Ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recovery

Abstract

This invention discloses a cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on wastewater recovery from a water purifier, specifically relating to the field of wastewater recovery technology for water purifiers, including a condensation unit. The condensation unit employs a multi-tube bundle coaxial sleeve structure. A single set of inner and outer tubes encloses an annular cooling water cavity, within which spiral guide vanes divide the straight-through annular cooling water cavity into continuously spiraling independent cooling channels. Wastewater flows spirally around the spiral guide vanes, significantly extending the effective heat exchange path between the wastewater and the heat exchange tube wall, greatly improving the heat exchange and cooling effect. Simultaneously, a continuous radial secondary water flow continuously washes away the stationary laminar boundary layer at the tube wall, significantly reducing heat exchange resistance and further enhancing the tube wall's heat exchange capacity. Furthermore, it can completely rotate and flush away scale buildup on the tube wall, and the continuous water flow shear force inhibits the adhesion and precipitation of scale crystals on the tube wall, effectively adapting to the working conditions of wastewater recovery and cooling in water purifiers.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of water purifier wastewater recycling technology, and in particular to a cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on water purifier wastewater recycling. Background Technology

[0002] Water purifiers are water treatment devices that perform deep filtration and purification of water according to the requirements of water use. They rely on the high-precision filtration characteristics of RO reverse osmosis membranes to remove impurities such as calcium and magnesium ions, heavy metals, and suspended solids from the water, producing clean water that can be directly drunk. In order to avoid the accumulation and clogging of pollutants on the membrane surface, a portion of the water must be continuously flushed with water to remove concentrated pollutants. This high-concentration water discharged is called concentrated wastewater. In most application scenarios, this concentrated wastewater is directly discharged into the municipal sewage network and is not effectively utilized. Commercial-grade RO water purifiers can discharge tens to hundreds of liters of wastewater per day, resulting in significant water waste in the long run.

[0003] Ice makers are common refrigeration equipment in commercial catering and retail settings. They are often used in conjunction with RO water purifiers, using purified water as the ice-making water source. The ice maker freezes water to make ice through a vapor compression refrigeration cycle. The complete refrigeration cycle consists of a compressor, condenser, throttling element, and evaporator connected in sequence. The condenser is the core heat dissipation component of the refrigeration cycle. The high-temperature and high-pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged from the compressor must complete heat release and condensation in the condenser before it can enter the evaporator for evaporation and heat absorption to make ice after throttling and pressure reduction. The heat dissipation efficiency of the condenser directly determines the ice-making rate, operating power consumption, and service life of the ice maker.

[0004] Currently, conventional ice makers mainly use two cooling methods: air cooling and water cooling. Air-cooled condensers rely on fans to drive the convection of ambient air for heat dissipation, which has the disadvantages of low heat exchange efficiency, high operating noise, and significant reduction in ice-making capacity when the ambient temperature rises. Water-cooled condensers use fresh tap water as the cooling medium, which has high heat exchange efficiency and stable operation, but requires a large amount of municipal tap water to be consumed continuously. The warm water after heat exchange is directly discharged, resulting in high water consumption and high operating costs. To address the aforementioned issues, a proposed solution is to recycle concentrated wastewater from water purifiers and use it as a cooling water source for ice makers. This wastewater replaces fresh tap water for condensation and heat dissipation, achieving wastewater resource utilization and reducing cooling water consumption. However, existing wastewater recycling and cooling structures for water purifiers often employ a shell-and-tube clustered chamber structure, where multiple refrigerant heat exchange tubes are arranged within a single sealed chamber. Cooling is achieved by continuously introducing wastewater into the chamber. In actual operation, this structure suffers from several drawbacks: firstly, the wastewater often flows directly through the chamber, resulting in a straight and uniform flow path; secondly, a nearly static laminar flow edge naturally forms on the surface of the heat exchange tubes. The boundary layer, where the water flow velocity is extremely low, allows heat to be transferred only through slow heat conduction, making it the largest source of thermal resistance in the heat exchange process. Simultaneously, the overall heat transfer coefficient is low, and the condensation effect is poor. On the other hand, the concentrated wastewater from the water purifier has high hardness and a large content of impurities. The water flow velocity distribution within the tank is uneven, creating numerous low-speed dead zones. Calcium and magnesium ions and impurities easily deposit and form scale in these low-speed areas of the pipe walls. This scale further increases the heat exchange resistance, reduces the effective heat exchange area, and causes a significant decrease in condensation efficiency after the equipment has been running for a period of time. Frequent disassembly, cleaning, and maintenance are required, severely restricting the long-term stable operation of the wastewater recovery and cooling equipment.

[0005] Therefore, this application proposes a cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on the recycling of wastewater from a water purifier. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The purpose of this invention is to address the shortcomings of existing technologies by proposing a cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on the recycling of wastewater from a water purifier.

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution: A cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on wastewater recycling from a water purifier includes a condensation unit; The condensation unit is a multi-tube bundle coaxial sleeve structure, including several sets of parallel coaxial sleeve assemblies. Each set of coaxial sleeve assemblies includes an inner conduit for refrigerant flow and an outer sleeve coaxially sleeved outside the inner conduit. An annular cooling water chamber for the flow of wastewater generated by the water purifier is formed between the inner conduit and the outer sleeve. Several sets of inner conduits are connected to water collection covers at both ends, and the water collection covers are used to connect to the refrigeration cycle loop of the refrigeration machine; The two ends of several sets of outer sleeves are respectively connected to inlet manifolds and outlet manifolds, and the annular cooling water chamber is connected to the wastewater recycling circuit of the water purifier through the inlet manifolds and outlet manifolds. The annular cooling water cavity is coaxially provided with spiral guide vanes. The inner edge of the spiral guide vanes is in contact with the outer wall of the inner duct, and the outer edge is in contact with the inner wall of the outer sleeve, so as to divide the annular cooling water cavity into a continuous spiral extending cooling channel. The pitch of the spiral guide vanes gradually decreases along the direction of wastewater flow.

[0008] As a further embodiment of the present invention, the spiral guide vane can rotate circumferentially around the axis of the inner duct.

[0009] As a further embodiment of the present invention, the two ends of the spiral guide vane are coaxially fixed with support bushings, the support bushings are rotatably sleeved on the outer wall of the inner guide tube, and the spiral guide vane is configured to generate circumferential torque by the impact of wastewater through the cooling channel on the blade surface, thereby achieving self-rotation.

[0010] As a further embodiment of the present invention, a driven magnetic attraction component is provided on the support bushing, and an active magnetic attraction component is provided on the outer side of the outer sleeve at the position corresponding to the driven magnetic attraction component. The driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component are magnetically coupled through the tube wall. The condensation unit also includes a rotary drive unit, which is connected to the active magnetic attraction component and is used to drive the active magnetic attraction component to rotate axially around the outer sleeve so as to drive the spiral guide vanes to rotate synchronously through magnetic coupling.

[0011] As a further aspect of the present invention, the maximum transmission torque of the magnetic coupling between the driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component is greater than the rotational torque of the wastewater impacting the spiral guide vane under low flow conditions, and less than the rotational torque of the wastewater impacting the spiral guide vane under rated flow conditions. Under low flow conditions, the rotary drive unit drives the spiral guide vane to rotate forcibly through magnetic coupling. Under rated flow conditions, circumferential magnetic slippage occurs between the driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component, and the spiral guide vane rotates spontaneously driven by the impact of wastewater.

[0012] As a further aspect of the present invention, the driven magnetic attraction assembly includes an inner magnetic ring, which is sleeved and installed outside the support shaft sleeve; The active magnetic attraction assembly includes a fixed base and an outer magnetic ring. Both the fixed base and the outer magnetic ring are sleeved on the end of the outer sleeve, and the outer magnetic ring is rotatably connected to the fixed base through a bearing.

[0013] As a further embodiment of the present invention, the rotary drive unit includes a drive component and two transmission chains. The two transmission chains are symmetrically arranged at both ends of the outer sleeve. A ring sprocket is provided on the outer side of each of the several sets of outer magnetic rings. The multiple sets of outer magnetic rings located at the same end of the outer sleeve are engaged with the transmission chains at the corresponding ends. The drive component is connected to the two transmission chains for driving the several sets of ring sprockets to rotate synchronously.

[0014] As a further aspect of the present invention, the refrigeration cycle loop of the refrigeration machine further includes a compressor, an expansion valve, and an evaporator, wherein the compressor, condensing unit, expansion valve, and evaporator are connected in sequence through pipes to form a closed refrigeration cycle loop; The evaporator is also connected to an ice-making box, which is used to freeze the water in the ice-making box to make ice by heating the refrigerant.

[0015] As a further embodiment of the present invention, the water inlet manifold includes a main water inlet pipe and a plurality of water inlet branch pipes disposed on the side wall of the main water inlet pipe, wherein the plurality of water inlet branch pipes are respectively connected to the water inlet end of the corresponding outer sleeve pipe; the water outlet manifold includes a liquid collecting cylinder, a drain pipe disposed at the bottom end of the liquid collecting cylinder, and a plurality of water outlet branch pipes disposed on the side wall of the liquid collecting cylinder, wherein the plurality of water outlet branch pipes are respectively connected to the water outlet end of the corresponding outer sleeve pipe. The wastewater recycling circuit of the water purifier also includes a water purifier filter element. The wastewater pipeline of the water purifier filter element is connected to the main water inlet pipe through a water storage tank, and is used to supply cooling wastewater to the condensation unit. The water purifier filter cartridge has a water purification pipeline with a branch pipe one and a branch pipe two. The branch pipe one is connected to the ice maker and is used to supply water for ice making. The branch pipe two is installed in the internal cavity of the liquid collection cylinder and is used to preheat the purified water.

[0016] The technical effects and advantages provided by the present invention in the above technical solution are as follows: This invention employs a multi-tube bundle coaxial sleeve structure to form a condensation unit. A single set of inner tubes and outer tubes enclose an annular cooling water cavity, which is equipped with spiral guide vanes to divide the straight-through annular cooling water cavity into continuously spirally extending independent cooling channels. Wastewater flows spirally around the spiral guide vanes, which can greatly extend the effective heat exchange path between the wastewater and the heat exchange tube wall, greatly improving the heat exchange and cooling effect. At the same time, a radial secondary water flow is continuously formed, which continuously flushes and peels off the static laminar boundary layer at the tube wall, significantly reducing the heat exchange thermal resistance and further enhancing the heat exchange capacity of the tube wall. It can also rotate and flush the entire area to remove scale buildup on the tube wall. The continuous water flow shear force can inhibit the adhesion and precipitation of scale crystals in the water on the tube wall, effectively adapting to the working conditions of wastewater recovery and cooling in water purifiers. By using the gradually narrowing pitch design of the spiral guide vanes, the downstream water flow can achieve higher flow velocity and stronger pipe wall scouring force. On the one hand, by increasing the downstream water flow velocity, the heat exchange capacity decline caused by the continuous decay of the heat exchange temperature difference is compensated, the heat exchange intensity is balanced, and the entire heat exchange pipe wall area is better utilized. On the other hand, stronger water flow shearing and scouring can be applied to the high temperature and high scale risk area, thereby effectively delaying the accumulation of scale on the downstream pipe wall and greatly ensuring the long-term stable operation of the device. This invention configures the spiral guide vane as a rotating structure. The spiral guide vane rotates circumferentially as a whole. During the rotation, its outer edge always slides and scrapes against the inner wall of the outer tube, while its inner edge rotates and scrapes against the outer wall of the inner tube. This allows for continuous dynamic descaling of the heat exchange tube walls on both the inner and outer sides, covering 360° without dead angles. Furthermore, by setting a magnetic coupling auxiliary drive structure, when the spiral guide vane cannot rotate continuously, i.e., under low flow conditions or insufficient hydraulic driving force, the spiral guide vane can be forced to rotate. This ensures that under low flow conditions, it still has continuous and stable dynamic descaling and turbulence enhancement effects, achieving adaptive switching between dual operating conditions. Attached Figure Description

[0017] The accompanying drawings are provided to further illustrate the invention and form part of the specification. They are used in conjunction with embodiments of the invention to explain the invention and do not constitute a limitation thereof. In the drawings: Figure 1 This is one of the overall structural schematic diagrams of the present invention; Figure 2 This is the second schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present invention; Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the working process of the ice maker of the present invention. Figure 4 This is one of the structural schematic diagrams showing the connection between the outer sleeve and the rotary drive unit of the present invention; Figure 5 This is a second schematic diagram of the connection between the outer sleeve and the rotary drive unit of the present invention; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the liquid collecting cylinder of the present invention; Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the connection structure between the outer tube and the driven magnetic suction component of the present invention; Figure 8 This is one of the schematic diagrams of the internal structure of the outer sleeve of the present invention; Figure 9 This is a second schematic diagram of the internal structure of the outer sleeve of the present invention; In the picture: 100. Inner conduit; 101. Water collection hood; 200. Outer casing; 201. Inlet branch pipe; 202. Main inlet pipe; 203. Outlet branch pipe; 300. Spiral guide vane; 400. Support bushing; 401. Limiting ring; 402. Inner magnetic ring; 500. Fixing base; 501. Outer magnetic ring; 600. Drive component; 601. Transmission chain; 602. Ring sprocket; 700. Liquid collecting cylinder; 701. Drain pipe; 800, Compressor; 900. Expansion valve; 1000, Evaporator; 1100. Ice maker; 1200, Water purifier filter element. Detailed Implementation

[0018] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions of the present invention, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0019] Example 1 like Figures 1-9 As shown, the present invention proposes a cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on the recycling of wastewater from a water purifier, including a condensing unit; the condensing unit is a multi-tube bundle coaxial sleeve structure, including several sets of parallel coaxial sleeve assemblies, each set of coaxial sleeve assemblies including an inner conduit 100 for the flow of refrigerant and an outer sleeve 200 coaxially sleeved outside the inner conduit 100, and an annular cooling water chamber for the flow of wastewater generated by the water purifier is formed between the inner conduit 100 and the outer sleeve 200; Several sets of inner conduits 100 are connected to water collection covers 101 at both ends, and the water collection covers 101 are used to connect to the refrigeration cycle circuit of the chiller; several sets of outer outer tubes 200 are connected to inlet manifolds and outlet manifolds at both ends, and the annular cooling water chamber is connected to the wastewater recovery circuit of the water purifier through the inlet manifolds and outlet manifolds. like Figure 2 As shown, the refrigeration cycle of the refrigerator of the present invention includes a compressor 800, a condensing unit, an expansion valve 900 and an evaporator 1000. The compressor 800, the condensing unit, the expansion valve 900 and the evaporator 1000 are connected end to end by pipes to form a closed loop. An ice box 1100 is arranged on the evaporator 1000 for freezing the water in the ice box 1100 to make ice by heating the refrigerant. The compressor 800 draws in low-temperature, low-pressure gaseous refrigerant and compresses it into high-temperature, high-pressure gaseous refrigerant. This high-temperature, high-pressure gaseous refrigerant is then sent into the condenser unit for exothermic condensation, transforming into room-temperature, high-pressure liquid refrigerant. This room-temperature, high-pressure liquid refrigerant flows through the expansion valve 900, where it is throttled and depressurized to form a low-temperature, low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase refrigerant, which is then transported to the evaporator 1000. Inside the evaporator 1000, the refrigerant fully evaporates and absorbs heat, continuously cooling the water source inside the ice-making box 1100 to make ice. The low-temperature, low-pressure gaseous refrigerant formed after evaporation flows back into the compressor 800 for recirculation and compression. The entire cycle relies on the wastewater cooling structure of the condenser unit to replace traditional tap water cooling, stably completing continuous ice-making operations.

[0020] The inlet manifold includes an inlet main pipe 202 and several inlet branch pipes 201 disposed on the side wall of the inlet main pipe 202. The several inlet branch pipes 201 are respectively connected to the inlet end of the corresponding outer sleeve pipe 200. The outlet manifold includes a liquid collecting cylinder 700, a drain pipe 701 disposed at the bottom end of the liquid collecting cylinder 700, and several outlet branch pipes 203 disposed on the side wall of the liquid collecting cylinder 700. The several outlet branch pipes 203 are respectively connected to the outlet end of the corresponding outer sleeve pipe 200. The wastewater recycling circuit of the water purifier of the present invention includes a water purifier filter element 1200. The wastewater pipeline of the water purifier filter element 1200 is connected to the main water inlet pipe 202 through a water storage tank, and is used to supply cooling wastewater to the condensation unit. The water purification pipeline of the water purifier filter element 1200 is divided into branch pipe one and branch pipe two. Branch pipe one is connected to the ice box 1100 and is used to supply water for ice making. Branch pipe two is installed in the internal cavity of the liquid collection cylinder 700 and is used to preheat the purified water.

[0021] During operation, the water purifier filter element 1200 separates and produces two types of water: purified water and concentrated wastewater. The purified water is output in two branches: branch pipe one is directly connected to the ice maker 1100 to supply clean ice-making water for ice-making operations; branch pipe two passes through the inside of the liquid collection cylinder 700 and fully exchanges heat with the wastewater that has heated up after heat exchange with the condensing unit. The residual heat of condensation carried by the wastewater is used to preheat the purified water, reducing the heating energy consumption when the water purifier produces hot water.

[0022] A spiral guide vane 300 is coaxially arranged inside the annular cooling water cavity. The inner edge of the spiral guide vane 300 is in contact with the outer wall of the inner duct 100, and the outer edge is in contact with the inner wall of the outer sleeve 200, so as to divide the annular cooling water cavity into a continuous spiral extending cooling channel. The condensing unit is a multi-tube bundle coaxial sleeve structure, mainly composed of multiple parallel inner tubes 100 and outer tubes 200. The outer tube 200 is sleeved outside the inner tubes 100. A single set of inner tubes 100 and outer tubes 200 enclose an independent and closed annular cooling water chamber. The concentrated wastewater produced by the water purifier filter element 1200 can be individually introduced into each annular cooling water chamber to exchange heat with the high-temperature refrigerant inside the inner tubes 100. The annular cooling water chamber is coaxially equipped with spiral guide vanes 300, which completely divide the originally straight-through annular cooling water chamber into independent cooling channels that extend continuously spirally along the axial direction of the casing. After the wastewater enters the cooling channel, it cannot flow straight along the axial direction, but can only flow spirally around the guide vanes 300. Compared with a straight-through annular channel of the same length, this channel shape greatly extends the effective heat exchange path between the wastewater and the heat exchange tube wall, significantly increasing the heat exchange contact time between the water and the tube wall, and greatly improving the heat exchange and cooling effect. At the same time, the centrifugal force generated by the spiral flow can continuously form a radial secondary water flow, continuously flushing and peeling off the static laminar boundary layer at the tube wall, greatly reducing the heat exchange thermal resistance, further enhancing the heat exchange capacity of the tube wall, and can also rotate and flush the entire area to remove scale buildup on the tube wall. The continuous water flow shear force can inhibit the adhesion and precipitation of scale crystals in the water on the tube wall, effectively adapting to the working conditions of wastewater recovery and cooling in water purifiers.

[0023] Meanwhile, as the wastewater continuously absorbs heat from the refrigerant within the spiral cooling channel, the water temperature rises steadily from the inlet to the outlet. The solubility of calcium and magnesium ions in the concentrated wastewater decreases continuously with increasing water temperature. The area at the outlet of the casing is the region with the highest risk of scaling. To address this issue: In this embodiment, the pitch of the spiral guide vane 300 gradually decreases along the flow direction of the wastewater. The spiral pitch is larger in the front section of the wastewater inlet, the cross-sectional area of ​​the single-turn flow channel is larger, the inlet resistance is small, and the wastewater can flow smoothly even under low flow conditions. The spiral pitch continues to narrow along the water flow direction, the cross-sectional area of ​​the cooling flow channel shrinks synchronously, and the axial flow velocity of the wastewater gradually increases along the path. This tapered pitch design allows for higher flow velocity and stronger scouring force on the pipe wall at the downstream end. On the one hand, it compensates for the decline in heat exchange capacity caused by the continuous decay of the heat exchange temperature difference by increasing the flow velocity at the downstream end, thus balancing the heat exchange intensity and making better use of the entire heat exchange pipe wall area. On the other hand, it can apply stronger water flow shearing and scouring to areas with high temperature and high scaling risk, thereby effectively delaying the accumulation of scale on the downstream pipe wall and greatly ensuring the long-term stable operation of the device.

[0024] Example 2 like Figure 8 As shown, the spiral guide vane 300 can rotate circumferentially around the axis of the inner duct 100.

[0025] In one specific embodiment of the present invention, the two ends of the spiral guide vane 300 are coaxially fixed with a support bushing 400, the support bushing 400 is rotatably sleeved on the outer wall of the inner guide tube 100, and the spiral guide vane 300 is configured to generate a circumferential torque by the impact of wastewater through the cooling channel on the blade surface, thereby achieving self-rotation.

[0026] It should be noted that although the spiral guide vanes 300 and their gradually narrowing pitch design can remove scale buildup on the pipe walls through water flow shearing and scouring, during long-term operation, calcium and magnesium microcrystals and fine impurities in the concentrated water of high-hardness water purifiers will still gradually adhere to the pipe walls in low-speed or dead-angle areas. Water flow scouring alone is insufficient to achieve comprehensive and continuous scale prevention and removal on the pipe walls. After prolonged operation, localized scaling and heat exchange attenuation will still occur. Therefore, to address this issue: In this embodiment, by setting the spiral guide vane 300 as a self-rotating structure, during the high-speed flow of wastewater along the spiral cooling channel, the water flow continuously impacts the inclined blade surface of the spiral guide vane 300, causing the blade surface to be subjected to fluid pressure perpendicular to the plate surface and decomposed to form a circumferential rotational torque. When the circumferential torque overcomes the frictional resistance of the support bushing 400, it can drive the spiral guide vane 300 to rotate circumferentially as a whole. During the rotation of the spiral guide vane 300, its outer edge continuously slides and scrapes against the inner wall of the outer sleeve 200, while its inner edge rotates and scrapes against the outer wall of the inner tube 100. This allows for continuous dynamic descaling of the heat exchange tube walls on both the inner and outer sides, covering 360° without any dead angles. This process can remove fine scale crystals and impurity particles that have precipitated and adhered to the tube wall surface, thereby inhibiting the accumulation and formation of scale layers. This effectively solves the shortcomings of relying solely on water flow shearing and scouring. At the same time, the rotation of the spiral guide vane 300 can further disturb the water flow inside the channel, continuously disrupting the fluid boundary layer and further improving the turbulent heat transfer effect.

[0027] Furthermore, to ensure the smooth rotation of the helical guide vane 300, the support bushings 400 mounted at both ends can support and position it, reducing the frictional resistance during the rotation of the helical guide vane 300. Figure 8 and Figure 9 As can be seen from the enlarged view, limit rings 401 are also installed at both ends of the inner guide tube 100 near the support bushing 400. The limit rings 401 form an axial limit on the support bushing 400 and the spiral guide vane 300, which can effectively block the component displacement caused by the axial thrust of the water flow and greatly ensure the stability of the structure.

[0028] Example 3 like Figure 4 , Figure 5 , Figure 7 and Figure 9As shown, a driven magnetic attraction component is provided on the support bushing 400, and an active magnetic attraction component is provided on the outer side of the outer sleeve 200 at the position corresponding to the driven magnetic attraction component. The driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component are magnetically coupled through the tube wall. The driven magnetic attraction assembly includes an inner magnetic ring 402, which is sleeved and installed outside the support shaft sleeve 400; The active magnetic attraction assembly includes a fixed base 500 and an outer magnetic ring 501. Both the fixed base 500 and the outer magnetic ring 501 are sleeved on the end of the outer sleeve 200, and the outer magnetic ring 501 is rotatably connected to the fixed base 500 through a bearing.

[0029] The condensation unit also includes a rotary drive unit, which is connected to the active magnetic attraction component and is used to drive the active magnetic attraction component to rotate axially around the outer sleeve 200 so as to drive the spiral guide vane 300 to rotate synchronously through magnetic coupling.

[0030] It should be noted that, due to the significant fluctuations in operating conditions during actual operation, a single hydraulic rotation mode cannot meet the needs of all operating scenarios. Under continuous and stable ice-making conditions, the condensation unit operates continuously, the water purifier filter 1200 continuously produces wastewater, and the cooling water flow is sufficient and the pressure is stable. This state is defined as the rated flow condition. At this time, the water flow is sufficient, and with the water pump, the spiral guide vane 300 can be driven to rotate by the impact of wastewater alone, which is suitable for long-term continuous commercial ice-making conditions. However, ice makers are not always in a continuous ice-making state. The equipment experiences intermittent shutdowns, ice-removal standby, and low-load operation. The water production rate of the water purifier filter element 1200 is low, and the wastewater flow rate into the condensation unit is significantly reduced, resulting in a low-flow condition. Under the low-flow condition, the wastewater flow velocity is slow and the impact torque is extremely small. If continuous dynamic descaling of the spiral guide vane 300 is still desired, water impact alone cannot drive the spiral guide vane 300 to rotate stably. To address this issue, this embodiment sets up a magnetic coupling auxiliary drive structure to achieve adaptive switching between dual operating conditions, as detailed below: In this embodiment, the magnetic coupling transmission torque of the driven magnetic suction component and the active magnetic suction component is precisely matched: the maximum transmission torque of the magnetic coupling between the driven magnetic suction component and the active magnetic suction component is greater than the rotational torque of the wastewater impacting the spiral guide vane 300 under low flow conditions. When the hydraulic driving force is insufficient under low flow conditions, the rotary drive unit starts to work and drives the spiral guide vane 300 to rotate by magnetic coupling, so as to ensure that the dynamic scraping and turbulence enhancement effect is still present under low flow conditions. Meanwhile, the maximum transmission torque of the magnetic coupling between the driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component is less than the rotational torque of the wastewater impacting the spiral guide vane 300 under rated flow conditions. Under rated flow conditions, the rotational torque generated by the wastewater impact is greater than the transmission torque of the magnetic coupling. Circumferential magnetic slippage and decoupling occur between the driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component. At this time, the external rotation drive unit does not need to work. The spiral guide vane 300 can achieve self-rotation without water impact and complete the heat exchange enhancement and self-cleaning operation by pure hydraulic drive.

[0031] Example 4 like Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the rotary drive unit includes a drive component 600 and two transmission chains 601. The two transmission chains 601 are symmetrically arranged at both ends of the outer sleeve 200. Several sets of outer magnetic rings 501 are provided with annular sprockets 602 on their outer sides. The multiple sets of outer magnetic rings 501 located at the same end of the outer sleeve 200 are engaged with the corresponding transmission chains 601. The drive component 600 is connected to the two transmission chains 601 for driving the several sets of annular sprockets 602 to rotate synchronously.

[0032] The condensing unit contains multiple tube bundle structures. If a single tube is driven independently, there are problems such as a large number of driving devices, a complex overall structure, and high assembly costs. Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in the figure, the driving component 600 can be composed of a connecting shaft, a driving motor, a bevel gear set, and a driving sprocket. The driving motor drives the connecting shaft to rotate through the bevel gear set. The connecting shaft drives two transmission chains 601 to rotate synchronously through the driving sprockets at both ends. This causes the transmission chains 601 to drive multiple sets of annular sprockets 602 meshing inside to rotate synchronously, realizing the synchronous rotation of multiple sets of active magnetic attraction components. The active magnetic attraction components can drive the support shaft sleeve 400 and the spiral guide vanes 300 to rotate synchronously through the driven magnetic attraction components. This enables the synchronous cleaning and heat exchange enhancement of multiple sets of spiral guide vanes 300 inside the condensing unit. This rotary driving unit can greatly simplify the overall transmission structure, reduce the number of motors and transmission components, and reduce equipment assembly and maintenance costs.

[0033] Working principle: During operation, the compressor 800 generates high-temperature, high-pressure gaseous refrigerant, which is sent into the multiple sets of inner conduits 100 of the condensing unit. After exothermic condensation, it is converted into room-temperature, high-pressure liquid refrigerant. After being throttled and depressurized by the expansion valve 900, it forms a low-temperature, low-pressure gas-liquid two-phase refrigerant and is delivered to the evaporator 1000. The refrigerant fully evaporates and absorbs heat inside the evaporator 1000, continuously cooling the water source inside the ice maker 1100 to make ice. During this process, the single set of inner conduits 100 and the outer sleeve 200 form an independent, closed annular cooling water chamber. The annular cooling water chamber is coaxially equipped with spiral guide vanes 300 with a gradually decreasing pitch design. After the wastewater enters the cooling channel, it flows spirally around the spiral guide vanes 300, greatly extending the effective heat exchange path between the wastewater and the heat exchange tube wall. At the same time, the spiral flow... The centrifugal force generated by the movement continuously forms a radial secondary water flow, constantly flushing and peeling away the stationary laminar boundary layer at the pipe wall, significantly reducing the heat exchange thermal resistance, and the full-area rotation flushing removes scale buildup on the pipe wall; at the same time, as the wastewater flows at high speed along the spiral cooling channel, the water flow continuously impacts the inclined blades of the spiral guide vane 300, causing the blades to be subjected to fluid pressure perpendicular to the plate surface and decomposed to form a circumferential rotational torque. When the circumferential torque overcomes the frictional resistance of the support bushing 400, it can drive the spiral guide vane 300 to rotate circumferentially as a whole. During the rotation of the spiral guide vane 300, its outer edge always adheres to the inner wall of the outer sleeve 200 and continuously slides and scrapes, while its inner edge adheres to the outer wall of the inner guide tube 100 and rotates and scrapes synchronously, thus forming a 360° full-area, dead-angle-free continuous dynamic scale removal on the heat exchange pipe walls on both the inner and outer sides; When the spiral guide vane 300 cannot rotate continuously, i.e., under low flow conditions and insufficient hydraulic driving force, the rotary drive unit starts working. Through magnetic coupling, it drives the spiral guide vane 300 to rotate forcibly, ensuring that it still has a continuous and stable dynamic scaling and turbulence enhancement effect under low flow conditions. At this time, the maximum transmission torque of the magnetic coupling between the driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component is greater than the rotational torque of the spiral guide vane 300 under low flow conditions caused by wastewater impact. Conversely, under rated flow conditions, the rotational torque generated by wastewater impact is greater than the transmission torque of magnetic coupling. Circumferential magnetic slippage and decoupling occur between the driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component. The external rotary drive unit does not need to work, and the spiral guide vane 300 can achieve self-rotation by relying on wastewater impact. It can complete heat exchange enhancement and self-scaling operations by relying on pure hydraulic drive, ensuring the long-term stable operation of the cooling mechanism.

[0034] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0035] The foregoing has only described certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention by way of illustration. Undoubtedly, those skilled in the art can modify the described embodiments in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the foregoing drawings and descriptions are illustrative in nature and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on wastewater recycling from a water purifier, characterized in that, Includes a condensation unit; The condensation unit is a multi-tube bundle coaxial sleeve structure, including several sets of parallel coaxial sleeve assemblies. Each set of coaxial sleeve assemblies includes an inner conduit (100) for the flow of refrigerant and an outer sleeve (200) coaxially sleeved outside the inner conduit (100). An annular cooling water chamber for the flow of wastewater generated by the water purifier is formed between the inner conduit (100) and the outer sleeve (200). Several sets of inner conduits (100) are connected to water collection hoods (101) at both ends, and the water collection hoods (101) are used to connect to the refrigeration cycle loop of the refrigerator. Several sets of outer sleeves (200) are connected to an inlet manifold and an outlet manifold at both ends respectively. The annular cooling water chamber is connected to the wastewater recycling circuit of the water purifier through the inlet manifold and the outlet manifold. A spiral guide vane (300) is coaxially arranged inside the annular cooling water cavity. The inner edge of the spiral guide vane (300) is in contact with the outer wall of the inner duct (100), and the outer edge is in contact with the inner wall of the outer sleeve (200) to divide the annular cooling water cavity into a continuous spiral extending cooling channel. The pitch of the spiral guide vane (300) gradually decreases along the direction of wastewater flow.

2. The ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recycling according to claim 1, characterized in that, The spiral guide vane (300) can rotate circumferentially around the axis of the inner duct (100).

3. The ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recycling according to claim 2, characterized in that, The spiral guide vane (300) is coaxially fixed with a support bushing (400) at both ends. The support bushing (400) is rotatably sleeved on the outer wall of the inner guide tube (100). The spiral guide vane (300) is configured to generate a circumferential torque by the impact of wastewater through the cooling channel on the blade surface, thereby achieving self-rotation.

4. The ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recycling according to claim 3, characterized in that, The support bushing (400) is provided with a driven magnetic attraction component, and the outer side of the outer sleeve (200) is provided with an active magnetic attraction component at the position corresponding to the driven magnetic attraction component. The driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component are magnetically coupled through the tube wall. The condensation unit also includes a rotary drive unit, which is connected to the active magnetic attraction component for driving the active magnetic attraction component to rotate axially around the outer sleeve (200) so as to drive the spiral guide vane (300) to rotate synchronously through magnetic coupling.

5. The ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recycling according to claim 4, characterized in that, The maximum transmission torque of the magnetic coupling between the driven magnetic attraction component and the active magnetic attraction component is greater than the rotational torque of the wastewater impacting the spiral guide vane (300) under low flow conditions, and less than the rotational torque of the wastewater impacting the spiral guide vane (300) under rated flow conditions. Under low flow conditions, the rotary drive unit drives the spiral guide vane (300) to rotate by magnetic coupling. Under rated flow conditions, circumferential magnetic slippage occurs between the driven magnetic suction component and the active magnetic suction component, and the spiral guide vane (300) rotates spontaneously by the impact of wastewater.

6. The ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recycling according to claim 4, characterized in that, The driven magnetic attraction assembly includes an inner magnetic ring (402), which is sleeved and installed outside the support shaft sleeve (400); The active magnetic attraction assembly includes a fixed base (500) and an outer magnetic ring (501). The fixed base (500) and the outer magnetic ring (501) are both sleeved on the end of the outer sleeve (200), and the outer magnetic ring (501) is rotatably connected to the fixed base (500) through a bearing.

7. The ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recycling according to claim 6, characterized in that, The rotary drive unit includes a drive component (600) and two transmission chains (601). The two transmission chains (601) are symmetrically arranged at both ends of the outer tube (200). A ring sprocket (602) is provided on the outer side of several sets of outer magnetic rings (501). The multiple sets of outer magnetic rings (501) located at the same end of the outer tube (200) are engaged with the corresponding transmission chains (601). The drive component (600) is connected to the two transmission chains (601) for driving the several sets of ring sprockets (602) to rotate synchronously.

8. The ice maker cooling mechanism based on water purifier wastewater recycling according to claim 1, wherein the refrigeration cycle loop of the refrigeration machine further includes a compressor (800), an expansion valve (900) and an evaporator (1000), wherein the compressor (800), condensing unit, expansion valve (900) and evaporator (1000) are connected in sequence through pipes to form a closed refrigeration cycle loop; An ice-making box (1100) is also connected to the evaporator (1000) for freezing the water in the ice-making box (1100) to make ice by heating with refrigerant.

9. A cooling mechanism for an ice maker based on wastewater recycling from a water purifier according to claim 8, wherein the inlet manifold includes a main inlet pipe (202) and a plurality of inlet branch pipes (201) disposed on the side wall of the main inlet pipe (202), wherein the plurality of inlet branch pipes (201) are respectively connected to the inlet end of the corresponding outer sleeve (200), and the outlet manifold includes a liquid collecting cylinder (700), a drain pipe (701) disposed at the bottom end of the liquid collecting cylinder (700) and a plurality of outlet branch pipes (203) disposed on the side wall of the liquid collecting cylinder (700), wherein the plurality of outlet branch pipes (203) are respectively connected to the outlet end of the corresponding outer sleeve (200); The wastewater recycling circuit of the water purifier also includes a water purifier filter element (1200). The wastewater pipeline of the water purifier filter element (1200) is connected to the main water inlet pipe (202) through a water storage tank, and is used to supply cooling wastewater to the condensing unit. The water purification pipeline of the water purifier filter element (1200) is provided with branch pipe one and branch pipe two. Branch pipe one is connected to the ice box (1100) and is used to supply water for ice making. Branch pipe two is installed in the internal cavity of the liquid collection cylinder (700) and is used to preheat the purified water.

Images