JPH0467145A - Drying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten drying time and to reduce energy consumption as well as to miniaturize the device by constituting the drying device of plural drying sections in such a manner that drying conditions can be set by each drying section. CONSTITUTION:This drying device has the 1st drying section 103 which executes constant rate drying and the 2nd drying section 105 which executes reduced rate drying. The setting of the drying conditions, such as temp., humidity and flow rate (flow velocity) of drying gas, can be set at optimum conditions by each drying section. The drying conditions are so set that the drying is executed with the air of relatively a high temp. and low humidity particularly in the 1st drying section 103 and that the drying is executed with the air of a relatively low temp. in the 2nd drying section 105. The drying efficiency is improved in this way and particularly the drying time is shortened. In addition, the energy consumption is reduced and the miniaturization of the device and the simplification of the construction are attained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION <Industrial Application Field> The present invention relates to silver halide photosensitive materials (hereinafter referred to as
This invention relates to a drying device for drying photosensitive materials (simply referred to as photosensitive materials).

<Prior Art> Examples of photosensitive material processing apparatuses that perform wet processing include automatic processors (for color paper, color negatives, etc.), silver halide photocopiers, and the like.

An automatic processor sequentially develops, bleaches, fixes, washes, and stabilizes photographed photosensitive material (for example, color negative film) in a processing section, then dries the photosensitive material in a drying section to produce a negative image or positive image. It is something that gives you an image.

In addition, in a silver halide photocopier, a photosensitive material (for example, a sheet of color paper) connected to a paper feed section is sent to an exposure section for exposure, and the exposed photosensitive material is sent to a processing section for development and development.
Bleaching, fixing, and washing are sequentially performed, and the photosensitive material is dried in a drying section to obtain a copy of the original image.

The drying device installed in the drying section of such a photosensitive material processing apparatus includes a duct that surrounds the transport path of the photosensitive material, a fan and a heater for supplying warm air into the duct, and the duct In this method, hot air is blown onto the wet photosensitive material being transported inside to dry it.

However, in such conventional drying equipment, because the volume of the internal space of the duct is large, even though a large amount of hot air is supplied, the hot air actually hits the surface of the photosensitive material and contributes to the removal of moisture. The disadvantage is that the amount is small and therefore the drying time is long.

Particularly in wet-type copying machines and automatic processors, the long drying time is a major obstacle to shortening the overall processing time.

In addition, since a large amount of air is heated, energy consumption is large, and a large amount of heat is emitted to the outside, which adversely affects the environment in which the equipment is installed, such as an increase in temperature and humidity. Another drawback is that it takes time to preheat.

Note that because the preheating time is long, it is not possible to turn the drying device on and off each time the photosensitive material is processed, and the drying device must be kept running regardless of whether the photosensitive material is being processed or not. This also led to an increase in energy consumption.

Furthermore, the conventional drying apparatus has the following drawbacks regarding the emulsion layer of the photosensitive material.

In conventional drying devices, about 70 to 95% of the hot air that is supplied into the duct and contributes to drying is recovered and supplied into the duct again. Therefore, when a large amount of photosensitive material is continuously dried, it is dried with high-temperature hot air (the drying temperature is increased because it will not be dried unless the relative temperature is lowered), and the reticule is formed on the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material. The disadvantage is that film quality defects such as cracks occur.

Conversely, if the drying temperature is lowered to prevent the drying gas from becoming too hot, when a large amount of photosensitive material is continuously dried,
Initially, the drying is good, but gradually the drying becomes poor.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> The purpose of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, to achieve good drying efficiency, particularly short drying time, and to consume less energy (and to reduce the size of the device). The purpose is to provide a drying device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a drying apparatus that can prevent film quality defects such as reticulation from occurring on the emulsion surface of a light-sensitive material.

Means for Solving the Problems> Such objects are achieved by the present invention described in (1) and (2) below.

(1) A drying apparatus for a silver halide photosensitive material, comprising a housing having a slit-like interior space and a means for supplying drying gas to the interior space of the housing, the drying apparatus as described above. A drying device comprising a plurality of drying sections, wherein drying conditions can be set for each drying section.

(2) The drying device according to (1) above, wherein the drying section includes a first drying section that mainly performs constant rate drying and a second drying section that mainly performs lapse rate drying.

In the present invention having such a configuration, the internal space of the housing through which the photosensitive material passes is formed into a slit shape with a thin thickness in the direction of the thickness of the photosensitive material, thereby significantly reducing its volume and reducing the size of the housing. A large amount of drying gas can be flowed at high speed, resulting in drying in a short time with a short conveyance path, reducing energy consumption for heating, preventing negative effects on the indoor environment, and downsizing the device. You can also plan.

The drying device of the present invention has a plurality of drying sections, in particular, a first drying section that performs constant rate drying and a second drying section that performs decreasing rate drying, and the temperature of the drying gas for each drying section is , humidity,
Drying conditions such as air volume (flow speed) can be set to optimal conditions. In particular, it is preferable to set the first drying section to dry with relatively high-temperature, low-humidity air, and the second drying section to dry with relatively low-temperature air.This improves drying efficiency and reduces drying time. It is possible to further shorten the time period, and to prevent film quality defects such as reticulation from occurring on the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material.

<Embodiments> Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the drying apparatus of the present invention shown in the accompanying drawings will be described in detail.

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are longitudinal sectional views each schematically showing an example of the structure of a drying apparatus of the present invention. It should be noted that members in the middle of each figure are indicated by the same reference numerals, and descriptions of similar items will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 1, the drying device 1a of the present invention has a box-shaped housing 2 with a rectangular cross section.
An inlet 4 for the photosensitive material 8 is formed at the left end in the figure, and an outlet 5 for the photosensitive material 8 is formed at the right end in the figure. In this specification, the entrance 4 side is referred to as the "front" and the exit 5 side is referred to as the "rear".
It will be explained as follows.

The housing 2 has an internal space 3 penetrating from an inlet 4 to an outlet 5.
is formed, and this internal space 3 has a slit shape with a thin thickness T in the thickness direction (vertical direction in the figure) of the photosensitive material S passing through. That is, the cross section of the internal space 3 has a slit shape. The dimensions of this internal space 3 will be detailed later. In the illustrated example, the internal space 3 has a flat shape, but in the present invention, the internal space 3 may have an appropriately curved shape as long as the passage of the photosensitive material S is not hindered.

Pairs of rollers 30, 31 and 32 for pinching and conveying the photosensitive material S are installed near the entrance 4 of the casing 2, in the middle of the casing 2, and near the exit 5 of the casing 2, respectively.

A first drying section 103 is formed on the front side of the center roller pair 31, and a second drying section 105 is formed on the rear side.

The first drying section 103 and the second drying section 105 are supplied with a drying gas (hereinafter referred to as air) as a supply means.
Each air circulation system is provided independently.

In the first drying section 103, symmetrical air circulation systems are installed on the surface (emulsion surface) SA side and the back surface Sll side of the photosensitive material S, respectively. This circulation system has a duct 6a.

Further, near the entrance 4 of the housing 2, a pair of nozzles 8a are installed on the front surface SA side and the back surface S side of the photosensitive material S, respectively, and communicate with the internal space 3. Slit-shaped blowout openings are formed at the tips of these nozzles 8a, and the front end of the duct 6a is connected to the base end of the nozzles 8a.

Note that the nozzle 8a is installed with its tip inclined toward the rear at an angle of inclination that will be described later.

In addition, a pair of collection lowers a is located near the roller pair 31 of the housing 2.
are provided, and the rear end of the duct 6a is connected to these recovery lowers a.

A propeller-type fan 9a is installed in a part of the duct 6a where the internal space is expanded. Furthermore, a heater 10a is installed in the duct 6a in front of the fan 9a.

Further, the fan 9a is provided with a controller lla that can adjust the amount of air blown by the fan 9a.

Further, the heater 10a is equipped with a controller 12a that can adjust the amount of heat generated by the heater 10a.

These controllers lla and 12a cause the first
Drying conditions in the drying section 103 are determined. The drying conditions will be explained later.

In addition, in order to make it easier to introduce the photosensitive material S into the entrance 4 of the housing 2, there are provided on the front surface SA side and the back surface SB side of the photosensitive material.
An inclined surface 4a is formed in which the gap distance gradually decreases toward the rear, and at the tip of the inclined surface 4a there is a groove for preventing the air ejected from the nozzle 8a from flowing backwards and exiting from the inlet 4. In contrast, a stepped portion) is formed.

In this configuration example, the front side SA side and the back side SB of the photosensitive material S are
By supplying air from each side, the internal space 3
Air currents are formed between the front surface SA and the inner wall 2A of the photosensitive material S passing through, and between the back surface S8 and the inner wall 2B. It can be prevented. When considering prevention of adhesion of the photosensitive material S, the shapes and installation angles a of the nozzles 8a installed on the front and back sides of the photosensitive material S are made symmetrical in order to maintain the balance of air flow. Preferably, the amounts supplied are also equal.

Also, in the second drying section 105, the first drying section 1
A circulation system similar to 03, that is, a duct 6b, a collection lower b, a nozzle 8b, a fan 9b, a heater 10b, and controllers 11b and 12b are installed.

Note that a slit-shaped opening 13 through which the photosensitive material S passes is formed in front of the outlet 5.

This opening 13 has a convergent shape so that the photosensitive material S can easily pass therethrough and there is little air leakage.

The structures of the drying gas supply means in the first drying section 103 and the second drying section 105 are not limited to those shown in the drawings. For example, a dehumidifier 15, which will be described later, may be installed in the middle of the ducts 6a and 6b. Moreover, the structure is not limited to one in which air is circulated, but may be one in which all or part of the air used for drying is exhausted to the outside.

The constituent material of the housing 2 is not particularly limited, but it is preferable to use a heat-resistant material, preferably a heat-insulating material. As a specific example, the housing 2 may be made of various ceramics such as alumina, zirconia, asbestos, or glass wool, or metal such as stainless steel, aluminum, hasteronite titanium, copper, or a copper-based alloy; Examples include cases in which a heat insulating material such as asbestos, felt, aluminum foil, or glass wool is bonded to the outer wall of the housing.

The total length of the housing 2 is not particularly limited, and is determined as appropriate depending on the conveyance speed of the photosensitive material S and the drying conditions described below.
About 100 to 1000111111, especially 150 to 60
It is preferable to set it to about 0 mm.

Further, the length of the housing 2 in the first drying section 103 is 50 mm.
The length of the housing 2 in the second drying section 105 is preferably about 50 to 500 mm, especially about 70 to 300 mm.

The thickness T of the internal space 3 of the housing 2 is 3 times the thickness of the photosensitive material S.
It is preferably about 1000 times, particularly about 5 to 100 times, and more preferably about 10 to 30 times.

If the thickness is less than 3 times the thickness of the photosensitive material S, troubles such as adhesion accidents and scratches on the photosensitive material S are likely to occur during drying (and if it exceeds 1000 times, the volume of the internal space 3 will increase, This is because depending on the drying conditions, the effects of the present invention may not be fully exhibited.

Note that the thickness T of the internal space 3 may gradually increase or decrease from the front to the rear, that is, the internal space 3 may be tapered.

This allows the flow velocity of air in the longitudinal direction of the internal space 3 to be varied. For example, if the air flow velocity in the first half of drying is high (T gradually increases toward the rear), the second half of drying will be slow drying, especially for light-sensitive materials with less hardener or thick emulsion layers. It has the effect of preventing film quality deterioration. In the opposite case (T gradually decreases toward the rear), there is a tendency for the drying to turn somewhat rapidly even in the latter half of the drying period, and the drying path (time) is short (which is preferable especially for light-sensitive materials with thin emulsion layers).

Although not shown, as a means for preventing adhesion of photosensitive materials, for example, Japanese Patent Application No. 1983-1983 is applied to the inner walls 2A, 2B of the housing 2.
277678, or the inner wall 2 as a means to prevent the photosensitive material from swinging.
It is possible to provide protrusions, grooves, or other guide members extending in the longitudinal direction of the housing on A and 2B.

The inclination angle α of the nozzles 8a and 8b is preferably about 5 to 60 degrees, particularly about 10 to 45 degrees. α to 5
If α is less than 60°, the size of the housing 2 becomes large, making it difficult to design a compact design.If α exceeds 60°, backflow to the inlet 4 is likely to occur.

The photosensitive material S is transported within the housing 2 in the following manner.

1 if the length of the photosensitive material S is longer than the distance between adjacent roller pairs 30.31 and 31.32 (hereinafter referred to as adjacent roller pairs), and each roller 30.31 and 32
This is done by the rotational force of.

That is, before the rear end (front end) of the photosensitive material S does not come off the roller pair 30, the front end (rear end) of the photosensitive material S is held between the roller pair 31, and the photosensitive material S Before the rear end of the photosensitive material S comes off the roller pair 31, the leading edge of the photosensitive material S is held between the roller pair 32, so that the photosensitive material S
is held in the internal space 3 of the housing by at least one of the pair of rollers 30, 31, 32 and conveyed.

If the length of the photosensitive material S is shorter than the distance between the adjacent roller pairs, after the rear end of the photosensitive material S comes off the front roller pair 30, the photosensitive material S will flow at high speed in the internal space 3. After the leading edge of the photosensitive material S is conveyed backward by the air flow (hereinafter referred to as air conveyance) and reaches the rear pair of rollers 31, it is held and conveyed by the pair of rollers 31, and further between the pair of rollers 31 and 32. Similar transportation is also performed in .

In such a drying device 1a, circulation of air in the first drying section 103 and the second drying section 105 is performed as follows. When the fans 9a and 9b are operated, negative pressure is created in the collection lowers a and 7b, and the air used for drying is transferred to the housing 2 as shown by the arrow in FIG.
It is sucked into the upper and lower recovery lowers a and 7b, respectively, flows through the ducts 6a and 6b, passes through the fan 15, is heated to a predetermined temperature by the heaters 10a and 10b, and is again sucked into the inside of the housing 2 through the nozzles 8a and 8b. It is ejected into the space 3, and the first drying section 103 and the second drying section 10
A high-speed flow is formed toward the rear within each internal space 3 of 5.

In this state, when the wet photosensitive material S, which has been conveyed by the pair of rollers 30, is introduced into the inlet 4 and passed through the internal space 3, it is first subjected to constant rate drying in the first drying section 103. , after passing through the roller pair 31, the second drying section 105
In this process, lapse rate drying is mainly performed.

Thereafter, the photosensitive material S is conveyed while being held between a pair of rollers 32,
It flows out of the housing 2 from the exit 5.

The drying conditions in the first drying section 103 and the second drying section 105 in such a drying apparatus 1a will be explained.

In the first drying section 103, the drying conditions are such that constant rate drying is mainly performed, and in the second drying section 105,
The drying conditions shall be such that mainly lapse rate drying (including temper drying) is performed.

Note that "constant rate drying" refers to a region in the drying curve where the rate of decrease in the water content of the emulsion layer of the photosensitive material S is constant, and "constant rate drying" refers to a region in which the rate of decrease in the moisture content of the emulsion layer of the photosensitive material S decreases, and the moisture content increases. refers to the region until equilibrium is reached.

Also, after the moisture content reaches equilibrium, temper drying is performed.

Specifically, the average flow velocity (linear velocity) of air in the internal space 3 of the first drying section 103 is about 0.3 to 60 m/s,
In particular, it is preferably about 1 to 20 m/s, and the temperature (drying temperature) is about 50 to 150'c, especially 70 to 12 m/s.
The temperature is preferably about 0°C.

In addition, the average flow velocity (linear velocity) of air in the internal space 3 of the second drying section 105 is about 0.1 to 40 m/s, especially about 0.
．． It is preferable to set the speed to about 5 to 10 m/s, and the temperature is relatively low compared to the first drying section 103, that is, about 30 to 10 m/s.
It is preferable to set the temperature to about oO''c, particularly about 40 to 80°C.

By using the drying conditions as described above, the drying efficiency of the photosensitive material S is improved, making it possible to dry in a shorter time, and at the same time, film quality defects such as reticulation and poor gloss occur on the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material. It is also prevented that

Note that such drying conditions include the conveyance speed of the photosensitive material S,
Environmental conditions such as outside air temperature and humidity, the degree of wetness of the photosensitive material S before drying, the layer structure and type of the photosensitive material S (especially the back side S
It is preferable to make a decision by taking into consideration factors such as (presence or absence of gelatin), processing format (continuous processing, small number processing), etc.

FIG. 2 shows another example of the structure of the drying apparatus of the present invention. The drying apparatus 1b shown in the figure has symmetrical drying gas circulation systems on the front surface S1 side and the back surface SB side of the photosensitive material S, respectively.

One ends of ducts 14a and 14b are connected to a collection lower a provided on the rear side of the first drying section 104 and a collection lower b provided on the rear side of the second drying section 106, respectively.

Further, these ducts 14a and 14b join together and are further connected to the intake side of the dehumidifier 15.

This dehumidifier 15 is, for example, one using a normal refrigerant like an air conditioner, one using an electronic cooling element using the Beltier effect (Japanese Patent Application No. 63-221796), or a desiccant such as calcium chloride or silica gel. Various configurations can be used, such as a simple configuration in which a moisture absorbent (moisture absorbent) is placed and air containing warm air is passed through it.

Among these, dehumidifiers using electronic cooling elements are preferred because they are small, have high dehumidifying ability (and consume little power).

Further, it is preferable that the dehumidifier 15 has a variable dehumidifying capacity, and in particular, one that can set the humidity on the exhaust side.

One end of a duct 16 is connected to the exhaust side of the dehumidifier 15, and a propeller-type fan-F is installed in a part of the duct 16 where the internal space is expanded.

Furthermore, the duct 16 is extended forward from the fan 17,
It branches into branch ducts 18a and 18b. The front ends of these branch ducts 1.8a and 18b are respectively connected to the base ends of nozzles 8a and 8b similar to those described above.

In the middle of the branch ducts 18a and 18b, respectively,
Vine dampers 19a and 19b are installed to adjust the degree of opening in the branch duct continuously or stepwise.

Further, the fan 17 is provided with a controller 20 that can adjust the amount of air blown by the fan 17 .

Inner walls 2A and 2B of the housing 2 in the first drying section 104
A planar heating element 21a is installed in each of the heating elements 21a.

In addition, planar heating elements 21 and b are also installed on the inner walls 2A and 2B of the housing 2 in the second drying section 106, respectively. These planar heating elements 21a and 21b generate heat when energized, and the air blown into the internal space 3 from the nozzles 8a and 8b and the photosensitive material S passing through the heating elements 21a and 21b respectively generate heat.
to warm up.

Note that the planar heating elements 21a and 21b are provided with controllers 22a and 2, respectively, which can adjust the amount of heat generated.
2b is installed.

Such planar heating elements 21a and 21b include panel heaters with built-in heaters, oil circulation panel heaters,
Examples include planar heating elements containing various conductive fillers, heater elements covered with insulating materials, etc.
Among these, those containing a conductive filler and those in which the heater element is coated with an insulating material (such as an organic material, ceramics, or a mixture thereof) are particularly preferable.

Examples of conductive fillers include organic conductive fillers such as carbon-based materials such as carbon black, graphite, and carbon fibers, metal powders such as iron, aluminum, titanium, and nickel, or titanium dioxide, iron oxide, and oxide. Examples include conductive fillers such as metal oxide powders such as zinc and magnesium oxide.

Specific examples of such planar heating elements include those shown below (1) to (2).

■ Carbon and paper fibers mixed with heat-resistant resin (
(manufactured by Toho Rayon ■, Toho Veslon ■) ■ A mixture of carbon black and heat-resistant resin (
(manufactured by Kaken ■) ■ Inorganic conductive paint (■ rHMc111 manufactured by Himax
■ Product name: NR-ceramic plate heater (manufactured by Nippon Steel) ■ Product name: NR-Fluororesin plate heater (manufactured by Nippon Steel) ■ Product name: Samicon Super 340 (Sakaguchi electric heating) ■Product name: Idemitsu surface heater (manufactured by Idemitsu Kosan ■) ■Teflon tide water type panel heater Product name: Heatflon (manufactured by Two-Tone, Noguchi Seisakusho ■) ■Product name: Thin heater F-1, F -2 (Narasaki Sangyo■
Incidentally, when the sheet heating elements 21a and 21b are of the negative resistor type, as shown in (1) and (2) above, that is, those having a negative resistance temperature coefficient (negative characteristic),
It has the following advantages: In other words, with this type, the current value decreases as the temperature of the sheet heating element increases,
In other words, it produces less heat and has the property of converging to a certain temperature, so the drying temperature can be detected using a thermistor.
Based on this, the drying temperature can be kept constant without controlling the heat generation source by turning it on or off.

Therefore, there is no need to provide a control means or the like for keeping the drying temperature (heat generation amount of the planar heating element) set by the controllers 22a and 22b constant (this contributes to simplifying the structure of the drying device).

Note that the surfaces of such planar heating elements 21a and 21b are as follows:
It is preferable that the surfaces of the planar heating elements 21a and 21b be smooth or have irregularities formed in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the photosensitive material S. Furthermore, it is preferable that the surfaces of the planar heating elements 21a and 21b be as soft as possible. preferable.

In addition, for the purpose of protecting the sheet heating elements 21a, 21b, preventing scratches on the photosensitive material, improving transportability, etc., a coating film is provided on the surface of the sheet heating elements 21a, 21b exposed to the internal space 3. It's okay.

In addition, in the planar heating elements 21a and 21b, the inner wall 2
A difference may be provided in the amount of heat generated (total amount) between the A side and the inner wall 2B side. In this case, in order to improve the drying efficiency, the calorific value of the planar heating elements 2La and 21b on the emulsion side of the photosensitive material S, that is, on the inner wall 2A side, should be increased (for example, by 30 to 300%).
It is preferable to increase the degree of

In this way, the planar heating elements 21 on the inner w2A side and the inner wall 2B side
A method of providing a difference in calorific value between a and 21b is to provide each sheet heating element 21a.

A method of providing a difference in the amount of electricity supplied to 21b, sheet heating element 21
Examples include a method of providing a difference in the installation area or operating area of heating elements 21a and 21b, a method of installing different types of planar heating elements 21a and 21b, or a combination of these methods.

Furthermore, in the illustrated example, the planar heating elements 21a and 21b are installed on the inner walls 2A and 2B of the housing 2, but they may also be installed on the outer wall of the housing 2 (or they may be buried in the wall). good.

In this case, the constituent material of the housing 2 is preferably a material with excellent heat conductivity, such as a metal material (for example, stainless steel, aluminum, copper, or titanium).

In the drying device 1b, the drying conditions in the first drying section 104 and the second drying section 106 include the amount of air blown by the controller 20, the opening degree of the dampers 19a and 19b, and the amount of heat generated by the planar heating elements 21a and 21b by the controllers 22a and 22b. and the dehumidification capacity of the dehumidifier 15.

Note that unlike the illustration in FIG. 2, the dehumidifier 15 may be installed on the rear side of the fan 17, and especially in each branch duct 18a,
, 18b, and a dehumidifier 15 is installed in each nozzle 8b.
It is also possible to set the humidity of the ejected air using a and 8b.

Further, a dehumidifier may be provided only in the branch duct 18a.

In such a drying device 1b, air circulation in the first drying section 104 and the second drying section 106 is performed as follows. When the fan 17 is operated, the pressure inside the collection lowers a and 7b becomes negative, and the air used for drying is sucked into the upper and lower collection lowers a and 7b of the housing 2, respectively, as shown by the arrows in FIG. Duct 14a
and 14b, and then join together and reach the dehumidifier 15. After this air is dehumidified by the dehumidifier 15, it is introduced into the duct 16, passes through the fan 17,
The flow is further divided into branch ducts 18a and 18b, and is ejected into the internal space 3 from the tips of the nozzles 8a and 8b, and is directed rearward at high speed within the internal space 3 of each of the first drying section 104 and the second drying section 106. form a flow.
When this air passes through the internal space 3, the sheet heating element 21
a and 21b.

In this state, when the wet photosensitive material S, which has been conveyed by the pair of rollers 30, is introduced into the population 4 and passed through the internal space 3, it is first subjected to constant rate drying in the first drying section 104. , after passing through the roller pair 31, the second drying section 106
In this process, lapse rate drying is mainly performed.

Thereafter, the photosensitive material S is conveyed while being held between a pair of rollers 32,
Exit the housing 2 from exit 5.

The drying conditions in the first drying section 104 and the second drying section 106 in such a drying apparatus 1b will be explained.

In the first drying section 104, the drying conditions are such that constant rate drying is mainly performed, and in the second drying section 106,
The drying conditions shall be such that mainly lapse rate drying (including temper drying) is performed.

Specifically, the average flow velocity (linear velocity) of air in the internal space 3 of the first drying section 104 is about 0.3 to 60 m/s, particularly 1
It is preferable to set it as about -20 m/s, and it is preferable to set the temperature (drying temperature) as about 50-150 degreeC, especially about 70-120 degreeC.

Further, the average flow velocity (linear velocity) of air in the internal space 3 of the second drying section 106 is about 0.1 to 40 m/s, especially about 0.
．． It is preferable to set the speed to about 5 to 10 m/s, and the temperature is relatively low compared to that of the first drying section 104, that is, about 30 m/s.
The temperature is preferably about 100°C, particularly about 40 to 80°C.

Moreover, the average humidity (relative humidity) of the air in the internal space 3 in the first drying section 104 and the second drying section 106 is 1 to
It is preferably about 80% RH, especially about 40 to 60% RH.

As mentioned above, the first drying section 104 and the second drying section 1
When performing dehumidification independently in each of 06, it is preferable to set the humidity in the first drying section 104 to be lower than the humidity in the second drying section, and the former is set to be lower than the humidity in the second drying section 104.
The latter is preferably about 40% RH, and the latter about 30 to 90% RH.

In this case, it is preferable that the difference (absolute value) between the humidity in the first drying section 104 and the humidity in the second drying section 106 is 20% RH or more, particularly about 30 to 50% RH.

In the drying device 1b, the degree of dehumidification may be different between the front side and the back side of the photosensitive material S. In this case, it is preferable to supply air with lower humidity to the emulsion side of the photosensitive material S.

By using the drying conditions as described above, the drying efficiency of the photosensitive material S is improved, making it possible to dry in a shorter time, and at the same time, film quality defects such as reticulation and poor gloss occur on the emulsion surface of the photosensitive material. It is also prevented that

In the drying apparatuses 1a and 1b having such an air circulation system, the hot air used for drying is reused without being exhausted to the outside, so energy consumption can be reduced and the pressure is released to the outside of the apparatus. Since the amount of heat and water vapor is small, there is no effect on the installation environment (temperature, humidity) of the device.

The type of photosensitive material S to be dried by the drying apparatus of the present invention is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include color negative film, color reversal film, color printing paper, color positive film, color reversal printing paper, photosensitive material for plate making, and X-ray photography. Examples include various photosensitive materials such as photosensitive materials, black and white negative films, black and white photographic paper, and microphotosensitive materials.

Further, the drying device of the present invention can be used alone or incorporated into various photosensitive material processing devices such as an automatic developing machine, a wet color copying machine, a video printer processor, and a color paper processing machine for plate inspection. be able to.

Although the structure of the drying apparatus of the present invention has been described above with reference to several structural examples, the present invention is not limited to these examples. For example, the number of drying sections may be three or more. In this case, each drying section may have any configuration in the drying devices 1a, 1b or a combination of other configurations.

In addition, the drying devices 1a and 1b both dry the photosensitive material S.
The front SA side and the back S8 side each have independent air supply systems (fans, ducts, heaters, dehumidifiers), but are not limited to this. It may be configured such that air is supplied from the air supply system to the nozzles 8a, 8b on the front side and the back side of the photosensitive material.

In addition, the first drying section 103, 104 and the second drying section 10
5. A temperature sensor and a humidity sensor are provided to detect the temperature and humidity in the internal space 3 of the housing 2 or each duct in 106, and based on the detected values by these sensors, the fan 9
a, 9b, 17, heaters 10a, 10b, planar heating element 2
It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the outputs of 1a, 22b and the dehumidifier 15 are automatically controlled. In this case, changes over time in the water content of the emulsion layer of the photosensitive material S are determined by the transport speed of the photosensitive material S, environmental conditions such as outside temperature and humidity, the degree of wetness of the photosensitive material S before drying, and the layer structure of the photosensitive material. , the type (in particular, the presence or absence of gelatin on the back side S), the type of processing (continuous processing, processing of a small number of sheets), etc. Therefore, it is preferable to perform such control because more appropriate drying conditions can be obtained.

<Effects of the Invention> As described above, according to the drying apparatus of the present invention, drying efficiency is high, particularly drying time can be shortened, and energy consumption can be reduced.

In addition, the size of the device can be reduced and the structure can be simplified by making the housing into a groove, reducing the amount of drying gas supplied together (reducing the size of the fan, heat source, etc., omitting the drying temperature control means, etc.).

In addition, the drying smoke conditions, such as the temperature, humidity, and air volume of the drying gas, can be set in each of the plurality of drying sections, making it possible to further shorten the drying time and It is possible to prevent surface reticulation and improve the film quality.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are vertical sectional views each showing an outline of a configuration example of a drying apparatus of the present invention. Description of symbols 1a, lb...Drying device 103.104...First drying section 105.106...Second drying section 2...Housing 2A, 2B...Inner wall 3...Inner space 4 ...Inlet 4a...Slanted surface 5...Outlet 6a, 6b...Duct 7a, 7b...Collection port 8a, 8b...Nozzle 9a, 9b...Fan 10a, 10b=-Heater 11a, llb, 12a, 12b... Controller 13... Openings 14a, 14b... Duct 15... Dehumidifier 16... Pad duct 17... Fans 18a, 18b... Branch duct 19a, 19b...・Damper 20...Controller 21a, 21b...Planar heating elements 22a, 22b...Controller 30.31.32...Roller pair S...Photosensitive material SA...Surface SIl...Back surface

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A drying apparatus for a silver halide photosensitive material, comprising a housing having a slit-like interior space and a means for supplying drying gas to the interior space of the housing, the drying apparatus as described above. A drying device comprising a plurality of drying sections, wherein drying conditions can be set for each drying section. (2) The drying device according to claim 1, wherein the drying section includes a first drying section that mainly performs constant rate drying and a second drying section that mainly performs lapse rate drying.