Cyclone-type foreign matter separation device

Abstract

Provided is a cyclone-type foreign matter separator affording a high defoaming effect that effectively suppresses foaming caused by bubbles in a processing fluid. A cyclone-type foreign matter separator 1 comprises: a cyclone body 2 equipped with a cylindrical section 2A and a conical cylindrical section 2B that extends downward, with a gradually decreasing diameter, from a lower end of the cylindrical section 2A; a processing fluid inlet pipe 3 equipped with an inlet port 3a that opens, in a tangential direction, into the cylindrical section 2A; an upper case 4 provided to the upper section of the cyclone body 2; a processing fluid discharge pipe 5 that is open to the upper case 4; a connecting pipe 6 that is arranged coaxially with the axial center O of the cyclone body 2 and that connects the interior of the cyclone body 2 to the interior of the upper case 4; and a defoaming pipe 7 which is porous, is arranged vertically inside an upper case 14 so as to be coaxial with the axial center O of the cyclone body 2, and has its lower end inserted into the connecting pipe 6. The cyclone-type foreign matter separator, wherein a vortex flow holding means (slit 14) for holding a vortex flow generated in the defoaming pipe 7 is provided to the defoaming pipe 7.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a cyclone type foreign matter separator for separating foreign matters such as metal powder from a processing liquid such as a coolant by centrifugal force.

Background Art

[0002] For example, when machining a metal material using a machine tool, a water-soluble coolant is supplied to the cutting part for cooling, lubricating the cutting part, and efficiently discharging cutting chips. Therefore, foreign matters such as metals of cutting chips and abrasives are mixed into the coolant.

[0003] Since the coolant is repeatedly used, it is necessary to remove the foreign matters mixed in the coolant before reusing the coolant. As one means for removing this foreign matter, a cyclone type foreign matter separator is known. This cyclone type foreign matter separator includes a cyclone body having a foreign matter discharge port opened at the lower end, a processing liquid introduction pipe provided with an inlet opened in the tangential direction inside the cyclone body, an upper case provided at the upper part of the cyclone body, a processing liquid discharge pipe opened in the upper case, and a communication pipe for communicating the inside of the cyclone body and the inside of the upper case.

[0004] In the above cyclone type foreign matter separator, the cyclone body includes a cylindrical part and a conical cylindrical part that gradually decreases in diameter downward from the lower end of the cylindrical part. When the coolant containing foreign matters is injected from the inlet of the processing liquid introduction pipe into the cylindrical part of the cyclone body, the coolant forms a swirling flow and descends along the inner surface of the cyclone body. As a result, a vortex flow is generated inside the cyclone body, and foreign matters having a specific gravity greater than that of the coolant are sprayed onto the inner surface of the cyclone body by centrifugal force and separated from the coolant. The separated foreign matters descend along the inner surface of the cyclone body and are discharged from the foreign matter discharge port and recovered.

[0005] Then, the vortex flow descending along the inner surface of the cyclone body turns upward near the foreign matter discharge port, and a vortex flow is generated above the axial center of the cyclone body, moving from the foreign matter discharge port towards the upper case. This rising vortex flow includes a columnar air layer that extends from the foreign matter discharge port through the connecting pipe into the upper case, and a purified coolant layer that rises along the circumferential surface of this air layer. The coolant constituting the purified coolant layer is guided into the upper case along with the rising vortex flow, and from this upper case it is discharged into the treated liquid discharge pipe for reuse.

[0006] However, in the cyclone-type foreign matter separator described above, the outlet of the connecting pipe opens directly into the interior of the upper case, causing the air layer and the coolant layer to mix at the outlet of this connecting pipe. As a result, air is drawn into the coolant, causing the coolant to foam violently inside the upper case and generating a large amount of air bubbles.

[0007] Therefore, Patent Document 1 proposes a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device as shown in Figure 11.

[0008] Specifically, Figure 11 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device proposed in Patent Document 1. In the illustrated cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 101, a gas-liquid separation pipe (defoaming pipe) 107 into which a vortex flow enters is arranged coaxially with the axial center O of the cyclone body 102 in the clean chamber S inside the clean case (upper case) 104. In addition, a first storage section 121 for temporarily storing coolant that has passed through the gas-liquid separation pipe 107 is provided at the bottom of the upper case 104 so as to surround the gas-liquid separation pipe 107, and a second storage section 122 for temporarily storing coolant flowing in from the first storage section 121 is also provided.

[0009] With the cyclone-type foreign matter separator 101 configured as described above, the coolant, purified by the separation of foreign matter within the cyclone body 102, flows from the connecting pipe 106 into the gas-liquid separator pipe 107. However, since the coolant rises along the periphery of the columnar air layer, only this coolant passes through the small holes 107a of the gas-liquid separator pipe 107 and flows into the first storage section 121. Therefore, only the coolant that has flowed into the gas-liquid separator pipe 107 can be extracted individually, and since air is not entrained into this coolant, foaming of the coolant is prevented. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0010] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2005-007212 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0011] However, in the cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 101 shown in Figure 11 as proposed in Patent Document 1, the strength of the vortex flow is attenuated or disappears within the gas-liquid separation pipe 107, resulting in a small separation effect between the coolant and air in the gas-liquid separation pipe 107 and a small defoaming effect that effectively suppresses foaming caused by bubbles in the coolant.

[0012] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and its objective is to provide a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device with a high defoaming effect that effectively suppresses foaming caused by bubbles in the processing liquid. [Means for solving the problem]

[0013] To achieve the above objective, the present invention provides a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device comprising a cyclone body, an upper case provided on the upper part of the cyclone body, a connecting pipe connecting the inside of the cyclone body and the inside of the upper case, and a defoaming pipe inserted into the connecting pipe, characterized in that the defoaming pipe is provided with a vortex-holding means for holding the vortex generated inside the defoaming pipe. Here, the vortex-holding means is, for example, composed of a slit for introducing a vortex that swirls along the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe into the inside of the defoaming pipe. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, the strength of the vortex generated inside the defoaming pipe is maintained by the vortex retention means, so that the treatment liquid swirling inside the defoaming pipe flows out to the outside through the small holes in the defoaming pipe, and an air layer (bubbles) remains inside the defoaming pipe. As a result, the treatment liquid and air do not mix, and a high defoaming effect is achieved by the defoaming pipe, effectively preventing foaming of the treatment liquid. Here, if the vortex retention means is configured as a slit, the vortex swirling along the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe is introduced into the defoaming pipe from the slit, and the strength of the vortex inside the defoaming pipe is maintained by this introduced vortex, thus a high defoaming effect is obtained by the defoaming pipe. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0015] [Figure 1] This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the main part of a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. [Figure 3] This is a plan view (viewed in the direction of arrow A in Figure 2) of a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. [Figure 4] Figure 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the BB line. [Figure 5] Figure 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view along the CC line. [Figure 6] This is a front view of the defoaming pipe. [Figure 7]It is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 6. [Figure 8] It is a perspective view of the upper part of the defoaming pipe. [Figure 9] It is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part of the cyclone type foreign matter separator according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. [Figure 10] It is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line E-E of FIG. 9. [Figure 11] It is a longitudinal sectional view of the cyclone type foreign matter separator proposed in Patent Document 1.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0016] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the accompanying drawings.

[0017] <Embodiment 1> FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the cyclone type foreign matter separator according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part of the cyclone type foreign matter separator, FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cyclone type foreign matter separator (a view in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 2), FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 2, FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 2, FIG. 6 is a front view of the defoaming pipe, FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 6, and FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the upper part of the defoaming pipe.

[0018] The cyclone type foreign matter separator 1 according to the present embodiment separates and removes metal foreign matters such as cutting chips from a water-soluble coolant supplied to a machining part of a machine tool that cuts a metal material by centrifugal force, and is configured as follows.

[0019] That is, as shown in FIG. 1, the cyclone type foreign matter separator 1 includes a cyclone body 2, a processing liquid introduction pipe 3 connected to the outer periphery of the cyclone body 2, an upper case 4 provided on the upper part of the cyclone body 2, a processing liquid discharge pipe 5 connected to the upper case 4, a cylindrical communication pipe 6 arranged coaxially with the axis center O of the cyclone body 2 and communicating the inside of the cyclone body 2 and the inside of the upper case 4, and a defoaming pipe 7 arranged vertically coaxially with the axis center O of the cyclone body 2 in the upper case 4.

[0020] The cyclone body 2 described above is composed of a cylindrical section 2A and a conical section 2B that extends downward from the lower end of the cylindrical section 2A while gradually decreasing in diameter. The cylindrical section 2A and the conical section 2B are arranged coaxially and vertically. The lower end of the conical section 2B has a circular foreign matter discharge port 8 for discharging foreign matter separated from the coolant to the outside.

[0021] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3, the processing liquid introduction pipe 3 is attached to the upper part of the cylindrical portion 2A of the cyclone body 2 at a position offset by ε as shown in Figure 3 from the axial center O of the cyclone body 2. The pipe 3 has a circular opening 3a (see Figures 1 and 2) that opens in the direction of the tangent line T at point p on the outer circumference of the cylindrical portion 2A (tangential direction).

[0022] As shown in Figure 2, the upper case 4, which is cylindrical in shape, is provided on the upper part of the cyclone body 2 via a partition wall 9. This upper case 4 is constructed as a cylindrical container by covering the upper and lower surfaces of the cylindrical side wall 4A with a disc-shaped cover 4B and the partition wall 9, respectively, and its interior forms a space for temporarily storing the clean coolant from which foreign matter has been separated and removed. The treated liquid discharge pipe 5, which has an outlet 5a that opens toward the axial center O of the upper case 4, is attached to the side wall 4A of the upper case 4. As shown in Figure 2, in the upper case 4, the upper surface of the upper case 4 is covered by a lid 4B by attaching the cover 4B to a ring-shaped flange 10 fixed to the inner circumference of the upper end of the side wall 4A with multiple bolts 11 (eight in the illustrated example (see Figure 3)).

[0023] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the connecting pipe 6 is positioned vertically in the upper part of the cyclone body 2, and its upper end is inserted from below into a circular hole 9a (see Figure 2) formed in the center of the partition wall 9 and fixed to the partition wall 9 by welding or the like. As shown in detail in Figure 2, the inner circumferential surface of the lower end of the connecting pipe 6 forms a tapered guide surface 6a that widens downwards. The presence of the guide surface 6a in the connecting pipe 6 makes it easier to draw the vortex flow m into the connecting pipe 6.

[0024] As shown in Figures 6 and 8, the defoaming pipe 7 is formed by rolling up perforated metal, which has numerous circular holes 7a, into a cylindrical shape. Its upper end is abutted against the center of the lower surface of the lid 4B of the upper case 4 and fixed to the lid 4B by a bolt 12, as shown in Figure 2. Specifically, a screw seat 13 is fitted inside the upper end of the defoaming pipe 7, and the upper end of the defoaming pipe 7 is fixed to the lid 4B by screwing the bolt 12, which is inserted from above into the center of the lid 4B, into this screw seat 13. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the lower end of the defoaming pipe 7 is inserted into the inside of the connecting pipe 6 from above, and a cylindrical gap δ is formed between the outer circumference of the lower end of the connecting pipe 6 and the inner circumference of the defoaming pipe 7.

[0025] Incidentally, the numerous circular holes 7a formed in the defoaming pipe 7 allow only coolant from which foreign matter has been removed to pass through, and prevent air bubbles contained in the coolant from passing through. The inner diameter of these holes is set to 0.5 mm to 2.5 mm, preferably 1.0 mm. Note that wire mesh or the like may be used instead of perforated metal for the defoaming pipe 7.

[0026] Incidentally, as shown in Figures 6 to 8, the defoaming pipe 7 has slits 14 formed along the vertical direction on a part of its outer circumference, which constitute a vortex retention means for retaining the vortex m (see Figures 1 and 2) generated inside the defoaming pipe 7, as described later. These slits 14 are for introducing the vortex of coolant containing air, which swirls along the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe 7, into the defoaming pipe 7, as described later, and as shown in Figure 7, they open on a vertical plane passing through the axial center O of the defoaming pipe 7.

[0027] More specifically, as shown in Figure 7, the defoaming pipe 7 is composed of two types of semi-cylindrical pipes 7A and 7B of different diameters that are eccentric to each other, and a slit 14 is formed along the vertical direction between the free ends of the two types of semi-cylindrical pipes 7A and 7B that run vertically. Here, the two types of cylindrical pipes 7A and 7B of different diameters that make up the defoaming pipe 7 are formed as a single unit in this embodiment, but they may also be formed as separate units and joined together. Furthermore, it is desirable that the slit 14 is formed along the entire vertical length of the defoaming pipe 7, but in this embodiment, in order to maintain the shape of the defoaming pipe 7, as shown in Figures 6 and 8, the ends of the two types of cylindrical pipes 7A and 7B are connected by a plurality of brackets 7b (four in the illustrated example) that are arranged at appropriate intervals in the vertical direction.

[0028] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 6 and 8, the upper end of the defoaming pipe 7 has two circular scale discharge holes 7c, one above the other, with an inner diameter larger than that of the small hole 7a. Relatively large scale contained in the coolant (scale that is too large to pass through the small hole 7a) is discharged to the outside of the defoaming pipe 7 through the scale discharge holes 7c.

[0029] Next, the operation of the cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 1, configured as described above, will be explained.

[0030] In the cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 1 according to this embodiment, coolant containing foreign matter is injected tangentially at a predetermined speed into the cylindrical portion 2A of the cyclone body 2 from the inlet 3a of the processing liquid introduction pipe 3. Then, as shown in Figure 1, this coolant containing foreign matter descends along the inner surfaces of the cylindrical portion 2A and the conical portion 2B of the cyclone body 2 by centrifugal force while swirling. As a result, a vortex flow M is generated inside the cyclone body 2 with the axis center O as the center, and the foreign matter contained in the coolant is separated by the centrifugal force based on this vortex flow M. In other words, a greater centrifugal force acts on the foreign matter, which has a higher specific gravity than the coolant, than the centrifugal force acting on the coolant. Due to this difference in centrifugal force, the foreign matter is separated from the coolant and blown onto the inner surface of the cyclone body 2. This foreign matter descends along the inner surface of the cyclone body 2 by its own weight while swirling, and is discharged to the outside of the cyclone body 2 through the foreign matter discharge port 8 that opens at the lower end of the conical portion 2B and recovered.

[0031] On the other hand, the vortex flow M of coolant descending while swirling along the inner surface of the cyclone body 2 receives an upward force near the foreign matter discharge port 8 and turns upward. As a result, as shown in Figure 1, a vortex flow m is generated inside the cyclone body 2 on the axis center O, flowing from the foreign matter discharge port 8 into the upper case 4.

[0032] Here, the vortex flow m includes a cylindrical air layer with a vacuum cavity at its center and a cylindrical coolant layer surrounding this air layer. These air and coolant layers reach the defoaming pipe 7 through the foreign matter discharge port 8 and the connecting pipe 6. The coolant layer constitutes the surface layer of the vortex flow m and rises along the periphery of the air layer from the foreign matter discharge port 8 towards the defoaming pipe 7. As mentioned above, the inner circumferential surface of the lower end of the connecting pipe 6 constitutes the guide surface 6a, so the upward-moving vortex flow m is smoothly guided to the connecting pipe 6 and introduced into the defoaming pipe 7 through the lower end opening.

[0033] As the rising vortex m flows into the defoaming pipe 7, the clean coolant occupying the surface layer passes through the numerous small holes 7a of the defoaming pipe 7 and flows into the upper case 4, where it is temporarily stored at the bottom. In this way, the air contained in the vortex m is separated from the coolant in the defoaming pipe 7, and only the coolant is discharged to the outside of the defoaming pipe 7. Therefore, the coolant can be extracted by the defoaming pipe 7 before it mixes with the air inside the upper case 4. As a result, the coolant does not foam due to air bubbles inside the upper case 4. In other words, the defoaming pipe 7 exhibits a high defoaming effect, effectively preventing the coolant from foaming. The clean coolant, free of air bubbles, that is temporarily stored inside the upper case 4 flows from the discharge port 5a opening in the side wall 4A of the upper case 4 into the treatment liquid discharge pipe 5, and is discharged from this treatment liquid discharge pipe 5 to the outside of the upper case 4 for reuse.

[0034] However, not all of the vortex flow m is introduced into the defoaming pipe 7 and continues to swirl; a portion of it rises while swirling along the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe 7. Therefore, in the cylindrical gap δ formed between the connecting pipe 6 and the defoaming pipe 7, as shown in Figure 4, the vortex flow swirling in the direction of the arrow (counterclockwise in Figure 4) in this gap δ flows into the defoaming pipe 7 through the slit 14 formed on a part of the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe 7, as shown by arrow a in Figure 5, reinforcing or maintaining the swirling of the vortex flow m inside the defoaming pipe 7. As a result, the strength of the swirling of the vortex flow m inside the defoaming pipe 7 is not attenuated, the defoaming effect of the defoaming pipe 7 is enhanced, and foaming of the coolant temporarily stored inside the upper case 4 is reliably prevented.

[0035] Furthermore, inside the upper case 4, as shown in Figure 5, there is a vortex that swirls along the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe 7 in the direction of the arrow (counterclockwise in Figure 5). This vortex flows into the defoaming pipe 7 through a slit 14 formed on a part of the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe 7, as indicated by arrow b in Figure 5, reinforcing or maintaining the swirling of the vortex m inside the defoaming pipe 7. As a result, the strength of the swirling of the vortex m inside the defoaming pipe 7 is maintained and does not attenuate, thereby enhancing the defoaming effect of the defoaming pipe 7. In addition, the coolant flowing out of the defoaming pipe 7 also contains some bubbles, but by drawing this coolant back into the defoaming pipe 7 through the slit 14 and then letting this drawn-in coolant flow out of the defoaming pipe 7 again, a further defoaming effect can be obtained. For this reason, the defoaming effect can be further enhanced by forming the slit 14 along the entire length in the vertical direction of the defoaming pipe 7.

[0036] As described above, according to the cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 1 of this embodiment, the strength of the vortex flow m generated in the defoaming pipe 7 is maintained by the vortex flow that flows into the defoaming pipe 7 from the slit 14 constituting the vortex flow holding means. As a result, air and coolant are effectively separated in the defoaming pipe 7, and only the coolant is extracted from the defoaming pipe 7. Therefore, air does not mix with the extracted coolant and bubbles are not generated, and the defoaming effect of the defoaming pipe 7 is enhanced.

[0037] <Embodiment 2> Next, Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described below with reference to Figures 9 and 10.

[0038] Figure 9 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the main part of a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, and Figure 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the EE line in Figure 9. In these figures, the same elements as those shown in Figures 1 to 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and further explanation of them will be omitted below.

[0039] The cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 1A according to this embodiment is characterized in that a round pipe 15 is arranged vertically along the vertical direction at the axial center of the defoaming pipe 7, and the other configurations are the same as those of the cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 1 according to Embodiment 1.

[0040] In the cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 1A according to this embodiment, the strength of the vortex flow m rising while swirling inside the defoaming pipe 7 is maintained or reinforced by the vortex flow flowing into the defoaming pipe 7 from the slit 14, and the coolant contained in the vortex flow m is separated from the air and extracted from the defoaming pipe 7. However, in this embodiment, as shown in Figure 10, the volume inside the defoaming pipe 7 is reduced by the volume of the round pipe 15, so the strength of the vortex flow m inside the defoaming pipe 7 is increased, and as a result the defoaming effect of the defoaming pipe 7 is also increased.

[0041] In this embodiment, the round pipe 15 is positioned vertically along the vertical direction at the center of the axial axis of the defoaming pipe 7. However, the same effect can be obtained by replacing the round pipe 15 with a solid round bar (not shown) positioned vertically along the vertical direction at the center of the axial axis of the defoaming pipe 7.

[0042] Furthermore, although the above description concerns an application of the present invention to a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device for separating foreign matter such as metal cutting chips contained in a coolant, the present invention is similarly applicable to a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device for separating and removing foreign matter other than cutting chips contained in any processing liquid other than a coolant.

[0043] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims, specification, and drawings. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0044] 1.1A Cyclone-type foreign matter separation device 2. Cyclone unit 2A Cyclone body cylindrical part 2B Cyclone body conical section 3. Treatment liquid introduction pipe 3a Inlet of the treatment liquid introduction pipe 4. Top case 5. Discharge pipe for treated liquid 6 Communication pipe 7. Anti-foaming pipe 7A, 7B Semi-cylindrical pipes 7a Small holes in the defoaming pipe 8 Foreign matter outlet 14. Slit (vortex retention means) 15 round pipes M,m vortex O The axis center of the cyclone body

Claims

1. The cyclone unit and An upper case provided on the top of the cyclone body, A connecting pipe that connects the inside of the cyclone body and the inside of the upper case, A defoaming pipe inserted into the aforementioned connecting pipe, In a cyclone-type foreign matter separation device equipped with, The defoaming pipe is provided with a vortex-holding means for holding the vortex generated inside the defoaming pipe. The vortex retention means is composed of a slit for introducing a vortex that swirls along the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe into the interior of the defoaming pipe. The slit is formed along the vertical direction on a part of the outer circumference of the defoaming pipe, The aforementioned slit is provided with brackets that connect the slit in the width direction. A cyclone-type foreign matter separation device characterized by the following features.

2. The cyclone-type foreign matter separation device according to claim 1, characterized in that the defoaming pipe is composed of two semi-cylindrical pipes of different diameters, which are eccentric to each other, and the slit is formed between the free ends of the two semi-cylindrical pipes along the vertical direction.

3. The cyclone-type foreign matter separation device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a round pipe or round bar is arranged vertically along the central axis of the defoaming pipe.

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