Refrigeration system with carbon dioxide injector
First Claim
1. A method for producing refrigeration from a source of pressurized liquid carbon dioxide coolant, comprising the steps of injecting coolant from the source through a nozzle orifice into a primary stream of solid cross-section while reducing the pressure of coolant entering the stream to cause such coolant to substantially expand into a gas, directing the primary stream of coolant lengthwise through an elongate cylindrical enclosure having an inlet end completely open to ambient gas and an outlet end completely open to a zone to be refrigerated and including strut means mounted between the enclosure inlet end and nozzle and lying in the path of ambient gas for creating turbulence therein, directing ambient gas in an annular stream which concentrically encloses the primary stream of coolant and in the same direction thereof through the inlet end into the enclosure, mixing ambient gas from the annular stream with coolant in the primary stream in an amount to sublime substantially the entirety of solid coolant therein into a gas, and directing the mixture of ambient gas and coolant from the outlet end of the enclosure into the zone to produce refrigeration.
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Abstract
A system for producing refrigeration from a source of liquid carbon dioxide. The liquid carbon dioxide is injected through a nozzle into a primary stream within an elongate enclosure. The enclosure is mounted with its inlet end spaced about the nozzle to define an opening through which an annular stream of ambient gas is directed about the primary stream. The ambient gas turbulently intermixes with the injected coolant for subliming any solid carbon dioxide or snow so that the resulting stream exhausting from the enclosure is free of snow.
32 Citations
14 Claims
- 1. A method for producing refrigeration from a source of pressurized liquid carbon dioxide coolant, comprising the steps of injecting coolant from the source through a nozzle orifice into a primary stream of solid cross-section while reducing the pressure of coolant entering the stream to cause such coolant to substantially expand into a gas, directing the primary stream of coolant lengthwise through an elongate cylindrical enclosure having an inlet end completely open to ambient gas and an outlet end completely open to a zone to be refrigerated and including strut means mounted between the enclosure inlet end and nozzle and lying in the path of ambient gas for creating turbulence therein, directing ambient gas in an annular stream which concentrically encloses the primary stream of coolant and in the same direction thereof through the inlet end into the enclosure, mixing ambient gas from the annular stream with coolant in the primary stream in an amount to sublime substantially the entirety of solid coolant therein into a gas, and directing the mixture of ambient gas and coolant from the outlet end of the enclosure into the zone to produce refrigeration.
- 4. An injector for use in a system for producing refrigeration in a zone from a source of pressurized liquid carbon dioxide coolant, the injector comprising the combination of a nozzle having an outlet opening of solid cross-section for injecting coolant from the source along a stream concomitant with reduction of pressure of the coolant to cause it to substantially expand into a gas, a hollow cylindrical enclosure defining an elongate passage, said enclosure having an inlet end which completely opens from ambient gas into the passage and an outlet end which opens from the passage into the refrigeration zone, strut means mounted between the enclosure inlet end and nozzle and lying in the path of ambient gas for creating turbulence therein, means for mounting the enclosure at a position where the stream is directed lengthwise through the passage and with the inlet end spaced about the nozzle to define an annular opening through which gas is drawn along a path concentrically about the stream of injected coolant for mixing therewith in an amount to sublime substantially the entirety of solid coolant therein into a gas, with the mixture of coolant and ambient gas thereafter discharging through the outlet end into the zone to produce refrigeration.
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13. A system for producing refrigeration including a source of pressurized liquid carbon dioxide coolant, an injector assembly including a nozzle connected with the coolant source, said nozzle having an injector orifice of solid cross-section and of a size which maintains coolant within the nozzle in a liquid state while injecting coolant into a stream with concomitant reduction in pressure to expand the injected coolant into a gas, an elongate hollow cylindrical enclosure mounted about the path of the injected stream, said enclosure having an inlet end radially spaced about the nozzle orifice to define an annular opening through which ambient gas is drawn by and concentrically about the stream into the enclosure for mixing with the coolant in the stream in an amount which sublimes substantially the entirety of solid CO2 in the stream into a gas, strut means mounted between the enclosure inlet end and nozzle and lying in the path of ambient gas for creating turbulence therein, said enclosure having an open outlet end through which the mixture of ambient gas and coolant is directed to produce refrigeration.
Specification