Excrement treatment material and its manufacturing method

Abstract

Provided are an excrement treatment material capable of exhibiting water repellency without undergoing a water repellency treatment and a method for producing the same. This excrement treatment material 1 comprises water-repelling granules 10. The granules 10 contain a water-absorbing material as the primary material and sodium bicarbonate.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an excrement treating material and a method for producing the same. [Background technology]

[0002] An example of a conventional excrement treatment material is that described in Patent Document 1. The excrement treatment material described in this document is made up of a plurality of hydrophobic (water-repellent) granules, and is laid in a pet toilet. This pet toilet is divided into an upper space and a lower space by a mesh sheet that allows urine to pass through. The hydrophobic granules are disposed in the upper space. An absorbent sheet is disposed in the lower space. When a pet urinates, the urine passes through the gaps between the hydrophobic granules and reaches the lower space through the mesh sheet. The urine that reaches the lower space is absorbed by the absorbent sheet. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-110700 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Unlike water-absorbent excrement treatment materials, such hydrophobic excrement treatment materials do not absorb urine at all, or if they do, they absorb very little, and therefore can be reused. However, when forming granules using water-absorbent materials such as paper as the main material, it is necessary to apply a hydrophobic treatment to the surface of the granules in order to make the granules hydrophobic. This complicates the manufacturing process of the excrement treatment material.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide an excrement treatment material that can exhibit hydrophobicity without undergoing hydrophobic treatment, and a method for producing the same. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The excrement treating material according to the present invention is made of hydrophobic granular material, and is characterized in that the granular material is mainly made of a water-absorbent material and also contains sodium bicarbonate.

[0007] This excrement treatment material is primarily made of a water-absorbent material and contains granules containing sodium bicarbonate. The inclusion of sodium bicarbonate increases the liquid permeability of the granules. Therefore, despite the use of a water-absorbent material as the primary material, hydrophobic granules can be obtained without the need for a hydrophobic treatment on the granule surfaces.

[0008] In addition, the manufacturing method of excrement treatment material according to the present invention is a method for manufacturing excrement treatment material consisting of hydrophobic granular material, and is characterized by including a granular material formation step of forming the granular material, which is made primarily of a water-absorbent material and contains baking soda.

[0009] In this manufacturing method, granules are formed using a water-absorbent material as the main material and containing sodium bicarbonate. By adding sodium bicarbonate, the liquid permeability of the granules can be increased. Therefore, even though the water-absorbent material is used as the main material, hydrophobic granules can be obtained without applying a hydrophobic treatment to the surface of the granules. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, an excrement treating material that can exhibit hydrophobicity without undergoing hydrophobic treatment, and a method for producing the same, are realized. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an embodiment of an excrement treating material according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same elements are given the same reference numerals and redundant description will be omitted.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing one embodiment of an excrement treatment material according to the present invention. The excrement treatment material 1 is used to treat excrement (mainly urine) and is made up of granules 10. In this embodiment, the excrement treatment material 1 is made up of a plurality of granules 10. Each granule 10 is granular. Examples of the shape of such granules include spheres, cylinders, and ellipsoids. The particle size of each granule 10 is, for example, 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less. Here, the particle size of a granule 10 is defined as the diameter of the smallest sphere that can contain the granule 10.

[0014] The excrement treatment material 1 may be an animal excrement treatment material for treating the excrement of animals such as cats and dogs, or may be an excrement treatment material for treating human excrement. The excrement treatment material 1 is used, for example, in a two-tiered toilet (system toilet) divided into an upper space and a lower space by a partition member having holes that allow urine to pass through. In this case, the excrement treatment material 1 is used in a state in which a plurality of granules 10 are stacked in the upper space (on the partition member) of the system toilet.

[0015] Each granule 10 is hydrophobic. That is, each granule 10 has the property of not absorbing any liquids, such as urine, or absorbing very little, if any. For a granule 10 to be considered hydrophobic, it must have a liquid passage rate of 80% or more, as measured by the following test. First, a cylinder with a diameter of 50 mm and a depth of 30 mm is placed on top of a drain with numerous openings measuring 3 mm x 8 mm, and the granules 10 (sample) are filled inside the cylinder. An empty container is placed below the drain. Next, 20 ml of saline solution is dripped onto the cylinder from a position 20 mm above the top of the cylinder over 10 seconds. 15 seconds after the dripping is complete, the mass (g) of the saline solution in the container is measured. This saline solution has passed through the sample (the gaps between the granules 10). Next, the liquid passage rate (%) is calculated by dividing the measured mass by 20 x 100. If the measured mass is 16 g or more, the liquid permeability is 80% or more, and therefore the granular material 10 can be said to be hydrophobic.

[0016] Each granule 10 contains a water-absorbing material as its main material. Here, the main material refers to the material that accounts for the largest weight percentage of the granule 10 among the materials constituting each granule 10 (excluding baking soda, which will be described later). The weight percentage of the main material (water-absorbing material) in each granule 10 is preferably 50% to 95%, and more preferably 75% to 90%. The water-absorbing material is preferably an organic material. Examples of organic water-absorbing materials that can be used include paper, used tea leaves, plastics, and soybean curd refuse. In this embodiment, the water-absorbing material has not been subjected to a hydrophobic treatment.

[0017] Papers refer to materials primarily composed of pulp. Examples of papers include ordinary paper, recycled pulp, PVC wallpaper fraction (paper obtained by classifying PVC wallpaper), fluff pulp, papermaking sludge, pulp sludge, etc. Examples of plastics that can be used include disposable diaper fraction (plastic obtained by classifying disposable diapers). The bean curd refuse is preferably dried bean curd refuse.

[0018] Each granule 10 contains baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) in addition to the water-absorbing material. The weight ratio of baking soda in each granule 10 is equal to or second to the water-absorbing material. The weight ratio of baking soda in each granule 10 is preferably 5% or more and 50% or less, and more preferably 10% or more and 25% or less.

[0019] Each granular body 10 contains a hydrophobic agent in addition to a water-absorbent material and baking soda. For example, paraffin can be used as the hydrophobic agent. The weight ratio of the hydrophobic agent in each granular body 10 is, for example, 1% or more and 5% or less. In this embodiment, each granular body 10 is made of only a water-absorbent material, baking soda, and a hydrophobic agent, and does not contain any other materials (adhesives, etc.).

[0020] In this embodiment, each granule 10 is a granulated material whose surface is not coated. Specifically, each granule 10 is a granulated material obtained by granulating a material to be granulated (a material constituting each granule 10). Each granule 10 does not have a coating layer (a layer that covers part or all of the surface of the granulated material). Therefore, each granule 10 has a single-layer structure made of homogeneous granulated material.

[0021] Next, an example of a method for manufacturing the excrement treating material 1 will be described as an embodiment of the method for manufacturing the excrement treating material according to the present invention. This manufacturing method includes a granular material forming step.

[0022] The granule formation process is a process for forming granules 10. In this process, a granulation device is used to granulate the granulation material to form a plurality of granules that become the granules 10. The granulation material is a uniform mixture of a main material (water-absorbent material), baking soda, and a hydrophobic agent. In this embodiment, an extrusion granulator, which is a type of wet granulator, is used as the granulation device. Prior to granulation, the granulation material is subjected to pre-treatments such as grinding, kneading, and adding water. The amount of water added (weight ratio of water to the granulation material) is, for example, 10% to 30%. After granulation, post-treatments such as sieving and drying are performed as needed. In this embodiment, after granulation, the surface of the granules is neither coated nor subjected to a hydrophobic treatment. As described above, an excrement treatment material 1 consisting of a plurality of granules 10 is obtained.

[0023] The effects of this embodiment will be explained. In this embodiment, granules 10 are formed using a water-absorbent material as the main material and containing baking soda. By including baking soda in this manner, the liquid passage rate of the granules 10 can be increased. This is because the water-absorbent baking soda functions as a solidifying agent, making it difficult for gaps to form on the surface or inside of the granules 10. Such gaps become paths through which liquids such as urine can penetrate into the interior of the granules 10, thereby reducing the liquid passage rate of the granules 10. Therefore, despite using a water-absorbent material as the main material, it is possible to obtain hydrophobic granules 10 without applying a hydrophobic treatment to the surface of the granules 10. Therefore, an excrement treatment material 1 that can exhibit hydrophobicity without applying a hydrophobic treatment, and a method for manufacturing the same, have been realized.

[0024] Furthermore, since baking soda has a bitter taste, by including baking soda in the granules 10, it is possible to reduce the risk of animals such as cats or children accidentally ingesting the granules 10.

[0025] The granules 10 are granulated materials whose surfaces are not coated. Therefore, the granules 10 can be formed without carrying out a step of coating the surfaces of the granulated materials. This simplifies the manufacturing process of the excrement treating material 1.

[0026] The weight proportion of baking soda in the granules 10 is equal to or second largest after the water-absorbent material. By incorporating a relatively large amount of baking soda into the granules 10, the baking soda's function as a solidifying agent can be fully utilized. From this perspective, the weight proportion of baking soda in the granules 10 is preferably 5% or more, and more preferably 10% or more. On the other hand, if the proportion of baking soda is too high, problems such as excess baking soda clogging the die through-holes during extrusion granulation may occur. From this perspective, the weight proportion of baking soda in the granules 10 is preferably 50% or less, and more preferably 25% or less. However, it is not essential that the weight proportion of baking soda be equal to or second largest after the water-absorbent material. For example, the weight proportion of baking soda may be greater than the weight proportion of the water-absorbent material.

[0027] A higher proportion of the water-absorbent material is advantageous in terms of the moldability (ease of molding during granulation) and shape retention (resistance to deformation after granulation) of the granules 10. From this perspective, the weight ratio of the water-absorbent material to the granules 10 is preferably 50% or more, and more preferably 75% or more. On the other hand, if the proportion of the water-absorbent material is too high, the proportion of baking soda becomes too small relative to the granules 10, which may result in the baking soda not functioning as a solidifying agent. From this perspective, the weight ratio of the water-absorbent material to the granules 10 is preferably 95% or less, and more preferably 90% or less.

[0028] When the absorbent material is organic, the granules 10 can be obtained which are suitable for incineration. This contributes to the convenience of disposing of used granules 10. When paper is used as the absorbent material, the granules 10 can be obtained which are particularly suitable for incineration. Furthermore, when recycled pulp is used as the absorbent material, it can also contribute to the effective use of waste paper.

[0029] The granular material 10 contains a hydrophobic agent, which can further improve the hydrophobicity of the granular material 10.

[0030] The granular material 10 is made of only a water-absorbing material, baking soda, and a hydrophobic agent. In this case, the granular material 10 having hydrophobic properties can be obtained with a simple structure.

[0031] In order to confirm the effect of this embodiment, excrement treating materials 1 were actually produced by the above-mentioned production method. The composition of each of the produced granules 10 was as follows. ·Water absorbent material…81.1% by weight Baking soda: 16.2% by weight Hydrophobic agent: 2.7% by weight

[0032] Recycled pulp was used as the water-absorbing material. Paraffin was used as the hydrophobic agent. The amount of water added during extrusion granulation was 13.5% by weight. The liquid passage rate of the granules 10 was measured by the above-mentioned test and was found to be 95.5%. Thus, the excrement treatment material 1 produced exhibited sufficient hydrophobicity.

[0033] The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. In the above embodiment, the granular material 10 contains a hydrophobic agent. However, it is not essential that the granular material 10 contains a hydrophobic agent. In other words, each granular material 10 may be made of only a water-absorbent material and baking soda.

[0034] In the above embodiment, each granular body 10 may contain one or more materials selected from the group consisting of adhesives, colorants, and deodorizing and antibacterial agents, together with or instead of the hydrophobic agent. Examples of adhesives include starch such as cornstarch, CMC (carboxymethyl cellulose), PVA (polyvinyl alcohol), and dextrin. The weight ratio of the adhesive to each granular body 10 is, for example, 1% to 5%. Examples of colorants include common dyes or pigments, as well as chalk powder. The weight ratio of the colorant to each granular body 10 is, for example, 1% to 5%. Examples of deodorizing and antibacterial agents include copper compounds such as copper sulfate, or catechin powder. The weight ratio of the deodorizing and antibacterial agent to each granular body 10 is, for example, 0.1% to 1%.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the water-absorbing material is an organic material, but the water-absorbing material may be an inorganic material or a mixture of an organic material and an inorganic material. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 1. Excrement treatment materials 10 Granules

Claims

1. An excrement treatment material made of hydrophobic granular material, The granular material is mainly made of a water-absorbing material and also contains baking soda, The excrement treating material is characterized in that the granular material is a granular material whose surface is not coated.

2. The excrement treatment material according to claim 1, The weight ratio of the baking soda in the granules is equal to or second to the water-absorbent material.

3. The excrement treatment material according to claim 1 or 2, The weight ratio of the sodium bicarbonate to the granules is 5% or more and 50% or less.

4. The excrement treatment material according to claim 3, The weight ratio of the sodium bicarbonate is 10% or more and 25% or less in the excrement treating material.

5. The excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 1 to 4, The water-absorbing material is an organic excrement treatment material.

6. The excrement treatment material according to claim 5, The water-absorbing material is an excrement treatment material made of paper.

7. The excrement treatment material according to claim 6, The water-absorbing material is an excrement treatment material made of recycled pulp.

8. The excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 1 to 7, The weight ratio of the water-absorbent material to the granular material is 50% or more and 95% or less.

9. The excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 1 to 8, The granular material is an excrement treating material containing a hydrophobic agent.

10. The excrement treatment material according to claim 9, The excrement treating material, wherein the hydrophobic agent is paraffin.

11. The excrement treatment material according to claim 9 or 10, The weight ratio of the hydrophobic agent to the granules is 1% or more and 5% or less.

12. The excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 9 to 11, The granular material is an excrement treating material consisting only of the water-absorbing material, the baking soda, and the hydrophobic agent.

13. A method for producing an excrement treatment material made of hydrophobic granular material, comprising: a granule forming step of forming the granules containing a water-absorbent material as a main material and sodium bicarbonate; In the granular material forming step, the granular material is granulated to form the granular material, which is a granulated material having an uncoated surface.

14. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to claim 13, A method for manufacturing excrement treatment material, in which the granular material is formed in the granular material formation process so that the weight ratio of the baking soda in the granular material is equal to that of the water-absorbing material or is the second largest after the water-absorbing material.

15. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to claim 13 or 14, In the granular material forming step, the granular material is formed so that the weight ratio of the sodium bicarbonate in the granular material is 5% or more and 50% or less.

16. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to claim 15, In the granular material forming step, the granular material is formed so that the weight ratio of the sodium bicarbonate is 10% or more and 25% or less.

17. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 13 to 16, The method for producing an excrement treatment material, wherein the water-absorbing material is an organic material.

18. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to claim 17, The method for producing an excrement treatment material, wherein the absorbent material is paper.

19. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to claim 18, The method for producing an excrement treatment material, wherein the absorbent material is recycled pulp.

20. 20. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 13 to 19, In the granular material forming step, the granular material is formed so that the weight ratio of the water-absorbent material to the granular material is 50% or more and 95% or less.

21. 21. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 13 to 20, In the granular material forming step, the granular material contains a hydrophobic agent.

22. 22. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to claim 21, The method for producing an excrement treating material, wherein the hydrophobic agent is paraffin.

23. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to claim 21 or 22, In the granular material forming step, the granular material is formed so that the weight ratio of the hydrophobic agent in the granular material is 1% or more and 5% or less.

24. The method for producing an excrement treatment material according to any one of claims 21 to 23, In the granular material forming step, the granular material is formed from only the water-absorbent material, the sodium bicarbonate, and the hydrophobic agent.

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