Glass bottle chemical strengthening apparatus

Abstract

The present invention relates to a glass bottle chemical strengthening apparatus, more specifically, to a glass bottle chemical strengthening apparatus, which continuously performs, in a bottle-making process, a chemical process in order to compensate for strength degradation due to lightening or ultra-lightening of glass bottles, so as to allow a chemical strengthening treatment process to be rapidly performed at low cost, thereby reducing manufacturing costs for glass bottles and enabling mass production such that productivity can be improved.

Description

Glass bottle chemical strengthening device

[0001] The present invention relates to a glass bottle chemical strengthening device, and more particularly, to a glass bottle chemical strengthening device that allows a chemical process for compensating for a decrease in strength due to a reduction in the weight or ultra-lightness of a glass bottle to be continuously performed within a bottle manufacturing process, thereby allowing a chemical strengthening treatment process to be performed quickly and at a low cost, thereby reducing the cost of manufacturing glass bottles and enabling mass production, thereby improving productivity.

[0002] Policies to curb the use of plastics are being implemented in various countries due to various environmental and waste disposal issues, and as a result, the demand for various plastic alternatives is rapidly increasing.

[0003] Low-cost glass containers are gaining attention as an alternative to plastic containers, but they are still struggling to generate demand due to their heavy weight and fragile nature.

[0004] Accordingly, there is an urgent need to develop high-strength, lightweight glass containers that are lightweight and have high impact / pressure resistance.

[0005] However, when the glass bottle is made lighter, the strength of the ultra-light bottle decreases to 0.4 while that of a regular bottle is 1.2, so it is necessary to improve the strength after making it lighter. To this end, direct strength improvement methods such as dual coating (Hot End, Cold End), plastic coating, chemical strengthening, and physical strengthening, as well as thickness distribution uniformity methods such as NNPB (Narrow Neck Press and Blow) molding, Verti flow method, and Vacuum forming method are being used.

[0006] Among the methods for improving strength, chemical strengthening is a method in which sodium (Na+) ions in the SiO2 network structure on the surface of the glass bottle are replaced with potassium (K+) ions in the potassium-based molten salt by precipitation in a potassium-based molten salt. However, applying dipping to the bottle manufacturing process has problems such as the large volume limiting the number of processes per cycle, the need for special grippers (jigs), and the long dipping time (reaction time) that reduces productivity and economy. Furthermore, because the dipping method is performed as an additional process after the glass bottle manufacturing process is complete, it is low in economy and efficiency.

[0007] Considering these problems, the inventors of the present invention studied a method for continuously chemically strengthening glass bottles on a conveyor between the post-molding surface treatment process and the annealing process.

[0008] (Patent Document) Patent Publication No. 10-1469508 (registered on December 1, 2014) "Chemical Strengthening Treatment Device"

[0009] The present invention has been devised to solve the above problems.

[0010] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a glass bottle chemical strengthening device that allows a chemical process to be continuously performed within a bottle manufacturing process to compensate for the decrease in strength due to the lightweight or ultra-light weight reduction of glass bottles, thereby performing a chemical strengthening treatment process quickly and at low cost, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost of glass bottles and enabling mass production, thereby improving productivity.

[0011] The present invention aims to provide a glass bottle chemical strengthening device that can store a large amount of molten salt, prevent contamination of the molten salt, facilitate management of the storage space, and reduce the problem of the molten salt solidifying during the supply process by forming a storage space for the potassium-based molten salt separately in a sealed space on the upper side of a conveyor so that the potassium-based molten salt is supplied in a descending direction.

[0012] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a glass bottle chemical strengthening device that can increase the chemical strengthening treatment effect and process efficiency by spraying molten salt from both sides of the glass bottle and re-sucking and spraying molten salt that is not deposited on the glass bottle from the opposite side.

[0013] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention is implemented by an embodiment having the following configuration.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention is characterized by including: a melting furnace formed on an upper side of a conveyor along which glass bottles are continuously transported, which receives a potassium-based molten salt for chemical strengthening the glass bottles in a sealed state; a spraying unit spraying the potassium-based molten salt toward the glass bottles from both sides of the glass bottles moving along the conveyor; a flow pipe assembly connected to the bottom of the melting furnace and supplying the potassium-based molten salt downward in a molten state; and a molten salt supply pipe connected to the flow pipe assembly and branching into a plurality of paths, which supplies the potassium-based molten salt to the spraying unit.

[0015] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the melting furnace is characterized by including: an inner chamber that forms a space in which a potassium-based molten salt is accommodated and comes into contact with the potassium-based molten salt; an outer case that is formed to be spaced apart from the inner chamber at a predetermined distance to form a space between the inner chamber and the outer case; and a heater that is inserted into the space within the inner chamber and the outer case and heats the potassium-based molten salt.

[0016] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the melting furnace is characterized in that it includes an insulating material formed on the inside of the outer case outside the heater.

[0017] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the flow path assembly is characterized by including a flow path forming a flow path through which a potassium-based molten salt flows, and a band heater formed to surround the flow path and supplying heat to the potassium-based molten salt.

[0018] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the flow path is formed along the outer circumference and includes a cooling flow path through which cooling water flows, and a cooling fluid circulation port formed on both sides of the cooling flow path to communicate with the outside so as to allow circulation of the cooling water.

[0019] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the spraying unit is characterized by including a nozzle assembly for spraying potassium-based molten salt toward the glass bottle from both sides of the conveyor; and a spraying fan for supplying external air to the nozzle assembly.

[0020] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the nozzle assembly includes a spray nozzle that sprays potassium-based molten salt toward the glass bottle; and a recovery nozzle that sucks potassium-based molten salt sprayed from the opposite spray nozzle; and the spraying unit includes a circulation chamber that forms a space in which potassium-based molten salt sucked from the recovery nozzle is circulated to the spray nozzle, and the spray fan is characterized in that it is connected only to the spray nozzle.

[0021] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the recovery nozzle is characterized in that it is formed to face the opposite injection nozzle.

[0022] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the nozzle assembly is characterized in that a plurality of injection nozzles and recovery nozzles are formed alternately while forming a bundle.

[0023] According to another embodiment of the present invention, in the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention, the nozzle assembly is characterized in that the number of injection nozzles in one bundle is greater than the number of recovery nozzles in one bundle.

[0024] The present invention can obtain the following effects through the combination and use of the configuration described above and the following examples.

[0025] The present invention has the effect of reducing the cost of manufacturing glass bottles and improving productivity by enabling mass production by continuously performing a chemical process within the bottle manufacturing process to compensate for the decrease in strength due to the lightweight or ultra-light weight reduction of glass bottles, thereby performing a chemical strengthening treatment process quickly and at low cost.

[0026] The present invention has the effect of enabling storage of a large amount of molten salt, preventing contamination of the molten salt, facilitating management of the storage space, and reducing the problem of the molten salt solidifying during the supply process by forming a storage space for the potassium-based molten salt separately in a sealed space on the upper side of a conveyor belt and supplying the potassium-based molten salt in a descending direction.

[0027] The present invention has the effect of increasing the chemical strengthening treatment effect and process efficiency by spraying molten salt from both sides of a glass bottle and re-sucking and spraying molten salt that is not deposited on the glass bottle from the opposite side.

[0028] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 2 is a lower perspective view of Figure 1.

[0030] Figure 3 is a front view of Figure 1.

[0031] Figure 4 is a diagram of the internal configuration of the melting furnace.

[0032] Figure 5 is a perspective view of the euro pipe assembly (a) and a cross-sectional view of the band heater (b).

[0033] Figure 6 is a perspective view (a) and a cross-sectional view (b) of a Euro pipe.

[0034] Figure 7 is a reference diagram showing a state in which molten salt is supplied through a molten salt supply pipe.

[0035] Figure 8 is a partial perspective view for explaining the connection status of the molten salt supply pipe.

[0036] Figure 9 is a partial plan view illustrating the process of spraying molten salt onto a glass bottle.

[0037] Figure 10 is a perspective view of the nozzle assembly.

[0038] *Explanation of symbols used in drawings

[0039] 1: Melting furnace 11: Inner chamber

[0040] 12: Outer case 13: Heater

[0041] 14: Insulation 2: Euro pipe assembly

[0042] 21: Euro pipe 211: Cooling pipe

[0043] 212: Cooling fluid circulation port 22: Band heater

[0044] 3: Molten salt supply pipe 4: Injection unit

[0045] 41: Nozzle assembly 411: Injection nozzle

[0046] 412: Recovery nozzle 42: Spray fan

[0047] 43: Circulation chamber 5: Transfer conveyor

[0048] G: Glass bottle

[0049] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. In the following description of the present invention, detailed descriptions of known functions or components will be omitted if they are deemed to unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention. Throughout the specification, when a part is said to "include" a certain component, unless specifically stated otherwise, this does not exclude other components but rather means that other components may be included.

[0050]

[0051] Hereinafter, a glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10. The glass bottle chemical strengthening device includes: a melting furnace (1) formed on an upper side of a conveyor (5) along which glass bottles (G) are continuously transported, and containing a potassium-based molten salt for chemically strengthening the glass bottles (G) in a sealed state; a conduit assembly (2) connected to the bottom of the melting furnace (1) and supplying the potassium-based molten salt downward in a molten state; a molten salt supply pipe (3) connected to the conduit assembly (2) and branching into multiple paths, and supplying the potassium-based molten salt to the spraying section (4); a spraying section (4) that sprays the potassium-based molten salt toward the glass bottles (G) from both sides of the glass bottles (G) moving along the conveyor (5); and a conveyor conveyor (5) that continuously moves the glass bottles (G).

[0052] The present invention improves the strength of a glass bottle through a chemical strengthening process based on ion exchange, in which sodium (Na+) ions in the SiO2 network structure on the surface of the glass bottle are replaced with potassium (K+) ions in a potassium-based molten salt, and when potassium ions with an ionic radius of about 0.36 Å enter the surface of the glass bottle (exchange of alkali ions) and are cooled, a compressive stress is generated on the glass surface due to the volume difference, thereby strengthening the glass. Also called a low-temperature ion exchange method, it makes the surface of the glass bottle into a compressed state so that it can withstand tensile stress generated in a damaged situation.

[0053] However, in the past, a method of chemical strengthening by precipitation in a potassium-based molten salt was used, but there are problems in that the application of a chemical strengthening process using a precipitation method separate from the bottle-making process is not economical due to the limitations on the amount of processing per batch due to the large volume of glass bottles, the need for special grippers (jigs), and the long precipitation time (reaction time), which results in very low production efficiency.

[0054] Therefore, in order to apply chemical strengthening within the bottle manufacturing process, it must be possible to perform it continuously, such as weathering treatment immediately after molding, hot end coating, and cold end coating (CEC).

[0055] Accordingly, the glass bottle chemical strengthening device according to the present invention enables continuous chemical strengthening of glass bottles using a potassium salt during the glass bottle manufacturing process, and the glass bottle chemical strengthening device is installed between the surface treatment process after molding and the annealing process, and the glass bottles can be chemically strengthened continuously on a conveyor. The glass bottle immediately after the surface treatment can be chemically strengthened more efficiently in a short time by spray coating at about 500 to 650°C, and the ion exchange reaction is activated during the next process, the annealing process, so that the glass bottle can be strengthened through chemical strengthening in an inline process.

[0056] In particular, the above glass bottle chemical strengthening device supplies the potassium-based molten salt in a manner that the molten salt descends from the upper side of the conveyor (5) while containing the potassium-based molten salt in a closed space and sprays it, thereby preventing contamination of the molten salt and problems such as hardening during the supply process, resulting in a decrease in the strengthening efficiency and effect, and blockage of the pipe, and since there is no limitation on the molten salt storage space, it can contain a large amount of molten salt, enabling mass processing and easy maintenance.

[0057] The above melting furnace (1) is configured to accommodate a potassium-based molten salt for chemical strengthening of a glass bottle, and heats the potassium-based salt so that it can be maintained in a molten state. The melting furnace (1) contains potassium-based salts such as potassium nitrate (KNO3), potassium hydroxide phosphate (K2HPO4), potassium chloride (KCl), and potassium phosphate (K2PO4) containing potassium ions (K+). These potassium-based salts are in a solid state at room temperature, and when the potassium-based salt is heated above its melting point, the potassium-based salt is transformed into a potassium-based molten salt. The melting furnace (1) can maintain a temperature above its melting point so that the potassium-based molten salt can be maintained in a molten state, and can accommodate the potassium-based molten salt in a sealed state to prevent contamination from the outside. For this purpose, the melting furnace (1) may include an inner chamber (11), an outer case (12), a heater (13), and an insulator (14) as shown in FIG. 4.

[0058] The above inner chamber (11) forms a space in which a potassium-based molten salt is received, and is configured to come into contact with the potassium-based molten salt, and can be formed along the side and bottom of the melting furnace (1) inside the melting furnace (1).

[0059] The above outer case (12) is formed at a certain interval outside the inner chamber (11) within the melting furnace (1), and a heater (13) and an insulating material (14) are formed between the inner chambers (11) so that the temperature within the inner chamber (11) can be maintained above a certain temperature.

[0060] The above heater (13) is configured to supply heat to the potassium-based molten salt within the inner chamber (11) to maintain a molten state, and its operation can be controlled according to the temperature within the inner chamber (11). The heater (13) is formed in the space within the inner chamber (11) and the outer case (12) to block contact with the potassium-based molten salt, thereby preventing breakdown, contamination, and damage.

[0061] The above insulation (14) is configured to block the heat supplied by the heater (13) from being emitted to the outside, and can be formed on the outside of the heater (13). Therefore, the insulation (14) can reduce the power consumed to maintain the molten state through efficient heat transfer into the internal chamber (11).

[0062] The above-mentioned pipe assembly (2) is configured to be connected from the bottom side of the melting furnace (1) downward to supply potassium-based molten salt to the injection unit (4) on the lower side, and a pair may be formed on both sides of the transfer conveyor (5) to supply potassium-based molten salt to each of the injection units (4) on both sides. The above-mentioned pipe assembly (2) may be formed in the vertical direction, and may maintain a constant temperature while the potassium-based molten salt is supplied to prevent the potassium-based molten salt from solidifying. To this end, the pipe assembly (2) may include a pipe (21) and a band heater (22) as illustrated in FIG. 5.

[0063] The above-mentioned flow path (21) forms a flow path through which potassium-based molten salt is supplied, and may be formed in a cylindrical shape connected to the bottom of the melting furnace (1), and the molten salt supply pipe (3) may be connected to the lower end thereof. In addition, the flow path (21) is maintained at a constant temperature by the band heater (22), and when the operation of the glass bottle chemical strengthening device is stopped, it may be cooled to a constant temperature to artificially solidify the molten salt, thereby preventing the molten salt in the melting furnace (1) from being discharged. To this end, the flow path (21) may include a cooling flow path (211) and a cooling fluid circulation port (212) as illustrated in FIG. 6.

[0064] The above cooling channel (211) is configured to form a passage through which cooling fluid flows, and is formed along the outer circumference of the central passage through which molten salt passes, so that cooling water or cooling air can flow.

[0065] The above cooling fluid circulation port (212) is configured to allow the cooling fluid to circulate through the cooling channel (211), and is formed to penetrate a pair of points of the cooling channel (211) so that the cooling fluid can be introduced and discharged into the cooling channel (211), and can be connected to a separate pipe through which the cooling fluid is circulated.

[0066] The above band heater (22) is configured to supply heat to the above-described pipe (21), and maintains the inside of the pipe (21) at a temperature above a certain level so that the molten state of the potassium-based molten salt can be maintained. The band heater (22) can be formed to wrap around the pipe (21) in a band shape for efficient heat transfer, and can preferably be formed as a ceramic band heater.

[0067] The above molten salt supply pipe (3) is configured to be connected to the above-described flow pipe assembly (2) to supply potassium-based molten salt to the injection unit (4), and as illustrated in FIG. 7, it may branch into multiple paths to supply potassium-based molten salt to multiple points of the injection unit (4). The above-described molten salt supply pipe (3) is connected to the bottom side of the flow pipe (21), and may branch to both sides to be connected to the injection nozzle (411) of the injection unit (4), which will be described later. The injection nozzles (411) are formed in a bundle in multiple pieces and alternately formed with a bundle of recovery nozzles (412), which will be described later, and may be connected only to the bundle of injection nozzles (411) to supply molten salt.

[0068] The above-mentioned spraying unit (4) is formed on each side of glass bottles (G) moving along the conveyor (5) and is configured to spray potassium-based molten salt, and can spray in the form of a spray to coat the surface of the glass bottle (G). The spraying unit (4) can spray molten salt by supplying compressed air, and in particular, among the molten salt sprayed from the spraying units (4) on both sides, molten salt that is not coated on the glass bottle (G) is sucked back in and circulated, thereby enabling efficient use of the molten salt. To this end, the spraying unit (4) may include a nozzle assembly (41), a spray fan (42), and a circulation chamber (43).

[0069] The above nozzle assembly (41) is configured to form a nozzle assembly, and may include a spray nozzle (411) that sprays potassium-based molten salt toward a glass bottle (G) and a recovery nozzle (412) through which the molten salt sprayed through the spray nozzle (411) on the opposite side is sucked. The nozzle assembly (41) may include a plurality of spray nozzles (411) and recovery nozzles (412), and as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a plurality of spray nozzles (411) may form one bundle, a plurality of recovery nozzles (412) may form one bundle, and a bundle of spray nozzles (411) and a bundle of recovery nozzles (412) may be formed alternately. In addition, on the opposite side of the bundle of injection nozzles (411), a recovery nozzle (412) of the opposite nozzle assembly (41) may be formed to face each other so as to suck up molten salt that was sprayed from the injection nozzle (411) but was not coated on the glass bottle (G). At this time, the number of injection nozzles (411) forming one bundle may be formed to be greater than the number of recovery nozzles (412), so as to increase the coating efficiency. For example, one bundle may include five injection nozzles (411) and three recovery nozzles (412). In addition, the injection nozzles (411) and the recovery nozzles (412) may be alternately formed in two bundles each so as to spray and suck up molten salt. The above injection nozzle (411) and recovery nozzle (412) may be formed in the same shape, but the molten salt supply pipe (3) may be connected to the injection nozzle (411) to supply potassium-based molten salt, and the circulation chamber (43) may be connected to the recovery nozzle (412) to transfer the sucked molten salt to the injection nozzle (411). In addition, a spray fan (42) may be connected only to the injection nozzle (411) to supply compressed air.

[0070] The above-mentioned spray fan (42) is configured to supply compressed air to the spray nozzle (411), and by compressing external air and supplying it to each group of spray nozzles (411), spraying of the potassium-based molten salt toward the glass bottle (G) can be achieved.

[0071] The above circulation chamber (43) is configured to form a space in which the molten salt sucked through the recovery nozzle (412) is circulated to the injection nozzle (411), and the recovery nozzle (412) and the injection nozzle (411) are connected. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, the molten salt sucked through the recovery nozzle (412) is moved to the injection nozzle (411) by the pressure of the injection fan (42) and injected, and the pressure of the injection fan (42) also acts on the recovery nozzle (412) so that the molten salt injected from the injection nozzle (411) can be effectively sucked.

[0072] The above-mentioned transport conveyor (5) is configured to transport glass bottles (G), and can enable continuous movement between the spraying parts (4).

[0073]

[0074] In the above, the applicant has described various embodiments of the present invention, but such embodiments are only examples of implementing the technical idea of ​​the present invention, and any change or modification that implements the technical idea of ​​the present invention should be interpreted as falling within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A melting furnace formed on the upper side of a conveyor belt through which glass bottles are continuously transported, and containing a potassium-based molten salt in a sealed state for chemically strengthening the glass bottles; A spray unit for spraying potassium-based molten salt toward a glass bottle from both sides of the glass bottle moving along a conveyor belt; A pipe assembly connected to the bottom of the above melting furnace and supplying potassium-based molten salt in a molten state downward; A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized by including a molten salt supply pipe which is connected to the above-mentioned euro pipe assembly and branches into multiple paths and supplies potassium-based molten salt to the injection unit.

2. In the first paragraph, the melting furnace A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized by comprising: an inner chamber that forms a space in which a potassium-based molten salt is accommodated and comes into contact with the potassium-based molten salt; an outer case that is formed to be spaced apart from the inner chamber at a certain distance to form a space between the inner chamber and the outer case; and a heater that is inserted into the space within the inner chamber and the outer case and heats the potassium-based molten salt.

3. In the second paragraph, the melting furnace A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized by including an insulating material formed on the inner side of an outer case outside the heater.

4. In the first paragraph, the euro pipe assembly A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized by including a flow path forming a flow path through which a potassium-based molten salt flows, and a band heater formed to surround the flow path and supplying heat to the potassium-based molten salt.

5. In paragraph 4, the euro pipe A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized by including a cooling channel formed along an outer circumference through which cooling water flows, and a cooling fluid circulation port formed on both sides of the cooling channel to communicate with the outside so as to allow circulation of the cooling water.

6. In the first paragraph, the injection part A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized by including a nozzle assembly for spraying potassium-based molten salt toward a glass bottle from both sides of a conveyor; and a spray fan for supplying external air to the nozzle assembly.

7. In the 6th paragraph, the nozzle assembly It comprises a spray nozzle for spraying potassium-based molten salt toward a glass bottle; and a recovery nozzle for sucking potassium-based molten salt sprayed from the opposite spray nozzle; The above injection unit includes a circulation chamber that forms a space in which potassium-based molten salt sucked from the recovery nozzle is circulated to the injection nozzle. A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized in that the above-mentioned spray fan is connected only to the above-mentioned spray nozzle.

8. In the 7th paragraph, the recovery nozzle A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized in that it is formed to face the opposite injection nozzle.

9. In the 8th paragraph, the nozzle assembly A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized in that a plurality of injection nozzles and recovery nozzles are formed alternately while forming a bundle.

10. In the 9th paragraph, the nozzle assembly A glass bottle chemical strengthening device characterized in that the number of injection nozzles in one group is formed to be greater than the number of recovery nozzles in one group.

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