I. Overview
Supercritical drying technology is a new chemical technology developed in recent years. Because of the surface tension of the solvent in the gel skeleton, the skeleton will collapse under ordinary drying conditions. Supercritical drying aims to make the solvent reach its critical point during the drying process by controlling the pressure and temperature, and complete the transition from liquid phase to supercritical fluid. In the process, the solvent has no obvious surface tension, and the transformation from wet gel to aerogel is completed on the premise of maintaining the skeleton structure.
The basic principle of supercritical drying is that there is no interface between gas and liquid in supercritical state, but it becomes a uniform fluid between gas and liquid. This fluid is gradually discharged from the gel. Because there is no gas-liquid interface, there is no capillary force, so it will not cause the contraction of the gel and the destruction of the structure until all the fluid is discharged from the gel, and the gas-filled material with nano-porous structure is obtained.
Second, the device characteristics
2-1. User-friendly design of device operation, panel design process, and valve operation according to the process.
2-2. The drying kettle adopts a self-developed quick-opening sealing structure, which is very easy to open, reliable in sealing, does not swell in case of CO2 and has good repeatability, effectively solving the problem of O-ring swelling in case of CO2.
2-3. Using PID program temperature control technology, the temperature in the drying kettle is uniform and the temperature control accuracy is high.
2-4. The refrigeration unit adopts imported compressor, which runs stably. Other refrigeration accessories are internationally renowned brand products.
2-5. The CO2 pump uses three plunger pump heads to reduce fluid pressure fluctuation. The pump head is equipped with a cooling system, and the plunger is made of special wear-resistant materials.
2-6. The pressure control system adopts American imported valves, which has the advantages of high pressure adjustment accuracy, stable outlet pressure and large output flow.
2-7. Safety auxiliary system includes hard safety protection measures such as one-way valve, safety valve and vent valve, and soft safety protection measures such as electric contact instrument and alarm self-breaking circuit. Ensure the safe and stable operation of the system under high pressure environment.
III. Main technical parameters
Drying kettle: 25L/30MPa at room temperature ~ 90℃
Separation kettle: 10L/15MPa at room temperature ~ 60℃
Refrigeration system: 9600kcal/h air-cooling water circulation.
Storage tank: 10L/16MPa
CO2 high-pressure delivery pump: three-plunger 150L/40MPa pump with cooling head.
Power supply: three-phase five-wire system 380V/50Hz, and the overall power is 28kW.
Four, the main components
The supercritical drying device is mainly composed of CO2 gas source system, refrigeration system, heat exchanger system, temperature control system, pressure control system, drying kettle, separation kettle and electrical control, filter purifier system, CO2 utilization and recycling system, and bracket box.
Five, the main components of technical indicators
5-1. Air supply system:
Generally, CO2 is used as the drying medium. This system is provided by the user. If it is not supplied by domestic gas cylinders or directly by non-gas cylinders, the specification and size of the gas source access port shall be provided for the normal operation of the device access system.
5-2, refrigeration system:
The refrigeration system liquefies carbon dioxide gas, which ensures the stability and reliability of high-pressure injection in the system. The refrigeration unit adopts imported compressor, which runs stably, and other refrigeration accessories are internationally renowned brand products. According to the test conditions, the control system automatically adjusts the operating conditions and cooling capacity of the refrigerator to ensure the compressor to work in a suitable state and prolong the service life of the compressor. Environmental protection refrigerant R404a;; Special damping spring for refrigerator and noise reduction measures by sticking special sound-absorbing cotton on the enclosure board of the unit. Specific technical indicators are as follows:
Refrigeration capacity: 9600kcal/h
Refrigeration mode: air-cooling water circulation
Temperature control range: 3℃ ~+5℃ meets the process requirements.
5-3, high pressure pump:
As the main component of high-pressure injection system, CO2 high-pressure metering pump is mainly composed of motor, variable frequency speed control system, speed change mechanism, safety valve and hydraulic cylinder. The motor power drives the bow frame and the sliding bar to reciprocate through the speed change mechanism by the cam. The plunger is installed at the top end of the slide bar, and the plunger is linked to reciprocate. Through the action of one-way valve, the suction and discharge process is completed, and the displacement is controlled by frequency speed regulation to control the flow. The pump is equipped with cooling system, and the plunger is made of special wear-resistant material, using three plungers to reduce fluid fluctuation. Main technical indicators:
Working pressure: 40MPa
Displacement: 150L/h three plungers.
5-4. Flow metering system:
The CO2 gas in the pipeline is measured by gas mass flowmeter combined with flow digital display instrument, and the flow control range is 15 ~ 150 L/h.
5-5, temperature control system:
PID programmed temperature control and water bath are used to improve the heat transfer stability, and the temperature is adjusted according to the temperature rise range during use. Setting the temperature gradient adjustment value, the system carries out self-tuning automatic control, and the whole process is completed automatically without manual operation.
Temperature control range: normal temperature ~ 90℃
5-6, pressure control system:
Inlet pressure: ≤32MPa, outlet pressure: 0 ~ 32mpa, and applicable medium: weakly corrosive.
5-7. Gel drying kettle:
The volume is 25L, the internal precision grinding treatment, the design pressure is 30MPa, the temperature is 90℃, the internal temperature is measured, and the external thermal insulation device is designed. The length-diameter ratio of the dryer is designed separately according to the particularity of gel sample making.
In order to improve the application scope of the drying device and meet the requirements of sample treatment with different drying media, the design temperature and pressure of the dryer are relatively high, and the sample preparation conditions can be adjusted in a wide range.
5-8, separation device:
The separation device is the main place for gas-liquid separation, where most of the liquid is effectively recovered, and the recovered liquid can be recycled again after collection, and the gas enters the next link through the upper outlet.
Separation volume: 10L
Separation pressure: 15MPa
5-9, heat exchanger:
The heating system includes a hot box and a thermal circulating pump, in which the working pressure of the preheating pipe is 50MPa and the operating temperature is 90℃. The thermal circulating pump adopts a pipeline pump with corrosion resistance and temperature resistance, which has the characteristics of heat resistance, corrosion resistance, durability and low noise.
5-10, safety protection device:
5-10-1, high-pressure pump outlet distribution contact pressure gauge, set working pressure, overpressure automatic pump stop protection.
5-10-2. According to the working pressure, the drying kettle and the separating kettle are respectively equipped with safety valves, which can automatically release the pressure in case of overpressure.
5-11. Piping and valve fittings:
The containers, valves, pipe fittings and pipelines in contact with fluids are made of DW8 series 316L stainless steel. The stem of the valve is durable after special heat treatment.
5-12, electrical control and box bracket:
According to the requirements of modern laboratory, the shape design of the equipment is beautiful and generous. The main structure of industrial aluminum profile is adopted, the man-machine operation environment is appropriate, and it is in harmony with modern laboratories.