HK1140997B - Ozone water generator - Google Patents

Description

Ozone water generator

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an ozone water generator.

Background

Currently, methods for producing ozone water, which are widely used in industry, are roughly classified into three methods: a gas dissolution method of dissolving ozone gas generated by electric discharge, an electrolytic gas dissolution method of dissolving ozone gas generated by electrolysis in water, and a direct electrolysis method of generating ozone water by bringing raw material water into direct contact with an electrolysis surface. It is found that the direct electrolysis method can produce high-concentration ozone water by a simpler method than the gas dissolution method or the electrolytic gas dissolution method.

For example, as shown in patent document 1, in such a direct electrolysis method, a solid electrolyte membrane, and an anode electrode plate and a cathode electrode plate provided on both surfaces thereof are housed in a casing composed of an anode-side cover and a cathode-side cover, and in a state where a current is directly supplied between the anode electrode plate and the cathode electrode plate, raw water is supplied from an inlet port leading to the anode electrode, and an electrolyte is supplied from an inlet port leading to the cathode electrode, whereby the raw water is electrolyzed to generate ozone water. Here, a flow path is formed in the inlet port to the anode electrode so as to communicate with the anode electrode from the surface of the anode-side cover, a flow path is formed in the inlet port to the cathode electrode so as to communicate with the cathode electrode from the surface of the cathode-side cover, and raw water and electrolytic water flow through the anode electrode side and the cathode electrode side, respectively, with the cation exchange membrane interposed therebetween.

Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2002-292370

However, the above-described conventional ozone water generating apparatus has a problem that the apparatus itself is large in size because the anode side cover and the cathode side cover which are disposed to face each other are provided with two inflow ports, respectively. Further, the flow path in the form of providing two inlets in the cover as described above is complicated, and when the cover is formed by simple resin molding, it is difficult to form a complicated flow path.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an ozone water generator which can be miniaturized with a simple structure without forming a complicated flow path for supplying a raw material water.

In order to solve the above problems, the invention according to claim 1 is an ozone water generator 100, for example, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, the ozone water generator 100 generates ozone water by supplying water to a catalytic electrode 2 having a cation exchange membrane 21 sandwiched between an anode electrode 22 and a cathode electrode 23 and applying a direct current voltage between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode, characterized in that a raw material water supply passage 13 for supplying water to the anode electrode and the cathode electrode is provided in the case body 1 housing the catalyst electrode, a communication hole 211 for communicating the anode electrode and the cathode electrode with each other is provided in a portion of the cation exchange membrane facing the raw water supply path, and water flowing from the raw water supply path is supplied to one of the anode electrode and the cathode electrode and to the other electrode through the communication hole.

In the invention according to claim 1, the communication hole for communicating the anode electrode and the cathode electrode with each other is provided in the portion of the cation exchange membrane facing the raw material water supply path, and the water flowing from the raw material water supply path is supplied to one electrode and supplied to the other electrode through the communication hole, so that it is not necessary to form the raw material water supply paths on the anode electrode side and the cathode electrode side separately and make them into complicated supply paths, and the raw material water supply paths are shared by forming only the communication hole, whereby the water can be easily supplied to the anode electrode side and the cathode electrode side separately. Therefore, the structure is also simple, and the device can be miniaturized.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, according to the ozone water generator described in claim 1, the invention of claim 2 is characterized in that, the casing body is provided with an ozone water discharge passage 14 communicating with the anode electrode to discharge ozone water generated by the anode electrode, and a cathode water discharge passage 15 communicating with the cathode electrode to discharge cathode water generated by the cathode electrode, the respective outlets (ozone water outlet 143 and cathode water outlet 153) of the ozone water discharge passage and the cathode water discharge passage are adjacently provided on the same surface of the casing main body, the portion of the ozone water discharge passage communicating with the anode electrode and the portion of the cathode water discharge passage communicating with the cathode electrode are partitioned by the cation exchange membrane interposed between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode.

In the invention according to claim 2, since the portion of the ozone water discharge passage communicating with the anode electrode and the portion of the cathode water discharge passage communicating with the cathode electrode are partitioned by the cation exchange membrane interposed between the two electrodes, the ozone water generated on the anode electrode side and the cathode water generated on the cathode electrode side are reliably discharged through the ozone water discharge passage and the cathode water discharge passage, respectively, without mixing.

Further, since the respective outlets of the ozone water discharge passage and the cathode water discharge passage are provided adjacently on the same surface of the casing main body, the thickness of the apparatus can be reduced.

For example, as shown in fig. 1, 2 and 9, according to the ozone water generating apparatus described in claim 2, the invention of claim 3 is characterized by comprising a mount 3 detachably supporting the casing main body, wherein another ozone water discharge passage 32 connected to the ozone water discharge passage provided in the casing main body is provided in the mount, and wherein a concentration detecting means (for example, a concentration detecting sensor 4) for detecting an ozone concentration of ozone water is provided in the ozone water discharge passage provided in the mount.

In the invention according to claim 3, since the mounting base is detachably provided to support the housing main body, the other ozone water discharge passage is provided in the mounting base, and the concentration detection member is provided in the ozone water discharge passage on the mounting base side, ozone water of a predetermined concentration set by the concentration detection member can be generated. Further, since the concentration detection member is provided on the mount base detachably attached to the case main body, the concentration detection member does not need to be unnecessarily replaced when the case main body is maintained or replaced, and the cost can be reduced.

For example, as shown in fig. 2 and 5, in the ozone water generator according to claim 3, the invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the anode electrode (for example, a rod-shaped electrode portion 25) is provided so as to protrude outside the casing main body, is attached to the casing main body via the mount, and presses the protruding anode electrode to press the cation exchange membrane.

In the invention according to claim 4, the anode electrode is provided so as to protrude outward from the casing main body, and is attached to the casing main body via the mounting base, and the protruding anode electrode is pressed to press the cation exchange membrane, so that the pressing force against the cation exchange membrane can be easily adjusted by the pressing force of the mounting base.

For example, as shown in fig. 10, according to the ozone water generating apparatus 100A described in claim 3 or 4, the invention of claim 5 is characterized in that at least a part of the casing body 1A is made of a magnetic material 17A, and a magnet 37A is provided in the mounting base 3A.

In the invention according to claim 5, since at least a part of the case main body is made of a magnetic material and the magnet is provided in the mount base, the case main body and the mount base can be attracted by magnetic force, and the case main body and the mount base can be easily detachably configured.

The ozone water generating apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the magnet is an electromagnet according to claim 6.

In the invention according to claim 6, the use of the electromagnet makes it possible to easily make the housing main body and the mount base detachable from each other by turning on and off the electromagnet, and to electrically control the pressing force of the housing main body against the mount base, thereby allowing the anode electrode to be pressed and the pressure contact force against the cation exchange membrane to be easily adjusted electrically.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is an external perspective view of an ozone water generator 100.

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the ozone water generator 100.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the casing main body (the first casing 11 and the second casing 12)1 constituting the ozone water generator 100.

Fig. 4 is a perspective plan view of the first housing 11 when viewed from the first housing 11 side in a state where the first housing 11 and the second housing 12 are fitted.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along a cutting line V-V in fig. 4 in a state where the mount base 3 is attached to the first housing 11.

Fig. 6A is a plan view schematically showing a state of cutting along the cutting line VI-a-VI-a in fig. 5.

Fig. 6B is a cross-sectional view taken along line VI-B-VI-B in fig. 6A.

Fig. 6C is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-C-VI-C in fig. 6A.

Fig. 7A is a plan view schematically showing a state of cutting along the cutting line VII-a-VII-a in fig. 5.

Fig. 7B is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-B-VII-B in fig. 7A.

Fig. 7C is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-C-VII-C in fig. 7A.

Fig. 7D is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-D-VII-D in fig. 7A.

Fig. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the catalytic electrode 2.

Fig. 9A is a perspective front view when viewed from a surface of the mount table 3 facing the first housing 11 side.

Fig. 9B is a perspective top view of the mount table 3.

Fig. 9C is a perspective side view of the mount table 3.

Fig. 9D is an enlarged schematic view showing a state where the concentration detection sensor 4 is disposed in the ozonated water discharge passage 32 in fig. 9C.

Fig. 10 shows an ozone water generator 100A according to a modification, which is a sectional view taken along a line V-V in fig. 4 in the same manner as in fig. 5.

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 1 is an external perspective view of the ozone water generator 100, and fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the ozone water generator 100.

The ozone water generator 100 of the present invention is configured by disposing a catalytic electrode 2 (see fig. 5 described later) in a housing main body 1 to which raw material water (e.g., tap water) is supplied, and is a device capable of generating fine ozone bubbles by applying a dc voltage to the catalytic electrode 2 and generating ozone water by dissolving the fine ozone bubbles that have just been generated in water.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a casing main body (a first casing 11 and a second casing 12)1 constituting the ozone water generating apparatus 100, fig. 4 is a perspective plan view seen from the first casing 11 side in a state where the first casing 11 and the second casing 12 are fitted, and fig. 5 is a sectional view seen when the mounting base 3 is mounted on the first casing 11 and cut along a cutting line V-V in fig. 4.

As shown in fig. 1 to 3, the ozone water generator 100 includes a casing body 1 including a first casing 11 and a second casing 12 which are fitted to each other, and a mount 3 detachably mounted on one surface (a surface on the opposite side of the second casing 12) 11b of the first casing 11 to support the casing body 1. The case body 1 and the mount base 3 are formed by injection molding.

As shown in fig. 3, the first case 11 has a rectangular plate shape, and a first concave portion 111 into which a convex portion 121 of the second case 12 described later can be fitted is formed on a fitting surface 11a of the first case 11 fitted to the second case 12, and a second concave portion 112 in which a plate-shaped electrode portion 24 of the anode electrode 22 of the catalyst electrode 2 described later is disposed is formed in the first concave portion 111. A groove 113 having a substantially rectangular frame shape is formed in the fitting surface 11a so as to surround the first recess 111, and an O-ring 114 (see fig. 5) is fitted into the groove 113. When the second housing 12 described later is provided on the fitting surface 11a of the first housing 11, the O-ring 114 seals between the fitting surface 11a of the first housing 11 and the fitting surface 12a of the second housing 12, and pressure resistance and water tightness are excellent.

The first housing 11 is provided with a raw material water supply passage 13, and the raw material water supply passage 13 is used to supply raw material water to the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23 of the catalyst electrode 2 disposed in the second recess 112. The raw material water supply passage 13 includes a through-hole 131 formed to penetrate the first recess 111 from the surface 11b opposite to the fitting surface 11a in the thickness direction of the first housing 11, and a groove portion 132 extending from the through-hole 131 toward the second recess 112. A raw material water supply pipe 34 (see fig. 2) provided on a mounting base 3 described later is attached to the raw material water supply port 133 serving as an inlet of the through-hole 131.

In addition, in the first casing 11, an ozone water discharge passage 14 for discharging ozone water generated by the anode electrode 22 of the catalytic electrode 2 is formed so as to communicate with the anode electrode 22. The ozonated water discharge passage 14 includes a through-hole 141 formed to penetrate the first concave portion 111 from a surface 11b opposite to the fitting surface 11a in the thickness direction of the first housing 11, and a groove portion 142 extending from the through-hole 141 toward the second concave portion 112. An ozone water discharge pipe 351 (see fig. 2) provided in a mounting base 3 described later is attached to the ozone water discharge port 143 serving as an outlet of the through-hole 141.

In the first casing 11, a cathode water discharge passage 15 for discharging cathode water generated by the cathode electrode 23 of the catalytic electrode 2 together with ozone water is formed to communicate with the cathode electrode 23. The cathode water discharge passage 15 includes a through-hole 151 formed to penetrate the first recess 111 from a surface 11b opposite to the fitting surface 11a in the thickness direction of the first casing 11, and a groove portion 152 formed by cutting off a part of the wall surface 111a extending from the through-hole 151 toward the wall surface 111a forming the first recess 111. A cathode water discharge pipe 361 (see fig. 2) provided on a mounting base 3 described later is attached to the cathode water discharge port 153 serving as an outlet of the through-hole 151. The ozone water outlet 143 and the cathode water outlet 153 are formed on the same surface of the casing body 1 (first casing 11), that is, the surface 11b on the opposite side, and the ozone water discharge pipe 351 and the cathode water discharge pipe 361 protrude from the surface 11b on the opposite side, so that the thickness of the entire apparatus can be reduced.

The raw material water supply port 133 is provided at one end side (lower end side in fig. 4) in the longitudinal direction of the first casing 11, and the ozone water discharge port 143 and the cathode water discharge port 153 are provided at the other end side (upper end side in fig. 4) in the longitudinal direction of the first casing 11.

As shown in fig. 2, a fourth recess 16 extending in the width direction is further formed in a surface 11b of the first case 11 opposite to the fitting surface 11a, and a rod-shaped electrode portion 25 of an anode electrode 22, which will be described later, protruding to the outside of the first case 11 is disposed in the fourth recess 16.

As shown in fig. 3, the second housing 12 has a substantially rectangular plate shape and is thinner than the first housing 11. A convex portion 121 that can be fitted into the first concave portion 111 of the first housing 11 is formed on a fitting surface 12a of the second housing 12 that fits into the first housing 11.

The projection 121 includes a frame portion 122 abutting along the inner wall surface 111a of the first recess 111, a lid portion 123 integrally formed with the frame portion 122 and covering the ozonated water discharge passage 14 when the second casing 12 is fitted, a groove portion 124 linearly formed opposite to the groove portion 152 of the cathode water discharge passage 15 and the second recess 112, and an extension portion 126 integrally formed with a part of the frame portion 122 and covering the groove portion 132 of the raw material water supply passage 13 when the second casing 12 is fitted. The third recessed portion 125 in which the plate-shaped electrode portion 27 of the cathode electrode 23 of the catalyst electrode 2 is disposed is formed inside the protruding portion 121 formed in this manner. That is, the catalyst electrode 2 is housed in a housing portion 110 (see fig. 5) formed by the second recess 112 of the first housing 11 and the third recess 125 of the second housing 12.

As shown in fig. 1, a rod-shaped electrode portion 28 of the cathode electrode 23 projects from a surface 12b of the second housing 12 opposite to the fitting surface 12 a. Further, a plurality of bolts N1 are provided at predetermined intervals at the peripheral edge of the opposite surface 12b, whereby the first housing 11 and the second housing 12 are coupled to each other.

FIG. 6A is a top plan view schematically showing a case of cutting along a cutting line VI-a-VI-a in FIG. 5, FIG. 6B is a top plan view when cutting along a cutting line VI-B-VI-B in FIG. 6A, FIG. 6C is a top plan view when cutting along a cutting line VI-C-VI-C in FIG. 6A, FIG. 7A is a top plan view schematically showing a case of cutting along a cutting line VII-a-VII-a in FIG. 5, FIG. 7B is a top plan view when cutting along a cutting line VII-B-VII-B in FIG. 7A, FIG. 7C is a top plan view when cutting along a cutting line VII-C-VII-C in FIG. 7A, FIG. 7D is a top plan view when cutting along a cutting line VII-D-VII in FIG. 7A, fig. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the catalytic electrode 2.

The catalytic electrode 2 includes a cation exchange membrane 21, an anode electrode 22 pressure-bonded to one surface (lower surface in fig. 8) of the cation exchange membrane 21, and a cathode electrode 23 pressure-bonded to the other surface (upper surface in fig. 8) of the cation exchange membrane 21. In the housing 110, the catalytic electrode 2 is disposed so that the anode electrode 22 faces the first case 11 side.

The anode 22 is composed of a plate-shaped electrode portion 24 and a rod-shaped electrode portion 25 joined to a surface (lower surface in fig. 8) of the plate-shaped electrode portion 24 on the opposite side to the cation exchange membrane 21 substantially perpendicularly. As the anode electrode 22, a metal having an ozone generation catalytic function is preferably used, and as the metal, platinum or a platinum-coated metal is preferably used.

The plate-shaped electrode section 24 is formed by overlapping a plurality of grid-shaped electrodes 241 to 243. Specifically, an anode catalyst (micro grid or woven mesh) 241, a micro grid or rolled (flat-rolled) micro grid 242, a grid or an electrode 243 are sequentially overlapped from the cation exchange membrane 21 side. Here, the woven mesh may be a member formed by weaving fine wires in a lattice shape, and the grid may be an integral lattice-shaped member formed by welding the wires. Further, since the catalyst 241 is thin and flexible, the micro-grid 242 protects the catalyst 241 from the irregularities of the electrode 243 directly welded with the rod-shaped electrode portion 25. Further, the eddy current is generated by passing through the grid, and ozone microbubbles generated by the anode 22 are entrained and dissolution is accelerated. In the relationship of the drawings, a plurality of grid-like electrodes 241 to 243 are shown only in fig. 8.

The rod-shaped electrode portion 25 is welded to the lattice-shaped electrode 243 on the opposite side of the plate-shaped electrode portion 24 from the cation exchange membrane 21, substantially perpendicularly to the lower surface of the electrode 243 in fig. 8. The rod-shaped electrode portion 25 is inserted into a rod-shaped electrode portion hole 115 (see fig. 5) formed from the fourth recess portion 16 of the first housing 11 into the second recess portion 112, and one end portion thereof is fastened by a nut n in the fourth recess portion 16. When the mount 3 described later is fixed to the case main body 1, one end of the rod-like electrode portion 25 is pressed by a surface 3a of the mount 3 facing the case main body 1.

The rod-shaped electrode portion 25 is sealed in order to ensure water-tightness with the first housing 11 in the second concave portion 112. Specifically, an O-ring 253 (see fig. 5) is fitted into the rod-shaped electrode portion 25. Thus, the O-ring 253 abuts against the inner wall surface forming the rod-shaped electrode portion hole 115, and water tightness between the rod-shaped electrode portion hole 115 and the rod-shaped electrode portion 25 can be ensured.

The cathode 23 is composed of a plate-shaped electrode portion 27 and a rod-shaped electrode portion 28 joined to a surface (upper surface in fig. 8) of the plate-shaped electrode portion 27 on the opposite side to the cation exchange membrane 21 substantially perpendicularly, similarly to the anode 22. As the cathode electrode 23, a material in which a surface of a metal mesh made of metal such as platinum, silver, or titanium, or thin silver, is coated with silver chloride is preferably used.

The plate-shaped electrode part 27 is formed by overlapping a plurality of grid-shaped electrodes 271 to 273. Specifically, a cathode catalyst (micro grid or woven mesh) 271, a micro grid or rolled micro grid 272, and a grid or electrode 273 are sequentially stacked from the cation exchange membrane 21 side. In addition, water flows through the grid-shaped electrodes 271 to 273. Further, since the catalyst 271 is thin and flexible, the micro-grid 272 serves to protect the catalyst 271 from the irregularities of the electrode 273 to which the rod-shaped electrode portion 28 is directly welded. In the relation of the drawings, a plurality of grid-like electrodes 271 to 273 are shown only in fig. 8.

The rod-shaped electrode portion 28 is welded to the lattice-shaped electrode 273, which is located on the opposite side of the plate-shaped electrode portion 27 from the cation exchange membrane 21, substantially perpendicularly to the upper surface of the electrode 273 in fig. 8. The rod-shaped electrode portion 28 is inserted into a rod-shaped electrode portion hole 126 (see fig. 5) formed so as to penetrate into the third recess 125 from the surface 12b of the second housing 12 on the opposite side to the fitting surface 12a, and one end portion thereof is fastened by a nut n in a state of protruding from the surface 12b on the opposite side.

The rod-shaped electrode portion 28 is sealed to ensure water-tightness between the third recess 125 and the second housing 12. Specifically, an O-ring 283 (see fig. 5) is fitted into the rod-shaped electrode portion 28. Accordingly, the O-ring 283 abuts against the inner wall surface forming the third recess 125, and water tightness between the rod-shaped electrode portion hole 126 and the rod-shaped electrode portion 28 can be ensured.

As the cation exchange membrane (nafion membrane) 21, a conventionally known cation exchange membrane can be used, and a fluorine-based cation exchange membrane having high durability against generated ozone can be used, and the thickness is preferably approximately 100 to 300 μm, for example.

The cation exchange membrane 21 is substantially rectangular, and as shown in fig. 6B and 6C and fig. 7B to 7D, its length in the longitudinal direction is slightly longer than the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23. That is, the cation exchange membrane 21 is housed in the first concave portion 111, and one longitudinal end portion of the cation exchange membrane 21 is longer than one longitudinal end portion of the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23, and extends to a portion facing the raw material water supply passage 13. The other end in the longitudinal direction of the cation exchange membrane 21 is longer than the other ends in the longitudinal direction of the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23, and extends to a portion facing the ozonated water discharge passage 14 and the cathode water discharge passage 15. Further, a communication hole 211 (see fig. 5, 6B, and 8) that penetrates the cation-exchange membrane 21 and communicates the anode 22 and the cathode 23 with each other is formed in the surface facing the raw water supply path 13 on the one end side of the cation-exchange membrane 21.

In a state where the catalytic electrode 2, which is formed by sequentially overlapping the anode electrode 22, the cation exchange membrane 21, and the cathode electrode 23 in a flat plate shape, is housed in the housing portion 110 and the first casing 11 and the second casing 12 are fitted to each other, the cation exchange membrane 21 disposed in the first concave portion 111 is fixed by the convex portion 121. As shown in fig. 3 and 5, part of the groove 132 of the raw water supply passage 13, the through-holes 141 and 142 of the ozonated water discharge passage 14, the through-holes 151 of the cathode water discharge passage 15, and the groove 152 (the groove 152 excluding the portion where the wall surface 111a is cut) provided in the first recess 111 is covered with the cation exchange membrane 21. The through-holes 131 of the raw material water supply path 13 face the communication holes 211 of the cation-exchange membrane 21, and thereby communicate with the anode 22 side and the cathode 23 side.

The groove 132 of the raw water supply passage 13 is covered with the extension 126 via the cation exchange membrane 21, and the groove 142 and the through-hole 141 of the ozonated water discharge passage 14 are covered with the lid 123 via the cation exchange membrane 21. The portion of the groove 152 of the cathode water discharge passage 15 cut on the wall surface 111a is connected to the end of the groove 124.

Therefore, as shown in fig. 6B, the raw water flowing through the raw water supply passage 13 flows toward the anode electrode 22 and also toward the cathode electrode 23 through the communication hole 211. Thereafter, as shown in fig. 7B, the ozonated water generated in the anode 22 flows along the planar direction of the anode 22, and is discharged from the groove 142 of the ozonated water discharge passage 14 communicating with the anode 22 to the ozonated water discharge port 143 through the through-hole 141.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 7C, the cathode water generated in the cathode 23 flows in the planar direction of the cathode 23, passes through the groove 124 communicating with the cathode 23, then passes through the groove 152 from the cut portion of the groove 152, and is discharged to the cathode water discharge port 153 through the through-hole 151.

In this way, the water flowing from the raw water supply passage 13 is supplied to the anode 22 side and the cathode 23 side through the communication hole 211 of the cation exchange membrane 21, and the cation exchange membrane 21 sandwiched between the anode 22 and the cathode 23 covers the first concave portion 111 and the convex portion 121 of the second casing except for the portion of the cation exchange membrane 21 facing the communication hole 211 and the portion of the groove portion 152 of the cathode water discharge passage 15 where the inner wall surface 111a is cut off, thereby being partitioned into the anode 22 side and the cathode 23 side. That is, since the portion of the ozone water discharge passage 14 communicating with the anode electrode 22 and the portion of the cathode water discharge passage 15 communicating with the cathode electrode 23 are partitioned by the cation exchange membrane 21, the water flowing toward the anode electrode 22 and the generated ozone water are not mixed with the water flowing toward the cathode electrode 23 and the generated cathode water.

One end of the rod-shaped electrode portion 25 of the anode electrode 22 protruding from the opposite surface 11b of the first case 11 and one end of the rod-shaped electrode portion 28 of the cathode electrode 23 protruding from the opposite surface 12b of the second case 12 are electrode terminals, and are electrically connected to an output terminal of a power supply device (not shown) to which a dc voltage is applied. The electrode terminals of the rod-shaped electrode portions 25 and 28 are connected to a power supply device via lead wires (not shown), and the dc voltage applied between the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23 is preferably 6 to 15 v, for example.

Fig. 9A is a perspective front view of mount table 3 when viewed from a surface facing first housing 11 side, fig. 9B is a perspective top view of mount table 3, and fig. 9C is a perspective side view of mount table 3.

As shown in fig. 2 and 9, the mount 3 is detachably attached to a surface 11b of the first housing 11 opposite to the fitting surface 11a, and is attached to the case main body 1 to support the case main body 1. The mount 3 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a raw water supply passage 31, an ozone water discharge passage 32, and a cathode water discharge passage 33 are formed in the mount 3 so that water passages are concentrated at one point.

The raw material water supply passage 31 is formed to linearly extend toward the raw material water supply port 133 of the case main body 1, and a raw material water supply pipe 34 protruding from a surface (front surface) 3a facing the first housing 11 side is connected to one end of the raw material water supply passage 31. A raw material tank, a pump connected to the raw material tank, and the like, which are not shown, are connected to the other end of the raw material water supply passage 31.

The ozone water discharge passage 32 is formed in a curved shape inside the mount 3, and one end thereof protrudes from the surface 3a facing the first housing 11 side and is connected to an ozone water discharge pipe 351. The other end of the ozone water discharge pipe extends to a surface (side surface) 3b perpendicular to the surface 3a, and is connected to another ozone water discharge pipe 352. A branch passage 321 that penetrates the surface 3b is further formed in the middle of the ozone water discharge passage 32, and a concentration detection sensor (concentration detection means) 4 that detects the ozone concentration of ozone water is inserted into the branch passage 321.

Fig. 9D is an enlarged schematic view showing a state where the concentration detection sensor 4 is disposed in the ozonated water discharge passage 32 in fig. 9C. The branch passage 321 is formed to communicate with a lower end portion of the diameter of the ozone water discharge passage 32. That is, a part of the ozone water discharge passage 32 communicating with the branch passage 321 has an oblong cross section which is long in the longitudinal direction, and the other ozone water discharge passages 32 have a circular cross section. Further, the concentration detection sensor 4 is inserted from the branch passage 321 and the concentration detection sensor 4 is disposed at the lower end portion in the oblong portion 322 of the ozone water discharge passage 32.

The concentration detection sensor 4 includes a detection electrode (not shown), a comparison electrode (not shown) serving as a potential measurement reference, a voltmeter (not shown) connected to one end of the detection electrode and the comparison electrode to measure a potential, and the like. The detection electrode and the comparison electrode are fixed to the tip of the sensor mounting portion 41 screwed into the branch passage 321, and are thereby disposed at the lower end portion (the oblong portion 322) of the ozone water discharge passage 32 and come into contact with the ozone water flowing through the ozone water discharge passage 32. Then, the concentration is detected by detecting the voltage of the detection electrode and the comparison electrode generated by the change in the ozone concentration of the detection electrode by contacting the ozone water.

As the detection electrode, for example, an electrode made of platinum, gold, or the like is preferably used, and as the comparative electrode, silver or silver chloride is preferably used.

Based on the ozone concentration thus detected, a control unit (not shown) in the ozone water generator 100 controls the power supply device to apply electric power between the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23 so as to match the preset ozone concentration.

By forming a part of the ozone water discharge passage 32 in an oblong shape whose sectional area is long in the longitudinal direction as described above and disposing the concentration detection sensor 4 at the lower end portion of the oblong portion 322, oxygen is normally mixed with the ozone water discharged from the casing main body 1, and therefore, such bubbles flow through the upper end portion in the ozone water discharge passage 32 and ozone water as liquid flows through the lower end portion thereof, but by disposing the concentration detection sensor 4 at the lower end portion of the oblong portion 322 as described above, it is possible to stably measure the concentration of the ozone water flowing through the lower end portion of the oblong portion 322 in the ozone water discharge passage 32 without affecting the bubbles.

The cathode water discharge passage 33 is also arranged to be bent inside the mount 3, and one end thereof protrudes from the surface 3a facing the first casing 11 side and is connected to a cathode water discharge pipe 361. The other end of the cathode water discharge pipe extends to a surface (upper surface) 3c perpendicular to the surface 3a, and is connected to another cathode water discharge pipe 362.

Then, the raw material water supply pipe 34 is inserted into the raw material water supply port 133 of the case body 1, the ozone water discharge pipe 351 is inserted into the ozone water discharge port 143, the cathode water discharge pipe 361 is inserted into the cathode water discharge port 153, and the case body 1 and the mount base 3 are fastened by the bolt N2, thereby fixing the case body 1 and the mount base 3.

At this time, the pressing force against the cation exchange membrane 21 can be easily adjusted by pressing the end of the rod-shaped electrode portion 25 of the anode electrode 22 protruding into the fourth concave portion 16 with the surface 3a of the mount 3 facing the case main body 1 to adjust the degree of fastening of the bolt N2.

Next, an ozone water producing method using the ozone water producing apparatus 100 having the above-described structure will be described.

When water is supplied from the raw water supply passages 31, 13, the water flows to the plate-shaped electrode portion 24 of the anode electrode 22, and the water flows to the plate-shaped electrode portion 27 of the cathode electrode 23 via the communication hole 211, and the water continuously contacts the electrode portions 24, 27. At the same time, a predetermined voltage is applied between the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23 via the respective electrode terminals (rod-shaped electrodes 25, 28) of the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23 by the driving power supply device. Electrolysis of water by energization generates ozone bubbles and oxygen bubbles on the anode electrode 22 side and hydrogen bubbles on the cathode electrode 23 side. The generated ozone bubbles are dissolved in water to become ozone water, and are discharged to the outside from the ozone water discharge pipe 352 through the ozone water discharge passages 14 and 32. On the other hand, the hydrogen bubbles are dissolved in water to form hydrogen water, and discharged from the cathode water discharge pipe 362 to the outside through the cathode water discharge passages 15 and 33.

Further, the concentration of ozone water in the ozone water discharge passage 32 is measured by the concentration detection sensor 4 during energization, and the control unit adjusts the output of the power supply device to control the amount of electricity between the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23 so that the ozone concentration becomes a predetermined ozone concentration. Ozone water of a set concentration is generated as described above.

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, since the communication hole 211 for communicating the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23 with each other is provided in the portion of the cation exchange membrane 21 facing the raw water supply path 13, and the water flowing from the raw water supply path 13 is supplied to the anode electrode 22 and supplied to the cathode electrode 23 through the communication hole 211, it is not necessary to form the raw water supply path 13 on the anode electrode 22 side and the cathode electrode 23 side, respectively, to form a complicated supply path, and the raw water supply path 13 is shared by forming only the communication hole 211, so that the water can be easily supplied to the anode electrode 22 side and the cathode electrode 23 side, respectively. Therefore, the structure is also simple, and the device can be miniaturized.

The anode electrode 22 housed in the second recess 112 and the cathode electrode 23 housed in the third recess 125 are covered with the cation-exchange membrane 21 larger than the anode electrode 22 and the cathode electrode 23, and the ozonated water discharge passage 14 communicating with the anode electrode 22 and the cathode water discharge passage 15 communicating with the cathode electrode 23 are also covered with the cation-exchange membrane 21 and are separated from each other, so that ozonated water generated on the anode electrode 22 side and cathode water generated on the cathode electrode 23 side can be reliably discharged through the ozonated water discharge passage 14 and the cathode water discharge passage 15, respectively, without mixing.

Since the ozone water discharge passage 32 is provided in the mounting base 3 detachably attached to the casing main body 1 and the concentration detection sensor 4 is provided in the ozone water discharge passage 32, ozone water having a predetermined concentration can be generated by the concentration detection sensor 4. Further, since the concentration detection sensor 4 is provided on a mounting table detachably attached to the case body 1, the concentration detection sensor 4 does not need to be unnecessarily replaced when the case body 1 is maintained or replaced, and the cost can be reduced.

The rod-shaped electrode portion 25 of the anode electrode 22 is provided so as to protrude outside the casing main body 1, and is attached to the casing main body 1 via the mounting base 3, and the protruding rod-shaped electrode portion 25 is pressed to press the cation exchange membrane 21, so that the pressing force against the cation exchange membrane 21 can be easily adjusted by the pressing force of the mounting base 3.

Further, the first case 11 and the second case 12 are formed with the first concave portion 111, the second concave portion 112, the convex portion 121, and the third convex portion 125 which are fitted to each other, and the raw water supply passage 13, the ozone water discharge passage 14, the cathode water discharge passage 15, the groove portion 113, and the fourth concave portion 16 are formed, and all of them are formed only by the unevenness in the thickness direction of the case main body 1, so that the structure is simple, the formation by injection molding is easy, and the assembly of the first case 11 and the second case 12 is simple.

Fig. 10 shows an ozone water generator 100A according to a modification, which is a sectional view taken along a line V-V in fig. 4 in the same manner as in fig. 5.

The surface 11bA of the first casing 11A of the ozone water generator 100A on the opposite side of the fitting surface 11aA is provided with a magnetic material 17A, and an electromagnet 37A is embedded at a substantially central position in the surface 3aA of the mount 3A on the first casing 11A side. Therefore, by disposing the mount base 3A on the first housing 11A, the magnetic material 17A is attracted by the electromagnet 37A to fix the first housing 11A and the mount base 3A. By using the magnetic material 17A and the electromagnet 37A in this way, the case body 1A and the mount base 3A can be attracted by magnetic force, and the case body 1A and the mount base 3A can be easily configured to be detachable. Further, as in the ozone water generating apparatus 100, it is possible to eliminate the time and labor for fastening the casing main body 1 and the mount 3 with the bolt N2.

Since the other structures of the ozone water generator 100A are the same as those of the ozone water generator 100, the same numerals are assigned to the same components, and the description thereof will be omitted.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be modified as appropriate within a scope not departing from the gist thereof.

For example, in the above embodiment, the plate-shaped electrode portion 24 of the anode electrode 22 and the plate-shaped electrode portion 27 of the cathode electrode 23 are respectively constituted by three electrodes 241 to 243 and 271 to 273, but the number of the electrodes is not limited to three, and may be one, two, or four.

Industrial applicability

The present invention makes it possible to easily supply water to the anode electrode side and the cathode electrode side, respectively, with a simple structure, without forming a complicated flow path for supplying water, and to achieve miniaturization.

Claims (6)

1. An ozone water generator for generating ozone water by supplying water to a catalytic electrode having a cation exchange membrane sandwiched between an anode electrode and a cathode electrode and applying a direct current voltage between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode,

a raw material water supply passage for supplying water to the anode electrode and the cathode electrode is provided in the case main body accommodating the catalyst electrode;

a communication hole for communicating the anode electrode and the cathode electrode with each other is provided in a portion of the cation exchange membrane facing the raw water supply path;

the water flowing from the raw material water supply passage is supplied to one of the anode electrode and the cathode electrode and is supplied to the other electrode through the communication hole.

2. The ozone water generating apparatus according to claim 1,

an ozone water discharge passage communicating with the anode electrode and discharging ozone water generated by the anode electrode, and a cathode water discharge passage communicating with the cathode electrode and discharging cathode water generated by the cathode electrode are provided in the case main body, respectively;

the ozone water discharge passage and the cathode water discharge passage are provided so that their respective discharge ports are adjacent to each other on the same surface of the casing main body;

a portion of the ozone water discharge passage communicating with the anode electrode and a portion of the cathode water discharge passage communicating with the cathode electrode are partitioned by the cation exchange membrane interposed between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode.

3. The ozone water generating apparatus according to claim 2,

includes a mounting table which supports the case main body and is detachable;

the mount is provided with another ozone water discharge passage connected to the ozone water discharge passage provided in the casing main body, and the ozone water discharge passage provided in the mount is provided with a concentration detection means for detecting an ozone concentration of ozone water.

4. The ozone water generating apparatus according to claim 3,

the anode electrode is provided to protrude to the outside of the case main body;

the mounting base is attached to the case main body, and the protruding anode electrode is pressed to press the cation exchange membrane.

5. The ozone water generating apparatus according to claim 3 or 4,

at least a part of the case main body is made of a magnetic material, and a magnet is provided in the mount.

6. The ozone water generating apparatus according to claim 5,

the magnet is an electromagnet.