Virus removal device

Abstract

In order to provide a virus removal device that utilizes a wet mechanism to remove a virus from a gas, thereby enabling achievement of a high virus removal probability, reduced pressure loss of a circulating gas, and a decreased size of the device relative to the amount of air to be treated, this virus removal device comprises: a cylindrical treatment chamber 1 into which a gas is introduced and a virus is removed from the gas; a collecting body 2 which is disposed inside the treatment chamber1, is made of a rotating brush, and collects the virus that is contained in the gas; a liquid spraying mechanism 3 which is disposed in the treatment chamber 1; a rotation drive mechanism 6 which rotates the collecting body 2; a gas introduction part 7 which introduces the gas into the treatment chamber 1; a gas discharge part 8 which discharges the gas from which the virus has been removed from the treatment chamber 1; and a liquid discharge part 9 which discharges the liquid containing the virus that was removed from the gas.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a virus removal device for removing viruses from gas. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, devices employing various dry and wet mechanisms have been proposed as virus removal devices for killing or removing viruses (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 3).

[0003] Among these conventional virus removal devices, devices that employ a wet mechanism, such as the device disclosed in Patent Document 3, kill or remove viruses by passing gas through a filter sprayed with a chemical solution. Therefore, while a higher probability of virus removal can be expected compared to dry mechanisms, there is a problem in that the pressure loss of the gas circulating within the device is large, making the device larger in size relative to the amount of air to be treated. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-10991 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-151654 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-96794 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In view of the problems associated with conventional virus removal devices described above, an object of the present invention is to provide a virus removal device that employs a wet mechanism to remove viruses from gas, thereby achieving a high virus removal rate, minimizing pressure loss in the circulating gas, and enabling the device to be made smaller relative to the amount of air it processes. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the virus removal device of the present invention is a virus removal device with the function of removing viruses from gas, and is characterized by comprising a cylindrical processing chamber into which gas is introduced and viruses are removed from the gas, a collector consisting of a rotating brush that is placed within the processing chamber and collects viruses contained in the gas, a liquid spraying mechanism disposed in the processing chamber, a rotation drive mechanism that rotates the collector, a gas inlet section that introduces gas into the processing chamber, a gas outlet section that discharges the gas from which viruses have been removed from the processing chamber, and a liquid outlet section that discharges the liquid containing the viruses removed from the gas. Here, "virus" includes viruses such as coronavirus, influenza virus, and norovirus.

[0007] In this case, the liquid spray mechanism can be disposed at the middle position of the processing chamber, and collectors each consisting of a rotating brush can be disposed above and below it.

[0008] Furthermore, the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge portion can be circulated to a liquid spray mechanism.

[0009] The liquid may also contain a component that kills viruses.

[0010] The liquid may also be provided with a light source that irradiates the liquid with light that kills viruses.

[0011] Furthermore, gas can be introduced into the processing chamber from the gas inlet port and discharged from the processing chamber through the gas outlet port solely by the action of the airflow generated by the rotation of the collector consisting of the rotating brush. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the virus removal device of the present invention, by adopting a wet mechanism to remove viruses from gas, a high virus removal rate can be achieved, the pressure loss of the circulating gas is small, and the device can be made smaller relative to the amount of air to be treated.

[0013] Furthermore, by disposing the liquid spray mechanism at a central position in the processing chamber and arranging collectors consisting of rotating brushes on both the top and bottom sides of the mechanism, the gas discharged from the gas discharge section can be discharged in a dry state.

[0014] Furthermore, by circulating the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge portion to the liquid spray mechanism, the amount of liquid used and the amount of liquid discharged can be reduced.

[0015] Furthermore, by containing a component that kills viruses in the liquid, it is possible to kill viruses contained in the gas to be treated or in the liquid.

[0016] Furthermore, by providing a light source that irradiates the liquid with light that kills viruses, it is possible to kill viruses contained in the gas to be treated or in the liquid.

[0017] Furthermore, by introducing gas into the processing chamber from the gas inlet section and discharging the gas from the processing chamber through the gas outlet section solely by the action of the airflow generated by the rotation of the collector consisting of the rotating brush, an independently installed virus removal device can be configured to operate solely by the driving force of the rotation drive mechanism that rotates the collector, thereby simplifying the device configuration and making it easier to balance the gas flow rate (processing volume) and virus removal capacity. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of a virus removal device of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a first modified embodiment of a virus removal device of the present invention. [Figure 3] 10A and 10B are explanatory views showing a second modified embodiment of a virus removal device of the present invention, in which (a) is an overall front view, (b) is a XX cross-sectional view of (a), and (c) is a YY cross-sectional view of (a). [Figure 4] 10A and 10B are explanatory views showing a third modified embodiment of a virus removal device of the present invention, in which (a) is an overall front view, (b) is a XX cross-sectional view of (a), and (c) is a YY cross-sectional view of (a). [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a fourth modified embodiment of the virus removal device of the present invention, in which (a) is an overall front view, (b) is a CC cross-sectional view of (a), (c) is a DD cross-sectional view of (a), (d) is an AA arrow view of (a), (e) is a BB cross-sectional view of (a), (f) is an EE cross-sectional view of (a), (g) is an F arrow view of (f), and (h) is a G arrow view of (g). DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a virus removal device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0020] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the virus removal device of the present invention. This virus removal device is for removing viruses from gas and comprises a tubular, preferably cylindrical, treatment chamber 1 into which gas is introduced and viruses are removed from the gas, a collector 2 arranged in the treatment chamber 1 and consisting of a rotating brush with bristles 22 attached to a support 21 for capturing viruses contained in the gas, a liquid spraying mechanism 3 arranged in the treatment chamber 1, a liquid storage section 5 equipped with an agitator 4 formed at the bottom of the treatment chamber 1, a rotation drive mechanism 6 for rotating the collector 2 and the agitator 4, a gas inlet section 7 for introducing gas into the treatment chamber 1, a gas outlet section 8 for discharging the gas from which viruses have been removed from the treatment chamber 1, and a liquid outlet section 9 for discharging the liquid containing the viruses removed from the gas. Here, "virus" includes viruses such as coronavirus, influenza virus, and norovirus.

[0021] The brushes having bristles 22 planted in the support 21 constituting the collector 2 include brushes in which the bristles 22 are planted in a localized area of ​​the support 21, and brushes in which the bristles 22 are planted dispersedly over almost the entire surface of the support 21. Brushes in which bristles 22 are planted in a concentrated manner in a local area of ​​the support 21 include spiral brushes (this embodiment), disc brushes, and the like.

[0022] The brush constituting the collector 2 is preferably arranged so that the tips of the bristles 22 attached to the support 21 come into contact with the inner circumferential surface of the cylindrical processing chamber 1 . As a result, the brushes that make up the collector 2 can keep the inner circumferential surface of the processing chamber 1 constantly clean.

[0023] The materials for the brush support 21 and bristles 22 are not particularly limited. However, taking into consideration the processing temperature, for example, when the processing temperature is relatively low, from room temperature to around 150°C, various synthetic resins with relatively low heat resistance, such as polyethylene terephthalate resin or polyamide resin, or conductive synthetic resins obtained by blending these synthetic resins with powders of good electrical conductors, such as metal or carbon, can be used. When the processing temperature is higher, synthetic resins with high heat resistance, highly heat-resistant conductive synthetic resins obtained by blending these high-heat synthetic resins with powders of good electrical conductors, such as metal or carbon, or metals can be used. When the processing temperature is high, materials with particularly high thermal conductivity, such as metals, aluminum, iron, stainless steel, ceramic wool, or fibers made of a mixture of metal and ceramic, can be selected to efficiently absorb heat from the processing chamber to the collector. Furthermore, when a heating means for heating the collector is provided, the heat generated by the heating means can be efficiently conducted to the surface of the collector. This allows the processing capacity of the device to rise sharply when it is started up, and also allows the virus killing process to proceed on the surface of the collector.

[0024] The liquid spray mechanism 3 disposed in the processing chamber 1 has a nozzle 31 for spraying the liquid disposed at a central position in the processing chamber 1.

[0025] In this case, it is preferable that the bristles of the collector 2, which is a brush located at position Z2 above the nozzle 31, are made of a hydrophobic (water-repellent) material such as a synthetic resin such as a polyolefin resin such as polypropylene resin or polyethylene terephthalate resin, or a metal. In addition, the bristles of the collector 2, which is a brush located at position Z1 below the nozzle 31, can be made of the same material, or can be made of a hydrophilic material such as polyamide resin nylon, polyvinyl chloride resin, or polyvinylidene chloride resin.

[0026] This allows the gas discharged from the gas discharge section 8 to be discharged in a dry state by shaking off the liquid using a collector 2 consisting of a brush with bristles made of a hydrophobic (water-repellent) material at a position Z2 above the position where the nozzle 31 of the liquid spraying mechanism 3 is arranged. In addition, the virus removal efficiency can be improved by entangling and capturing viruses with a collector 2 consisting of a brush with bristles made of a hydrophilic material at a position Z1 below the position where the nozzle 31 of the liquid spraying mechanism 3 is disposed.

[0027] The position of the nozzle 31 is not limited to the middle position of the processing chamber 1 in this embodiment, but may be disposed at an upper position of the processing chamber 1 or provided on the support 21 of the brush that constitutes the collector 2.

[0028] The liquid sprayed from the liquid spraying mechanism 3 can contain water (or hot water) as well as a component that can kill viruses contained in the air to be treated or viruses contained in the liquid. Examples of this component (chemical solution) include aqueous sodium hypochlorite solution, hypochlorous acid water, surfactants (linear alkylbenzenesodium sulfonate, alkylglycoside, alkylamine oxide, benzalkonium chloride, benzethonium chloride, dialkyldimethylammonium chloride, polyoxyethylene alkyl ether, pure soap components (fatty acid potassium, fatty acid sodium), etc.), ozone (water), photocatalytic substances such as titanium dioxide, etc. These components (medicinal solutions) can be introduced directly into the virus removal device from a supply device (not shown), or a generator can be incorporated into the virus removal device. In addition, viruses can also be killed by providing a light source (not shown) that irradiates light that kills viruses, such as ultraviolet light, deep ultraviolet light (excimer laser light), or infrared light (including light intended to generate ozone (water) or interact with photocatalytic substances), in a liquid flow path such as the processing chamber 1 or the liquid storage section 5 formed at the bottom of the processing chamber 1.

[0029] A liquid storage section 5 equipped with an agitator 4 formed at the bottom of the processing chamber 1 temporarily collects and stores the liquid containing viruses that has been captured by the capture body 2 and washed away by the liquid sprayed from the spraying mechanism 3, and then sequentially discharges it via the liquid discharge section 9. Here, the shape of the agitator 4 is not particularly limited as long as it can agitate and discharge the virus-containing liquid stored in the storage section 5, and in addition to a rod-shaped one, a screw-shaped one, a propeller-shaped one, etc. can be used. This allows the virus-containing liquid to be smoothly discharged in a homogenized state. The agitator 4 may be omitted depending on the properties of the gas to be treated and the treatment contents.

[0030] The liquid reservoir 5 may be integrally formed at the bottom of the treatment chamber 1, or may be detachably disposed in the treatment chamber 1 for maintenance or for treating a large amount of viruses.

[0031] The rotation drive mechanism 6 that rotates the collector 2 and the agitator 4 is intended to rotate the collector 2 and the agitator 4 to enhance the virus capture effect of the collector 2 and the homogenization effect of the agitator 4 on the virus-containing liquid stored in the liquid storage section 5. In this embodiment, the rotation axis of the collector 2 (brush support 21) and the rotation axis of the agitator 4 are configured as the same axis, and the rotation drive mechanism 6 is a common drive mechanism, but they can also be separate drive mechanisms. Furthermore, the rotating shaft of the collector 2 (brush support 21) and the rotating shaft of the agitator 4 are provided with bearings at both ends, enabling high-speed rotation operation of, for example, 1000 rpm or more, but it is also possible to provide a bearing only at the upper end. Here, the rotation speed of the rotating shaft of collector 2 is set to 100 to 3600 rpm, preferably 300 to 2400 rpm, and more preferably 600 to 1800 rpm, taking into consideration the virus capture effect of collector 2, energy consumption, etc.

[0032] Furthermore, by circulating the liquid collected in the liquid storage section 5 to the liquid spray mechanism 3, it is possible to reduce the amount of liquid used and the amount of drainage. In this case, a filter, a pump, a switching valve, etc. may be provided in the liquid circulation path (not shown) as required. Specifically, in a virus removal device equipped with a treatment chamber 1 having a diameter of 200 mm, the liquid spraying mechanism 3 typically sprays liquid at a rate of several L / min to several hundred L / min, preferably several tens of L / min. However, by circulating the liquid in this manner, the amount of liquid used and the amount of wastewater can be reduced to less than one-tenth of the amount of liquid sprayed.

[0033] The virus removal device of this embodiment can be installed in the middle of a duct through which gas flows, or it can be installed independently.

[0034] In this case, as shown in the first modified embodiment in FIG. 2, in addition to a pump 32 for circulating the liquid, a fan 10 for moving the gas can be provided.

[0035] Furthermore, as shown in the second modified embodiment in FIG. 3, gas can be introduced into the processing chamber 1 from the gas inlet 7 and discharged from the processing chamber 1 via the gas outlet 8 solely by the action of the airflow generated by the rotation of the collector 2 consisting of a rotating brush. In the processing chamber 1 forming the gas inlet section 7 and the gas outlet section 8, airflow guide plates 11 and 12 are formed so that a pressure difference is generated by the airflow generated by the rotation of the collector 2 consisting of a rotating brush, and gas is introduced into the processing chamber 1 from the gas inlet section 7 and is discharged from the processing chamber 1 via the gas outlet section 8. In this case, the collector 2 made of a rotating brush can be a spiral brush (in this embodiment), a disc brush, or a brush with bristles 22 dispersed and planted over almost the entire surface of the support 21. In the case of a spiral brush, the flow rate (processing amount) of gas can be increased by aligning the flow direction of the gas in the processing chamber 1 (from bottom to top) with the feed direction of the spiral brush by adjusting the rotation direction of the collector 2 made of a rotating brush. Here, instead of the air flow guide plate 11, as shown in the third modified embodiment shown in Figure 4, the opening of the gas introduction part 7 on the processing chamber 1 side can be formed in the center of the processing chamber 1, where the pressure becomes low due to the action of the air flow generated by the rotation of the collector 2 consisting of a rotating brush, or as shown in the fourth modified embodiment shown in Figure 5, the opening of the gas introduction part 7 on the processing chamber 1 side can be formed in a direction where the dynamic pressure of the air flow (arrow in Figure 5(h)) generated by the rotation of the collector (not shown) consisting of a rotating brush does not act, or instead of the air flow guide plate 12, as shown in the fourth modified embodiment shown in Figure 5, the opening of the gas discharge part 8 on the processing chamber 1 side can be formed in a direction where the dynamic pressure of the air flow (arrow in Figure 5(d)) generated by the rotation of the collector (not shown) consisting of a rotating brush acts, so that gas can be introduced from the gas introduction part 7 into the processing chamber 1 and discharged from the processing chamber 1 via the gas discharge part 8. Furthermore, the gas discharge part 8 can be formed in an elbow shape, as shown in a fourth modified embodiment in Figure 5, so that gas can be discharged upward from the processing chamber 1 through the gas discharge part 8. The configuration can be changed as appropriate, for example, by forming the gas introduction section 7 at the top (top surface) of the processing chamber 1 and the gas exhaust section 8 at the bottom of the processing chamber 1, or by arranging the axes of the processing chamber 1 and the collector 2 (rotating brush) in a horizontal or oblique direction other than the vertical direction (all of which are not shown). This allows the independently installed virus removal device to be configured to operate solely using the driving force of the rotary drive mechanism 6 that rotates the collector 2 (and the agitator 4, which can be arranged as needed), simplifying the device configuration and making it easier to balance the gas flow rate (processing volume) and virus removal capacity compared to when a fan 10 is provided to circulate the gas.

[0036] In this virus removal device, viruses captured by the capture body 2 are washed away with liquid sprayed from the spraying mechanism 3, and are temporarily collected in a liquid storage section 5 equipped with an agitator 4 formed at the bottom of the treatment chamber 1. The virus-containing liquid is then sequentially discharged from the liquid storage section 5 via a liquid discharge section 9. This allows for smooth, maintenance-free treatment of virus-containing gas in a low-load environment with little pressure loss, without using large amounts of liquid, and in particular allows for the device to be made smaller relative to the amount of air to be treated. In addition to removing viruses contained in the gas, by using a chemical liquid that kills viruses in the liquid sprayed from the spraying mechanism 3, it is possible to kill the viruses removed from the gas contained in the liquid.

[0037] Furthermore, performance tests have confirmed that this virus removal device can capture a wide range of sizes, specifically, at least particles contained in gas, and remove them from the gas (removal rate of particles with a particle diameter of 0.04 μm: 89%, removal rate of particles with a diameter of 0.1 μm: 95%). This means that it can be said to exhibit excellent removal performance against viruses (coronaviruses are approximately 0.1 μm in size).

[0038] The virus removal device of the present invention has been described above based on several embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to the configurations described in the above embodiments, and the configuration can be changed as appropriate within the scope of the invention, such as by appropriately combining the configurations described in each embodiment, or by normally operating in a dry mode with little pressure loss and, as necessary, performing cleaning with liquid sprayed from the spraying mechanism 3. [Industrial Applicability]

[0039] The virus removal device of the present invention employs a wet mechanism to remove viruses from gas, thereby achieving a high virus removal rate, minimizing pressure loss in the circulating gas, and enabling the device to be made smaller relative to the amount of air to be treated, making it suitable for a wide range of uses as a virus removal device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1 Processing chamber 11 Airflow guide plate 12 Airflow guide plate 2 Collector (brush) 21 Support 22 hair 3 Liquid spray mechanism 31 nozzles 32 Pump 4 Stirring body 5. Liquid reservoir 6 Rotation drive mechanism 7 Gas inlet 8 Gas exhaust section 9 Liquid drain 10 Fans

Claims

1. A virus removal device having a function of removing viruses from gas, The apparatus comprises a cylindrical processing chamber into which a gas is introduced and viruses are removed from the gas, a collector formed of a rotating brush that is disposed within the processing chamber and that collects viruses contained in the gas, a liquid spraying mechanism disposed within the processing chamber, a rotation drive mechanism that rotates the collector, a gas inlet section that introduces the gas into the processing chamber, a gas outlet section that discharges the gas from which viruses have been removed from the processing chamber, and a liquid outlet section that discharges the liquid containing the viruses removed from the gas, The opening of the gas inlet on the processing chamber side is formed in a direction in which the dynamic pressure of the airflow generated by the rotation of the collector made of the rotating brush does not act, and the opening of the gas outlet on the processing chamber side is formed in a direction in which the dynamic pressure of the airflow generated by the rotation of the collector made of the rotating brush acts. This allows gas to be introduced into the processing chamber from the gas inlet and discharged from the processing chamber through the gas outlet only by the action of the airflow generated by the rotation of the collector made of the rotating brush. A virus removal device characterized by:

2. 2. A virus removal device according to claim 1, wherein the liquid spray mechanism is disposed at a central position in the treatment chamber, and collectors each consisting of a rotating brush are disposed above and below the liquid spray mechanism.

3. 3. The virus removal device according to claim 1, wherein the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge section is circulated to a liquid spray mechanism.

4. 4. A virus removal device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the liquid contains a component that kills viruses.

5. 5. A virus removal device according to claim 1, further comprising a light source for irradiating the liquid with light that kills viruses.

6. A virus removal device as described in claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, characterized in that the collector consisting of the rotating brush is made of a spiral brush, and the flow rate of gas is increased by matching the flow direction of gas in the processing chamber with the feed direction of the spiral brush depending on the rotation direction of the collector.

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