EP3248699A1 - Device for the cleaning of pump units for flowable media - Google Patents

Abstract

Many fluid pumping units are used for products that are harmful to the environment and at least attack or deposit themselves in the delivery units themselves over time and clog them up. To prevent this, a cleaning of the delivery units is recommended, but this represents an effort that is gladly saved because of the associated expense. Against this background, the present invention has the object to provide a device for cleaning delivery units (1, 2, 3), which can run both simple and virtually unattended. This is achieved by means of a cleaning cycle in which the delivery unit (1, 2, 3) to be cleaned is short-circuited with a cleaning agent tank (4) and thus a constant circulation of cleaning agent is pumped through the delivery unit (1, 2, 3) to be cleaned and this thereby is cleaned.

Description

The present invention relates to a device for cleaning delivery units for flowable media, which forms a fluidic cleaning circuit in which a detergent tank and at least one pumping unit to be cleaned flows through a cleaning agent, wherein at least one of the pumping units to be cleaned circulates the cleaning agent in the cleaning circuit ,

Such a solution is already out of the DE 197 41 242 C1 previously known. There, a system for cleaning a bottling plant is described, as it is used for example in the catering industry. This solution provides to bring out of a detergent tank instead of the otherwise carried through drinks detergent and drain on the dispenser. This results in a cleaning of the filling system.

Delivery units are used in numerous areas of trade and industry. In principle, practically liquids of very different viscosity can be conveyed, which are to be transferred from one container to another. For example, delivery units may be equipped with pump lances and thus protrude into a barrel, wherein the delivery unit removes the fluid contained in the barrel on the pump lance and further.

Frequently delivery units are used in the industry for different media, so that it is necessary to return the pumping units an internal and external cleaning, to completely remove a first conveyed medium before a delivery unit is used to deliver a second medium. Only in this way can it be ensured that contamination of the conveyed media is effectively avoided.

As a rule, however, the careful cleaning of a delivery unit, in particular a pump lance, represents a complex step, which is often forgotten or saved by the user. In addition to contamination of the media to be conveyed, it also leads to contamination and damage in the long term to the delivery units, the elimination is then much more expensive and expensive and also ensures a longer failure of the delivery unit.

Against this background, the present invention, the object of the invention to provide a device for cleaning delivery units for flowable media, which can be used very easily and effectively, to keep the associated expenses on the part of the user as low as possible.

This is achieved by a device for cleaning delivery units for flowable media according to features of claim 1. Further, useful embodiments of such a device can be taken from the subclaims.

According to the invention, a device for cleaning delivery units for flowable media initially forms a fluidic cleaning circuit in which a cleaning agent is pumped in circulation between a detergent tank and the delivery unit to be cleaned. The cleaning agent is also a flowable Medium that passes everywhere due to the passage through the delivery unit, where also the promoted during operation of the delivery unit flowable media go. In a simple case, the detergent may be simple water, but the water may also be mixed with effective substances such as soaps or other chemical, disinfecting or solvent-containing substances. Also, other hydrocarbon-based cleaners such as alcohols, benzenes and the like may be used more or form the basis for a cleaning agent.

First, in this case, the detergent tank is filled with the detergent and then started the circulation in the cleaning cycle thus formed. The circulation takes place here by means of the pumping unit itself to be cleaned, which promotes the originating from the detergent tank cleaning agent by itself and returns to the detergent tank again.

This results in a way for the user to clean the delivery unit by simply hooked and operated in the described cleaning circuit. In addition, after a rinsing process, the cleaning agent can still be exchanged for a means for rinsing, which also largely rinses away the substances of the cleaning agent. It is also possible to leave the delivery unit with the cleaning agent in it approximately overnight, between the rinsing step and the rinsing step, so that the substances of the cleaning agent can act. Also, the pump can be left in the rinse step overnight to eliminate even heavy soiling.

In any case, this eliminates costly cleaning steps to clean the delivery units, so that a careful cleaning for the user is more attractive and easier, and more effective.

The structure of such a cleaning circuit depends somewhat on the delivery units to be cleaned. For example, a metering pump has an inlet and a drain, which can be connected directly to the detergent tank, so that the metering pump promotes as a pumping unit directly from the detergent tank into the detergent tank. The inlet is then connected via a feed line with a drain of the detergent tank and the drain via a drain line with an inlet of the detergent tank.

On the other hand, if the delivery unit is a container pump with a pump lance, then the device must look somewhat different. Here there is a possibility already to introduce the pump lance directly into the detergent tank and to design this purpose as a dip tank. Then the container pump will pump detergent out of the dip tank and feed it back directly through an inlet.

In addition, the intended for the cleaning of the container pump dip tank can be formed separately from the detergent tank. Then, the cleaning circuit provides a dip tank having an upper side insertion opening for introducing the pump lance of the tank pump. The container pump then sucks the detergent from the dip tank and conveys it back into the detergent tank, from where it can flow back into the dip tank via a feed line.

With some advantage, the dip tank can have a taper in its upper area, ie around the insertion opening, so that the pump action in the upper area becomes stronger and there the flow caused by the pump flows faster. This additionally improves the cleaning effect.

The dip tank may further comprise an insertion funnel at its upper insertion opening, which widens upwards and is simplified by way of positioning the pump lance of a container pump to be connected to the dip tank. In addition, such an insertion funnel may catch any of the delivery unit dripping medium and into the dip tank run in, so that no contamination around the device around.

Furthermore, a drip protection plate can be attached to this insertion funnel, which, for example, can be configured as a gutter and can be detachably connected to the upper edge of the insertion funnel by means of clamps, plugs, screws and the like. While the introducer funnel provides more local drip protection, the drip guard can cover the full path from a container to the dip tank and trap any falling drops and discharge into the introducer funnel. For this purpose, the drip guard plate may indeed be placed on the insertion funnel and the container in which the container pump was previously operated, but in order to ensure a run-in of the dripping liquid in the insertion funnel the drip guard plate at least horizontally, preferably at an angle between 0 ° and 10 °, be inclined down to the upper edge of the insertion funnel and more preferably protrude cantilevered from this upper edge.

After inserting the pump lance with the attached container pump in the dip tank, the container pump is turned on for cleaning. This can cause vibrations that cause noise and unsafe storage of the container pump in the dip tank. Therefore, in the region of the insertion opening of the dip tank, a fixing device may be provided with which the pump lance and thus the container pump connected to the pump lance are fixed relative to the dip tank.

Such a fixing device may be formed from a plurality of distributed over the circumference of the outer wall of the dip tank clamping screws which can be screwed through the outer wall by means of each cut into the outer wall or this superior thread to the center of the insertion. They then hit the pump lance and fix it from several sides until the pump lance is immovable. The clamping screws can be provided with terminal handwheels be able to do a fixation with the bare hand, so tool-free.

An essential aspect of the invention is a cleaning of delivery units from the inside by the detergent is pumped through the delivery units. In particular, in the case of the aforementioned container pumps but also an external cleaning, especially in the area of its pump lance makes sense, since it always protrudes in operation at least partially with its outside in the medium to be conveyed. In order to effect an external cleaning, the outer wall of the dip tank, preferably in the region of the introduction opening, may be assigned a plurality of supply lines, via which cleaning agent is introduced from the dip tank or from the detergent tank into the dip tank, injected with advantage. At the moment of immersion of the pump lance this is injected and thus externally freed of dirt while it is introduced into the dip tank.

In a concrete embodiment, a sleeve chamber may be formed around the insertion opening, on whose inner wall one or more, preferably evenly over the inner circumference of the inner wall of the sleeve chamber, have inlet openings in the direction of the pump lance. By pressurizing the sleeve chamber, the cleaning agent can reduce the pressure via the inlet openings, through which the cleaning agent is injected into the interior of the tube.

Further, it may be useful to assign the supply line, which is connected to the sleeve chamber, an auxiliary pump, otherwise the container pump in the first moment of their introduction can not pump any detergent in the circuit. Optionally, the auxiliary pump can support the pumping unit to be cleaned or work only in alternation with this.

In the bottom area, the feed line or alternatively or additionally the drain line to a floor drain, which preferably in a geodesic is formed lowest point and allows emptying of the cleaning circuit due to gravity. A drain valve in this case prevents the inadvertent loss of detergent and can therefore switch back and forth between an open and a closed position.

The floor drain can additionally be assigned a filter arrangement with the aid of which substances of the cleaning agent can be separated and / or neutralized. It is thus prevented that contaminants contained in the detergent escape and constitute an environmental toxin.

The cleaning circuit may also be associated with a heating element. By means of such a heating element, which may be configured as a water heater or the like, the temperature of the cleaning agent can be increased in order to bring thermal reaction forces for improved cleaning effect used.

During operation, the cleaning agent is pumped continuously in a circle, so that there is approximately no change in the amount of cleaning agent during a cleaning process. For a first filling, however, the detergent tank or optionally the dip tank may have a filling opening to which a filling line to a cleaning agent source such as a water pipe or a detergent container, connected. In this case, the cleaning agent can preferably additionally be metered with cleaning-active additives, for example by means of a metering pump assigned to the filling line, preferably a proportional metering.

The entire cleaning circuit works in a simple arrangement initially with a single delivery unit. However, it is also possible to connect a plurality of delivery units fluidly behind one another, so that the cleaning agent flows through the individual delivery units in succession. In this case, however, only one of the delivery units should be actively operated be, while the other delivery units are at most driven by the flowing detergent. If several delivery units were operated at the same time, pressure could build up between several delivery units of different delivery rates, which could damage the delivery units.

Finally, it represents a particularly preferred embodiment, when the cleaning circuit is arranged with its elements as a mobile construction on a transport vehicle, such as a handcart. Thus, the device according to the invention can always be brought to the place where delivery units are to be cleaned and it is not necessary to spend the sometimes heavily polluted delivery units to a specific location and thus also to pollute the environment or a great deal of effort for packaging or even have to provide a pre-cleaning.

The invention described above will be explained in more detail below with reference to an embodiment.

Figur 1

eine Vorrichtung zur Reinigung von Förderaggregaten für fließfähige Medien in einer schematischen seitlichen Querschnittsdarstellung,

Figur 2

ein Detail der Vorrichtung gemäß Figur 1 in einer schematischen seitlichen Querschnittsdarstellung, sowie

Figur 3

einen Reinigungskreis in einem prinzipiellen Blockschaltbild.

Show it

FIG. 1

a device for cleaning delivery units for flowable media in a schematic cross-sectional side view,

FIG. 2

a detail of the device according to FIG. 1 in a schematic lateral cross-sectional view, as well

FIG. 3

a cleaning circuit in a schematic block diagram.

FIG. 1 shows a handcart 26, which is mounted on wheels and thus designed mobile. This handcart 26 is placed in close proximity to a barrel 25, from which just a delivery unit 1 has been removed with a pump lance 7 and inserted into a dip tank 8. The delivery unit 1 was previously used in the barrel 25 as a container pump to bring out the content of the barrel 25 and supply its destination. Now that the delivery unit 1 is no longer needed in the barrel 25, the delivery unit 1 is pulled out with its pump lance 7 from the barrel 25 and introduced into the dip tank 8 for cleaning.

So that the pump lance 7 of the delivery unit 1 can be more easily introduced into the dip tank 8, the dip tank 8 has an insertion funnel 10. At this insertion funnel 10, a drip guard plate 24 is releasably secured by jamming or screwing on the edge of the insertion funnel, so that the pump lance 7 when pulling out of the barrel 25 and spending in the dip tank 8 leaves no impurities. The pump lance 7 is always located above the barrel 25, the gutter-shaped drip guard plate 24 or the insertion funnel 10 until it has been introduced through an insertion opening 9 in the middle of the insertion funnel 10 into the interior of the dip tank 8.

With arranged on the trolley is a detergent tank 4, which sprays 8 cleaning agent on the pump lance via an auxiliary pump 16 through a sleeve ring 14 of the dip tank, as later FIG. 2 described. Also, the detergent tank 4 is connected via a near-bottom inlet / outlet line 5, 6 with the dip tank 8 and a drain line 6 with a flow of the delivery unit 1. The reproached in the detergent tank 4 detergent is then introduced during operation of the described arrangement from the detergent tank 4 via the supply lines 5 in the dip tank 8 and there clean the pump lance 7 from the outside. The delivery unit 1 is operated for this purpose, so that in the Submersible container 8 contained cleaning agent, for example, water with a cleaning additive sucked at the free end of the pump lance 7 and pumped through the pump lance 7 and the delivery unit 1 through back into the detergent tank. Due to the flow through the delivery unit 1 and the flushing of the immersed parts is carried out a cleaning of the delivery unit 1 from the inside and from the outside.

For an initial filling of the cleaning circuit, an auxiliary tank 22 is further arranged on the hand truck 26, in which the cleaning additive is kept. Connected to this is a proportional dosing 21, which is also connected to a detergent source 23, for example a water pipe or another tank. Proportional dosing ensures that an exact mixture of the desired cleaning agent is available and, even in the case of pure refilling, the ratio between cleaning agent and cleaning additive remains the same.

For emptying the cleaning circuit, a floor drain 17 is provided, which is arranged in a floor near inlet / outlet pipe between the detergent tank 4 and the dip tank 8. By opening the drain valve 18, both the detergent tank 4 and the dip tank 8 can be completely emptied due to gravity, which can be done depending on the application, recently promoted medium and detergent used and cleaning additives in a container or in the sewer.

FIG. 2 shows as a detail the FIG. 1 the region of the insertion opening 9 of the dip tank 8. This is associated with a collar ring 14 which surrounds the insertion opening 9. By means of an auxiliary pump 16 cleaning agent from the detergent tank 4 is conveyed during the introduction of the pump lance 7 of the pumping unit to be cleaned in the dip tank 8, which first fills a cavity in the sleeve ring 14 and then via inlet openings 15 on the inside of the sleeve ring 14 on the pump lance 7 sprays. As a result, during the introduction of the pump lance 7 in the dip tank 8 already an external cleaning of the same, before being added by commissioning the delivery unit 1, an internal cleaning. The pump lance is clamped by means of clamping screws 13, which are arranged on a fixing device 12 and distributed over the circumference of the neck of the dip tank, so that during operation of the delivery unit 1, this does not swing up to strong movements, but is held securely.

FIG. 3 Finally, shows a schematic arrangement of the elements of the cleaning circuit in the case of simultaneous cleaning of three to be cleaned delivery units 1, 2 and 3. These are fluidly connected in series, so that of a detergent tank 4 via a supply line 5 brought up cleaning agent first the delivery unit 1, then the delivery unit 2 and finally the delivery unit 3 passes through before it is conveyed back via a drain line 6 to the detergent tank 4. Here, only in the first to an active delivery unit 1, while the other two passive delivery units 2 and 3, which are driven by the active delivery unit 1.

As already described, for the first filling of a proportional dosing 21 connected to the cleaning agent tank 4 via a filling line 20, it is supplied with a cleaning additive by a cleaning agent source 23 and an additional tank 22, these components are mixed with the cleaning agent used and the cleaning agent tank 4 is first filled.

After use, the drain valve 18 is opened and the dirty cleaning agent is cleaned via a filter assembly 19 and removed via a floor drain from the system.

Thus described above is a device for cleaning delivery units for flowable media, with which by circulating detergent ensured by one or more delivery units a simple and effective cleaning.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1

active delivery unit

2

passive delivery unit

3

passive delivery unit

4

Detergent tank

5

supply line

6

drain line

7

pumps lance

8th

dip tank

9

insertion

10

insertion funnel

11

rejuvenation

12

fixing

13

clamping screws

14

cuff ring

15

inlet opening

16

auxiliary pump

17

floor drain

18

drain valve

19

A filter assembly

20

filling line

21

proportional injection

22

additional tank

23

Cleaner source

24

Drip shield

25

barrel

26

handcart

Claims (15)

Device for cleaning delivery units for flowable media, which forms a fluidic cleaning circuit, in which a detergent tank (4) and at least one pumping unit to be cleaned (1, 2, 3) are traversed by a detergent, wherein at least one of the pumping units to be cleaned ( 1, 2, 3) circulates the cleaning agent in the cleaning circuit, characterized in that the cleaning agent tank (4) as a dip tank (8) with an upper-side insertion opening (9) for introducing a connected to a pumping unit (1) pump lance (7) is assigned, wherein the delivery unit to be cleaned (1) has a flow which is connected via a drain line (6) with an inlet of the dip tank (8). Apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the cleaning circuit is associated with an immersion tank (8) having an upper-side insertion opening (9) for introducing a pumping lance (7) connected to a delivery unit (1) to be cleaned, the delivery unit (1) to be cleaned. a drain which is connected via a drain line (6) to an inlet of the detergent tank (4) and wherein the dip tank (8) has an inlet which is connected via a feed line (5) with a drain of the detergent tank (4). Apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that the dip tank (8) tapers in at least a portion upwards. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the immersion container (8) at its upper-side insertion opening (9) is associated with an upwardly expanding insertion funnel (10). Apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that the insertion funnel (10) is associated with a preferably channel-shaped, drip protection plate (24) which is detachably connected to an upper edge of the insertion funnel (10), preferably via a plug or clamp connection, and cantilevered from protrudes the insertion funnel (10). Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the dipping container (8) in the region of its insertion opening (9), a fixing device (12) for fixing the pump lance (7) of the delivery unit (1) to be cleaned is assigned. Apparatus according to claim 6, characterized in that the fixing device (12) consists of a plurality over the circumference of the insertion opening (9) surrounding outer wall distributed clamping screws (13) is formed, which are preferably provided with hand wheels. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the immersion container (8) in the region of its insertion opening (9) are assigned a plurality over the circumference of the outer wall surrounding the inlet wall distributed inlet openings (15) which form the inlet of the dip tank or belong to it , Apparatus according to claim 8, characterized in that the inlet openings (15) are formed in an inner wall of an at least partially encircling sleeve ring (14), in which from the detergent tank (4) via the supply line (5) brought cleaning agent and the inlet openings (15 ) is introduced into the dip tank (8), preferably injected under pressure. Device according to one of claims 7 or 9, characterized in that the feed line (5) to the sleeve ring (14) is associated with a cleaning agent from the detergent tank (4) or the immersion tank (8) advancing auxiliary pump (16). Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the inlet line (5) and / or the drain line (6) is associated with a floor drain (17), via which the cleaning circuit due to gravity via a drain valve (18) can be emptied. Apparatus according to claim 11, characterized in that the bottom drain (17) is associated with a filter arrangement (19) for the separation and / or neutralization of pollutants from the cleaning agent. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cleaning circuit is associated with a heating element for controlling the temperature of the cleaning agent, preferably a water heater. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the detergent tank (4) has a filling opening, which for the purpose of initial filling by means of a filling line (20) to a cleaning agent source (23) can be connected, wherein the cleaning agent, preferably using one of the filling (20) associated metering pump, preferably a proportional dosage (21), in the context of the first filling cleaning-effective additives are added. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cleaning circuit a plurality of fluidly connected in series conveying units (1, 2, 3) belong, of which only an active delivery unit (1) is used as a circulation pump and operated actively.

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