Absorbent pair refrigerant system

• US 6,006,543 A
• Filed: 10/29/1998
• Issued: 12/28/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Pfister, Dennis M., Byrd, Charles M., Warriner, Ted W.
• Primary Examiner(s): DOERRLER, WILLIAM CHARLES
• Application Number:
  US09/182,608
• Time in Patent Office: 425 Days
• Field of Search: 62/476, 62/148, 62/480, 62/497
• US Class Current: 62/497
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 17/08 the absorbent or adsorbent being a solid, e.g. salt F25B17/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 2333/005 the generator or boiler uses electromagnetic energy in the form of microwaves for desorbing the sorbate from the sorbate/sorbent compound
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 35/04 using a solid as sorbent
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 39/026 specially adapted for sorption type systems
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 49/046 Operating intermittently
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 23/12 Arrangements of compartments additional to cooling compartments; Combinations of refrigerators with other equipment, e.g. stove
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/427 Cooling by change of state, e.g. use of heat pipes by liquefied gas H01L23/445
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/70 Feed lines
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/701 using microwave applicators
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/802 for heating fluids methods of heating fluids in conventional microwave ovens H05B6/687
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/808 Microwave heating adapted for vending machines
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/20363 Refrigerating circuit comprising a sorber

Abstract

An absorbent pair refrigeration system comprising a source of liquid refrigerant; an evaporator for transforming the liquid refrigerant into vapor refrigerant at a lower temperature than the liquid refrigerant to thereby provide a desired cooling effect; a volume of absorbent in communication with the evaporator, wherein the vapor refrigerant is absorbed onto the absorbent; an electromagnetic wave generator for desorbing the vapor refrigerant from the sorbent without appreciably heating the absorbent; and a condenser in communication with the absorbent for condensing the vapor refrigerant which has been desorbed from the absorbent.

Claims

1. An absorbent pair refrigeration system comprising:

a source of liquid refrigerant;

an evaporator for transforming the liquid refrigerant into vapor refrigerant at a lower temperature than the liquid refrigerant to thereby provide a cooling effect;

a volume of chemical absorbent in communication with the evaporator;

wherein the vapor refrigerant is absorbed onto the chemical absorbent to form a refrigerant/absorbent compound;

an electromagnetic wave generator for desorbing the refrigerant from the refrigerant/absorbent compound; and

a condenser in communication with the chemical absorbent for condensing the vapor refrigerant which has been desorbed from the refrigerant/absorbent compound;

wherein the refrigerant/absorbent compound is not heated by the electromagnetic wave generator to a degree sufficient to thermally desorb the refrigerant from the refrigerant/absorbent compound.

2. The absorbent pair refrigeration system of claim 1, wherein the chemical absorbent is a metal halide salt.

3. The absorbent pair refrigeration system of claim 2, wherein the chemical absorbent is strontium bromide and the refrigerant is ammonia.

4. A refrigeration system comprising:

a refrigerant;

an evaporator for evaporating the refrigerant to provide a cooling effect;

a sorbent in communication with the evaporator wherein the sorbent and the refrigerant from the evaporator combine in a sorption reaction;

an electromagnetic wave generator for desorbing the refrigerant from the sorbent wherein electromagnetic energy from the electromagnetic wave generator is converted into work which acts to separate the refrigerant from the sorbent in a primarily isothermal reaction; and

a condenser in communication with the sorbent for condensing the refrigerant which has been desorbed from the sorbent.

5. The refrigeration system of claim 4, wherein the sorbent is a metal halide salt.

6. The refrigeration system of claim 5, wherein the sorbent is strontium bromide and the refrigerant is ammonia.

7. The refrigeration system of claim 4 wherein the evaporator is configured to provide a portion of said cooling effect to said sorbent to accelerate the sorption reaction.