GB2144210A

GB2144210A - Sun heater apparatus

Info

Publication number: GB2144210A
Application number: GB08320512A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Kyriacos Michael Economou
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1983-07-29
Filing date: 1983-07-29
Publication date: 1985-02-27
Also published as: GB2144210B; CY1498A; GB8320512D0

Abstract

A water heating system using solar energy, comprising a cold water storage tank (A), a boiler (C1) for heating water fed from the tank (A) through the boiler, a frame (B2) containing part of a continuous pipe (X) filled with oil or alcohol, that part of the pipe (X) within the frame being exposed to solar energy, the pipe passing through the boiler (C1) for the transference of heat from the oil or alcohol to the water within the boiler. The part of the pipe (X) within the boiler (C1) may be in the form of a funnel (Y) or a spiral. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in heaters using solar energy Introduction a) Archimedes used mirrors and energy from the sun to burn enemy ships.

b) Ancient Greeks pured boiling oil from battlements on to their enemies.

c) Our grandmothers used hot bricks to warm their beds which had just been taken off burning coal.

The present invention is based on the above three principles which when applied gave very satisfactory results.

General Sun heating using oil or alcohol with closed or open circulation is a new revolutionary method using sun energy, the cost of which is about 10% higher than the common sun heaters and has the following main advantages as well as others.

a) The new method can boil the water to over 100,C, the benefit which can be used to produce a different kind of energy, i.e. electricity.

It can boil water even in low temperature. At a test (using materials with poor insulation), with maximum temperature of 10"C and minimum 2"C and a survey period of 3-4 hours, the system raised the water temperature in the basin to 420C.

c) There is no danger of the pipes in the frames (sepentines) being damaged even in low temperatures as usually happens to common sun heaters (which are damaged at 20C). So the above system can be used even in countries with a cold climate or little sunshine.

d) When necessary, electricity power can be used to boil the water with considerable economy compared with common systems.

e) Using oil as a medium, corrosion and blockage of the pipes is avoided.

f) The system maintains the continuous flow of hot water because of the heat which is stored during the sunny periods, in the oil and the mass.

Parts of the system The whole system consists of the following parts (equipment) which are joined together with copper pipes.

a) The water tank (sketch A).

b) The frames (sketch B1 and B2) c) The boiler (sketch C1 and C2) d) The indicator for checking the level of the oil (sketch C1 Nos. 13 and 14, C2 Nos. 6 and 7).

e) The electric element (sketch C1 No. 10, C2 No.

11).

f) Oil or alcohol or any other liquid which can easily heat and keep its heat (marked X) on sketches).

Operation and use of the above equipment a) The water tank The water tank is used for the storage of cold (fresh) water which both the house and the boiler are provided with (see sketch A).

b) The frames The frames are of the ordinary type consisting of copper pipes. The pipes may be covered with copper slate for greater efficiency. They are dyed black to absorb heat. The frames must be air proof. (The sun heats the copper slate and the pipes which heat the oil that rises and heats the mass of the siphon and consequently the water of the boiler).

(see sketches B1 and B2).

c) The boiler The boiler can be an ordinary boiler made of copper with insulation in order to keep the water hot. In the boiler there should always be a funnel shaped siphon in order to heat a greater surface of the boiler. In this case, we use light oil which can be heated easily.

Siphon. (No 2 on sketch C1) The siphon has the shape of a big funnel or of a simple cylinder and it is placed in the middle of the boiler. In the siphon there is oil, the mass and the electric elements (oil: marked X; mass: marked Y in sketch No. C1).

Mass.

The mass is a material that has the attribute to keep the heat. It may consist of bricks, stones (sea stones), parts of cast iron etc. When the oil in the frames is heated by the sun, it rises and transmits the heat to the siphon and when it gets cold it descends from the lower part of the siphon and goes into the frames, again through the lower part. So a circular flow takes place. The hot oil, the mass and the siphon heat the water of the boiler and the circular flow of the oil continues as long as the temperature of the oil in the upper part of the frames is higher than that of the boiler.

d) Indicator (See Nos. 13 and 14 on sketch C1 and Nos. 6 and 7 on sketch C2).

The indicator consists of a transparent (diaphanous) funnel shaped pipe and it is placed above the highest level of the oil in order that we can check whether a circular flow is performed as far as the oil is concerned. If the indicator shows that there is no oil, this has to be replenished in order to ensure a circular flow of the oil. The indicator also checks whether there is a leakage of the water from the boiler into the siphon. If there is a leakage, the oil overflows continuously from the indicator and finally water overflows. The indicator is also used for the ventilation of the oil.

e) Electrical Element (See No. 10 on sketch C1 and No. 11 on sketch C2).

The electrical element may be of the ordinary type. It is placed in the siphon because the oil and the mass are heated easily and both heat the water of the boiler. We have a great economy of electricity in this way and the boiler is heated in a very short period of time.

Operation of the whole system The sun heats the frames which in turn heat the oil inside. The hot oil goes into the siphon (see No.

12 on sketch C1) heating the water of the boiler as well. The oil then descends through the lower part of the siphon (see No. 9 on sketch C1) and goes through the lower part of the frames. In this way, a circular flow is created. The pipes that join the boiler with the frames must have insulation and this is best to be made of copper. If a spiral brass (copper) pipe (sketch C2) is placed in the boiler instead of the siphon, the oil will pass through it.

The water from the tank goes into the lower part of the boiler (see No. 8 on sketch C1 and No. 3 on sketch C2), and the hot water goes out from the upper part (see No. 5 on sketch C1), and from there it can be transmitted throughout the house.

The hot water pipes must have insulation.

The system with the siphon (sketch C1) has more advantages than that with a spiral brass (copper) pipe (sketch C2) because of a greaterabsorption of heat is retained in the boiler. In addition, the water may be heated again, even during the night because of the storage of heat in the siphon.

Tests a) A test took place on 2 January 1983 with a maximum temperature of 10"C and 3 to 4 hours sunshine which raised the temperature of the water at the basin to 42"C b) A test took place on 5 January 1983 with a maximum temperature of 12"C and 4 to 6 hours of sunshine which raised the temperature of the water at the basin to over 50"C.

Claims

1. A water heating system using solar energy, comprising a cold water storage tank, a boiler having a cold water inlet at the lower end thereof from the storage tank and a hot water outlet from the upper end thereof, the boiler also having an internal pipe extending from top to bottom thereof, said pipe having an outlet leading from the bottom of the boiler to the bottom of a frame through which said pipe extends to be exposed to solar energy, said pipe leading from the top of the frame to the top of the boiler to complete a closed circuit and said pipe being filled with oil or alcohol, heat transferrence from the oil or alcohol heated by solar energy in the frames being transferred to the water in the boiler through the said pipe.

2. A water heating system as claimed in Claim 1, in which the upper part of the pipe within the boiler is of funnel shape and contains a mass of material that has the attribute to keep the heat.

3. A water heating system as claimed in Claim 1, in which the pipe within the boiler is of spiral configuration.

4. A water heating system substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.