Dual Refrigerant Circuit Air Conditioner for Leak-Safe Heat Exchange
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional air conditioners with single refrigerant circuits risk exceeding safe refrigerant concentration limits in case of leaks, potentially harming humans, and suffer from reduced heating and cooling capacities due to entropy changes in multi-chamber systems.
Innovation Solution
A multi-chamber air conditioner design with independent heat-source and use-side refrigerant circuits, featuring intermediate heat exchangers and flow-rate controllers, allows for simultaneous cooling and heating while preventing refrigerant leaks into occupied spaces by using safe refrigerants and optimizing refrigerant flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single refrigerant circuit is used in air conditioners, then the system structure is simple, but refrigerant leakage into occupied spaces exceeds safe concentration limits
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerant circuit is divided into two independent circuits: a heat-source side refrigerant circuit containing the compressor and outdoor heat exchanger, and a use-side refrigerant circuit containing indoor heat exchangers. This segmentation isolates the heat-source refrigerant (which may be hazardous) from occupied spaces, while the use-side circuit uses safe refrigerants like water or non-toxic fluids that circulate only in indoor units.
Solution Approach 2:
Intermediate heat exchangers are introduced as intermediary components between the heat-source side refrigerant circuit and the use-side refrigerant circuit. These heat exchangers enable thermal energy transfer from the heat-source refrigerant to the use-side refrigerant without direct mixing of the two refrigerants, thus preventing hazardous refrigerant leakage into occupied spaces while maintaining system functionality.
2Productivity
If intermediate heat exchangers are added to enable simultaneous cooling and heating, then refrigeration efficiency improves, but the size of intermediate heat exchangers increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the parameters of the intermediate heat exchangers, including their heat transfer coefficients, surface areas, and flow rates, to achieve the required refrigeration efficiency with minimized size. By carefully controlling the flow rates of both heat-source and use-side refrigerants through flow-rate controllers, the heat exchangers can operate at maximum efficiency with reduced volume.
Solution Approach 2:
The intermediate heat exchangers are designed with nested or compact structures where heat transfer surfaces are arranged in space-efficient configurations. The heat-source side refrigerant pipes are positioned within or adjacent to the use-side refrigerant heat exchange surfaces, maximizing heat transfer area while minimizing the overall volume occupied by the intermediate heat exchangers.
3Productivity
If a multi-chamber system with multiple indoor units is used, then simultaneous cooling and heating capacity increases, but entropy changes reduce heating and cooling capacities
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs dynamic flow-rate controllers that continuously adjust the flow rates of both heat-source and use-side refrigerants based on real-time operating conditions, temperature differentials, and load requirements. This dynamic adjustment optimizes the refrigerant circulation to minimize entropy generation and maintain maximum heating and cooling capacities across all indoor units operating simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms where temperature sensors and flow meters monitor the state of refrigerants in both circuits, and the control system adjusts flow-rate controllers to maintain optimal operating parameters. This feedback control compensates for entropy changes and ensures that heating and cooling capacities are maximized despite the multi-chamber configuration.
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 design ensures safe refrigerant use, reduces the size of intermediate heat exchangers, enhances refrigeration efficiency by utilizing expansion power, and prevents refrigerant leakage into human spaces, improving both safety and performance.
Implementation Method 1
a heat-source side refrigerant circulating in the heat-source side refrigerant circuit and a use-side refrigerant circulating in the use-side refrigerant circuit perform heat exchange in the plurality of the intermediate heat exchangers
Implementation Method 2
refrigerant flow-rate controllers disposed between each of the intermediate heat exchangers
Data Source
AI summary
A multi-chamber air conditioner including a heat-source side refrigerant circuit in which a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, a first heat exchanger, a refrigerant flow-rate controller, and a second heat exchanger are connected in series, a first use-side refrigerant circuit in which the first heat exchanger and an indoor heat exchanger are connected in series, and a second use-side refrigerant circuit in which the second heat exchanger and the indoor heat exchanger are connected in series, and a heat-source side refrigerant circulating in the heat-source side refrigerant circuit and a use-side refrigerant circulating in the use-side refrigerant circuit are heat-exchanged in the first heat exchanger. The heat-source side refrigerant circulating in the heat-source side refrigerant circuit and the use-side refrigerant circulating in the use-side refrigerant circuit are heat-exchanged in the second heat exchanger.