Spacerless Pleated Membrane ERV Core for Lower Pressure Drop
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional energy recovery ventilator (ERV) cores with water-permeable membranes are bulky and less effective in facilitating enthalpy exchange due to the use of spacers that impede heat and moisture transfer and increase pressure drop.
Innovation Solution
The development of ERV cores with pleated water vapor-permeable membrane sheets that form self-supporting structures without spacers, allowing for multi-dimensional transfer of moisture and heat through pleated channels with manifold sections that direct fluid flow and reduce pressure drop.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If spacers are used to support membrane plates in planar plate-type ERV cores, then structural support is provided, but heat and moisture transfer is impeded and pressure drop increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes spacers entirely from the ERV core structure. Instead of using spacers to support membrane plates, the system uses spacerless parallel membranes that are self-supporting, thereby eliminating the barrier that spacers create to heat and moisture transfer while maintaining structural integrity through the membrane assembly design itself
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs thin, flexible membrane structures that can support themselves without rigid spacers. The parallel membranes are arranged and tensioned to provide structural support through their own flexibility and arrangement, eliminating the need for solid spacers that block thermal and moisture pathways
2Length of stationary object
If spacers are used to maintain membrane spacing, then proper sheet spacing is achieved, but membrane surface area per unit volume is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts removes spacers from the system, allowing membranes to be positioned and spaced through alternative means such as framing structures or tensioning mechanisms at the boundaries, thereby maximizing the membrane surface area within the available volume without the space-consuming spacers
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from using spacers that occupy three-dimensional space between membranes to boundary-based positioning systems that define membrane positions at the edges, effectively moving the support function to a different spatial dimension and maximizing internal membrane surface area
3Loss of energy
If conventional planar membrane plates are used, then heat and humidity exchange is achieved, but the device becomes bulky and less effective
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses flexible, thin membrane structures that can be densely packed in parallel arrangements, achieving high heat and humidity exchange effectiveness in a compact volume. The flexibility allows for efficient packing densities that rigid planar plates cannot achieve
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs multi-dimensional parallel membrane arrangements that maximize surface area density within the available volume. By stacking numerous thin membrane layers in parallel, the system achieves high exchange effectiveness without increasing overall device volume proportionally
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 design enhances flow distribution, reduces pressure drop, and increases membrane surface area per unit volume, leading to more efficient energy recovery and a more compact ERV core with improved heat and moisture transfer performance.
Implementation Method 1
heat and humidity are transferred between the streams via the membrane
Implementation Method 2
water vapor-permeable membrane sheets that form self-supporting structures without spacers, allowing for multi-dimensional transfer of moisture and heat
Implementation Method 3
pleated water vapor-permeable membrane sheets that form self-supporting structures without spacers, allowing for multi-dimensional transfer of moisture and heat through pleated channels
Data Source
AI summary
A heat and humidity exchanger has example application in exchanging heat and water vapor between fresh air entering a building and air being vented from the building. The heat and humidity exchanger has a self-supporting core formed from layered sheets of a moisture-permeable material. Plenums are arranged to direct fluid streams into and out of the core. The plenums may be on opposing sides of the core to permit counterflow exchange of heat and water vapor.