JP5299107B2 - Thermoacoustic engine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a thermoacoustic engine that has good thermal efficiency and can be miniaturized.

  In order to extract energy from waste heat, research and development of Stirling engines have been actively conducted. Stirling engine types include α type, β type, γ type, and free piston type. On the other hand, recently, research and development of thermoacoustic engines having no moving parts such as pistons have been actively conducted.

  The thermoacoustic engine is composed of a tube and a heat source. When the air column in the tube is locally heated or cooled, a part of the heat energy is converted into mechanical energy, and the air column causes self-excited vibration. That is, acoustic vibration is generated in the tube. This action can be seen thermodynamically as a prime mover. A thermoacoustic engine uses this action. When a passive machine (refrigerator, cooler) that converts vibrations of the air column into heat energy is incorporated in this thermoacoustic engine, a freezer (cooler) is formed.

  A conventional thermoacoustic engine 51 shown in FIG. 5 is one in which one prime mover 2 is attached to a loop pipe 1.

  The thermoacoustic engine is applied to a cooling device for a living room and a refrigeration / freezing device for articles in a building or a moving body. For example, in a motor vehicle, the engine waste heat is used as a high-temperature source, the atmosphere is used as a low-temperature source, and the passive machine similar in structure to the motor is used as the high-temperature source. The output can be taken out.

Japanese Patent No. 3050543 JP 2006-145176 A

  In the conventional thermoacoustic engine, the number of prime movers 2 provided in the loop tube 1 is one.

  On the other hand, the present inventors have already provided a thermoacoustic engine that uses two or more prime movers 2 provided in the loop tube 1 to lower the oscillation start temperature and excite a large acoustic intensity in the loop tube 1. I am making a proposal. However, by devising the positional relationship between the high-temperature source and the low-temperature source and the plurality of prime movers 2 in the thermoacoustic engine equipped with such a plurality of prime movers 2, it is possible to improve thermal efficiency or facilitate miniaturization. Was on hold.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a thermoacoustic engine that solves the above-described problems, has high thermal efficiency, and can be downsized.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a thermoacoustic engine provided with a prime mover comprising a heater, a regenerator, and a cooler that converts thermal energy into acoustic energy in the loop pipe. The first prime mover is provided in the first circumference portion of the loop pipe, and the second prime mover is provided in the second circumference portion.

  The location where the second prime mover of the second circumferential portion is provided may be a location along the location where the first prime mover of the first circumferential portion is provided.

  In the second prime mover, the cooler of the first prime mover is opposed to the cooler of the first prime mover, and the heater of the second prime mover is opposed to the heater of the first prime mover. Also good.

  The present invention exhibits the following excellent effects.

  (1) Thermal efficiency is good.

  (2) The size can be reduced.

It is a block diagram of the thermoacoustic engine which shows one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram of the thermoacoustic engine which the present inventors are proposing. It is a block diagram of the thermoacoustic engine which shows the subject of this invention. It is a block diagram of the thermoacoustic engine which shows one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram of the conventional thermoacoustic engine.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a thermoacoustic engine 11 according to the present invention includes a loop tube 1 in which a prime mover 2 that converts thermal energy into acoustic energy in the loop tube 1 is provided in the loop tube 1. 1 is formed by a plurality of turns, a first prime mover 2a is provided in a first turn portion 1a of the loop pipe 1, and a second drive motor 2b is provided in a second turn portion 1b.

  The prime mover 2 includes a heater 3, a regenerator 4, and a cooler 5 arranged in the tube axis direction of the loop tube 1. Since the detailed structures of the heater 3, the regenerator 4, and the cooler 5 belong to the prior art, they are omitted here.

  In the present embodiment, the loop tube 1 is formed by two rounds, but may be three or more rounds. Three or more prime movers 2 may be provided.

  In this embodiment, the circumference diameter of the 2nd circumference part 1b is smaller than the circumference diameter of the 1st circumference part 1a of the loop pipe 1, and the outer periphery of the 2nd circumference part 1b is in the inner circumference of the 1st circumference part 1a. Although it arrange | positions so that it may adjoin and parallel, the circumference diameter of the 1st circumference part 1a and the circumference diameter of the 2nd circumference part 1b are made the same, the depth direction (on paper surface) of the 1st circumference part 1a You may arrange | position so that the 2nd surrounding part 1b may adjoin (vertical).

  In the present embodiment, the loop tube 1 is formed by combining a straight straight tube and an elbow tube bent at a right angle with a predetermined radius, and the overall appearance is formed in a rectangular shape with rounded corners. Alternatively, it may be formed in a so-called spiral shape or spiral shape. The overall appearance may be a polygonal shape.

  The location where the second prime mover 2b of the second circumferential portion 1b is provided is a location along the location where the first prime mover 2a of the first circumferential portion 1a is provided. Here, the 1st prime mover 2a and the 2nd prime mover 2b are arrange | positioned at the straight pipe | tube of the 1st surrounding part 1a and the straight pipe | tube of the 2nd surrounding part 1b along it.

  In the second prime mover 2b, the cooler 5 of the second prime mover 2b is opposed to the cooler 5 of the first prime mover 2a, and the heater 3 of the second prime mover is opposed to the heater 3 of the first prime mover 2a. Are arranged to face each other.

  Although not shown, piping for flowing a low-temperature source fluid such as cooling water is provided so as to pass through each cooler 5, and piping for flowing a high-temperature source fluid such as hot air is provided so as to pass through each heater 3.

  Next, as a premise of the present invention, a thermoacoustic engine having a plurality of prime movers proposed by the present inventors will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the thermoacoustic engine 21 is one in which two prime movers 2 are provided in a loop pipe 1. The inventors set the positions of the two prime movers 2 at positions where the loop length of the loop tube 1 is equally divided by a natural number which is not so large in accordance with the mode in which the sound oscillates. Thereby, the oscillation start temperature can be lowered and a large acoustic intensity can be obtained.

  However, like the thermoacoustic engine 31 shown in FIG. 3, since the two prime movers 2 are dispersed and arranged at positions distant from each other, piping that connects the coolers 5 and piping that connects the heaters 3 to each other Is long. For this reason, the heat from the fluid flowing through the piping of the piping space A is likely to leak to the outside, and the thermal efficiency of the thermoacoustic engine 31 is greatly reduced. In addition, the thermoacoustic engine 31 is complicated and large in size because the two prime movers 2 are dispersed and arranged at positions apart from each other.

  On the other hand, the thermoacoustic engine 11 of FIG. 1 is formed by rotating the loop tube 1 twice, the first motor part 2a is provided in the first circuit part 1a, and the second motor system is provided in the second circuit part 1b. Since 2b is provided, the two prime movers 2 are arranged close to each other. For this reason, compared with the thermoacoustic engine 31 of FIG. 3, the thermoacoustic engine 11 of FIG. 1 greatly increases the length of the piping connecting the coolers 5 between the two prime movers 2 and the piping connecting the heaters 3. Can be shortened. In particular, in the embodiment of FIG. 1, the coolers 5 of the respective prime movers 2 are opposed to each other, and the heaters 3 of the respective prime movers 2 are opposed to each other. it can.

  As described above, since the thermoacoustic engine 11 has a short pipe length, heat from the fluid flowing through the pipe is hardly leaked to the outside, and the thermal efficiency of the thermoacoustic engine 11 is significantly increased.

  Further, since the thermoacoustic engine 11 is formed by rotating the loop tube 1 twice, the loop tube 1 can have an occupied area and an occupied volume smaller than the entire length thereof. Since the two prime movers 2 are arranged close to each other, the configuration is simplified and the size can be reduced.

  Next, the thermoacoustic engine 41 shown in FIG. 4 is obtained by attaching the branch pipe 6 to the thermoacoustic engine 11. By attaching the branch pipe 6, even greater acoustic intensity can be obtained.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11,41 Thermoacoustic engine 1 Loop pipe 1a 1st surrounding part 1b 2nd surrounding part 2 Prime mover 2a 1st prime mover 2b 2nd prime mover 3 Heater 4 Regenerator 5 Cooler 6 Branch pipe

Claims (3)

  In a thermoacoustic engine provided with a prime mover comprising a heater, a regenerator, and a cooler that converts heat energy into acoustic energy in the loop tube, the loop tube is formed by a plurality of turns, and the loop tube A thermoacoustic engine, wherein a first prime mover is provided in a first circulation part and a second prime mover is provided in a second circulation part.   The location where the second prime mover of the second circumference portion is provided is a location along the location where the first prime mover of the first circumference portion is provided. The thermoacoustic engine according to 1.   In the second prime mover, the cooler of the second prime mover faces the cooler of the first prime mover, and the heater of the second prime mover faces the heater of the first prime mover. The thermoacoustic engine according to claim 1 or 2.

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