Dual-Blower Heating Assembly for Low-Energy Wide-Range Modulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Heating appliances powered by hydrogen or hydrogen-containing fuel gas require higher fan outputs, leading to increased electrical energy consumption and inefficiency when operating at power levels away from their design point, and there is a need for reliable and robust modulation across a wide power range.
Innovation Solution
A heating appliance is equipped with two blowers connected in series, each with a maximum output lower than the total required, and a control unit distributes blower power between them to minimize energy consumption and ensure reliable operation across a wide range of outputs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single blower is used to provide required air flow, then the system structure is simple, but electrical energy consumption increases when operating away from the design point
Solution Approach 1:
The single blower is divided into multiple blowers (first blower and second blower) that can operate independently or in combination. This segmentation allows the system to select the most energy-efficient configuration based on the required air flow, thereby reducing electrical energy consumption when operating away from the design point while maintaining manageable system complexity through modular architecture
2Ease of manufacture
If a single blower is used, then manufacturing costs are lower, but reliability decreases when one blower fails
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses multiple blowers instead of a single blower, creating redundancy that improves reliability. If one blower fails, the other can continue operating to maintain heating functionality. The modular design allows for independent replacement of individual blowers, balancing manufacturing costs with improved system availability and robustness
3Power
If blower power is increased to handle hydrogen fuel requirements, then adequate air flow is provided, but electrical energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The total blower power requirement is segmented between multiple blowers, each operating at or near their optimal design point. This allows the system to provide adequate air flow for hydrogen fuel combustion while maintaining energy efficiency, as each blower operates in its most efficient range rather than forcing a single blower to operate at high power levels
Solution Approach 2:
The control unit dynamically adjusts the operation of individual blowers based on the required heating output and fuel type. By modulating the operation of multiple blowers rather than relying on a single fixed-power blower, the system adapts to varying power requirements while minimizing electrical energy consumption at each operating point
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to an arrangement and a method for operating a heating appliance (1) in which a fuel is mixed with an air stream, the resulting mixture is burned in a combustion chamber (9) and the resulting combustion gases can be discharged via an exhaust system (10), wherein the heating appliance (1) has a first blower (6) and a second blower (7) connected in series thereto, which are connected to a control and regulating unit (4) via separate control lines (11) and can be controlled individually, wherein in particular the control and regulating unit (4) is configured to distribute the blower power required for a predefinable output of the heating appliance (1) to the first (6) and the second (7) blower in such a way as to minimize power consumption.The invention makes it possible to reduce the consumption of electrical energy in a fuel-operated heating appliance (1) and to carry out robust operation with high availability in a wide modulation range of the blower power.