JP2009138983A - Refrigerant pipe - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a refrigerant pipe having corrosion resistance to cope with various outdoor environments, capable of preventing refrigerant leakage, and having good cost performance, with respect to the refrigerant pipe for communicating an outdoor unit with an indoor unit of an air conditioner (so-called household room-air conditioner) used in a room to circulate the refrigerant. <P>SOLUTION: This refrigerant pipe 3 is provided to communicate the outdoor unit 17 with the indoor unit 18 of the air conditioner 16 to circulate the refrigerant C, and the refrigerant pipe 3 is composed of aluminum alloy including manganese, and is an integral product manufactured from manganese-containing aluminum alloy over the whole length. The refrigerant pipe 3 is coated with a heat insulating material 28. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a refrigerant pipe attached to an indoor air conditioner.

Non-patent Document 1, for example, is known as a refrigerant pipe that communicates an outdoor unit and an indoor unit of an air conditioner (so-called home room air conditioner) that is used indoors and that allows the refrigerant to pass therethrough. In this refrigerant pipe, an intermediate portion is made of an aluminum tube made of an aluminum alloy that is cheaper than copper, and both end portions are made of a copper tube made of copper, against the background of the recent rise in the price of copper. The aluminum pipe and the copper pipe are covered with a heat insulating material and are connected to each other by pressure welding or welding.
“Air Conditioning Times”, Air Conditioning Times, July 25, 2007, p.12-13

  By the way, since the refrigerant pipe of nonpatent literature 1 uses a copper pipe, and since an aluminum pipe is manufactured from mere aluminum, depending on the outdoor environment of the house where an air conditioner is installed, corrosion resistance is insufficient. There may be. In addition, since the aluminum pipe and the copper pipe are connected by pressure welding or welding, the manufacturing process is complicated by the amount required for the pressure welding process or welding process, and the connection portion between the aluminum pipe and the copper pipe May leak refrigerant. Further, since the copper pipe has high thermal conductivity, it is disadvantageous in cost because it is necessary to increase the thickness of the heat insulating material in order to prevent condensation.

  Accordingly, in view of the above problems, the present invention has an object to provide a refrigerant pipe that has corrosion resistance that can cope with various outdoor environments, can prevent refrigerant leakage, and is further advantageous in cost. And

  In order to achieve the above object, a refrigerant pipe according to the present invention is a refrigerant pipe attached to an indoor air conditioner, and connects the outdoor unit and the indoor unit of the air conditioner to allow the refrigerant to pass therethrough. The refrigerant pipe is made of an aluminum alloy containing manganese.

  According to the refrigerant pipe according to the present invention, since the refrigerant pipe is manufactured from a manganese-containing aluminum alloy, it is excellent in corrosion resistance as compared with a conventional copper pipe manufactured from copper. Therefore, the refrigerant pipe of the present invention can cope with various outdoor environments of a house where an indoor air conditioner, that is, a home room air conditioner is installed.

  In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerant pipe is an integral part manufactured from a manganese-containing aluminum alloy over its entire length. According to this configuration, unlike the conventional configuration in which the copper pipe and the aluminum pipe are connected by pressure welding or welding, the refrigerant pipe is an integral part, so that the pressure welding process or the welding process is not required, thereby simplifying the manufacturing process. it can. Further, since the refrigerant pipe is an integral product, there is no connection portion, so that the refrigerant pipe can be bent at a desired position, and there is no need to worry about refrigerant leakage from the connection portion. Thereby, the freedom degree of the installation work of refrigerant | coolant piping improves on the spot. Furthermore, since aluminum has a specific gravity of about 1/3 compared to copper and is light, the refrigerant pipe is particularly easy to carry to the upper floor and easy to install compared to a copper pipe. Become.

  In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerant pipe further includes a heat insulating material that covers the refrigerant pipe. According to this configuration, since the refrigerant pipe is manufactured from a manganese-containing aluminum alloy, the thermal conductivity can be reduced by about 50% compared to a conventional copper pipe made of copper. Thereby, the said refrigerant | coolant pipe | tube can reduce condensation compared with a copper pipe | tube. As a result, it is possible to make the heat insulating material covered with the refrigerant pipe thinner in order to prevent dew condensation compared to the copper pipe, which is advantageous in terms of cost. Moreover, even if the same heat insulating material is used and the thickness of the heat insulating material is the same, the dew condensation on the pipe can be reduced even under worse conditions as compared with the copper pipe.

  In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the refrigerant pipe is anodized. According to this configuration, the refrigerant tube made of a manganese-containing aluminum alloy has excellent corrosion resistance as compared with a conventional copper tube, and can further enhance corrosion resistance by anodizing. As a result of improving corrosion resistance, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of gas leakage accidents due to so-called ant nest corrosion, etc. that often occur in copper pipes even when pipes are installed or when the insulation is perforated by some accident. it can.

  In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, a connecting portion between the refrigerant pipe, the outdoor unit, and the indoor unit is covered with a waterproof material having waterproof properties. According to this configuration, even if the connection part between the refrigerant pipe and the outdoor unit and the indoor unit is a part where different metals are in contact with each other, the waterproof part blocks the connection part from moisture. It is possible to prevent so-called galvanic corrosion from occurring in the connecting portion.

  The refrigerant piping according to the present invention has corrosion resistance that can cope with various outdoor environments, can prevent refrigerant leakage, and is advantageous in terms of cost.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a state in which refrigerant piping according to an embodiment of the present invention is connected to an indoor air conditioner. Two refrigerant pipes 1 and 2 are attached to an indoor air conditioner (so-called home room air conditioner) 16. One refrigerant pipe 1 is a pipe (low-pressure pipe) that connects the indoor unit 18 of the indoor air conditioner 16 and the outdoor unit 17 and allows the gaseous refrigerant C to flow from the indoor unit 18 to the outdoor unit 17. . The other refrigerant pipe 2 is a pipe (high-pressure pipe) that connects the outdoor unit 17 and the indoor unit 18 in communication and allows the liquid refrigerant C to flow from the outdoor unit 17 to the indoor unit 18. Since the refrigerant pipe 1 and the refrigerant pipe 2 have the same configuration except that the dimensions are different, the refrigerant pipe 1 will be described below as a representative for ease of explanation.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing one end side of the refrigerant pipe 1. The refrigerant pipe 1 includes a refrigerant pipe 3 constituting a refrigerant passage 4 through which the refrigerant C flows. The refrigerant pipe 3 is an integral part manufactured from an aluminum alloy containing manganese (JIS 3003 alloy) over its entire length, and has a flare portion 7 whose both ends are expanded by flare processing.

  The refrigerant pipe 1 further includes a flare nut 5 that is inserted through the refrigerant pipe 3 and located near the flare portion 7. The flare nut 5 is a forged nut corresponding to JIS B8607, for example. The indoor unit 18 is provided with a connection port 20 to which the one end of the refrigerant pipe 1 is connected. An external thread portion 21 is formed at the distal end portion 20 a of the connection port 20, and a refrigerant passage (not shown) through which the refrigerant C passes is opened at the distal end surface 22 of the connection port 20. When connecting the refrigerant pipe 1 to the indoor unit 18, first, the flare portion 7 of the refrigerant pipe 3 is brought into contact with the front end surface 22 of the connection port 20 of the indoor unit 18, that is, the refrigerant passage 4 of the refrigerant pipe 3 Next, the flare nut 5 of the refrigerant pipe 1 is screwed into the external thread portion 21 of the connection port 20. As a result, the refrigerant pipe 1 is connected to the indoor unit 18 in a liquid-tight and air-tight manner. The other end side of the refrigerant pipe 1 has the same configuration as the one end side, and is connected to the connection port 20 provided in the outdoor unit 17 in the same procedure.

  The refrigerant pipe 1 further includes a heat insulating material 8 that covers the outer peripheral surface 3 a of the refrigerant pipe 3. The heat insulating material 8 has a two-layer structure including an outer heat insulating layer 9 and an inner heat insulating layer 10. The inner heat insulating layer 10 is made of, for example, 30 times independent foam crosslinked polyethylene having a heat resistance of 120 ° C., and the outer heat insulating layer 9 is made of a suitable polyethylene having lower heat resistance than the inner heat insulating layer 10. A PE embossed film 11 that has been embossed is attached to the outer heat insulating layer 9. By the embossing, even if the refrigerant pipe 3 is bent during piping work, bending wrinkles that impair the appearance do not occur in the heat insulating material 8.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the refrigerant pipe 3 has a corrosion resistant coating 13 formed on the outer peripheral surface 3 a over the entire length, that is, on the surface that contacts the internal heat insulating layer 10 of the heat insulating material 8 by anodizing. The corrosion resistant coating 13 improves the corrosion resistance of the refrigerant pipe 3. Further, since the corrosion-resistant film 13 is also formed on the outer peripheral surface of the flare portion 7, it is possible to prevent dissimilar metal contact corrosion (so-called galvanic corrosion) that may occur due to contact between the flare portion 7 and the flare nut 5. In FIG. 3, the flare nut 5 and the heat insulating material 8 are omitted for ease of explanation.

  Further, after connecting the refrigerant pipe 1 to the outdoor unit 17 and the indoor unit 18 as shown in FIG. 1, the connecting portion between the refrigerant pipe 1, the outdoor unit 17 and the indoor unit 18 may be covered with a waterproof material 28. Good. Specifically, the waterproof material 28 completely covers a region extending from the nut portion 23 (FIG. 2) of the outdoor unit 17 and the indoor unit 18 to the flare nut 5 (FIG. 2) screwed into the external screw portion 21 of the connection port 20. Used to cover. The waterproof material 28 is, for example, a heat-resistant waterproof and anticorrosive tape made of a combination of a polyethylene foam having stretchability and heat insulation and butyl rubber having water resistance, corrosion resistance, and adhesiveness. Since the refrigerant pipe 3 of the refrigerant pipe 1 is made of an aluminum alloy, and the connection port 20 of the outdoor unit 17 and the outdoor unit 18 is usually a brass union, the refrigerant pipe 3 and the connection port 20 which are different metals are When contact is made with moisture present, there is a concern that so-called galvanic corrosion will occur. However, since the moisture can be blocked by using the waterproof material 28, the occurrence of galvanic corrosion can be prevented at the connecting portion between the refrigerant pipe 1, the outdoor unit 17, and the indoor unit 18.

  As is apparent from the above description, the refrigerant pipe 3 is manufactured from a manganese-containing aluminum alloy, so that it can be excellent in corrosion resistance as compared with a conventional copper pipe manufactured from copper. As a result, the refrigerant pipes 1 and 2 can cope with various outdoor environments of the house where the indoor air conditioner 16 is installed.

  Further, unlike the conventional configuration in which the copper pipe and the aluminum pipe are connected by pressure welding or welding, the refrigerant pipe 3 is an integral product, so that the manufacturing process can be simplified by the amount that does not require the pressure welding process or the welding process. Furthermore, since the refrigerant pipe 3 is an integrated product, there is no connection portion (portion where the conventional copper pipe and aluminum pipe are connected), so that the refrigerant pipe 3 can be bent at a desired position. Further, it is possible to eliminate the concern about the leakage of refrigerant from the connecting portion and the concern about the corrosion caused by the formation of a battery at the connecting portion due to condensation. Thereby, the freedom degree of the installation work of the refrigerant | coolant piping 1 and 2 improves on the spot. Furthermore, since aluminum has a specific gravity of about 1/3 compared to copper and is lightweight, the refrigerant pipes 1 and 2 are particularly easy to carry to upper floors compared to copper pipes. Installation work is also easy.

  Furthermore, since the refrigerant pipe 3 is manufactured from a manganese-containing aluminum alloy, the thermal conductivity can be reduced by about 50% compared to a conventional copper pipe made of copper. Thereby, the refrigerant | coolant pipe | tube 3 can reduce dew condensation compared with a copper pipe | tube. As a result, the heat insulating material 8 covered with the refrigerant pipe 3 for preventing condensation can be made thinner than the copper pipe, which is advantageous in terms of cost. Moreover, even if the same heat insulating material is used and the thickness of the heat insulating material is the same, the dew condensation on the pipe can be reduced even under worse conditions as compared with the copper pipe.

  Furthermore, the refrigerant pipe 3 made of a manganese-containing aluminum alloy has excellent corrosion resistance as compared with a conventional copper pipe, and can further improve the corrosion resistance by alumite treatment. As a result of improving corrosion resistance, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of gas leakage accidents due to so-called ant nest corrosion, etc. that often occur in copper pipes even when pipes are installed or when the insulation is perforated by some accident. it can.

It is the schematic which shows the state where the refrigerant | coolant piping which concerns on this invention was connected to the air conditioner. It is a perspective view which shows the one end part of refrigerant | coolant piping. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the refrigerant pipe of refrigerant piping.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 2 Refrigerant piping 3 Refrigerant pipe 5 Flare nut 7 Flare part 8 Heat insulating material 13 Corrosion-resistant film 16 Air conditioner 17 Outdoor unit 18 Indoor unit C Refrigerant

Claims (5)

A refrigerant pipe attached to an indoor air conditioner,
A refrigerant pipe that allows the refrigerant to pass through the outdoor unit and the indoor unit of the air conditioner;
Refrigerant piping in which the refrigerant pipe is made of an aluminum alloy containing manganese.   The refrigerant pipe according to claim 1, wherein the refrigerant pipe is an integral part manufactured from a manganese-containing aluminum alloy over the entire length thereof.   The refrigerant pipe according to claim 1, further comprising a heat insulating material that covers the refrigerant pipe.   The refrigerant pipe according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the refrigerant pipe is alumite-treated.   The refrigerant | coolant piping as described in any one of Claims 1-4 WHEREIN: The refrigerant | coolant piping by which the connection part of the said refrigerant | coolant pipe | tube, the said outdoor unit, and the said indoor unit is covered with the waterproof material which has waterproofness.

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