A reverse osmosis water purifier and method of use thereof

Abstract

The present application relates to a kind of reverse osmosis water purifier and its using method, belong to the technical field of water with reverse osmosis method processing water.This water purifier includes the front filter element, water inlet valve, booster pump and reverse osmosis membrane assembly connected in sequence, the import of front filter element is connected with tap water source, the outlet of front filter element is connected with the import of booster pump by first water pipe and water inlet valve, the outlet of booster pump is connected with the water inlet of reverse osmosis assembly by second water pipe, the concentrated water outlet of reverse osmosis assembly is connected with waste water, the pure water outlet of reverse osmosis membrane assembly is connected with the import of water outlet check valve by first pure water pipe, third pure water pipe is provided on first pure water pipe, shunt check valve and fourth pure water pipe are provided on third pure water pipe, third pure water pipe is connected with airtight small pure water container, control valve is provided on fourth pure water pipe and connected to the import of booster pump.The water purifier uses pure water with pressure to carry out gap backflush to RO membrane of reverse osmosis device, both save pure water, and also prolong the service life of RO membrane, also realize zero stale water.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to a water purifier using reverse osmosis membrane and a method for using the same, and belongs to the technical field of water treatment (CO2F1 / 44) by reverse osmosis method. BACKGROUND

[0002] Water resource utilization efficiency (water efficiency) is the ratio of the amount of water obtained to the total amount of water consumed. As of July 1, 2022, GB 34914-2021 "Water Efficiency Limiting Value and Water Efficiency Grade of Water Purifier" has officially begun to be implemented. The introduction of the new standard will inevitably promote the progress and popularization of water-saving technology.

[0003] Water efficiency improvement and water production rate increase mean that concentrated water discharge is reduced, which will accelerate the clogging of reverse osmosis membranes in reverse osmosis water purifiers (the most common is inorganic salt scaling), thereby leading to high replacement frequency of water purifier accessories or extremely short service life of water purifiers. The water efficiency of the reverse osmosis water purifier commonly seen on the market is generally not high, and the water production rate has not been seen to exceed 80%. SUMMARY

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present application is how to improve the water efficiency of the reverse osmosis water purifier while reducing the clogging of the reverse osmosis membrane.

[0005] The technical solution proposed by the present application to solve the above technical problem is as follows: a reverse osmosis water purifier, comprising a pre-filter, a water inlet valve, a booster pump and a reverse osmosis membrane assembly connected in sequence, the inlet of the pre-filter is externally connected to a tap water source through a water inlet pipe, a low-pressure switch is provided on the water inlet pipe, the outlet of the pre-filter is connected to the inlet of the booster pump through a first water pipe and a water inlet valve, the outlet of the booster pump is connected to the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly through a second water pipe, the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is connected to a waste water ratio assembly, the waste water ratio assembly comprises a waste water ratio and a bypass valve connected in parallel, the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is connected to the inlet of a water outlet check valve through a first pure water pipe, the outlet of the water outlet check valve is connected to a second pure water pipe, a high-pressure switch and a TDS sensor are provided on the second pure water pipe and are respectively connected to a pure water storage tank and a pure water outlet valve; a third pure water pipe is provided on the first pure water pipe, a shunt check valve and a fourth pure water pipe are provided on the third pure water pipe, the third pure water pipe is connected to a small pure water container, a control valve is provided on the fourth pure water pipe and is connected to the inlet of the booster pump; the small pure water container is provided with an interface for inletting and outletting pure water and contains a small amount of air, the ratio of pure water to concentrated brine controlled by the waste water ratio is greater than or equal to 8:1, and the water level of the inlet of the pure water storage tank and the pure water outlet valve is higher than the water level of the inlet and outlet of the small pure water container.

[0006] The technical solution two provided by the present application to solve the above technical problems is the use method of the reverse osmosis water purifier in the technical solution one, comprising the following steps:

[0007] 1) start-up process

[0008] 1.1) when the low-voltage switch detects that the water inlet pressure is not lower than the water inlet set value, the water inlet valve is opened and the booster pump is started, and the tap water sequentially passes through the pre-filter element, the water inlet valve, the booster pump, the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly, the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly, and is discharged through the bypass valve, and the start-up flushing process is completed;

[0009] 1.2) after T1, the bypass valve is closed, and pure water production is started, the concentrated brine produced by the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is discharged through the waste water ratio, and at the same time, the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly starts to produce pure water, the pure water first enters the small pure water container through the first pure water pipe, the third pure water pipe and the shunt one-way valve, at this time, the air in the sealed small pure water container is compressed to form pressure due to the continuous entry of pure water; then the pure water enters the pure water storage barrel through the water outlet one-way valve and the second pure water pipe, and on the other hand, flows through the water outlet TDS sensor, the high-voltage switch and the pure water outlet valve, at this time, the pure water outlet valve is closed;

[0010] 1.3) when the pressure of the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly rises to the set value of the high-voltage switch, the water inlet valve is closed, but the booster pump continues to run, at the same time, the bypass valve and the control valve are opened, the pure water in the small pure water container flows into the inlet of the booster pump through the fourth pure water pipe and the control valve, under the double action force of the air pressure in the small pure water container and the booster pump, the pure water in the small pure water container enters the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly and then flows out from the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly, and finally is discharged through the bypass valve, and the start-up reverse flushing of the reverse osmosis membrane is completed;

[0011] 1.4) after the set reverse flushing time T2, the bypass valve and the control valve are turned off, the residual reverse flushing pure water in the water inlet side of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is slowly discharged through the waste water ratio, and the start-up process is completed;

[0012] 2) the pure water outlet valve is opened to start outputting pure water to the outside, and the pure water production continues;

[0013] 3) when the running time of the booster pump exceeds T3 and the measured value of the TDS sensor is greater than the preset value, the bypass valve and the control valve are opened and the water inlet valve is disconnected, the pure water in the small pure water container flows into the inlet of the booster pump through the fourth pure water pipe and the control valve, under the double action force of the air pressure in the small pure water container and the booster pump, the pure water in the small pure water container enters the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly again and then flows out from the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly, and finally is discharged through the bypass valve, and the reverse flushing of the reverse osmosis membrane is completed again;

[0014] 4) If you want to continue using it, repeat steps 2)-3); otherwise, turn it off. The inlet water setting is 0.2~0.4 MPa, T1 is 18~30 seconds, the high pressure switch setting is 0.3 MPa, T2 is 2~10 seconds, the TDS sensor preset value is 10-50 mg / L, and T3 is 7-15 minutes.

[0015] The beneficial effects and mechanisms of this invention are as follows:

[0016] 1. Because a diversion check valve and a fourth water pipe are installed at the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module, and the diverted pure water flows into a closed small pure water storage container to form pressurized pure water storage, and a control valve is installed on the fourth pure water pipe and connected to the inlet of the booster pump; therefore, when the reverse osmosis water purifier stops, the control valve can be opened to allow the pressurized pure water in the small pure water storage container to flow back through the fourth pure water pipe and into the inlet of the reverse osmosis unit under the action of the booster pump, thereby backwashing the reverse osmosis membrane (RO membrane) in the reverse osmosis unit. The advantages of this are: 1) Compared with a dedicated large pure water machine to draw pure water for backwashing the RO membrane, this invention can frequently perform a small amount of pure water backwashing on the RO membrane during the intervals between reverse osmosis water purification shutdowns (after each water production cycle). This saves pure water and extends the service life of the RO membrane due to frequent rinsing; 2) After each water production cycle, a pure water backwash is performed (the inlet valve is closed and the control valve is opened). After the backwashing is completed, the reverse osmosis membrane is in a waterless state, thus avoiding the problem of excessively high TDS in the initial effluent of the reverse osmosis unit when water is produced again, which achieves zero stagnant water.

[0017] 2. The wastewater ratio is equivalent to a small-hole throttling device, generally set no greater than 5:1. However, this invention does the opposite, setting it no less than 8:1. In this way, the wastewater ratio and the inlet water side of the reverse osmosis membrane module (the presence of the membrane feed water side screen is similar to a microfiltration membrane structure) together act as a microbubble generator. The small-hole throttling of the wastewater ratio effectively increases the pressure on the inlet water side of the reverse osmosis membrane module. Under the combined effect of these factors, the water on the inlet water side of the reverse osmosis membrane module becomes micro-nano bubble water, which effectively flushes the surface of the reverse osmosis membrane (RO membrane), reducing the accumulation of dirt on the RO membrane surface and ensuring the long-term and high-efficiency operation of the water purifier.

[0018] Furthermore, a first three-way valve is provided on the first water pipe after the inlet valve, a second three-way valve is provided on the first pure water pipe before the outlet check valve, and a third three-way valve is provided on the third pure water pipe after the diversion check valve; the two ports of the first three-way valve are respectively connected to the first water pipe, and its third port is connected to one end of the fourth pure water pipe; the two ports of the second three-way valve are respectively connected to the first pure water pipe, and its third port is connected to the third pure water pipe; the two ports of the third three-way valve are respectively connected to the third pure water pipe, and its third port is connected to the other end of the fourth pure water pipe.

[0019] Furthermore, the pre-filter includes a PP cotton filter and an activated carbon filter.

[0020] Furthermore, the second pure water pipe is also equipped with a post-activated carbon filter. Attached Figure Description

[0021] The following description, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, further illustrates a reverse osmosis water purifier of the present invention and its usage method.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a structural flow diagram of the reverse osmosis water purifier in an embodiment. Detailed Implementation Example

[0023] This embodiment describes a reverse osmosis water purifier, such as... Figure 1 As shown, the assembly includes a pre-filter, an inlet valve 3, a booster pump 4, and a reverse osmosis membrane assembly 5 connected in sequence. In this embodiment, the pre-filter includes a PP cotton filter 1 and an activated carbon filter 2 connected in sequence. The inlet of the pre-filter (i.e., PP cotton filter 1) is connected to a tap water source via an inlet pipe 17. A low-pressure switch 16 is installed on the inlet pipe 17. The outlet of the pre-filter (i.e., activated carbon filter 2) is connected to the inlet of a booster pump 4 via a first water pipe 18 and an inlet valve 3. The outlet of the booster pump 4 is connected to the inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 via a second water pipe 19. The concentrate outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 is connected to a wastewater ratio component (including a parallel wastewater ratio component 6 and a bypass valve 7). The pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 is connected to the inlet of an outlet check valve 8 via a first pure water pipe 20. The outlet of the outlet check valve 8 is connected to a second pure water pipe 21. A high-pressure switch 13 and a TDS sensor 12 are installed on the second pure water pipe 21, and a pure water storage tank 11 and a pure water outlet valve 15 are connected to them respectively. In this embodiment, a post-activated carbon filter 14 is also installed on the second pure water pipe 21.

[0024] like Figure 1 As shown, the first pure water pipe 20 is equipped with a third pure water pipe 22 for diversion, the third pure water pipe 22 is equipped with a diversion one-way valve 24 and a fourth pure water pipe 23 for diversion, the third pure water pipe 22 is connected to a sealed small pure water container 9, the fourth pure water pipe 23 is equipped with a control valve 10 and connected to the inlet of the booster pump 4; the small pure water container 9 is equipped with an inlet and outlet interface for pure water and leaves a small amount of air inside, the wastewater ratio 6 controls the ratio of pure water to concentrated brine to be greater than or equal to 8:1, and the water level at the inlet of the pure water storage tank 11 and the pure water outlet valve 15 is higher than the inlet and outlet water levels of the small pure water container 9.

[0025] like Figure 1As shown, a first three-way valve 25 is provided on the first water pipe 18 after the inlet valve 3; a second three-way valve 26 is provided on the first pure water pipe 20 before the outlet check valve 8; and a third three-way valve 27 is provided on the third pure water pipe 22 after the diversion check valve 24. The two ports of the first three-way valve 25 are respectively connected to the first water pipe 18, and its third port is connected to one end of the fourth pure water pipe 23. The two ports of the second three-way valve 26 are respectively connected to the first pure water pipe 20, and its third port is connected to the third pure water pipe 22. The two ports of the third three-way valve 27 are respectively connected to the third pure water pipe 22, and its third port is connected to the other end of the fourth pure water pipe 23.

[0026] The method of using the reverse osmosis water purifier in this embodiment includes the following steps:

[0027] 1) Power-on process

[0028] 1.1) When the low-pressure switch 16 detects that the inlet water pressure is not lower than the inlet water setting value, which is generally 0.2-0.4 MPa, open the inlet water valve 3 and start the booster pump 4. The tap water passes through → pre-filter (PP cotton filter 1 and activated carbon filter 2) → inlet water valve 3 → booster pump 4 → inlet of reverse osmosis membrane module 5 → concentrate outlet of reverse osmosis membrane module 5 → bypass valve 7 for discharge, completing the start-up flushing process;

[0029] 1.2) After time T1, which is generally 18-30 seconds, the bypass valve 7 is closed, and pure water production begins. The concentrated brine produced by the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 is discharged through the wastewater ratio 6. At the same time, the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 begins to produce pure water. The pure water first enters the small pure water container 9 through the first pure water pipe 20, the third pure water pipe 22 and the diversion check valve 24. At this time, the air in the sealed small pure water container 9 is compressed and pressure is formed due to the continuous entry of pure water. Then, the pure water enters the pure water storage tank 11 through the outlet check valve 8 and the second pure water pipe 21, and flows through the outlet TDS sensor 12 → high pressure switch 13 → outlet pure water valve 15. At this time, the outlet pure water valve 15 is closed.

[0030] 1.3) When the pure water outlet pressure of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 rises to the set value of the high pressure switch 13 (the set value of the high pressure switch is generally 0.3 MPa), the inlet valve 3 is closed, but the booster pump 4 continues to run. At the same time, the bypass valve 7 and the control valve 10 are opened. The pure water in the small pure water container 9 flows into the inlet of the booster pump 4 through the fourth pure water pipe 23 and the control valve 10. Under the combined action of the air pressure in the small pure water container 9 and the booster pump 4, the pure water in the small pure water container 9 enters from the inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 and flows out from the concentrate outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5. Finally, it is discharged through the bypass valve 7, completing the reverse flushing of the reverse osmosis membrane.

[0031] 1.4) After the set backwash time T2, which is generally 2 to 10 seconds, the bypass valve 7 and control valve 10 are shut off. The residual backwash pure water in the inlet side of the reverse osmosis membrane module 5 is slowly discharged through the wastewater ratio 6, completing the start-up process.

[0032] 2) Open the pure water outlet valve 15 to start outputting pure water and continue producing pure water;

[0033] 3) When the running time of booster pump 4 exceeds T3 and the measured value of TDS sensor is greater than the preset value, T3 is generally 7-15 minutes. TDS refers to total dissolved solids. The preset value of TDS sensor is generally 10-50 mg / L. Open bypass valve 7 and control valve 10. The pure water in small pure water container 9 flows into the inlet of booster pump 4 through fourth pure water pipe 23 and control valve 10. Under the dual action of air pressure in small pure water container 9 and booster pump 4, the pure water in small pure water container 9 re-enters from the inlet of reverse osmosis membrane module 5 and flows out from the concentrate outlet of reverse osmosis membrane module. Finally, it is discharged through bypass valve 7, completing the reverse osmosis membrane re-rinsing.

[0034] 4) If you want to continue using it, repeat steps 2)-3); otherwise, shut down the device.

[0035] In this embodiment, an 800G Huitong membrane was used for the RO membrane, and an 800G Dengyuan booster pump was selected. The wastewater ratio was adjusted to 10:1. From October 3, 2023 to July 23, 2024, the system operated continuously from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM daily, automatically controlling water production for 7 minutes and stopping for 3 minutes for continuous circulation. During this period, the TDS of municipal tap water was approximately 110-150 mg / L, and the total water production volume far exceeded 7000 liters. The TDS of the product water remained consistently below 6 mg / L. The RO membrane was not replaced throughout the entire experiment. The discharged wastewater included: flushing water from each start-up, wastewater discharged during water production, and backwash water after water production. A retest on June 24, 2024, showed a wastewater ratio of 13:1, an actual desalination rate, and a water purifier efficiency of no less than 96%.

[0036] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. All equivalent substitutions or modifications made to the concepts and technical solutions of the present invention should be covered within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A reverse osmosis water purifier, comprising a pre-filter, a water inlet valve, a booster pump and a reverse osmosis membrane assembly connected in sequence, the inlet of the pre-filter is externally connected to a tap water source through a water inlet pipe, a low pressure switch is arranged on the water inlet pipe, the outlet of the pre-filter is connected to the inlet of the booster pump through a first water pipe and the water inlet valve, the outlet of the booster pump is connected to the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly through a second water pipe, the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is connected to a waste water ratio assembly, the waste water ratio assembly comprises a waste water ratio valve and a bypass valve connected in parallel, the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is connected to the inlet of a water outlet check valve through a first pure water pipe, the outlet of the water outlet check valve is connected to a second pure water pipe, a high pressure switch and a TDS sensor are arranged on the second pure water pipe and connected to a pure water storage barrel and a pure water outlet valve respectively; characterized in that: The first pure water pipe is provided with a third pure water pipe, the third pure water pipe is provided with a shunt one-way valve and a fourth pure water pipe, the third pure water pipe is connected with a small pure water container, the fourth pure water pipe is provided with a control valve and is connected to the inlet of the booster pump; the small pure water container is provided with an interface for pure water and a small amount of air is left in the small pure water container, the waste water ratio is greater than or equal to 8:1, the water level of the pure water storage barrel and the water inlet of the pure water outlet valve is higher than the water level of the interface of the small pure water container.

2. The reverse osmosis water purifier according to claim 1, wherein: The first water pipe is provided with a first three-way valve after the water inlet valve, the first pure water pipe is provided with a second three-way valve before the pure water one-way valve, and the third pure water pipe is provided with a third three-way valve after the shunt one-way valve; the two ports of the first three-way valve are respectively connected with the first water pipe, and the third port is connected with one end of the fourth pure water pipe; the two ports of the second three-way valve are respectively connected with the first pure water pipe, and the third port is connected with the third pure water pipe; the two ports of the third three-way valve are respectively connected with the third pure water pipe, and the third port is connected with the other end of the fourth pure water pipe.

3. The reverse osmosis water purifier according to claim 1, wherein: The front filter element includes a PP cotton filter element and an activated carbon filter element.

4. The reverse osmosis water purifier according to claim 1, wherein: The second pure water pipe is further provided with a rear activated carbon filter element.

5. The method of using a reverse osmosis water purifier according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein: The method comprises the following steps: 1) starting process 1.1) when the low-voltage switch detects that the water inlet pressure is not lower than the water inlet setting value, the water inlet valve is opened and the booster pump is started, and the tap water passes through the front filter element, the water inlet valve, the booster pump, the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly, the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly and the bypass valve in sequence to complete the starting flushing process; 1.2) after T1, the bypass valve is closed, the pure water is started to be prepared, the concentrated brine produced by the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is discharged through the waste water ratio, and at the same time, the pure water produced by the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly starts to be discharged, the pure water first enters the small pure water container through the first pure water pipe, the third pure water pipe and the shunt one-way valve, at this time, the air in the small pure water container is compressed to form pressure due to the continuous entry of the pure water; then the pure water enters the pure water storage barrel on one hand and flows through the water outlet TDS sensor, the high-voltage switch and the pure water outlet valve on the other hand through the pure water one-way valve and the second pure water pipe, at this time, the pure water outlet valve is closed; 1.3) when the pressure of the pure water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly rises to the setting value of the high-voltage switch, the water inlet valve is closed, but the booster pump continues to operate, at the same time, the bypass valve and the control valve are opened, the pure water in the small pure water container flows into the inlet of the booster pump through the fourth pure water pipe and the control valve, under the double action force of the air pressure in the small pure water container and the booster pump, the pure water in the small pure water container enters the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly and then flows out from the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly, finally, the pure water is discharged through the bypass valve, and the starting reverse flushing of the reverse osmosis membrane is completed; 1.4) after the set reverse flushing time T2, the bypass valve and the control valve are turned off, the residual reverse flushing pure water in the water inlet side of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly is slowly discharged through the waste water ratio, and the starting process is completed; 2) the pure water outlet valve is opened to start to output pure water to the outside, and the pure water continues to be prepared; 3) when the running time of the booster pump exceeds T3 and the measured value of the TDS sensor is greater than the preset value, open the bypass valve and control valve and disconnect the water inlet valve, the pure water in the small pure water container flows into the inlet of the booster pump through the fourth pure water pipe and the control valve, under the double action force of the air pressure in the small pure water container and the booster pump, the pure water in the small pure water container enters the water inlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly again and then flows out from the concentrated water outlet of the reverse osmosis membrane assembly, finally is discharged through the bypass valve, completing the reverse flushing of the reverse osmosis membrane again; 4) repeat steps 2)-3) if continue to use, otherwise shut down; the water inlet setting value is 0.2-0.4 Mpa, the T1 is 18-30 seconds, the setting value of the high pressure switch is 0.3 Mpa, the T2 is 2-10 seconds, the preset value of the TDS sensor is 10-50 mg / L, and the T3 is 7-15 minutes.

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