Heat exchanger and refrigerator

Abstract

To provide a heat exchanger capable of efficiently cooling a cold storage material by a refrigerant to achieve energy saving by the cooled cold storage material.SOLUTION: A heat exchanger includes: a refrigerant conduction member composed of flat pipes formed apart from each other; a cold storage material container which is disposed at a gap between the flat pipes adjacent to the refrigerant conduction member where the cold storage material is encapsulated; air flow passages which are formed at other gaps between the flat pipes and where the air is flown; and fins provided to the air flow passage. A binding member for preventing enlargement of the gap is provided to an open side edge part at the gap between the flat pipes. The cold storage material container is made of metallic material which is flexible and is the same as that of the fins, is put into each of the gaps between the flat pipes under pressure and is tightly fixed to each of the flat pipes.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a heat exchanger having a cold storage function and a refrigerator. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a refrigerator. This refrigerator has a cooler that cools a storage compartment by operating a compressor, and a cooling compartment that houses the cooler. A cold storage material is placed in contact with or close to the cooler, and the storage compartment is cooled by the cold heat of the cooler and the cold storage material. When a load is applied, such as when putting food in or taking it out, the refrigerator is cooled by the amount of cooling provided by the cold heat of the heat storage material and the cooler. This reduces the temperature rise in the storage compartment and cools while operating the compressor at a lower rotation speed than before, thereby improving cooling performance while suppressing operation at a high rotation speed of the compressor, thereby improving energy efficiency. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-172848 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The present disclosure provides a heat exchanger and a refrigerator that can efficiently cool a cold storage material with a refrigerant and achieve energy savings with the cooled cold storage material. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The heat exchanger disclosed herein comprises a refrigerant conducting member consisting of flat tubes spaced apart from one another, a cold storage material container arranged in the gaps between adjacent flat tubes of the refrigerant conducting member and filled with cold storage material, an air flow path formed between the flat tubes and through which air flows, and fins provided in the air flow path, wherein a restraining member is provided at the open end of the gap between each of the flat tubes to prevent the gap from widening, and the cold storage material container is formed from a flexible metal material that is the same as the fins, and is pressed into the gaps between each of the flat tubes and fixed in close contact with each of the flat tubes. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] In the heat exchanger of the present disclosure, by closely contacting the cold storage material container with the flat tube, the thermal resistance from the flat tube to the cold storage material can be reduced, and the cold storage material can be efficiently cooled by the refrigerant flowing through the flat tube, thereby achieving energy savings by the cooled cold storage material. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] Schematic cross-sectional view showing an outline of a refrigerator according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a refrigeration heat exchanger according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a refrigeration heat exchanger according to a first embodiment; [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a front view showing a refrigeration heat exchanger according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a contact state between the flat tube and the regenerator material according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] Block diagram showing a control configuration of the first embodiment [Figure 7] Graph showing operation in response to demand response [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a refrigeration heat exchanger according to a second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a cold storage material portion of the second embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a contact state between the flat tube and the regenerator material in the second embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another example of the cold storage material portion of the second embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a cold storage material portion of the third embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a contact state between the flat tube and the regenerator material in the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] (Findings that formed the basis of this disclosure) At the time when the inventors came up with the idea for the present disclosure, there was a technology in which a cold storage material was placed in contact with or close to a cooler that cooled the storage compartment by operating a compressor, and the storage compartment was cooled by the cold heat of the cooler and the cold storage material, thereby cooling the storage compartment by the amount of cooling provided by the cold heat of the cold storage material and the cooler when a load was applied when putting food in or taking it out. However, in the conventional technology, the cold storage material is made of a resin case and is arranged in the space between the both side walls of the cooling chamber on the side of the cooler, so the contact area between the refrigerant piping and the cold storage material is small, and further, because the cold storage material is made of a resin case, the thermal resistance between the cold storage material and the cooler is large, so the cold storage material cannot be cooled efficiently by the refrigerant. Therefore, the inventors discovered a problem that the heat exchange efficiency for cooling the cold storage material is low, the compressor needs to operate for a long time, and energy saving cannot be achieved, and the subject of the present disclosure was formed to solve this problem. In view of the above, the present disclosure provides a heat exchanger and a refrigerator that can efficiently cool a cold storage material with a refrigerant and achieve energy savings with the cooled cold storage material.

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, unnecessary detailed description may be omitted. For example, detailed description of well-known matters or redundant description of substantially the same configuration may be omitted. This is to avoid unnecessary redundancy in the following description and to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art. The accompanying drawings and the following description are provided to enable those skilled in the art to fully understand the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the subject matter described in the claims.

[0010] (Embodiment 1) Hereinafter, the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. [1-1.Configuration] [1-1-1. Refrigerator configuration] FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an outline of a refrigerator according to the present invention. As shown in Fig. 1, refrigerator 1 has a box-shaped main body 10. A partition plate 11 that divides the internal space of main body 10 is provided in the approximate center in the vertical direction of main body 10. The upper side of partition plate 11 is a refrigerating compartment 12, and the lower side of partition plate 11 is a freezing compartment 13. A refrigerator compartment door 14 is provided in front of the refrigerator compartment 12 so as to be freely opened and closed, and a freezer compartment door 15 is provided in front of the freezer compartment 13 so as to be freely opened and closed.

[0011] A refrigeration duct 20 extending vertically is provided at the rear of the refrigerator compartment 12. A freezing duct 21 extending vertically is provided at the rear of the freezer compartment 13. A refrigeration heat exchanger 22 serving as the heat exchanger of the present invention is housed inside the refrigerator duct 20. A refrigeration fan 23 is disposed above the refrigeration heat exchanger 22. By driving the refrigeration fan 23, the air inside the refrigeration compartment 12 is sucked in from below the refrigeration duct 20, passes through the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 for heat exchange, and is then blown out from above the refrigeration duct 20 into the interior of the refrigeration compartment 12.

[0012] A refrigeration heat exchanger 24 is housed inside the refrigeration duct 21. A refrigeration fan 25 is disposed above the refrigeration heat exchanger 24. When the refrigeration fan 25 is driven, the air inside the freezing chamber 13 is sucked in from below the refrigeration duct 21, passes through the refrigeration heat exchanger 24 for heat exchange, and is then blown out from above the refrigeration duct 21 into the inside of the freezing chamber 13. Below the refrigeration duct 21, a heater 26 is disposed.

[0013] A compressor 30 is installed at the upper rear of the main body 10. A condenser 31 is connected to the compressor 30 via a refrigerant pipe 32. A three-way valve 33 is connected to the condenser 31, and the three-way valve 33 is connected to the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 via an expansion mechanism 34. The three-way valve 33 is also connected to the refrigeration heat exchanger 24 via an expansion mechanism 35 . A refrigeration refrigerant cycle is formed in which the refrigerant circulates sequentially through the compressor 30, the condenser 31, the three-way valve 33, the expansion mechanism 34, and the refrigeration heat exchanger 22, and a refrigeration refrigerant cycle is formed in which the refrigerant circulates sequentially through the compressor 30, the condenser 31, the three-way valve 33, the expansion mechanism 35, and the refrigeration heat exchanger 24. The refrigeration refrigerant cycle and the freezing refrigerant cycle can be switched by switching the three-way valve 33.

[0014] [1-1-2. Configuration of refrigeration heat exchanger 22] Next, the configuration of the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 mounted in the refrigerator 1 will be described. Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 of embodiment 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view showing the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 of embodiment 1. Fig. 4 is a front view showing the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 of embodiment 1.

[0015] 2 to 4, the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 is provided with a refrigerant conducting member 40 through which a refrigerant flows. The refrigerant conducting member 40 is formed of a porous flat tube in which a plurality of substantially rectangular passages are arranged in succession. The refrigerant conducting member 40 is formed in a serpentine shape and includes a plurality of flat tubes 41 formed approximately parallel to each other at a predetermined interval, and bent portions 42 connecting the ends of each of these flat tubes 41. In this embodiment, six flat tubes 41 are arranged between headers, which will be described later. The number of flat tubes 41 is not limited to this, but can be set arbitrarily. Alternatively, each flat tube 41 and the bent portion 42 may be integral with each other, and one flat tube 41 may be formed between the headers in a meandering manner.

[0016] In this embodiment, the flat tubes 41 and the bent portions 42 are divided into three regions in the vertical direction: an upper region 43, a middle region 44, and a lower region 45. In this embodiment, the image is divided into three regions in the vertical direction, but it may be divided into two regions in the vertical direction, or into four or more regions.

[0017] An inlet header 46 and an outlet header 47 extending vertically are provided at one end of the outermost flat tube 41 . The inlet header 46 and the outlet header 47 are attached so as not to protrude from the end faces of the refrigerant conducting member 40. That is, the end faces of the inlet header 46 and the outlet header 47 are flush with the outer surfaces of the flat tubes 41 of the refrigerant conducting member 40. This makes it possible to reduce the thickness of the refrigerant conducting member 40, and when the refrigerant conducting member 40 is housed inside the refrigeration duct 20, it is possible to reduce the internal space of the refrigeration duct 20. As a result, it is possible to increase the internal space of the refrigeration compartment 12.

[0018] In this embodiment, the refrigerant is configured to flow in from the top of the inlet header 46 and to flow out from the bottom of the outlet header 47 . The inlet side header 46 and the outlet side header 47 may be provided at different ends of the flat tubes 41, with the inlet side header 46 and the outlet side header 47 being disposed on opposite sides of the refrigerant conducting member 40. The refrigerant inlet of the inlet side header 46 may be provided below instead of above, and the refrigerant outlet of the outlet side header 47 may be provided above instead of below.

[0019] 2, a partition plate 48 is provided at a position corresponding to the boundary between the upper region 43 and the middle region 44 of the inlet-side header 46. The middle region 44 and the lower region 45 of the inlet-side header 46 are in communication with each other. A partition plate 49 is provided at a position corresponding to the boundary between the middle region 44 and the lower region 45 of the outlet-side header 47. The upper region 43 of the outlet-side header 47 communicates with the position corresponding to the middle region 44.

[0020] The refrigerant that flows in from the upper part of the inlet header 46 passes through the interior of the upper region 43 of the refrigerant conduit 40 and flows to the outlet header 47. The refrigerant that flows into the outlet header 47 flows into the middle region 44 of the refrigerant conduit 40 and then flows to the inlet header 46, passes through the inlet header 46, flows through the lower region 45, and then flows out from the bottom of the outlet header 47. That is, the refrigerant conducting member 40 is arranged so that its width direction (vertical direction in Figure 4) is oriented in the direction of air flow within the refrigeration duct 20, and the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant conducting member 40 flows in a direction perpendicular to the direction of air flow.

[0021] Air flow paths 50 and cold storage material containers 52 in which cold storage material 51 is sealed are arranged alternately between the flat tubes 41 of the refrigerant conducting member 40 . In this embodiment, air flow paths 50 are formed in the outermost and central portions, and cooling storage material containers 52 are arranged between the air flow paths 50 . Fins 54 are arranged inside the air flow path 50, and are inclined at a predetermined angle to the flat tube 41 and bent in a zigzag pattern, and these fins 54 form a continuous air flow path 50 with an approximately triangular cross-sectional shape inside the air flow path 50. Alternatively, the air flow passages having a rectangular cross section may be formed continuously. The air flow path 50 is formed in the vertical direction (gravity direction) so as to follow the vertical direction of the refrigeration duct 20.

[0022] As a result, the air inside the refrigerator flowing from the bottom to the top of refrigeration duct 20 flows through air flow path 50, and at this time, exchanges heat with the refrigerant flowing inside refrigerant conducting member 40, and is cooled to a predetermined temperature. In addition, heat exchange also occurs between the refrigerant flowing inside refrigerant conducting member 40 and cold storage material 51, and thus cold storage material 51 is also cooled to a predetermined temperature.

[0023] In this embodiment, the cold storage material container 52 is made of a thin film member of a metal material such as aluminum. The cold storage material container 52 is flexible and can be deformed. The thickness of the cold storage material container 52 is configured to be approximately the same as the gap between the flat tubes 41. Then, by pressing the ice storage material container 52 into the gaps between the flat tubes 41, the ice storage material container 52 comes into close contact with the surface of each flat tube 41, thereby making it possible to hold the ice storage material container 52 between the flat tubes 41.

[0024] In this case, the end of the flat tube 41 opposite the bent portion 42 is open, so when the cold storage material container 52 is press-fitted into the gap in the flat tube 41, a force acts in the direction of opening the open end of the flat tube 41. If the gap in the flat tube 41 widens, the force holding the cold storage material container 52 weakens, making it impossible to hold the cold storage material container 52 in the gap in the flat tube 41, and there is a risk that the cold storage material container 52 will fall.

[0025] For this reason, in the present embodiment, a restraining member 55 is provided at the open end of the flat tube 41 to prevent the open end from expanding. As the restraining member 55, for example, a wire-like member such as a wire is used. Alternatively, the restraining member 55 may be a plate-like member fixed to the end face of the flat tube 41. In addition, in order to prevent the cold storage material container 52 from falling, a bottom plate or the like may be provided below the gap between the flat tubes 41 .

[0026] Since the cold storage material 51 is required to cool the low temperature compartment (approximately -3°C) in the refrigerator compartment 12, which is cooled to approximately 3°C, a cold storage material 51 with a melting point lower than -3°C, for example, a cold storage material 51 with a melting point between -5°C and -15°C, is used. In this case, since the cold storage material 51 is a mixture of water, a gelling agent, a preservative, and a coloring agent, if the cold storage material container 52 is made of a metal material, there is a risk of corrosion by water. Therefore, a corrosion-resistant layer 56 made of resin or the like is generally provided on the inner surface of the cold storage material container 52. Here, in the past, for example, a cold storage material has been provided in an air conditioner, and the air conditioner has been operated efficiently by cooling the cold storage material, but in the case of an air conditioner, the cold storage material is cooled at a relatively high temperature, so there is no need to use a cold storage material that is below freezing, as in this embodiment. In the case of such air conditioners, a paraffin-based cold storage material is generally used as the cold storage material, so there is no need for a corrosion-resistant layer on the inner surface of the cold storage material container.

[0027] By configuring the cold storage material 51 and the cold storage material container 52 in this manner, as shown in Figure 5, the cold storage material container 52, corrosion-resistant layer 56, and cold storage material 51 are in contact with the flat tube 41 in that order, and the cold storage material container 52, which is in close contact with the flat tube 41, can reduce the thermal resistance from the flat tube 41 to the cold storage material 51, and the refrigerant flowing through the flat tube 41 can efficiently cool the cold storage material 51. In the case of the regenerator material used in the air conditioner described above, since a corrosion-resistant layer is not required, there is no need to give excessive consideration to reducing the thermal resistance as in this embodiment.

[0028] In this embodiment, the lower ends of the fins 54 are located lower than the lower end of the refrigerant conducting member 40. This allows water that is generated as a result of frosting or condensation during heat exchange between the air inside the refrigerator and the refrigerant to be collected at the lower ends of the fins 54, thereby improving drainage. The upper ends of the fins 54 may be positioned higher than the upper end of the refrigerant conducting member 40. This allows the fins 54 to be cooled by the refrigerant, thereby improving the heat exchange efficiency of the air inside the refrigerator.

[0029] [1-1-3. Control configuration] FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the first embodiment. As shown in Fig. 6, the refrigerator 1 includes a control unit 60. The control unit 60 includes a processor, such as a CPU or an MPU, that executes a program, and memories, such as a ROM or a RAM, and executes various processes through cooperation between hardware and software, such that the processor reads out a control program stored in the memory and executes the process. The control unit 60 controls the compressor 30, the refrigeration fan 23, the freezing fan 25, the three-way valve 33, and the heater 26 based on the temperatures detected by the refrigeration room temperature sensor 61 and the freezing room temperature sensor 62.

[0030] [1-2. Operation] The operation of the refrigerator 1 configured as above will be described below. [1-2-1. Cooling operation] First, the compressor 30 is driven to send the refrigerant to the condenser 31, and then the three-way valve 33 is switched to send the refrigerant to either the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 or the freezing heat exchanger 24, which act as a cooler. The refrigerant sent to the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 flows in from the inlet header 46 of the refrigerant conducting member 40 and flows inside the upper region 43. The refrigerant that flows to the outlet header 47 flows through the middle region 44 via the outlet header 47, is sent to the inlet header 46, and flows through the inlet header 46 to the lower region 45. The refrigerant that has flowed through the lower region 45 flows out from the outlet header 47 and is returned to the compressor 30.

[0031] By driving the refrigerating fan 23 while the refrigerant is flowing inside the refrigerant conducting member 40, the air inside the refrigerator compartment 12 flows from below to above the refrigerating duct 20 and passes through the air flow path 50 of the refrigerating heat exchanger 22. As a result, the air inside the refrigerator compartment 12 exchanges heat with the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant conducting member 40 and is cooled. In this case, the cool storage material 51 is also cooled by the coolant flowing through the coolant conducting member 40 .

[0032] The refrigerant sent to the refrigeration heat exchanger 24 exchanges heat with the air inside the refrigerator flowing from the bottom to the top of the refrigeration duct 21 by driving the refrigeration fan 25, and the refrigerant cooled by the refrigerant is returned to the freezing chamber 13.

[0033] [1-2-1. Demand response control operation] Next, we will explain control that responds to demand response (DR) during periods of high power consumption, such as summer. Demand response is a mechanism that reduces the peak power consumption of society as a whole by suppressing power consumption in factories and homes in response to requests from power companies when power consumption in society as a whole peaks (for example, around 2 p.m. in summer). FIG. 7 is a graph showing the operation corresponding to the demand response. In this embodiment, a situation will be described in which power consumption peaks around 2 pm in the summer. The control in this embodiment is a control to stop the compressor 30 in a time period of one hour before and after 2 pm, which is the peak time for power consumption.

[0034] Assume that refrigerator 1 receives a demand response signal requesting reduction in power consumption from an external server such as an electric power company at 11:00. In this embodiment, the appliance that received the demand response signal needs to switch to an operation to reduce power consumption two hours later. First, it is assumed that compressor 30 is to be stopped at 1:00 PM, and control starts after an external instruction is received two hours prior to the stop at 11:00 AM. When the refrigerator 1 receives the demand response signal, the refrigerator 1 starts demand response control. Specifically, the control unit 60 switches the three-way valve 33 at 11:00 to control the refrigerant to flow to the refrigeration heat exchanger 24. In this state, by driving the compressor 30, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 30 passes through the condenser 31 and the expansion mechanism 35, and is sent to the refrigeration heat exchanger 24. The refrigerant sent to the refrigeration heat exchanger 24 exchanges heat with the air inside the freezer compartment 13 in the refrigeration heat exchanger 24, thereby cooling the inside of the freezer compartment 13 to a predetermined temperature. In this case, the predetermined temperature is set lower than the internal temperature that is normally set. In this embodiment, the temperature is controlled to be cooled to, for example, about -19°C to about -24°C.

[0035] When the cooling of the freezing compartment 13 is completed, the control unit 60 switches the three-way valve 33 to control the refrigerant to flow into the refrigerating heat exchanger 22. In this state, by driving the compressor 30, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 30 passes through the condenser 31 and the expansion mechanism 34, and is sent to the refrigeration heat exchanger 22. The refrigerant sent to the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 exchanges heat with the air inside the refrigerator compartment 12 in the refrigeration heat exchanger 22, thereby cooling the inside of the refrigerator compartment 12 to a predetermined temperature. At the same time as the refrigerator compartment 12 is cooled, the refrigerant flowing through the refrigeration heat exchanger 22 cools the cold storage material 51, and the cold storage material 51 stores cold.

[0036] When two hours have passed since the refrigerator 1 received the demand response signal (1:00 PM in this embodiment), the control unit 60 stops the compressor 30 at 1:00 PM. By stopping the compressor 30, the refrigerator 1 operates to reduce power consumption. In this state, the temperature of the refrigerator compartment 12 can be maintained at a substantially constant temperature due to the cooling capacity of the cold storage material 51, and the temperature of the freezer compartment 13 gradually rises but can be maintained at an appropriate temperature even at 3:00 p.m. when the demand-response control ends.

[0037] [1-3. Effects, etc.] As described above, this embodiment comprises a refrigerant conducting member 40 consisting of flat tubes 41 spaced apart from one another, a cold storage material container 52 arranged in the gaps between adjacent flat tubes 41 of the refrigerant conducting member 40 and containing cold storage material 51, air flow paths 50 formed between the flat tubes 41 and through which air flows, and fins 54 provided on the air flow path 50, and the cold storage material container 52 is formed from a flexible metal material, and is pressed into the gaps between the flat tubes 41 and fixed in close contact with each flat tube 41. Thus, by closely contacting the cold storage material container 52 made of a metal material with the flat tubes 41, it is possible to reduce the thermal resistance from the flat tubes 41 to the cold storage material 51, and the cold storage material 51 can be efficiently cooled by the refrigerant flowing through the flat tubes 41. This reduces the operating time of the compressor 30 for cooling the cold storage material 51 with the cooler, thereby achieving energy savings. Furthermore, efficient heat exchange between the cold storage material 51 and the cooler improves the heat exchange efficiency of the cooler and improves the cooling efficiency in the refrigeration cycle, thereby further shortening the operating time of the compressor 30 and achieving further energy savings.

[0038] In this embodiment, a restraining member 55 is provided at the open end of the gap between each flat tube 41 to prevent the gap from widening. This makes it possible to prevent the open ends of the gaps between the flat tubes 41 from expanding due to the cold storage material container 52 when the cold storage material container 52 is press-fitted into the gaps between the flat tubes 41 and held in close contact with them. Therefore, the cold storage material container 52 can be held securely and prevented from falling.

[0039] (Embodiment 2) [2-1.Configuration] Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 8 is a plan view showing the second embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 9 is a perspective view showing the cold storage material container 52 and the cold storage material storage container. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, in this embodiment, a cold storage material container 57 is used as a means for holding the cold storage material container 52. The cold storage material container 57 is a box-shaped container made of a metal material such as aluminum, and has an opening 58 formed at the top thereof. Since the ice storage container 57 is made of the same material as the fins 54, it is possible to heat-weld the ice storage container 57 together with the flat tubes 41 and the fins 54 during the process of heat-welding the flat tubes 41 and the fins 54, and fix it to the gaps in the flat tubes 41.

[0040] Similar to the first embodiment, the cold storage material container 52 is made of a thin film member of a metal material such as aluminum. The cold storage material container 52 is flexible and can be deformed. The thickness of the cold storage material container 52 is configured to be approximately the same as the inner width of the cold storage material storage container 57. Then, by press-fitting the cold storage material container 52 into the cold storage material storage container 57 through the opening 58 , the cold storage material container 52 comes into close contact with the inner surface of the cold storage material storage container 57 . The other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, so the same parts are given the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0041] [2-2. Effects, etc.] By configuring the cold storage material 51, cold storage material container 52, and cold storage material storage container 57 in this manner, as shown in Figure 10, the flat tube 41 is contacted in the following order: cold storage material storage container 57, cold storage material container 52, corrosion-resistant layer 56, and cold storage material 51.The cold storage material storage container 57 and cold storage material container 52, which are in close contact with the flat tube 41, can reduce the thermal resistance from the flat tube 41 to the cold storage material 51, and the refrigerant flowing through the flat tube 41 can efficiently cool the cold storage material 51. Therefore, the operating time of the compressor 30 for cooling the cold storage material 51 with the refrigerant is shortened, thereby achieving energy savings. Furthermore, efficient heat exchange between the cold storage material 51 and the cooler improves the heat exchange capacity of the cooler and improves the cooling efficiency in the refrigeration cycle, thereby further shortening the operating time of the compressor 30 and achieving further energy savings.

[0042] In the second embodiment, the opening 58 of the ice storage material container 57 is formed at the top, but for example, as shown in FIG. 11, the opening 58 may be formed on the side of the ice storage material container 57, and the ice storage material container 52 may be inserted from the side of the ice storage material container 57.

[0043] (Embodiment 3) [3-1.Configuration] Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 12 is a plan view showing a third embodiment of the present invention. 12, in this embodiment, a cold storage material container 52 is formed from a resin material, and a cold storage material 51 is sealed inside this cold storage material container 52. As the resin, for example, ABS resin or the like is used. Since the cold storage material container 52 is made of a resin material, the cold storage material container 52 is configured not to deform, as in the first and second embodiments. Furthermore, since the cold storage material container 52 is made of a resin material, there is no risk of corrosion due to moisture contained in the cold storage material 51, and therefore no corrosion-resistant layer is provided. In this embodiment, the cold storage material container 52 is fixed in the gaps between the flat tubes 41 by an adhesive 59 . The other configurations are the same as those in the first and second embodiments, so the same parts are given the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0044] [3-2. Effects, etc.] 13, the cold storage material 51 and the cold storage material container 52 are in contact with the flat tubes 41 in the following order: adhesive 59, cold storage material container 52, and cold storage material 51. Although the effect is somewhat less than when using a cold storage material container 52 made of a metal material as in the first or second embodiment, the cold storage material container 52, which is in close contact with the flat tubes 41 via adhesive 59, can reduce the thermal resistance from the flat tubes 41 to the cold storage material 51, and the refrigerant flowing through the flat tubes 41 can efficiently cool the cold storage material 51. Therefore, the operating time of the compressor 30 for cooling the cold storage material 51 with the refrigerant is shortened, thereby achieving energy savings. Furthermore, efficient heat exchange between the cold storage material 51 and the cooler improves the heat exchange capacity of the cooler and improves the cooling efficiency in the refrigeration cycle, thereby further shortening the operating time of the compressor 30 and achieving further energy savings.

[0045] As described above, Embodiments 1 to 3 have been described as examples of the technology disclosed in the present application. However, the technology in the present disclosure is not limited to these and can be applied to embodiments in which modifications, substitutions, additions, omissions, etc. are made. Furthermore, it is also possible to combine the components described in Embodiments 1 to 3 above to create new embodiments. [Industrial Applicability]

[0046] INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present disclosure is applicable to refrigerators that can efficiently cool a cold storage material using a refrigerant and can also achieve energy savings by using the cooled cold storage material to cool the air inside the refrigerator. [Explanation of symbols]

[0047] 1 refrigerator 10 Main Unit 11 Divider 12 Refrigerator 13 Freezer 14 Refrigerator door 15 Freezer door 20 Refrigeration duct 21 Refrigeration duct 22 Refrigeration heat exchanger 23 Refrigeration fan 24 Refrigeration heat exchanger 25 Refrigeration fan 26 Heater 30 Compressor 31 Condenser 32 Refrigerant piping 33 Three-way valve 34 Expansion mechanism 35 Expansion mechanism 40 Refrigerant conducting member 41 Flat tube 42 Magnification 43 Upper area 44 Chubu region 45 Lower area 46 Inlet header 46a Refrigerant inlet 47 Exit header 47a Refrigerant outlet 48 Partition 49 Partition 50 air flow path 51 Cold storage material 52 Cool storage container 54 Finn 55 Restraining member 56 Corrosion-resistant layer 57 Cooling material storage container 58 Aperture 59 Adhesive 60 Control Unit

Claims

1. a refrigerant conducting member made of flat tubes spaced apart from one another; a cold storage container in which a cold storage material is sealed and which is disposed between the adjacent flat tubes of the refrigerant conducting member; an air flow path formed between the flat tubes through which air flows; a fin provided in the air flow path, A restraining member for preventing the gap from widening is provided at an open end of the gap between each of the flat tubes, the cooling storage container is flexible and made of the same metal material as the fins; A heat exchanger characterized in that the heat exchanger is press-fitted into the gaps between each of the flat tubes and fixed in close contact with each of the flat tubes.

2. a cold storage material container that accommodates the cold storage material container; A heat exchanger characterized in that the regenerator container is fixed in the gap between the flat tubes.

3. A refrigerator equipped with the heat exchanger according to claim 1 or 2.

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