JP2004284432A - Vehicular adsorption type air-conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicular adsorption type air-conditioner capable of enhancing the heat radiation performance of an outdoor unit 120 and enhancing the air cooling capacity (adsorption performance). <P>SOLUTION: The outdoor unit 120 is disposed on a vehicle roof top. Much more fresh air not affected by exhaust heat from an engine or the ground heat is allowed to flow in the outdoor unit 120, and the temperature of liquid refrigerant passing through the outdoor unit 120 can be dropped. Since no obstacle to cause hindrance of ventilation is present on the vehicle roof top, air volume to the outdoor unit 120 can be easily ensured, and more heat radiation is possible. The cooling capacity (adsorption performance) of the vehicular adsorption type air-conditioner can be enhanced. In addition, a space in an engine room is affordable because the outdoor unit is disposed outside, and versatility of the installation space and the outer size of the outdoor unit 120 disposed on the vehicle roof top can be enhanced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an adsorption type air conditioner applied to a vehicle having a liquid-cooled internal combustion engine (water-cooled engine).
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional technique, there is an adsorption type air conditioner for a vehicle disclosed in Patent Document 1 previously filed by the present applicant. This is an air conditioner for a vehicle that alternately operates an adsorption process and a desorption process of an adsorbent, and cools a coolant using heat of evaporation at the time of adsorption. The adsorption step of causing the coolant radiated by the heat exchanger outside the vehicle to flow into the adsorber using a pump, and the desorption step of causing the cooling water heated by the engine to flow into the adsorber using a pump, The switching valve is switched to change the flow path, so that the adsorption and desorption actions are alternately performed. The cooling liquid cooled by the evaporation heat at the time of the adsorption action air-conditions the vehicle interior via the vehicle interior heat exchanger.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2000-185548 A
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a conventional problem. Since the adsorption performance is affected by the humidity environment of the adsorbent, improving the amount of heat radiation to the outside of the vehicle and lowering the temperature of the cooling liquid flowing into the adsorption process leads to an improvement in the adsorption performance. However, as shown in FIG. 6, conventionally, the exterior heat exchanger of the vehicle is disposed in the front of the engine room near the radiator, so that the external heat exchanger is affected by exhaust heat of the engine and geothermal heat. There is a problem that adsorption performance does not increase due to insufficient heat radiation performance. The same applies to vehicles such as trucks as well as passenger cars shown in FIG.
[0005]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object to improve the heat radiation performance of a heat exchanger outside a vehicle compartment, thereby improving the cooling capacity (adsorption performance) of a vehicle. An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the technical means described in claims 1 to 4 are adopted. That is, the invention according to claim 1 is characterized in that the exterior heat exchanger (120) is arranged on the roof of the vehicle.
[0007]
In the adsorption type air conditioner, the adsorption characteristics of the adsorbent (Si) greatly affect the cooling capacity, and the adsorption characteristics depend on the relative humidity in the atmosphere where the adsorbent (Si) is placed. FIG. 4 is a graph illustrating the adsorption characteristics, and FIG. 5 is a graph illustrating changes in the adsorption characteristics according to the present invention.
[0008]
In FIG. 4, the difference ΔC between the moisture adsorption rates at the respective relative humidities during adsorption and desorption is calculated as the adsorption amount. At this time, on the adsorption side (FIG. 5A), if the temperature (T1) of the adsorbent (Si) is lowered, the relative humidity in the graph moves to the arrow A. On the other hand, on the desorption side (FIG. 5B), if the refrigerant temperature (T2) is lowered, the relative humidity in the graph moves in the direction of arrow B.
[0009]
In the present apparatus, the cooling liquid passing through the exterior heat exchanger (120) desorbs the adsorbing cores (111a and 112a) on the adsorption side to cool the adsorbent (Si) and desorbs to promote desorption. Into the condensing core (111b / 112b) on the side. That is, the temperature of the liquid refrigerant via the exterior heat exchanger (120) is an important parameter that determines the adsorption characteristics of the adsorbent (Si). Is the key to performance improvement.
[0010]
In the conventional adsorption type air conditioner for a vehicle, as shown in FIG. 6, the external heat exchanger (120) is installed in the engine room. Although it was difficult to obtain a low-temperature and sufficient air flow to the heat exchanger (120) outside the vehicle due to a space problem, in the present invention, for example, as shown in FIG. The exterior heat exchanger (120) is installed on the roof.
[0011]
This allows a larger amount of fresh air that is not affected by engine exhaust heat or geothermal heat to flow into the exterior heat exchanger (120), and cools the coolant that has passed through the exterior heat exchanger (120) to a low temperature. Can be Further, since there are no obstacles on the roof that hinder ventilation, it is easy to secure the air volume to the heat exchanger (120) outside the vehicle compartment, and larger heat radiation is possible. From these, it is possible to improve the cooling capacity (adsorption performance) of the adsorption air conditioner for a vehicle. In addition, the space inside the engine room can be spared as much as the outside heat exchanger (120) is eliminated, and the installation space and outside dimensions of the outside heat exchanger (120) can be improved on the roof. it can.
[0012]
The invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that the refrigerator main body (110) constituted by at least the adsorbers (111 and 112) is arranged on the roof of the vehicle. This is because not only the heat exchanger outside the vehicle compartment (120) but also the refrigerator main body (110) is arranged on the roof of the vehicle. In addition, it is possible to improve the installation space and the degree of freedom of the outer dimensions of the refrigerator main body (110) on the roof.
[0013]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, the air conditioning unit (400) including at least the air conditioning casing (410), the vehicle interior heat exchanger (440), and the heater core (450) is arranged on the roof of the vehicle. I do. This is because not only the outside heat exchanger (120) but also the air conditioning unit (400) is arranged on the roof of the vehicle, so that the air conditioning unit (400) can be spared in the interior space by the amount of the air conditioning unit (400). On the roof, the installation space of the air conditioning unit (400) and the degree of freedom of the outer dimensions can be improved.
[0014]
Cooling from the upper side of the passenger compartment lowers the cool air, so that the comfort is improved as compared with the conventional front blowout, and the time required to obtain a comfortable feeling is shortened. Performing the cooling efficiently as described above saves energy and power of the air conditioner. Incidentally, the reference numerals in the parentheses of the above-described units are examples showing the correspondence with specific units described in the embodiments described later.
[0015]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a system configuration of a vehicle adsorption air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a system configuration of an adsorption refrigeration cycle in the vehicle adsorption air conditioner of FIG. It is. In this embodiment, the adsorption refrigeration system for a vehicle according to the present invention is applied to a vehicle having a water-cooled engine (liquid-cooled internal combustion engine) using liquefied propane gas (LPG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG) as fuel. Things.
[0016]
In FIG. 1, reference numeral 200 denotes a traveling water-cooled engine (hereinafter, abbreviated as an engine), and reference numeral 210 denotes heat exchange between engine cooling water circulating in the engine 200 and the atmosphere (air outside the vehicle compartment). A radiator that cools engine cooling water. In this embodiment, water obtained by adding ethylene glycol to water is used as engine cooling water.
[0017]
Reference numeral 220 denotes a thermostat that maintains the engine 200 at an appropriate temperature (90 ° C. to 100 ° C.) by adjusting the amount of engine cooling water flowing through the radiator 210, and 230 obtains a driving force from the engine 200 to supply the engine cooling water. It is a mechanical water pump that circulates. Reference numeral 240 denotes a radiator fan that blows air to the radiator 210. The radiator fan 240 is controlled by an electronic control unit (ECU) 300.
[0018]
Reference numeral 100 (enclosed by a dashed line) denotes an adsorption refrigeration apparatus. The adsorption refrigeration apparatus 100 includes a refrigerator main body 110 exhibiting a refrigeration capacity and a first and second adsorbers 111 and 112 described later. An external heat exchanger (hereinafter, abbreviated as an outdoor unit) that cools the coolant by exchanging heat between the cooling fluid for the refrigerator (in the present embodiment, the same as the engine cooling water) and the atmosphere. ) 120, electric first and second pumps 131 and 132 for circulating the cooling liquid, and an outdoor unit fan 140 for blowing air to the outdoor unit 120.
[0019]
As shown in FIG. 2, the refrigerator main body 110 adsorbs a vapor refrigerant (water vapor) and desorbs the vapor refrigerant adsorbed by being heated (in the present embodiment, silica gel) Si, The first and second adsorbers 111 and 112 in which a liquid-phase refrigerant (water) is sealed in a vacuum state, and a heat exchange medium cooled in each of the adsorbers 111 and 112 (in this embodiment, the same as the engine cooling water). ) Or first to fourth switching valves 113 to 116 for switching the passage of the heated engine cooling water.
[0020]
By the way, in the present embodiment, the coolant and the heat exchange medium are the same, and as described later, the coolant and the heat exchange medium are mixed during the operation of the adsorption refrigeration apparatus 100. Hereinafter, both are collectively called a cooling liquid. The first and second adsorbers 111 and 112 include a heat exchanger (hereinafter, these heat exchangers are referred to as first and second adsorption cores 111a and 112a) having adsorbent Si adhered to the surface thereof, and an adsorbent. Heat exchangers to which Si is not bonded (hereinafter, these heat exchangers are referred to as first and second condensing cores 111b and 112b), and casings 111c and 112c for storing the cores 111a, 112a, 111b, and 112b and the refrigerant. It is composed of
[0021]
A coolant that exchanges heat with the atmosphere in the first and second adsorption cores 111 and 112 flows through the cores 111a, 112a, 111b, and 112b. Circulated by pumps 131 and 132. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 400 denotes an air conditioning unit of a vehicle air conditioner, and reference numeral 410 denotes an air conditioning casing which forms a passage of blown air (conditioned air) blown into a vehicle cabin.
[0022]
At the most upstream side of the air-conditioning casing 410, an inside air inlet 411 for sucking air in the vehicle compartment and an outside air inlet 412 for sucking air outside the vehicle compartment are formed, and both the inlets 411, 412 are switched. An inside / outside air switching door 420 that opens and closes is provided.
[0023]
Reference numeral 430 denotes a blower that blows the air sucked from the two suction ports 411 and 412 toward the vehicle interior, and downstream of the air flow of the blower 430, the adsorption refrigeration system 100 (the first and second condensing cores 111b and 112b). A heat exchanger (hereinafter, abbreviated as an indoor unit) 440 is provided for exchanging heat between the cooling liquid cooled by the cooling air and the blown air (cooled body) to cool the blown air.
[0024]
A heater core (heating means) 450 for heating the blown air using the engine cooling water as a heat source is disposed downstream of the flow of the blown air from the indoor unit 440. The indoor unit 440 is provided near the heater core 450. The air mix door (temperature adjusting means) 460 that adjusts the temperature of the blown air by adjusting the ratio of the amount of the cool air that bypasses the heater core 450 to the amount of the warm air that passes through the heater core 450 out of the blown air that has passed through is provided. Is provided.
[0025]
The blown air whose temperature has been adjusted in this manner opens at a differential opening (not shown) communicating with a defroster outlet (not shown) which opens toward a windshield (not shown), and opens toward the upper body of the occupant. Blows out to a face opening (not shown) communicating with a face outlet (not shown), and a foot opening (not shown) communicating with a foot outlet (not shown) opening toward the occupant's feet. Is done.
[0026]
The blown air is switched by a blow mode switching door (not shown) that opens and closes each opening, and the operation of the blow mode switching door, the air mix door 460, the inside / outside air switching door 420, and the blower 430 is as follows. It is controlled by the ECU 300.
[0027]
The ECU 300 includes an inside air temperature sensor 310 for detecting the temperature inside the vehicle, an outside air temperature sensor 320 for detecting the outside air temperature, a solar radiation sensor 330 for detecting the amount of solar radiation, and an engine water temperature sensor (not shown) for detecting the temperature of the engine cooling water. And the temperature of the blown air after the temperature is adjusted by the first blown air temperature sensor 350 that detects the temperature of the blown air immediately after passing through the indoor unit 440 and the air mix door 460. A signal from the second blown air temperature sensor 360 to be detected and a signal from the air conditioning control panel 370 are input.
[0028]
The air-conditioning control panel 370 is manually operated by an occupant. The air-conditioning control panel 370 switches a blow-out mode, switches between an inside-air suction state and an outside-air suction state, and sets a passenger compartment temperature desired by the occupant. A temperature control lever for switching the amount of air to be blown, an air volume switching lever for switching the amount of blown air, and an air conditioner S / W for starting and stopping the air conditioner.
[0029]
Next, the operation of the adsorption refrigeration apparatus 100 will be described. The adsorption-type refrigeration apparatus 100 includes a first step including an adsorption step of adsorbing the refrigerant with the first adsorption core 111a and a desorption step of desorbing the refrigerant with the second adsorption core 112a. The second step including the desorption step of desorbing the refrigerant and the adsorption step of adsorbing the refrigerant by the second adsorption core 112a is alternately performed at predetermined time intervals t1 (60 seconds in the present embodiment).
[0030]
Specifically, in the first step, the first to fourth switching valves 113 to 116 are operated as shown by the solid lines in FIG. Thereby, the engine cooling water heated by the engine 200 flows into the second adsorption core 112a, heats the adsorbent Si of the second adsorption core 112a, and the steam adsorbed by the adsorbent Si of the second adsorption core 112a. Desorb refrigerant. On the other hand, since the evaporation of the liquid refrigerant in the first adsorber 111 proceeds, the cooling liquid in the first condensing core 111b is cooled, and the evaporated vapor refrigerant is added to the adsorbent Si of the first adsorption core 111a. Adsorbed.
[0031]
At this time, since the coolant is circulated between the first condensing core 111b and the indoor unit 440 by the first pump 131, the blown air (cooled body) is cooled. On the other hand, since the coolant circulates between the second condenser core 112b and the first adsorption core 111a and the exterior heat exchanger 120 by the second pump 132, the vapor refrigerant desorbed in the second adsorber 112 is condensed. At the same time, the heat of adsorption generated by the adsorbent Si of the first adsorption core 111a is absorbed and the adsorption capacity is prevented from being reduced.
[0032]
In the second step, the operation of the first adsorber 111 in the first step is performed by operating the first to fourth switching valves 113 to 116 as shown by the broken lines in FIG. The operation of the second adsorber 112 becomes the operation of the first adsorber 111. As described above, the adsorption refrigerating machine 100 continuously exhibits the cooling capacity (cooling capacity) by alternately performing the first step and the second step at every predetermined time t1.
[0033]
Next, a description will be given of the characteristic configuration of the adsorption air conditioner for a vehicle according to the present embodiment and the effects of the characteristic configuration. 3A and 3B are schematic views showing a state in which the vehicle-use suction air conditioner of FIG. 1 is mounted on a vehicle, wherein FIG. 3A is a front view, and FIG. 3B is a side view. First, the outdoor unit 120 is arranged on the roof of the vehicle.
[0034]
In the conventional adsorption type air conditioner for a vehicle, the outdoor unit 120 is installed in the engine room as shown in FIG. While it was difficult to obtain a low-temperature and sufficient air flow to the outdoor unit 120, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the outdoor unit 120 is installed on the roof of a truck cabin.
[0035]
Accordingly, a larger amount of fresh air that is not affected by engine exhaust heat or geothermal heat can flow into the outdoor unit 120, and the temperature of the coolant that has passed through the outdoor unit 120 can be reduced. Further, since there is no obstacle on the roof that hinders ventilation, it is easy to secure the air volume to the outdoor unit 120, and more heat radiation is possible. From these, it is possible to improve the cooling capacity (adsorption performance) of the adsorption air conditioner for a vehicle. In addition, a space in the engine room can be provided by an amount corresponding to the elimination of the outdoor unit 120, and the installation space of the outdoor unit 120 and the degree of freedom in external dimensions can be improved on the roof.
[0036]
Further, the refrigerator main body 110 constituted by at least the two adsorbers 111 and 112 is arranged on the roof of the vehicle. This is because not only the outdoor unit 120 but also the refrigerator main body 110 is arranged on the roof of the vehicle, so that the space in the engine room can be spared as much as the refrigerator main body 110 is eliminated. The installation space of 110 and the degree of freedom of external dimensions can be improved.
[0037]
Further, the air conditioning unit 400 including at least the air conditioning casing 410, the vehicle interior heat exchanger 440, and the heater core 450 is arranged on the roof of the vehicle. This is because, by arranging the air conditioning unit 400 on the roof of the vehicle as well as the outdoor unit 120, the space in the vehicle compartment can be spared as much as the air conditioning unit 400 is eliminated, and the installation space of the air conditioning unit 400 on the roof And the degree of freedom in external dimensions can be improved.
[0038]
In addition, when cooling is performed from the upper side of the passenger compartment, since the cool air is lowered, the comfort is improved as compared with the conventional front blowing, and the time required to obtain a comfortable feeling is shortened. Performing the cooling efficiently as described above saves energy and power of the air conditioner.
[0039]
(Other embodiments)
In the above-described embodiment, the air-mix type air conditioner adjusts the temperature of the blown air by adjusting the ratio of the amount of cool air to the amount of warm air, but by adjusting the flow rate of the hot water flowing through the heater core 450. Alternatively, the air conditioner may be a reheat type air conditioner for adjusting the temperature of the blown air.
[0040]
Further, in the above embodiment, silica gel is used as the adsorbent Si, but the present invention is not limited to this, and activated carbon, zeolite, activated alumina, or the like may be used as the adsorbent Si. Further, in the above-described embodiment, water is used as the liquid refrigerant, but the present invention is not limited to this, and any other substance can be used as long as it is adsorbed by the adsorbent Si such as alcohol and chlorofluorocarbon. May be.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a system configuration of a vehicle adsorption type air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a system configuration of an adsorption refrigeration cycle in the adsorption air conditioner for a vehicle in FIG. 1;
FIGS. 3A and 3B are schematic diagrams showing a state in which the vehicle-use suction air conditioner of FIG. 1 is mounted on a vehicle, wherein FIG. 3A is a front view and FIG. 3B is a side view.
FIG. 4 is a graph illustrating adsorption characteristics.
FIGS. 5A and 5B are graphs for explaining changes in adsorption characteristics according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 5A shows an adsorption side, and FIG. 5B shows a desorption side.
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a conventional problem.
[Explanation of symbols]
110 Refrigerator main body 111/112 Adsorber 120 Outside heat exchanger 200 Water-cooled engine (liquid-cooled internal combustion engine)
400 air conditioning unit 410 air conditioning casing 440 car heat exchanger 450 heater core Si adsorbent

Claims (3)

A vehicle adsorption air conditioner applied to a vehicle having a liquid-cooled internal combustion engine (200),
An adsorber (111, 112), which adsorbs a vapor refrigerant and adsorbs an adsorbent (Si) and a liquid refrigerant for desorbing the vapor refrigerant adsorbed by being heated, and exhibiting a refrigerating ability;
An external heat exchanger (120) for cooling the liquid refrigerant circulating in the adsorber (111, 112) by exchanging heat with the atmosphere;
An air conditioning casing (410) forming a passage of the blown air blown into the vehicle interior;
A vehicle interior heat exchanger (440) disposed in the air conditioning casing (410) and circulating the liquid refrigerant cooled by the adsorbers (111 and 112);
In the air-conditioning casing (410), the blow-off air is provided as a heat source by using a coolant circulating in the water-cooled internal combustion engine (200) as a heat source. A heater core (450) for heating;
An adsorption step of adsorbing a vapor refrigerant to exhibit a refrigerating capacity in the adsorbers (111 and 112); and a desorption step of heating the adsorbent (Si) with the cooling liquid to desorb the vapor refrigerant. In the one that switches between and driving,
An adsorption air conditioner for a vehicle, wherein the exterior heat exchanger (120) is arranged on a roof of the vehicle. The adsorption type air conditioner for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein a refrigerator main body (110) constituted by at least the adsorber (111, 112) is arranged on a roof of the vehicle. The air conditioning unit (400) comprising at least the air conditioning casing (410), the vehicle interior heat exchanger (440) and the heater core (450) is arranged on a roof of the vehicle. The adsorption type air conditioner for a vehicle according to the above.

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