Thermal management systems and methods
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Solution Overview
Problem
Power companies face challenges in managing electricity supply and demand imbalances, particularly in situations where demand exceeds supply, requiring rapid and efficient load balancing services to maintain frequency and meet cooling demands without compromising processing capacity or incurring excessive costs.
Innovation Solution
A thermal management system comprising a primary and secondary circuit with a shared working fluid, utilizing a thermal conditioner and a thermal store with phase change material (ice slurry) to regulate temperature, allowing for dynamic cooling responses by diverting working fluid between circuits and leveraging latent heat for efficient cooling, controlled by a controller that adjusts operations based on demand and energy tariffs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If thermal conditioners operate continuously at high power to meet peak cooling demands, then cooling reliability is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-cools the thermal store during periods of low demand or off-peak hours, storing cold energy in advance. This preliminary action allows the thermal conditioner to operate at reduced power during peak demand periods, maintaining cooling reliability while reducing overall energy consumption. The thermal store acts as a buffer that was charged in advance.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the peak demand burden from the thermal conditioner by introducing a separate thermal store component. The thermal store takes out the responsibility of meeting peak cooling demands, allowing the thermal conditioner to operate more smoothly and efficiently over time, reducing its peak power requirements and overall energy consumption.
2Power
If thermal conditioners are sized to meet peak demand, then cooling capacity is improved, but operational efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into two functional components: a thermal store that handles peak demand requirements and a thermal conditioner that provides baseline cooling. This segmentation allows each component to be optimally sized for its specific function, improving overall operational efficiency while maintaining sufficient cooling capacity during peak periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The thermal store provides excessive cooling capacity during peak periods by releasing stored cold energy, allowing the thermal conditioner to operate at a reduced, more efficient level. The thermal store takes on partial responsibility for meeting total cooling demand, enabling the conditioner to operate in a more efficient partial-load regime.
3Device complexity
If cooling systems operate without thermal storage, then system complexity is reduced, but response time to demand changes deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The thermal store is pre-charged with cold energy during off-peak or low-demand periods. This preliminary action enables the system to respond immediately to sudden cooling demands by releasing stored energy, significantly improving response time without adding complex control systems or multiple active cooling units.
4Stability of the object's composition
If thermal conditioners run continuously, then cooling stability is improved, but energy costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs periodic operation of the thermal conditioner, alternating between active cooling periods and standby periods. The thermal store maintains cooling stability during conditioner standby periods by releasing stored cold energy. This periodic operation pattern reduces overall energy costs while maintaining cooling stability through the complementary action of the thermal store.
Solution Approach 2:
The thermal store ensures continuity of useful cooling action during periods when the thermal conditioner is inactive or operating at reduced capacity. By transferring the maintenance of cooling stability to the thermal store during conditioner off-periods, the system achieves both cost reduction and continuous cooling 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 system enables efficient and responsive cooling management, reducing the need for continuous high-power operation of thermal conditioners, utilizing stored latent heat for peak demand periods, and optimizing energy usage by shifting operations to lower-cost electricity periods, thus addressing supply-demand imbalances and peak cooling demands effectively.
Implementation Method 1
utilizing a thermal conditioner and a thermal store with phase change material (ice slurry) to regulate temperature, allowing for dynamic cooling responses by diverting working fluid between circuits and leveraging latent heat for efficient cooling
Implementation Method 2
The thermal conditioner 126 is operable to influence the operating conditions of a thermal load 128. For example, the thermal conditioner 126 is operable to reduce, maintain or otherwise manage the temperature of the thermal load 128 using the working fluid circulating within the primary circuit 104.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments provide a thermal management system for supplying stored energy for the purpose of cooling by direct mixing of a common working fluid within a thermal store in which the cooling is realised by phase via latent heat phase change of an ice slurry of the working fluid.