JP2010121506A - Heat accumulator - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a heat accumulator capable of allowing a latent heat accumulation material to cause nucleation without provision of any actuator. <P>SOLUTION: The heat accumulator 100 for use in an internal combustion engine is equipped with the latent heat accumulation material 20 to break the over-cooled condition in the event of nucleation and make a phase change from liquid to solid, a pendulum 30 to swing with vibration of the engine, a trigger 40 to cause the latent heat accumulation material to nucleate when the pendulum contacts, and a suppression part 50 to suppress contacting of the pendulum with the trigger when heat is applied. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a heat storage device, and more particularly to a heat storage device used for an internal combustion engine.

  In the internal combustion engine, it is preferable that warm-up of the internal combustion engine is completed early from the viewpoint of reducing friction. Patent Document 1 discloses a heat storage device that is arranged and used in a cylinder block of an internal combustion engine and includes a container that stores a latent heat storage material, a trigger that nucleates the latent heat storage material, and an actuator that presses the trigger. Has been. According to this technique, when the actuator presses the trigger, the latent heat storage material that is a supercooled liquid is nucleated and solidified, and generates heat. By utilizing this heat for warming up the internal combustion engine, the warming up of the internal combustion engine is completed early.

JP 2007-285587 A

  Since the heat storage device according to Patent Document 1 needs to include an actuator, the configuration of the heat storage device may be complicated.

  An object of this invention is to provide the thermal storage apparatus which can nucleate a latent-heat thermal storage material, without providing an actuator.

  A heat storage device according to the present invention is a heat storage device used for an internal combustion engine, and when a nucleation occurs, the latent heat storage material breaks a supercooled state and changes phase from a liquid to a solid, and swings due to vibration of the internal combustion engine. A pendulum that performs contact, a trigger that nucleates the latent heat storage material when the pendulum comes into contact, and a suppression unit that prevents the pendulum from contacting the trigger when heated. It is.

  According to the heat storage device of the present invention, the latent heat storage material can be nucleated by the pendulum swinging by the vibration of the internal combustion engine and contacting the trigger. Thereby, a latent-heat storage material can be nucleated without providing an actuator. Further, when the latent heat storage material becomes a liquid with a melting point or higher, the pendulum can swing in the liquid. In this case, the pendulum may repeatedly contact the trigger. In that respect, according to the heat storage device according to the present invention, when the latent heat storage material becomes higher than the melting point, the contact of the pendulum with the trigger can be suppressed by the heated suppression unit. Thereby, breakage of the trigger can be suppressed. In the present invention, the liquid may contain a gel state.

  In the above configuration, the suppression unit includes a thermowax whose volume changes due to a temperature change, and a movable member that is displaced by a change in the volume of the thermowax and restricts the movement of the pendulum so that the pendulum does not contact the trigger. And may be provided. According to this configuration, when the latent heat storage material reaches or exceeds the melting point, the movable member can regulate the movement of the pendulum. Thereby, breakage of the trigger can be suppressed.

  The said structure WHEREIN: The said suppression part may consist of a shape memory alloy which deform | transforms when it heats, and may restrict | limit the movement of the said pendulum so that the said pendulum may not contact the said trigger by deform | transforming. According to this configuration, when the latent heat storage material becomes equal to or higher than the melting point, contact of the pendulum with the trigger is suppressed by deformation of the suppression unit. Thereby, breakage of the trigger can be suppressed.

  In the above configuration, the suppression portion may be a bent portion that is made of a shape memory alloy that bends when heated, is incorporated into at least a part of the arm portion of the pendulum, and bends when heated. . According to this configuration, when the latent heat storage material reaches or exceeds the melting point, the pendulum can be prevented from coming into contact with the trigger by bending the restraining portion. Thereby, breakage of the trigger can be suppressed.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the thermal storage apparatus which can nucleate a latent-heat thermal storage material can be provided without providing an actuator.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described.

  A heat storage device 100 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1A is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat storage device 100 according to the first embodiment. In addition, Fig.1 (a) has illustrated the case where the latent-heat storage material 20 mentioned later is a supercooled state. The heat storage device 100 mainly includes a container 10, a latent heat storage material 20, a pendulum 30, a trigger 40, and a suppression unit 50. The container 10 accommodates the latent heat storage material 20, the pendulum 30, the trigger 40, and the suppression unit 50 inside. When the heat storage device 100 is used, the container 10 is disposed at a site where vibrations of the internal combustion engine are transmitted.

  As the latent heat storage material 20, a material that can be in a supercooled state and breaks the supercooled state in the case of nucleation and can change from a liquid to a solid can be used. In the present invention, the liquid may contain a gel state. As the latent heat storage material 20, for example, a conventionally known latent heat storage material such as sodium acetate trihydrate can be used. In the present embodiment, the latent heat storage material 20 fills the inside of the container 10 and covers the pendulum 30, the trigger 40, and the suppression unit 50 as a whole.

  The pendulum 30 includes a swing shaft 31 connected to the container 10, a weight portion 32 that swings around the swing shaft 31, and an arm portion 33 that connects the swing shaft 31 and the weight portion 32. . In FIG. 1A, the manner in which the pendulum 30 swings is indicated by a dotted line.

  The trigger 40 is a member that nucleates the latent heat storage material 20 when the weight portion 32 comes into contact with the trigger 40. The trigger 40 is not particularly limited as long as it can nucleate the latent heat storage material 20 when the weight portion 32 comes into contact with the trigger 40. For example, the trigger 40 may be an element that nucleates the latent heat storage material 20 by receiving an external force (for example, an elastic metal piece having a convex cross section in which cracks (or slits) are formed).

  The restraining part 50 has a function of deforming when heated and restraining the weight part 32 from contacting the trigger 40. FIG.1 (b) is an expanded sectional view of the suppression part 50 vicinity of Fig.1 (a). In the present embodiment, the suppression unit 50 includes a thermo wax 51 accommodated in a container 52, a container 52, a partition plate 53, a return spring 54, and a stopper shaft 55.

  The thermo wax 51 is a wax whose volume changes with a temperature change. The inside of the container 52 is partitioned into two chambers by a partition plate 53. One of the two chambers is filled with thermowax 51 and the other is provided with a return spring 54. The partition plate 53 slides inside the container 52 in accordance with the volume change of the thermo wax 51. The return spring 54 urges the partition plate 53 toward the thermo wax 51 side. The stopper shaft 55 is connected to the return spring 54 side of the partition plate 53. The container 52 is formed with a hole for the stopper shaft 55 to protrude from the container 52.

  In the restraining part 50, when the thermowax 51 expands, the stopper shaft 55 moves in a direction to protrude from the container 52, and when the thermowax 51 contracts, the stopper shaft 55 moves in a direction to enter the container 52. That is, the stopper shaft 55 is displaced by the change in the volume of the thermo wax 51.

  Then, the effect | action of the thermal storage apparatus 100 is demonstrated. Referring to FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b), before starting the internal combustion engine, the latent heat storage material 20 is in a supercooled state. When the internal combustion engine is started, the weight portion 32 is swung by the vibration of the internal combustion engine. When the swing amplitude of the weight portion 32 reaches a predetermined value, the weight portion 32 contacts the trigger 40. When the weight portion 32 comes into contact with the trigger 40, the trigger 40 causes the latent heat storage material 20 to nucleate. Thereby, the supercooled state of the latent heat storage material 20 is broken, and the latent heat storage material 20 changes phase from a liquid to a solid. In addition, when the latent heat storage material 20 is in a supercooled state, the stopper shaft 55 of the suppression unit 50 does not contact the arm unit 33.

  When the latent heat storage material 20 undergoes a phase change from a liquid to a solid, the latent heat storage material 20 generates heat. As the latent heat storage material 20 generates heat, the internal combustion engine is warmed. Thereby, compared with the case where the heat storage device 100 is not arranged in the internal combustion engine, the warm-up of the internal combustion engine can be completed early. In addition, when the latent heat storage material 20 changes to a solid phase, the swinging of the weight portion 32 stops.

  Next, when the warm-up of the internal combustion engine is completed and the temperature of the internal combustion engine rises, the latent heat storage material 20 absorbs the heat of the internal combustion engine. When the latent heat storage material 20 absorbs the heat of the internal combustion engine and becomes the melting point (58 ° C. in the case of sodium acetate trihydrate) or more, the latent heat storage material 20 becomes liquid. When the latent heat storage material 20 becomes liquid, the weight portion 32 resumes swinging.

  Here, if the heat storage device 100 does not include the suppression unit 50, the weight unit 32 is triggered by receiving vibration of the internal combustion engine in the latent heat storage material 20 that has become a liquid with a melting point or higher. There is a risk of repeated contact with 40. In this case, the trigger 40 may be damaged. In order to solve this problem, the heat storage device 100 includes a suppression unit 50. The suppression unit 50 operates as follows when the latent heat storage material 20 has a melting point or higher.

  FIG. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat storage device 100 when the latent heat storage material 20 has a melting point or higher. FIG. 2B is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the suppression unit 50 in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, when the latent heat storage material 20 has a melting point or higher, the thermo wax 51 is heated and expands. The thermo wax 51 may be heated by the heat generated by the latent heat storage material 20 or may be heated by the combustion heat of the internal combustion engine. As the thermo wax 51 expands, the stopper shaft 55 protrudes from the container 52 and contacts the arm portion 33. When the stopper shaft 55 contacts the arm portion 33, the contact of the weight portion 32 with the trigger 40 is suppressed. As a result, breakage of the trigger 40 is suppressed.

  As described above, according to the heat storage device 100 according to the present embodiment, since the latent heat storage material 20 can be nucleated by the pendulum 30, the latent heat storage material 20 can be nucleated without an actuator. Moreover, since the suppression part 50 is provided, damage to the trigger 40 can be suppressed.

  In this embodiment, the stopper shaft 55 corresponds to a movable member that restricts the movement of the pendulum 30 so that the pendulum 30 does not contact the trigger 40.

  Then, the thermal storage apparatus 100a which concerns on Example 2 of this invention is demonstrated. FIG. 3A is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat storage device 100a when the latent heat storage material 20 is in a supercooled state. FIG. 3B is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat storage device 100a when the latent heat storage material 20 has a melting point or higher. The heat storage device 100a is different from the heat storage device 100 according to the first embodiment in that the heat storage device 100a includes a suppression unit 50a instead of the suppression unit 50.

  The suppression unit 50a is made of a shape memory alloy that deforms when heated. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 3A, when the latent heat storage material 20 is in a supercooled state, the suppression unit 50 a does not contact the arm portion 33. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3B, when the latent heat storage material 20 has a melting point or higher, the deterring part 50 a is deformed by heating and contacts the arm part 33. In addition, the suppression part 50a may be heated with the heat | fever which the latent heat storage material 20 emits, and may be heated with the combustion heat of an internal combustion engine. When the suppression part 50a contacts the arm part 33, the contact to the trigger 40 of the weight part 32 is suppressed. As a result, breakage of the trigger 40 is suppressed.

  According to the heat storage device 100a according to the present embodiment, since the latent heat storage material 20 can be nucleated by the pendulum 30, the latent heat storage material 20 can be nucleated without an actuator. Moreover, since the suppression part 50a is provided, damage to the trigger 40 can be suppressed.

  Then, the heat storage apparatus 100b which concerns on Example 3 of this invention is demonstrated. FIG. 4A is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat storage device 100b when the latent heat storage material 20 is in a supercooled state. FIG. 4B is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat storage device 100b when the latent heat storage material 20 has a melting point or higher. The heat storage device 100b is different from the heat storage device 100 according to the first embodiment in that the pendulum 30b is provided instead of the pendulum 30 and the suppression unit 50b is provided instead of the suppression unit 50. The pendulum 30 b is different from the pendulum 30 in that the pendulum 30 b has an arm portion 33 b instead of the arm portion 33. The arm portion 33b is different from the arm portion 33 in that the deterring portion 50b is partially incorporated.

  The suppression unit 50b is made of a shape memory alloy that bends when heated. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4A, when the latent heat storage material 20 is in a supercooled state, the suppression unit 50b has a linear shape. In this case, the weight portion 32 can contact the trigger 40. On the other hand, as shown in FIG.4 (b), when the latent-heat storage material 20 is more than melting | fusing point, the suppression part 50b bends by being heated. That is, the restraining part 50b is made of a shape memory alloy that bends when heated, is a bent part that is incorporated into a part of the arm part 33b and bends when heated. In addition, the suppression part 50b may be heated with the heat | fever which the latent heat storage material 20 emits, and may be heated with the combustion heat of an internal combustion engine. Since the distance between the weight part 32 and the trigger 40 is increased by bending the inhibition part 50b, the contact of the weight part 32 with the trigger 40 is inhibited. As a result, breakage of the trigger 40 is suppressed.

  According to the heat storage device 100b according to the present embodiment, since the latent heat storage material 20 can be nucleated by the pendulum 30b, the latent heat storage material 20 can be nucleated without an actuator. Moreover, since the suppression part 50b is provided, damage to the trigger 40 can be suppressed.

  In addition, in the present Example, although the suppression part 50b is partially incorporated in the arm part 33b, it is not restricted to this. The suppression part 50b should just be integrated in at least one part of the arm part 33b. For example, the suppression unit 50b may be the entire arm portion 33b.

  Further, the heat storage device 100b may further include a deterring unit 50 according to the first embodiment and / or a deterring unit 50a according to the second embodiment. Further, the swing shaft 31 of the heat storage device 100b may have a configuration that suppresses the rotation of the arm portion 33b when the latent heat storage material 20 has a melting point or higher. In these cases, even when the internal combustion engine vibrates beyond the assumption at the time of designing the heat storage device 100b, the weight portion 32 can be prevented from contacting the trigger 40. Thereby, the damage suppression effect of the trigger 40 becomes higher.

  Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to such specific embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims. It can be changed.

Fig.1 (a) is typical sectional drawing of the thermal storage apparatus which concerns on Example 1 in case a latent-heat thermal storage material is a supercooled state. FIG.1 (b) is an expanded sectional view of the suppression part vicinity of Fig.1 (a). FIG. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heat storage device when the latent heat storage material has a melting point or higher. FIG. 2B is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the deterring portion of FIG. Fig.3 (a) is typical sectional drawing of the thermal storage apparatus which concerns on Example 2 in case a latent-heat storage material is a supercooled state. FIG.3 (b) is typical sectional drawing of a thermal storage apparatus in case a latent-heat thermal storage material is more than melting | fusing point. Fig.4 (a) is typical sectional drawing of the thermal storage apparatus which concerns on Example 3 in case a latent-heat thermal storage material is a supercooled state. FIG.4 (b) is typical sectional drawing of a thermal storage apparatus in case a latent-heat thermal storage material is more than melting | fusing point.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Container 20 Latent heat storage material 30 Pendulum 31 Oscillating shaft 32 Weight part 33 Arm part 40 Trigger 50 Suppression part 51 Thermowax 52 Container 53 Partition plate 54 Return spring 55 Stopper shaft 100 Thermal storage apparatus

Claims (4)

A heat storage device used in an internal combustion engine,
A latent heat storage material that breaks the supercooled state when nucleating and changes phase from liquid to solid; and
A pendulum that swings due to vibration of the internal combustion engine;
A trigger that nucleates the latent heat storage material by contacting the pendulum;
And a deterring unit that deters contact of the pendulum with the trigger when heated. The deterrence unit is
Thermo wax whose volume changes with temperature change,
The heat storage device according to claim 1, further comprising: a movable member that is displaced by a change in the volume of the thermowax and restricts the movement of the pendulum so that the pendulum does not contact the trigger.   The heat storage device according to claim 1, wherein the suppression unit is made of a shape memory alloy that is deformed when heated, and the movement of the pendulum is regulated so that the pendulum does not contact the trigger by being deformed.   2. The heat storage device according to claim 1, wherein the suppression portion is made of a shape memory alloy that bends when heated, is incorporated in at least a part of an arm portion of the pendulum, and is a bent portion that bends when heated. .

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