Fluid flow device cleaning method and fluid flow device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2020147658-A1
Application number	US-201816629378-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 26, 2018
Priority date	Jul 20, 2017
Publication date	May 14, 2020
Grant date	—

Abstract

Provided is a method for cleaning an arbitrary fluid channel in a fluid flow device including a channel-forming body forming a plurality of fluid channels, a first header, and a second header. The method includes opening a cleaning-target channel included in the plurality of fluid channels and closing a non-cleaning-target channel which is the other fluid channel; and supplying a cleaning liquid to a cleaning-liquid supply header selected from the first header and the second header in a state where the non-cleaning-target channel is closed to cause the cleaning liquid to flow only through the cleaning-target channel.

First claim

1 . A fluid flow device cleaning method for cleaning an arbitrary fluid channel of a fluid flow device, as a cleaning-target channel, the fluid flow device including a channel-forming body which forms a plurality of fluid channels each having a first opening and a second opening at opposite ends, the channel-forming body having an outer surface in which there exist a first region where the respective first openings of the plurality of fluid channels are gathered and a second region where the second openings of the plurality of fluid channels are gathered, a first header which covers collectively the first openings in the first region to thereby define a first space communicating with each of the first opening, and a second header which covers collectively the second openings in the second region to thereby define a second space communicating with each of the second openings, the fluid flow device allowing a fluid supplied to one of the first header and the second header to flow through the plurality of fluid channels and to flow into the other of the first header and the second header, the method comprises:
closing each non-cleaning-target channel which is included in the plurality of fluid channels and other than the cleaning-target channel; and supplying a cleaning liquid to a cleaning-liquid supply header which is selected from the first header and the second header, in a state where the non-cleaning-target channels is closed, to thereby cause the cleaning liquid to flow only through the cleaning-target channel.

2 . The fluid flow device cleaning method according to claim 1 , wherein closing the non-cleaning-target channel is closing a closing target opening selected from the first opening and the second opening of the non-cleaning-target channel, and the cleaning-liquid supply header is a header that covers the closing target opening, the cleaning-liquid supply header being one of the first header and the second header.

3 . A fluid flow device comprising:
a channel-forming body which forms a plurality of fluid channels each having a first opening and a second opening at opposite ends thereof, the channel-forming body having an outer surface in which there exist a first region where the first openings of the plurality of fluid channels are gathered and a second region where the second openings of the plurality of fluid channels are gathered; a first header which covers collectively the first openings in the first region to thereby define a first space communicating with each of the first openings; a second header which covers collectively the second openings in the second region to thereby define a second space communicating with each of the second openings; and a channel opening/closing device which opens/closes the plurality of fluid channels, wherein the channel opening/closing device is switchable between a fully opening state of opening all the plurality of fluid channels to allow a fluid to flow through the plurality of fluid channels and a plurality of flow restriction states corresponding to the plurality of fluid channels, respectively, each of the flow restriction states being a state of opening an opening-target fluid channel, which is included in the plurality of fluid channels and corresponds to the flow restriction state, while closing a closing-target fluid channel, which is included in the plurality of fluid channels and other than the opening-target fluid channel, to thereby allow a fluid to flow only through the opening-target fluid channel.

4 . The fluid flow device according to claim 3 , wherein the channel opening/closing device is disposed so as to close a closing target opening selected from the first opening and the second opening of the closing-target fluid channel in each of the plurality of flow restriction states.

5 . The fluid flow device according to claim 4 , wherein the channel opening/closing device includes a channel opening/closing member including a plurality of individual opening/closing portions provided to the plurality of fluid channels, respectively, the plurality of individual opening/closing portions being movable independently of each other between a closing position at which each of the plurality of individual opening/closing portions makes close contact with the channel-forming body so as to close the closing target openings of the plurality of fluid channels and an opening position at which each of the plurality of individual opening/closing portions is apart from the closing target opening to open the fluid channel, and an opening/closing drive device which moves an arbitrary individual opening/closing portion of the plurality of individual opening/closing portions between the closing position and the opening position independently of the other individual opening/closing portion.

6 . The fluid flow device according to claim 5 , wherein the channel opening/closing member is constituted by a plurality of individual opening/closing members which are divisionally provided for the plurality of individual opening/closing portions.

7 . The fluid flow device according to claim 5 , wherein the channel opening/closing member is a single elastic opening/closing body that is elastically deformable, the elastic opening/closing body integrally having the plurality of individual opening/closing portions and a base portion joining the plurality of individual opening/closing portions with each other, the elastic opening/closing body being deformable to displace an arbitrary individual opening/closing portion of the plurality of individual opening/closing portions between the opening position and the closing position.

8 . The fluid flow device according to claim 3 , wherein the channel opening/closing device includes at least one movable opening/closing member coupled to the channel-forming body so as to be movable relatively to the channel-forming body in a switching movement direction intersecting with the plurality of fluid channels, and a fixture which fixes the movable opening/closing member to the channel-forming body at a plurality of opening/closing switching positions aligned in the switching movement direction, and wherein the at least one movable opening/closing member has a plurality of individual opening holes for opening the plurality of fluid channels, respectively, and is located selectively among a plurality of flow restriction positions through relative movement of the at least one movable opening/closing member in the switching movement direction to the channel-forming body, each of the flow restriction positions being a position at which the at least one movable opening/closing member opens only the opening-target fluid channel included in the plurality of fluid channels and closing the closing-target fluid channels.

9 . The fluid flow device according to claim 8 , wherein the at least one movable opening/closing member further has a fully opening hole which opens all the fluid channels, and the movable opening/closing member further has a fully opening position at which the fully opening hole opens all the fluid channels.

10 . The fluid flow device according to claim 8 , wherein the plurality of fluid channels are aligned in both a first alignment direction and a second alignment direction intersecting with the first alignment direction, the at least one movable opening/closing member includes a first opening/closing member coupled to the channel-forming body so as to be movable relatively to the channel-forming body in a first switching movement direction parallel to the first alignment direction and a second opening/closing member coupled to the channel-forming body so as to be movable relatively to the channel-forming body in a second switching movement direction parallel to

Assignees

• Kobe Steel Ltd

Inventors

• Matsuoka Akira
• Noishiki Koji
• Ozono Tomohiro

Classifications

• B01J19/248

  Reactors comprising multiple separated flow channels · CPC title

• B08B2209/032

  by the mechanical action of a moving fluid · CPC title

• B08B9/032 Primary

  by the mechanical action of a moving fluid, e.g. by flushing (B08B9/04 takes precedence {; by fluid jets mounted on cleaning devices B08B9/0433}) · CPC title

• B01J19/00

  Chemical, physical or physico-chemical processes in general; Their relevant apparatus · CPC title

• B01J2219/0099

  Cleaning · CPC title