Refrigeration device and method

Abstract

To provide a refrigeration device for cooling an element to a cryogenic temperature.SOLUTION: A cryogenic refrigeration device comprises an enclosure 2 delimiting a fluid-tight vacuum volume part closed by a cover and includes: at least one cryogenic cooler 4 of the type that employs a cold source of a cryogenic cycle fluid such as helium; and at least one heat conduction plate 5 configured to be cooled via a cycle fluid circuit 8 configured to supply the cycle fluid to a set of heat exchangers 7, 17. The cycle fluid circuit has a transport pipe 18 for transporting the cycle fluid first of all to a manifold 7 mounted on the heat conduction plate, at least one transfer pipe 28 configured to transfer the cycle fluid from the manifold to the at least one heat exchanger 17 mounted on the same heat conduction plate, and at least one return pipe 38 configured to return the fluid that has circulated through the at least one heat exchanger 17 to the manifold.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to refrigeration devices and methods.

[0002] The invention more particularly relates to a cryogenic refrigeration device comprising an enclosure defining a fluid-tight vacuum volume closed by a cover, the cryogenic refrigeration device comprising at least one cryogenic cooler mounted through the cover and having a first part mounted outside the enclosure and a second part mounted within the enclosure, the cryogenic cooler being of the type using a source of cold of a cryogenic cycle fluid such as helium, the cryogenic refrigeration device comprising at least one heat conducting plate intended to receive and cool a set of components, for example cables, the at least one heat conducting plate being cooled by the flow of the cycle fluid through a cycle fluid circuit supplying a set of heat exchangers each in a heat exchange relationship with the heat conducting plate.

[0003] The present invention relates to a refrigeration device for cooling elements to cryogenic temperatures below 100K, in particular below 50K and / or below 4K.

[0004] In particular, the invention relates to refrigeration devices used for cooling down to very low temperatures, on the order of millikelvin ("sub-Kelvin refrigeration"), traditionally obtained using He4 or He3 Joule-Thomson type dilution refrigerators or cryocoolers.

[0005] In such a device it is necessary to provide one or more refrigeration stages with cooling power up to a temperature of, for example, 4 K. This type of installation needs to be able to cool quickly when put into operation. In addition, the experimental surface area available for the sample or cable to be cooled needs to be optimized. [Background technology]

[0006] In order to operate, dilution refrigerators require a supply of cooling power to temperatures below 4 K. This cooling power is typically provided by a gas-filled pulse tube (in the case of a "dry" dilution refrigerator) or by a bath of liquid helium (in the case of a "wet" dilution refrigerator). 3 He or 3 He- 4 Cooling of the He mixture is generally required for use at temperatures below 1K.

[0007] However, pulse tubes have limited individual power and a significant number, many dozens of pulse tubes, are required to obtain sufficient power to meet current and future requirements. This number of gas-filled pulse tubes limits the experimental surface area available for cooling experiments and samples. For use at temperatures below 2 K, 3 He or 3 He- 4 It is also necessary to cool the He mixture. In addition, the time it takes to reach a low temperature with this type of technique is relatively long. For this reason, this solution, however, is not capable of delivering a significant amount of cooling power to the sample to be cooled and, moreover, generates vibrations.

[0008] In addition, the increase in the power to be extracted can be slowed down by the contact thermal resistance of the plates. For powerful dilution refrigerators, one of the important requirements is the requirement to pre-cool thousands of cables or samples. This cold power can be installed in the central part of the plate to cool the samples or cables at the edge of the plate. The increase in the distance between the individual cold points (gas-filled pulse tubes) that provide the cooling power and the samples to be cooled faces a significant thermal resistance problem (conduction in large plates and medium contact resistance). This is one reason for the decrease in thermal efficiency. From this, the increase in power does not necessarily allow efficient cooling.

[0009] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to overcome all or some of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art. Summary of the Invention

[0010] For such purposes, in addition to complying with its generic definition given in the preamble above, the device according to the invention is essentially characterised in that the cycle fluid circuit has a conveying pipe which conveys the cycle fluid firstly to a manifold mounted on a heat transfer plate, the cycle fluid circuit has at least one conveying pipe configured to transport the cycle fluid from the manifold to at least one heat exchanger mounted on the same heat transfer plate, and the cycle fluid circuit has at least one return pipe configured to return the fluid circulated through the at least one heat exchanger to the manifold.

[0011] Furthermore, embodiments of the invention may include one or more of the following features: the cryogenic refrigeration device comprises a number of heat exchangers mounted on the same heat transfer plate and respective transfer pipes for transferring a cycle fluid from a manifold to the heat exchangers, the heat exchangers of the same heat transfer plate being supplied in parallel with the cycle fluid from the transfer pipes via the manifold; - the conveying pipes conveying the fluid pass through the cover at a support plate sealingly closing the passages through the cover, the support plate, the manifold and the conveying pipes being mechanically connected to each other so as to form a physical entity that can be attached / detached to the enclosure, for example to the cover, a cycle fluid circuit connecting the manifold to a portion of the refrigerator and having a return pipe configured to return the warmed cycle fluid circulated through all or a portion of the set of heat exchangers; the return pipe passes through the cover at the support plate and is also connected to the support plate and the manifold; the manifold is a heat exchanger in heat exchange relationship with the heat transfer plate and has an internal circuit for the circulation of a cycle fluid to transfer cooling power to the heat transfer plate; the heat exchanger or exchangers comprise or consist of at least one of an exchanger plate mounted on or in a housing of a heat transfer plate and having an internal circuit for the circulation of a cycle fluid to transfer cooling power to the heat transfer plate, and cycle fluid circulation pipes embedded and forming a serpentine in the thickness of the heat transfer plate; - the one or more heat exchangers are connected to the manifold via a set of fluid connections that can be disconnected, for example at least one end of a transfer pipe and / or a return pipe, the cryogenic refrigeration device comprises a plurality of plates arranged in a distribution direction through the enclosure and intended to be cooled to a determined respective temperature, at least two plates each comprising a manifold and at least one heat exchanger connected to the manifold via a transfer pipe; - at least two separate manifolds of plates are supplied with cycle fluid by respective conveying pipes, - the manifold of the first plate is supplied with a cycle fluid by fluid transport pipes and the manifold and / or heat exchanger(s) of the second plate are supplied with a cycle fluid circulated through at least one heat exchanger and / or manifold of the first plate via a set of connecting pipes, at least some of the heat exchangers are equipped with at least one of an exchanger temperature sensor and a heating element configured to regulate the temperature of the heat exchanger; the cycle fluid circuit comprises, for example, one or more controllable valve(s) on at least one fluid carrying pipe and configured to regulate the flow rate of the cycle fluid depending on set points and / or measurements, for example from a temperature sensor; at least some of the heat exchangers and / or manifolds are housed in corresponding respective housings formed in the respective plates, the peripheral boundaries of the heat exchangers and / or manifolds being in contact with the boundaries of the union of the respective heat exchangers and defining the boundaries of the housings; At least part of the sets of heat exchangers and / or manifolds are mounted in respective housings in the plates by being inserted into the housings through movements that are transverse and / or parallel to the plane of the plates.

[0012] The invention also relates to a refrigeration method using a cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of the above or below characteristics, comprising the steps of storing and / or generating a liquid cryogenic cycle fluid in a refrigerator, circulating the liquid cryogenic cycle fluid in an enclosure towards at least one manifold and from the manifold towards at least one heat exchanger for cooling at least one plate, the refrigeration method comprising the steps of returning the warmed liquid cryogenic cycle fluid circulated through the at least one heat exchanger to a part of the refrigerator where the liquid cryogenic cycle fluid can be cooled for repeating the cycle of circulating through the enclosure.

[0013] The invention may also relate to any alternative device or method comprising any combination of the above or below features falling within the scope of the claims.

[0014] Other particular features and advantages will become apparent from reading the following description, provided with reference to the following figures.

[0015] The invention will be better understood on reading the following description, given purely by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating a first example of embodiment of a refrigeration plant according to the invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating a second example of embodiment of a refrigeration plant according to the invention. [Diagram 3]3 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating a third example of embodiment of a refrigeration plant according to the invention; [Figure 4] 4 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating a fourth example of embodiment of a refrigeration plant according to the invention; FIG. [Diagram 5] 5 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating a fifth example of embodiment of a refrigeration plant according to the invention. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a schematic partial view in perspective illustrating a first possible embodiment of a first example of embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the detail of FIG. 6 from below, showing some of the hidden details. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a schematic partial view in perspective illustrating a second possible embodiment of the first example of embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the detail of FIG. 8 from below, showing some of the hidden details. [Figure 10] 11 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating a detail of a sixth example of embodiment of a refrigeration plant according to the invention; FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating a detail of a seventh example of embodiment of a refrigeration plant according to the invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating details of an example of an embodiment of the lift tank type of heat exchanger that can be used in a refrigeration plant according to the invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a schematic partial view, in horizontal section, of the heat exchanger of FIG. [Figure 14] 3 is a schematic partial view in vertical section illustrating details of another example of an embodiment of a heat exchanger that can be used in a refrigeration plant according to the invention; FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] Throughout the drawings, the same reference numbers refer to the same elements.

[0018] In the description of the present invention, the following embodiments are examples. Although the description refers to one or more embodiments, this does not mean that a feature applies only to a single embodiment. Individual features of different embodiments can also be combined and / or exchanged to provide other embodiments.

[0019] The cryogenic refrigeration plant 1 illustrated in Fig. 1 comprises an enclosure 2 which defines a sealed volume closed by a cover 3 made, for example, of stainless steel or aluminium. The volume is preferably under vacuum and contains at least one heat-conducting plate 5 (only one in this example) which forms a thermal stage. As will be explained below, several plates may be provided in order to form thermal stages with respective temperatures which may decrease in the distribution direction (for example vertically from top to bottom).

[0020] A bundle of cables to be cooled (not shown) may be mounted on a set of support plate(s) mounted on at least one plate 5. This means that the cables extend into the enclosure 2 and may be in heat exchange relationship with one or more plates.

[0021] Other components may be cooled in one or more plates 5. The device may therefore comprise for this purpose a set of passages formed through the cover 3 and through one or more plates for passing cable(s) and / or equipment into the enclosure 2.

[0022] At least one plate 5 is cooled by a cryocooler or refrigerator 4 to a determined temperature.

[0023] The cryocooler 4 is mounted through the cover 3 and may have a first portion located outside the enclosure 2 and a second portion located inside the enclosure 2 .

[0024] The cryocooler 4 preferably comprises a cryogenic cycle fluid (eg, helium based) and a cycle fluid circuit 8 which circulates the cycle fluid in heat exchange relationship with at least one of the plates 5 .

[0025] The set of plates is cooled by the flow of cycle fluid through a cycle fluid circuit 8 which feeds a set of heat exchanger(s) 17 in respective heat exchange relationship with the plates 5 .

[0026] This means that rather than cooling one or more plates 5, 6 by conduction only, for example using a gas-filled pulse tube or a helium bath, the device 1 provides for the transfer of cooling power via the flow of cycle fluid.

[0027] Preferably, the cycle fluid contains or consists of helium. The cycle fluid may be cooled in a supercritical or superfluid state, for example to a temperature below 4K or below 2K, before being placed in heat exchange relationship with the plate(s) 5, 6. This allows cooling power to be distributed very efficiently to where it is needed.

[0028] As described and illustrated, the cryogenic cooler 4 may be mounted through the cover 3 and may have a first end or portion located outside the enclosure 2 and a second end or portion located inside the enclosure 2. The cooler 4 is configured to provide cold air at its second portion.

[0029] The refrigerator 4 is of the type that uses a cold source of a liquefied cycle fluid, for example helium or nitrogen. The cooling power of the refrigerator is stored and / or generated at its first end, which is transferred to the plates 5, 6 via a flow of cycle fluid that transfers the cooling power from the first end towards the second end of the refrigerator. After heat exchange with one or more plates 5, 6, the cycle fluid is returned to the warming part of the refrigerator 4 to repeat the cycle (compression, expansion, etc.).

[0030] The cooler 4 comprises, for example, a cycle circuit configured to subject the cycle fluid to a thermodynamic cycle, which brings the cycle fluid at at least one cold end of the cycle circuit to a determined cryogenic temperature via expansion of the compressed cycle fluid. The cycle fluid circuit comprises, for example, a mechanism (compressor(s)) for compressing the cycle fluid, at least one cooling member (heat exchanger(s)) for cooling the cycle fluid, an expansion mechanism (valve(s) and / or turbine(s)) for expanding the cycle fluid, and at least one warming member (heat exchanger(s)) for warming the expanded cycle fluid. The warming and cooling can be performed at least in part by one or more countercurrent heat exchanger(s) for simultaneously cooling and warming two parts of the cycle circuit.

[0031] The cryocooler 4 uses a cycle fluid comprising, for example, at least one of the following: helium, hydrogen, nitrogen, argon, neon. The device 1 comprises a circuit 8 having a set of conveying pipe(s) 18 conveying at least a portion of the cryocoole fluid towards the plate(s) 5, 6 to be cooled.

[0032] 1, the cycle fluid circuit 8 comprises a transfer pipe 18 which transfers the cycle fluid firstly to a manifold 7 mounted on the plate 5. The cycle fluid circuit 8 also comprises a transfer pipe 28 which is configured to transfer the cycle fluid from the manifold 7 to at least one heat exchanger 17 (in this example two heat exchangers 17) mounted on the same plate 5.

[0033] The cycle fluid circuit 8 has at least one return pipe 38 configured to return the fluid circulated through the at least one heat exchanger 17 to the manifold 7 .

[0034] This structure allows the cold cycle fluid to be transported to a manifold supported by the plate 5 and this cooling power to be distributed to one or more heat exchangers 7 in the plate 5.

[0035] This allows the cooling power to be efficiently and evenly distributed over a large surface area using a reduced number of conveying pipes 18 (in particular only one pipe).

[0036] In the case where several heat exchangers 17 are mounted on the same plate 5 (as illustrated in FIG. 1 ), respective transfer pipes 28 may be provided for transferring cycle fluid from the manifold 7 to the heat exchangers 17. In such a case, the heat exchangers 17 of the same plate 5 may be supplied in parallel with cycle fluid from the conveying pipes 18 via the manifold 7.

[0037] After circulating through the heat exchanger 17, the relatively hotter cycle fluid may be returned to the manifold 7 via the respective return pipe 38. This hot cycle fluid may then be returned to the chiller 4 via the return pipe 48, for example, so that it can be cooled again to perform a repeat cycle.

[0038] It should be noted that the conveying pipe 18 (or, as there may be, several conveying pipes 18) and the return pipe 48 (or, as there may be several return pipes 48) are preferably housed in a vacuum insulated heat shield or sleeve 12 to avoid heat ingress. The sleeve 12 may in particular be provided between the cover 9 and the outer part of the refrigerator 4.

[0039] The fluid carrying pipes 18 (and return pipes 48 ) may pass through the cover 3 at a support plate 9 or flange that sealingly closes the passages through the cover 3 .

[0040] The support plate 9, manifold 7, and conveying pipe 18 and return pipe 48 may be mechanically connected to each other to form a physical entity that can be vertically attached / detached to the enclosure 2, for example to the cover 3. For example, a tool such as a vertical post or guide may be used to support this assembly during attachment / detachment operations to the enclosure and plate.

[0041] 6 and 7 illustrate an example of the structure of a manifold 7 associated with two heat exchangers 17, which receives a low-temperature cycle fluid (via a conveying pipe 18) and immediately distributes it to the heat exchangers 17 via a transfer pipe 28. In addition, the manifold 7 may receive a flow of cycle fluid circulated through the heat exchangers 17 via a return pipe 38 and return this relatively hotter cycle fluid, for example, in a return pipe 48. This means that in this example, unlike the heat exchangers 17, the manifold 7 is not configured to perform an optimized exchange of heat with the plates that support it. For example, the heat exchanger 17 comprises an internal cycle fluid circulation circuit 70 that forms a serpentine coil to optimize the heat exchange with the plates 5. The manifold 7, as illustrated, may lack such an internal circuit.

[0042] In contrast, and as illustrated in the variants of Figures 8 and 9, the manifold 7 may also be a heat exchanger in a heat exchange relationship with the heat transfer plate 5 (configured for heat exchange), for example by having an internal circuit 70 for the circulation of a cycle fluid to transfer cooling power to the heat transfer plate 5.

[0043] As illustrated, the heat exchanger 17 may be connected to the manifold 7 via a set of disconnectable fluid couplings 171. For example, at least one of the ends of the transfer pipe 28 and / or the return pipe 38 may be equipped with couplings 171 that allow for easy installation / removal from the manifold / exchanger. This allows the exchanger 17 to be easily coupled to the manifold 7 after installation or before removal of the manifold(s) 7 and set of pipes 18, 48, as described above.

[0044] Alternatively, or in combination, some of the sets of pipes of the cycle fluid circuit 8 that allow the cycle fluid to be circulated to or from the heat exchanger 7, 17, and / or manifold 7 may be soldered and / or brazed to the heat exchanger 7, 17, or manifold 7.

[0045] At least some of these pipes of the cycle fluid circuit 8, which enable the cycle fluid to be circulated to or from the heat exchangers 7, 17 and / or from or to the manifold 7(s), may be configured to exhibit a determined flexibility, e.g., bent portions, capable of absorbing dimensional variations caused by temperature fluctuations between the ambient temperature at shutdown and the cryogenic operating temperature of the device 1.

[0046] In the example described above, the heat exchanger 17 comprises or consists of an exchanger plate mounted on or in a housing in the plate 5 and has an internal circuit 70 for the circulation of a cycle fluid to transfer cooling power to the plate 5.

[0047] 6 and 8 further illustrate in a schematic manner the fact that at least some of the heat exchangers 17 may be fitted with a sensor 10 for measuring the temperature of the exchanger and / or a heating member 11 configured to regulate the temperature of the heat exchanger 17. For example, each heat exchanger 17 has such a sensor 10 and / or such a warming member 11.

[0048] Likewise, one or more heating elements 11 may make it possible to provide this temperature control.

[0049] For this reason, the device 1 may comprise one or more controllable valve(s) 13 in the cycle fluid circuit 8, for example on at least one fluid conveying pipe 38, and configured to adjust the flow rate of the cycle fluid depending on set points and / or measurements from, for example, temperature sensor(s) 10 (see FIG. 11 ).

[0050] At least some of the heat exchangers 17 and / or manifolds 7 may be housed in corresponding respective housings formed in the respective plates 5, 6. For example, the peripheral boundaries of the heat exchangers 17 and / or manifolds 7 may contact the boundaries of the union of the respective heat exchangers 17 and define the boundaries of the housings (see FIG. 10).

[0051] At least a portion of the set of heat exchangers 17 and / or manifold 7 may be mounted in the respective housings in the plates by being inserted into the housings through a movement that is transverse to the plane of the plates 5, 6 (see vertical mounting in Figure 10).

[0052] Of course, these housings may open onto the edges of the plates to allow the heat exchangers 17 and / or manifolds 7 to be mounted / removed in a direction parallel to the plane of the plates.

[0053] However, this form of embodiment is non-limiting: from this, for example, at least one of the heat exchangers 17 can be a simple cycle fluid circulation pipe embedded in the thickness of the plate 5 and forming a serpentine (see FIG. 5). In such a case, the temperature sensor 11, if present, can measure, for example, the temperature of the plate.

[0054] Likewise, as a variant or in combination, at least one heat exchanger 7 may comprise a pumped water tank system as illustrated in Figures 12 and 13. This means that the heat exchanger 17 comprises an internal volume fitted with fins 172 and intended to receive a volume of cycle fluid via at least an inlet 173 and an outlet 174, an internal volume being provided to allow this fluid to circulate. The heat exchanger 171 is, for example, placed on the plate 5 or on a support plate itself placed on the plate 5.

[0055] It should also be noted that at least one of the heat exchangers 17 may be a collection of multiple exchangers in series on a plate, meaning that one transfer pipe 28 may feed a first heat exchanger 17, which itself may then feed at least one other heat exchanger 17 in series.

[0056] As illustrated in Figures 2, 3 and 4, the device 1 may comprise a number of plates 5, 6 (two in this example) arranged in a distribution direction, for example vertically, in the enclosure 2. The plates 5, 6 are intended to be cooled to a determined respective temperature, which for example decreases towards the bottom of the enclosure 2.

[0057] Each of the plates 5, 6 comprises a manifold 7 and two heat exchangers 17, 17 connected to the manifold 7 via a transfer pipe 28 and a return pipe 38, as explained above.

[0058] In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the manifolds 7 of the two plates 5, 6 are connected to the cryocooler by separate respective conveying pipes 18 and respective pipes 48. This means that the two manifolds 7 and the respective plates are applied with separate flows of cycle fluid at respective temperatures that may be different. These two flows may be two separate flows from one and the same refrigerator circuit and / or flows belonging to two separate coolers. As illustrated, the conveying pipes 18 and the return pipes 48 of the bottom plate 6 may penetrate or go through the manifold 7 of the previous (upper) plate. Similarly, the manifolds 7 of the two (or more, if applicable) plates may be joined together so that they can be mounted together in the enclosure 2 or removed from the enclosure 2, for example vertically.

[0059] In the embodiment of Fig. 3, the first manifold 7 of the first lower plate 6 is connected to the cryocooler by a transport pipe 18 (which passes through the manifold 7 of the second upper plate). The first manifold 7 supplies the heat exchanger 17 of the first plate via respective transport pipes 28, collects the cycle fluid circulated through the heat exchanger 17 of this first plate 6 and then directs this fluid towards the second manifold 7 of the second upper plate 5. This second manifold 7 supplies the heat exchanger 17 of the second plate 5 (transport pipe) and collects (return pipe 38) the cycle fluid before returning it to the cooler (return pipe 48).

[0060] The embodiment of FIG. 4 differs from that of FIG. 3 only in that the cycle fluid circulated through the heat exchanger 17 of the first plate 6 is then sent directly into the heat exchanger 17 of the first plate, respectively (via the connecting pipe 248 without passing through the manifold 7 of the second plate 5).

[0061] This means that in these two embodiments the manifold 7 or heat exchanger 17 of the second plate 5 is supplied with a relatively hotter cycle fluid that has already circulated through at least one heat exchanger 17 and / or manifold of the (relatively cooler) first plate 6. The same flow of cycle fluid is thus used to cool the two plates 5, 6 in series.

[0062] This then allows the cycle fluid to be transported first to a first set of heat exchangers 17 intended to be cooled to a first temperature, and then allows the cycle fluid circulated through the first set of heat exchangers 17 to be transferred to a second set of heat exchangers 7 intended to be cooled to a second temperature higher than the first temperature.

[0063] This allows two separate manifolds 7 and plates 5, 6 to be cooled to respective temperatures which may be different using one and the same flow of cycle fluid.

[0064] This can of course be extended to more than two plates.

[0065] The cycle fluid circulating in the conveying pipe 18 and / or the return pipe 48 may be in liquid, gaseous or supercritical form, and the state of the fluid in the conveying pipe 18 may be different from the state in the return pipe 48 .

[0066] The heat exchangers 17 of one and the same plate or of separate plates as well as the manifolds 7 of several plates may, if applicable, be mechanically connected to each other by a set of pipes of a cycle fluid circuit 8 circulating the cycle fluid to or from the heat exchangers. This means that the whole can be mounted in the enclosure 2 in a single operation.

[0067] The heat exchangers 17 and / or manifolds 7 may be mechanically connected to each other only by a set of pipes of the cycle fluid circuit 8 .

[0068] The invention is not limited to the described or illustrated examples with one or two plates.

[0069] The illustrated shape of the plate (circular) is non-limiting (any other shape, eg polygonal, can be envisaged).

[0070] The device 1 may comprise more than two plates which are distributed in a distribution direction in the enclosure 2 and form thermal stages. These plates may be cooled, for example, to respective determined temperatures which decrease in the distribution direction.

[0071] FIG. 11 illustrates diagrammatically a variant with four manifolds. A first manifold 7 at the bottom end receives a flow of cycle fluid from a conveying pipe 18 and distributes the flow of cycle fluid in parallel to two heat exchangers 17 via a transfer pipe 28. These two exchangers then return the fluid to the first manifold 7 via a return pipe 38. The first manifold 7 then sends this flow of cycle fluid to a second manifold 7 above it via a connecting pipe 148. The second manifold 7 distributes the flow of cycle fluid in parallel to two heat exchangers 17 via a transfer pipe 28. These two heat exchangers 17 then return the fluid to the second manifold 7 via a return pipe 38. The second manifold 7 then sends this flow of cycle fluid to a third manifold 7 above it via a connecting pipe 148. This third manifold 7 then distributes the fluid in parallel to two heat exchangers 17 via a transfer pipe 28. These two heat exchangers 17 then return the fluid via a return pipe 38 to this third manifold 7. This third manifold returns the cycle fluid via a return pipe 48 to the cooler. On the other hand, a fourth manifold receives the cycle fluid flow from another conveying pipe 18 and distributes it in parallel to two heat exchangers 17 connected to it via a transfer pipe 28. These two heat exchangers 17 then return the fluid via a return pipe 38 to the fourth manifold. This fourth manifold 7 then returns the cycle fluid via another return pipe 48 to the cooler.

[0072] The plates may be spaced apart from one another via supports or spacers, for example made of a composite material.

[0073] At least one of the plates may be connected to a heat shield (a collection of walls) that forms a volume that encloses at least one next plate. A plate and the corresponding shield enclose the next plate and shield in the distribution direction. This means that the plates and shields may be attached one inside the next in the manner of "nested" components.

[0074] In an operational configuration, the cover 3 may be at ambient temperature (at least on its outer surface) and the inner plates of the enclosure 2 may be cooled to decreasing temperatures (e.g., to 90K, 50K, 10K, and 3K, respectively, if there are four plates).

[0075] As illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 14, at least one of the heat exchangers 17 described above may be used to exchange heat with another fluid of the plant, for example to cool this other fluid. For example, the heat exchanger is placed in a heat exchange relationship with another heat exchanger 19, which receives, for example, a hotter flow of the fluid to be cooled, for example He3 or a mixture of He3-He4. As illustrated, the two exchangers may be back-to-back and / or positioned, one on each side of the exchanger plate and / or plates.

Claims

1. A cryogenic refrigeration device comprising an enclosure (2) delimiting a fluid-tight evacuated volume closed by a cover (3), said cryogenic refrigeration device (1) comprising at least one cryocooler (4) mounted through said cover (3) and having a first part mounted outside said enclosure (2) and a second part mounted within said enclosure (2), said cryocooler (4) being of the type using a cold source of a cryogenic cycle fluid such as helium, said cryogenic refrigeration device (1) comprising at least one heat-conducting plate (5, 6) intended to receive and cool a set of components, e.g. cables, said at least one heat-conducting plate (5, 6) being cooled by a flow of a cycle fluid via a cycle fluid circuit (8) supplying a set of heat exchangers (7, 17) of said cryogenic refrigeration device (1) in heat exchange relationship with said heat-conducting plate (5, 6), respectively.

1. A cryogenic refrigeration device comprising: a cycle fluid circuit (8) having a transport pipe (18) transporting a cycle fluid firstly to a manifold (7) of the cryogenic refrigeration device (1) mounted on said heat transfer plates (5, 6); said cycle fluid circuit (8) having at least one transport pipe (28) configured to transport a cycle fluid from said manifold (7) to at least one said heat exchanger (17) mounted on the same heat transfer plate (5); and said cycle fluid circuit (8) having at least one return pipe (38) configured to return a fluid circulated through at least one said heat exchanger (17) to said manifold (7).

2. 2. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the device comprises a plurality of heat exchangers (17) mounted on the same heat transfer plate (5, 6) and respective transfer pipes (28) for transferring cycle fluid from the manifold (7) to the heat exchangers (17), the heat exchangers of the same heat transfer plate (5) being supplied in parallel with cycle fluid from the conveying pipe (18) via the manifold (7).

3. 3. The cryogenic refrigeration device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the conveying pipes (18) conveying a fluid pass through the cover (3) at a support plate (9) sealingly closing a passage through the cover (3), and the support plate (9), the manifold (7) and the conveying pipes (18) are mechanically connected to each other to form a physical entity that can be attached / detached to the enclosure (2), for example to the cover (3).

4. The very low temperature refrigeration device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the cycle fluid circuit (8) comprises a return pipe (48) connecting the manifold (7) to a part of a refrigerator and arranged to return the warmed cycle fluid circulated through all or part of the set of heat exchangers (7, 17).

5. 5. A cryogenic refrigeration device according to claim 4 dependent on claim 3, characterized in that the return pipe (48) passes through the cover (3) at the support plate (9) and is also connected to the support plate (9) and to the manifold (7).

6. The cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the manifold (7) is a heat exchanger in a heat exchange relationship with the heat conducting plate (5) and has an internal circuit (70) for the circulation of the cycle fluid to transfer cooling power to the heat conducting plate (5).

7. 7. A cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the heat exchanger or exchangers (17) comprise or consist of at least one of an exchanger plate mounted on or in a housing of the heat conducting plate (5, 6) and having an internal circuit (70) for the circulation of the cycle fluid to transfer cooling power to the heat conducting plate (5) and a cycle fluid circulation pipe embedded therein and forming a serpentine in the thickness of the heat conducting plate (5, 6).

8. The cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the one or more heat exchangers (17) are connected to the manifold (7) via a set of disconnectable fluid connections (171), for example via at least one end of the transfer pipe (28) and / or the return pipe (38).

9. 9. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of plates (5, 6) arranged in a distribution direction through the enclosure (2) and intended to be cooled to a determined respective temperature, at least two plates (5, 6) each comprising a manifold (7) and at least one heat exchanger (17) connected to said manifold (7) via a transfer pipe (28).

10. 10. A cryogenic refrigeration device according to claim 9, characterized in that the manifolds (7) of at least two separate plates (5, 6) are supplied with cycle fluid by respective conveying pipes (18).

11. 11. A cryogenic refrigeration device according to claim 10, characterized in that the manifold (7) of a first plate (6) is supplied with cycle fluid by fluid transport pipes (18) and that the manifold (7) and / or the heat exchanger(s) (17) of a second plate (5) are supplied with cycle fluid circulated through at least one heat exchanger and / or manifold of the first plate (6) via a set of connecting pipes (148, 248).

12. A cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least some of the heat exchangers (17) are equipped with at least one of an exchanger temperature sensor (10) and a heating member (11) configured to regulate the temperature of the heat exchanger (17).

13. The cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the cycle fluid circuit (8) comprises one or more controllable valve(s) (13), e.g. on at least one fluid conveying pipe (38), configured to adjust the flow rate of the cycle fluid depending on set points and / or measurements, e.g. from a temperature sensor (10).

14. 14. A cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that at least some of the heat exchangers (17) and / or manifolds (7) are housed in corresponding respective housings formed in the respective plates (5, 6), the peripheral boundaries of the heat exchangers (17) and / or manifolds (7) being in contact with a boundary which is the union of the respective heat exchangers (17) and defining the boundary of the housing.

15. 15. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that at least a part of the sets of heat exchangers (17) and / or manifolds (7) are mounted in the respective housings in the plates (5, 6) by being inserted into the housings through a movement that is transverse and / or parallel to the plane of the plates (5, 6).

16. 16. A refrigeration method using a cryogenic refrigeration device according to any one of claims 1 to 15, comprising the steps of: storing and / or generating a liquid cryogenic cycle fluid in a refrigerator (4); circulating the liquid cryogenic cycle fluid in the enclosure (2) towards at least one of the manifolds (7) and from the manifold (7) towards at least one of the heat exchangers (7, 17) for cooling at least one plate, the refrigeration method comprising the steps of returning the warmed liquid cryogenic cycle fluid circulated through at least one heat exchanger (7, 17) back to a portion of the refrigerator (4) where the liquid cryogenic cycle fluid can be cooled for repeating the cycle of circulating through the enclosure (2).

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