Measurement System

Abstract

To provide a measurement system that enables real-time measurement of a nature of granular materials to be separated or classified, using a cyclone.SOLUTION: A measurement system 25 comprises; a cyclone 40; and a measuring instrument 50. The cyclone 40, which includes an interior wall 41 that surrounds an internal space 42 of a cylinder or circular truncated-cone, is configured to whirl a granular material in the internal space 42 together with a whirling flow, and thereby separate or classify the granular material. The measuring instrument 50 is configured to capture the granular material whirling in the internal space 42 to measure a particle size of the granular material.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates primarily to a measurement system for measuring the properties of powder or granular material. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes an air classifier using a cyclone. Granules classified by the cyclone are collected in a collector. A portion of the granules collected in the collector enters a primary dispersion tank via a separation tube. The primary dispersion tank contains a dispersion liquid, and the granules are dispersed by stirring the dispersion liquid. The granules then pass through a secondary dispersion tank and into a cell. A laser is irradiated onto the granules passing through the cell. This allows the particle size of the granules to be measured. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 1-151961 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In Patent Document 1, particle size is measured after the particles are classified and collected by a cyclone. Therefore, it is not possible to measure particles classified by an air classifier in real time. This problem is not limited to classification, but also applies to processes that separate powder and granular materials from gas. Furthermore, the measured properties are not limited to particle size, and similar problems arise when measuring other properties of powder and granular materials.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its main object is to provide a measurement system capable of measuring in real time the properties of powder or granular material being separated or classified using a cyclone. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The problem to be solved by the present invention is as described above. Next, the means for solving this problem and the effects thereof will be explained.

[0007] According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a measurement system having the following configuration. That is, the measurement system includes a cyclone and a measuring instrument. The cyclone includes an inner wall surrounding an internal space of a cylinder or a truncated cone, and the powder or granular material separates or classifies the powder or granular material by swirling in the internal space together with a swirling flow. The measuring instrument collects the powder or granular material swirling in the internal space and measures the properties of the powder or granular material. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] This allows the properties of powder or granular material being separated or classified using a cyclone to be measured in real time. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a granulation drying apparatus including a measurement system. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] Cross-sectional view of the measurement system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, the overall configuration of a granulation drying apparatus 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of the granulation drying apparatus 1 including a measurement system 25.

[0011] The granulation drying apparatus 1 produces granulated products from raw materials such as powder, and dries the granulated products using gas to produce granules. In the following description, the upstream side of the flow direction of the granulated products, granules, or gas will be simply referred to as "upstream," and the downstream side of the flow direction of the granulated products, granules, or gas will be simply referred to as "downstream." Furthermore, powder and granules refer to powdery or granular objects. Therefore, granules are a type of powder and granules.

[0012] As shown in Fig. 1, the granulation drying apparatus 1 includes a granulation section 2, a gas supply section 3, a drying section 4, a collection section 5, and a gas suction section 6. The drying section 4 is connected downstream of the granulation section 2. The drying section 4 is connected downstream of the gas supply section 3. The collection section 5 is connected downstream of the drying section 4. The gas suction section 6 is connected downstream of the collection section 5.

[0013] The granulation unit 2 processes the supplied raw materials into granulated products. The granulation unit 2 includes a feeder 15, a binder supply unit 17, and a granulation device 19. The feeder 15 supplies the raw materials to the granulation device 19. The binder supply unit 17 supplies the binder to the granulation device 19. The granulation device 19 produces granulated products using the supplied raw materials and binder. The granulated products produced by the granulation device 19 are sent to the drying unit 4.

[0014] A moisture meter 20 is provided in the flow path connecting the granulation unit 2 and the drying unit 4. The moisture meter 20 measures the moisture content of the granulated product passing through it. This makes it possible to confirm the moisture content of the granulated product before it is fed into the drying unit 4.

[0015] The gas supplying section 3 supplies high-temperature gas to the drying section 4 of the granulation drying apparatus 1. The gas supplying section 3 includes a blower 21 and a heater 23. The blower 21 draws in and sends out outside air. The heater 23 heats the gas sent from the blower 21. The heated gas flows toward the drying section 4. This gas is outside air, but an inert gas such as nitrogen may also be used. The type of heater 23 is not particularly limited.

[0016] The drying section 4 dries the granulated product supplied from the granulating section 2 using high-temperature gas sent from the gas supplying section 3. The drying section 4 includes a drying path for drying the granulated product. In the drying section 4, a mixed fluid obtained by mixing the granulated product from the granulating section 2 with the high-temperature gas from the gas supplying section 3 passes through the drying path. This dries the granulated product to produce granules.

[0017] The recovery section 5 recovers the granular material sent from the drying section 4. The recovery section 5 includes a measurement system 25 and a bag filter 27. The measurement system 25 uses a cyclone 40 to separate the mixed fluid from the drying section 4 into granular material and gas, and measures the particle size of the granular material using a measuring instrument 50. The detailed structure of the measurement system 25 will be described later. The granular material separated by the cyclone 40 is extracted as a product in the extraction section 29. The gas separated by the cyclone 40 flows toward the bag filter 27. The bag filter 27 removes any remaining fine powder from the gas. The gas from which the fine powder has been removed flows toward the gas suction section 6.

[0018] The moisture meter 20 described above is also provided between the cyclone 40 and the discharge section 29. This moisture meter 20 checks whether the moisture content of the product (granular material) discharged from the discharge section 29 is within an appropriate range.

[0019] The gas suction unit 6 can transfer the granular material together with the gas as a mixed fluid by sucking the gas from the collection unit 5. The gas suction unit 6 has a blower 31. The blower 31 sucks the gas from the flow path of the collection unit 5. The gas sucked into the blower 31 is discharged into the atmosphere.

[0020] Next, the detailed structure of the measurement system 25 will be described with reference to Figures 2 and 3. Figure 2 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the measurement system 25. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the measurement system 25.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 2, the measurement system 25 includes a mounting cylinder 60 and a guide member 70 in addition to the cyclone 40 and measuring instrument 50 described above.

[0022] The cyclone 40 has an internal space 42 surrounded by an inner wall 41. In this embodiment, the internal space 42 has a truncated cone shape. Specifically, the upper end, which is the end where the gas is introduced, has a large diameter, and the lower end, which is the end where the granular material is discharged, has a small diameter. The internal space 42 is not limited to a truncated cone shape, but may be cylindrical as a whole, or may have a shape that combines a truncated cone shape with a cylindrical shape.

[0023] The mixed fluid introduced into cyclone 40 moves downward in the circumferential direction indicated by the thick arrow in Figure 3, while swirling around inner wall 41 with center 100 of cyclone 40 as the center of rotation. Thereafter, the granular material contained in the mixed fluid falls downward and is collected in discharge section 29. In addition, the gas contained in the mixed fluid rises near center 100 and flows into bag filter 27.

[0024] The center 100 refers to the central axis of the internal space 42, which is shaped like a truncated cone. In this embodiment, the center 100 is parallel to the vertical direction. In addition, in plan views such as FIG. 3, any direction radiating from the center 100 is referred to as the radial direction. The radial direction is also the radial direction of the internal space 42, which is shaped like a truncated cone. In addition, the circumferential direction of the internal space 42 is referred to as the circumferential direction.

[0025] As shown in Fig. 2, a through hole 43 is formed in the inner wall 41. The through hole 43 is a hole that penetrates the inner wall 41 in the radial direction. The axial direction of the through hole 43 may be parallel to the radial direction, or may be inclined upward or downward relative to the radial direction. In this embodiment, the through hole 43 is circular, but it may have a different shape.

[0026] The measuring instrument 50 is provided in the cyclone 40. The measuring instrument 50 measures the particle size of granular material contained in the mixed fluid flowing through the internal space 42. As shown in FIG. 2 , the measuring instrument 50 includes a main body 51, a rod-shaped body 52, and a protruding portion 53.

[0027] The main body 51 includes a housing and a processing device provided within the housing. The processing device performs calculations to measure the particle size of the granular material and outputs the measurement results to an external management device. The rod-shaped body 52 is a long member. The rod-shaped body 52 passes through the through-hole 43 of the cyclone 40. A first end 52a of the rod-shaped body 52 is disposed in the internal space 42. A second end 52b of the rod-shaped body 52 is connected to the main body 51.

[0028] The protrusion 53 is connected near the first end 52a. More specifically, the protrusion 53 is connected to a portion of the rod-shaped body 52 that is located in the internal space 42. The protrusion 53 does not contact the inner wall 41. The protrusion 53 has a shape that protrudes circumferentially from the rod-shaped body 52. ​​An inlet 54 is provided at the tip of the protrusion 53 in the protruding direction. The inlet 54 faces upstream in the direction in which the mixed fluid flows. As a result, when the mixed fluid is introduced through the inlet 54, particulate matter contained in the mixed fluid is collected. The mixed fluid introduced through the inlet 54 is discharged after the particle size of the particulate matter contained in the mixed fluid is measured. The measuring instrument 50 may also have a blower that generates a suction flow to collect the mixed fluid.

[0029] Optical components for measuring the particle size of the granular material are provided inside the rod-shaped body 52 and the protrusion 53. Specifically, the optical components include a light-emitting unit that emits light and a light-receiving unit that receives the light emitted by the light-emitting unit. The light-receiving unit outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the amount of light received. The mixed fluid introduced from the inlet 54 passes through the space between the light-emitting unit and the light-receiving unit. Therefore, the light-receiving unit receives light that is partially blocked by the granular material. This makes it possible to measure the particle size of the granular material based on the electrical signal output by the light-receiving unit. Note that the particle size of the granular material may be measured using a method different from that of this embodiment.

[0030] The mounting tube 60 is a member for attaching the measuring device 50 to the cyclone 40. The mounting tube 60 is a cylindrical member and includes a first end 61 and a second end 62. The first end 61 is connected to the cyclone 40. Specifically, the mounting tube 60 is attached to the cyclone 40 so that the hollow portion of the mounting tube 60 and the through-hole 43 are aligned. The second end 62 is connected to the rod-shaped body 52 of the measuring device 50.

[0031] 2, the first end 61 is located lower than the second end 62. In other words, the axial direction of the mounting tube 60 is inclined with respect to the axial direction of the cyclone 40, and the axial direction of the mounting tube 60 is also inclined with respect to the radial direction of the cyclone 40. This allows the granular matter contained in the mixed fluid to fall under its own weight even if it reaches the inside of the mounting tube 60. Therefore, the frequency of cleaning the mounting tube 60 can be reduced.

[0032] The mixed fluid mainly swirls along the inner wall 41. However, as described above, the protruding portion 53 is not in contact with the inner wall 41, and therefore the inlet 54 is also located away from the inner wall 41. In other words, the inlet 54 is located closer to the center 100 in the radial direction than the inner wall 41. In consideration of this point, in the present embodiment, a guide member 70 that guides the mixed fluid is attached to the inner wall 41 so that the mixed fluid can be easily introduced into the inlet 54.

[0033] The guide member 70 has a guide surface 71 that guides the mixed fluid to the inlet 54. The guide surface 71 is a surface that faces the center 100 or the vicinity thereof. The guide surface 71 includes an upstream end 72 that is the end on the upstream side in the swirling direction of the mixed fluid, and a downstream end 73 that is the end on the downstream side in the swirling direction of the mixed fluid. The upstream end 72 has a smaller thickness than the downstream end 73. In other words, the downstream end 73 is located closer to the center 100 in the radial direction than the upstream end 72. The guide surface 71 in this embodiment is curved like the inner wall 41, but it may also be an inclined plane.

[0034] Furthermore, guide surface 71 is in contact with protrusion 53. This allows the mixed fluid flowing along guide surface 71 to be appropriately introduced into inlet 54. The surface of guide surface 71 that comes into contact with protrusion 53 may be shaped to correspond to the outer surface of protrusion 53. In other words, guide surface 71 and protrusion 53 may be in surface contact. This makes it less likely that a gap will form between guide surface 71 and protrusion 53, allowing the mixed fluid to be appropriately guided into inlet 54. As a result, the mixed fluid is more easily introduced into inlet 54.

[0035] As described above, the measurement system 25 of this embodiment includes the cyclone 40 and the measuring instrument 50. The cyclone 40 includes an inner wall 41 that surrounds a cylindrical or truncated conical internal space 42, and the granular material separates or classifies the granular material as it swirls in the internal space 42 together with the swirling flow. The measuring instrument 50 collects the granular material swirling in the internal space 42 and measures the particle size of the granular material.

[0036] This allows the granular material swirling in the internal space 42 of the cyclone 40 to be collected, enabling the properties of the granular material to be measured in real time. Therefore, if the particle size of the granular material exceeds the appropriate range, for example, an abnormality can be detected at an early stage.

[0037] In the measurement system 25 of this embodiment, the measuring instrument 50 has an inlet 54 through which granular material is introduced. The measuring instrument 50 measures the properties of the granular material introduced through the inlet 54. The inlet 54 is located closer to the center 100 of the internal space 42 than the inner wall 41 in the radial direction of the internal space 42.

[0038] This makes it easier to position the inlet 54 compared to a structure in which the inlet 54 is arranged facing the circumferential direction while preventing a gap from being formed between the inlet 54 and the inner wall 41.

[0039] The measurement system 25 of this embodiment is provided with a guide member 70 that is disposed upstream of the inlet 54 in the swirling direction of the swirling flow and that guides the granular material. The guide member 70 includes an upstream end 72 and a downstream end 73 in the swirling direction of the swirling flow. The downstream end 73 of the guide member 70 is located closer to the center 100 of the internal space 42 in the radial direction of the internal space 42 than the upstream end 72 of the guide member 70.

[0040] This allows the granular material to be guided to the inlet 54.

[0041] In the measurement system 25 of this embodiment, when viewed in the axial direction of the cyclone 40, the guide surface 71 of the guide member 70 that guides the granular material toward the inlet 54 is curved.

[0042] This makes it possible to guide the granular material to the introduction port 54 while preventing the granular material from colliding with the guide member 70.

[0043] In the measurement system 25 of this embodiment, the measuring device 50 includes a protruding portion 53 that protrudes in the circumferential direction of the internal space 42. The protruding portion 53 has an introduction port 54. The protruding portion 53 and the guide member 70 are in contact with each other.

[0044] This makes it difficult for a gap to form between the protrusion 53 and the guide surface 71, allowing the granular material to be properly guided to the introduction port 54.

[0045] In the measurement system 25 of this embodiment, the inner wall 41 of the cyclone 40 has a through-hole 43. The measuring instrument 50 includes a rod-shaped body 52 having an inlet 54. The rod-shaped body 52 is arranged to pass through the through-hole 43 in the inner wall 41.

[0046] This allows the inlet 54 to be disposed in the internal space 42 of the cyclone 40 with a simple structure.

[0047] The measurement system 25 of this embodiment includes a mounting tube 60 that mounts the measuring device 50 to the cyclone 40. The mounting tube 60 is cylindrical and includes a first end 61 and a second end 62. The first end 61 is connected to the through-hole 43 of the cyclone 40. The first end 61 of the mounting tube 60 is located lower than the second end 62.

[0048] As a result, even if the granular material reaches the inside of the mounting cylinder 60, the granular material falls by its own weight, so that the frequency of cleaning the mounting cylinder 60 can be reduced.

[0049] The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the above configuration can be modified, for example, as follows.

[0050] The cyclone 40 in the above embodiment separates granular materials and gas from a mixed fluid. Alternatively, the cyclone 40 may classify granular materials. Classification means sorting granular materials according to particle size. Furthermore, the object handled by the measurement system 25 is not limited to granular materials, and may also be powder.

[0051] The measuring instrument 50 in the above embodiment measures the particle size of the granular material. Alternatively, the measuring instrument 50 may measure another property of the granular material. The other property may be, for example, the moisture content of the granular material or the content of a predetermined element.

[0052] The measuring instrument 50 of the above embodiment includes a rod-shaped body 52 for collecting particulate matter. Alternatively, a measuring instrument 50 without a rod-shaped body 52 may be used.

[0053] The mounting tube 60 and the guide member 70 in the above embodiment are not essential components and can be omitted. For example, when the measuring device 50 is attached to the inner wall 41, the mounting tube 60 can be omitted. Furthermore, even if the guide member 70 is omitted, the mixed fluid can be guided to the inlet 54 depending on the position or shape of the inlet 54. In this way, even if at least one of the mounting tube 60 and the guide member 70 is omitted, the effect of being able to measure the properties of powder or granular material in real time can be achieved. [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] 1 Granulation drying equipment 25 Measurement System 40 Cyclone 41 Inner wall 42 Interior Space 43 Through hole 50 Measuring Instruments 51 Main body 52 Rod-shaped body 53 Protrusion 54 entrance 60 Mounting tube 70 Guide member 71 Guide surface

Claims

1. a cyclone including an inner wall surrounding an internal space of a cylinder or a truncated cone, wherein the powder or granular material swirls in the internal space together with a swirling flow, thereby separating or classifying the powder or granular material; a measuring instrument that collects the powder or granular material swirling in the internal space through an inlet and measures the properties of the powder or granular material; a guide member that is disposed upstream of the inlet in the swirling direction of the swirling flow and that guides the powder or granular material; Equipped with the inlet is located closer to the center of the internal space than the inner wall in the radial direction of the internal space, the guide member includes an upstream end and a downstream end in the swirling direction of the swirling flow, A measurement system, characterized in that the downstream end of the guide member is located closer to a center of the internal space in a radial direction of the internal space than the upstream end of the guide member.

2. 10. The measurement system of claim 1, A measuring system characterized in that, when viewed in the axial direction of the cyclone, the guide surface of the guide member that guides the powder or granular material toward the inlet is curved.

3. 3. The measurement system according to claim 1 or 2, the measuring device includes a protrusion that protrudes in a circumferential direction of the internal space, The inlet is located in the protrusion, A measurement system, characterized in that the protrusion and the guide member are in contact with each other.

4. 4. The measurement system according to claim 1, The inner wall of the cyclone has a through hole, the measuring instrument includes a rod-shaped body that collects the powder or granular material, A measurement system characterized in that the rod-shaped body is arranged to pass through the through-hole of the inner wall.

5. 5. The measurement system according to claim 4, a mounting cylinder having a cylindrical shape including a first end and a second end, the first end being connected to the through-hole of the cyclone, and for mounting the measuring device to the cyclone; The measurement system according to claim 1, wherein the first end of the mounting tube is positioned lower than the second end.

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