Water tank device and liquid circulation method

Abstract

To provide an aquarium apparatus capable of uniformizing flow of liquid to be housed.SOLUTION: An aquarium apparatus equipped with an aquarium, which has a raising region R1 capable of housing liquid, and a storage region R2 which is partitioned from the raising region R1 and is capable of storing liquid overflowing from the raising region R1, comprises: a pump 14 which recovers liquid from the storage region R2 and circulates it to the raising region R1 side; a chamber 24 which is connected to a discharge side of the pump 14 via a pipeline and has a cross-sectional area larger than a pipe diameter of the pipeline; and a supply pipe 26a which is connected between the chamber 24 and the raising region R1 and discharges liquid supplied from the chamber 24 side from a plurality of holes formed in the range of the raising region R1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an aquarium suitable for raising and culturing animals and plants, and more particularly to an aquarium device capable of suppressing changes in water current within the liquid. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, there has been active development of facilities and devices for cultivating plants such as algae for food or as a so-called biomass resource. One example of such a device is a closed photobioreactor, which is known in the patent literature and which cultivates algae by promoting photosynthesis of the algae in the culture solution while stirring the culture solution in a tower-type water tank. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2020-10 A Summary of the Invention

[0004] In the tank having the above configuration, gas containing carbon dioxide for promoting the culture and a new culture solution are supplied, so that a water current circulates in the vertical direction in the tank, and when viewed as a whole, the flow is likely to be uneven, and for example, a stagnant area where the flow is stagnant is generated in an area other than the main water flow. The stagnant area has a drawback that the algae to be cultured and other plants are likely to accumulate, and unintended bacteria and filamentous algae are likely to be generated. In addition, in an aquarium for breeding tropical fish, for example, it is common to filter the breeding water pumped from the tank with a filtration device installed at the top of the tank and then release the water toward the liquid surface. However, even with such a configuration, a local water current is generated in the tank and other areas become stagnant areas, which adversely affects the breeding environment of animals and plants, such as the adhesion of dirt to the inner wall of the tank. [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides a water tank device and the like that is capable of making the flow of contained liquid uniform. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a liquid storage device. and is formed vertically in the vertical direction. An aquarium apparatus having a tank having a growth area and a storage area partitioned from the growth area and capable of storing liquid overflowing from the growth area, a suction pipe having a length that reaches the liquid level of the liquid in the storage area and collects the liquid from the storage area; and a discharge pipe extending to the bottom side of the storage area and discharging the collected liquid. A pump comprising: A discharge pipe is provided in the liquid in the storage area. a chamber having a cross-sectional area larger than a diameter of the exhaust pipe connected via the chamber; from the bottom of the growth area, and the liquid supplied from the chamber side can be discharged upward from the bottom side of the growth area. a supply tube having a plurality of holes; a perforated plate disposed above a plurality of holes in the supply pipe in the growing area; The configuration is equipped with the following. In another embodiment, the liquid can be contained. Formed vertically in the up-down direction A method for circulating liquid in an aquarium having a growth area and a storage area partitioned from the growth area and capable of storing liquid overflowing from the growth area, comprising: The device has a suction pipe that has a length that reaches the liquid level in the storage area and collects liquid from the storage area, and a discharge pipe that extends to the bottom side of the storage area and discharges the collected liquid. The liquid collected from the storage area by driving the pump is Discharge pipe In a chamber with a cross-sectional area larger than the tube diameter Inflow, Chamber The liquid in the chamber is discharged from a plurality of holes formed in a supply pipe extending from the chamber toward the growth area toward a perforated plate disposed above the plurality of holes. The form was as follows. The above summary of the invention does not list all the necessary features of the present invention, and subcombinations of these features may also be inventions. The present invention will be described in detail below through the embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and all combinations of features described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the solution of the invention, and may include selectively adopted configurations or steps. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the overall structure of an aquarium apparatus according to the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing an overview of a rectifying portion. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an aquarium device 1 according to the present invention. Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the aquarium device 1. As shown in each figure, the aquarium device 1 mainly comprises an aquarium body 3 capable of containing liquid (culture liquid, rearing liquid) necessary for culturing, rearing, etc. of animals and plants, a recovery mechanism 10 that recovers the liquid from the aquarium body 3, and a rectifier 20 that supplies the liquid recovered by the recovery mechanism 10 back into the aquarium body 3. The liquid circulates through the aquarium body 3, the recovery mechanism 10, and the rectifier 20 by driving a pump 14 attached to the wall surface of the aquarium body 3 via a jig not shown.

[0009] [About the aquarium itself] The aquarium body 3 is an upwardly open box-shaped tank made of, for example, glass, acrylic resin, or stainless steel. The aquarium body 3 has a growth area R1 in which the animals and plants to be cultured and raised are accommodated together with liquid, and a storage area R2 in which liquid overflowing from the growth area R1 is temporarily stored. As shown in the figure, the growth area R1 is a vertically long area partitioned by partition walls 5a and 5b spaced apart from each other laterally on the inner surface of the front wall 3a of the aquarium body 3, and a thin plate-like partition plate 7 extending between the partition walls 5a and 5b. The growth area R1 has a horizontally long rectangular cross section, and it is preferable to set the aspect ratio to a certain degree.

[0010] Although details will be described later, liquid is constantly supplied to the growth region R1 through a plurality of supply pipes 26a-26c disposed below. Any liquid that exceeds the volume of the growth region R1 overflows toward the storage region R2. The upper end surface 7a of the partition plate 7 through which the liquid overflows is formed as a horizontal surface. By configuring the upper end surface 7a of the partition plate 7 as an outlet through which the liquid overflows in this manner, there is no influence at the outlet of the growth region R1, and therefore it is possible to suppress non-uniformity of the flow and pressure fluctuations within the growth region R1.

[0011] Liquid overflowing from the growth region R1 is temporarily stored in the storage region R2. The storage region R2 is a region defined by the side walls 3b and 3c and rear wall 3d of the aquarium body 3, the partition walls 5a and 5, and the rear surface of the thin partition plate 7. A later-described chamber 24, which is a horizontally elongated box-like body, is disposed at the bottom of the storage region R2 along the width direction of the aquarium body 3. A plurality of supply pipes 26a to 26c are provided from the front of the chamber 24 so as to penetrate the partition plate 7 and reach the growth region R1.

[0012] [About the collection agency] The liquid stored in the storage area R2 is collected and re-supplied by the lift pipe 12, the pump 14, and the discharge pipe 16 as the recovery mechanism 10. One end of the lift pipe 12 is connected to the suction side of the pump 14, and the other end is set to be located at a height where the liquid stored in the storage area R2 can be sucked in. When the liquid in the storage area R2 is collected by driving the pump 14, the collected liquid is discharged into the chamber 24 by a predetermined pressure via the discharge pipe 16 connected to the discharge side of the pump 14. One end of the discharge pipe 16 is connected to the discharge side of the pump 14, and the other end is connected to the upper surface 24a of the chamber 24 disposed at the bottom of the storage area R2, and the liquid collected by driving the pump 14 is supplied into the chamber 24. The connection position of the other end is not limited to the upper surface 24a of the chamber 24.

[0013] [Regarding the rectification mechanism] The flow straightening unit 20 includes a chamber 24, a plurality of supply pipes 26a-26c, and a flow straightening grid 28 disposed on the bottom side of the growth region R1. The chamber 24 is a hollow box-shaped body elongated horizontally along the width direction, and is capable of storing liquid discharged from the pump 14 side via the discharge pipe 16. As shown in the figure, the chamber 24 has a width corresponding to the width dimension of the storage region R2, and is large compared to the cross-sectional area of ​​the discharge pipe 16, so that the flow rate of the liquid passing through the discharge pipe 16 is significantly decelerated within the chamber 24, and the variation in the flow rate within the chamber 24 is uniformed.

[0014] The liquid decelerated and homogenized in the chamber 24 is supplied into the growth region R1 via the plurality of supply pipes 26a-26c. The supply pipes 26a-26c are arranged at equal intervals relative to the width dimension of the growth region R1, with one end connected to the front surface of the chamber 24 and the other end penetrating the partition plate 7 to reach the lower portion of the growth region R1. The arrangement of the plurality of supply pipes 26a-26c is not limited to this, and may be arranged at equal intervals relative to the height dimension of the growth region R1, for example. Also, a single supply pipe or four or more supply pipes may be arranged.

[0015] 2, minute circular holes 27 are evenly formed in the longitudinal and circumferential directions in the extension length of supply pipes 26a-26c in the range from partition plate 7 to growth region R1. In this way, the liquid supplied through supply pipes 26a-26c flows out from a large number of circular holes 27 in the lower part of growth region R1, so that the flow rate is reduced throughout the entire lower part of growth region R1, and homogenized liquid is supplied toward the upper part of growth region R1.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 2, a straightening grid 28, which can be selectively installed, is installed in parallel to the upper part of the supply pipes 26a-26c in the growth area R1 so as to correspond to the size of the bottom surface of the growth area R1. The straightening grid 28 is a rectangular so-called punched metal made of aluminum or stainless steel, and it is desirable that the opening ratio is as large as possible (for example, 90% or more) so as to be substantially equal to the bottom surface (cross-sectional area) of the growth area R1. By installing the straightening grid 28 in the upper part (downstream side) of the supply pipes 26a-26c, the liquid that flows out from the multiple circular holes 27 and is mixed and homogenized is supplied to the upper part in a more homogenized state over the entire area of ​​the growth area R1, which makes it possible to suppress the variation in flow rate in the growth area R1 and to further suppress the occurrence of stagnation areas due to the occurrence of localized water currents. In the above example, a punched metal is used as the flow straightening grid 28, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a member made of metal or resin processed into a grid or honeycomb shape can also be used.

[0017] Furthermore, when the aquarium apparatus 1 is used for culturing algae or other plants, for example, a supply unit capable of supplying a gas such as carbon dioxide from the outside may be connected to the path from the water lift pipe 12 to the discharge pipe 16, and the liquid mixed with the gas may be sent into the chamber 24. Furthermore, when the aquarium apparatus 1 is used for cultivating animals such as tropical fish, for example, a filtration mechanism and a supply unit capable of supplying a gas such as oxygen may be connected to the above path. By applying the aquarium apparatus 1 in this manner, the occurrence of stagnant regions can be suppressed, and therefore it is possible to improve the breeding environment for animals and plants by preventing the occurrence of unintended bacteria and filamentous algae, or the adhesion of dirt, etc.

[0018] Although the present invention has been described above using the embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments. It is clear to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above-mentioned embodiments, and it is clear from the claims that such modifications and improvements can also be included in the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0019] 1 Water tank device, 3 Water tank body, 10 Recovery mechanism, 14 Pump, 20 Flow straightening section, 24 chamber, 26a-26c supply pipe, 28 flow straightening grid

Claims

1. A water tank device having a water tank having a growth area that is capable of containing liquid and is formed vertically long in the up-down direction, and a storage area that is partitioned from the growth area and is capable of storing liquid that overflows from the growth area, a pump including a suction pipe having a length sufficient to reach the liquid level in the storage area and collect liquid from the storage area, and a discharge pipe extending to a bottom side of the storage area and discharging the collected liquid; a chamber provided in the liquid in the storage area and having a cross-sectional area larger than a diameter of the discharge pipe connected to the liquid storage area through the discharge pipe; a supply pipe extending from the chamber toward the growth area and having a plurality of holes for discharging liquid supplied from the chamber side upward from the bottom side of the growth area; a perforated plate disposed above the plurality of holes of the supply pipe in the growth area; An aquarium apparatus comprising:

2. A method for circulating liquid in an aquarium having a growth area capable of accommodating liquid and formed vertically elongated in a vertical direction, and a storage area partitioned from the growth area and capable of storing liquid that overflows from the growth area, comprising: a pump having a suction pipe that has a length sufficient to reach the liquid level in the storage area and collects liquid from the storage area, and a discharge pipe that extends to the bottom side of the storage area and discharges the collected liquid, the liquid collected from the storage area is caused to flow into a chamber having a cross-sectional area larger than the diameter of the discharge pipe, A liquid circulation method, comprising discharging liquid from the chamber through a plurality of holes formed in a supply pipe extending from the chamber toward the growth area toward a perforated plate disposed above the plurality of holes.

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