Chemically assisted mechanical refrigeration process

• US 4,674,297 A
• Filed: 02/13/1984
• Issued: 06/23/1987
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/1983
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Arnold R. Vobach
• Original Assignee: Arnold R. Vobach
• Inventors: Vobach, Arnold R.
• Primary Examiner(s): BENNETT, HENRY A
• Application Number:
  US06/829,429
• Time in Patent Office: 1,226 Days
• Field of Search: 62/476, 62/117, 62/335, 62/525, 62/502, 62/114
• US Class Current: 62/476
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 2075/027 four
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 25/02 Compression-sorption machines, plants, or systems

Abstract

There is provided a chemically assisted mechanical refrigeration process including the steps of: mechanically compressing a refrigerant stream which includes vaporized refrigerant; contacting the refrigerant with a solvent in a mixer (11) at a pressure sufficient to promote substantial dissolving of the refrigerant in the solvent in the mixer (11) to form a refrigerant-solvent solution while concurrently placing the solution in heat exchange relation with a working medium to transfer energy to the working medium, said refrigerant-solvent solution exhibiting a negative deviation from Raoult'"'"'s Law; reducing the pressure over the refrigerant-solvent solution in an evaporator (10) to allow the refrigerant to vaporize and substantially separate from the solvent while concurrently placing he evolving refrigerant-solvent solution in heat exchange relation with a working medium to remove energy from the working medium to thereby form a refrigerant stream and a solvent stream; and passing the solvent and refrigerant stream from the evaporator.

Claims

1. A chemically assisted mechanical refrigeration apparatus comprising:

an evaporator for receiving a refrigerant-solvent solution at a pressure sufficient to allow the refrigerant to evolve from the solvent and absorb a substantial portion of the heats of vaporization and dissolution of the refrigerant-solvent solution from a working medium in heat exchange relation with the evolving refrigerant-solvent solution;

a compressor adapted to accept a gaseous stream and a liquid stream and raise the pressure of said streams upon combination of the streams;

a gas-evolving solvent conduit connected at one end to the evaporator and at the other end to the compressor for passing gas-evolving solvent from the evaporator to the compressor;

a refrigerant conduit connected at one end to the evaporator and at the other end to the compressor for passing a gaseous refrigerant from the evaporator to the compressor, said refrigerant conduit being in fluid communication with the solvent conduit for receiving gases evolving from the solvent passing through the solvent conduit;

a mixer configured to receive solvent and refrigerant at a pressure sufficient to promote substantial solution of the refrigerant in the solvent and form a solution;

a combined solvent-refrigerant conduit connected at one end to the compressor and at the other end to the mixer, said conduit being configured to allow passage of a combined refrigerant solvent stream under pressure;

a solution conduit having one end connected to the mixer and the other end connected to the evaporator, said solution conduit being adapted to facilitate any reduction in pressure between the mixer and the evaporator; and

an economizer for placing the gas-evolving solvent conduit and the solution conduit in heat exchange relation with each other.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising a second heat exchanger for placing the solution conduit and the combined solvent-refrigerant conduit in heat exchange relation with each other.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the compressor is a centrifugal or rotary compressor.

4. A chemically assisted mechanical refrigeration apparatus comprising:

an evaporator for receiving a refrigerant-solvent solution at a pressure sufficient to allow the refrigerant to evolve from the solvent and absorb a substantial portion of the heats of vaporization and dissolution of the refrigerant-solvent solution from a working medium in heat exchange relation with the evolving refrigerant-solvent solution;

a compressor adapted to accept a gaseous stream and raise the pressure of said stream;

a mixer configured to receive solvent and refrigerant at a pressure sufficient to promote substantial solution of the refrigerant in the solvent and form a solution;

a gas-evolving solvent conduit connected at one end to the evaporator and at the other end to the mixer for passing gas-evolving solvent from the evaporator to the mixer;

a heat exchanger cooling jacket means for placing the compressor and the solvent conduit in heat exchange relation with each other;

a refrigerant conduit connected at one end to the evaporator and at the other end to the compressor for passing gaseous refrigerant from the evaporator to the compressor, said refrigerant conduit being in fluid communication with the solvent conduit at a first point in the solvent conduit, for receiving gases evolving from the solvent passing through the solvent conduit;

pump means located in the solvent conduit between the first point and the mixer for pumping solvent from the evaporator to the mixer;

a solution conduit having one end connected to the mixer and the other end connected to the evaporator, said solution conduit being adapted to facilitate any reduction in pressure between the mixer and the evaporator; and

an economizer for placing the gas-evolving solvent conduit and the solution conduit in heat exchange relation with each other.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 further comprising a heat exchanger precooler means for placing the solution conduit in heat exchange relation with the solvent conduit at a second point in the solvent conduit between the heat exchanger cooling jacket and the mixer.

6. The apparatus of claim 4 or claim 5 wherein the pump means is located between the heat exchanger cooling jacket means and the heat exchanger precooler means.

7. The apparatus of claim 4 or claim 5 wherein the pump means is located between the first point and the heat exchanger cooling jacket means.

8. A chemically assisted mechanical refrigeration apparatus comprising:

a mechanical compressor for compressing refrigerant vapors;

a mixing zone configured to receive a solvent for the refrigerant and the compressed refrigerant at a pressure sufficient to promote substantial solution of the refrigerant in the solvent and form a refrigerant-solvent stream;

an evaporator zone for receiving the refrigerant-solvent stream from the mixing zone and evolving the refrigerant as vapors from the refrigerant-solvent stream;

a first conduit interconnecting the mixing zone and the evaporator zone to pass the refrigerant-solvent stream from the mixing zone to the evaporator zone;

a first heat exchanger in the evaporator zone adapted to place at least a substantial portion of the evolving refrigerant-solvent stream in heat exchange relation with a working medium and absorb heats of vaporization and dissolution from the working medium;

a second conduit interconnecting the evaporator zone and the mixing zone to pass refrigerant vapor-evolving solvent from the evaporator zone to the mixing zone;

a second heat exchanger for placing refrigerant vapor-evolving solvent passing in the second conduit from the evaporator zone to the mixing zone in heat exchange relation with the refrigerant-solvent stream passing in the first conduit from the mixing zone to the evaporator zone; and

a third conduit interconnecting the evaporator and the compressor to pass evolved refrigerant vapors from the evaporator zone to the compressor.