Large-Area Wall Heat Exchanger for Space-Saving Room Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional air conditioning systems for rooms with high heat loads, such as offices and data centers, require significant floor space for cooling devices, limiting flexibility and increasing energy consumption due to large footprints and inefficient cooling power density.
Innovation Solution
A housingless heat exchanger is designed to cover a large area of a room boundary, separate from the fan device, allowing for flexible placement and high cooling capacity with reduced pressure losses, enabling the use of smaller, energy-efficient fans and adaptable configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If conventional air conditioning systems are used to cool rooms with high heat loads, then cooling capacity is provided, but significant floor space is required and energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The air conditioning system is divided into separate functional components: a cooling device (chiller) and a heat exchanger array. The heat exchangers are distributed across the floor as individual units rather than a single large device, allowing flexible placement and reducing the footprint of any single component while maintaining high cooling capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from vertical stacking of equipment (occupying floor space) to a distributed horizontal arrangement where multiple heat exchangers are spread across the floor area. This dimensional redistribution allows the cooling capacity to be provided without concentrating the equipment in one location, thus reducing the effective footprint.
2Power
If conventional air conditioning systems are used, then cooling is provided, but energy consumption increases due to large footprints and inefficient cooling power density
Solution Approach 1:
Each heat exchanger unit operates independently with optimized local characteristics. The distributed arrangement allows each unit to be sized and positioned for optimal thermal efficiency, improving overall cooling power density and reducing energy consumption compared to a single large conventional system.
3Power
If devices are placed in the room to be cooled, then cooling capacity is achieved, but floor space is occupied that cannot be used for equipment such as computers
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into multiple small heat exchanger units that can be distributed throughout the room. This allows the cooling functionality to be provided without occupying a single large area, leaving more floor space available for computer equipment and other uses.
4Area of stationary object
If heat exchangers are designed with small area, then floor space is saved, but pressure losses increase and cooling capacity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than using one large heat exchanger that would occupy significant floor space, the system uses multiple smaller heat exchanger units distributed across the room. The combined surface area of these distributed units provides high cooling capacity while maintaining low pressure losses, as each unit operates with favorable flow characteristics.
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 achieves high cooling capacity with minimal floor space usage, reduces energy consumption, and minimizes noise, while allowing for flexible adaptation to different room layouts and cooling demands, ensuring effective heat dissipation without drafts.
Implementation Method 1
a cooling device (14), in particular a heat exchanger, for removing heat from the cooling medium
Implementation Method 2
to supply cooled cooling medium to the heat exchanger (10)... The heat exchanger (10) is designed without a housing and with such a large area that it forms a significant proportion of the area of a room boundary
Implementation Method 3
a fan device (16) for generating an air flow... The air conditioner is designed such that the heat exchanger (10) and the fan device (16) are separate from one another
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The air-conditioning system for arrangement in a room (1) which has a floor (4) with openings (8) and a cavity (5) lying underneath, as well as a heat exchanger (10) arranged above the floor (4) and a heat exchanger (10) arranged below the floor ( 4) the fan device (16) arranged in the cavity (5) has a large-area, housing-less heat exchanger which forms at least a partial area of a boundary wall of the room. The heat exchanger (10) covers at least half and preferably the entire area of a wall (2) of the room (1).