JP2015116160A - PH adjusting agent for artificial mineral fiber, artificial mineral fiber for culture medium, method for producing the same, and plant cultivation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pH adjuster for man-made mineral fibers which can adjust the pH of a man-made mineral fiber added by adding into the man-made mineral fiber such as rock wool in a range suitable for plant cultivation, and loses few man-made mineral fiber concerned, to provide a man-made mineral fiber with a pH in a range suitable for plant cultivation with few losses, to provide a method for producing a man-made mineral fiber which can obtain the man-made mineral fiber with a pH in a range suitable for plant cultivation with few losses, and to provide a plant cultivation apparatus in which a pH is in a range suitable for plant cultivation and using the man-made mineral fiber with few losses.SOLUTION: A specific acid solution is used. The suitable pH is in the range of 1.0-5.0.

Description

  The present invention relates to a pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers. More specifically, the present invention relates to a pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers that can be adjusted to an appropriate range for plant growth and the loss of the artificial mineral fibers can be controlled by adding to the artificial mineral fibers for culture medium. The present invention also relates to an artificial mineral fiber and a method for producing the same. Specifically, the present invention relates to an artificial mineral fiber whose pH is adjusted to an appropriate range for plant growth and low loss, and a production method for obtaining such an artificial mineral fiber. The present invention also relates to a plant cultivation apparatus. Specifically, the present invention relates to a plant cultivation apparatus in which the pH of the medium is adjusted to an appropriate range for plant growth.

  A plant culture medium has been proposed in which artificial mineral fibers such as granulated rock wool and glass wool (glass wool) having a specific particle diameter are filled so that the bulk specific gravity after filling the container is within a specific range (for example, a patent) See references 1 and 2.) Rock wool is manufactured by fiberizing a material mainly composed of rocks, blast furnace slag and the like melted in a melting furnace while rapidly cooling. What is manufactured from a material mainly composed of blast furnace slag or the like is sometimes called slag wool. Rock wool is one of the typical media fibers currently on the market. Glass wool is produced by a method similar to rock wool using waste glass and limestone as main raw materials.

  By the way, in plant cultivation, pH suitable for every kind of plant differs. For example, it is 6.5 to 7.0 for lettuce, 5.5 to 6.5 for strawberries, and 5.5 to 7.0 for roses. When rock wool and glass wool are sufficiently immersed in water, the pH of the water shows a high value. Therefore, rock wool is made to adsorb and react an acidifying agent such as vinegar with a neutral or alkaline substance (for example, activated carbon) to carry an acidic liquid having a pH of 3.5 or more and less than 5 in the substance (for example, activated carbon). An acid carrier for rockwool medium that has been made is disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 3). Moreover, there exists a technique which adjusts pH to the acidity of less than 3.5-7 by processing rock wool with acidifying agents, such as a sulfuric acid, iron sulfate, a citric acid, malic acid, and fumaric acid (for example, patent document 4). reference.). Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-081733 (Patent Document 4) discloses that the rock wool fiber itself is dissolved when the pH of the acidic liquid supported (held) on the acidic carrier is lower than 3.5. (Refer to the lower left column on the second page to the lower right column on the same page.) However, it is preferable that the acidic substance to be added has a small pH because the pH of the medium can be reduced with a smaller amount.

JP-A-63-112934 JP-A 63-276426 JP 58-152416 A JP-A 61-081733

  The present invention is able to adjust the pH of an artificial mineral fiber added by adding it to an artificial mineral fiber such as rock wool to an appropriate range for plant growth, and the pH adjustment for the artificial mineral fiber with little loss of the artificial mineral fiber. The purpose is to provide an agent. Another object of the present invention is to provide an artificial mineral fiber having a pH in an appropriate range for plant growth and low loss. Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing an artificial mineral fiber having a pH within a range appropriate for plant growth and producing an artificial mineral fiber with little loss. Moreover, an object of this invention is to provide the plant cultivation apparatus with little loss of the artificial mineral fiber to be used, in which pH is a suitable range for plant growth.

As a result of intensive studies for solving the above problems, the present inventors have found that the above problems can be solved by using a specific acidic aqueous solution, and have completed the present invention. That is, the present invention relates to a pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers represented by the following (1) or (2), an artificial mineral fiber represented by (3), a method for producing an artificial mineral fiber represented by (4), and (5) It is a plant cultivation apparatus represented by.
(1) A pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers comprising an acidic buffer solution.
(2) The pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers according to (1) above, wherein the pH of the buffer solution is in the range of 1.0 to 5.0.
(3) An artificial mineral fiber to which the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber of (1) or (2) above is added.
(4) A method for producing an artificial mineral fiber, comprising adding the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber (1) or (2) above to the artificial mineral fiber.
(5) A plant cultivation apparatus comprising the plant cultivation medium comprising the artificial mineral fiber of (3) and a water supply means.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to adjust the pH of an artificial mineral fiber added by adding to an artificial mineral fiber such as rock wool to an appropriate range for plant growth, and for the artificial mineral fiber with a small loss of the artificial mineral fiber. A pH adjuster is obtained. In addition, according to the present invention, an artificial mineral fiber having a pH in an appropriate range for plant growth and low loss can be obtained. Moreover, according to this invention, the manufacturing method of the artificial mineral fiber from which pH is a suitable range for plant growth and an artificial mineral fiber with few losses is obtained is obtained. Moreover, according to this invention, pH is a range suitable for the cultivation of a plant, and the plant cultivation apparatus with few loss of the artificial mineral fiber to be used is obtained. Moreover, according to this invention, the fluctuation | variation of pH of the culture medium for plant growth which consists of artificial mineral fiber and the said artificial mineral fiber can be suppressed by the buffer action of the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber. Further, according to the present invention, since the loss of the artificial mineral fiber is small, there is an economic merit, and when the amount of the original artificial mineral fiber before pH adjustment is made the same, the plant growth medium is preserved. The amount of water is high.

It is the typical process of the measurement of the water absorption of the artificial mineral fiber which adjusted pH. It is a graph which shows the typical perspective view of an example of the plant cultivation apparatus of this invention.

  The pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers of the present invention is characterized by comprising an acidic buffer solution. Since the loss of the artificial mineral fiber is small and the pH of the artificial mineral fiber (medium) can be reduced with a smaller amount, it is preferably composed of a buffer solution having a pH of 1.0 to 5.0, and a pH of 1.5 to 4. More preferably, it consists of a buffer solution of 0, and most preferably consists of a buffer solution of pH 2.0 to 3.4.

  Examples of the buffer solution that can be used in the present invention include an aqueous solution composed of a mineral acid and a mineral acid salt, an aqueous solution composed of an organic acid and an organic acid salt, an aqueous solution composed of a mineral acid and an organic acid salt, and an organic acid and a mineral acid salt. Aqueous solution consisting of: aqueous solution consisting of mineral acid and organic acid and organic acid salt; aqueous solution consisting of mineral acid and organic acid and mineral acid salt; mineral acid; aqueous solution consisting of mineral acid salt and organic acid salt; organic acid and mineral acid salt And an aqueous solution comprising a mineral acid and an organic acid, and an aqueous solution comprising a mineral acid salt and an organic acid salt. A mineral acid, a mineral acid salt, an organic acid and an organic acid salt may be used in combination of two or more. Good. Examples of the mineral acid include hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, boric acid, phosphoric acid and the like. Examples of mineral acid salts include chlorides, sulfates, borates, and phosphates. Examples of the organic acid include acetic acid, formic acid, phthalic acid, lactic acid, tartaric acid, and citric acid. Examples of the organic acid salt include acetate, formate, phthalate, lactate, tartrate, citrate and the like. A buffer solution using an organic acid is preferable because the loss of artificial mineral fibers is small.

  The artificial mineral fiber of the present invention is an artificial mineral fiber to which the pH adjusting agent for artificial mineral fiber is added. As the artificial mineral fiber used in the present invention, for example, rock wool, glass wool or ceramic wool is mentioned as a preferred example because the fiber is cotton-like (wool-like), and it is for plants having a high water content despite its low cost. Rock wool or glass wool is more preferable, and rock wool is particularly preferable because a medium can be easily obtained. Moreover, rock wool (especially rock wool (slag wool) using blast furnace slag as a raw material) or glass wool is preferable from the viewpoint of resource saving and energy saving. Further, in the present invention, the artificial mineral fiber may be a short fiber or a long fiber, but a cotton-like (wool-like) fiber is preferable because a high moisture content is obtained and the plant is easily rooted. In addition, the cotton-like artificial mineral fiber may be one obtained by compacting the cotton-like artificial mineral fiber, one obtained by crushing the compacted one (for example, granular cotton, fine cotton, etc.), or urea resin, etc. It may be formed by adding a binder and molding into a board shape, block shape, pipe shape or the like.

  The ratio (addition rate) of adding the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber to the artificial mineral fiber can be adjusted by the pH range suitable for the plant to be grown, the pH of the original artificial mineral fiber, and the like.

  The method for producing an artificial mineral fiber according to the present invention is characterized in that the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber is added to the artificial mineral fiber. Examples of the method for adding the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber to the artificial mineral fiber include, for example, a method of spraying the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber on the artificial mineral fiber, and immersing the artificial mineral fiber in the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber Method, Method of dropping pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber on artificial mineral fiber, Method of pouring pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber on artificial mineral fiber, Aerosol (mist) of artificial mineral fiber pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber As a preferred example, a method of passing through a room (container) filled with can be exemplified.

  The plant cultivation apparatus of the present invention is characterized by comprising a plant cultivation medium comprising the above-described artificial mineral fibers and water supply means. As the culture medium for plant cultivation composed of the above-mentioned artificial mineral fiber, the above-mentioned artificial mineral fiber itself, or the above-mentioned artificial mineral fiber filled in a container, the above-mentioned artificial mineral fiber was placed in a vat-shaped or dish-shaped container. It may be a thing. The material of the container used here is not limited. For example, a container using one or more of metals such as stainless steel, resin, mortar, concrete, wood, bamboo, stone, glass, ceramics including ceramics, and the like. Can be used. Further, the shape of the container is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a bat shape, a dish shape, a box shape, and a cylindrical shape.

  In the present invention, the water supply means may be one that automatically supplies water, one that supplies water manually, or a combination of these two or more as long as it can supply water. For example, a water storage container (tank) that has a hose or pipe that communicates with it and supplies water by the potential energy of the water in the water storage container, a water storage container (tank) that has a hose or pipe that communicates with this, and a pump Water supplied by this pump, a closed water storage container (tank), a hose or pipe communicating therewith, and a pressurizing device are provided, and water is supplied by pressurizing the air in the water storage container with the pressurizing device. And those having a hose or pipe communicating with a water tap and supplying water by the water pressure of the water. Moreover, these may be provided with an atomizing means, and water may be supplied in the form of a mist. As the water to be supplied, various kinds of water such as tap water, ground water, river and lake water, rainwater stored water, reclaimed water, etc. can be used.

[Example 1]
-Manufacture of pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber A buffer solution is prepared by mixing 2.0M citric acid aqueous solution and 0.5M sodium dihydrogen phosphate aqueous solution at a volume ratio of 7: 3. It was. The pH of the prepared buffer solution was 2.1.

-Preparation of pH-adjusted artificial mineral fiber 100 g of rock wool (fine cotton, manufactured by Taiheiyo Material Co., Ltd.) was placed in a stainless steel bat, and a predetermined amount (10 g and 20 g) of the prepared pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber was sprayed by a commercially available sprayer. did. A pH-adjusted artificial mineral fiber (pH-adjusted rock wool) was produced by stirring so that the rock wool sprayed with the pH adjusting agent for artificial mineral fiber was homogeneous. Rokkuru used in the test, the loosed bulk density of 0.10 g / cm ^3, used was the true density 2.97 g / cm ^3. The light bulk density is measured as follows. Fill the container of known volume gently with rock wool (fine cotton) until it overflows so that it does not drop. Remove the sample that protrudes from the upper surface of the container by rubbing it with a ruler. The mass of the sample filled in the container at this time is determined. The value obtained by the mass / the internal volume is the light bulk density.
As a comparison, after spraying a predetermined amount (10 g and 20 g) of a 4.0 M aqueous phosphoric acid solution to 100 g of the same rock wool (fine cotton) with a commercially available sprayer, the rock wool is stirred so that it becomes homogeneous. A pH-adjusted artificial mineral fiber (phosphoric acid sprayed pH-adjusted rock wool (comparative product)) was prepared.

-PH measurement To 20 g of the prepared pH-adjusted rock wool, 100 g of ion exchange distilled water was added in a beaker, and after stirring, the pH of the water was measured with a pH meter. For comparison, the pH was measured in the same manner using a comparative product. The measurement results of pH are shown in Table 1.

-Yield measurement of pH-adjusted artificial mineral fiber A pH-adjusted rock wool produced in the same manner as described above (added 20 g of an artificial mineral fiber pH adjuster to 100 g of rock wool) was placed in the vat used for the production. As it was, it was dried in a drier set at 105 ° C. After removing from the dryer, the pH-adjusted rock wool that can be used as a plant medium, ie, the cotton-adjusted pH-adjusted rock wool and the residue remaining in the vat, are selected and their mass is measured. And the ratio was determined. The ratio of the residue remaining in the vat, that is, the pH-adjusted rock wool that cannot be used as a plant medium was 3.2% by mass, which was a low ratio. Similarly, a comparative product (20 g of 4.0 M phosphoric acid aqueous solution added to 100 g of rock wool) is also a residue remaining in the vat, that is, a pH-adjusted rock wool in a state where it cannot be used as a plant medium (comparison) Product) was 7.3% by mass, which was a high rate.

・ Measurement of water absorption rate of pH-adjusted artificial mineral fiber After installing and closing water-based fabric (nylon mesh) 104 through one opening of a cylindrical container (glass tube) 101 having an internal volume (V ₀ ) of 250 cm ³ , The pH-adjusted rock wool 106 dried from the opening was filled into the cylindrical container 101. After filling the pH-adjusted rock wool 106, a water-based fabric (nylon mesh) 107 was attached and closed through the open opening of the cylindrical container 101. At this time, the volume (bulk) V of the pH-adjusted rock wool and the internal volume V ₀ of the cylindrical container are equal. At this time, the mass (mass before immersion) W of the cylindrical container 101 filled with the pH-adjusted rock wool 106 is measured (FIG. 1 (3)). The bulk density of the pH-adjusted rock wool was 0.16 g / cm ³ . The cylindrical container 101 filled with the pH-adjusted rock wool 106 was completely submerged in water for 1 hour (submerged in water) (FIG. 1 (4)). After the immersion, the cylindrical container was set up substantially vertically and water (gravity water) 105 was discharged (FIG. 1 (5)). After the water no longer falls, the mass W ₁ of the cylindrical container filled with the pH-adjusted rock wool after immersion is quickly measured, and the volumetric water content R is calculated by the following formula (1) (FIG. 1 (6 )). As a result, the volumetric water content R was as high as 71.1%. Similarly, when the volumetric water content R of rock wool (fine cotton) before pH adjustment was determined, it was 71.2% which was substantially the same as that of pH adjusted rock wool (product of the present invention).
R = ((W ₁ −W) ÷ ρ _W ) ÷ V × 100 (%) (1)
(Here, the density of water is ρ _W (= 1.00 g / cm ³ ).)

  Further, the volumetric water content R of the comparative product (20 g of 4.0M phosphoric acid aqueous solution added to 100 g of rock wool) obtained in the same manner was a low value of 67.1%.

  The process of measuring the water absorption rate of the artificial mineral fiber whose pH has been adjusted is schematically shown in FIG.

[Example 2]
The pH-adjusted rock wool 206 produced in Example 1 was filled into a resin cylindrical container (resin tube) 201 having an open window (opening) 202. The openings 205 and 208 at both ends of the resin cylindrical container 201 are attached and closed with a nylon mesh 204 and a nylon mesh 209. A funnel 212 having the same inner diameter as that of the resin tube 201 was attached to both ends of the resin tube 201 using an adhesive tape. A vinyl hose 210 was attached to each funnel using a hose band. The tip of one vinyl hose 210 was attached to a tap 211 of a water supply using a hose band. When the faucet 211 is opened, water passes through the vinyl hose 210, the funnel 212, and the resin cylindrical container 201 and is supplied to the pH-adjusted rock wool 206. Excess water 207 is discharged through the funnel 212 and the vinyl hose 210 on the opposite side of the faucet 211. Plant seedlings or seeds are placed on the pH-adjusted rock wool 206 at the window (opening) 202 portion. This plant cultivation apparatus 203 is shown in FIG.

[Example 3]
The pH-adjusted rock wool produced in Example 1 was filled in a water-permeable container made of a nonwoven fabric. A small window was opened at the top of the container with a cutter knife, and plant seedlings were planted there. A thin tube is inserted about 1 cm from the seedling. The narrow tube communicates with a tank of liquid fertilizer (aqueous solution), and a liquid fertilizer supply pump is provided therebetween.

  The present invention is used in greenhouses, plant factories, etc., for leafy vegetables (lettuce, spinach, strawberries, honeybees, etc.), fruits (strawberry, tomato, eggplant, paprika, strawberries, etc.) and ornamental plants (roses, gerbera, marigold, It can be suitably used for cultivation of plants such as spatiphyllum.

101 Glass cylindrical container (glass tube for filling rock wool)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 102 Container for immersion 103 Water 104 Nylon mesh 105 Gravity water 106 pH adjustment rock wool 107 Nylon mesh 108 Electronic balance 201 Resin cylindrical container (resin tube for rock wool filling)
202 Window (opening)
203 Plant cultivation equipment 204 Nylon mesh 205 Opening 206 pH adjustment Rock wool 207 Water 208 Opening 209 Nylon mesh 210 Vinyl hose 211 Water tap faucet 212 Metal funnel

Claims (5)

  A pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers comprising an acidic buffer solution.   The pH adjuster for artificial mineral fibers according to claim 1, wherein the pH of the buffer solution is in the range of 1.0 to 5.0.   An artificial mineral fiber to which the pH adjuster for artificial mineral fiber according to claim 1 or 2 is added.   A method for producing an artificial mineral fiber, comprising adding the pH adjuster for an artificial mineral fiber according to claim 1 or 2 to the artificial mineral fiber.   A plant cultivation apparatus comprising a plant cultivation medium comprising the artificial mineral fiber according to claim 3 and water supply means.