Refrigeration system and associated method
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional refrigeration systems struggle to effectively cool high-temperature heat sources in electronics when cooling air is unavailable or insufficient, particularly in loss-of-cooling scenarios, necessitating improved systems for efficient heat management.
Innovation Solution
A refrigeration system utilizing an expander in the cooling branch to expand partially cooled refrigerant flow, combined with wafer heat exchangers and passive pumps, which leverage waste heat to provide cooling without compressors, employing a refrigerant loop with expanders and ejector pumps to manage thermal communication with electronics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional refrigeration systems are used for cooling aircraft electronics, then cooling can be provided when ambient conditions are favorable, but the system becomes inadequate when cooling air is unavailable or too hot
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses waste heat from aircraft engines to drive the refrigeration cycle, making the system self-sufficient and independent of ambient cooling air. The waste heat source provides the energy input needed to operate the refrigeration system, allowing it to function reliably in loss-of-cooling scenarios where conventional ambient air cooling fails.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the thermodynamic parameters by using waste heat at higher temperatures to drive the refrigeration cycle, enabling cooling operation when ambient temperatures are too high for conventional systems. This parameter change allows the system to adapt to conditions where traditional ambient air cooling is ineffective.
2Productivity
If a compressor is used in conventional refrigeration systems, then refrigerant circulation is achieved, but the system complexity and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the compressor from the refrigeration system, replacing it with a simpler valve mechanism. This extraction of the complex compressor component reduces system complexity while maintaining refrigeration functionality through the alternative expansion valve design that uses waste heat-driven refrigerant circulation.
Solution Approach 2:
The mechanical compressor system is replaced with a thermal-driven system using waste heat to circulate refrigerant. The expansion valve substitutes for the mechanical compressor, using thermodynamic principles rather than mechanical compression to achieve refrigeration, thereby reducing system complexity.
3Ease of operation
If cooling modules are provided for each heat source, then local cooling is achieved, but the system requires abundant cooling air which may not be available
Solution Approach 1:
Each cooling module is designed to be self-contained, using the waste heat from aircraft engines to drive its own refrigeration cycle. The modules operate independently without requiring external cooling air, making them self-sufficient and suitable for loss-of-cooling scenarios where ambient air is unavailable or too hot.
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 system efficiently cools high-temperature electronics using waste heat, achieving temperatures below ambient limits without compressors, providing localized cooling with higher efficiency and flexibility, suitable for aircraft avionics.
Implementation Method 1
a heat input disposed in the main flow circuit and configured to receive heat and transfer the heat to the refrigerant in the main flow circuit
Implementation Method 2
a passive pump disposed in the main flow circuit downstream of the heat input configured to receive the heated refrigerant flow from the heat input and to use the heated refrigerant flow to generate a vacuum at a pump port
Implementation Method 3
The condenser can be configured to receive heat from the heated refrigerant flow and reject heat to cool the heated refrigerant flow
Implementation Method 4
The expander can be configured to receive the partially cooled refrigerant flow and cause expansion cooling to output cooling flow to the one or more cooling modules
Implementation Method 5
Each wafer heat exchanger can include an adhesive surface configured to stick to the heat source
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A refrigeration system (100) can include a main flow circuit (101) configured to flow a refrigerant therethrough and a heat input (103) disposed in the main flow circuit and configured to receive heat and transfer the heat to the refrigerant in the main flow circuit to output heated refrigerant flow. The system can include a passive pump (105) disposed in the main flow circuit downstream of the heat input configured to receive the heated refrigerant flow from the heat input and to use the heated refrigerant flow to generate a vacuum at a pump port (105a) and a condenser (107) disposed in the main flow circuit downstream of the passive pump for receiving flow from the passive pump. The condenser can be configured to receive heat from the heated refrigerant flow and reject heat to cool the heated refrigerant flow to output partially cooled refrigerant flow. An outlet (107a) of the condenser can be upstream of the heat input.