Cryogenic Regenerator Materials Replacing Pb in Helium Pumps
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current regenerator materials, such as Pb and magnetic materials, face issues with environmental harm, high cost, and manufacturing difficulties, while requiring special handling and high purity, which complicates the operation and maintenance of cryogenic pumps and refrigerators.
Innovation Solution
The use of Sn, Bi—Sn alloy, and Ag—Sn alloy as regenerator materials, which offer high thermal conductivity, specific heat, and ease of handling, eliminating Pb's environmental concerns and reducing costs, and allowing for efficient heat exchange with refrigerant gases.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If Pb is used as regenerator material to achieve high specific heat and thermal conductivity, then the refrigerator performance is improved, but environmental harm and handling complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces Pb with alternative materials (Sn, Bi-Sn alloy, Ag-Sn alloy) that are environmentally friendly and easier to handle. These substitute materials maintain the required thermal properties while eliminating the environmental and handling issues associated with Pb, effectively using readily available, non-toxic materials instead of problematic ones.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material composition parameters by substituting Pb with Sn-based or Ag-Sn alloy materials. This parameter change maintains the essential thermal conductivity and specific heat requirements while fundamentally altering the environmental and handling characteristics of the regenerator material.
2Reliability
If magnetic material is used as regenerator material to achieve higher specific heat at very low temperature, then the refrigerator performance is improved, but cost and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive magnetic materials with cheaper Sn-based or Ag-Sn alloy materials. These substitute materials are more economical and easier to manufacture while maintaining the necessary thermal properties for refrigerator operation, thereby reducing both cost and manufacturing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material composition parameters by substituting magnetic materials with Sn-based or Ag-Sn alloy materials. This parameter change maintains the essential thermal conductivity and specific heat requirements while fundamentally altering the cost and manufacturability characteristics of the regenerator material.
3Use of energy by moving object
If high purity Pb is used to improve refrigerator performance, then the thermal efficiency is improved, but handling complexity and special care requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces high purity Pb with alternative materials (Sn, Bi-Sn alloy, Ag-Sn alloy) that do not require the same level of purity and special handling. These materials maintain adequate thermal efficiency while being easier to handle and process, eliminating the need for specialized handling procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material composition parameters by substituting high purity Pb with Sn-based or Ag-Sn alloy materials. This parameter change maintains the essential thermal properties required for efficient operation while fundamentally altering the handling and operational characteristics to be more user-friendly.
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
These materials maintain performance comparable to Pb and magnetic materials, are environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and easy to manufacture, reducing handling complexities and operational expenses, while ensuring high thermal efficiency and compatibility with existing cryogenic systems.
Implementation Method 1
heat is exchanged between the refrigerant and regenerator material
Implementation Method 2
to reserve heat and precool the helium gas to be transferred into the expansion space
Implementation Method 3
The compressed helium gas is transferred into the cold expansion space in the cold end and it is adiabatically expanded to obtain low temperature
Data Source
AI summary
The invention has an object to provide a regenerator and cryogenics pump using a regenerator material which fulfills such requirements as specific heat, thermal conductivity, manufacturing easiness, strength, hardness, chemical stabilization and low cost instead of Pb which is environmentally harmful. In a regenerator 14 which contains regenerator material 16 in an internal path for refrigerant, and in which heat is exchanged between the helium gas as refrigerant, and regenerator material, regenerator material 16 is any one of Sn, Bi—Sn alloy and Ag—Sn alloy. The regenerator material 16 is spherical. Plural spheres are packed in the internal path of the regenerator 14.