Flammable-Refrigerant Air Conditioner With Segmented Pipe Thickness
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional air conditioners fail to reliably prevent refrigerant leakage when using flammable refrigerants, especially in indoor environments where ignition sources are more prevalent, due to inadequate anticorrosion and pressure-resistant designs.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates an air conditioner system with a first refrigerant pipe inside the room and a second refrigerant pipe outside, where the second pipe has a thinner portion to contain leaks, ensuring safety and preventing refrigerant leakage within the standard use period, even when using flammable refrigerants.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a flammable refrigerant is used in an air conditioner, then the environmental performance is improved, but the safety risk increases due to potential leakage and ignition in indoor environments
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerant pipe system is segmented into indoor and outdoor portions with different thickness specifications. The indoor refrigerant pipe is designed with greater thickness to provide enhanced leakage prevention in environments with ignition sources, while the outdoor pipe uses standard thickness. This segmentation allows targeted safety measures in different locations.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the refrigerant pipe system are assigned different quality characteristics (thickness). The indoor portion receives enhanced thickness for superior leakage prevention, while the outdoor portion maintains standard specifications. This local differentiation optimizes safety where it is most needed without unnecessarily increasing overall system complexity.
2Reliability
If the thickness of the indoor refrigerant pipe is increased to prevent leakage, then the safety is improved, but the manufacturing cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerant pipe system is divided into indoor and outdoor segments with different thickness specifications. Only the indoor segment requiring enhanced leakage prevention uses increased thickness, while the outdoor segment maintains standard thickness. This segmentation minimizes overall material usage and system complexity while achieving the necessary safety level.
Solution Approach 2:
Enhanced pipe thickness is applied locally only to the indoor refrigerant pipe where leakage prevention is most critical due to the presence of ignition sources. The outdoor pipe maintains standard thickness. This localized approach achieves superior leakage prevention where needed without unnecessarily increasing overall device complexity.
3Reliability
If conventional anticorrosion design is used, then the manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but the refrigerant leakage prevention in indoor environments is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The anticorrosion and leakage prevention design is differentiated by location: the indoor refrigerant pipe receives enhanced thickness specification for superior leakage suppression, while the outdoor pipe uses conventional design. This local quality approach targets improved reliability where it is most needed without unnecessarily complicating the overall manufacturing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The pipe system is segmented into indoor and outdoor portions with different design specifications. The indoor portion uses enhanced thickness for superior leakage prevention, while the outdoor portion maintains conventional design. This segmentation achieves improved refrigerant leakage suppression in critical areas without unnecessarily increasing overall design complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is an air conditioner which can suppress refrigerant leakage in a room and has a high safety even when using a flammable refrigerant. The air conditioner includes an indoor apparatus placed in a room, and an outdoor apparatus placed in an outside of the room separated from the room by a wall. The indoor apparatus includes a first refrigerant pipe in which a flammable refrigerant flows. The outdoor apparatus includes a second refrigerant pipe which is connected to the first refrigerant pipe and in which the flammable refrigerant flows. The second refrigerant pipe has a portion smaller in thickness than a minimum-thickness portion of the first refrigerant pipe.