Air-Conditioner Control Cooling with Staged Heat Rejection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air-conditioning apparatuses that use refrigerant cooling systems for heat-generating elements suffer from decreased operating efficiency due to the heating of refrigerant, which reduces cooling capacity for air-conditioned spaces.
Innovation Solution
An air-conditioning apparatus with a refrigerant circuit connected by pipes, including a compressor, heat exchangers, and cooling units, where a heat transfer element is cooled by a second cooling unit before being cooled by a first cooling unit using refrigerant, reducing the load on the first cooling unit and maintaining efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a refrigerant cooling system is used to cool the heat-generating element, then the heat-generating element is cooled effectively, but the refrigerant is heated which decreases cooling capacity and operating efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling function is segmented into two independent cooling units: a first cooling unit that cools the heat-generating element, and a second cooling unit that cools the refrigerant. This segmentation allows each unit to perform its specific cooling function independently, preventing the heat-generating element from heating the refrigerant and thus preserving cooling capacity while maintaining effective cooling of the heat-generating element
2Temperature
If a large-sized heat sink is used in the air cooling system, then heat rejection is ensured, but the amount of metallic material increases and production cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces the traditional air cooling system with a large metallic heat sink with a refrigerant-based cooling system. By using refrigerant circulation through the cooling units, the system achieves effective heat rejection without requiring large amounts of metallic material, thus reducing production cost while maintaining heat rejection capability
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration allows for effective heat rejection from the heat-generating element while preventing a decrease in operating efficiency, as the second cooling unit handles initial heat transfer, thereby minimizing the load on the refrigerant-based cooling system.
Implementation Method 1
a heat transfer element 20 having a proximal end connected to the heat-generating element 10a and a distal end connected to the first cooling unit 30 and conveying heat generated by the heat-generating element 10a
Implementation Method 2
a second cooling unit 40 connected between the proximal end and the distal end of the heat transfer element 20 and cooling the heat transfer element 20
Implementation Method 3
the first cooling unit 30 cools the heat transfer element 20 using the refrigerant
Data Source
AI summary
An air-conditioning apparatus includes a refrigerant circuit in which a compressor, a first heat exchanger, an expansion unit, a second heat exchanger, and a first cooling unit having a refrigerant path are connected to each other by a pipe and through which refrigerant flows, a controller configured to control operation of the compressor and having a heat-generating element, a heat transfer element having a proximal end connected to the heat-generating element and a distal end connected to the first cooling unit, and conveying heat generated by the heat-generating element, and a second cooling unit connected between the proximal end and the distal end of the heat transfer element and cooling the heat transfer element, and the first cooling unit cools the heat transfer element using the refrigerant.