Osmotically pumped environmental control device
First Claim
1. An osmotically pumped environmental control system comprising a closed circuit heat pipe including an osmotic pump with solvent and solute-solvent mixture reservoirs separated from one another by a solvent permeable membrane and means for inserting heat into and for withdrawing heat from said closed circuit heat pipe, in which said heat inserting means is coupled to sources of waste heat for transferring heat produced thereby to said closed circuit and in which said heat withdrawing means comprises at least a pair of cooling stages in series respectively for condensing said solvent vapor into a condensate and for cooling said condensate.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An osmotically pumped environmental control system (10) comprises a closed circuit heat pipe (12) including an osmotic pump (13) with solvent and solution reservoirs (18, 14) separated from one another by a solvent permeable membrane (20). Heat is inserted into the closed path at an evaporator (22) from high temperature sources and heat is wihdrawn from the system by first and second stage cooling modules (38, 40) to withdraw heat therefrom. A further heat input (30) from low temperature sources slightly warms the condensate for return to a solvent reservoir (18).
26 Citations
21 Claims
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1. An osmotically pumped environmental control system comprising a closed circuit heat pipe including an osmotic pump with solvent and solute-solvent mixture reservoirs separated from one another by a solvent permeable membrane and means for inserting heat into and for withdrawing heat from said closed circuit heat pipe, in which said heat inserting means is coupled to sources of waste heat for transferring heat produced thereby to said closed circuit and in which said heat withdrawing means comprises at least a pair of cooling stages in series respectively for condensing said solvent vapor into a condensate and for cooling said condensate.
- 2. An osmotically pumped environmental control system comprising at least high and low temperature sources of waste heat, a closed circuit heat pipe including an osmotic pump with solvent and solute-solvent mixture reservoirs separated from one another by a solvent permeable membrane, means for withdrawing heat from said closed circuit heat pipe, and individual high and low temperature heat transfer devices coupling said high and low temperature sources respectively to said closed circuit at points thereof separated by said heat withdrawing means.
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16. An osmotically pumped environmental control system comprising a closed circuit heat pipe including an osmotic pump with solvent and solute-solvent mixture reservoirs separated from one another by a solvent permeable membrane, means for withdrawing heat from said closed circuit heat pipe, and heat pipes coupled between said closed circuit heat pipe and thermo-electric generators for transferring heat produced thereby to said closed circuit.
- 17. In a heat pipe system comprising a closed circuit heat pipe including a working fluid and means for inserting heat into and for withdrawing heat from said closed circuit heat pipe, the improvement in which said heat withdrawing means comprises at least a pair of cooling stages in series respectively for condensing vapor from said working fluid into a condensate and for cooling said condensate.
- 19. In an osmotic pumped heat pipe having solution and solvent reservoirs, solvent permeable membrane material separating said reservoirs and an evaporator coupled to said solution reservoir for producing solvent vapor from solution in said solution reservoir, the improvement in maintaining a first flow of lean solution from said evaporator to said membrane material and a second flow of rich solution from said membrane material to said evaporator comprising respective higher and lower surface tension paths respectively for said first and second flows.
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21. A method for maintaining flow of solution between an evaporator and solvent permeable membrane material in an osmotically pumped heat pipe comprising the step of separating the solution into lean and rich components through respective higher and lower surface tension paths between the evaporator and the membrane material.
Specification