JP2010025529A - Cooling and heating power generating distillation device by barometric siphon - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance an efficiency as an open system, and to use water with no environmental load as a heating medium, since a heat pump requires heat exchange because of a closed system, and uses a chlorofluorocarbon or the like of an environmental load substance as the heating medium, although the heat pump is an efficient cooling and heating system. <P>SOLUTION: The present invention discloses a novel principle of utilizing vaporization and condensation of a fluid. Two barometric legs are coupled in upper parts thereof to constitute a barometric syphon. Two of the siphons are prepared, evaporation chambers in respective upper parts are connected, and a compression pump is provided in the midway thereof. A temperature is elevated in one of the evaporation chambers by pressurization and condensation, and the temperature goes down in the other thereof by decompression. A liquid cooled or heated is taken out by an action of the siphon, to be used. The same structure is functioned as a power generator when a turbine is installed in a connection passage, while holding the structure, and is functioned as a vacuum distillation enriching device when holding only a passage for steam. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a vaporization and liquefaction apparatus using a heat medium, and relates to an air conditioner by manufacturing cold water or hot water using this phenomenon. Further, the present invention relates to a power generation, distillation, fractional distillation, concentration and deaeration device having the same main device configuration. We will also develop and use low-quality heat resources of less than 100 ° C. used to perform the vaporization and liquefaction phenomenon associated with the operation of these devices.

  The phenomenon of liquid vaporization and gas liquefaction is used in various fields of industrial technology as basic chemical and physical operations. One of the typical ones is an air conditioner, and this system, called a heat pump, circulates a sealed heat medium in the device and repeats vaporization and liquefaction to absorb heat on one side and dissipate heat on the other side. It is used as a freezing device. Another representative example is distillation or fractionation equipment as a separation technique for mixed systems, but in addition, conversion of thermal energy into electrical energy in thermal power and nuclear power generation using entropy change accompanying phase transformation is also an important application example It has become.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

  There are two phenomena of liquid vaporization: evaporation performed only on the liquid surface and boiling performed on the entire liquid phase, and the latter is highly useful from the viewpoint of the speed of progress of the process. In order to boil and evaporate a liquid, the vapor pressure of the liquid must be higher than the pressure of the atmosphere in which the liquid is placed. On the other hand, supply of heat necessary for the phase change is indispensable for boiling and evaporating the liquid. However, in boiling at atmospheric pressure, the vapor pressure of the liquid must be higher than 1 atm. It must have enough temperature to give a value. As is well known, water, which is the most basic liquid, boils at 100 ° C. under atmospheric pressure. Therefore, it cannot be vaporized under atmospheric pressure unless a heat source having a temperature higher than this is used. When it is necessary to boil water at a temperature lower than 100 ° C., the means for realizing this is to reduce the boiling point by placing the water under a reduced pressure in a low pressure state. If heat is supplied in this state, supply of heat can be obtained even from a low-temperature heat source, which can be used as boiling heat for boiling. However, in general, in order to place a substance in a reduced pressure state, a sealed container isolated from the atmosphere and a vacuum device with power connected thereto are required. Also, the process becomes a batch with operation. In other words, put the liquid in a vacuum container, seal it, reduce the pressure and evaporate it to the boil, and then perform the desired treatment.After that, release the sealed state, take out the treated product, replace the next liquid, and operate. repeat. The efficiency as a process is low. On the other hand, since the heat medium is closed and sealed in advance in the heat pump, the operation can be performed continuously. However, in addition to requiring a heat exchange device between the closed sealing system and the outside, there arises a management problem of the material used as the heat medium. In recent years, along with the social uplift of environmental awareness, the use of environmentally hazardous substances tends to be eliminated, and it is becoming difficult to use substances such as chlorofluorocarbons that have been used as heat media for many years. In view of these reasons, the apparatus according to the present invention performs an action suitable for a heat pump in an open system by presenting a new method that simplifies the decompression and decompression of liquid and enables continuous operation. In addition, operations such as power generation and distillation, which have been conventionally performed using a high-temperature heat source, are enabled by using a low-temperature heat source having a low temperature of 100 ° C. or lower.

Means for solving the problem

  The present invention is characterized by using a barometric siphon with an atmospheric leg developed as means for achieving the above-mentioned problems. FIG. 2 shows a state where a sufficiently long closed tube with one side closed is filled with a liquid and turned upside down to stand in a container that holds and holds the same liquid under atmospheric pressure. In the case of mercury, an elevation difference of 76 cm occurs between the vapor pressure liquid level 11 which is the liquid level in the upper pipe and the atmospheric pressure liquid level 13 which is the liquid level in the lower liquid tank, and the vapor pressure liquid level in the pipe. The space 12 formed above 11 is called a Torricelli vacuum. The space 12 is not a complete vacuum but a vapor space 12 filled with a saturated vapor of mercury at that temperature, and the difference in level between the two liquid levels corresponds strictly to the difference between the vapor pressure of mercury and atmospheric pressure. . Even if another liquid having a low density is used instead of mercury, the same state is obtained, but the height difference between the vapor pressure liquid level 11 and the atmospheric pressure liquid level 13 increases corresponding to the density. Incidentally, in the case of water at room temperature of 25 ° C., the vapor pressure of water at this temperature is 23.76 mmHg, so the height difference is 1001 cm. In general, this configuration in which a liquid column is formed by facing atmospheric pressure is called barometric legs.

  In the atmosphere leg, the liquid near the atmospheric pressure liquid level 13 in the lower end of the pipe or in the liquid tank is under atmospheric pressure, but the liquid near the vapor pressure liquid level 11 in the pipe is in a low pressure state, and both communicate with each other in the atmosphere leg pipe. Thus, mass exchange between the high-pressure side and the low-pressure side, that is, between the lower part of the pipe and the upper part of the pipe is possible. This feature of atmospheric legs has already been used in industrial technology as an atmospheric leg condenser that liquefies low-pressure steam into the atmosphere, and is used in the process of sugar production, oil fractionation, etc. It is used. That is, in FIG. 2, the vapor space 12 communicates with an external device, receives supply of vapor at a lower pressure than the device, is cooled and liquefied in the vicinity of the vapor pressure liquid surface 11, and if the liquefaction continues, the liquid passes through the inside of the pipe. The liquid tank 14 is pushed out. As a means of heat exchange for cooling, a type of spraying a cooled jet stream of the same liquid as the liquid to be condensed is widespread. Conversely, when the vapor space 12 communicates with some external device and the upper portion of the pipe is heated to vaporize the liquid, it can function as a low-pressure vapor supply device for the external device.

  First, the cooler of the apparatus according to the present invention will be described. The basic configuration of the cooler on which the present invention is based is that a vacuum pump 15 is connected to the vapor space 12 at the upper part of the atmospheric leg shown in FIG. 2, and the exhaust port 16 of the pump is opened to the atmosphere. The pump is operated and continuously operated. This principle configuration is shown in FIG. When water is used as the liquid in the pipe, the water is boiled and vaporized from the vicinity of the vapor pressure surface 11 to take heat of vaporization, the water in the pipe at the top of the pipe is cooled, and the vaporized water vapor is diffused into the atmosphere from the exhaust port 16 of the vacuum pump. . Other liquids can be used as long as they do not give a load to the environment. Even if the operation is continued, the water level of the vapor pressure liquid level 11 in the pipe stops at a certain position and does not rise any further, so that continuously operated and cooled water is produced in the upper part of the pipe. However, when operating continuously, the configuration of this device presents heat exchange problems. That is, the cooled water in the upper part of the pipe cannot be used as it is, and a heat exchanger must be provided at this position to move the cold heat. If left without being provided, the water will eventually freeze and the endothermic action due to vaporization will stop. By providing a heat exchanger, the efficiency is significantly reduced and the practicality is diminished.

  The present invention avoids this situation. As shown in FIG. 4, the basic configuration of the cooling device of the present invention is such that two atmospheric legs are connected at the top, and a siphon function is provided for the flow of liquid in the atmospheric leg tube. Alternatively, it can be regarded as a configuration in which a steam chamber 20 is provided in the uppermost part and a steam space 12 is formed in the siphon having a sufficiently long top and bottom. A steam space 12 made of saturated steam is provided in the upper part of the steam pressure liquid surface 11 by a steam chamber 20. This configuration is referred to herein as a barometric siphon. The presence of the steam chamber 20 is a difference between a normal siphon and a barometric siphon. A vacuum pump 15 is connected to the vapor space 12 of the barometric siphon and driven to dissipate the vapor into the atmosphere. The two atmospheric legs become the two pipe legs of the siphon. When the siphon is operating, the lower end of one pipe leg is in the higher liquid tank 35 with a relatively high water level, and the other lower end is in the low water level. In the lower liquid tank 36.

The invention's effect

  4 is the same as the apparatus of FIG. 3 in that the water in the upper part of the pipe near the vapor pressure liquid surface 11 is cooled by driving the vacuum pump 15. According to the action of the siphon, a liquid flow is generated from the higher liquid tank 35 toward the lower liquid tank 36. As a result, water cooled at the upper part can be taken out into the lower liquid tank 36 under atmospheric pressure. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a heat exchanger. If the water level of the low-side liquid tank 36 is maintained by continuing to supply water to the high-side liquid tank 35 and providing a drain outlet at an appropriate position, and maintaining the difference in the water level between the two liquid tanks, it will work. It can continue to function as an apparatus for continuously producing cold water.

  The general configuration and operation of the barometric siphon will be described in further detail. FIG. 5 shows a more fundamental configuration in which the vacuum pump 15 is removed from FIG. The barometric siphon 2 greatly enhances the function of the atmospheric leg. As mentioned above, one atmospheric leg can act as a vaporizer or a condenser, but this action is to continue the exchange of materials and vaporization or condensation between the upper and lower liquid columns in the atmospheric leg. Assuming the existence of heat exchange. Barometric siphons greatly enhance these effects. Rather than simply stirring the liquid in the atmosphere leg, a fluid flow is clearly formed by configuring a siphon. Although the two atmospheric legs are connected at the upper part, the siphon branch point 17 which is the lower end of the connecting part or the root of the two pipe legs is below the vapor pressure liquid surface 11, The liquid phase in the pipe leg communicates, and the vapor space 12 is in contact with the upper portion of the liquid phase via the vapor pressure liquid surface 11 which is the surface of the liquid phase. The pressure in the vapor space 12 must be less than 1 atmosphere. If the siphon branch point 17 is too close to the vapor pressure liquid level 11, the flow of the liquid in the siphon is hindered, and if it goes too far, the material exchange between the upper part and the lower part of the siphon is not sufficiently performed. Since the height of the vapor pressure liquid surface 11 varies depending on the temperature of the liquid in addition to the type of the substance of the liquid inside, the upper and lower positions of the siphon branch point 17 are determined according to the operating temperature in advance or can be changed vertically To. The vapor space 12 is filled with a saturated vapor gas that is in equilibrium with the liquid in the pipe that is in contact with the vapor space 12, and in principle no gas components such as air other than the liquid components are mixed therein. That is, when the liquid in the tube is a single component, it is a saturated vapor of the same component, and when it is a multi-component system, it is a saturated mixed vapor consisting of these components. It is possible that a very small amount of impurities and other component gases that do not interfere with the operation of the siphon are mixed during actual operation. With this structure, if the liquid level of the liquid tank in which the lower end of one liquid column is immersed is high and the other liquid level is low, a siphon is formed, and the lower liquid tank 36 is changed from the higher liquid tank 35 to the lower liquid tank 36. A flow of liquid is generated. That is, the liquid in the high-side liquid tank 35 rises in the liquid column of the pipe leg, passes through the upper connecting portion, and descends to the other liquid column and reaches the low-side liquid tank 36. This liquid flowing from the higher liquid tank 35 to the lower liquid tank 36 causes the barometric siphon to function as the working liquid 10. The operation can be continued by continuously supplying the working liquid to the higher liquid tank 35 and collecting the liquid overflowing from the lower liquid tank 36. Even if the water level is not provided in the water level between the two liquid tanks and the water pump is provided in the middle of one of the pipe legs, the hydraulic fluid can flow from one liquid tank to the other liquid tank, Also in this case, it can be considered that the siphon is formed in the same manner as there is a height difference between the two liquid phases. In each liquid tank, the hydraulic fluid 10 is in contact with the atmosphere at atmospheric pressure liquid levels 21 and 22 and receives atmospheric pressure. Even if there is no direct contact between the working fluid and the atmosphere by forming a layer of a different kind of liquid that is insoluble and low in density on the fluid surface of the working fluid in both liquid tanks, the working fluid will remain at atmospheric pressure. If it is in a state of directly receiving the effects of, it is considered to be in contact with the atmosphere. The hydraulic fluid 10 is isolated from the atmosphere in the pipe of the barometric siphon, but the liquid tanks 35 and 36 are open systems that can be taken out freely into the atmosphere.

  When viewed from the flow of change of the hydraulic fluid 10, the hydraulic fluid that was under atmospheric pressure in the higher liquid tank 35 is decompressed by rising in the barometric siphon and reaches the vicinity of the upper vapor pressure liquid surface 11 The amount is increased by condensation from the saturated vapor phase that is partially vaporized or in contact, and then descends to reach the lower liquid tank 36 to return to atmospheric pressure again. With respect to the hydraulic fluid flowing in the barometric siphon, the pressure reduction from 1 atm and the return pressure from the reduced pressure to 1 atm are continuously achieved. The flow of the hydraulic fluid 10 performs rapid material exchange between the upper and lower portions of the barometric siphon, and the hydraulic fluid itself acts as a heat medium, so that an extremely efficient heat exchange operation can be achieved. Since the barometric siphon itself can be regarded as an improved version of the atmospheric leg, it can be used as an improved machine that enhances the function of a known atmospheric leg condenser. That is, in FIG. 5, when the steam space 12 is connected to some external device and is supplied with steam at a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure, it can be quickly condensed and taken out under atmospheric pressure. Conversely, the low-pressure steam of the working fluid is supplied to an external device that communicates with the steam space 12.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

  In the apparatus shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the vacuum pump 15 generates heat as the operation continues, so a cooling device for the vacuum pump must be provided. In the apparatus shown in FIG. 4, it is possible to continuously take out the cooled water by the action of the siphon. However, since the water is cooled by boiling and evaporating water, the vaporized water vapor is compressed to the atmospheric pressure by the vacuum pump 15 and is kept under the atmospheric pressure. To be dissipated. At this time, since the water vapor is liquefied again and generates heat, a cooling device for the pump is required. The load of the pump also imposes a work amount for compressing the steam to atmospheric pressure.

  FIG. 1 shows a further improved configuration for reducing the load on the pump, in which two barometric siphons are used and the steam spaces 18 and 19 are connected by a steam connecting passage 24. By reducing the load, energy consumption is reduced, contributing to environmental problems. A compression pump 23 is provided and driven in the middle of the steam connection passage 24. In FIG. 1, the compression pump 23 functions in a direction in which the steam moves and is compressed from the steam space 19 of the left barometric siphon toward the steam space 18 of the right barometric siphon. In order to help understand the operation, it is assumed that water of the same temperature is initially flowing as the working fluid 10 in each barometric siphon. That is, water flows from the respective higher liquid tanks 35 toward the lower liquid tanks 36. When the compression pump 23 is started in this state, water boils and vaporizes in the vicinity of the vapor pressure liquid level 26 at the upper part of the left barometric siphon, and cooling water is produced. In the vicinity of the vapor pressure liquid level 25, the vapor supplied from the left side is supplied to the vapor space 18, so that condensation occurs and heat is generated to produce hot water. Cold water and hot water produced in the upper part of each barometric siphon reach the respective lower liquid tanks 36 by the action of the siphon and are used for use, and can be operated continuously thereafter. In steady operation, it is not necessary to supply water at the same temperature to the higher liquid tank 35 of each barometric siphon, and it can be used according to the intended water temperature, the water source that can be supplied, the performance of the pump, and the usage conditions. Each temperature is determined. The load of the compression pump 23 is determined by the difference in the water vapor pressure corresponding to the temperature in the vicinity of the vapor pressure liquid surfaces 25 and 26 in the upper part of each of the two barometric siphons. This reduces the thermal efficiency equivalent to a heat pump. The apparatus shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is a cold water production apparatus, but the apparatus shown in FIG. 1 can function as a cold water production apparatus and can also function as a hot water production apparatus and be used for heating.

The chilled water production apparatus constituting the barometric siphon shown in FIG. 4 is the basic form of the present invention, but the greatest feature is that it requires a height of about 10 m to construct the apparatus. Must build a tower. It is not always necessary to make it vertical, and it is only necessary to obtain an elevation difference between the upper part and the lower part. Therefore, it is possible to construct by using slopes of mountains and hills. The use of a single-story one-storied house is a heavy burden on equipment. When it is used in a house with three or more floors, an office building, an apartment building, or a factory with a high roof, it can be built in parallel with the structure of those buildings, thereby reducing the structural burden. As the material of the pipes of the two pipe legs constituting the barometric siphon, since water is passed, corrosion-resistant steel pipes and non-ferrous metal pipes used for water pipes can be used as they are. Even in the case of passing hot water, since it is 100 ° C. or less, it is possible to use a plastic material such as polyvinyl chloride. If the tube thickness of both tube legs is too thin, capillarity will work and hinder the function of normal siphons. Although it depends on the material of the tube, referring to the items described in the following literature, in the case of an aqueous solution, a stable action is obtained when the inner diameter is larger than 1 cm. Since the internal pressure is reduced in addition to the structural strength, it is necessary for the entire device to be able to withstand a 1 atm load. It can be easily designed in various places.
Patent No. 2649169

As for the vacuum pump 15, a general-purpose rotary vacuum pump cannot be used because water vapor is combined with the lubricating oil of the pump to hinder the operation. Well-known techniques are known as water-sealed pumps, roots-type vacuum pumps, diaphragm-type pumps and the like as pumps that can handle water vapor mixed gas. In addition, for example, new technologies such as the following documents have been proposed, and it is expected that higher performance pumps will come out in the future. The vacuum pump 15 needs to be equipped with a cooling device, but there are many known techniques such as an air cooling type and a water cooling type.
Many known technologies already exist for a system for supplying cold air or dehumidifying a building using the produced cold water. However, when water is used as the working fluid, it cannot be lowered below 0 ° C. If an aqueous solution such as salt water is used as the working fluid, the temperature can be somewhat lower than 0 ° C., but it is not suitable for a refrigeration apparatus. If a substance that can maintain a liquid state even at a temperature lower than 20 ° C. by 20 ° C. or less is found, it can be used for a refrigeration apparatus.
JP2007-56766

  The manufacture of the apparatus of FIG. 1 is in accordance with the apparatus of FIG. Since it is necessary to construct two baromellitic siphons, the scale of the apparatus increases. The conditions relating to the compression pump 23 are relaxed by lowering the compression ratio than that for the vacuum pump 15 in the case of the apparatus shown in FIG. As an example, when water at 25 ° C. is used as the working fluid for the high temperature side barometric siphon and cold water at 10 ° C. is produced in the low temperature side barometric siphon, the vapor pressure of water at each temperature is 23.76 mmHg. 9.21 mmHg. In order to produce 10 ° C. cold water with the apparatus of FIG. 4, the vacuum pump 15 with a compression ratio of about 83 times is required, but with the apparatus of FIG. The pressure on the discharge side of the pump 23 is 1 atm or less, but in this specification, it is expressed as a compression pump because it compresses and delivers steam. As an example, consider a case where cold water at 10 ° C. is constantly produced from water at 25 ° C. at a rate of 1 liter per minute, and it is necessary to vaporize about 28 g of water per minute at the upper part of the barometric siphon on the left side of FIG. For this purpose, about 3 cubic meters of water vapor must be exhausted from the low temperature side steam space 19 per minute. The apparatus of FIG. 1 is not suitable for a refrigeration apparatus like the apparatus of FIG. There is a substance that can maintain a liquid state even at temperatures lower than 0 ° C. by 20 ° C. under atmospheric pressure, and even if the substance itself is not an environmentally hazardous substance or may be taken out under atmospheric pressure, it is outside a certain region. If environmental facilities that do not scatter are established, they can be applied to refrigeration equipment.

  The apparatus of FIG. 1 can function as a hot water or hot water production apparatus when the working fluid 10 of the barometric siphon on the right side in the drawing is used. However, high temperature hot water of 100 ° C. or higher cannot be produced. Hot water can be used as it is for daily use. A heating system that supplies hot water to a house or building via a hot water supply pipe and sends warm air from an indoor air heater is already widely used as a well-known technique. By using water from rivers, tap water, lakes, groundwater, oceans, etc. as the source of hydraulic fluid for the low-temperature barometric siphon, these heats can be used as heating sources. Can be a much more efficient heating system than can be produced by electricity or gas. The use of this low-temperature heat source for heating has already been put to practical use in a system using a heat pump. A heat pump that is a closed system requires the provision of an external heat exchanger, but the apparatus of the present invention that is an open system does not require a heat exchanger. The produced hot water, which is also a heat medium, is taken out of the apparatus and used.

  FIG. 6 shows another example of the barometric siphon. A seamless tube with a large inner diameter is used to simplify the structure. A sufficiently long tube is formed into a U-shape, and this is made to function as the barometric siphon 2 as it is. The temperature of the working fluid 10 and the atmospheric pressure levels 21 and 22 of the liquid tank are such that the vapor pressure liquid level 11 is located in the middle of the uppermost pipe and the vapor space 12 is formed in the upper part of the uppermost pipe. Determine the location. The apparatus functions only when the water level of the vapor pressure liquid surface 11 hardly changes in steady operation. The ventilation thin tube 37 is connected to the steam space 12 as a part of the steam connection passage 24 through one pipe leg through the connection opening 33, and is connected to the compression pump at the end of the steam connection passage end 34 on the opposite side. Since the inside of the steam connection passage 24 is a gas, the position of the pump does not need to be at the same height as the steam space 12 as shown in FIG. When using a large and heavy pump, such as when the device is self-supporting, it is better to place it in the lower floor position. Since saturated steam may be liquefied in the steam connection passage 24, a condensed liquid trap 27 is provided on the way and temporarily accumulated. When the accumulation increases, that part is heated and converted into steam, which is absorbed as the working fluid of one of the siphons. In the case of FIG. 1, if the steam connection passage 24 has a slight inclination, even if condensation occurs in the passage, the droplets naturally move to the siphon side where the inclination is lowered and are absorbed.

  FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the barometric siphon. Instead of the two tube legs as shown in FIG. 5, two tubes having different inner diameters are prepared. The larger diameter is closed and the closed end is positioned upward to form the outer tube leg 40, and the narrower one is passed through the thick tube as the inner tube leg 39. The upper end mouth of the inner pipe leg 39 opens in front of the closed end of the thick pipe so that the vapor pressure liquid surface 11 is located above the mouth of the inner pipe leg 39 and further the vapor space 12 is formed above the mouth. Adjust to. The upper end mouth of the inner pipe leg 39 corresponds to the siphon branch point 17. A steam connection passage 24 is provided at the upper end portion of the outer tube leg 40 to be connected to the steam space 12 and conducted to a compression or vacuum pump. The two thick and thin tubes correspond to the two tube legs of the barometric siphon. In FIG. 7, the outer thick tube side is immersed in the higher liquid tank 35 and the inner thin tube side is immersed in the lower liquid tank 36. As the operation of the barometric siphon continues, the position of the vapor pressure liquid surface 11 may change due to a change in the temperature of the hydraulic fluid 10, and the positional relationship with the siphon branch point 17 may need to be adjusted. One of the adjustment methods is a method of changing the position on the vapor pressure liquid surface 11 side, and can be performed by changing the water level of the atmospheric pressure liquid surface 22 or 21 of the liquid tank. FIG. 7 shows a structural example in which the lower side atmospheric pressure liquid level 22 is changed to control the position of the vapor pressure liquid level 11 by changing the vertical position of the overflow port 29 of the lower side liquid tank 36. The object can be achieved even when the outer outer tube leg 40 or the inner inner tube leg 39 is structured to be movable up and down and the siphon branch point 17 side is changed.

  FIG. 8 shows a power generator according to the present invention. This can be regarded as one example of an apparatus composed of two barometric siphons. The configuration is almost the same as that of the apparatus of FIG. 1 that is also composed of two barometric siphons, but a power generation turbine 30 is installed instead of the compression pump 23. From each of the barometric siphons 2, water having different temperatures is passed as the hydraulic fluid 10. FIG. 8 shows a case where high-temperature hot water is passed as the hydraulic fluid 10 on the right side and low-temperature cold water is passed on the left side. The steam that has boiled and vaporized on the high-temperature side steam pressure liquid surface 25 reaches the low-temperature side steam space 19 via the steam connection passage 24 that connects the steam spaces 18 and 19 of both siphons, and in the vicinity of the low-temperature side vapor pressure liquid surface 26. It liquefies and joins the stream of siphon hydraulic fluid on the cold side. A turbine 30 is provided in the middle of the steam connection passage 24 where the flow of steam is generated, and is connected to a generator to obtain electric power. As the high-temperature hot water, a low-quality heat source of 100 ° C. or less, which has been hardly used in the past, such as geothermal heat, factory waste water, or hot water heated by solar heat, is used. As water sources on the low temperature side, in addition to rivers, lakes, oceans, tap water, and groundwater, cold water mixed with snow, hail, ice, etc. can be used in cold regions. Ocean surface water can be used as the high temperature side, and deep water can be used as the low temperature side. If conditions such as corrosion resistance of the apparatus are satisfied, these water or aqueous solution can be introduced into the apparatus as a working fluid as it is.

  As an example, it is assumed that hot water by 80 ° C. geothermal heat can be used as a heat source, and a sufficient amount of 0 ° C. cold water mixed with snow or ice can be used as a low-temperature working fluid. At the upper part of the barometric siphon on the high temperature side, the temperature of the hot water drops due to boiling and vaporization. By adjusting the water level difference between the two liquid tanks, it is possible to change the flow rate of the hydraulic fluid and adjust the temperature at which hot water falls. Assuming that the inflow temperature into the high-temperature side barometric siphon on the right side of the figure, that is, the temperature of hot water in the high-side liquid tank 35 is 80 ° C., the outflow temperature, that is, the temperature in the low-side liquid tank 36 is 40 ° C. Assuming that boiling vaporization occurs at the top of the siphon at 60 ° C., the condensation temperature of the steam is 0 ° C., so the upper limit of the conversion efficiency from heat to other energy forms is 18%. Since 1 g of water loses 40 cal heat by passing through the hot barometric siphon, it is assumed that the conversion efficiency of the entire system of the apparatus to the power by the turbine via steam is multiplied by 50% for this ideal efficiency. If there is an amount of hot water of 4 liters per minute at 80 ° C., 1 kW of power will be supplied. At this time, the steam pressure difference between the two steam pressure spaces 18 and 19 is 145 mmHg. A steam turbine operating at this pressure difference can be sufficiently manufactured within the range of well-known technology. The hot water of 80 ° C is cooled to 40 ° C by passing through the power generator, but it can be passed through the next power generator operating in the cooled temperature range, or it can be passed through a hot spring or agricultural livestock fishery as a moderately warm water It may be used for

  Similarly, FIG. 9 shows a separation system of a mixed system by distillation or concentration using two barometric siphons 2. Although the configuration is almost the same as in FIG. 1 and FIG. 8, the passage connecting the siphons is not provided with a pump or a turbine, and only the steam connection passage 24 connecting the respective steam spaces 18 and 19 is provided. As in the case of FIG. 8, a high-temperature liquid is passed through the right barometric siphon 2 as a working liquid and a low-temperature liquid is passed through the left side. The vapor component vaporized from the right side condenses on the left side through the vapor connection passage 24. The liquid on the high temperature side is a stock solution and not a single component system. Not all components of the stock solution vaporize uniformly, and the vapor partial pressure of some components may be negligible. Since the barometric siphon functions only when the total pressure of vapor generated by vaporization is lower than 1 atm, the temperature of the stock solution is limited from this point. The physical or chemical environment in which the vaporized vapor condenses differs between the stock solution side and the other side, so if the temperature difference between the high temperature side and the low temperature side is small, strictly speaking, it is not necessarily from the high temperature side to the low temperature side. Therefore, the movement of steam does not always occur. It is necessary to lower the temperature on the low temperature side until vapor condensation occurs. In this specification, the expression of the high temperature side and the low temperature side is used on the assumption that this temperature difference exists sufficiently. Even if the main components are the same, the apparatus is distinguished by taking the left liquid condensed as a product or taking the right liquid removed by vaporizing the waste. In the former case, a distillation apparatus is used, and the latter is a concentration apparatus, but both may be used as products. When functioning as a distillation device, when a liquid consisting of the same components as the liquid produced by condensation of vaporized vapor is passed through the low-temperature barometric siphon as the working fluid, the distillation product is increased as the amount of working fluid increased. can get.

  For example, when salt water is used as a stock solution, water is boiled and vapor is generated at the upper part of the high-temperature barometric siphon 2 on the right side of the figure, and water vapor is generated, and liquefied at the upper part of the low-temperature side barometric siphon 2 on the left side of the figure. To do. If pure water is passed through the low-temperature barometric siphon in advance as the working fluid, distilled water can be collected in a form in which pure water is added. For the purpose of collecting distilled water such as seawater desalination, another passage 41 is provided to which a pumping pump 38 is connected from the lower liquid tank 36 to the higher liquid tank 35 of the low temperature side barometric siphon. If water is sent back and circulated, and a part exceeding a certain water level is overflowed and taken out, continuous operation becomes possible. On the other hand, in the barometric siphon 2 on the right side in the figure, concentrated salt water is obtained. In order to further increase the concentration, it is circulated between the higher-side liquid tank 35 and the lower-side liquid tank 36 in the same manner as the low-temperature side on the left side, or connected to the next stage distillation apparatus to further increase the concentration. However, since barometric siphons only work on the liquid phase, it is possible to increase the concentration of the solution, but with this distillation or concentrator alone, all water is removed and the solute is finally removed in a solid state. I can't do that. If the saturated concentration is reached in a sufficiently concentrated state, the solid can be taken out by crystallization. In any case, in order to obtain the salt as a solid, a separate drying apparatus is finally required.

  FIG. 9 shows an evacuation vacuum pump 31. This is to prevent the water level of the vapor pressure liquid level 25 or 26 from being lowered and not functioning as a siphon when the insoluble residual gas accumulates in the vapor space 18 or 19 as the operation continues. During normal operation, the on-off valve 32 is closed, but the valve is opened intermittently as the insoluble residual gas accumulates, and the vacuum pump 31 for evacuation is operated. When the type of the insoluble residual gas can be specified in advance, it is possible to suppress the residual gas even if an adsorbent corresponding to the insoluble residual gas is installed at an appropriate position in the vapor chamber 20. The evacuation vacuum pump 31 can also function when removing the air inside the apparatus at the time of starting the apparatus and introducing the working fluid 10 into the barometric siphon 2. The evacuation vacuum pump 31 may be attached to the apparatus shown in FIGS. Although it is ancillary equipment effective for practical operation, it is not an indispensable element for the apparatus configuration according to the present invention.

  The distillation or concentration apparatus of FIG. 9 according to the present invention can also be applied when the stock solution is a colloidal solution or a mixed liquid phase. It can also be used in the case of a solution containing cytoplasm, such as fruit juice and vegetable juice, and since it can be distilled at a low temperature, cells are not destroyed. Even for emulsion solutions such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and dairy products containing proteins and the like, liquid concentration and volatile components can be collected without causing protein or oily colloid modification. Conventionally, this method is applicable to all solutions called vacuum distillation and vacuum concentration that have been processed at low temperature and low pressure. It is also possible to collect organic components such as methane and bioethanol produced during the fermentation process while continuing the reaction without killing the yeast. It can also be used for the production of distilled liquor. Since low-temperature distillation produces a difference in the ratio of alcohol produced and aromatic components, there is a possibility that shochu, brandy, whiskey, etc. can be produced with a flavor different from that of conventional distilled liquor. Low temperature distillation has already been introduced for about 30 years as a well-known technique in shochu. Conventionally, it has been performed in a batch type process in which a vacuum pump is attached to a decompression vessel. However, the apparatus according to the present invention can perform continuous processing, and the efficiency in terms of process is clearly high. In addition, it is easy to control the vaporization temperature of the stock solution. Furthermore, since the batch type process proceeds in a sealed decompression chamber, it is difficult to monitor the middle process. However, since the apparatus according to the present invention is an open system, the product in the middle of the operation is sampled. It is easy to see how the concentration of the hydraulic fluid changes. On the other hand, since the facilities are large, it is not suitable when only a small amount of product is required temporarily for pharmaceuticals, biological experiments, inspections, and the like. If the temperature of the hydraulic fluid of both barometric siphons constituting the apparatus is adjusted, it can be used for fractionation of crude oil. On the other hand, there is a possibility that the mixed oil produced in the treatment process of waste oil or waste can be fractionated at low cost.

  Although the apparatus shown in FIG. 4 was previously shown as a cold water production apparatus in the paragraph “0007”, it can also be used as a working fluid deaeration apparatus. By using the liquid to be treated as the working liquid of the siphon, the liquid is depressurized and the degassing of the dissolved gas is promoted. It is possible to remove unnecessary gases and reduce environmentally hazardous substances. In principle, all liquid substances that have been conventionally subjected to vacuum degassing can be used as liquids to be treated. However, the effect varies depending on the type of liquid to be treated. Depending on the application, oxygen or carbon dioxide dissolved in water becomes an unnecessary substance, and water can be applied to the apparatus as a liquid to be treated. In order for the siphon to function properly, it is necessary to maintain a certain degree of fluidity in the hydraulic fluid, so that there is a limit to the effect when it is used for a high-viscosity fluid such as an adhesive.

  Since the application object as a hydraulic fluid should just be a liquid in principle, it is not limited to a low melting-point substance. It is also applicable to molten metal and molten salt. In metal refining, the presence of non-metallic elements, which are trace impurities remaining in metals, greatly affects the quality of materials such as brittleness, strength, and toughness. The removal of these is an important issue, but if non-metallic elements such as sulfur, phosphorus, and nitrogen can be degassed in the form of gases such as sulfur dioxide, it is equivalent to vacuum desulfurization, vacuum dephosphorization, and vacuum denitrification. . Use of other treatment methods such as application of an alternating electromagnetic field to stir the metal melt at the upper part of the barometric siphon and promotion of a deaeration reaction by high voltage or plasma discharge is not prevented. Waste such as slag generated during refining is a mixture of oxides and a kind of molten salt. If it is discarded directly, the contained sulfur, phosphorus, etc. will flow out and become an environmentally hazardous substance. If it can be removed in advance, it will contribute to pollution prevention. If both are discharged from the melting furnace and are in liquid form, the heat efficiency is good if they are guided to this apparatus. Particularly when processing high temperature liquids, the difference between the conventional batch process and the continuous operation according to the present invention is large. When handling these high-temperature melts, the construction of barometric siphons is not as in the case of handling aqueous solutions as materials, but well-known materials are used when manufacturing melting furnaces in the refining process of refractory bricks, etc. it can. Generally, the vapor pressure of the melt as the working fluid is low but the density is large, so that the height as in the case of the aqueous solution is not necessary.

  An air conditioner having high thermal efficiency equivalent to that of a heat pump can be manufactured using an open system heat medium instead of a closed system, which contributes to further increase in efficiency and environmental problems. It enables the use of low-quality thermal energy, which has been low in the conventional use of 100 ° C. or less, for power generation, seawater desalination and the like. It enables continuous operations such as vacuum distillation, vacuum concentration, vacuum deaeration, etc. that have been performed in batch mode, and contributes to simplification of the process, increased work efficiency, and cost reduction. .

The figure showing the structure of the cold water warm water manufacturing apparatus which concerns on this invention. The reference figure which shows the atmospheric leg based on the principle of this invention. The reference drawing for demonstrating the principle of the cold water manufacturing apparatus which concerns on this invention. The figure which shows the structure of the cold water manufacturing apparatus and deaeration apparatus which concern on this invention. The figure which shows the structure of the barometric siphon which is the general principle of this invention. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view when a seamless tube is used in one embodiment of a barometric siphon according to the present invention. The longitudinal cross-sectional view in the case of using two pipe legs with different inner diameters in one embodiment of the barometric siphon according to the present invention The figure which shows the structure of the electric power generating apparatus which concerns on this invention. The figure which shows the structure of the separation apparatus by distillation or concentration which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  1 ... Air leg. 2 ... Barometric siphon. 11. Vapor pressure liquid level. 12 ... Steam space. 13: Atmospheric pressure liquid level. 14 ... Liquid tank. 15 ... Vacuum pump. 16: Exhaust port. 17 ... Siphon branch point. 18 ... High temperature side steam space. 19 ... Low temperature side steam space. 20 Steam room. 21 ... High side atmospheric pressure liquid level. 22 ... Low side atmospheric pressure liquid level. 23 ... Compression pump. 24 ... Steam connection passage. 25 ... High temperature steam pressure liquid level. 26 ... Low temperature steam pressure liquid level. 27 ... Trap for condensed liquid. 28 ... The overflow outlet. 29 ... Variable overflow port. 30: Turbine. 31 ... Vacuum pump for evacuation. 32 ... Open / close valve. 33 ... Connection opening. 34 ... Steam connection passage end. 35 ... High side liquid tank. 36 ... Low side liquid tank. 37 ... Ventilation tubule. 38 ... Pump pump. 39 ... Inner tube leg. 40 ... Outer tube leg. 41 ... pumping passage. 42 ... Cooler or heat exchanger.

Claims (5)

  The lower ends of both pipe legs are immersed in separate liquid tanks that hold the liquid in contact with the atmosphere and have height differences in the positions of the contact surfaces, and the liquid columns in the pipe legs at the joint of the upper pipe legs. A siphon characterized by having a vapor space made of saturated vapor in contact with the liquid phase and in equilibrium with the liquid phase at the top of the communicating liquid phase; Water or aqueous solution is used as the working fluid that circulates in the water, and a vacuum pump is connected to the vapor space to drive the vapor, and the vapor of the working fluid is exhausted into the atmosphere from the pump, and the cooled working fluid is used for use. Manufacturing equipment.   The lower ends of both pipe legs are immersed in separate liquid tanks that hold the liquid in contact with the atmosphere and have height differences in the positions of the contact surfaces, and the liquid columns in the pipe legs at the joint of the upper pipe legs. And a siphon characterized by having a vapor space made of saturated vapor in contact with the liquid phase and in equilibrium with the liquid phase at the top of the communicating liquid phase, and the siphon There are provided two compression pumps, each of which communicates with each steam space through a steam connection passage, and at the same time, a compression pump for compressing and sending steam from one steam space to the other steam space in the middle of the steam connection passage. A cold water or hot water producing machine that uses water or an aqueous solution as the working fluid that circulates in the siphon, and uses the cooled or heated working fluid for use.   The lower ends of both pipe legs are immersed in separate liquid tanks that hold the liquid in contact with the atmosphere and have height differences in the positions of the contact surfaces, and the liquid columns in the pipe legs at the joint of the upper pipe legs. And a siphon characterized by having a vapor space made of saturated vapor in contact with the liquid phase and in equilibrium with the liquid phase at the top of the communicating liquid phase, and the siphon Two turbines are connected to each other through the steam connection passages, and at the same time, a turbine corresponding to the flow of steam in the steam communication passage is provided in the middle of the steam connection passages, and linked to the generator. A power generator using water or aqueous solution having different temperatures as the working fluid flowing through the siphon.   The lower ends of both pipe legs are immersed in separate liquid tanks that hold the liquid in contact with the atmosphere and have height differences in the positions of the contact surfaces, and the liquid columns in the pipe legs at the joint of the upper pipe legs. And a siphon characterized by having a vapor space made of saturated vapor in contact with the liquid phase and in equilibrium with the liquid phase at the top of the communicating liquid phase, and the siphon As two working fluids are connected to each other through the steam connection passages, the working fluid flowing through the two siphons is supplied as a working fluid having a steam pressure of less than 1 atm to one side, and to the other side. A distillation or concentrating apparatus that uses a liquid that is the same component as that produced when the vapor condenses and that has a temperature lower than that of the stock solution.   The lower ends of both pipe legs are immersed in separate liquid tanks that hold the liquid in contact with the atmosphere and have height differences in the positions of the contact surfaces, and the liquid columns in the pipe legs at the joint of the upper pipe legs. A siphon characterized by having a vapor space made of saturated vapor in contact with the liquid phase and in equilibrium with the liquid phase at the top of the communicating liquid phase; A vacuum deaerator that uses a working fluid flowing through the gas as a solution to be treated, is driven by connecting a vacuum pump to the vapor space, and vaporizes unnecessary substances in the solution to be treated and exhausts them to the atmosphere.

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