High efficiency radiant heater
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Solution Overview
Problem
Gas fired radiant tube heaters face a trade-off between high radiant heat efficiency and overall thermal efficiency, with high radiant efficiency often coming at the expense of reduced overall thermal efficiency, and they tend to be less compact in design.
Innovation Solution
A radiant tube heater design featuring a burner assembly with a pre-mixer chamber, a combustion air pre-heater using residual sensible heat, and a secondary air channel, along with a cross-flow type heat exchanger block configuration, which promotes efficient mixing of air and fuel, preheats combustion air, and directs radiant heat efficiently downward.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the heater is designed for high radiant efficiency, then radiant heat efficiency is improved, but overall thermal efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter of combustion air by preheating it before combustion. This allows the combustion process to occur at higher temperatures, improving radiant heat efficiency while the preheating process recovers heat from exhaust gases, maintaining overall thermal efficiency. The parameter change in combustion air temperature resolves the contradiction between radiant efficiency and thermal efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the harmful waste heat in exhaust gases into a beneficial resource by using it to preheat combustion air through a heat exchanger. This transforms what would be energy loss into a useful input, allowing high radiant efficiency through higher combustion temperatures while maintaining overall thermal efficiency by recovering otherwise wasted energy.
2Use of energy by moving object
If the heater is designed for high radiant efficiency, then radiant heat efficiency is improved, but device compactness deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the preheating function into the combustion air supply system by integrating a heat exchanger that uses exhaust gas heat to preheat combustion air. This combined approach allows high radiant efficiency through elevated combustion temperatures while maintaining compactness by eliminating the need for separate external preheating equipment and utilizing existing exhaust pathways.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the vertical dimension by positioning the radiant tube assembly in an elevated location to radiate heat downward toward occupants. This spatial arrangement improves radiant heat distribution efficiency while maintaining a compact horizontal footprint, resolving the contradiction between radiant efficiency and device compactness through three-dimensional space utilization.
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
The solution achieves a higher radiant efficiency while maintaining good overall thermal efficiency and compactness by effectively utilizing residual heat and optimizing the flow of combustion air and fuel, resulting in improved heat energy distribution and reduced energy losses.
Implementation Method 1
a combustion air pre-heater... where in use at least part of the combustion air supplied to said plenum is preheated in said air pre-heater using residual sensible heat of the hot combustion gas products of the heater
Implementation Method 2
preheated in said air pre-heater using residual sensible heat of the hot combustion gas products
Implementation Method 3
combustion air flows from said plenum chamber through an orifice to said pre-mixer where said air is mixed with burner fuel entering said pre-mixer through said nozzle
Implementation Method 4
mixed with burner fuel entering said pre-mixer through said nozzle prior to being combusted at a burner head
Implementation Method 5
Gas fired radiant tube heaters... converted to radiant heat... heat to be radiated downwardly
Data Source
AI summary
A radiant tube heater with a burner assembly, a radiant tube assembly and a combustion air pre-heater, wherein the burner assembly comprises: a burner fuel nozzle; a plenum chamber and a pre-mixer chamber; the plenum chamber having a combustion air inlet; wherein in use: combustion air flows from said plenum chamber through an orifice to said pre-mixer where said air is mixed with burner fuel entering said pre-mixer through said nozzle prior to being combusted at a burner head; said pre-mixer being at least partly located within said radiant tube assembly; and where in use at least part of the combustion air supplied to said plenum is preheated in said air pre-heater using residual sensible heat of the hot combustion gas products of the heater.