Outdoor Heat Exchanger Path Switching for Cooling and Heating
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional air conditioners are designed to optimize performance in either cooling or heating operations, resulting in suboptimal performance during the other mode due to fixed refrigerant path configurations, which affect heat exchange efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The air conditioner dynamically adjusts the number and length of refrigerant paths in the outdoor heat exchanger based on the refrigerant's state, using a combination of parallel and series connections and valves controlled by a controller to optimize heat exchange efficiency during both cooling and heating operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the number of refrigerant paths is increased, then heat exchange capacity is improved, but refrigerant flow rate decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerant path is segmented into multiple parallel channels within the heat exchanger. By controlling which segments (paths) are active, the system can adjust the distribution of refrigerant flow. When more paths are activated, the total heat exchange capacity increases while the flow rate per path decreases, but the parallel configuration maintains adequate overall flow characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The number of active refrigerant paths is dynamically controlled based on operational requirements. During cooling, more paths are activated to increase heat exchange capacity while the refrigerant flow rate is distributed across these paths. During heating, fewer paths are activated to maintain higher refrigerant flow rate and prevent excessive pressure drop, thus balancing heat exchange capacity and flow rate requirements.
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 dynamic adjustment enhances heat exchange efficiency by optimizing refrigerant flow rates and path configurations for each operational mode, improving overall performance and maintaining optimal efficiency during both cooling and heating operations.
Implementation Method 1
an outdoor heat exchanger serves as a condenser that condenses a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from a compressor into a liquefied refrigerant by performing heat exchange
Implementation Method 2
the outdoor heat exchanger serves as an evaporator that evaporates a refrigerant in a mixture state of gas and liquid collected from the indoor heat exchanger into a refrigerant that is in a gaseous state by performing a heat exchange
Implementation Method 3
performances of heat exchange are different from each other according to the flow rate of the refrigerant
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
An air conditioner includes an outdoor heat exchanger (10) that is divided into a plurality of unit paths (20,30), at least two of the plurality of unit paths are connected in series or parallel to one another according to cooling/heating operation, so that it is possible to vary the number or length of paths through which a refrigerant passes. Since the number or length of paths is properly selected and used, it is possible to enhance efficiency.