JP2021137696A - Water treatment system and water treatment method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a water treatment system which is advantageous for optimizing a purified water supply amount while maintaining purification performance. A water treatment system 1 includes a plurality of purification units 30 for purifying raw water and a control unit 14 for controlling the operation of the plurality of purification units 30. The purification unit 30 includes a filter 33 that removes impurities from raw water, a backwash mechanism 36 that backwashes the filter 33, and a first such as a pressure sensor 34 and a water quality sensor 35 that detect a state related to the filtration capacity of the filter 33. Equipped with a sensor. The control unit turns on the operation of the backwash mechanism 36 provided in each of the plurality of purification units 30 based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor and the usage information of the purified water generated by the purification unit 30. -Switch off individually. [Selection diagram] Fig. 1

Description

The present disclosure relates to water treatment systems and methods.

Conventionally, there is a water treatment system that purifies raw water, which is water from a water source such as a well, river or pond, or rainwater, for use as drinking water or domestic water. When applying such a water treatment system to ordinary houses in developing countries where water supply facilities are not sufficiently equipped, not only purification performance but also costs at the time of introduction and use are important. For example, if an attempt is made to apply a water treatment system to only one house, one household may not be able to cover the cost, or if the operating time is short, the system itself may be over-engineered. Therefore, there is an idea of supplying water purified by one water treatment system to a plurality of houses in order to obtain an advantage in terms of cost and to make the best use of the water treatment system.

However, in the water treatment system, the water distribution is temporarily stopped when the filter contained inside is cleaned or when a failure occurs. In particular, the suspension of water distribution in a water treatment system that supplies purified water to a plurality of houses means that many houses are affected by the water outage, which is not desirable.

On the other hand, for example, even if a plurality of filters are installed and one filter is not operating, the other filters continue to operate, so that the water distribution of the entire system is not stopped. There is a system. Patent Document 1 discloses a filtration device in which a plurality of membrane units for filtration are arranged side by side and the timing for cleaning is different for each membrane unit.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-70325

In the filtration apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, the cleaning process is performed while sequentially shifting the timing for each membrane unit. Here, it is assumed that such a filtration device is adopted as a water treatment system for supplying purified water to a plurality of houses. At this time, for example, even if the use of purified water in each house is concentrated at one time, the water treatment system cleans with one of the membrane units at a predetermined timing, which is the same as the normal operation. Processing is done. Therefore, if all the membrane units are in operation, even if the required purified water supply amount can be secured, in this case, the required purified water supply amount may not be secured.

The present disclosure has been made in view of the problems of the prior art. An object of the present disclosure is to provide a water treatment system and a water treatment method which are advantageous for optimizing the amount of purified water supply while maintaining the purification performance.

In order to solve the above problems, the water treatment system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a plurality of purification units for purifying raw water and a control unit for controlling the operation of the plurality of purification units. It is equipped with a filter that removes impurities from raw water, a backwash mechanism that backwashes the filter, and a first sensor that detects the state related to the filtration capacity of the filter, and the control unit is the filtration obtained from the first sensor. Based on the capacity information and the usage information of the purified water generated by the purification unit, the operation of the backwash mechanism provided in each of the plurality of purification units is individually switched on / off.

Further, the water treatment method according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a purification step of purifying the raw water with a plurality of purification units each equipped with a filter for removing impurities from the raw water, and a backwash provided with each of the plurality of purification units. The backwashing process includes a backwashing process in which the filter is backwashed by a mechanism. In the backwashing process, the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor that detects the state related to the filtration capacity of the filter and the purified water generated by the purification unit Based on the usage information of, the operation of the backwash mechanism provided in each of the plurality of purification units can be individually switched on / off.

According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a water treatment system and a water treatment method that are advantageous for optimizing the amount of purified water supply while maintaining the purification performance.

It is the schematic of the water treatment system which concerns on one Embodiment of this disclosure. It is the schematic of the water treatment system when one purification part is in the backwashing process. It is a control block diagram which concerns on a control part. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the water treatment process in a water treatment system. It is a graph which shows the change in the amount of purified water used by a user in one day.

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

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a water treatment system 1 according to an embodiment. The water treatment system 1 purifies the raw water as the water to be treated to the extent that it can be used as domestic water, for example. Here, the raw water means water from a water source such as a well, a river or a pond, or rainwater. In the following description, it is assumed that the raw water is well water as an example. Further, the water purified by the water purification device 10 described later is referred to as purified water. Further, the water treatment system 1 supplies purified water to a plurality of houses 200. In FIG. 1, as an example, it is assumed that the water treatment system 1 supplies purified water to 10 houses 200 from the first house 200a to the tenth house 200j.

The water treatment system 1 includes a water purification device 10, a water storage tank 12, and a control unit 14.

The water purification device 10 purifies the raw water pumped from the supply source 100 via the pumping pipe 20 to generate purified water. The water purification device 10 includes a plurality of purification units 30. The plurality of purification units 30 can independently introduce raw water to generate purified water. In the present embodiment, as an example, it is assumed that the water purification device 10 includes five purification units 30. In this case, the water purification device 10 includes a first purification unit 30a, a second purification unit 30b, a third purification unit 30c, a fourth purification unit 30d, and a fifth purification unit 30e. In FIG. 1, the third purification unit 30c and the fourth purification unit 30d are not shown for the sake of simplification of drawing. The configurations of these purification units 30 are the same as each other.

The purification unit 30 includes a purification pipe 31, a water supply pump 32, a filter 33, a first sensor, and a backwash mechanism 36.

The purification pipe 31 is a pipe through which the introduced raw water or the generated purified water flows. One end of the purification pipe 31 is connected to the pumping pipe 20. The other end of the purification pipe 31 is connected to a lead-out pipe 21 described later.

The water supply pump 32 is connected to the purification pipe 31 and is a power source that draws raw water from the supply source 100 and sends it to the filter 33. The operation of the water supply pump 32 is controlled by the control unit 14. Here, when the water purification supply range of the water treatment system 1 is medium-scale, if only one water pump is installed in the water purification device 10, for example, the water pump is required to have high durability. .. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since there are a plurality of purification units 30, since a plurality of water pumps 32 are installed in the water purification device 10, each water pump 32 does not necessarily have high durability. It has the advantage of not being required.

The filter 33 removes impurities from the raw water flowing in the purification pipe 31. In the present embodiment, the filter medium used in the filter 33 is a particulate matter such as manganese sand.

The first sensor detects a state related to the filtration capacity of the filter 33. Here, the state related to the filtration capacity means a state for determining whether or not the current filtration capacity has decreased with respect to the preset filtration capacity during normal operation. In the present embodiment, two types of first sensors are provided for each purification unit 30 as an example.

The first type of first sensor is a pressure sensor 34 installed on the upstream side of the filter 33 in the purification pipe 31. The state relating to the filtration capacity in this case is represented by the pressure of the raw water before being introduced into the filter 33. The control unit 14 acquires the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor 34 as filtration capacity information.

The second type of first sensor is a water quality sensor 35 installed on the downstream side of the filter 33 in the purification pipe 31. The state relating to the filtration capacity in this case is represented by the water quality of the purified water generated by the filter 33. The control unit 14 acquires the item value measured by the water quality sensor 35 as the filtration capacity information. Here, as the item to be measured by the water quality sensor 35, any item may be selected as long as it can determine at least good or bad water quality.

In the present embodiment, two types of first sensors are installed and used for each purification unit 30, but only one of the first sensors may be installed and used.

The backwash mechanism 36 is a unit that is connected to the purification pipe 31 and backwashes the filter 33. Here, the backwash refers to a washing process in which washing water is flowed through the filter 33 in the direction opposite to that at the time of filtration in order to restore the filtering ability of the filter 33. In the present embodiment, the backwash mechanism 36 uses the raw water sent from the water supply pump 32 as the wash water at the time of backwash. In this case, the backwash mechanism 36 includes a cleaning pipe 40, a drainage pipe 41, and a plurality of switching valves.

The cleaning pipe 40 is a pipe for sending the raw water sent from the water supply pump 32 to the filter 33 as cleaning water. One end of the cleaning pipe 40 is connected between the water supply pump 32 and the filter 33 in the purification pipe 31 as an introduction port for cleaning water. The other end of the cleaning pipe 40 is connected to a part of the purification pipe 31 located on the downstream side of the filter 33 as an outlet for cleaning water.

The drainage pipe 41 drains the washing water used for backwashing to the outside of the purification unit 30. One end of the drainage pipe 41 is connected as an introduction port for cleaning water between the introduction port of the cleaning pipe 40 in the purification pipe 31 and the filter 33. The other end of the drainage pipe 41 is connected to a sewer or the like as a discharge port for washing water.

The plurality of switching valves switch the flow path of raw water between filtration and backwashing by opening and closing. How to install the plurality of switching valves in the backwash mechanism 36 can be considered, for example, depending on the type of the switching valve. In this embodiment, the plurality of switching valves are all two-way valves. In this case, the backwash mechanism 36 includes, for example, a first switching valve 42, a second switching valve 43, a third switching valve 44, and a fourth switching valve 45. The first switching valve 42 is installed between the introduction port of the cleaning pipe 40 and the introduction port of the drainage pipe 41 in the purification pipe 31. The second switching valve 43 is installed on the downstream side of the outlet of the cleaning pipe 40 in the purification pipe 31. The third switching valve 44 is installed in the cleaning pipe 40. It is desirable that the third switching valve 44 is installed in the vicinity of the introduction port in the cleaning pipe 40 in order to reduce the amount of raw water that stays in the cleaning pipe 40 during filtration. The fourth switching valve 45 is installed in the drain pipe 41. Further, in the present embodiment, the plurality of switching valves are all solenoid valves, and the opening / closing operation is controlled by the control unit 14.

Here, when the purification unit 30 filters the raw water, the first switching valve 42 and the second switching valve 43 are opened, and the third switching valve 44 and the fourth switching valve 45 are closed. As a result, the flow of the raw water in the cleaning pipe 40 and the discharge of the raw water to the outside through the drain pipe 41 are hindered, so that the raw water sent from the water supply pump 32 goes to the filter 33 through the purification pipe 31. , Purified water is guided to the outlet pipe 21. That is, in this state, the backwash mechanism 36 cannot backwash the filter 33.

In addition, in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 below corresponding to the drawing of FIG. 1, the pipe through which the raw water or purified water flows is shown by a solid line, and the pipe through which the raw water or purified water does not flow is shown by a broken line. In particular, FIG. 1 shows a state in which all the purification units 30 filter the raw water. That is, in this state, the purification pipe 31 is represented by a solid line, and the cleaning pipe 40 and the drainage pipe 41 are represented by a broken line.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a water treatment system when, as an example, only the first purification unit 30a of the plurality of purification units 30 is in the backwashing step. When the purification unit 30 performs backwashing, the first switching valve 42 and the second switching valve 43 are closed, and the third switching valve 44 and the fourth switching valve 45 are opened. First, since the first switching valve 42 is closed, the raw water sent from the water supply pump 32 cannot directly go to the filter 33 through the purification pipe 31, and flows through the cleaning pipe 40. Then, it goes to the downstream side of the filter 33. Then, since the second switching valve 43 is closed, the raw water that has reached the downstream side of the filter 33 flows back in the purification pipe 31 and heads for the filter 33. Finally, since the first switching valve 42 is closed, the raw water used for the backwash of the filter 33 goes to the drain pipe 41 and is discharged to the outside of the purification unit 30.

As for the timing of backwashing, as shown in FIG. 2, in addition to the timing of backwashing performed by only one purification unit 30, two or more purification units 30 selected from a plurality of purification units 30 simultaneously perform backwashing. There may be a timing when backwashing is performed. Alternatively, there may be a timing when backwashing is performed in all the purification units 30 at the same time, and there may be a timing when backwashing is not performed in any of the purification units 30.

Further, in FIGS. 1 and 2, as a configuration example of the backwash mechanism 36, it is described that the plurality of switching valves are all two-way valves, but the plurality of switching valves are not limited to this, for example, three-way. It may be a valve or a mixture of a two-way valve and a three-way valve. Then, in the backwash mechanism 36, the installation configuration of each pipe may be appropriately changed depending on the type of the switching valve.

Further, the purification unit 30 may include a drug supply unit 37 that supplies the drug to the raw water on the upstream side of the filter 33 in the purification pipe 31. The chemicals supplied by the chemical supply unit 37 are for making impurities contained in the raw water easy to be purified by the filter 33. The agent may be, for example, ozone as an oxidizing agent. Since ozone has a strong oxidizing power, it can be easily captured by the filter 33 by decomposing organic substances that are difficult to decompose contained in raw water. Alternatively, the drug may be, for example, iron ions eluted from the electrode of the iron electrolysis treatment as a coagulant. The flocculant can grow to the extent that the colloidal particulate organic matter contained in the raw water can be captured by the filter 33.

Further, the purification unit 30 may be provided with a check valve 38 on the downstream side of the filter 33 in the purification pipe 31 to prevent the backflow of water from the downstream side to the upstream side in the purification pipe 31. For example, even if an abnormality occurs in the water supply pump 32 and the operation is stopped, the check valve 38 operates and the backflow of water from the downstream side to the upstream side of the water supply pump 32 is suppressed.

The water storage tank 12 stores purified water purified by the water purification device 10. As elements related to the water storage tank 12, the water treatment system 1 includes a lead-out pipe 21, a water distribution pipe 22, a water distribution pump 23, and a water level sensor 24. The lead-out pipe 21 leads out purified water from the water purification device 10 to the water storage tank 12. One end of the lead-out pipe 21 is branched into a plurality of parts and is connected to the purification pipe 31 for each purification unit 30. The other end of the lead-out pipe 21 is opened toward the inside of the water storage tank 12. The water distribution pipe 22 distributes purified water from the water storage tank 12 to each house 200. The water distribution pump 23 is installed in the water distribution pipe 22 and is a power source that sucks purified water from the water storage tank 12 and distributes it to the house 200 side. The water level sensor 24 detects the water level of purified water stored in the water storage tank 12 as a second sensor that is distinguished from the first sensor included in the purification unit 30. The water level sensor 24 can detect, for example, two water levels, a high water level indicated by a solid line in the figure and a low water level indicated by a broken line in the figure. Although the water storage tank 12 is represented as one in FIGS. 1 and 2, there may be a plurality of water storage tanks 12.

FIG. 3 is a control block diagram related to the control unit 14. The control unit 14 controls the operation of the entire water treatment system 1 based on various information. The control unit 14 is a CPU (Central Processing).
A Unit) 50, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 51, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 52 are included.

A power switch 54, an information input unit 55, a water level sensor 24, a pressure sensor 34, and a water quality sensor 35 are connected to the input side of the control unit 14. On the other hand, a water supply pump 32, a drug supply unit 37, a plurality of switching valves, and a display unit 56 are connected to the output side of the control unit 14. Note that these connections may be wired or wireless. Here, the plurality of switching valves correspond to the first switching valve 42, the second switching valve 43, the third switching valve 44, and the fourth switching valve 45 included in the backwash mechanism 36, respectively, in the example of the present embodiment. do. Further, among these configurations, the water supply pump 32, the pressure sensor 34, the water quality sensor 35, the drug supply unit 37, and the plurality of switching valves are included in each of the plurality of purification units 30, and in FIG. 3, two of them are shown. Shown by heavy blocks.

The power switch 54 is a switch for setting on / off of the entire water treatment system 1. The power switch 54 may be installed in a part of the water purification device 10.

The information input unit 55 is a device for an operator to input various information related to the operation of the water treatment system 1. The information input unit 55 may be a keyboard or a touch panel. When the information input unit 55 is a touch panel type input unit, it may also be used as the display unit 56 described later.

The display unit 56 displays the operating status of the entire water treatment system 1. The display unit 56 may be, for example, always installed on an indoor wall, or may be a portable tablet type having a communication function.

Next, the specific operation of the water treatment system 1 will be described.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of the water treatment process in the water treatment system 1. The water treatment process is started when the operator turns on the power switch 54.

When the water treatment step is started, the control unit 14 determines whether the purified water in the water storage tank 12 is at a low water level, specifically, whether the purified water is below the low water level (step S101). In the present embodiment, the control unit 14 determines whether or not the purified water is at a low water level based on whether or not the water level sensor 24 as the second sensor emits a predetermined low water level signal. That is, step S101 is a step of confirming in advance whether or not a space for storing the newly generated purified water is secured in the water storage tank 12.

When the control unit 14 determines in step S101 that the purified water in the water storage tank 12 is at a low water level (YES), the control unit 14 then shifts the water treatment step to a purification step of purifying the raw water by the plurality of purification units 30. Let me. Here, regarding how to set the number of purification units 30 used for carrying out the purification process among the plurality of purification units 30 included in the water purification device 10, for example, the following two methods can be used. Conceivable.

As a first setting method, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the control unit 14 purifies the water used to carry out the purification process based on the amount of purified water used by the user (hereinafter referred to as "purified water usage amount"). The number of parts 30 may be changed depending on the time zone.

As an example, FIG. 5 is a graph schematically showing changes in the daily amount of purified water used by each household in some areas of Indonesia. For example, if one day is considered as a unit period, the amount of purified water used changes every hour of the day. In the area taken as an example of FIG. 5, the amount of purified water used increases temporarily because the number of people who wake up during the time period from about 5 to 8 in the morning is concentrated. Hereinafter, the time zone including the time when the amount of purified water used is the largest in the unit period is referred to as a peak time zone. That is, in the example shown in FIG. 5, the time zone from about 5 o'clock to 8 o'clock in the morning sandwiched between the two broken lines is the peak time zone. Hereinafter, it is assumed that the water treatment system 1 is used in an area where a change in the amount of purified water used as shown in FIG. 5 is observed.

During peak hours, more purified water will be used by each user in each house 200, so the water treatment system 1 needs to maintain a certain amount of purified water supply in order to meet the user's request. However, in a time zone different from the peak time zone, which is represented by nighttime, for example, the user does not use much purified water as compared with the peak time zone, so that the water treatment system 1 does not necessarily use a plurality of purification units 30. It may not be necessary to have all of them up and running. Therefore, for example, when the peak time zone and the time zone different from the peak time zone are compared and the difference in the amount of purified water used is large, the control unit 14 uses the purification unit 30 to carry out the purification step. The number of may be reduced in a time zone different from the peak time zone than in the peak time zone.

Specifically, after step S101, the control unit 14 determines whether or not it is currently in a time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large (step S102). The time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large is, for example, a peak time zone. Here, when the control unit 14 determines that the current peak time zone is present (YES), the control unit 14 starts the purification process at the X unit among the plurality of purification units 30 (step S103). On the other hand, when the control unit 14 determines that the current time is not the peak time zone (NO), the control unit 14 starts the purification process at the Y unit among the plurality of purification units 30 (step S104). At this time, the relationship of X> Y holds for X and Y indicating the number of units. For example, in the present embodiment, since the water purification device 10 includes five purification units 30, X may be "5", which is the maximum value that can be taken, while Y is "3". May be good. That is, in the water purification device 10, during the peak time period, the purification process during normal operation is performed by the five purification units 30, and during the time zone different from the peak time period, the three purification units 30 perform the purification process during normal operation. Purification process is carried out. For example, in a time zone different from the peak time zone, the first purification unit 30a, the second purification unit 30b, and the third purification unit 30c are selected to be used for carrying out the purification process, and the fourth purification unit 30d and the first purification unit 30d are selected. 5 The purification unit 30e may be suspended from operation. Here, the purification process during normal operation is carried out by all the purification units 30 used for carrying out the purification process without the purification unit 30 performing the backwashing process described later during that time period. It refers to the purification process that has been carried out.

Whether or not the individual purification units 30 are operated is determined by whether or not the water supply pumps 32 provided in each of the plurality of purification units 30 are individually operated. That is, when the control unit 14 determines the number of purification units 30 used for carrying out the purification process, the number of water supply pumps 32 to be operated in each purification unit 30 is different from the peak time zone than the peak time zone. It is synonymous with setting by the control unit 14 so that the time zone is smaller.

Further, the control unit 14 specifies the peak time zone as follows when making the determination in step S102. As the first identification method, the control unit 14 may specify the peak time zone based on the water level information in the water storage tank 12 acquired from the water level sensor 24 during the operation of the purification unit 30 in the past. In this case, the control unit 14 stores the water level information in the unit period in a storage unit such as the RAM 52 for each hour. If the purified water level in the water storage tank 12 becomes low in a short time, it can be considered that the amount of purified water used is increasing. On the other hand, if the decrease in the water level is suppressed even after a certain period of time, the purified water is purified. It can be considered that the amount used is suppressed. That is, the control unit 14 can recognize the tendency of the change in the amount of purified water used in the unit period as shown in FIG. 5 by referring to the water level information stored in the RAM 52, and as a result, the purified water is used. The peak time zone can be identified from the tendency of the amount to change.

Alternatively, as the second specific method, when data on the change in the amount of purified water used as shown in FIG. 5 exists in advance, the operator sends the data on the change in the amount of purified water used to the information input unit 55. The input data may be input and the RAM 52 may store the input data. The control unit 14 can specify the peak time zone by reading data on the change in the amount of purified water used from the RAM 52 and referring to the data. Further, instead of this, the data input by the worker may not be the data related to the change in the amount of purified water used, but may be the information directly indicating the peak time zone.

In the above example, the peak time zone corresponds to the time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large. However, in addition to the peak time zone, for example, a time zone such as the time zone around 20:00 shown in FIG. 5 which can be regarded as having a large amount of purified water used as compared with the time zone where the amount of purified water used is the smallest. , It may be defined as a time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large in step S102. In this case, the control unit 14 defines X as "3" in the time zone around 20:00 shown in FIG. 5, and sets Y as "2" in the time zone when the amount of purified water used is less than the time zone around 20:00. It may be specified.

Further, in the above example, one day corresponds to a unit period. However, for example, if it is determined in advance that the operation of the entire water treatment system 1 will be completely stopped in a certain time zone at night, the time zone in which the water treatment system 1 is operated in the day is set. It may be a unit period.

On the other hand, as a second setting method for how to set the number of purification units 30 used for carrying out the purification step, the control unit 14 does not have to make a determination as shown in step S102. There can also be. For example, when the difference between the peak time zone and the time zone different from the peak time zone is small and the difference in the amount of purified water used is small, the control unit 14 uses the purification unit 14 to carry out the purification step during the unit period. The number of parts 30 may be constant. In this case, step S104 becomes unnecessary in addition to step S102, and as a new step S103 continuing from step S101, the purification step is started in X of the plurality of purification units 30 specified in advance.

In the purification step started in step S103 or step S104, the control unit 14 opens the first switching valve 42 and the second switching valve 43 in advance, and closes the third switching valve 44 and the fourth switching valve 45. back. Next, the control unit 14 starts the operation of each water supply pump 32 in the purification unit 30 used for carrying out the purification step. At the same time, when each of the purification units 30 is provided with a drug supply unit 37, the control unit 14 starts the supply of the drug by the drug supply unit 37. As a result, in the purification unit 30 used for carrying out the purification process in the water purification device 10, the raw water pumped from the supply source 100 via the pumping pipe 20 is introduced into the filter 33 and generated by the filter 33. The purified water is stored in the water storage tank 12 via the outlet pipe 21.

Next, the control unit 14 determines whether or not any of the plurality of purification units 30 performing the purification process requires cleaning of the filter 33 while the purification process is being performed (step S105). ). Here, the cleaning of the filter 33 means a cleaning process performed on the filter 33 in order to restore the filtration capacity of the filter 33. In the present embodiment, as the purification treatment, the backwash of the filter 33 using the backwash mechanism 36 is performed.

In step S105, the control unit 14 identifies the filter 33 that requires backwashing based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor.

First, when the first sensor is a pressure sensor 34 installed on the upstream side of the filter 33 in the purification pipe 31, the control unit 14 determines the pressure value measured by each pressure sensor 34 for each purification unit 30. Obtained as filtration capacity information. Here, if there is no significant change in the filtration capacity of the filter 33, the pressure value does not change significantly. Therefore, the control unit 14 assumes that the filter 33 has the filtration capacity during normal operation. , Judge that backwashing is unnecessary. On the other hand, when the filtration capacity of the filter 33 decreases, the pressure loss in the purification pipe 31 increases, so that the pressure value increases. In this case, the control unit 14 determines that the filter 33 in the purification unit 30 in which the pressure sensor 34 whose pressure value has increased exists needs to be backwashed.

On the other hand, when the first sensor is the water quality sensor 35 installed on the downstream side of the filter 33 in the purification pipe 31, the control unit 14 sets the item value measured by each water quality sensor 35 for each purification unit 30. Obtained as filtration capacity information. Here, if there is no significant change in the filtration capacity of the filter 33, the quality of the purified water does not change significantly. Therefore, the control unit 14 has obtained the filtration capacity of the filter 33 during normal operation. Therefore, it is judged that backwashing is unnecessary. On the other hand, when the filtration capacity of the filter 33 decreases, the quality of the purified water generated by the filter 33 deteriorates, so that the item value to be measured changes. In this case, the control unit 14 determines that the filter 33 in the purification unit 30 in which the water quality sensor 35 in which the item value to be measured has changed needs to be backwashed.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, by adopting two types of sensors, a pressure sensor 34 and a water quality sensor 35, as the first sensor, the accuracy of identifying the filter 33 that requires backwashing is further improved. be able to. On the other hand, either the pressure sensor 34 or the water quality sensor 35 is adopted as the first sensor, and the control unit 14 performs filtration that requires backwashing based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the one sensor. The machine 33 may be specified.

Here, it is assumed that in step S105, the control unit 14 determines that there is no purification unit 30 that requires cleaning of the filter 33 (NO). In this case, the control unit 14 then determines whether the purified water in the water storage tank 12 is at a high water level, specifically, whether the purified water has reached a high water level (step S106). In the present embodiment, the control unit 14 transmits a high water level signal predetermined by the water level sensor 24 as the second sensor as well as when determining whether the purified water is at a high water level or not at a low water level. Judge whether it is emitted or not. When the control unit 14 determines in step S106 that the purified water is not at a high water level (NO), the control unit 14 returns to step S105. That is, the step S105 for determining whether or not there is a purifying unit 30 that requires cleaning of the filter 33 is continued until the purified water in the water storage tank 12 reaches a high water level.

On the other hand, in step S105, as an example, the control unit 14 refers to the filter 33 in the first purification unit 30a based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor included in the first purification unit 30a. It is assumed that it is determined that backwashing is necessary. In this case, the control unit 14 determines that there is a purification unit 30 that requires cleaning of the filter 33 (YES), and proceeds to step S107.

Next, the control unit 14 determines whether or not it is currently in a time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large (step S107). However, as shown in FIG. 4, when the number of purification units 30 used for carrying out the purification step is distinguished in step S103 or step S104, the control unit 14 needs to make a new judgment. Instead, the determination result made in step S102 may be referred to. On the other hand, when the water treatment step of the present embodiment does not include steps S102 to S104, the control unit 14 makes the same determination as step S102 as step S107.

The time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large is the time zone in which the water purification device 10 must generate a large amount of purified water and maintain a certain amount of purified water supply. On the other hand, the filter 33 that requires backwash cannot perform a normal filtration process while backwashing is being performed. Therefore, backwashing the filter 33 in a certain purification unit 30 during a time when the amount of purified water used is large may lead to a decrease in the amount of purified water supplied. Therefore, when the control unit 14 determines in step S107 that it is currently in a time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large (YES), the control unit 14 is in the process until the peak time zone, which is an example of the time zone in which the amount of purified water is used, is passed. 1 The start of the backwashing process for the filter 33 in the purification unit 30a is temporarily suspended. On the other hand, when the control unit 14 determines in step S107 that it is not the time zone in which the amount of purified water used is currently large (NO), the control unit 14 shifts to step S108.

Next, the control unit 14 determines whether or not there is another purification unit 30 whose cleaning should be prioritized over the filter 33 in the first purification unit 30a, which is currently required to be cleaned, that is, backwashed (). Step S108).

In the example here, among the plurality of purification units 30, only the first purification unit 30a is the purification unit 30 including the filter 33 that needs cleaning at present. However, in reality, it may be determined that the two or more purification units 30 need to clean the filter 33 at close timings. In this case, backwashing the filter 33 at the same time in all the purification units 30 that require cleaning of the filter 33 may also lead to a decrease in the amount of purified water supplied. Therefore, when the control unit 14 determines in step S108 that there is another purification unit 30 including the filter 33 that should give priority to cleaning (YES), until the cleaning of the filter 33 that should be prioritized is completed. , The start of the backwashing process for the filter 33 in the first purification unit 30a is temporarily suspended.

Here, when there are a plurality of purification units 30 including a filter 33 that requires cleaning at the present time, the control unit 14 determines which of the purification units 30 should give priority to cleaning of the filter 33. It may be judged by referring to the filtration capacity information obtained from. For example, when the first sensor is the pressure sensor 34, the filter 33 in the purifying unit 30 having the higher pressure value, that is, the one having the higher pressure loss, cleans more than the filter 33 included in the other purifying unit 30. Can be said to have a high priority.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, if it is determined in step S108 that there is another purification unit 30 including the filter 33 in which cleaning should be prioritized, the process returns to step S107, which is the previous step. .. Assuming that the backwashing of the filter 33 in the first purification unit 30a is suspended and the backwashing of the other filters 33 for which washing should be prioritized is waited for, the time zone in which the amount of purified water used is large at the time of judgment. Even if it is not, it is possible that there will be a period of time when the amount of purified water used is high. Therefore, the control unit 14 makes a determination in step S107 again before shifting to step S108. However, for example, when the time required for the backwashing step in one purification unit 30 is short and it is determined in step S108 that there is another purification unit 30 including the filter 33 in which cleaning should be prioritized, the step is performed. The determination in step S108 may be repeated without going through S107.

On the other hand, when the control unit 14 determines in step S108 that there is no other purification unit 30 including the filter 33 that should give priority to cleaning (NO), the backwashing step is performed in the first purification unit 30a. Backwashing of the filter 33 is performed (step S109). At this time, the control unit 14 turns on the operation of the backwash mechanism 36 in the first purification unit 30a, so that the backwash is started. The backwashing step removes foreign matter existing between the filter media of the filter 33, and restores the filtration capacity of the filter 33. The operation of the backwash mechanism 36 during the backwash step is as described above with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. After the operation of the backwash mechanism 36 in the first purification unit 30a is turned off and the backwash step in the first purification unit 30a is completed, the water purification step returns to step S105.

Here, in the example of step S105 described above, it is assumed that the filter 33 in the first purification unit 30a is determined to require backwashing. However, among the plurality of purification units 30, the purification unit 30 which is determined to require cleaning of the filter 33 changes each time between the purification steps or the repeated water treatment steps. That is, the control unit 14 individually switches the operation of the backwash mechanism 36 included in the purification unit 30 on / off for each purification unit 30 determined to require cleaning of the filter 33.

Next, returning to step S106, when the control unit 14 determines that the purified water in the water storage tank 12 is at a high water level (YES), the operation of the water supply pump 32 is stopped, and the drug from the drug supply unit 37 is charged. By stopping the supply, the purification process is completed (step S110). After the purification step is completed, the operator turns off the power switch 54, so that a series of steps included in the water treatment step is completed.

Further, returning to step S101, when the control unit 14 determines that the purified water in the water storage tank 12 is not at a low water level at the first stage of the water treatment process (NO), the purified water in the water storage tank 12 continues to be high. It is determined whether or not it is at the water level (step S111). The specific determination method here is the same as in step S106.

Here, in step S111, when the control unit 14 determines that the purified water is not at a high water level (NO), the water storage tank 12 has a space for storing the newly generated purified water. Become. Therefore, the control unit 14 then proceeds to step S102 to cause the water purification device 10 to carry out the subsequent purification steps.

On the other hand, when the control unit 14 determines in step S111 that the purified water is at a high water level (YES), the water storage tank 12 no longer has a space for storing the newly generated purified water. Become. At this time, all the purification units 30 included in the water purification device 10 do not perform the purification step. Therefore, if it is known in advance that the filter 33 that requires cleaning exists, the backwashing process can be performed while none of the purification units 30 is performing the purification process, and the water purification device can be used. It is effective in suppressing a decrease in the ability to generate purified water of 10. Therefore, the control unit 14 subsequently determines whether or not there is a purification unit 30 that requires cleaning of the filter 33 (step S112).

In step S105, which is similar to step S112, the control unit 14 determines the filter 33 that requires backwashing based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor in order to make a determination while performing the purification step. Can be identified. On the other hand, the purification step is not performed at the stage of step S112. Therefore, for example, the control unit 14 stores the history of the backwashing process for each purification unit 30 performed in the past in a storage unit such as the RAM 52 in advance, and based on the history of the backwashing process stored in the RAM 52. The filter 33 that requires backwashing may be specified.

Here, in step S112, when the control unit 14 determines that there is a purification unit 30 that requires cleaning of the filter 33 (NO), the backwashing mechanism 36 is used as a backwashing step in the specified purification unit 30. Is backwashed on the filter 33 (step S113). Regarding the backwashing step after step S112, even if the backwashing of each of the filters 33 included in a large number of purification units 30 is performed at the same time, the ability of the water purification device 10 to generate purified water is lowered. There is no. Therefore, the backwashing step in this case may be performed simultaneously in all the purification units 30. After the backwashing step is completed, the operator turns off the power switch 54, so that a series of steps included in the water treatment step is completed.

On the other hand, in step S112, when the control unit 14 determines that there is no purification unit 30 that requires cleaning of the filter 33 (YES), the operator turns off the power switch 54 without performing the backwashing step as it is. By doing so, a series of steps included in the water treatment step is completed.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, it is assumed that the water treatment step is completed by turning off the power switch 54 after the purification step or the backwashing step when the purified water in the water storage tank 12 is at a high water level is completed. However, after the purification step or the backwashing step when the purified water in the water storage tank 12 is at a high water level is completed, the process returns to step S101 without turning off the power switch 54, and the series of steps is repeated. May be good.

Next, the effects of the water treatment system 1 and the water treatment method will be described.

First, the water treatment system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of purification units 30 for purifying raw water and a control unit 14 for controlling the operation of the plurality of purification units 30. The purification unit 30 includes a filter 33 that removes impurities from raw water, a backwash mechanism 36 that backwashes the filter, and a first sensor that detects a state related to the filtration capacity of the filter 33. The control unit 14 turns on the operation of the backwash mechanism 36 provided in each of the plurality of purification units 30 based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor and the usage information of the purified water generated by the purification unit 30. -Switch off individually.

Alternatively, the water treatment method according to the present embodiment includes a purification step of purifying the raw water by a plurality of purification units 30 each provided with a filter 33 for removing impurities from the raw water. Further, the water treatment method includes a backwashing step of backwashing the filter 33 with the backwashing mechanism 36 provided in each of the plurality of purification units 30. In the backwashing step, the plurality of purification units 30 are based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor that detects the state related to the filtration capacity of the filter 33 and the usage information of the purified water generated by the purification unit 30. The operation of the backwash mechanism 36 provided for each is switched on / off individually.

First, in the water treatment system 1, raw water can be purified by using a plurality of purification units 30 each provided with a filter 33. Further, it is assumed that a decrease in the filtration capacity is observed in any of the plurality of filters 33. Even in such a case, the control unit 14 can quickly recover the filtration capacity of the filter 33 by operating the backwash mechanism 36 based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor. Therefore, the water treatment system 1 can maintain high purification performance.

Further, in the water treatment system 1, even if the backwash mechanism 36 is operated in any of the plurality of purification units 30, the backwash mechanism 36 is not operated in the other purification units 30, so that the entire water treatment system 1 is operated. As a result, the production of purified water can be prevented from being interrupted. Further, in the water treatment system 1, even if a failure occurs in the filter 33 in any of the plurality of purification units 30, the other purification units 30 can continue the filtration treatment, so that the water treatment system 1 as a whole can purify water. Can be uninterrupted in the generation of.

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the operation of each backwash mechanism 36 is not switched on / off at a predetermined timing. That is, in the water treatment system 1, the control unit 14 individually switches the operation of each backwash mechanism 36 on / off based on the usage information of the purified water generated by the purification unit 30. Therefore, for example, even if the use of purified water in each house 200 is concentrated at one time, all the backwash mechanisms 36 are not temporarily operated by intentionally shifting the timing of operating the backwash mechanism 36. Can be done. That is, it is possible to avoid the situation in which it is difficult to secure the required purified water supply amount in advance.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to provide the water treatment system 1 and the water treatment method which are advantageous for optimizing the purified water supply amount while maintaining the purification performance.

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the usage information may include information regarding the peak time zone of the usage amount by the user of purified water.

The peak time zone is the peak time zone in which the amount of purified water used in each house 200 increases in a unit period. By fixing the usage information referred to when the control unit 14 switches the operation of the backwash mechanism 36 on / off in such a peak time zone, the information processing in the control unit 14 can be simplified. ..

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the control unit 14 may operate the backwash mechanism 36 in a time zone different from the peak time zone, and may not operate the backwash mechanism 36 in the peak time zone.

According to such a water treatment system 1, it is easy to avoid a situation in which it is difficult to secure the required purified water supply amount, especially during peak hours. The time zone different from the peak time zone referred to here includes, for example, nighttime.

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the purification unit 30 may include a water supply pump 32 that sends raw water to the filter 33. In this case, the control unit 14 reduces the number of water pumps 32 provided in each of the plurality of purification units 30 to be operated in a time zone different from the peak time zone than in the peak time zone. It may be set.

As described above, since the amount of purified water used increases during peak hours, the amount of purified water supplied also increases. On the other hand, in a time zone different from the peak time zone, the amount of purified water used does not increase so much as compared with the peak time zone. According to such a water treatment system 1, the control unit 14 reduces the number of purification units 30 used for carrying out the purification process in a time zone different from the peak time zone than in the peak time zone. Can be done. Therefore, it is possible to avoid excessive operation and operation of each part of the water treatment system 1 especially in a time zone different from the peak time zone. Thereby, for example, the service life of the water treatment system 1 as a whole can be extended.

Further, the water treatment system 1 has acquired from the water storage tank 12 for storing purified water, the second sensor for detecting the water level of the purified water stored in the water storage tank 12, and the second sensor when the purification unit 30 in the past is in operation. It may be provided with a storage unit that stores water level information. In this case, the control unit 14 may specify the peak time zone based on the water level information stored in the storage unit.

Here, the second sensor corresponds to the water level sensor 24 in the examples shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Further, the storage unit corresponds to the RAM 52 in the example shown in FIG.

According to such a water treatment system 1, the control unit 14 can automatically identify the peak time zone based on the water level information stored in the storage unit without any external instruction in advance. ..

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the control unit 14 identifies the filter 33 that requires backwashing from the filters 33 provided in each of the plurality of purification units 30 based on the filtration capacity information. May be good.

According to such a water treatment system 1, the control unit 14 is among the filters 33 provided in each of the plurality of purification units 30 based on the filtration capacity information, even if there is no instruction from the outside in advance. , The filter 33 that requires backwashing can be automatically identified.

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the first sensor may be a pressure sensor 34 installed on the upstream side of the filter 33. In this case, the filtration capacity information may be the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor 34.

Alternatively, in the water treatment system 1, the first sensor may be a water quality sensor 35 installed on the downstream side of the filter 33. The filtration capacity information may be an item value measured by the water quality sensor 35.

According to such a water treatment system 1, the control unit 14 can acquire accurate filtration capacity information while simplifying the configuration of the entire system.

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the filter medium used in the filter 33 may be a granular substance.

According to such a water treatment system 1, for example, as compared with a filter medium composed of a membrane, there is an advantage that the time required for cleaning for restoring the filtration capacity can be shortened and the cost is low. For example, when the filter medium is a particulate matter, the time required for one backwashing step for one filter 33 is often several minutes to ten and several minutes. Therefore, even if the backwashing step is performed during the purification step, the influence on the purified water supply amount can be suppressed.

Further, in the water treatment system 1, the purification unit 30 may include a chemical supply unit 37 that adds a chemical to the raw water before it is supplied to the filter 33. In this case, the chemical may be ozone gas as an oxidizing agent or an iron-based flocculant suitable for performing iron electrolytic treatment.

According to such a water treatment system 1, even when the chemicals are supplied, the frequency of supply can be suppressed, so that the labor required for the operator can be reduced.

In the above description, it is assumed that the purified water purified by the water treatment system 1 is used as domestic water in each house 200. On the other hand, the water treatment system 1 may be modified so that the purified water purified by the water treatment system 1 is suitable for use as drinking water in each house 200. For example, in the water treatment system 1, a filter may be provided between the water storage tank 12 and the water distribution pump 23 to further filter the purified water transferred from the water storage tank 12 for drinking.

Although the preferred embodiment has been described above, the present embodiment is not limited to this, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the gist thereof.

1 Water treatment system 12 Water storage tank 14 Control unit 24 Water level sensor 30 Purification unit 32 Water supply pump 33 Filter 34 Pressure sensor 35 Water quality sensor 36 Backwash mechanism 37 Chemical supply unit 52 RAM

Claims (11)

Multiple purification departments that purify raw water,
A control unit that controls the operation of the plurality of purification units,
With
The purification unit
A filter that removes impurities from the raw water,
A backwash mechanism that backwashes the filter and
The first sensor that detects the state related to the filtration capacity of the filter and
With
The control unit operates the backwash mechanism provided in each of the plurality of purification units based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor and the usage information of the purified water generated by the purification unit. A water treatment system that can be switched on and off individually. The water treatment system according to claim 1, wherein the usage information includes information regarding a peak time zone of usage by the user of the purified water. The water treatment system according to claim 2, wherein the control unit operates the backwash mechanism in a time zone different from the peak time zone and does not operate the backwash mechanism in the peak time zone. The purification unit includes a water pump that sends the raw water to the filter.
The control unit sets the number of water pumps to be operated among the water pumps provided in each of the plurality of purification units so as to be smaller in a time zone different from the peak time zone than in the peak time zone. The water treatment system according to claim 2 or 3. The water storage tank that stores the purified water and
A second sensor that detects the water level of the purified water stored in the water storage tank, and
A storage unit that stores water level information acquired from the second sensor when the purification unit was operated in the past,
With
The water treatment system according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the control unit identifies the peak time zone based on the water level information stored in the storage unit. Any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the control unit identifies a filter that requires backwashing from among the filters provided in each of the plurality of purification units based on the filtration capacity information. The water treatment system according to item 1. The first sensor is a pressure sensor installed on the upstream side of the filter.
The water treatment system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the filtration capacity information is a pressure value measured by the pressure sensor. The first sensor is a water quality sensor installed on the downstream side of the filter.
The water treatment system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the filtration capacity information is an item value measured by the water quality sensor. The water treatment system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the filter medium used in the filter is a particulate substance. The purification unit includes a drug supply unit that adds a drug to the raw water before being supplied to the filter.
The water treatment system according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the chemical is ozone gas as an oxidizing agent or an iron-based flocculant suitable for performing an iron electrolytic treatment. A purification process that purifies the raw water with multiple purification units equipped with filters that remove impurities from the raw water.
A backwashing step of backwashing the filter with a backwashing mechanism provided in each of the plurality of purification units.
Including
In the backwashing step, a plurality of the purification units are based on the filtration capacity information obtained from the first sensor that detects the state of the filtration capacity of the filter and the usage information of the purified water generated by the purification unit. A water treatment method in which the operation of the backwashing mechanism provided in each of the above is individually switched on / off.

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