Heat Pump Component Nesting to Reduce Outdoor Unit Size
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional heat pumps with plate type subcoolers face challenges in compact arrangement due to large volumes of components like the accumulator, plate type heat exchanger, and oil separator, leading to increased size and inefficient space utilization.
Innovation Solution
The heat pump is designed with the compressor, receiver, accumulator, oil separator, and subcooler housed in a package, where the subcooler is placed in the liquid refrigerant path downstream of the receiver, the accumulator in the compressor's intake path, and the oil separator in the discharge path, with components arranged on intersecting straight lines to optimize space usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a plate type heat exchanger with large volume is adopted as a subcooler to increase heat exchange capacity, then cooling performance is improved, but the heat pump size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The subcooler is disposed inside the receiver by utilizing the receiver's internal space. The receiver serves as a housing for both the liquid refrigerant storage and the subcooler component, creating a nested arrangement where one component (subcooler) is placed within another (receiver). This eliminates the need for separate external space for the subcooler, thereby maintaining compact heat pump size while preserving the high heat exchange capacity of the plate type heat exchanger.
2Reliability
If an accumulator with large volume is provided for separating gaseous and atomized refrigerant, then separation performance is improved, but the heat pump size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The accumulator and receiver are merged into a single integrated component. The receiver is designed to serve dual functions: storing liquid refrigerant and acting as an accumulator for separating gaseous and atomized refrigerant. This combining of functions allows the system to achieve reliable refrigerant separation without requiring a separate large-volume accumulator, thus reducing the overall heat pump size.
3Reliability
If an oil separator with large volume is provided for separating lubricating oil from refrigerant gas, then separation performance is improved, but the heat pump size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The receiver is designed as a multi-functional component that simultaneously performs three functions: storing liquid refrigerant, acting as an accumulator for gas-liquid separation, and serving as an oil separator. By integrating these functions into a single component, the system achieves reliable oil separation performance without requiring a separate large-volume oil separator, thereby maintaining compact heat pump dimensions.
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 configuration allows for a compact heat pump design by efficiently arranging large volume components, utilizing space effectively and maintaining high cooling performance with a plate type heat exchanger as the subcooler.
Implementation Method 1
the subcooler provided in a liquid refrigerant path of a refrigerant flow downstream of the receiver
Implementation Method 2
the accumulator provided in an intake path of the compressor
Implementation Method 3
the oil separator provided in a discharge path of the compressor
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A heat pump comprises an outdoor unit (50) which includes: a receiver (17); a subcooler (18) provided in a liquid refrigerant path of a refrigerant flow downstream of the receiver (17); an accumulator (26) provided in an intake path of a compressor (1); and an oil separator (3) provided in a discharge path of the compressor (1). The subcooler (18) comprises a plate type heat exchanger, and the subcooler (18) is adjacent to the receiver (17) in the planar view.