Desalination apparatus and desalination method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9834453-B2
Application number	US-201414531019-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 3, 2014
Priority date	Mar 18, 2013
Publication date	Dec 5, 2017
Grant date	Dec 5, 2017

Abstract

The desalination apparatus according to the present disclosure includes: a water-repellent particle layer that is located below a water tank, contains water-repellent particles, and allows passage of water vapor generated by evaporation of the liquid stored in the water tank, the water tank being a space for storing the liquid; and a liquefying layer that is located below the water-repellent particle layer, and liquefies the water vapor that has passed through the water-repellent particle layer to obtain the fresh water. The water-repellent particle layer includes an anti-migration layer provided as a surface layer that faces the water tank and containing anti-migration particles. Each of the anti-migration particles has a higher aspect ratio than the water-repellent particles, the aspect ratio being a value obtained by dividing a length in a major axis direction by a length in a minor axis direction.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A desalination apparatus that obtains fresh water from a liquid, the desalination apparatus comprising:
a tank for storing a liquid in a reservoir layer;
a water-repellent particle layer that is located at a bottom portion of the tank, the water repellent particle layer including a plurality of water-repellent particles that allow passage of water vapor generated by evaporation of the liquid stored in the reservoir layer, wherein each of the water-repellent particles includes a particle and a water-repellent film that coats the surface of the particle; and
a plurality of particles forming a liquefying layer that is located below the water-repellent particle layer, and liquefies the water vapor that has passed through the water-repellent particle layer to obtain the fresh water,
wherein the water-repellent particle layer includes an anti-migration layer provided as a surface layer that faces the reservoir layer and containing a plurality of anti-migration particles, and
each of the plurality of anti-migration particles has a higher aspect ratio than the plurality of water-repellent particles, the aspect ratio being a value obtained by dividing a length in a major axis direction by a length in a minor axis direction.

2. The desalination apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the liquid contains water and impurities dissolved in the water, and
a specific gravity of each of the plurality of anti-migration particles is greater than a specific gravity of the liquid measured when a concentration of the impurities in the liquid is at a saturation concentration, and less than or equal to a specific gravity of the plurality of water-repellent particles.

3. The desalination apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of anti-migration particles is hydrophilic.

4. The desalination apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, in a plan view, the plurality of anti-migration particles occupy 10% to 50% per unit area of the anti-migration layer.

5. The desalination apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the length of each of the plurality of anti-migration particles in the minor axis direction is greater than an average particle size of the plurality of water-repellent particles.

6. A desalination method for obtaining fresh water from a liquid using a desalination apparatus, which is the desalination apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the desalination apparatus includes a lid provided on an opening of the tank, the desalination method comprising:
introducing the liquid to the reservoir layer to place the liquid above the water-repellent particle layer;
heating and evaporating the liquid placed above the water-repellent particle layer to generate water vapor; and
liquefying the water vapor by the liquefying layer to obtain the fresh water.

7. A desalination method for obtaining fresh water from a liquid using a desalination apparatus, which is the desalination apparatus according to claim 1 , the desalination method comprising:
introducing the liquid to the reservoir layer to place the liquid above the water-repellent particle layer; and
heating and evaporating the liquid placed above the water-repellent particle layer to generate water vapor.

Assignees

• Panasonic Ip Man Co Ltd

Inventors

• Taomoto Akira
• Tomiyama Morio
• Gyoten Hisaaki
• Mino Norihisa
• Ono Atsushi
• John Stephen William

Classifications

• B01D1/00 Primary

  Evaporating ({evaporation in general, e.g. of liquids for gas phase reactions B01B1/005} ; removal of incrustation B08B; preparation of starch C08B30/00; sugar industry C13; prevention of incrustation C23F; drying solid materials or objects by evaporating liquids therefrom F26) · CPC title

• C02F1/043

  Details · CPC title

• C02F1/04 Primary

  by distillation or evaporation · CPC title

• C02F2103/08

  Seawater, e.g. for desalination · CPC title

• Y02A20/124

  Water desalination · CPC title