Helical Screw Compressor Cooling Jacket with Partition Wall
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Solution Overview
Problem
Screw compressors used for compressing gases to very high pressures experience significant heating, necessitating effective cooling solutions, and require easy filling and emptying of the cooling chamber with coolant to maintain efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The design features a cooling chamber surrounding the rotor housing where the coolant flows around the outer surface of the rotor housing in a nearly 360° circumferential direction, with a sharp deflection at the partition connecting the rotor housing to the cooling jacket, creating an intensive cooling effect akin to a cooling rib, and includes specific openings for easy filling and draining of the coolant.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the cooling chamber is designed to surround the rotor housing completely, then the cooling effectiveness is improved, but the complexity of the cooling chamber structure increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling chamber is segmented into an upper cooling chamber and a lower cooling chamber by a partition wall, which simplifies the overall structure while maintaining complete surrounding coverage of the rotor housing through multiple inlet and outlet openings distributed across both chambers
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling chamber extends in the axial direction with the partition wall creating a multi-level structure, allowing coolant to flow around the rotor housing from multiple angles (upper and lower sides) while maintaining a manageable single-piece construction
2Ease of manufacture
If the cooling chamber is designed as a single piece, then the manufacturing simplicity is improved, but the cooling coverage and effectiveness are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The single-piece cooling chamber is segmented functionally into upper and lower sections by a partition wall, enabling coolant to access the rotor housing from multiple directions (upper and lower sides) while maintaining manufacturing simplicity through monolithic construction
Solution Approach 2:
The partition wall serves multiple functions: it divides the cooling chamber into upper and lower sections, provides structural support, and acts as a cooling rib itself, while the single-piece construction maintains manufacturing simplicity
3Temperature
If the coolant flow path is extended to cover more of the rotor housing surface, then the cooling effectiveness is improved, but the length of the cooling channel increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling channel utilizes the axial dimension by extending from upper inlet openings through the partition wall to lower outlet openings, allowing coolant to cover extensive surfaces of the rotor housing in a compact path without excessive channel length
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling channel follows the curved surface of the rotor housing in a circumferential direction, allowing efficient cooling coverage with minimal channel length by utilizing the natural geometry of the rotor housing surface
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 achieves a very intensive cooling effect, particularly at the partition wall, enhancing the compressor's performance and simplifying the process of filling and emptying the cooling chamber, thereby addressing the heating issues associated with high-pressure gas compression.
Implementation Method 1
the coolant in the cooling chamber flows around the outer surface of the rotor housing in the circumferential direction
Implementation Method 2
a very intensive cooling effect is achieved here, in particular also in the area of the partition wall
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The invention relates to the rotor housing (1) of a helical screw compressor which is surrounded by a cooling housing (21, 23, 25) which forms a cooling chamber (27) which surrounds the rotor housing (1) in an annular-shaped manner, said cooling chamber being intercepted on a point by a separating wall (29) which connects the rotor housing (1) to the cooling housing (21). The coolant, which is guided to an inlet (31), is oriented counter to the lower side of the separating wall (29) through a perpendicular inlet channel (35) which flows in an upward direction, is deviated there and flows about the rotor housing (1) until the upper side of the separating wall (29), where it is deviated again and is discharged to the outlet opening (33) through a perpendicular outlet channel (37) which extends in an upward manner. A weephole (47) is provided in a wall of an inlet channel (35) and a ventilation opening (41) is provided in the wall of the outlet channel (37), such that only a small amount of residual air remains in the cooling chamber (27) when it is filled with a cooling liquid and only a small amount of residual fluid remains when emptied.