Dehumidification device

Abstract

To provide a dehumidifier capable of supplying low dew point air with reduced initial costs and power consumption. [Solution] The dehumidifier of the present invention divides an adsorption rotor capable of adsorbing moisture into at least a treatment zone, a regeneration zone, and a purge zone, branches the air to be treated into treatment air and purged air, passes the treatment air through the treatment zone, sends the air after passing through the treatment zone to its destination, passes the purged air through the purge zone, passes the air after passing through the purge zone through a heating device and passes it through the regeneration zone as regeneration air, discharges the air after passing through the regeneration zone, and passes the treatment air or purged air through a temperature adjustment device to cool or heat it, thereby reducing the amount of heat required for regeneration without compromising dehumidification performance, thereby saving energy.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a dehumidifier that uses a dehumidifying rotor as an adsorption rotor and is capable of supplying low dew point air with reduced power consumption. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, the demand for lithium batteries has increased, and their production has increased accordingly. In lithium batteries, the raw material lithium reacts with moisture in the air, and this reaction causes the performance of the lithium batteries produced to deteriorate. For this reason, the lithium battery production line must be kept dry. Methods for keeping the battery dry include purging the production plant with dry nitrogen and using a dehumidifier that uses a dehumidifying rotor with moisture adsorbents such as hydrophilic zeolite and silica gel.

[0003] As the use of lithium batteries spreads to automobiles, such as electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles, the scale of production factories has increased and methods using dehumidifiers are being adopted more and more.

[0004] In the case of dehumidifiers, high-temperature air is used to regenerate the dehumidifier rotor, but efforts are being made to minimize the energy required to create that air. There is also a desire to reduce initial costs.

[0005] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a dehumidifier that uses a cascade heat pump to increase the regeneration temperature and a single dehumidification rotor to provide low dew point air, thereby reducing initial costs. This dehumidifier is more energy efficient than conventional dehumidifiers that use electric heaters.

[0006] However, heat pumps have higher initial costs than electric heaters, and there is a limit to how high the regeneration temperature can be raised, so even when using electric heaters, studies are being conducted on more energy-efficient flows.

[0007] Moreover, in recent years, rising energy prices, tight electricity supply and demand, and the movement toward carbon neutrality have accelerated, creating even greater demand for energy conservation.

[0008] Patent document 2 discloses a dehumidifier that can prevent sensible heat loss caused by the heat from the regeneration zone of the dehumidification rotor being transferred to the dehumidification zone, and can prevent a decrease in the dehumidification capacity of the dehumidification zone caused by moisture absorption in the purge zone.

[0009] Patent Document 3 discloses a gas removal system in which a purge zone is provided between the regeneration zone and the gas reduction zone, and purge air is circulated between the two purge zones (first purge zone, second purge zone) in a closed system. In the first purge zone, the rotor before moving from the regeneration zone to the gas reduction zone is cooled by purge air cooled by a cooling device, thereby suppressing the heat transfer from the regeneration zone to the gas reduction zone and increasing the water vapor adsorption capacity in the gas reduction zone. In the second purge zone, the rotor before entering the regeneration zone is heated by purge air heated by the heat obtained by cooling the rotor, so that the rotor can be heated and the amount of heat in the regeneration zone can be reduced.

[0010] Patent Document 4 discloses a dehumidification system that has one purge zone and circulates purge air. In this circulation path, a cooler is provided before the purge zone to lower the dew point of the purge air, making it difficult for moisture to be adsorbed in the purge zone, enhancing the dehumidification capacity and enabling low-temperature regeneration.

[0011] In this way, development of energy-saving dehumidification processes is underway. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0012] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7142976 [Patent Document 2] JP 2006-341217 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2012-24665 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2017-44387 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0013] In dehumidification equipment using an adsorption rotor with a treatment zone, a regeneration zone, and a purge zone, both the treatment air and the purge air are generally cooled by passing them through a cooler (Figure 1). The purpose of cooling the treatment air is to pre-dehumidify the air by cooling it to below the dew point temperature of the treatment air before cooling to reduce the absolute humidity through condensation, and to increase the relative humidity of the treatment air after cooling to nearly 100%RH to increase the dehumidification efficiency. The purpose of cooling the purge air is to suppress the heat transfer from the regeneration zone to the treatment zone and increase the adsorption capacity, to increase the dehumidification capacity by lowering the dew point of the purge air through pre-dehumidification and preventing moisture adsorption in the purge zone, and to improve the regeneration efficiency by using the low dew point air that has passed through the purge zone as the regeneration air. Cooling both the treatment air and the purge air works in the direction of improving performance. However, there are issues in that the temperature of the air that has passed through the purge zone is low, so more regeneration heat is required, and the power consumption of the cooler increases.

[0014] The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and aims to provide a dehumidifier that has a simpler configuration than conventional dehumidifiers, reduces initial costs, reduces the amount of heat required for regeneration without compromising dehumidification performance, and is capable of supplying low dew point air with reduced energy consumption. [Means for solving the problem]

[0015] The dehumidifier of the present invention divides an adsorption rotor capable of adsorbing moisture into at least a treatment zone, a regeneration zone, and a purge zone, branches the air to be treated into treatment air and purged air, passes the treatment air through the treatment zone, sends the air after passing through the treatment zone to its destination, passes the purged air through the purge zone, passes the air after passing through the purge zone through a heating device and passes it through the regeneration zone as regeneration air, discharges the air after passing through the regeneration zone, and passes the treatment air or purged air through a temperature adjustment device to be cooled or heated. Effect of the Invention

[0016] In the dehumidification device of the present invention, by limiting the air passing through the cooler to either process air or purged air, it is possible to reduce the amount of heat required for regeneration and save energy without compromising dehumidification performance with a simple configuration.

[0017] Passing only the purge air through the cooler has the effect of saving energy by eliminating the need to cool the treatment air, and also has the effect of enhancing the cooling effect of the rotor by cooling the purge air, and the effect of enhancing the adsorption effect in the treatment zone because the amount of moisture adsorbed by the rotor in the purge zone is reduced because the purge air is dehumidified.

[0018] Passing only the process air through the cooler has the effect of saving energy because it is not necessary to cool the purge air. Also, by not cooling the purge air, the purge outlet temperature rises and the regeneration heater output can be reduced, which has the effect of saving energy. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows a typical conventional dehumidification flow (Comparative Example 1). [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of the dehumidifier according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of the dehumidifier according to the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4]FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of a dehumidifier according to a third embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of a dehumidifier according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a dehumidifier according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a dehumidifier according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 shows the dehumidification flow of a conventional two-stage adsorption rotor (Comparative Example 2). DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] The dehumidifier of the present invention divides an adsorption rotor capable of adsorbing moisture into at least a treatment zone, a regeneration zone, and a purge zone, branches the air to be treated into treatment air and purged air, passes the treatment air through the treatment zone, sends the air after passing through the treatment zone to a supply destination, passes the purged air through the purge zone, passes the air after passing through the purge zone through a heating device and passes it through the regeneration zone as regeneration air, discharges the air after passing through the regeneration zone, and passes the treatment air or purged air through a temperature adjustment device to cool or heat it. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. EXAMPLES

[0021] Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the dehumidifier of the present invention will be described with reference to the flow chart of FIG. 2. The configuration of the first embodiment includes an adsorption rotor 1 as a dehumidification rotor having a moisture adsorption ability, a temperature adjustment device 2, and a heating device 3. The adsorption rotor 1 is a honeycomb rotor made of inorganic fibers such as glass fibers, on which an adsorbent such as zeolite or silica gel is supported. The adsorption rotor 1 is divided into a treatment zone 4, a regeneration zone 5, and a purge zone 6, which are rotated in this order by a geared motor (not shown). The temperature adjustment device 2 is, for example, a cold water coil, a brine coil, or an evaporator of a heat pump as a cooler, and is, for example, an electric heater, a steam heater, a hot water heater, or a condenser of a heat pump as a heater. The heating device 3 is, for example, an electric heater, a steam heater, a hot water heater, or a condenser of a heat pump. Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, the temperature adjustment device 2 will be described as a cooler.

[0022] As shown in Figure 2, air A to be treated is branched into treated air a and purged air b before passing through the adsorption rotor 1, and these are sent to the treatment zone 4 and the purge zone 6, respectively. The treated air a passes through the treatment zone 4, becomes air from which moisture has been removed, and is sent as supply air SA to a destination such as a production facility or a dry room. The purged air b before passing through the purge zone 6 is passed through a temperature adjustment device 2 to be cooled. This air is passed through the purge zone 6, and the air that has passed through the purge zone 6 is passed through a heating device 3 before passing through the regeneration zone 5. The air that has passed through the regeneration zone 5 is discharged outside the dehumidifier, such as into the atmosphere, and exhausted.

[0023] The first embodiment of the present invention is configured as described above, and will be described in detail below. The air A to be treated, which contains moisture, is branched into treated air a introduced into the treatment zone 4 and purge air b introduced into the purge zone 6. The treated air a passes through the treatment zone 4, where moisture is adsorbed and removed by the adsorbent supported on the adsorption rotor 1, and the dry air is supplied to the supply destination. The purge air b is cooled by the temperature control device 2 and passes through the purge zone 6. By passing the cooled air through the purge zone 6, the adsorbent of the adsorption rotor 1, whose temperature has increased in the regeneration zone 5, is cooled and the adsorption performance is restored. The air that has passed through the purge zone 6 is sent to the heater 3 and heated to a temperature (e.g., 80 to 200°C. Hereinafter, all temperatures are expressed as "Celsius") sufficient to desorb moisture from the adsorbent of the adsorption rotor 1, and is sent to the regeneration zone 5 as regeneration air c. The air that has passed through the regeneration zone 5 is discharged outside the dehumidifier, such as to the atmosphere.

[0024] In this way, in the dehumidifier of Example 1, the cooling effect of the rotor is enhanced by cooling the purged air b with the temperature adjustment device 2. Since the purged air b is dehumidified, the amount of moisture adsorbed by the rotor in the purge zone 6 is reduced, and the adsorption effect in the treatment zone 4 is enhanced. By using the low dew point air that has been dehumidified by cooling and passed through the purge zone 6 as regeneration air, the regeneration efficiency is also improved. In addition, since the treatment air a is not cooled with the temperature adjustment device 2, the power consumption of the temperature adjustment device 2 is reduced, and the cooling capacity can be reduced.

[0025] In the flow of Fig. 2, by rotating the adsorption rotor 1 in the reverse direction, the adsorption rotor 1 rotates in the order of the treatment zone 4, the purge zone 6, and the regeneration zone 5. By using the temperature control device 2 as a heater to heat the purge air b, the temperature of the purge air b before it enters the regeneration zone 5 can be increased, and the adsorption rotor 1 can be preheated in the purge zone 6. In addition, the adsorption rotor 1 can be regenerated in two stages, in the purge zone 6 and the regeneration zone 5, to enhance the moisture desorption effect.

[0026] Comparative Example 1 Fig. 1 shows a typical conventional dehumidification flow (Comparative Example 1). Explanation of parts that overlap with Fig. 2 will be omitted. In Fig. 1, air to be treated A passes through temperature control device 2, and then branches into treated air a and purged air b, which are passed through treatment zone 4 and purged zone 6, respectively. As a result, both treated air a and purged air b are cooled, and the cooling capacity of temperature control device 2 becomes larger than that of Example 1, resulting in higher initial costs and running costs.

[0027] Here, it is common knowledge for those skilled in the art that the air to be treated before passing through the treatment zone is pre-dehumidified by a cooler to reduce the absolute humidity, and the temperature is lowered to increase the relative humidity before being introduced into the treatment zone, and this is a matter of course as described in Patent Documents 1 to 4. On the other hand, the idea of ​​not cooling the air to be treated before passing through the treatment zone works in the direction of worsening the dehumidification performance, and therefore it is difficult for those skilled in the art to give up this fixed idea and cannot easily come up with it.

[0028] According to the first embodiment, the processing air a does not pass through the temperature control device 2, so the processing outlet temperature is high. Therefore, it is suitable for use in drying applications. By controlling the temperature of the purge air b to the limit where moisture adsorption in the purge zone 6 is suppressed and the purge zone 6 can be cooled, the energy saving effect of the temperature control device 2 can be further improved. EXAMPLES

[0029] A second embodiment of the dehumidifier of the present invention will be described below with reference to the flow chart of Fig. 3. Explanations of parts that overlap with the previous embodiment will be omitted. In the second embodiment, the air to be treated A is branched, and the treated air a to be passed through the treatment zone 4 is cooled by the temperature adjustment device 2 and passed through the treatment zone 4, while the purge air b is not cooled and is passed through the purge zone 6 as it is.

[0030] The second embodiment of the present invention is configured as described above, and will be described in detail below. The air to be treated A is, for example, outside air mixed with return air from a dry room, and when the temperature is 25°C and the absolute humidity is 0.6g / kg (DA), the temperature of the air that passes through the temperature control device 2 drops to 14°C. That is, in the second embodiment (FIG. 3), the treated air a passes through the temperature control device 2 and becomes air at 14°C and 0.6g / kg (DA), and is introduced into the treatment zone 4. On the other hand, the purged air b does not pass through the temperature control device 2, so it is introduced into the purge zone 6 at 25°C and 0.6g / kg (DA). The air that passes through the purge zone 6 becomes air at 70°C and 0.4g / kg (DA), and is introduced into the heating device 3.

[0031] This is compared with Comparative Example 1 (Fig. 1), which shows a conventional general dehumidification flow. In Fig. 1, air A to be treated at 25°C and 0.6g / kg (DA) passes through temperature adjustment device 2 and becomes air at 14°C and 0.6g / kg (DA), and is branched into treated air a and purged air b. The purged air b, whose temperature has been reduced, passes through a purge zone and becomes air at 59°C and 0.3g / kg (DA), and is introduced into heating device 3.

[0032] The temperature after passing through the purge zone is 11°C higher in Example 2 than in Comparative Example 1. The dehumidification amount in the purge zone 6 (the change in absolute humidity before and after passing through the purge zone) remains at 0.2 g / kg (DA) in Example 2, and is 0.3 g / kg (DA) in Comparative Example 1. From this, by not passing the purge air b through the temperature adjustment device 2, air with a higher temperature is obtained after passing through the purge zone, and the dehumidification amount in the purge zone 6 is reduced. If the temperature of the purge air b is high, the cooling effect of the adsorption rotor 1 is reduced, which acts in the direction of worsening the adsorption performance. In addition, adsorption of moisture in the purge zone 6 becomes difficult, and low dew point air is not generated in the purge zone 6, which also acts in the direction of worsening the desorption performance. However, when the dew point of the treated air A is low, such as -20°C DP, even if the dehumidification amount in the purge zone decreases, the treated air is dry air, so the impact on the desorption performance is small. In the above case, the dew point of the supply air SA is in the ultra-low dew point region of around -70°C DP in both Comparative Example 1 and Example 2, and in practice there is no significant difference, so it can be said that the dehumidification performance is almost the same. Therefore, when the air to be treated A is low dew point air, the effect of not passing the purge air b through the temperature adjustment device 2 is significant. In addition, by suppressing the amount of dehumidification in the purge zone 6, there is also the effect of increasing the amount of dehumidification in the treatment zone 4. Since the temperature adjustment device 2 only needs to cool the air to be treated a, the cooling capacity can also be reduced.

[0033] As described above, according to the second embodiment, the temperature of the air after passing through the purge zone 6 is higher than when the purge air b is cooled, by not cooling the purge air b. This allows the output of the heating device 3 to be reduced, resulting in energy savings. In addition, since the temperature control device 2 only needs to cool the process air a, the cooling capacity of the temperature control device 2 can also be reduced.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 1, in comparison with the conventional general flow (Comparative Example 1) in which the purge air b is also cooled, Example 2 has a slight decrease in performance, but this is not enough to affect practical use, and the advantage of energy saving is great.

[0035] Here, it is common knowledge and common sense for those skilled in the art that the process air and purge air before passing through the process zone and purge zone are pre-dehumidified by a cooler to reduce the absolute humidity, and the temperature is lowered to increase the relative humidity, before being introduced into the process zone and purge zone, as shown in Fig. 1. The idea of ​​not cooling the purge air before passing through the purge zone works in the direction of worsening the dehumidification performance, and is difficult for those skilled in the art to give up this fixed idea and cannot be easily conceived of. EXAMPLES

[0036] Hereinafter, a third embodiment of the dehumidifier of the present invention will be described with reference to the flow diagram of FIG. 4. Explanations of parts that overlap with the above-mentioned embodiment will be omitted. In the third embodiment, the air to be treated A is cooled by the temperature adjustment device 2 and branched into air (treated air a+purged air b) to be passed through the treatment zone 4 and the purge zone 6, and mixed air d (hereinafter referred to as "mixed air d") to be mixed with the air after passing through the purge zone to form regeneration air. The air after passing through the treatment zone 4 is sent to the supply destination as supply air SA. The air after passing through the purge zone 6 is mixed with the mixed air d branched from the air to be treated A, passes through the heating device 3, and passes through the regeneration zone 5 as regeneration air c. The air after passing through the regeneration zone 5 is discharged to the outside of the dehumidifier, such as the atmosphere, and exhausted.

[0037] The third embodiment of the present invention is configured as described above, and will be described in detail below. The air A to be treated is, for example, outside air, and passes through the temperature control device 2 to become 10°C and 7g / kg (DA) (relative humidity 92% RH). The cooled air A to be treated is branched so that the flow rate ratio is the treatment air a: the purge air b: the mixing air d = 9:1:2. That is, the flow rate ratio of the regeneration air c is the flow rate ratio 3, which is the sum of the flow rate ratio 2 of the mixing air d and the flow rate ratio 1 of the purge air b. Therefore, the flow rate ratio is the treatment zone 4: the regeneration zone 5: the purge zone 6 = 9:3:1. The purge zone outlet air becomes 120°C and 6g / kg (DA), and is mixed with the mixing air d and heated to the regeneration inlet temperature of 160°C by the heater 3. The temperature of the air after passing through the regeneration zone 5 is 50°C, and the supply air SA after passing through the treatment zone 4 becomes -52°C DP.

[0038] Compare with Fig. 1, which shows a conventional general dehumidification flow (Comparative Example 1). In Fig. 1, the air to be treated A passes through a temperature adjustment device 2 and becomes air at 10°C and 7g / kg (DA) (relative humidity 92% RH), and is branched so that the flow rate ratio is treatment air a: purge air b = 3:1. Therefore, the flow rate ratio is treatment zone 4: regeneration zone 5: purge zone 6 = 3:1:1. The air at the outlet of the purge zone becomes 60°C and 0.6g / kg (DA) (-20°C DP), and is heated to a regeneration inlet temperature of 160°C by the heater 3. The temperature of the air after passing through the regeneration zone 5 is 40°C, and the supply air SA after passing through the treatment zone 4 becomes -48°C DP.

[0039] In Example 3 and Comparative Example 1, even though the treated air A and the regeneration inlet temperature are the same, Example 3 has a lower dew point of the supply air SA and has better performance. This is thought to be because in Example 3, the flow rate of the purge air is reduced to one third of that in the comparative example, reducing the adsorption of moisture to the rotor. In the case of Comparative Example 1, a lot of moisture is adsorbed in the purge zone 6 before entering the treatment zone 4, and the amount of adsorption in the treatment zone 4 is reduced. With regard to the regeneration outlet temperature, Example 3 is 10°C higher than Example 1. The air on the regeneration outlet side is high humidity air, and if the regeneration outlet temperature is low, there is a possibility that condensation will occur on the regeneration outlet side. Therefore, Example 3, which has a high regeneration outlet temperature, has the effect of preventing condensation on the regeneration outlet side. The heating capacity of the heating device 3 is the same in Comparative Example 1 and Example 3.

[0040] As described above, according to the third embodiment, by branching off a portion of the air A to be treated, the mixing air d is mixed with the air that has passed through the purge zone to produce regeneration air c, thereby reducing the flow rate of the purge air b and reducing the amount of moisture adsorbed to the rotor in the purge zone 6. This improves the adsorption performance of the adsorption rotor 1 in the treatment zone 4, improving the dehumidification performance. EXAMPLES

[0041] A fourth embodiment of the dehumidifier of the present invention will be described below with reference to the flow diagram of Fig. 5. Explanations of parts that overlap with the previous embodiments will be omitted. In the fourth embodiment, the air to be treated A is branched into treated air a and branched air e, the treated air a is passed directly through the treatment zone 4, and the air after passing through the treatment zone 4 is sent to the supply destination as supply air SA. The branched air e is cooled by the temperature adjustment device 2, and becomes purge air b which is passed through the purge zone 6, and mixing air d which is partially branched and mixed with the air after passing through the purge zone.

[0042] As in the first embodiment, the cooling effect of the rotor is enhanced by cooling the purged air b with the temperature adjustment device 2. In addition, since the purged air b is dehumidified by cooling and the flow rate of the purged air b is reduced as in the third embodiment, the amount of moisture adsorbed by the rotor in the purge zone 6 is reduced, and the adsorption effect in the treatment zone 4 is enhanced. In addition, since the treatment air a is not cooled with the temperature adjustment device 2, the cooling capacity of the temperature adjustment device 2 can be reduced. As in the first embodiment, the treatment air a in the fourth embodiment does not pass through the temperature adjustment device 2, and therefore the treatment outlet temperature is high. Therefore, it is suitable for use in drying applications. EXAMPLES

[0043] A fifth embodiment of the dehumidifier of the present invention will be described below with reference to the flow diagram of Fig. 6. Explanations of parts that overlap with the previous embodiments will be omitted. In the fifth embodiment, the air to be treated A is branched into purge air b and branched air e, and the purge air b passes directly to the purge zone 6. The branched air e is cooled by the temperature adjustment device 2 and branched into two, the treated air a which is passed through the treatment zone 4, and the mixed air d which is mixed with the air after passing through the purge zone.

[0044] As in the second embodiment, by not cooling the purge air b, the purge outlet temperature becomes higher than when the purge air b is cooled. This allows the output of the heating device 3 to be reduced, resulting in energy savings. In addition, since it is necessary to cool only the branch air e, the cooling capacity of the temperature adjustment device 2 can also be reduced. As in the third embodiment, the flow rate of the purge air b is small, so the amount of moisture adsorbed by the rotor in the purge zone 6 is reduced, and the adsorption effect in the treatment zone 4 is enhanced.

[0045] In the flows of Examples 1 to 5, when a two-stage adsorption rotor is configured to supply air with a lower dew point to the supply destination, the first adsorption rotor 7 is disposed in the front stage, and the adsorption rotor 1 is disposed as the second adsorption rotor 1 in the rear stage. Although it depends on the conditions of the air A to be treated, the dew point of the supply air SA in the single-stage adsorption rotor 1 in Examples 1 to 5 is limited to about -50°C. However, when a two-stage adsorption rotor is used, the dew point of the supply air SA can be made an ultra-low dew point of -80°C DP or even -90°C DP. EXAMPLES

[0046] Hereinafter, a sixth embodiment of the dehumidifier of the present invention will be described with reference to the flow chart of FIG. 7. Explanations of parts that overlap with the above-mentioned embodiments will be omitted. In the sixth embodiment, a first adsorption rotor 7 is disposed in the front stage of the adsorption rotor 1 (second adsorption rotor 1) in the second embodiment. In addition, a temperature adjustment device 2, a second heating device 3, and a first heating device 10 are included. The first adsorption rotor 7 in the front stage is divided into at least a first processing zone 8 and a first regeneration zone 9. The second adsorption rotor 1 and the first adsorption rotor 7 are each rotated by a geared motor (not shown) or the like. The temperature adjustment device 2 may be a second temperature adjustment device, and a first temperature adjustment device may be added in front of the first processing zone 8 of the first adsorption rotor 7.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 7, the air to be treated A' passes through the first treatment zone 8 of the first adsorption rotor 7 in the previous stage, and the air after passing through the first treatment zone is mixed with return air RA(f) from a supply destination (room) such as a production facility or a dry room to become the air to be treated A, which is sent to the second adsorption rotor 1. Before passing through the second adsorption rotor 1, the air to be treated A is branched into treated air a and purge air b. The treated air a is passed through a temperature adjustment device 2 to be cooled, and passes through the second treatment zone 4. The air from which moisture has been removed by passing through the second treatment zone 4 is sent to the supply destination (room). After passing through the second purge zone 6, the purge air b is passed through the second heating device 3, and passes through the second regeneration zone 5 as regeneration air c. The air that has passed through the second regeneration zone 5 is mixed with a part of the outside air OA(g) and passes through the first heating device 10, where it is heated to a temperature sufficient to desorb moisture from the first adsorption rotor 7, and then passes through the first regeneration zone 9 and is discharged to the outside of the dehumidifier, such as the atmosphere. The outside air OA(g) and the exhaust air EA that has passed through the first regeneration zone 9 may be heat exchanged by a heat exchanger. The air g to be mixed with the regeneration air is not limited to the outside air OA, and other air such as return air RA may be used, or the flow may be one in which the outside air OA(g) is not mixed. In addition, the return air RA(f) may not be mixed between the first adsorption rotor 7 and the second adsorption rotor 1, but may be mixed with the air to be treated A' and introduced into the first adsorption rotor 7, or may be discharged from the supply destination without being mixed as the return air RA from the supply destination.

[0048] The sixth embodiment of the present invention is configured as described above, and will be described in detail below. When the moisture-containing air A' to be treated is at 10°C and 7g / kg (DA), it passes through the first treatment zone 8 of the first adsorption rotor 7, and the moisture is adsorbed and removed by the adsorbent. The air A to be treated mixed with the return air RA(f) from the supply destination becomes 25°C and 0.6g / kg (DA). The treated air a branched from the air A to be treated passes through the temperature adjustment device 2, becomes 10°C and 0.6g / kg (DA), and passes through the second treatment zone 4. The supply air SA, which has passed through the second treatment zone 4 and has moisture adsorbed and removed by the adsorbent, becomes ultra-low dew point air at 15°C and -73°C DP, and is sent to the supply destination. The purge air b is at 25°C and 0.6g / kg (DA), and becomes 66°C after passing through the second purge zone 6. The air after passing through the second purge zone 6 passes through the second heating device 3 where it is heated to 140°C, and then passes through the second regeneration zone 5 where it desorbs moisture from the adsorbent. The air that has passed through the second regeneration zone 5 is mixed with outside air OA(g), heated by the first heating device 10, passes through the first regeneration zone 9 of the first adsorption rotor 7 where it desorbs moisture from the adsorbent, and is then discharged outside the dehumidifier, such as into the atmosphere.

[0049] Comparative Example 2 FIG. 8 shows a conventional dehumidification flow (Comparative Example 2) of a general two-stage adsorption rotor in which a first adsorption rotor 7 is arranged in the front stage of a conventional general dehumidification flow (FIG. 1, Comparative Example 1). Explanation of parts overlapping with FIG. 7 is omitted. In FIG. 8, the treated air A is passed through a temperature adjustment device 2 to be cooled, and then branched into treated air a and purge air b, which are passed through the second treatment zone 4 and the second purge zone 6 of the second adsorption rotor 1. As in FIG. 7, when the treated air A' is 10°C and 7g / kg (DA), the treated air A passes through the first treatment zone 8 of the first adsorption rotor 7 and is mixed with the return air RA(f) from the supply destination (Room) to become 25°C and 0.6g / kg (DA). The treated air A passes through the temperature adjustment device 2, becomes 10°C and 0.6g / kg (DA), and is branched into treated air a and purge air b, which pass through the second treatment zone 4 and the second purge zone 6, respectively. The supply air SA which passes through the second treatment zone 4 and is sent to the destination is at 14°C, -75°C DP. The air which passes through the second purge zone 6 is at 58°C.

[0050] Example 6 (FIG. 7) is compared with Comparative Example 2 (FIG. 8), which is a dehumidification flow of a conventional two-stage adsorption rotor. The temperature after passing through the second purge zone 6 is 8° C. higher in Example 6 than in Comparative Example 2. As a result, as in Example 2, by not passing the purge air b through the temperature adjustment device 2, air with a higher temperature can be obtained after passing through the purge zone. Therefore, the heating capacity of the second heating device 3 can be reduced in Example 6. If the temperature of the air passing through the second purge zone 6 is high, the cooling effect of the second adsorption rotor 1 is reduced, which acts in the direction of worsening the desorption performance. However, in Example 6, the dew point air is low at -20° C. DP, which is a mixture of the dry air dehumidified in the previous stage and the return air RA from the supply destination, so the impact on the desorption performance is small. In the above case, the dew point of the supply air SA is 2° C. DP higher in Example 6, but since it is in the ultra-low dew point region, there is no significant difference in practice, and it can be said that the dehumidification performance is almost the same. Therefore, when the treated air A is low dew point air, the effect of not passing the purge air b through the temperature adjustment device 2 is large. It is also possible to reduce the cooling capacity of the temperature adjustment device 2. Although the temperature of the supply air SA is 1° C. higher in the first embodiment, when the temperature is adjusted to, for example, 25° C. at the supply destination, this also has the effect of reducing the air conditioning load at the supply destination.

[0051] In the above embodiment, under high humidity conditions, such as 10°C and 7g / kg (DA) (relative humidity 92% RH), the regeneration outlet side of the adsorption rotor is not warmed immediately after the dehumidification device starts operating, so there is a concern that the air passing through the regeneration zone will condense and the dehumidification performance will decrease. Therefore, when the device starts operating, the rotation speed is reduced from the optimal rotation speed to warm the regeneration outlet side and increase the regeneration outlet temperature to prevent the air passing through the regeneration zone from condensing. After the regeneration outlet side has warmed up, it is recommended to return the rotation speed to the optimal speed and perform steady operation.

[0052] In the above embodiment, the purge air b, which is a branch of the air to be treated A, is passed through the purge zone 6, but this is not limited thereto, and other air such as outside air OA, air that has passed through the treatment zone 4, or return air RA from the supply destination may be used. The air passed through the treatment zone 4 or the purge zone 6 may be connected to a pipe through which the outside air OA or return air RA passes, and this pipe may be provided with a flow rate regulator such as a valve or a damper, or a flow path switching device such as a three-way valve, to adjust the flow rate of the air passed through each zone or to switch the type of air. In addition, a temperature control device 2 may be provided before the treatment zone 4 and the purge zone 6, respectively, and the treatment air a, the purge air b, or both may be cooled or heated as necessary. Similarly, in the third to fifth embodiments, the position of the temperature control device 2 is not limited to that shown in Figs. 4 to 6, and the air a, b, d, and e may be cooled alone or in combination. Furthermore, the adsorption rotors 1 and 7 may be provided with another zone. The air after passing through the treatment zone 4 may be discharged without being supplied to the supply destination. The air that has passed through the regeneration zone 5 may be supplied to the destination without being discharged, and is not limited to this. When configured as a two-stage adsorption rotor, the flow of the second adsorption rotor 1 is not limited to the flow of Example 2, and may be combined with the flows of Examples 1 and 3 to 5. [Industrial Applicability]

[0053] The present invention provides a dehumidifier that enables cost reduction and energy-saving operation without compromising dehumidification performance for manufacturing processes that require dry conditions, such as the production of lithium batteries. [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] 1. Adsorption rotor (second adsorption rotor) 2 Temperature control device 3 Heating device (second heating device) 4 Treatment Zone (Second Treatment Zone) 5 Regeneration Zone (Second Regeneration Zone) 6 Purge Zone (Second Purge Zone) 7 Adsorption rotor (first adsorption rotor) 8 Treatment Zone (First Treatment Zone) 9 Regeneration Zone (First Regeneration Zone) 10 Heating device (first heating device) A Air to be treated A' Air to be treated a. Process air b Purge air c Regenerative air d. Mixing air to be mixed with the air after passing through the purge zone to produce regeneration air e Branch air f Return air from the supply g. Outside air mixed with regenerated air

Claims

1. an adsorption rotor having a moisture adsorption capacity is provided, the adsorption rotor is divided into at least a treatment zone, a regeneration zone, and a purge zone, and rotated in this order; The air to be treated is divided into treated air and purge air without passing through a cooler, Passing the treated air through the treatment zone and sending the air after passing through the treatment zone to a destination; The purge air is passed through the purge zone, and the air after passing through the purge zone is passed through a heater and then passed through the regeneration zone as regeneration air; The dehumidifier is configured such that either the process air or the purge air is passed through a temperature adjustment device.

2. 2. A dehumidifier as described in claim 1, wherein the air to be treated is branched into the treated air, the purge air, and mixing air, and the mixing air and the air that has passed through the purge zone are mixed, passed through the heating device, and passed through the regeneration zone as regeneration air.

3. An adsorption rotor having a moisture adsorption capacity is provided, the adsorption rotor is divided into at least a treatment zone, a regeneration zone, and a purge zone, and rotated in this order; The air to be treated is divided into treated air and branched air without passing through a cooler, Passing the process air through the process zone; The branched air is passed through a temperature control device to be branched into purge air and mixing air, The dehumidifier is configured so that the purge air is passed through the purge zone, the mixing air is mixed with the air which has passed through the purge zone, and the mixed air is then passed through a heating device to be passed through the regeneration zone as regeneration air.

4. An adsorption rotor having a moisture adsorption capacity is provided, the adsorption rotor is divided into at least a treatment zone, a regeneration zone, and a purge zone, and rotated in this order; The air to be treated is divided into purge air and branch air without passing through a cooler, Passing the purge air through the purge zone; The branched air is passed through a temperature control device to be branched into processing air and mixing air, Passing the process air through the process zone; The dehumidifier is configured so that the mixing air and the air which has passed through the purge zone are mixed, and then the mixed air is passed through a heating device and passed through the regeneration zone as regeneration air.

5. The dehumidifier according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature adjustment device is a cooler.

6. The present invention provides a method for removing moisture from a water-absorbent article, comprising: dividing the first adsorption rotor into at least a first treatment zone and a first regeneration zone; dividing the second adsorption rotor into at least a second treatment zone, a second regeneration zone, and a second purge zone; Passing treated air through the first treatment zone; The air having passed through the first treatment zone is sent to a second treatment zone and / or a second purge zone of a second adsorption rotor; The air after passing through the second treatment zone is sent to a destination; The air having passed through the second purge zone is passed through a second heating device and then passed through the second regeneration zone as regeneration air; The air having passed through the second regeneration zone is mixed with outside air, passed through a first heating device, and passed through the first regeneration zone; The air after passing through the first regeneration zone is discharged. A dehumidifier, wherein the second adsorption rotor is the adsorption rotor of the dehumidifier according to claim 1 .

7. 7. The dehumidifying apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the return air from the supply destination is mixed with the air that has passed through the first treatment zone.

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