Water-lithium bromide absorption cooling system
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Solution Overview
Problem
Water-lithium bromide absorption chillers face challenges with high material usage, weight, space requirements, and manufacturing costs, along with susceptibility to inert gases, leading to reduced system efficiency and availability.
Innovation Solution
A water-lithium bromide absorption refrigeration system designed with open, asymmetric plate heat exchangers in a compact configuration, incorporating inert gas extraction lines for efficient gas removal, minimizing material usage and maintenance efforts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If shell-and-tube heat exchangers with sprinkler systems are used, then heat transfer efficiency is improved, but device complexity, material usage, weight, and installation space increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex sprinkler system and collection tray components from the heat exchanger assembly. By using plate heat exchangers with integrated fluid distribution and collection channels built into the plate structure itself, the design removes the need for separate sprinkler systems and collection trays, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining heat transfer efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the fluid distribution and collection functions directly into the plate heat exchanger structure. The plate design integrates channels that simultaneously serve as distribution pathways and collection systems, combining multiple functions into a single integrated component rather than using separate sprinkler systems and collection trays
2Ease of manufacture
If plate heat exchangers with overflow openings are used, then manufacturing effort and installation space are reduced, but inert gas accumulation increases leading to efficiency loss
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs asymmetric plate designs where the flow channels and plate geometries are specifically configured to prevent inert gas accumulation. The asymmetric structure creates favorable flow patterns that promote gas release and prevent stagnation zones, thereby maintaining system efficiency while retaining the manufacturing and space benefits of plate heat exchangers
Solution Approach 2:
The patent modifies the geometric parameters of the plate heat exchanger channels and openings to optimize fluid flow and gas release characteristics. By carefully designing channel dimensions, angles, and opening configurations, the system prevents inert gas accumulation while maintaining the simplicity and compactness of plate heat exchanger construction
3Weight of stationary object
If plate heat exchangers are used, then material usage and weight are reduced, but inert gas susceptibility increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the plate heat exchanger into multiple plates with individual flow channels and gas release pathways. This segmentation allows inert gases to be released from localized zones within the plate assembly rather than accumulating system-wide, maintaining the weight advantages of plate construction while mitigating inert gas susceptibility through distributed gas management
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 achieves high refrigeration capacity with reduced material usage, low weight, and small space requirements, ensuring continuous operation with high efficiency and reliability by effectively managing inert gases without complex aids.
Implementation Method 1
In the generator, the refrigerant evaporates from a working fluid pair, absorbing heat
Implementation Method 2
In the absorber, the refrigerant vapor is absorbed by the low-refrigerant working fluid pair
Implementation Method 3
it is first liquefied in a condenser
Implementation Method 4
finally evaporated in an evaporator, absorbing heat
Implementation Method 5
the heated refrigerant-poor solution transfers heat to the refrigerant-rich solution
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a water-lithium bromide absorption refrigeration system with a high-pressure vessel (1), with a generator (4) which drives the refrigerant out of the solvent by supplying heat and a condenser (5) which condenses the driven-out refrigerant, and a low-pressure vessel (2) with an evaporator (6) which evaporates the refrigerant by removing heat, and an absorber (7) for absorbing the refrigerant vapor evaporated in the evaporator (6) in the solvent.The object of the invention is to develop a water-lithium bromide absorption chiller that, with low material usage, low weight, low space requirements, in a compact design and with significantly reduced manufacturing, assembly and maintenance costs, ensures high cooling capacity and, in special embodiments, also solves the problem of inert gas susceptibility in water-lithium bromide absorption chillers without complex technical aids, thus ensuring high system availability, in particular uninterrupted continuous operation, with high system efficiency with minimal effort and high reliability.The water-lithium bromide absorption refrigeration system according to the invention is characterized, among other things, in particular by the fact that all heat exchangers (3), i.e. the heat exchanger (3) of the generator (4), the heat exchanger (3) of the condenser (5), the heat exchanger (3) of the evaporator (6) and also the heat exchanger (3) of the absorber (7) are designed as open asymmetric plate heat exchangers (30) and that preferably in a rectangular base frame (15) the high-pressure vessel (1), the low-pressure vessel (2) as well as all connecting lines with the components arranged in or between them, such as throttles (12) or pumps (13).