KR102758327B1 - Fine dust concentration measuring apparatus capable of measuring concentration by particle size of fine dust - Google Patents

Abstract

According to one aspect of the technical idea of the present disclosure, a device for measuring fine dust concentration includes: a channel including an inlet through which air is drawn in, a separation space connected to the inlet, a plurality of branch channels connected to a lower portion of the separation space, a plurality of fine dust concentration measurement channels formed corresponding to the plurality of branch channels, and an outlet connected to the plurality of fine dust concentration measurement channels and through which air is discharged; a plurality of fine dust concentration measuring devices, each of which is arranged in each of the plurality of fine dust concentration measurement channels; and a particle separator arranged above the plurality of branch channels within the separation space, wherein the plurality of branch channels include: a first branch channel having an inlet formed corresponding to an area within a predetermined distance from the particle separator; and a second branch channel having an inlet formed corresponding to an area surrounding the outside of the first branch channel.

Description

{FINE DUST CONCENTRATION MEASURING APPARATUS CAPABLE OF MEASURING CONCENTRATION BY PARTICLE SIZE OF FINE DUST}

The technical idea of the present disclosure relates to a fine dust concentration measuring device capable of measuring the concentration of fine dust particles according to their size.

Fine dust is generally dust with a diameter of 10 micrometers or less, and can be mainly emitted through automobile exhaust fumes or factory chimneys. Since it was revealed that ultrafine dust with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less can penetrate the respiratory system and blood vessels and be very harmful to the human body, interest in ultrafine dust and fine dust has been increasing.

Recent fine dust concentration measuring devices mainly use particle measurement technology that analyzes and measures the size and number of particles by utilizing the characteristics of light such as diffraction, reflection, refraction, and scattering. Fine dust concentration measuring devices that use this particle measurement technology mainly adopt infrared LED light scattering and laser light scattering methods.

The method using infrared LEDs has a lower light concentration than lasers, so the measurement error is relatively large and there is a limit to improving precision. For this reason, the use of laser light scattering methods with high light concentration is increasing recently.

Meanwhile, most conventional fine dust concentration measuring devices only measure the concentration of fine dust with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5) and calculate the concentration of PM10 fine dust using a conversion formula, so it may be difficult to provide accurate PM10 fine dust concentration.

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a fine dust concentration measuring device capable of separating fine dust particles by size inside the device and measuring the concentration of fine dust particles by size.

In order to achieve the above object, a fine dust concentration measuring device according to an aspect of the technical idea of the present disclosure includes a channel including an inlet through which air is introduced, a separation space connected to the inlet, a plurality of branch channels connected to a lower portion of the separation space, a plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels formed corresponding to the plurality of branch channels, and an outlet connected to the plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels and through which air is discharged; a plurality of fine dust concentration measuring devices, one of which is arranged in each of the plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels; and a particle separator arranged above the plurality of branch channels within the separation space, wherein the plurality of branch channels include a first branch channel having an inlet formed corresponding to an area within a predetermined distance from the particle separator; and a second branch channel having an inlet formed corresponding to an area surrounding the outside of the first branch channel.

In one embodiment, the particle separator can block fine dust particles as they pass through the introduced air.

According to one embodiment, the particle separator comprises an impactor, and the impactor may comprise at least one collision plate that blocks the fine dust particles when the introduced air passes through it.

According to one embodiment, the plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels include a first fine dust concentration measuring channel connected to the first branch channel; and a second fine dust concentration measuring channel connected to the second branch channel, and the plurality of fine dust concentration measuring devices include a first fine dust concentration measuring device arranged in the first fine dust concentration measuring channel, and a second fine dust concentration measuring device arranged in the second fine dust concentration measuring channel, and each of the first fine dust concentration measuring device and the second fine dust concentration measuring device may include a light emitting unit that irradiates laser light into the interior of a corresponding fine dust concentration measuring channel; and a light receiving unit that receives light reflected or scattered by fine dust particles in the air flowing inside the interior of the corresponding fine dust concentration measuring channel, among the irradiated laser light.

According to one embodiment, the light receiving unit generates a light receiving signal corresponding to the received light, and the fine dust concentration measuring device further includes a processor that measures the fine dust concentration based on the light receiving signal, wherein the processor can measure the fine dust concentration for first fine dust particles having a predetermined size or larger based on the first light receiving signal generated from the light receiving unit of the first fine dust concentration measuring device, and can measure the fine dust concentration for second fine dust particles having a predetermined size or smaller based on the second light receiving signal generated from the light receiving unit of the second fine dust concentration measuring device.

According to one embodiment, the fine dust concentration measuring device further includes a filter formed at the inlet of the second branch flow path, and the filter can be implemented to pass the second fine dust particles and filter the first fine dust particles.

The fine dust concentration measuring device according to the technical idea of the present disclosure can measure the fine dust concentration by particle size by separating the fine dust particles by size using the principle that the moving distance or the falling point is different depending on the size of the fine dust particles, thereby providing a more accurate fine dust concentration.

The effects that can be obtained by the fine dust concentration measuring device according to the technical idea of the present disclosure are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects that are not mentioned can be clearly understood by a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs from the description below.

To more fully understand the drawings cited in this disclosure, a brief description of each drawing is provided.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a fine dust concentration measuring device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
Figures 2 and 3 are drawings showing how fine dust particles are separated by size by the branch path and impactor shown in Figure 1.
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of a fine dust concentration measuring device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a fine dust concentration measuring device according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

The exemplary embodiments according to the technical idea of the present disclosure are provided to more completely explain the technical idea of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art, and the embodiments below may be modified in various different forms, and the scope of the technical idea of the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments below. Rather, these embodiments are provided to more faithfully and completely convey the technical idea of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

Although the terms first, second, etc. are used in the present disclosure to describe various elements, regions, layers, portions, and/or components, it is to be understood that these elements, parts, regions, layers, portions, and/or components should not be limited by these terms. These terms do not imply a particular order, hierarchy, or order, and are only used to distinguish one element, region, portion, or component from another element, region, portion, or component. Accordingly, a first element, region, portion, or component described below may refer to a second element, region, portion, or component without departing from the teachings of the technical idea of the present disclosure. For example, a first element may be referred to as a second element, and similarly, a second element may also be referred to as a first element, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical and scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art to which the concepts of the present disclosure belong. In addition, terms commonly used, as defined in dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant technology, and should not be interpreted in an overly formal sense unless explicitly defined herein.

In some embodiments, where the embodiments are otherwise feasible, a particular process sequence may be performed in a different order than the order described. For example, two processes described in succession may be performed substantially simultaneously, or may be performed in a reverse order from the order described.

In the attached drawings, for example, variations of the shapes depicted may be expected depending on manufacturing techniques and/or tolerances. Therefore, embodiments according to the technical idea of the present disclosure should not be construed as being limited to the specific shapes of the regions depicted in the present disclosure, and should include, for example, changes in shapes resulting from the manufacturing process. The same reference numerals are used for the same components in the drawings, and redundant descriptions thereof are omitted.

The term 'and/or' as used herein includes each and every combination of one or more of the mentioned absences.

Hereinafter, embodiments according to the technical idea of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a fine dust concentration measuring device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Figs. 2 and 3 are drawings showing fine dust particles being separated by size by the branch path and impactor illustrated in Fig. 1.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a fine dust concentration measuring device (10a) is installed at some locations within a predetermined area, measures the fine dust concentration at the installed location periodically or continuously, and outputs the measurement results or transmits them to another device (server, terminal, etc.) connected via a network.

This fine dust concentration measuring device (10a) may include an inlet (101) through which air is drawn in, a separation space (102) for separating fine dust contained in the drawn in air by particle size, a plurality of branch channels (103, 104) connected to the lower portion of the separation space (102), a plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels (105, 106) each connected to a corresponding one of the plurality of branch channels (103, 104), and an outlet (107) connected to the plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels (105, 106) and through which air is discharged to the outside. Depending on the embodiment, a fan (110) for causing air to flow in the above-described channels may be arranged in the outlet (107), but the position of the fan (110) may be variously changed.

According to an embodiment, the plurality of branch passages (103, 104) may be formed with different inlet diameters, and one branch passage inlet may be formed inside the other branch passage inlet. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, the diameter of the inlet of the first branch passage (103) is smaller than the diameter of the inlet of the second branch passage (104), and the inlet of the first branch passage (103) may be formed inside the inlet of the second branch passage (104). That is, the inlet of the second branch passage (104) may be formed in a shape that surrounds the inlet of the first branch passage (103). In this specification, a case where there are two branch passages (103, 104) is described, but the number of branch passages is not limited thereto. In addition, although the inlets of the branch passages (103, 104) are illustrated as being formed in a circular shape in FIG. 3, the shape of the inlets is also not limited thereto and may be variously modified.

Meanwhile, a particle separator (120) may be arranged in the separation space (102) (or above the branch flow paths (103, 104)). For example, the particle separator (120) may correspond to an impactor, but is not limited thereto. Assuming that the particle separator (120) is an impactor, when air introduced into the separation space (102) passes through the impactor, fine dust particles in the air may not pass through the impactor and may be blocked. For example, the fine dust particles may collide with a collision plate (not shown) formed in the impactor and fly outward (bounce out) of the impactor.

In this specification, the impactor is illustrated as being formed in a disc shape, but the shape of the impactor may be modified in various ways. For example, the impactor may be formed so that the upper surface has a substantially conical shape, or the height of the upper surface decreases from the center to the edge. Accordingly, the fine dust particles colliding with the collision plate may be bounced out of the impactor. Meanwhile, since the collision plate of the impactor is formed so that air other than the fine dust particles may pass through, the air introduced into the separation space (102) may be minimized from avoiding the impactor and being introduced into the branch flow path.

Fine dust particles separated by the particle separator (120) may fall due to air flow or gravity and flow into a plurality of branch channels (103, 104). At this time, the flight distance (the distance that the fine dust particles bounce off) may vary depending on the size. For example, the larger the size of the fine dust particles, the shorter the flight distance. Based on this principle, first fine dust particles (e.g., PM10 particles; D1) having a predetermined size or more may flow into a first branch channel (103) in which an inlet is formed to correspond to an area within a predetermined distance from the particle separator (120), and second fine dust particles (e.g., PM2.5 particles; D2) having a predetermined size or less may flow into a second branch channel (104) in which an inlet is formed in an area surrounding the outer side of the first branch channel (103). According to an embodiment, when the fine dust concentration measuring device (10a) is viewed from above, the center positions of the inlet of the first branch flow path (103) and the inlet of the second branch flow path (104) may be included within the area where the particle separator (120) is placed. Meanwhile, the diameter of the first branch flow path (103) and the diameter of the second branch flow path (104) may be set to appropriate values through tests, etc. during the manufacturing of the fine dust concentration measuring device (10).

The first fine dust particle (D1) introduced into the first branch flow path (103) can move to the first fine dust concentration measuring flow path (105) connected to the first branch flow path (103), and the second fine dust particle (D2) introduced into the second branch flow path (104) can move to the second fine dust concentration measuring flow path (106) connected to the second branch flow path (104).

Each of the fine dust concentration measuring channels (105, 106) may be provided with a fine dust concentration measuring device (130, 132, 140, 142). For example, the fine dust concentration measuring devices (130, 132, 140, 142) may correspond to a configuration that measures the number of fine dust particles by utilizing a laser light scattering method. In this case, the fine dust concentration measuring device may be configured with a light emitting unit (130, 140) that emits laser light and a light receiving unit (132, 142) that receives laser light scattered by fine dust particles. The light emitting unit (130, 140) may be implemented with a laser diode, and the light receiving unit (132, 142) may be implemented with a photodiode, but is not limited thereto.

The light receiving unit (132, 142) can generate a light receiving signal corresponding to the result of receiving the scattered laser light. The processor (not shown) of the fine dust concentration measuring device (10a) can measure the concentration of fine dust particles based on the generated light receiving signal. The processor can measure the concentration of the first fine dust particle (D1) based on the first light receiving signal provided from the first light receiving unit (132), and can measure the concentration of the second fine dust particle (D2) based on the second light receiving signal provided from the second light receiving unit (142). At this time, the algorithm for measuring the concentration of the first fine dust particle (D1) from the first light receiving signal and the algorithm for measuring the concentration of the second fine dust particle (D2) from the second light receiving signal may be different. This is because the characteristics of the light reception signal may vary depending on the size of the fine dust particles, and since the above algorithm is implemented differently depending on the size of the fine dust particles, the concentration of the fine dust particles by size can be measured more accurately.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of a fine dust concentration measuring device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 4, the fine dust concentration measuring device (10b) may further include a filter (150) formed on the inlet side of the second branch path (104). The filter (150) may be implemented as a filter having a performance capable of passing second fine dust particles (D2) and blocking first fine dust particles (D1).

As the filter (150) is formed, the phenomenon of some of the first fine dust particles (D1) flowing into the second branch path (104) can be prevented, so that the fine dust concentration measuring device (10b) can more accurately measure the concentration of fine dust particles by size.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a fine dust concentration measuring device according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to the embodiment of FIG. 5, the fine dust concentration measuring device (50) may be implemented differently from the embodiment of FIG. 1 in terms of the shape or arrangement of the separation space (502), the first branch flow path (503), the second branch flow path (504), and the particle separator (520), and the remaining components (501, 505, 506, 507, 510, 530, 532, 540, 542) may be implemented similarly to the embodiment of FIG. 1.

Specifically, the inlet of the separation space (502), i.e., the location where the inlet (501) and the separation space (502) are connected, may not be formed at the upper center of the separation space (502), but may be formed offset toward the edge. In addition, in order to allow the air introduced into the separation space (502) to pass through the particle separator (520) as it falls, the particle separator (520; impactor) may be formed below the inlet of the separation space (502). In addition, the particle separator (520) may be arranged so that its upper surface is inclined at a predetermined angle toward the central portion of the separation space (502). In this case, the upper surface of the particle separator (520) may have a flat shape.

As the particle separator (520) is arranged to be inclined toward the central portion of the separation space (502), fine dust particles in the air may bounce out toward the central side of the separation space (502) after colliding with the particle separator (520). At this time, the first branch flow path (503) may be formed corresponding to an area within a predetermined distance from the particle separator (520) within the separation space (502), and the second branch flow path (504) may be formed corresponding to an area outside the predetermined distance from the particle separator (520) within the separation space (502). In this case, the separation space (502) may have an approximately semicircular shape when viewed from above, and the upper surface of the particle separator (520), the inlet of the first branch flow path (503), and the inlet of the second branch flow path (504) may also have a semicircular shape, but are not limited thereto.

Similar to the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 3, fine dust particles that bounce off after colliding with the particle separator (520) may have different travel distances depending on their sizes. Accordingly, relatively large first fine dust particles (e.g., D1 of FIG. 2) may flow into the first branch channel (503), and relatively small second fine dust particles (e.g., D2 of FIG. 2) may flow into the second branch channel (504). Although not shown, a filter may be formed at the inlet of the second branch channel (504) similar to FIG. 4 to prevent the first fine dust particles from flowing in.

The first fine dust particles flowing into the first branch channel (503) can move to the first fine dust concentration measuring channel (505) connected to the first branch channel (503), and the second fine dust particles flowing into the second branch channel (504) can move to the second fine dust concentration measuring channel (506) connected to the second branch channel (504). A processor (not shown) can control the operation of fine dust concentration measuring devices (530, 532, 540, 542) arranged in each of the fine dust concentration measuring channels (505, 506), thereby measuring the concentrations of the first fine dust particles and the second fine dust particles, respectively.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a fine dust concentration measuring device is implemented so as to separate fine dust particles in the air by size based on the difference in the movement distance (flying distance or falling distance) of fine dust particles flowing inward by size. Accordingly, the fine dust concentration measuring device can provide fine dust particle size-specific concentrations more accurately than in the past by measuring the concentration of fine dust particles by size separately.

The description of the above embodiments is merely an example with reference to the drawings for a more thorough understanding of the present disclosure, and should not be construed as limiting the technical idea of the present disclosure.

In addition, it will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the basic principles of the present disclosure.

Claims (6)

A channel including an inlet for drawing in air, a separation space connected to the inlet, a plurality of branch channels connected to a lower portion of the separation space, a plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels formed corresponding to the plurality of branch channels, and an outlet connected to the plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels and through which air flows out;
A plurality of fine dust concentration measuring devices, one of which is placed in each of the plurality of fine dust concentration measuring channels; and
Including a particle separator arranged above the plurality of branch paths within the above separation space,
The above particle separator,
Includes an impactor that blocks fine dust particles as they pass through the incoming air.
The above impactor,
At least one collision plate is included to block the fine dust particles when the air introduced above passes through,
It is formed so that the height decreases from the center of the upper surface to the edge.
The above multiple branch euros are,
A first branch path having an inlet formed to correspond to an area within a predetermined distance from the particle separator; and
Including a second branch duct having an inlet formed corresponding to an area surrounding the outside of the first branch duct,
Fine dust concentration measuring device.
delete delete In the first paragraph,
The above multiple fine dust concentration measurement channels are:
A first fine dust concentration measuring path connected to the first quarter path above; and
Including a second fine dust concentration measurement path connected to the second quarter path above,
The above plurality of fine dust concentration measuring devices include a first fine dust concentration measuring device arranged in the first fine dust concentration measuring path, and a second fine dust concentration measuring device arranged in the second fine dust concentration measuring path,
Each of the first fine dust concentration measuring device and the second fine dust concentration measuring device,
A light emitting unit that irradiates laser light into the interior of a corresponding fine dust concentration measuring path;
A light receiving unit that receives light reflected or scattered by fine dust particles in the air flowing inside the corresponding fine dust concentration measuring path among the above-mentioned investigated laser light,
Fine dust concentration measuring device.
In paragraph 4,
The above light receiving unit generates a light receiving signal corresponding to the received light,
Further comprising a processor for measuring the concentration of fine dust based on the above light-receiving signal,
The above processor,
Based on the first light-receiving signal generated from the light-receiving unit of the first fine dust concentration measuring device, the fine dust concentration for the first fine dust particles having a predetermined size or larger is measured,
Based on the second light-receiving signal generated from the light-receiving unit of the second fine dust concentration measuring device, the fine dust concentration for the second fine dust particles less than the predetermined size is measured.
Fine dust concentration measuring device.
In paragraph 5,
Further comprising a filter formed at the inlet of the second quarter euro,
The above filter is,
It is implemented to pass the second fine dust particles and filter the first fine dust particles.
Fine dust concentration measuring device.