Temperature control of a heat source or a heat sink

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a system for colling a heat source and optionally generating heat by using the heat source. The heat source may be a waste heat, e.g. waste heat absorbed in a coolant cooling a data center or other facilities requiring cooling. The system is configured to monitor the condition of the surrounding of its operation in order to select the optimal mode of operation. The two main modes of operations are: (i) a cooling combined with power generation, and (ii) only cooling. The relationship between these two temperatures defines the mode of operation. By measuring the temperature of the surrounding and the temperature of the working fluid in some locations within the system, a decision of the optimal mode of operation is taken and the system may be configured to automatically switch between the mode of operations. The system makes use of a two-phase turbine and a two-phase compressor, performing quasi-isothermal expansion and compression, respectively. The heat transfer liquid (HTL) and the working fluid (WF) used in in the system are thermally coupled or flow through selected elements according to the selected mode of operation in order to obtain the desired result.

Images