JP2012002363A - Supply header, humidifying device, and air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a supply header that has a simple configuration and superior durability.SOLUTION: The supply header includes: an outer pipe 10 having one or a plurality of through-holes that serve as nozzles 13 for taking fluid such as water to the outside; an inner pipe 11 arranged in the outer pipe, and consisting of the same metallic material with the outer pipe l and having one or a plurality of inner through-holes 14 for sending the fluid flowing therein to the outer pipe 10 side; and a groove provided between the outer pipe 10 and the inner pipe 11, and serving as a flow passage for guiding the fluid from the inner through-holes 14 to the nozzles 13.

Description

  The present invention relates to a supply header for supplying a fluid such as water.

  There are various types of humidifiers. In this, for example, water led from a water supply pipe (generally using clean water; hereinafter referred to as humidification water) is supplied from a header for supply (hereinafter referred to as water supply header) to the humidification module, and further the humidification module is A dripping osmotic humidifier for humidifying by containing moisture vaporized by humidifying water in the passing air is used alone or incorporated in an air conditioner.

  About a water supply header, since water leakage etc. are worried about being damaged by freezing, metal pipes, such as copper, are often used as a header pipe. On the other hand, a resin nozzle is often used for dropping the water in the header pipe to the humidification module. This is related to the length of the header and the amount of water supply. For example, considering the case where it is installed on the back of the ceiling, the height of the humidifier is limited. Therefore, it is necessary to lengthen the water supply header and reduce the amount of water supply.

  In such a case, in order to ensure an optimal amount of dripping up to the tip, it is necessary to accurately process the diameter of the nozzle inlet portion to about 0.1 to 0.5 mm. Copper pipes are difficult to machine with this accuracy, and the machined holes are easily deformed by temperature and the like. In addition, the use of a metal with high hardness in order to increase the processing accuracy increases the cost. From the above, apart from the header pipe, a resin or the like whose diameter is processed with high accuracy is created as a nozzle and attached to the header pipe.

  And even when the water pressure is low (the amount of water supply is small), the diameter of the nozzle inlet portion is made very thin so that the humidifying water can be supplied to the entire humidifying module and evenly moistened. Conversely, by increasing the inner diameter toward the nozzle outlet (having a tapered structure) and reducing the water pressure at the nozzle inlet, the water for humidification can be prevented from spraying out of the nozzle. , Dripping in a bowl shape. Furthermore, by arranging the nozzle in the header pipe so that the inlet portion protrudes into the space in the header pipe, it is possible to suppress the clogging of the nozzle inlet portion by accumulating impurities carried to the feed header together with the humidifying water in the lower portion of the header pipe. effective.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2005-345047 (FIG. 1)

  However, as described above, when the metal pipe is used for the header pipe as the material for the water supply header, the number of parts increases when resin is used for the nozzle. In addition, there is a problem that the quality is likely to vary, and a nozzle creation and assembly process is required for assembling the water supply header, which increases man-hours and costs.

  Moreover, the expansion coefficient differs between metal and resin. For this reason, in particular, in a usage mode in which a heat exchanger is arranged on the primary side (air inflow side) of the humidifier and heated air is sent to the humidification module, the nozzle comes off due to a temperature difference, and the nozzle breaks due to freezing. There is a possibility that water leakage may occur.

  Furthermore, there are many types of nozzles in terms of component management, cost, and the like. For example, in the header pipe, the water pressure decreases as the distance from the water supply port increases, so that the amount of dripping from the nozzle far from the water supply port is reduced compared to the nozzles near the water supply port. Moreover, since the heat-resistant temperature of resin is lower than the heat-resistant temperature of copper, a use environment must be limited below the heat-resistant temperature of a resinous nozzle. In addition, the use of different materials increases the restrictions such as the need to use a fluid or the like corresponding to each chemical resistance.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a supply header having a simple structure and excellent durability.

  A supply header according to the present invention includes an outer tube having one or more through holes that serve as nozzles for discharging fluid to the outside, and a pipe that is in the outer tube and sends out the fluid passing through the inside to the outer tube side. An inner tube made of the same metal material as the outer tube having one or a plurality of inner through holes, and a groove serving as a flow path between the outer tube and the inner tube and guiding a fluid from the inner through hole to the nozzle.

  According to the present invention, the supply header is configured by forming a groove serving as a flow path between the outer tube having the nozzle and the inner tube that sends the fluid to the outer tube. Therefore, it can be manufactured at a low cost with a simple structure such as a header for supplying water to the humidifying module. Moreover, the man-hour concerning manufacture can be reduced. In addition, by forming a through hole that becomes a nozzle in the outer tube, there is no freezing or heat shock (abrupt changes in temperature), cracks, etc. that can occur due to the provision of a separate nozzle, environmental resistance performance and reliability Can be improved. Furthermore, since it is made of the same metal material such as copper, the heat-resistant temperature can be increased and the chemical resistance can be improved.

2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a dripping and penetrating humidifier according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure showing the structure of the water supply header. It is a figure showing the air conditioning apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure showing the air conditioning apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a dripping and penetrating humidifier according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The humidifier in the present embodiment is configured to include a heating means for sending humidified air to the humidification module.

  The humidifier in FIG. 1 has a water supply header 1, a humidification module 2, a pressure reducing valve 3, a solenoid valve 4, a water supply pipe 5, a blower 6, a heat exchanger 7, and a drain pan 8. The water supply header 1 is a supply header that supplies humidification water, which is a fluid, to the humidification module 2. In this Embodiment, the water supply header 1 is arrange | positioned above the humidification module 2, and the humidification water is supplied to the humidification module 2 by dripping (sprinkling). In order to allow the water for humidification dripped evenly throughout the humidifying module 2 to be distributed, it is a tube along the shape (upper side) of the humidifying module 2. The structure of the water supply header 1 will be described later.

  The humidification module 2 humidifies the air sent by the blower 6 by adding moisture from the humidifying water dropped by the water supply header 1. For this reason, for example, it is comprised with a structure and a raw material with high water absorption and air permeability, and installs on the air path of the air which the air blower 6 sends. The pressure reducing valve 3 is a flow control valve that reduces the humidifying water that has passed through the water supply pipe 5 to a predetermined pressure. The electromagnetic valve 4 opens or closes the humidification water to the water supply header 1 or shuts it off. For example, a control device (not shown) performs flow rate control and open / close control in the pressure reducing valve 3 and the electromagnetic valve 4.

  The water supply pipe 5 is a pipe for supplying humidification water to the water supply header 1. The blower 6 creates a flow of air that passes through the heat exchanger 7 and the humidification module 2 and is sent to the humidification target space.

  The heat exchanger 7 serving as a heating means performs heat exchange between, for example, the refrigerant and the air sent by the blower 6. When humidifying the air, it functions as a condenser for the refrigerant, and heats the air that has passed through the heat exchanger 7. Heat reduces the relative humidity of the air, making it easier for the air to absorb moisture. Further, the drain pan 8 is provided at a position to be a lower portion of the humidification module 2 and the heat exchanger 7. The dripping water is received from the humidification module 2 and the heat exchanger 7 and drained out of the humidifier through, for example, a drain pipe (not shown).

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the water supply header 1. The water supply header 1 of this Embodiment 1 is made into the structure of a double pipe by the outer pipe 10 and the inner pipe 11 (made of copper). The outer tube 10 is a copper tube having a plurality of spiral grooves on the inner wall side, such as used for a heat transfer tube of a heat exchanger, for example. The outer tube 10 has a through-hole serving as a nozzle 13 for dropping the humidifying water onto the humidifying module 2 at a position (for example, a vertically downward position) facing the humidifying module 2.

  The inner tube 11 is a copper tube having a smooth inner wall provided so as to be in contact with the inner wall side of the outer tube 10. When the water supply header 1 is formed in order to closely contact the outer tube 10, the inner tube 11 is inserted into the outer tube 10, and then the expanded ball is pushed into the inner tube 11 to expand the tube from the inside. The inner pipe 11 has an inner through hole 14 in the upper part through which humidifying water that has passed through the pipe flows out to the outer pipe 10 side. Here, it is provided at a position that forms 180 ° with respect to the position where the nozzle 13 is provided. Since the inner through hole 14 is located at the upper part and the outflow direction is upward, for example, impurities that flow into the water supply header 1 together with the humidifying water from the water supply pipe 5 can be prevented from flowing out from the inner through hole 14.

  Here, when the water supply header 1 is manufactured, the inner through hole 14 is formed in the inner pipe 11 in advance, and then the pipe is expanded. At this time, for example, if the correspondence between the inner through hole 14 and the nozzle 13 is not successful, the inner through hole 14 and the nozzle 13 may not communicate with each other through the groove, and the humidifying water may not be from the nozzle 13. Therefore, the number of the nozzles 13 may be formed more than the inner through holes 14 to increase the possibility of communication.

  Since a spiral groove is formed on the inner wall of the outer tube 10, a portion that becomes a crest of the groove is in contact with (adhered to) the inner tube 11, but a valley portion is not in contact with the inner tube 11, so that a space is created. This space serves as a humidifying water flow path. The humidifying water that has passed through the inner pipe 11 flows out of the inner through hole 14, passes through the spiral groove, reaches the nozzle 13, and drops from the nozzle 13 onto the humidifying module 2.

  Next, the operation of the humidifier in the present embodiment will be described. The valve of the electromagnetic valve 4 is opened so that the humidifying water flows through the water supply header 1. When the humidifying water flows, the pressure reducing valve 3 depressurizes the humidifying water from the water supply pipe 5 to, for example, about 0.07 Mpa and supplies it to the water supply header 1. The humidification water is evenly dropped from the feed header 1 to wet the entire humidification module 2.

  On the other hand, the heat exchanger 7 heats the air sent by the blower 6. By heating the air, the relative humidity decreases as the dry bulb temperature of the air increases. The air heated by the heat exchanger 7 passes through the humidification module 2 and is sent to the humidification target space. Air having a low relative humidity absorbs a lot of moisture when passing through the humidification module 2.

  Here, in order to uniformly drip the humidifying water in all the nozzles 13 of the water supply header 1, it is necessary to reduce the CV value in the water supply header 1 or increase the pressure of the humidifying water supplied to the water supply header 1. .

  However, when the water supply pressure is increased, the amount of humidifying water that is dripped increases, so that the amount of waste water (waste water) that does not contribute to humidification increases. On the other hand, when the feed water pressure is lowered, the water pressure at the tip of the feed header 1 is lowered, so the amount of dampening water dropped at the tip of the feed header 1 is reduced, and the drop amount is uneven. For this reason, the water for humidification does not spread over the entire humidification module 2 and wet spots occur. When wet spots occur, impurities such as silica are likely to deposit on the surface of the humidification module 2 and the material hardens, resulting in problems such as reduced water absorption (decreasing humidification performance) and white powder scattering. Occurs.

  For this reason, it is better to reduce the CV value in the water supply header 1. In the water supply header 1 of the present embodiment, the portion that becomes the flow path formed by the groove of the outer tube 10 and the inner tube 11 is narrow, and the flow resistance against the humidifying water can be increased. For this reason, the water pressure is reduced before reaching the inlet of the nozzle 13, and the water for humidification does not scatter from the nozzle 13 in the form of a spray.

  As described above, according to the humidifier of the first embodiment, the water supply header 1 for supplying water to the humidification module 2 is configured by the outer tube 10 and the inner tube 11 each having a spiral groove on the inner surface of the side wall. Therefore, it can be manufactured inexpensively with a simple structure. Moreover, the man-hour concerning manufacture can be reduced. In addition, by forming a through hole that becomes the nozzle 13 in the outer tube 11, there is no freezing, cracking, etc. caused by freezing, heat shock (abrupt change in temperature), etc. that can occur by providing a separate nozzle, Reliability can be improved. Furthermore, since it consists of copper which is the same material, heat-resistant temperature can be made high and chemical resistance can be improved.

  And since the magnitude | size of the diameter of the nozzle 13 can be formed arbitrarily, the magnitude | size of the diameter of the nozzle 13 can be adjusted based on the position from the inflow port into which humidification water flows in from the water supply pipe 5, for example. Moreover, the dripping amount of the humidifying water can be made more uniform. For this reason, the pressure of the water for humidification supplied to the water supply header 1 can be made high, and the water supply header 1 can also be lengthened. Moreover, since the inner through hole 14 is provided on the upper side of the inner pipe 11, it is possible to prevent impurities that have flowed into the water supply header 1 together with the humidifying water from passing through the inner through hole 14.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an air-conditioning apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In the present embodiment, an air conditioner provided with the humidifier 20 described in the first embodiment in an indoor unit (load side unit) 100 will be described. In the present embodiment, an indoor unit (load side unit) 100 and an outdoor unit (heat source side unit) 200 are connected by piping to form a refrigerant circuit. In FIG. 1, one indoor unit 100 and one outdoor unit 200 are connected by piping. However, for example, a plurality of indoor units 100 may be connected in parallel to the outdoor unit 200.

  The indoor unit 100 includes a humidifier 20 and a flow control valve (expansion valve) 30. The flow control valve 30 is a flow control means that adjusts the flow rate and pressure of the refrigerant flowing through the heat exchanger 7. The configuration of the humidifier 20 is the same as that shown in FIG. 1 described in the first embodiment. Here, the heat exchanger 7 in the present embodiment functions as a refrigerant evaporator during cooling, and functions as a refrigerant condenser during heating. For this reason, the humidifier 20 is basically used during heating. And the air of object space is cooled and heated.

  On the other hand, the outdoor unit 200 includes a compressor 40, an outdoor heat exchanger 50, a four-way valve 60, and an outdoor unit fan 70. The compressor 40 compresses and discharges (sends out) the sucked refrigerant. The outdoor heat exchanger 50 performs heat exchange between air (outside air) and the refrigerant. The outdoor heat exchanger 50 functions as a condenser during cooling and functions as an evaporator during heating. The four-way valve 60 is a flow path switching means for switching the refrigerant flow path between heating and cooling. The outdoor unit fan 70 sends air into the outdoor heat exchanger 50 in order to promote heat exchange between the refrigerant and the air in the outdoor heat exchanger 50. For example, the remote controller 80 transmits a signal related to a user operation instruction to the indoor unit 100. In addition, when the display unit is provided, a state display based on a signal sent from the indoor unit 100 is performed.

  Next, the operation of the air conditioner of FIG. 3 will be described based on the refrigerant flow in the refrigerant circuit. First, the case of cooling will be described. The high-temperature and high-pressure gaseous refrigerant (hereinafter referred to as gas refrigerant) compressed and discharged by the compressor 40 passes through the outdoor heat exchanger 50 from the four-way valve 60 and exchanges heat with outdoor air. Condensed and liquefied, for example, flows out of the outdoor unit 200 as a liquid refrigerant (hereinafter referred to as a liquid refrigerant).

  The refrigerant that has flowed out of the outdoor unit 200 passes through the pipe and flows into the indoor unit 100. The refrigerant flowing into the indoor unit 100 is decompressed by the flow control valve 30, passes through the heat exchanger 7, and flows out of the indoor unit 100. At this time, in the heat exchanger 7, the refrigerant is evaporated and vaporized (gasified) by heat exchange, and for example, air in the air-conditioning target space is cooled. Thereby, the air-conditioning target space is cooled.

  The refrigerant that has flowed out of the indoor unit 100 passes through the pipe and flows into the outdoor unit 200. The refrigerant flowing into the outdoor unit 200 is sucked into the compressor 40 via the four-way valve 60, and circulates by being compressed and discharged as described above.

  Next, the case of heating will be described. The high-temperature and high-pressure gas (gas) refrigerant compressed and discharged by the compressor 40 passes through the four-way valve 60 and flows out of the outdoor unit 200. The refrigerant that has flowed out of the outdoor unit 200 passes through the piping and flows into the indoor unit 100.

  The refrigerant that has flowed into the indoor unit 100 passes through the heat exchanger 7. At this time, in the heat exchanger 7, the refrigerant is condensed and liquefied by heat exchange, and for example, air in the air-conditioning target space is heated. Thereby, the air-conditioning target space is heated. The refrigerant that has passed through the heat exchanger 7 is decompressed by the flow control valve 30 and flows out of the indoor unit 100.

  The refrigerant that has flowed out of the indoor unit 52 passes through the pipe and flows into the outdoor unit 200. The refrigerant that has flowed into the outdoor unit 200 passes through the outdoor heat exchanger 50 and evaporates and vaporizes by exchanging heat with, for example, outdoor air. Thereafter, the refrigerant is sucked into the compressor 40 through the four-way valve 60, and circulated by being compressed and discharged as described above.

  As described above, in the air conditioner having the humidifying function as in the second embodiment, by providing the humidifier described in the first embodiment, the durability performance is improved and the reliability is improved, and the size is reduced. Can be realized.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an air-conditioning apparatus according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. In the above-described embodiment, the humidification water is dropped from the water supply header 1 to the humidification module 2, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it can be used as a header for directly watering the heat exchanger 7. Then, the water for humidification is vaporized by exchanging heat with the refrigerant by sprinkling water on the heat exchanger 7 so as to send out heated air containing moisture.

  In addition, the ability of the refrigerant to supply air can be reduced by heat exchange between the humidifying water and the refrigerant. For this reason, for example, when the operating capacity of the indoor unit (for example, the total capacity in the case of a plurality of units) is small, the outside air temperature is high (intermediate period), etc. The temperature of the air sent out to the air conditioning target space can be suppressed.

  Moreover, although the water supply header 1 is provided in the upper part of the heat exchanger 7 in FIG. 3, it does not specifically limit. The water supply header 1 has a tube shape without a protruding portion. Therefore, for example, instead of the heat transfer tube through which the refrigerant constituting the heat exchanger 7 passes, the water supply header 1 is passed through some of the through holes of the plurality of fins, and the heat exchanger 7 is integrated and miniaturized. Can be configured. Moreover, since it is not necessary to install a member for fixing the water supply header 1, cost reduction or the like can be achieved.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
Although not particularly shown in the first embodiment, the temperature of the humidifying water may be increased by heating the water supply header 1 with a heater or the like, for example. Thereby, the fall of the temperature of the air which passes the heating module 2 can be prevented. Moreover, you may make it raise the temperature of the water for humidification by the thermal radiation from the heat exchanger 7 instead of a heater.

  Furthermore, since the water supply header 1 is comprised only with metal materials, such as copper, you may make it generate the water vapor | steam by the water for humidification by heating the water supply header 1 further. Thereby, even if it does not provide the humidification module 2, air can be humidified and it can send out to object space. At this time, by adjusting the thicknesses of the outer tube 10 and the inner tube 11, adjustment such as expansion due to heating may be performed.

Embodiment 5 FIG.
In the above-described first embodiment, the flow path from the inner through hole 14 to the nozzle 13 is formed using the groove that the outer tube 10 has on the inner surface of the side wall. You may have a groove | channel on the inner surface. Further, the groove is not limited to the spiral groove as long as a desired flow path resistance from the inner through hole 14 to the nozzle 13 can be secured and the flow path can be formed.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2B and the like, the inner through hole 14 is disposed at a position different from the nozzle 13 by 180 °, but the present invention is not limited to 180 °. Other angles may be used. Thereby, the distance of the groove | channel used as the flow path between the inner side through-hole 14 and the nozzle 13 can be adjusted, and flow path resistance can be adjusted.

  Although this invention demonstrated the case where the water for humidification passes about the water supply header 1 which concerns on a humidifier and an air conditioning apparatus, about the structure of the header comprised by the outer pipe | tube 10 and the inner pipe | tube 11 like this invention, It can also be applied when passing other liquids. Although it depends on the type of liquid, the chemical resistance can be improved by forming it with a single material (copper pipe) like the water supply header 1.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Water supply header, 2 Humidification module, 3 Pressure reducing valve, 4 Solenoid valve, 5 Water supply pipe, 6 Blower, 7 Heat exchanger, 8 Drain pan, 10 Outer pipe, 11 Inner pipe, 13 Nozzle, 14 Inner through-hole, 20 Humidifier , 30 Flow control valve, 40 compressor, 50 outdoor heat exchanger, 60 four-way valve, 70 outdoor unit fan, 80 remote controller, 100 indoor unit, 200 outdoor unit.

Claims (10)

An outer tube having one or more through-holes that serve as nozzles for letting fluid out;
One or a plurality of inner through-holes in the outer tube for sending fluid passing inside to the outer tube side, and an inner tube made of the same metal material as the outer tube;
A supply header comprising a groove between the outer tube and the inner tube and serving as a flow path for guiding the fluid from the inner through hole to the nozzle.   The supply header according to claim 1, wherein the outer pipe has the groove on an inner surface of a side wall.   The supply header according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a header heating means for heating the outer tube and / or the inner tube.   The supply header according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the inner through hole is provided at a position facing upward when the supply header is installed. A supply header according to any of claims 1 to 4,
A blower that forms a flow of air sent to the target space;
A humidifying device comprising: a humidifying module for causing moisture relating to supply of the supply header to be included in air from the blower.   The humidifying device according to claim 5, further comprising air heating means for heating the air and passing the humidifying module. Instead of providing the humidification module,
The humidifying device according to claim 6, wherein moisture that is vaporized by sprinkling water from the supply header to the air heating means is included in the air.   The humidifying device according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the air heating means is a heat exchanger that condenses a refrigerant and dissipates heat to the air.   The humidifier according to claim 8, wherein the supply header and the heat exchanger are integrally formed by bringing the supply header into contact with a plurality of fins constituting the heat exchanger. A compressor that compresses and discharges the refrigerant, a heat source side heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the outside air and the refrigerant, and an outdoor unit that has a four-way valve for switching the flow path of the refrigerant;
An air conditioner comprising: an indoor unit having a throttling device for adjusting the pressure of the refrigerant and the humidifying device according to claim 8.

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