Thermal Insulation Device Using Flexible Films and Pressure Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current thermal insulation devices for buildings are complex, costly, and inefficient, failing to achieve superior insulation qualities due to their bulky design and high thermal conductivity, which limits their industrial development and adoption despite strong demand.
Innovation Solution
A thermal insulation device comprising two main walls separated by a peripheral spacer forming a sealed chamber under depression, with flexible films that can be controlled to switch between thermal insulation and conduction states by modifying pressure within the chamber, achieving high thermal resistance with minimal thickness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If conventional insulating materials are used to achieve thermal insulation, then thermal resistance is provided, but the materials have high thermal conductivity and require large thickness
Solution Approach 1:
The device divides the insulation space into multiple air gaps separated by flexible sheets, creating numerous discrete insulation layers. This segmentation allows the total thermal resistance to be achieved through multiple thin layers rather than a single thick material, resolving the contradiction between achieving high thermal resistance and maintaining minimal thickness.
Solution Approach 2:
The device utilizes vacuum or depleted gas environments within the air gaps between flexible sheets to provide thermal insulation. By removing or depleting the gas atmosphere, thermal conduction is minimized, achieving superior insulation performance with reduced thickness compared to conventional solid insulating materials.
2Adaptability or versatility
If flexible sheets are joined together to achieve thermal conduction configuration, then thermal conductivity increases, but insulation performance is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible sheets are designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing the device to dynamically switch between insulation and conduction states. The sheets can be separated to create air gaps for insulation or joined together to enable thermal conduction, providing adaptability while maintaining insulation performance in the separated state.
Solution Approach 2:
The device changes the physical state of the system by modifying the spacing between flexible sheets. When sheets are separated, large air gaps create high thermal resistance; when sheets are joined, the gaps are eliminated and thermal conduction increases. This parameter change enables switching between insulation and conduction modes.
3Temperature
If a large number of flexible sheets are used to achieve interesting thermal insulation properties, then insulation performance improves, but device complexity, bulkiness, and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The device extracts the essential insulation function by using just two flexible sheets with spacers to create air gaps, rather than requiring numerous sheets. The spacers are extracted as separate functional elements that maintain the air gaps, simplifying the overall structure while achieving effective thermal insulation with minimal components.
4Temperature
If spacers are added to maintain air gaps between flexible sheets, then thermal insulation is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device uses flexible sheets as the primary insulation elements, eliminating the need for rigid spacers or complex structural supports. The flexible sheets themselves can maintain the necessary spacing through their elasticity and positioning, reducing device complexity while preserving thermal insulation performance.
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 device can vary its thermal resistance from almost zero to very high values, typically greater than 10 m²K/W, with a thickness less than 1 cm, offering superior insulation efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and reliability, independent of thickness, allowing for dynamic thermal management and energy savings.
Implementation Method 1
The chamber 104 is placed under depression, that is to say at a pressure below atmospheric pressure
Implementation Method 2
The distance d1 separating the flexible films 150, 160 is less than the mean free path of the gas molecules
Implementation Method 3
the chamber 104 is connected to pressure control means 170 making it possible, by modifying the pressure within the chamber 104, to selectively switch the device
Implementation Method 4
The distance d1 separating the flexible films 150, 160 is less than the mean free path of the gas molecules occupying the volume defined between these pairs of flexible films
Data Source
Figure 1~4
AI summary
The invention relates to a thermal insulation device comprising at least one panel (100) defining a gas-tight chamber (104) containing at least two flexible films (150, 160) suitable for being selectively switched between two states: one of thermal conduction wherein said flexible films (150, 160) are at least partially in mutual contact, and the other of thermal insulation wherein the flexible films (150, 160) are separated, under the influence of pressure variations in said gas-tight chamber (104), applied by fluid control means (170), characterised in that, in the thermal insulation state, the distance separating the flexible films (150, 160) is shorter than the average free path of the gas molecules in the space (158) defined between said flexible films (150, 160). The invention also relates to a method.