JP2001149453A - Gas cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gas cleaner suitable to be used in a narrow space where persons exist such as in a car of a train or in a bus. SOLUTION: The gas cleaner is provided with a casing with a narrow depth, a planar filter mounted in the opening of the front side of the casing and an ultraviolet light source mounted in the casing. The inside of the back of the casing is processed so as to be a mirror face and a discharge port is disposed on the upper or side face of the casing. Thus, the filter carries a photocatalyst excited by irradiation of an ultraviolet light from the ultraviolet light source.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to a gas purifier. 2. Description of the Related Art A gas purifier is used in which a gas contaminated with a malodorous component, a harmful component, and / or a germ is brought into contact with a photocatalyst carrying member under ultraviolet irradiation to purify the gas. The present invention relates to an improvement of such a purifier.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a gas purifier as described above,
A photocatalyst carrying member was installed in a casing provided with a fan having a contaminant gas inlet and a purifying gas outlet and a gas passage in the casing, and an ultraviolet light source was installed facing the photocatalyst carrying member. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) Nos. 3-106420 and 9-8486.
6). In such a conventional gas purifier, a contaminant gas in an atmosphere in which the gas purifier is installed is forcibly taken into a casing by a fan, and brought into contact with a photocatalyst carrying member under irradiation of ultraviolet light, so that a contaminant source in the contaminant gas is removed. Specifically, the odorous component is decomposed by a photocatalyst excited by ultraviolet irradiation. However, such conventional gas purifiers include:
Because the gas purifier is of a type in which the contaminated gas in the space in which the gas purifier is installed is forcibly taken into the casing by a fan,
Since the whole is large and noise generated by the operation of the fan is inevitable, gas is sucked into the inlet of the casing and gas is blown out from the outlet, so contamination of a sufficiently large space including the installation space is contaminated. Although suitable for purifying gas, there is a problem that it is not suitable for purifying pollutant gas in a relatively narrow space such as a room such as a train or a bus.

[0003]

The problem to be solved by the present invention is that the conventional gas purifier is not suitable for purifying pollutant gas in a relatively narrow space such as a train or a bus.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention, which solves the above-mentioned problems, is a gas purifier for purifying gas contaminated with malodorous components, harmful components and / or various germs. A flat filter attached to a front open portion of a casing, and an ultraviolet light source attached to the casing, an inner surface of a rear surface of the casing is mirror-finished, and an exhaust port is provided on an upper surface or a side surface of the casing. And a gas purifier characterized in that the filter carries a photocatalyst which is excited by ultraviolet irradiation from the ultraviolet light source.

[0005] The gas purifier according to the present invention has a thin, substantially rectangular shape in appearance. The front side of the casing having a small depth is an open portion, the inside of the rear surface is mirror-finished, and an exhaust port is opened on the upper surface or side surface. A flat filter is attached to the front open portion of the casing, and an ultraviolet light source is attached in a space surrounded by the casing and the filter.

In the present invention, as the ultraviolet light source, a light source that emits ultraviolet light, such as a low-pressure mercury lamp, a high-pressure mercury lamp, or an ultra-high-pressure mercury lamp, can be used. The filter supports a photocatalyst, preferably titanium oxide particles, which is excited by the ultraviolet light emitted from the ultraviolet light source. As such titanium oxide particles, those having an anatase crystal structure are more preferable, and composite particles in which metal silver particles or metal copper particles are dispersed and attached to titanium oxide particles having an anatase crystal structure are particularly preferable. Titanium oxide particles having an anatase-type crystal structure exhibit an excellent photocatalytic action upon irradiation with ultraviolet light, and metallic silver particles or metallic copper particles exhibit an excellent bactericidal effect against various bacteria in contaminated gas. The filter is
Further, an adsorbent, for example, one supporting activated carbon is preferable.
As the adsorbent passes through the filter,
This is for temporarily capturing a polluting source in the gas, and can be decomposed by a photocatalyst excited by ultraviolet irradiation in a state where the polluting source is temporarily captured, so that gas purification efficiency can be increased.

In the present invention, glass cloth, activated carbon fiber felt, ceramic paper, flexible polyurethane foam and the like can be used as the material of the filter.
Flexible polyurethane foams are preferred. Since flexible polyurethane foam is inexpensive and rich in elasticity and flexibility, it can be easily attached to or removed from the front opening of the casing, and the photocatalyst and the adsorbent can be easily removed. Easy to carry. The filter in which the composite particles and the activated carbon are supported on a polyurethane foam as a carrier is most simply sprayed with a suspension containing the composite particles and a binder on a commercially available polyurethane foam supporting activated carbon. , And dried. The composite particles used here are prepared by adding titanium oxide particles having an anatase crystal structure to a solution of an ammonia complex of a silver salt or a copper salt and dispersing them. It is obtained by depositing metallic silver or metallic copper on the surface of titanium particles.

It is preferable to attach a surface material having a large number of openings to the casing on the front side of the filter. The surface material functions as an exterior material of the gas purifier and as a protective material for the filter. For this, a metal net or a punching metal can be used, but a punching metal is preferable.

[0009] The gas purifier according to the present invention does not use a fan for sucking gas or exhausting gas. When the ultraviolet light source in the casing is energized, the generated heat generates an ascending air current in the casing, and the ascending air current is exhausted from an exhaust port provided on the upper surface or side surface of the casing. External contaminant gases are slowly drawn into the casing through the attached filter. The contaminant in the contaminated gas that is slowly sucked into the casing is decomposed by a photocatalyst excited by irradiation with ultraviolet light from an ultraviolet light source when passing through the filter. The inside of the rear surface of the casing is mirror-finished, and the ultraviolet light emitted from the ultraviolet light source is concentrated in the direction of the filter, so that the excitation of the photocatalyst and the decomposition of the contaminant by this are efficiently performed.

The gas purifier according to the present invention utilizes the so-called natural convection of gas, and does not use a fan for forcing gas into the casing.
Therefore, it can be made small with a small depth and does not generate noise due to the operation of the fan and does not forcibly suck or blow out gas, so it is used in relatively small rooms such as trains and buses where many people are there. It is suitable to do.

[0011]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating a gas purifier according to the present invention. The gas purifier of FIG. 1 includes a casing 11, a filter 21, and ultraviolet light sources 31 and 32. The casing 11 has a substantially rectangular shape with a thin appearance and therefore a small depth. The front side 12 of the casing 11 is an open portion, the inside of the rear surface 13 is mirror-finished, and an exhaust port 41 is opened on the upper surface 14. The filter 21 has a rectangular flat plate appearance, and its peripheral edge is fitted into a ring-shaped concave portion provided on the inner peripheral edge of the front side 12 of the casing 11. The filter 21 supports composite particles (not shown) in which metal silver particles are dispersed and attached to titanium oxide particles having an anatase crystal structure as a photocatalyst, and activated carbon as an adsorbent. The ultraviolet light sources 31 and 32 are
It is provided in parallel with a space in a casing surrounded by the filter 1 and the filter 21 and is connected to a power supply (not shown).

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating another gas purifier according to the present invention. The gas purifier of FIG.
5, a filter 22, ultraviolet light sources 33 and 34, and a punching metal 51 as a surface material. The casing 15 has a generally rectangular shape with a thin appearance and therefore a small depth. The front side 16 of the casing 15 is an open portion, and the back surface 17 is a curved surface slightly projecting outward. The inside of the rear surface 17 of the casing 15 is mirror-finished, and an exhaust port 42 is opened in the upper surface 18. The filter 22 has a rectangular flat plate appearance, and its peripheral edge is fitted into a ring-shaped concave portion provided on the inner peripheral edge of the front side 16 of the casing 15. The filter 22 supports composite particles (not shown) in which metal silver particles are dispersed and attached to titanium oxide particles having an anatase crystal structure as a photocatalyst, and activated carbon as an adsorbent. The ultraviolet light sources 33 and 34 are
5 and are mounted in parallel in a casing surrounded by the filter 22 and are connected to a power source (not shown). The punching metal 16 as a surface material has a rectangular flat plate appearance, and its peripheral edge is screwed to the outer peripheral edge of the front side 16 of the casing 15.

In the illustrated gas purifier, when the ultraviolet light sources 31 to 34 in the casings 11 and 15 are energized, an updraft is generated in the casings 11 and 15 due to the heat generated. As a result, in the case of FIG. 1, external contaminated gas is gently sucked into the casing 11 through the filter 12 attached to the opening of the front side 12 of the casing 11. In the case of FIG. 2, the external contaminant gas is gently sucked into the casing 15 through the punching metal 51 and the filter 22 attached to the opening on the front side 16 of the casing 15.
The contaminant in the contaminated gas that is slowly sucked into the casings 11 and 15 is temporarily captured by the adsorbent when passing through the filters 21 and 22. In this state, the contaminant is irradiated with ultraviolet rays from the ultraviolet light sources 31 to 34. Decomposed by the excited photocatalyst and sterilized by silver. Casing 11, 15
The insides of the back surfaces 13 and 17 are mirror-finished, and the ultraviolet rays emitted from the ultraviolet light sources 31 to 34 are
Since the concentration is performed in two directions, the excitation of the photocatalyst and the decomposition of the pollutant due to the excitation are efficiently performed.

[0014]

As is apparent from the above description, the present invention described above can be manufactured in a thin and small size as a whole, does not generate noise, and does not forcibly suck or blow out gas. However, there is an effect that it is suitable for use in a relatively small room where a person is present.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing a gas purifier according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing another gas purifier according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

11, 15 · · · casing, 13, 17 · · · back, 1
4, 18,..., Upper surface, 21, 22,.
4. UV light source, 41, 42, exhaust port, 51, punching metal

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 4C080 AA07 BB02 BB05 CC01 HH05 JJ03 KK08 LL10 MM02 MM07 NN05 NN28 QQ11

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A gas purifier for purifying gas contaminated with malodorous components, harmful components and / or various germs, comprising: a casing having a narrow depth; and a flat filter attached to a front open portion of the casing. And an ultraviolet light source mounted in the casing, the inside of the rear surface of the casing is mirror-finished, an exhaust port is opened on the upper surface or side surface of the casing, and the filter is A gas purifier comprising a photocatalyst that is excited by ultraviolet irradiation. 2. The gas purifier according to claim 1, wherein the filter carries titanium oxide particles. 3. The gas purifier according to claim 1, wherein the filter carries composite particles obtained by dispersing and attaching metallic silver particles or metallic copper particles to titanium oxide particles having an anatase crystal structure. 4. The gas purifier according to claim 1, wherein the filter further carries an adsorbent. 5. The gas purifier according to claim 1, wherein a surface material having a large number of openings is attached to the casing on the front side of the filter. 6. The gas purifier according to claim 5, wherein the surface material is a punching metal.