JPH0330778A - Oxygen enrichment device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To keep a condensed drain-making function and to perform stably operation of an oxygen enrichment device by providing a water holding functionality part on the outer surface of which multi-layered solid particles are adhered and fixed and introducing water discharged by a water discharging pipe in a water separating means to the water holding functionality part. CONSTITUTION:A membrane element 1 provides an oxygen selectively permeable membrane and oxygen-enriched air permeated through the membrane and with an elevated oxygen concn. is obtd. through a collecting pipe 2 by making the inner side of the membrane element vacuum by means of a vacuum pump and after passing through the pump means, it passes through a cooling means 12 with a water holding functionality part 11, a water separating means 13, a compressing means 14, a flow quantity controlling means 15 and a flow quantity measuring means 16 and it is used as an oxygen-enriched air A. On the other hand, atmospheric air C is taken into the apparatus through a filter by a fan means 18 and after it successively passes through the cooling means 12, the membrane element 1 and the pump means 10, it is discharged out of the apparatus. In this oxygen enrichment device, as the water holding functionality on the outer surface side of the cooling means 12 is easily kept properly and a proper cooling effect can be ensured on using it for a long time, a stable operation for a long time can be easily performed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a demolding oxygen enricher using a selective oxygen permeable membrane in which oxygen is more permeable than nitrogen.

More specifically, the present invention provides an improved oxygen enricher that can stably discharge excess water vapor enriched with oxygen through such a membrane over a long period of time.

[Prior Art] In recent years, oxygen enrichers have become popular in hospitals and home medical care for people who have decreased lung function due to high altitude and patients with after-effects such as pulmonary tuberculosis. One type of oxygen enricher is a demolding oxygen enricher.

Conventionally, the condensate generated from an oxygen enricher not only evaporates and disappears, but also actively utilizes the heat of evaporation.
In order to help condense excess moisture in the oxygen-enriched air, the outer surface of the oxygen-enriched air cooling means is covered with gauze, etc. that allows water to easily permeate, and the gauze is used to absorb condensate generated in the oxygen-enriched air. It was designed to direct, infiltrate, and allow external intake air to flow over the gauze surface to evaporate the water, while at the same time using the heat of vaporization to further promote the condensation of the water in the cooling means, but with long-term use. It has been observed that gauze becomes contaminated with oil, dirt, and dust from the air taken in from the outside, reducing its ability to penetrate water and, in turn, reducing the cooling ability of the cooling means.

In addition, if the cooling effect decreases, the removal of excess moisture in the oxygen-enriched air becomes insufficient, and the water vapor remaining in the oxygen-enriched air condenses into water droplets on the downstream side of the conduit used. This can easily reach the patient's nostrils and cause discomfort.

[Object of the Invention] The object of the present invention is to solve the problems in the conventional demolding oxygen enricher. That is, the present invention condenses moisture in the oxygen-enriched air during the process of making mold oxygen-enriched air and converts it into a drain, and after the drain process, the water retention function of the outer surface of the cooling means is prevented through four rules, especially in winter. The objective is to maintain the condensation draining function over time and to ensure stable operation of the enricher so as not to occur.

[Structure of the Invention] As a result of various studies aimed at achieving the above object, the present inventor has found that a specific structure can be adopted as a water retention function member provided on the outer surface of the cooling means for oxygen-enriched air. We have found that this is effective and have arrived at the present invention.

That is, the present invention provides a module containing a large number of arrays of elements using selective oxygen permeable membranes, a vacuum pump means for reducing the pressure inside the elements of the module and extracting oxygen-enriched air, and the module. an oxygen enricher having fan means for producing a flow of atmospheric air outside the element of the module, and conduit means for making available oxygen-enriched air removed from the module, the conduit having a A means for cooling the oxygen-enriched air for condensing excess water vapor contained in the oxygen-enriched air and a water separation means for separating and discharging the condensed water, the cooling means being connected to the atmospheric flow. A water retention function is provided by attaching and fixing solid particles in multiple layers to the outer surface of the water separation means, and the water discharge conduit in the water separation means carries out the water to the water retention function. The present invention provides an oxygen enricher characterized in that the oxygen enricher is adapted to be guided to the upper part of the body.

The present invention will be explained in detail below using the drawings. FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the oxygen enricher according to the present invention. That is, in the figure, a membrane element 1 is equipped with an oxygen selectively permeable membrane, and the shape of the membrane may be any of a flat plate type, a tube wall type, a hollow fiber type, etc. For example, by reducing the pressure inside the membrane element using an electric pump means 10 such as a vacuum pump, enriched air with an increased oxygen concentration is obtained through the collection pipe 2 through the membrane, and the pump After passing through the means, cooling means 12 having a water retention function section 11 and water separation means 1
3. After passing through a pressurizing means 14 such as an orifice, a flow rate adjusting means 15, and a flow rate measuring means 16, it is used as enriched air A. On the other hand, atmospheric air C is drawn into the device via a filter by fan means 18 and cooled by cooling means 12;
After sequentially passing through the membrane element 1 and pump means 10,
It is discharged outside the device. Further, the water separated by the water separation means 13 is supplied to the water retention function section 11 by passing through the water discharge means 17, which is filled with fiber bundles to generate pressure loss, for example, and is supplied to the water retention function section 11. water is atmosphere air C
The water that could not be evaporated is collected by the receiver 3. A portion of the water accumulated in the receiver 3 may be allowed to evaporate there through passage of the atmospheric air C.

In the oxygen enricher of the present invention, for example, the water in the receiver 3 is made to pass through the inside of the conduit 4 by gravity or the like, and the receiver 5 or the receiver 5 is equipped with the water in the receiver 3 by capillary action. supplying water to the water retaining means itself capable of drawing up and retaining the water, and causing water to evaporate from the water retaining means by passing air warmed by the exhaust heat of the motorized pump means over the surface of at least a portion of the water retaining means; Preferably.

A feature of the present invention is that the moisture retention function part 11 is prevented from becoming contaminated with oil, dust, etc. in the atmospheric air C over time, and thereby preventing its moisture retention function from deteriorating.

That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cooling means 12
It is characterized in that small pieces of solid particles, such as inexpensively available sand 11, are adhered in multiple layers to the outer surface using an adhesive 19 while maintaining porosity. By doing this, water was retained in the gaps inside the laminate, and oil, dirt, and dust adhered to the outer surface of the laminate, making it difficult for dirt to penetrate into the interior, and preventing a drop in water retention ability. It is preferable that the small pieces have an affinity for water. Such small pieces may be other than sand, and metal particles are preferred because they have even better thermal conductivity. In this case, the adhesive 19 is preferably metal cement or the like.

The cooling means in the oxygen enricher of the present invention is placed in the atmospheric flow produced by the fan means 18, as illustrated in FIG. 1, to promote evaporation of the water held in the water holding feature. is preferable, and it may be before passing through the membrane element as shown in FIG. 1, or after passing through the membrane element. In addition, as for the shape of the cooling means, a corrugated pipe type is preferable because it is easy to manufacture and compact, and the thickness of the water retaining function portion formed on the outer surface of the cooling means such as the corrugated tube is usually 2 to 5 mm.
degree is preferred. The size of the solid particles, that is, the small pieces for forming the Gagaro water retention function part is not particularly limited, but usually has an equivalent diameter of about 0.3 to 0.6 mm (i.e., the diameter when equivalent to a sphere). It is preferable to have the same shape, and the shape may be curved. In particular, when a coiled tube-type cooling means is used, for convenience of manufacturing, solid particles are applied to the outer surface of the tube after forming the tube.
It is practical to form multiple layers by repeating the layer-by-layer deposition process multiple times.

Conventional moisture retention methods were carried out by inserting tubular knitted gauze, etc., but due to the construction, only one layer of cooling means 12
could not be covered.

In the oxygen enricher of the present invention, appropriate granular materials can be easily laminated in many layers, and moisture retention is maintained even over long-term use of the oxygen enricher, making it possible to prevent performance deterioration. .

[Effects of the Invention] The oxygen enricher of the present invention can easily maintain the water retention function properly on the outer surface side of the cooling means during long-term use.
Since an appropriate cooling effect can be ensured, stable long-term operation can be easily achieved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a preferred embodiment of the oxygen enricher according to the present invention. FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of the cooling function section in the cooling means of the oxygen enricher of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a preferred embodiment of the cooling means in the oxygen enricher of the present invention. Figure fFigure 2

Claims (1)

[Claims] A module containing a large array of elements using selective oxygen permeable membranes, a vacuum pump means for reducing the pressure inside the elements of the module and extracting oxygen-enriched air, and a vacuum pump means for reducing the pressure inside the elements of the module and extracting oxygen-enriched air; An oxygen enricher having fan means for producing a flow of atmospheric air and conduit means for making available the oxygen-enriched air removed from the module, the conduit having an intermediate portion of the oxygen-enriched air. A means for cooling the oxygen-enriched air to condense water vapor contained in excess of the air and a water separation means for separating and discharging the condensed water are provided, and the cooling means is placed in the flow of the atmosphere. A moisture retaining function section is provided by adhering and fixing solid particles in multiple layers to the outer surface of the cage, and a water discharge conduit in the water separation means guides the discharged moisture to the moisture retaining function section. An oxygen enricher characterized by: