Multi-Chamber Air Conditioning With Isolated Refrigerant Cycles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air-conditioning apparatuses face issues with refrigerant leakage, which can exceed safe concentration limits, causing safety hazards, and suffer from performance deterioration due to refrigerant flow control devices and varying cooling/heating capacities across indoor units.
Innovation Solution
A multi-chamber air-conditioning apparatus with a heat-source-side refrigerant cycle and use-side refrigerant cycles that are independent of each other, featuring intermediate heat exchangers and a bypass system to prevent refrigerant leakage and optimize refrigerant flow control, ensuring safe operation and efficient cooling/heating performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single refrigerant cycle is used in air-conditioning apparatus, then the system structure is simple, but refrigerant leakage can exceed safe concentration limits causing safety hazards
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the single refrigerant cycle into two independent refrigerant cycles: a heat-source-side refrigerant cycle and a use-side refrigerant cycle. The heat-source-side cycle contains the compressor and outdoor heat exchanger, while the use-side cycle contains indoor heat exchangers. These cycles are connected through intermediate heat exchangers that transfer heat without allowing refrigerant mixing. This segmentation isolates refrigerant leakage to specific zones, preventing widespread contamination and improving safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces intermediate heat exchangers as intermediary components between the heat-source-side and use-side refrigerant cycles. These intermediate heat exchangers facilitate heat transfer between the two cycles while maintaining physical separation of the refrigerants. The intermediary structure allows thermal energy exchange without refrigerant contamination, solving the safety issue while maintaining system functionality.
2Ease of operation
If refrigerant flow control devices are installed in the refrigerant cycle, then refrigerant flow can be controlled, but pressure loss increases causing performance deterioration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the refrigerant flow control devices from the main refrigerant cycle pathways and relocates them to bypass lines. The main refrigerant flow can bypass the control devices when full flow is needed, minimizing pressure loss. The control devices are only engaged when flow regulation is required, reducing their impact on overall system performance while maintaining operational control capability.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple indoor units are connected in series through intermediate heat exchangers, then simultaneous cooling and heating is enabled, but heat exchange capacity varies across units
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic flow control mechanisms that can adjust refrigerant distribution to each indoor unit based on its specific heating or cooling demands. The system can dynamically switch between series and parallel connection configurations of indoor units, and adjust flow rates individually for each unit. This dynamic adaptation ensures uniform heat exchange capacity across all units while enabling flexible simultaneous cooling and heating operations.
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 prevents refrigerant leakage into occupied spaces, maintains efficient operation by avoiding pressure drops, and enhances cooling and heating capacities across indoor units, ensuring safe and effective simultaneous cooling and heating operations.
Implementation Method 1
each of the plurality of intermediate heat exchangers exchanges heat between a heat-source-side refrigerant circulating through the heat-source-side refrigerant cycle and a use-side refrigerant circulating through the use-side refrigerant cycle
Data Source
AI summary
A multi-chamber type air-conditioning apparatus is provided in which a refrigerant whose effect on human bodies is a concern is prevented from leaking into a room or the like in which an indoor unit is installed, simultaneous operation of cooling and heating is possible, and performance deterioration by a refrigerant flow control device or drop of the cooling capacity of the indoor unit can be prevented.A heat-source-side refrigerant cycle A in which compressor 11, an outdoor heat exchanger 13, a second refrigerant flow control device 25b, a first intermediate heat exchanger 21, a first refrigerant flow control device 25, a second intermediate heat exchanger 22, and a third refrigerant flow control device 25c are connected in series and a use-side refrigerant cycle B in which each of the first intermediate heat exchanger 21 and the second intermediate heat exchanger 22 and each indoor heat exchanger 31 are connected in series, and in each of the first intermediate heat exchanger 21 and the second intermediate heat exchanger 22, and a heat-source-side refrigerant circulating through the heat-source-side refrigerant cycle A and a use-side refrigerant circulating through the use-side refrigerant cycle B are made to exchange heat.