Beverage Chiller Coil Projections for Compact Rapid Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional chillers for beverages require large reservoirs for pre-cooling, leading to a substantial footprint and extended cooling times, making them unsuitable for home or office use, and they struggle to rapidly chill large volumes of beverages while maintaining carbonation.
Innovation Solution
A compact chiller design featuring an evaporator coil with projections within a reservoir containing a heat exchange fluid, allowing for rapid cooling of beverages as they flow through a chiller coil, with the coolant circulation forming a bank of frozen heat exchange fluid on the coil and projections, enhancing heat transfer efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a reservoir is used to store pre-cooled beverages, then a continuous supply of cold beverages can be dispensed, but the chiller occupies substantial space and requires extended cooling time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes phase transition of the heat exchange fluid (freezing and melting) to store and release cooling capacity. The evaporator coil freezes the heat exchange fluid in the reservoir, creating a bank of frozen fluid that can rapidly cool beverages on demand without requiring a large pre-cooled storage reservoir, thus reducing chiller size while maintaining continuous dispensing capability
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary cooling by freezing the heat exchange fluid in the reservoir before beverage dispensing. This pre-freezing action stores thermal energy in the frozen heat exchange fluid, which then rapidly absorbs heat from beverages as they flow through the chiller coil during dispensing, enabling continuous service without large storage capacity
2Duration of action of moving object
If a reservoir is used to store pre-cooled beverages, then cooling can be performed in advance, but the cooling process takes an extended period of time
Solution Approach 1:
The phase transition of the heat exchange fluid from liquid to solid in the reservoir creates a large thermal energy storage capacity in a compact form. When beverages flow through the chiller coil, the frozen heat exchange fluid rapidly melts, absorbing substantial heat quickly, thus achieving rapid beverage cooling without extended cooling cycles
Solution Approach 2:
The patent concentrates the cooling function in the reservoir by freezing the heat exchange fluid locally around the evaporator coil, creating a high-density thermal energy storage zone. This localized freezing approach enables rapid heat transfer to beverages passing through the chiller coil, reducing both cooling time and overall system size
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
The chiller achieves rapid cooling of beverages to 5°C or less in seconds, maintaining carbonation and allowing continuous dispensing, while its compact size is suitable for home or office settings, with a high compact ratio coefficient indicating efficient heat exchange.
Implementation Method 1
when the coolant is circulated through the plurality of windings of the evaporator coil, a bank of frozen heat exchange fluid forms on the plurality of windings and on the projections
Implementation Method 2
a chiller coil arranged in the reservoir, wherein the beverage is configured to flow through the chiller coil
Implementation Method 3
projections extending from an exterior surface of one or more of the plurality of windings
Data Source
AI summary
A chiller for cooling a beverage includes a reservoir configured to hold a heat exchange fluid and an evaporator coil arranged within the reservoir. The evaporator coil includes a plurality of windings configured to circulate a coolant, and projections extending from an exterior surface of one or more of the plurality of windings. The chiller further includes a chiller coil arranged in the reservoir, wherein the beverage is configured to flow through the chiller coil. When the coolant is circulated through the plurality of windings of the evaporator coil, a bank of frozen heat exchange fluid forms on the windings and on the projections.