the refrigerating compartment 3 to circulate. It constitutes a circulation furnace in which is circulated.

A heater 13 also serves as a defrosting heater disposed below the cooler 6 in the lower part of the cooler chamber 7, and is composed of, for example, a glass tube heater, and the upper part thereof is also shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. Thus, the cover 14 whose lower side is opened is provided. The heater 13 is energized only when the cooler 6 is defrosted, and is energized except for the other time, so that the electricity is cut off. Reference numeral 15 denotes a deodorizer provided on the inner surface of the cover 14, which is composed of two layers, for example, an adsorbent layer 16 such as activated carbon and a thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 such as platinum or nickel. Cover
It is arranged on the inner surface side of 14, and the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 is arranged on the surface side, that is, on the side closer to the heater 13 than the adsorbent layer 16.

Now, in the above-mentioned configuration, during the cooling operation, the air in 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 cooler chamber is also operated.
It is circulated through 7, duct 11, refrigerating compartment 3 and return duct 12. At this time, the air passing through the inside of the cooler chamber 7 is a deodorant body.
The foul odor component contained in the air is adsorbed by the adsorbent layer 16 through contact with the adsorbent layer 16 through the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 of 15.

On the other hand, when the defrosting operation is started, the cooler 6 and the fan 8
While the operation is stopped, the heater 13 is energized to generate heat, and the heater 13 heats the cooler 6 to defrost the cooler 6. Further, the heater 13 simultaneously heats the deodorant body 15. This fold, deodorant body 15,
Among the adsorbent layer 16 and the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17, the temperature of the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 close to the heater 13 rises before that of the adsorbent layer 16, and then the temperature of the adsorbent layer 16 rises. As the temperature of the adsorbent layer 16 rises, the malodorous component adsorbed thereto is released from the adsorbent layer 16, and the released malodorous component reacts with the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 and is decomposed and removed here. It In the adsorbent layer 16, the adsorption function is regenerated by releasing the adsorbed malodorous component.

Then, when the defrosting operation is finished and the cooling operation is restarted, and the temperature of the deodorant body 15 is lowered, the malodorous component contained in the air in the refrigerator is in the adsorbent layer 16 of the deodorant body 15 as described above. It will be adsorbed.

In the embodiment described above, the adsorbent layer 16 of the deodorizer 15 is the heater 13
Since the adsorption function, that is, the deodorizing function is regenerated by the heating of the
Long life of deodorizing function. By the way, in order to regenerate the adsorption function of the adsorbent alone, it is considered that the adsorbent should be heated to release the malodorous component, but in this way, the released malodorous component is stored. The structure is complicated because it requires a duct or the like to discharge it to the outside. In this respect, in the case of this embodiment, since the malodorous component is released by the heating of the heater 13 and the malodorous component is decomposed and removed by the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17, such consideration is not necessary. Further, the deodorizing device of the present invention can be composed of the deodorizing body 15 and the heater 13 for intermittently heating the deodorizing body 15,
The structure is simpler than that using an ozone generator.
Moreover, according to the present embodiment, since the defrosting heater is used as the heater 13, there is an advantage that it is not necessary to separately provide a dedicated heater.

By the way, generally, an adsorbent such as activated carbon has a high adsorption performance for adsorbing a malodorous component when the temperature is low as shown in FIG. 4, and releases the adsorbed malodorous component as the temperature rises to lower the adsorption performance. On the other hand, the thermal decomposition catalyst such as platinum does not react with the malodorous component when the temperature is low as shown in FIG. 5, and has a decomposition performance of reacting with the malodorous component and decomposing it at a certain temperature or higher. There is a characteristic that becomes higher. Here, the deodorant body 15 in the present embodiment is, for example, the adsorbent layer 16
Is arranged on the side closer to the heater 13 (surface side) than the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17, the temperature of the adsorbent layer 16 rises before the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 when heated by the heater 13. Even if the malodorous component is released from the adsorbent layer 16, the malodorous component does not react with the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 and escapes without being decomposed, resulting in a problem that the decomposition efficiency of the malodorous component is low. In this respect, according to the present embodiment, the thermal decomposition catalyst 17 is arranged on the side closer to the heater 13 than the adsorbent layer 16, and the temperature is raised before the adsorbent layer 16 when heated by the heater 13. Therefore, the malodorous components released from the adsorbent layer 16 are decomposed by the thermal decomposition catalyst 17
Can be efficiently reacted, and thus the malodorous component can be efficiently decomposed and removed. Further, with such a constitution, as the adsorbent and the thermal decomposition catalyst, general ones that have been conventionally provided can be used, and there is an advantage that it is not necessary to use those having special temperature characteristics. .

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the cover 14 of the heater 13 is provided with the opening / closing plate 18, and the opening / closing plate 18 is opened during the cooling operation. Then, the amount of contact between the adsorbent layer 16 and the air in the refrigerator increases, and the malodorous component adsorption efficiency can be improved.

Further, in the above embodiment, the defrosting heater is used as the heater 13 for heating the deodorizing body 15. However, a dedicated heater may be provided and this heater may be controlled to switch on and off in synchronization with the defrosting heater. . Furthermore, a transparent material such as an infrared heater may be used as a heater for heating the deodorant body 15. In this case, the thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 is arranged on the inner surface side of the cover 14,
The adsorbent layer 16 is arranged on the surface side.

FIG. 7 shows a different embodiment of the present invention, which is different from the above-described embodiments in the following points. That is, the deodorizer 15 is a thermal decomposition catalyst layer over the entire surface of the adsorbent layer 16.
It has a structure with 17. In this case, this deodorant 15
The plate-shaped adsorbent layer 16 is formed by sintering the adsorbent, and the adsorbent layer 16 is formed by immersing the plate-shaped adsorbent layer 16 in a solution of a thermal decomposition catalyst to adhere the catalyst to the surface, and then performing heat treatment. The thermal decomposition catalyst layer 17 is formed on the surface.

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above description, the deodorizing apparatus for a refrigerator of the present invention includes a deodorizing body having an adsorbent layer and a thermal decomposition catalyst layer, and a deodorizing body that is controlled to cut off electricity. Since it is composed of a heater that heats intermittently, it has a long deodorizing function life and has a simple structure.In addition, the thermal decomposition catalyst layer in the deodorant body precedes the adsorbent layer when heated by the heater. By arranging so that the temperature rises, the excellent effect that the malodorous component can be efficiently decomposed is exhibited.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 to 5 show an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional side view showing a state of being installed in a refrigerator, FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional side view of a main part, and FIG. Fracture front view, 4th
FIG. 5 is a characteristic diagram of a general adsorbent, FIG. 5 is a characteristic diagram of a general pyrolysis catalyst, and FIGS. 6 and 7 are equivalent to FIG. 2 showing different embodiments of the present invention. is there. In the drawing, 1 is a refrigerator body, 6 is a cooler, 13 is a heater, and 15
Is a deodorant, 16 is an adsorbent layer, and 17 is a thermal decomposition catalyst layer.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A deodorizing body provided in a circulation path in which air in a refrigerator is circulated, the deodorizing body having an adsorbent layer and a thermal decomposition catalyst layer, and the deodorizing body is intermittently controlled by switching on and off. A deodorizing device for a refrigerator, comprising: a heater for heating the deodorizing body, and the thermal decomposition catalyst layer of the deodorizing body is arranged such that the temperature thereof rises before the adsorbent layer when heated by the heater.