Parallel Evaporator Cooling Layout for Uniform Refrigerant Supply
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Solution Overview
Problem
Motor vehicle chillers for electric or hybrid vehicles require a refrigerant circulation with high and flexibly controllable cooling capacity to optimize battery and electronic component cooling, as well as air conditioning, while existing systems face challenges in uniform refrigerant distribution and overheating issues.
Innovation Solution
A motor vehicle chiller with multiple evaporators of different cooling capacities, featuring a refrigerant circulation with a compressor, condenser, expansion valve, and at least two parallel evaporators, including a refrigerant collector and pump to ensure stable liquid refrigerant supply to evaporators with lower cooling capacity, preventing local overheating and ensuring uniform evaporation temperatures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple evaporators of different cooling capacities are connected in parallel to a single expansion valve, then the system can serve multiple cooling tasks (air conditioning and battery cooling), but the evaporators with lower cooling capacity receive insufficient liquid refrigerant leading to nonuniform supply and local overheating
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the refrigerant distribution system by placing individual expansion valves upstream of each evaporator. This allows each evaporator to receive independently controlled refrigerant flow, ensuring that evaporators with different cooling capacities receive appropriate amounts of liquid refrigerant, thereby preventing nonuniform supply and local overheating while maintaining system versatility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a refrigerant collector as an intermediary component between the expansion valve and the evaporators. The refrigerant collector receives liquid refrigerant from the expansion valve and actively distributes it to multiple evaporators with different cooling capacities, ensuring uniform liquid refrigerant supply to each evaporator and preventing local overheating.
2Device complexity
If evaporators with different cooling capacities are supplied from a single expansion valve, then the system structure is simplified, but the evaporators with lower cooling capacity cannot receive sufficient liquid refrigerant
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerant collector serves as an intermediary that receives liquid refrigerant from the expansion valve and actively distributes it to multiple evaporators. This intermediary component enables the system to maintain relatively simple structure while ensuring that each evaporator, regardless of its cooling capacity, receives sufficient liquid refrigerant supply.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs hydraulic principles through the refrigerant pump and refrigerant collector system to actively convey and distribute liquid refrigerant to multiple evaporators. This hydraulic approach ensures uniform distribution of liquid refrigerant to evaporators with different cooling capacities, overcoming the limitation of passive gravity-based distribution.
3Device complexity
If liquid refrigerant is not actively conveyed to evaporators with lower cooling capacity, then the system operates passively with fewer components, but local overheating occurs due to nonuniform refrigerant distribution
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerant collector acts as an intermediary that actively distributes liquid refrigerant to evaporators with lower cooling capacity. This active distribution mechanism ensures uniform evaporation temperature across all evaporators by preventing nonuniform refrigerant supply, thereby avoiding local overheating while adding only one intermediate component to the system.
Solution Approach 2:
The refrigerant pump and refrigerant collector system provides self-service by automatically detecting and compensating for refrigerant distribution imbalances. The system actively conveys liquid refrigerant to where it is needed based on the specific cooling capacity requirements of each evaporator, maintaining uniform evaporation temperatures without requiring external control systems.
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 enables efficient and uniform cooling of batteries and electronic components, preventing overheating and ensuring consistent evaporation temperatures across all evaporators, thereby optimizing the performance and efficiency of battery charging and air conditioning.
Implementation Method 1
a refrigerant pump is disposed for conveying the liquid refrigerant to the evaporator of lower cooling capacity
Implementation Method 2
at least one condenser for liquifying the refrigerant
Implementation Method 3
at least one expansion valve for the pressure relief of the refrigerant
Implementation Method 4
at least two parallel disposed evaporators of different cooling capacity
Implementation Method 5
evaporators have herein a cooling capacity that is adapted to the particular task
Implementation Method 6
a refrigerant collector is disposed for the separation of the liquid refrigerant
Data Source
AI summary
A motor vehicle chiller with several evaporators of different cooling capacity, has a refrigerant circulation with at least one refrigerant compressor, at least one condenser, at least one expansion element as well as at least two evaporators disposed in parallel of different cooling capacity. A refrigerant collector is disposed downstream of the expansion element and upstream of the evaporator of lesser cooling capacity to separate liquid refrigerant. Between the refrigerant collector and the evaporator a refrigerant pump is disposed to convey the liquid refrigerant to the evaporator of lesser cooling capacity. The refrigerant vapor can be guided from the evaporator across the refrigerant collector functioning as a separator and be drawn in by the refrigerant compressor.