Electrode activation method for electrochemical water softening apparatus and system thereof

Abstract

The application discloses an electrode activation method and system for an electrochemical water softening device, wherein the method comprises the following steps: submerging a cathode and an anode of the electrochemical water softening device in water; connecting the cathode with a positive electrode of a power supply, connecting the anode with a negative electrode of the power supply, and performing first power-on treatment on the cathode and the anode; connecting the cathode with the negative electrode of the power supply, connecting the anode with the positive electrode of the power supply, and performing second power-on treatment on the reversely connected cathode and anode. The technical scheme of the application has good activation effect, is simple to operate, does not need to add chemical reagents, and is friendly to the environment and human health.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of electrochemical water softening technology, and more particularly to an electrode activation method and system for electrochemical water softening equipment. Background Technology

[0002] Electrochemical scale inhibition technology utilizes the increase in pH value near the cathode during water electrolysis to promote the growth of calcium in the raw water. 2+ / Mg 2+ Sedimentation is used to soften water. This is because industrial water (including water from heat exchangers and boilers) contains calcium... 2+ / Mg 2+ For high concentrations, scale inhibition devices based on electrochemical scale inhibition technology have been commercially matured and applied in various scenarios. Stainless steel is inexpensive, highly corrosion-resistant in tap water, and stable under negative voltage, making it an ideal electrode material for household electrochemical water softening equipment.

[0003] However, stainless steel surfaces shipped directly from the factory have a passivation layer and oil stains, reducing the efficiency of electrochemical scale inhibition reactions. Existing technologies use chemical activation methods or combined chemical-electrochemical activation methods to etch the electrode surface to improve the upper limit of the long-term electrochemical performance of stainless steel electrodes. However, these methods are complex and use hazardous raw materials. The wastewater discharged using these activation methods contains strong acids or alkalis such as hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, sulfuric acid, sodium hydroxide, and potassium hydroxide. If discharged without treatment, it will cause acidification or alkalization of water bodies, hindering the development or even killing beneficial aquatic microorganisms, fish, or amphibians. If this polluted water is used for agricultural irrigation, it will cause problems with crop growth and development. Simultaneously, acidified soil will cause an imbalance in the calcium cycle, interfering with normal photosynthesis in plants. Excessively acidified water can also release heavy metal ions from sludge, pipes, or soil into the water, leading to the accumulation of heavy metals in the food chain. Furthermore, existing technologies not only require users to have professional physicochemical knowledge, but contact with the chemical reagents used in these technologies can also harm human health. Therefore, from multiple perspectives, the existing methods for activating stainless steel electrodes are not suitable for household appliances. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The main objective of this invention is to provide an electrode activation method and system for electrochemical water softening equipment, in order to solve the problems of complex and impractical processes in existing chemical activation methods or chemical-electrochemical combined activation methods.

[0005] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an electrode activation method for an electrochemical water softening device is proposed, comprising: immersing the cathode and anode of the electrochemical water softening device in water; connecting the cathode to the positive terminal of a power source and the anode to the negative terminal of a power source, and performing a first energizing treatment on the cathode and the anode; connecting the cathode to the negative terminal of a power source and the anode to the positive terminal of a power source, and performing a second energizing treatment on the reverse-connected cathode and the anode.

[0006] The voltage for the first power-on process is the same as the voltage for the second power-on process, which is 15V-60V.

[0007] The second power-on process takes 60 minutes.

[0008] The cathode is made of stainless steel.

[0009] The method further includes rinsing the cathode and the anode respectively after the first and second power-on processes.

[0010] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an electrode activation system for an electrochemical water softening device is also provided. The electrochemical water softening device includes a cathode and an anode immersed in water. The electrode activation system includes a first energizing module for connecting the cathode to the positive terminal of a power source and the anode to the negative terminal of a power source, thereby performing a first energizing treatment on the cathode and the anode. A second energizing module is used for connecting the cathode to the negative terminal of a power source and the anode to the positive terminal of a power source, thereby performing a second energizing treatment on the reverse-connected cathode and the anode.

[0011] The voltage for the first power-on process is the same as the voltage for the second power-on process, which is 15V-60V.

[0012] The second power-on process takes 60 minutes.

[0013] The cathode is made of stainless steel.

[0014] The electrode activation system further includes a rinsing module for rinsing the cathode and the anode after the first and second power-on processes, respectively.

[0015] According to the technical solution of the present invention, by immersing the cathode and anode in water, connecting the cathode to the positive terminal of a power source and the anode to the negative terminal of the power source for a first energizing treatment, and then connecting the cathode to the negative terminal of the power source and the anode to the positive terminal of the power source for a second energizing treatment, the inert surface of the cathode in the electrochemical water softening device is removed, thereby exposing the electrochemical active sites of the cathode and improving the water softening and scale inhibition performance of the cathode. The technical solution of the present invention has good activation effect, is easy to operate, requires no external chemical reagents, and is environmentally friendly and human health friendly. Attached Figure Description

[0016] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and form part of this application, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the invention and, together with their description, serve to explain the invention and do not constitute an undue limitation thereof. In the drawings:

[0017] Figure 1 This is a flowchart of an electrode activation method for an electrochemical water softening device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the effect of different electrode activation methods on the performance of cathode soft water according to embodiments of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the effect of different voltages on the performance of cathode soft water according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the effect of different types of stainless steel electrodes on the soft water performance according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0021] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this invention clearer, the technical solutions of this invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with specific embodiments and corresponding drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this invention, and not all of them. Based on the embodiments of this invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this invention.

[0022] Although the present invention specification may include various different embodiments, it should be understood that, with regard to some preferred embodiments described in detail in the specification and shown in the accompanying drawings, the contents disclosed in the present invention specification should be regarded as illustrative of the principles of the invention, and the embodiments shown are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0023] The technical solutions provided by the various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] In view of the numerous problems existing in the prior art, such as the complexity of chemical activation methods or chemical-electrochemical combined activation methods, their lack of operability, damage to the aquatic environment, or harm to human health, this invention provides an electrode activation method for an electrochemical water softening device. The electrochemical water softening device refers to a device based on electrochemical scale inhibition technology; this type of device is also called an electrochemical scale inhibition reaction device, electrochemical scale inhibition device, etc., and is commonly used for household water softening. Simply put, the electrochemical water softening device includes multiple scale inhibition units, each of which has a cathode and an anode.

[0025] This application utilizes in-situ reversal activation technology to activate the electrodes of household electrochemical water softening equipment, referencing... Figure 1 The method according to an embodiment of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0026] Step S102: Immerse the cathode and anode of the electrochemical water softening device in water.

[0027] In this embodiment of the invention, the electrochemical water softening device includes a cathode and an anode. Water is introduced into the electrochemical water softening device at a certain flow rate through the inlet connector, immersing the cathode and anode in the device. The cathode material in this invention can be stainless steel, and the anode can be a Ti-based coated electrode. To further improve operability for household users, municipal tap water can be used as the water introduced into the electrochemical water softening device.

[0028] Step S104: Connect the cathode to the positive terminal of the power supply and the anode to the negative terminal of the power supply, and perform the first power-on process on the cathode and the anode.

[0029] In this step, the cathode can be connected to the positive terminal of the DC power supply via a signal pin or wire extending from the electrochemical scale inhibition reactor, and the anode can be connected to the negative terminal of the DC power supply via a signal pin or wire extending from the reactor. The voltage of the DC power supply is adjusted (e.g., between 15V and 60V) to perform the first energizing treatment on the cathode and anode. Preferably, the voltage for the first energizing treatment is 60V. After energizing for a certain period, the energizing is stopped, and then the influent flow rate of the electrochemical water softening equipment is increased to flush the cathode and anode.

[0030] Step S106: Connect the cathode to the negative terminal of the power supply and the anode to the positive terminal of the power supply, and perform a second power-on process on the reverse-connected cathode and anode.

[0031] In this step, the cathode and anode are reversed via an electronic control program. For example, a signal plate or wire extending from the cathode of the reaction device is connected to the negative terminal of the power supply, and a signal plate or wire extending from the anode of the reaction device is connected to the positive terminal of the power supply. This achieves in-situ reversal activation of the electrodes without changing the positions of the cathode and anode. The voltage of the DC flow control power supply is then adjusted (e.g., between 15V and 60V) to perform a second energizing treatment on the cathode and anode. Preferably, the voltage for the second energizing treatment can also be 60V. After energizing for 60 minutes, the energizing is stopped. Then, the influent flow rate of the electrochemical water softening equipment is increased to flush the cathode and anode. After flushing, the activation treatment of the cathode is completed.

[0032] This application uses in-situ reversal activation technology to activate the electrodes of household electrochemical water softening equipment, without using any chemical reagents during the activation process.

[0033] To compare the effects of different activation methods and changes in the activation process on the performance of the cathode soft water, the in-situ reversal activation method of this application is compared with the following three schemes, specifically:

[0034] Compared to Option 1: Skip the first power-on process, perform only the second power-on process, and shorten the power-on time to 5 minutes.

[0035] Compare with Option 2: Skip the first power-on process, perform only the second power-on process, and maintain the power-on time for 60 minutes.

[0036] Comparison Scheme 3: Chemical Etching. The cathode is completely immersed in a hydrochloric acid solution and ultrasonically cleaned in an ultrasonic cleaner. After cleaning, it is rinsed thoroughly with purified water and dried at room temperature. Simultaneously, a chemical etching solution containing sodium hydroxide and ammonium persulfate is prepared. The cathode is immersed in this chemical etching solution for 24 hours. After immersion, the etched cathode is removed from the etching solution and rinsed with purified water.

[0037] The softening performance of cathodes activated by in-situ reversal, cathodes activated by control schemes 1-3, and unactivated cathodes was compared. Specifically, cathodes activated by in-situ reversal, cathodes activated by control schemes 1-3, and unactivated cathodes were installed in different electrochemical water softening devices. A certain flow rate of water was introduced into the electrochemical scale inhibitor through the inlet and maintained at this flow rate. The cathode in the device was connected to the negative terminal of the power supply through a signal plate or wire, and the anode in the device was connected to the positive terminal of the power supply through a signal plate. A certain voltage was applied to the device, and water samples were taken at the outlet of the electrochemical water softening device at intervals of 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, and 60 minutes. The hardness value (calculated as CaCO3) of the water samples was determined according to the method of GB / T5750-2006. At the same time, the hardness value of tap water that was not softened by the electrochemical water softening device was also determined. The hardness removal rate of different water samples was calculated based on the above hardness values.

[0038] like Figure 2 As shown, the hardness removal rate of the cathode activated by control scheme 3 (chemical etching) decreased significantly compared to other schemes, only reaching a relatively considerable hardness removal rate after 30 minutes. This indicates that the chemical etching method is not suitable for activating stainless steel cathodes intended for scale inhibition. The hardness removal rate of the cathode activated by control scheme 1 was approximately 5-7% higher than that of the unactivated cathode within 0-15 minutes. However, as the softening time increased, the hardness removal rate of the cathode activated by control scheme 1 began to decline, even falling below that of the unactivated cathode at 45 minutes. This indicates that the activation time of the cathode needs to be extended to significantly improve its softening performance. Accordingly, control scheme 2 extended the second power-on treatment time to 60 minutes. The hardness removal rate of the cathode activated by control scheme 2 showed a significant improvement at all time points; however, its hardness removal rate began to decline after 30 minutes. This suggests that applying voltage to the cathode may have a negative impact on the stability of its softening performance, requiring methods to consolidate the electrode's stability. Accordingly, by reversing the power supply and electrodes before the second power-on treatment of the cathode, the hardness removal rate of the cathode undergoing in-situ reversal activation was only slightly lower than that of the cathode activated through control scheme 2 within the first 0-30 minutes. At 30 minutes, the hardness removal rate of the cathode undergoing in-situ reversal activation exceeded that of the cathode activated through control scheme 2. Furthermore, during the subsequent softening process, the hardness removal rate of the cathode undergoing in-situ reversal activation reached the highest value compared to other control schemes. These data indicate that reversal activation treatment of the cathode can significantly improve both its short-term and long-term softening performance.

[0039] To further investigate the effect of energizing voltage on the softening performance of cathodes undergoing in-situ reversal activation, the voltage of the first energizing treatment in the in-situ reversal activation step was set to 15V, 30V, 45V, and 60V, respectively, thus obtaining cathodes with different activation effects. These cathodes were then installed in different electrochemical water softening devices, and their hardness removal rates were tested and calculated using the same method. Figure 3 As shown, with the increase of voltage, the corrosion ability of the in-situ reversal activation method on the inert surface of the cathode gradually increases, thereby gradually increasing the hardness removal rate of the cathode. That is, the soft water performance of the cathode improves with the increase of the energizing voltage.

[0040] Furthermore, to explore the applicability of the in-situ reverse polarity activation method to different types of stainless steel, embodiments of this invention installed unactivated stainless steel of different types and stainless steel of different types undergoing in-situ reverse polarity activation in different electrochemical water softening devices to calculate their hardness removal rates. The different types of stainless steel included: 316 stainless steel, 201 stainless steel, 316L stainless steel, 304 stainless steel, and 310S stainless steel. Figure 4 As shown, the light-colored reference column (left) represents the hardness removal rate of unactivated stainless steel, while the dark-colored reference column (right) represents the hardness removal rate of stainless steel that has undergone in-situ reversal activation. The soft water performance of stainless steel that has undergone in-situ reversal activation is better than that of unactivated stainless steel. This demonstrates that the in-situ reversal activation method has a certain degree of versatility for different types of stainless steel electrodes. Furthermore, the soft water performance of stainless steel treated with in-situ reversal activation increases with the increase of its chromium content.

[0041] According to embodiments of the present invention, an electrode activation system for an electrochemical water softening device is also provided. The electrochemical water softening device may include multiple scale inhibition units, each having a cathode and an anode. Water is circulated through the electrochemical water softening device, immersing the cathode and anode in the water.

[0042] An electrode activation system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a first power-on processing module for connecting the cathode to the positive terminal of a power supply and the anode to the negative terminal of a power supply, and performing a first power-on processing on the cathode and the anode; and a second power-on processing module for connecting the cathode to the negative terminal of a power supply and the anode to the positive terminal of a power supply, and performing a second power-on processing on the reverse-connected cathode and the anode.

[0043] The electrode activation system further includes a rinsing module for rinsing the cathode and the anode after the first and second power-on processes, respectively.

[0044] The voltage for the first power-on process is the same as the voltage for the second power-on process, which is 15V-60V.

[0045] The second power-on process takes 60 minutes.

[0046] The cathode is made of stainless steel.

[0047] The structural features of the system and the operational steps of the method of the present invention correspond to each other and can be referred to each other, so they will not be described in detail here.

[0048] In summary, according to the above embodiments of this application, the in-situ reverse polarity activation technology for cathode softening has a good activation effect, can be directly carried out in electrochemical water softening equipment, is easy to operate, requires no additional operating equipment or space, and does not require the addition of additional chemical reagents. It is not only environmentally friendly and human health-friendly, but also operable for household users. The short-term and long-term softening performance of the cathode activated by the in-situ reverse polarity activation method in the embodiments of this application are significantly improved.

[0049] Although this disclosure has been described in detail with reference to specific embodiments thereof, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments. Therefore, this disclosure is intended to cover modifications and variations thereof, and any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this invention should be included within the scope of the claims of this disclosure and their equivalents.

[0050] Furthermore, features disclosed in the foregoing description, claims, or drawings, expressed in their particular form or according to the manner of performing the disclosed functions or the method or process for obtaining the disclosed results, may, as appropriate, be used alone or in any combination of these features to implement the invention in their different forms. Specifically, one or more features of any embodiment described herein may be combined with one or more features of any other embodiment described herein.

[0051] Protection may also be sought for any features disclosed in any one or more public documents combined with this disclosure and / or merged by reference.

Claims

1. A method for electrode activation in an electrochemical water softening device, characterized in that, include: The cathode and anode of the electrochemical water softening equipment are immersed in water, wherein the cathode is made of stainless steel and the anode is made of a Ti-based coating. The cathode is connected to the positive terminal of the power supply, and the anode is connected to the negative terminal of the power supply. The cathode and the anode are then energized for the first time. The cathode is connected to the negative terminal of the power supply, and the anode is connected to the positive terminal of the power supply. The cathode and anode are then subjected to a second power-on process after being reversed. The voltage for the first power-on process is the same as the voltage for the second power-on process, which is 15V-60V; the duration of the second power-on process is 60 minutes.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, After the first and second power-on processes, the method further includes rinsing the cathode and the anode, respectively.

3. An electrode activation system for an electrochemical water softening device, operating as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The electrochemical water softening equipment includes a cathode and an anode immersed in water, wherein the cathode is made of stainless steel and the anode is made of a Ti-based coating. The electrode activation system includes: The first power-on module is used to connect the cathode to the positive terminal of the power supply and the anode to the negative terminal of the power supply, and to perform the first power-on process on the cathode and the anode; The first power-on module is used to connect the cathode to the negative terminal of the power supply and the anode to the positive terminal of the power supply, and to perform a second power-on process on the reversed cathode and anode.

4. The system according to claim 3, characterized in that, The voltage for the first power-on process is the same as the voltage for the second power-on process, which is 15V-60V.

5. The system according to claim 3, characterized in that, The second power-on process takes 60 minutes.

6. The system according to claim 3, characterized in that, The electrode activation system further includes a rinsing module for rinsing the cathode and the anode respectively after the first power-on treatment and the second power-on treatment.

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