Fluid cooling device coupled with sky radiation and evaporative cooling

Abstract

The invention discloses a fluid cooling device coupling sky radiation and evaporative cooling, and belongs to the technical field of efficient refrigeration and renewable energy source application. The device mainly comprises a sky radiation plate, an evaporative cooling refrigeration system and an air circulation system. The core innovation is that working air enters the evaporative cooling section after being pre-cooled by sky radiation, and performs heat and mass transfer with spray water and a fluid pipeline of the evaporative cooling section, so that the temperature of fluid in the pipeline is greatly reduced. Through the coupling process of radiation pre-cooling and evaporative cooling, the fluid temperature grade can be remarkably improved, and efficient and low-consumption fluid cooling is achieved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of high-efficiency refrigeration and renewable energy application, and particularly relates to a high-efficiency energy-saving device for producing low-temperature cooling fluid by comprehensively utilizing sky radiation cooling and evaporative cooling technology. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the fields of industrial production, data center cooling, regional cooling and special processes, it is often necessary to continuously supply low-temperature cooling water or other working fluid. Traditional fluid cooling methods mainly rely on water chillers based on the principle of vapor compression. Such equipment has high energy consumption, large operating costs, and the refrigerants used may have environmental problems. Under the background of the "double carbon" strategy, it is crucial to develop low-energy or even zero-energy cooling technology.

[0003] Evaporative cooling technology uses water evaporation to absorb heat, has high energy efficiency, and is often used to prepare cooling water or directly cool air. However, the outlet water temperature theoretically cannot be lower than the wet-bulb temperature of the air, and in high-temperature and high-humidity environments, the wet-bulb temperature is high, resulting in a sharp decline in cooling capacity and efficiency, making it difficult to meet the demand for low-temperature cooling fluid.

[0004] Sky radiation cooling technology is a passive cooling technology that uses the atmospheric infrared transparent window to radiate heat to outer space, which can make the temperature of the radiator lower than that of the ambient air, especially at night. In recent years, some studies have attempted to use it to cool water or other fluids, but its cooling capacity is greatly affected by weather conditions, and the unit area refrigeration power is limited, so it is often difficult to meet the continuous and stable industrial cooling demand when used alone.

[0005] Therefore, if sky radiation cooling and evaporative cooling technology can be effectively coupled, the air temperature entering the evaporative cooling section can be reduced by using sky radiation pre-cooling, thereby breaking the temperature lower limit of single evaporative cooling, which is expected to become a revolutionary technology for producing low-temperature cooling fluid. Currently, how to compactly and efficiently integrate these two technologies into a device and use it to cool external circulating fluid is still a technical problem to be solved. SUMMARY

[0006] The present application aims to overcome the defects of existing single cooling technology, such as high temperature lower limit, dependence on weather conditions, and difficulty in stably and efficiently producing low-temperature cooling fluid. The purpose of the present application is to provide a fluid cooling device that couples sky radiation and evaporative cooling. The device, through structural innovation, deeply integrates the sky radiation pre-cooling section and the evaporative cooling section in series. The working air is first pre-cooled by sky radiation to reduce its dry-bulb and wet-bulb temperatures, and then enters the evaporative cooling section for heat exchange, thereby achieving deep temperature reduction of the target fluid flowing through the dedicated pipeline inside the device. The device does not consume high-grade electric energy, can significantly reduce the energy consumption of fluid cooling, and can produce lower-temperature cooling fluid.

[0007] To achieve the above-mentioned object of the present application, the present application provides the following technical solutions.

[0008] A fluid cooling device coupled with sky radiation and evaporative cooling, the core of which is to construct a "air radiation pre-cooling -> air evaporative cooling -> fluid indirect cooling" series high-efficiency heat exchange process. The device mainly comprises a device shell, a sky radiation pre-cooling module integrated in the shell, an evaporative cooling module located inside the shell, and an air circulation power module.

[0009] The sky radiation pre-cooling module comprises a sky radiation plate fixedly covered on the outer peripheral side of the device shell and an air heat exchange pipe closely embedded inside the sky radiation plate. The air heat exchange pipe is designed in the form of a coil pipe to maximize the heat exchange area. Outdoor air enters the heat exchanger from the air inlet, in the process of flowing through the coil pipe, the heat is conducted to the sky radiation plate through the pipe wall, and is radiated and dissipated to the sky from the surface of the radiation plate, thereby realizing effective isohumid pre-cooling.

[0010] The evaporative cooling module is arranged inside the device shell and comprises a water storage tank, a water supply pump, a spraying system, and a fluid pipeline to be cooled. The spraying system sprays water in the internal space of the device. The fluid pipeline is arranged in the spraying area, the inlet and outlet of which extend to the outside of the device for connecting the fluid circulation system of the user.

[0011] The air circulation power module is used to drive the air to flow along a set path. It comprises an air filter located downstream of the radiation pre-cooling section, a water baffle located above the evaporative cooling section, and an exhaust fan and an exhaust outlet located at the top of the device.

[0012] The unique air flow design of the device is as follows:

[0013] After the pre-cooled air flows out of the heat exchange pipe outlet at the lower end of the sky radiation plate, it first passes through the air filter to remove dust, and then forms an upward air flow at the bottom of the device. The upward air flow successively passes through the spraying water mist area, the core heat exchange area with the fluid pipeline, and the water baffle, and is finally forcedly discharged by the exhaust fan at the top. In this process, the upward flowing air and the downward sprayed water droplets are in counter-contact for strong heat and mass exchange, and the air is humidified and cooled to close to its wet-bulb temperature. The low-temperature and high-humidity air then exchanges sensible heat with the fluid pipeline arranged in the air flow path, thereby cooling the fluid in the pipeline. The water baffle is used to separate the air and the water droplets and recover the water.

[0014] The water storage tank is located at the bottom of the device to collect all the falling water droplets, and realizes closed circulation of the spraying water through the water supply pump. The water replenishment electromagnetic valve is used to replenish the water loss due to evaporation.

[0015] Preferably, the surface of the sky radiation plate is coated with a selective radiation coating to improve performance.

[0016] Preferably, the device is equipped with an intelligent control system to automatically optimize operation according to fluid cooling requirements and environmental conditions.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the fluid cooling device provided by the application has the following advantages:

[0018] The inlet air wet-bulb temperature of evaporative cooling is reduced by sky radiation pre-cooling, breaking through the lower limit of fluid temperature of traditional evaporative cooling, and lower temperature cooling water or other working medium can be produced. The main energy consumption of the system comes from the fan and the water pump, and the two natural cold sources of sky radiation and evaporation heat absorption are comprehensively utilized, and the overall energy efficiency is much higher than that of traditional compression type cooling water units. The radiation pre-cooling and evaporative cooling functions are integrated in a box-type device, the sky radiation plate is part of the shell, space is saved, and modular deployment and installation are facilitated. The low-temperature cooling fluid produced can be used for various terminals such as process cooling, data center cabinet cooling, building radiation cooling, etc., and has a wide range of applications. The device uses water as the refrigerant, has no greenhouse gas emission, runs quietly, and meets the green and low-carbon development direction. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0019] Figure 1 The overall structure and principle schematic diagram of the fluid cooling device provided by the embodiment of the application is shown.

[0020] Figure 2 The structure schematic diagram of the sky radiation plate and the air heat exchange pipe in the radiation plate in the application is shown.

[0021] The components represented by the numbers in the figure are:

[0022] 1. Sky radiation plate;

[0023] 2. Device shell;

[0024] 3. Air circulation system; 31, heat exchange pipe air inlet; 32, air heat exchange pipe; 33, heat exchange pipe air outlet; 34, air filter; 35, water baffle; 36, exhaust fan; 37, exhaust air outlet;

[0025] 4. Evaporative cooling refrigeration system; 41, water storage tank; 42, water replenishment electromagnetic valve; 43, water supply pump; 44, sprinkler pipe; 45, sprinkler; 46, fluid pipeline. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the application will be described clearly and completely below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the application, not all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor fall within the scope of protection of the application.

[0027] It should be noted that in the present embodiment, the orientation or order relationship indicated by "upper", "lower", "inner", "outer" and the like is based on the orientation or order relationship shown in the drawings, and is only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and does not indicate or imply that the devices or elements referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular order, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present application.

[0028] In order for those skilled in the art to better understand the present application, the present application will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings and specific embodiments.

[0029] Please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the present embodiment provides a fluid cooling device coupled with sky radiation and evaporative cooling. The device body is a cuboid-shaped device shell 2. Four vertical sides of the device shell 2 are fixedly installed with sky radiation panels 1. The surface of the sky radiation panel 1 is preferably coated with a high infrared emissivity coating.

[0030] Please refer to Figure 2 , the inside of the sky radiation panel 1 is embedded with air heat exchange pipes 32. The air heat exchange pipes 32 are bent into coil pipe form using metal pipes, so as to increase the air side heat exchange area, and the air heat exchange pipes 32 are in good thermal contact with the base body of the sky radiation panel 1 through high thermal conductivity filling material or welding. The upper end of the air heat exchange pipe 32 is open to form a heat exchange pipe air inlet 31, which is exposed to the top of the sky radiation panel; and the lower end of the air heat exchange pipe 32 is open to form a heat exchange pipe air outlet 33, which leads to the lower space inside the device shell 2.

[0031] Please refer to Figure 1 , the inside space of the device shell 2 is mainly divided into the following functional areas from top to bottom: the top is an exhaust area, provided with an exhaust fan 36 and an exhaust port 37; the lower part is a gas-water separation area, provided with a water baffle 35; the middle part is a core heat exchange area, provided with a fluid pipe 46 and a plurality of spray heads 45; the middle and lower part is an air pre-filtering area, provided with an air filter 34; and the bottom is a water collection and storage area, provided with a water storage tank 41.

[0032] The main components of the evaporative cooling refrigeration system 4 are arranged as follows: the water storage tank 41 is located at the bottom of the device. The water supply pump 43 is installed in or connected to the water storage tank 41, and the outlet thereof is connected to the plurality of spray heads 45 located above the core heat exchange area through a spray water pipe 44. The water replenishment electromagnetic valve 42 is connected to an external water source, and is used for automatically replenishing water to the water storage tank 41. The fluid pipe 46 is a serpentine coil pipe or other pipe with expanded surface, and is arranged in the core heat exchange area, and the inlet and outlet pipe sections thereof pass through the device shell 2 and are connected to the fluid circulation loop of an external user.

[0033] The air circulation system 3 runs through the entire device. Its path is as follows: outdoor air first enters the air heat exchange pipe 32 from the heat exchange pipe air inlet 31. While flowing in the winding coil, the air exchanges heat with the sky radiation panel 1, which is usually lower in temperature than the ambient air, to achieve equal-wetness pre-cooling. The pre-cooled air flows out of the heat exchange pipe air outlet 33, enters the inside of the device shell 2, and flows through the air filter 34 to remove dust. Then, the air forms a uniform upward airflow at the bottom of the device.

[0034] The upward airflow first enters the spray area and fully contacts the fine water mist sprayed downward from the spray head 45. The water evaporates in the air and absorbs latent heat of vaporization, further reducing the temperature of the air to close to the wet-bulb temperature of the current state of the air, while the air is humidified. Then, the deeply cooled and humidified air flows along the outer surface of the fluid pipe 46 arranged downstream of the spray area. The low-temperature air exchanges heat with the fluid in the pipe, taking away the heat of the fluid, thereby reducing the temperature of the fluid. In this process, part of the water droplets that may be entrained in the air are captured and separated by the subsequent water baffle 35, preventing the water from being carried out of the device. Finally, the humidified air, whose temperature has been raised after completing the heat exchange, is forced out of the device by the exhaust fan 36 at the top through the exhaust outlet 37.

[0035] After completing the heat and mass exchange, the spray water falls into the water storage tank 41 at the bottom and is recirculated by the water supply pump 43, forming a closed spray water circuit. The external fluid that needs to be cooled by the user is driven by an external pump and circulates in its own closed circuit, and is cooled when it flows through the fluid pipe 46 of the device.

[0036] During the night or dry and cool seasons, the pre-cooling effect of the sky radiation panel 1 is particularly significant, which can greatly reduce the initial wet-bulb temperature of the air, making the final output fluid temperature of the device lower. During the day or in hot and humid conditions, the sky radiation pre-cooling can still effectively reduce the dry-bulb and wet-bulb temperatures of the air, creating more favorable inlet conditions for the evaporative cooling section, and significantly improving the cooling capacity and efficiency compared to using evaporative cooling alone.

[0037] In summary, the device of the present application combines the advantages of sky radiation cooling and evaporative cooling through an innovative series process and a compact integrated structure, achieving efficient and deep cooling of the third-party fluid. The device provides a new, green and low-carbon low-temperature cooling fluid solution for industrial production, building energy saving and other fields.

[0038] Those skilled in the art can make adaptive adjustments and optimizations to the area and inclination of the sky radiation panel, the pipe diameter and winding method of the air heat exchange pipe, the arrangement and material of the fluid pipe, the spray form, etc. under the inspiration of the core concept of the present application, and these changes fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A fluid cooling device coupling sky radiation and evaporative cooling, characterized in that, include: Device casing (2); Sky radiation plate (1) is fixedly installed on the outer peripheral surface of the device housing (2); The air heat exchange tube (32) is in the form of a coil and is tightly bonded and embedded inside the sky radiation plate (1) by a high thermal conductivity material; the air heat exchange tube (32) is provided with a heat exchange tube inlet (31) at the top and a heat exchange tube outlet (33) at the bottom. The air circulation system (3) includes an air filter (34), a baffle plate (35), an exhaust fan (36), and an exhaust port (37); the air filter (34) is located inside the device housing (2) and downstream of the heat exchange tube outlet (33); the exhaust fan (36) and the exhaust port (37) are located at the top of the device housing (2); The evaporative cooling system (4) includes a water storage tank (41), a water supply solenoid valve (42), a water supply pump (43), a spray pipe (44), a nozzle (45), and a fluid pipeline (46); the water storage tank (41) is located inside the lower part of the device housing (2); the inlet of the water supply pump (43) is connected to the water storage tank (41), and the outlet is connected to the nozzle (45) through the spray pipe (44); the nozzle (45) is located inside the device housing (2) and above the air filter (34); the fluid pipeline (46) is located inside the device housing (2) and within the spray coverage area of ​​the nozzle (45). The inlet and outlet of the fluid pipe (46) extend to the outside of the device housing (2) for connecting to the external circulating loop of the fluid to be cooled.

2. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The coil path of the air heat exchange tube (32) is optimized inside the sky radiant plate (1) to increase the contact area and heat exchange time between the air and the sky radiant plate (1).

3. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The surface of the sky radiation plate (1) is coated with a selective radiation coating with high infrared emissivity and low solar absorptivity.

4. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The fluid pipes (46) in the evaporative cooling section are arranged in a multi-row serpentine pipe or coil structure to increase their heat exchange area with cooling air and spray water.

5. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The air circulation system (3) is configured such that outdoor air enters the air heat exchange tube (32) from the heat exchange tube inlet (31), is cooled by the sky radiation, flows out from the heat exchange tube outlet (33), passes downward through the air filter (34), and then flows upward, passing in sequence through the spray area, the area where the fluid pipe (46) is located and the baffle plate (35), and is finally discharged from the exhaust port (37) by the exhaust fan (36).

6. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The baffle plate (35) is set between the fluid pipe (46) and the exhaust fan (36) to intercept and recover water droplets carried in the airflow.

7. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom of the water storage tank (41) is equipped with a drain valve.

8. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The device also includes an intelligent control system, which is connected to the inlet and outlet temperature sensors of the fluid pipeline (46), the ambient temperature and humidity sensor, and the water level sensor of the water storage tank (41), and is electrically connected to the water supply pump (43), the exhaust fan (36), and the water replenishment solenoid valve (42) for automatically adjusting the equipment status according to the operating parameters.

9. The fluid cooling device according to claim 8, characterized in that, The intelligent control system is configured to adjust the rotational speed of the exhaust fan (36) and the flow rate of the water supply pump (43) in real time based on the difference between the fluid target temperature and the actual outlet temperature, as well as the ambient wet-bulb temperature.

10. The fluid cooling device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The outer shell (2) of the device is a cuboid structure, and the sky radiation plate (1) covers the other four sides except for the top and bottom.

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