JPH1068569A - Cold/hot storeroom - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently and uniformly cool the entire part of a storage case and suppress the amount of leakage of cooling energy from the wall surface of the storage case. SOLUTION: Either the heat absorbing part or the heat radiating part of a Peltier element 21 is attached to the heat source attaching part 24a of the wall surface of a storage case 1. The wall surface of the storage case 1 is formed with a panel member 25 having two swelling pipes 30a and 30b. One swelling pipes 30a is filled with a refrigerant thermally connected to a heat source and the other swelling pipes 30b is made vacuum and one swelling pipes 30a is thermally insulated by the other swelling pipes 30b.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cool and heat storage that can be cooled and heated, and more particularly to a technique for efficiently extracting heat stored near a heat source to increase the cooling capacity of the cold and heat storage.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a cooling device based on the refrigeration cycle principle, a refrigerant introduction passage is provided in a metal container, and a refrigerant such as chlorofluorocarbon is externally introduced into the refrigerant introduction passage by the pressure of a compressor. 2. Description of the Related Art A device for cooling an object to be cooled stored in a container is known. However, in a cooling device utilizing such a refrigeration cycle principle, although having sufficient cooling capacity, the main body is heavy and not only not suitable for portability, but also has noise and vibration, Further, since chlorofluorocarbon is used as the refrigerant, the refrigerant is easily leaked to the outside due to breakage of a connection portion with the compressor, and adverse effects on the environment have to be considered.

[0003] In recent years, electronic refrigerators utilizing the Peltier principle have been generally marketed. According to the Peltier principle, when a current is supplied to a Peltier element to which different kinds of metals are joined, a heat radiating section and a heat absorbing section are generated at each joint, and a container thermally coupled to the Peltier element is cooled ( Or heating), which eliminates the need for a compressor that is required when a refrigeration cycle is used. In addition, it is compact and lightweight, and can achieve cooling and heating effects without noise and vibration. It has been put to practical use in products and the like.

[0004]

However, in an electronic cold storage using the Peltier principle as described above, in general, when heat storage energy is transmitted from a heat source (Peltier element) to a metal container, thermal resistance is reduced. As a result, sufficient cooling capacity could not be obtained. In particular, at the time of heat absorption, most of the heat conduction depends on the heat conduction of the container.Therefore, there is a problem that the container is locally cooled and the cooling capacity of the entire container is reduced due to a difference in heat conduction between the container materials. Was. Furthermore, in a refrigerator having a large internal effective volume (a space where a substance to be cooled can be actually contained), a large amount of heat leaks from the container wall including the portion where the Peltier element is mounted. The thickness of the heat insulating material is increased, so that the volumetric efficiency (the ratio of the effective volume to the size of the outer shape) is deteriorated, which has been an important issue in terms of providing portability.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object to promote efficient utilization of heat storage energy in the vicinity of a heat source by smoothing the flow of the heat storage energy so that the entire inside of the storage case can be efficiently and efficiently. An object of the present invention is to provide a cold and hot storage that can uniformly cool and suppress a leakage amount of cooling energy from a wall surface of a storage case, thereby improving a cooling performance.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, in a refrigerator according to the present invention, a heat source is mounted on the wall surface of a storage case 24, and the wall surface of the storage case 24 is formed by two systems of expansion tubes 30a, 30b, the one expansion tube 30a is filled with a refrigerant that is thermally coupled to a heat source, and the other expansion tube 30b is evacuated to make one expansion tube 30a the other expansion tube. It is characterized in that it is insulated by a tube 30b. Thus, one expansion tube 30a containing a refrigerant thermally coupled to a heat source and the other expansion tube 30b for vacuum insulation are provided.
The heat transfer by the refrigerant is improved, and the leakage of thermal energy to the outside of the storage case 24 can be reduced by vacuum insulation.

It is preferable to alternately arrange the two systems of the inflatable tubes 30a, 30b.
The interval between 0b is widened, so that heat interference between the one expansion tube 30a can be reduced, and heat leakage to the outside of the storage case 24 can be reduced more effectively. In addition, it is preferable that the expansion tubes 30a and 30b are formed in a comb-teeth shape. In this case, the expansion tubes 30a and 30b are wrapped around the entire wall surface of the storage case 24, and the heat transfer by the expansion tubes 30a and 30b is more efficient. You can do well.

[0008] One of the expansion tubes 30a filled with the above-mentioned refrigerant.
Is preferably inclined in the height direction of the panel body 25,
In this case, by inclining one of the expansion tubes 30a so that the heat source mounting portion 24a side of the storage case 24 does not face upward, the transfer of vapor heat or condensation heat of the refrigerant sealed in the expansion tubes 30a and 30b is further enhanced. The heat transfer is performed smoothly, and the heat transfer can be further activated.

Preferably, the panel body 25 having the two systems of the inflatable tubes 30a and 30b is bent to form the wall surface of the storage case 24. In this case, the two systems of the inflatable tubes 3a and 30b are used.
Each of the expansion tubes 30a, 30b forming a heat transport path and a vacuum heat insulating part is formed by bending the panel body 25 having the first and second panels 0a, 30b formed thereon and using the panel body 25 as a wall surface of the storage case 24.
Can be arranged on almost the entire wall surface.

Preferably, the heat source is a Peltier element 21. In this case, a small-sized, lightweight, noise-free and vibration-free refrigerator is obtained.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 3A shows the external appearance of the refrigerator A of the present embodiment. The main body 1 and the opening / closing lid 2 can be easily opened / closed by a lock 3, and the opening / closing lid 2 is provided with a handle 4 for convenient carrying. As shown in FIG. 4, an electronic cooling unit 20 is provided at an appropriate position on one side of the main body 1.
A concave portion 15 for mounting is formed, and a heat insulating material 41 such as urethane foam (FIG. 1) is provided between the main body 1 and the storage case 24 stored in the main body 1 except for the concave portion 15. Is filled. In addition, 6 and 7 in FIG. 3 are ventilation holes through which air circulates from outside, and 8 is a panel plate. The refrigerator A may be driven by a storage battery. In this case, when the power cords 13a and 13b are connected, the storage battery may be charged together with power supply to the refrigerator. . A display panel 5 for performing an operation is mounted on the front surface of the concave portion 15 of the main body 1. This display panel 5 is shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), an LED 9 for displaying each operation mode of refrigeration and warming, an operation switch 10 for switching each operation of refrigeration, warming and stopping, a capability switching switch 11 for switching cooling ability, an AC or DC power supply Power supply mode switch 12 that switches according to the mode, AC power cord 13
a or power cord 13 such as DC power cord 13b
Are provided.

As shown in FIG. 4, a Peltier element 21, a spacer base 22, a radiation fin 2
An electronic cooling unit 20 such as 3 is mounted. In the Peltier device 21, a spacer base 22 is fixed to the heat absorbing portion side, and a heat radiating fin 23 is fixed to the heat radiating portion side. The spacer base 22 is formed of a material having good thermal conductivity, for example, aluminum. One side of the spacer base 22 is closely fixed to the heat absorbing portion of the Peltier element 21 with heat transfer grease. Are tightly fixed to the storage case 24 so that they can be thermally coupled. This storage case 24
Is made of a material having good thermal conductivity, for example, aluminum, and the storage case 24 and the spacer base 22 are integrally fixed by fixing screws 27 (FIG. 1) fastened to the spacer base 22 from the screw holes of the storage case 24. ing.

The radiating fins 23 are connected to the Peltier device 2.
1, which efficiently dissipates the heat generated in the Peltier device 21 and the Joule heat, is made of a material having a good thermal conductivity, is closely attached to the heat dissipation portion of the Peltier element 21 with heat transfer grease, and has both end edges. It is fixed to the storage case 24 via the heat insulating cushion 70. Further, a fan 29 for blowing air to the cooling fins 23 and cooling the cooling fins 23 is disposed inside the ventilation opening 6 of the storage case 24 so as to face each other.
The air blown to the radiation fins 23 is discharged from the ventilation port 7. That is, the amount of heat absorbed by the heat absorbing portion of the Peltier device 21 is proportional to the supplied current, and the Joule heat due to the internal resistance of the Peltier device 21 is proportional to the square of the current. There is a maximum current value at which is obtained. Therefore, the fan 29
By cooling the radiating fins 23 that are in close contact with the radiating portion of the Peltier element 21 by blowing air from the Peltier device, the Joule heat is dissipated, and the temperature of the radiating portion is lowered, whereby cooling proceeds.

Next, the panel body 25 constituting the wall surface of the storage case 24 is bent into a rectangular tube shape and used as the wall surface of the storage case 24. This panel body 25
The two panel plates 25 are shown in FIG.
a and 25b are overlapped with each other, and two systems of inflated tubes 30a and 30b are formed between two panel plate members 25a and 25b. The two expansion tubes 30a and 30b form a closed path over the entire wall surface of the panel body 25, and a refrigerant (a working fluid such as water) is sealed in a space inside one expansion tube 30a. This refrigerant performs heat transfer by transferring and transferring steam heat or condensation heat. The physical properties of the refrigerant, for example, undergo a reversible two-phase change of evaporation and condensation, have a large latent heat, a small flow resistance, and are designed to have a large amount of heat with a very small temperature difference. Those that can be transported are selected. The space inside the other inflation tube 30b is evacuated, and the one inflation tube 30a
Is vacuum-insulated by the other expansion tube 30b, whereby heat conduction and convection heat conduction do not occur, and leakage of cooling energy is prevented.

Here, the two systems of inflated tubes 30a, 30b
Is a width W ₁ and a length L of the panel body 25 as shown in FIG.
It is formed over the entire surface within the range of ₁ . FIG.
(A) is an exploded view of the panel body 25, showing the comb-shaped inflatable tube 3.
An example of an arrangement state of 0a and 30b is shown. One inflatable tube 30a has a straight portion 30c 'extending vertically and a straight portion 30c.
A plurality of extending portions 30d 'extending laterally from c' are formed in a comb shape, and the other inflation tube 30a is also formed from a vertically extending straight portion 30c "and a straight portion 30c". A plurality of extending portions 30d "extending in the lateral direction are formed in a comb shape, and the extending portions 30d 'are alternately arranged so as not to overlap with each other, and each of the inflation tubes 30a and 30b is respectively formed. 1 in the system
In communication with one. Thereby, heat is absorbed and radiated from the wall surfaces of the respective portions of the expansion tubes 30a and 30b, and the storage case 24 is
The refrigeration capacity has been improved by lowering the temperature inside and eliminating distribution differences. In FIG. 2A, reference numeral 90 denotes a sealing port of one of the inflation tubes 30a, and reference numeral 91 denotes a sealing port of the other inflation tube 30b. FIG.
(B) shows one of the inflatable tubes 30a as a straight portion 30 extending laterally.
c 'and a plurality of extending portions 30d' extending in the vertical direction from the straight portion 30c 'to form a comb-like shape.
FIG. 5A shows a case where a is formed in a comb-like shape by a linear portion 30c ″ extending laterally and a plurality of extending portions 30d ″ extending in the vertical direction from the linear portion 30c ″.

Next, an example of a method of manufacturing the storage case 24 will be described. For example, a thin film of aluminum is pressure-welded by high-pressure reduction rolling, and the expansion circuit circuit portion is coated with an anti-compression material printed by screen printing. An arbitrary space for the inflatable tube (in this embodiment, two spaces for the inflatable tube) is secured, and portions other than the printed portion are joined by high pressure and hot rolling. Further, the plate is cold-rolled to a predetermined thickness, the hardened plate is softened, and the expanded circuit portion is bulged in a comb-like shape by the pressure of high-pressure air. At this time, two inflation tubes 30a, 3
0b is formed in the same manner. Then, when cutting and pressing into a product shape, the two systems of the expanded tubes 30a and 30b are each evacuated. The steps up to the evacuation step are the same, and the expansion tubes 30a and 30b of each system are sealed as closed circuits. Thereafter, a working fluid such as chlorofluorocarbon, ammonia, or water serving as a heat transport medium (refrigerant) is sealed in one of the expansion tubes 30a, and the expansion tube 30a is sealed. Can produce large heat panels.

Next, the operation will be described. When cooling the inside of the storage case 24, when a current is supplied so that the side of the Peltier element 21 facing the storage case 24 becomes a heat absorbing portion and the opposite side becomes a heat radiating portion, the cold storage energy is stored in the storage case 24 via the spacer base 22. Is transmitted, and the heat source mounting portion 24a of the storage case 24 is locally cooled. Further, the heat storage energy is transmitted from the heat source mounting portion 24a to one expansion tube 30a which is spread over the entire surface of the panel body 25 constituting the wall surface of the storage case 24, and the one expansion tube 30a
The entire storage case 24 is cooled by the condensation heat of the refrigerant therein. Note that, by reversing the direction of the current supplied to the Peltier device 21, the heat absorbing portion and the heat radiating portion can be switched, so that the storage case 24 can also be used as a warm storage.

By the way, in the container structure in which the expansion tubes 30a and 30b are not formed on the wall surface of the storage case 24 as in the present embodiment, the temperature difference between the wall surface side facing the heat source mounting portion 24a is about several degrees. This is mainly because the heat absorption depends on the heat conduction of the container, and is mainly caused by the difference in the thermal conductivity of the container material. On the other hand, in the storage case 24 of the present embodiment, the expansion tubes 30a, 3 constituting the heat transport path for activating the flow of the local heat storage energy of the heat source mounting portion 24a.
Ob is wound around almost the entire wall surface. That is, this storage case 24 is formed as a heat panel frame around four by bending a panel body 25 having a very high rate of transmission of heat of evaporation and condensation, and the refrigerant sealed in one expansion tube 30a is evaporated and condensed. A large amount of heat can be transported with a very slight temperature difference by using a material having a large latent heat that changes reversibly in two phases and a small flow resistance and appropriately setting the amount of charged refrigerant. Therefore, the stored heat energy near the heat source is easily transmitted to the refrigerant in the one expansion tube 30a, and the movement of the refrigerant and the heat source in the one expansion tube 30a (circulation path) formed over almost the entire wall surface of the storage case 24. Heat transfer is performed by the transfer of steam heat or condensation heat. Further, the presence of the other expansion tube 30b for vacuum insulation can suppress the amount of heat dissipated from the surface of the storage case 24. As a result, the temperature difference between the heat source mounting portion 24a and the wall surface facing the heat source mounting portion 24a is almost eliminated, and the storage case 2
The temperature at the central portion of the inside of the storage case 4 also decreases, and the cooling in the entire storage case 24 proceeds more smoothly. As a result, the temperature in the storage case 24 can be reduced more efficiently and more uniformly, and the cooling capacity can be significantly improved. Further, the heat exchange panel body 25 achieves energy saving together with power saving of the power consumption and promotion of heat absorption of the electronic cooling unit 20.

As described above, one expansion tube 30a containing the refrigerant thermally coupled to the heat source is connected to the other expansion tube 30b for vacuum insulation.
Can efficiently and uniformly cool (or heat) the inside of the storage case 24 while reducing energy loss. In other words, one inflation tube 30a
The cooling performance in the storage case 24 is improved by the heat transfer in the inside, the temperature difference in the wall surface portion is made uniform, and the vacuum insulation in the other expansion tube 30b allows the cold storage from the inner wall surface of the storage case 24. The amount of heat leakage radiated to the surface through the heat insulating material 41 can be suppressed as small as possible. In addition, since the other expansion tube 30b for vacuum heat insulation is arranged alternately with the one expansion tube 30a in which the refrigerant is sealed, the expansion amount is reduced. Tube 30
The interval between the expansion tubes 30a and 30b is widened, so that heat interference between one of the expansion tubes 30a can be reduced, heat leakage to the outside of the storage case 24 can be more effectively reduced, and heat absorption energy loss due to the Peltier element 21 can be minimized. It is possible to exhibit the maximum cooling capacity.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2A, the extension portion 30c of the one expansion tube 30a filled with the refrigerant is connected to the panel body 2
5, and when the panel body 25 is bent to form the wall surface of the storage case 24, the storage case 24 is tilted so that the heat source mounting portion 24a side does not face upward. The transfer of the vapor heat or the condensation heat of the refrigerant sealed in the container is performed more smoothly, and the heat transfer can be further activated.

By the way, there is a thermos as an application example of heat insulation by utilizing a vacuum, but in the case of an electronic refrigerator, the wall shape is a substantially rectangular shape. Will be destroyed. Therefore, in the present embodiment, one expansion tube 30a (refrigerant circuit) in which the refrigerant is sealed.
And the other expansion tube 30b, which is a vacuum heat insulating portion, are alternately formed to have a wall structure in which the strength for maintaining the degree of vacuum is secured, so that the strength of the wall surface of the storage case 24 is maintained. The cooling effect of the one expansion tube 30a and the vacuum heat insulating effect of the other expansion tube 30b can be maintained for a long period of time.

For example, in the case of a metal case such as an aluminum aperture, cold heat stays in the heat absorbing portion of the Peltier element 21, and a temperature difference of about 5 to 6 ° C. occurs between the heat source mounting portion 24a and the wall facing the heat source. At the center (for example, at the center), a difference of 6 to 8 ° C. (when the ambient temperature is 30 ° C. and the volume is 10 liters) is obtained as compared with the case where the storage case 24 of this embodiment is used. FIG.
And Fig. 6 (enlarged view) shows the experimental results when the temperature was cooled from the ambient temperature of 30 ° C, the power was turned off when the internal temperature was 4 ° C (after 3 hours), and the temperature was allowed to cool to see the transition of the internal temperature of the internal temperature. Is shown. 5 and L ₁ in FIG. 6 is a vacuum膨管case with the present embodiment, L ₂ denotes a characteristic of a conventional aluminum diaphragm casing. As is clear from this graph, the aluminum drawn case reaches an ambient temperature of 30 ° C. after 175 minutes has elapsed in the case of the aluminum drawn case and the case with the vacuum expansion tube, but the inside temperature condition of 29.45 ° C. in the case with the vacuum expansion tube. Becomes Therefore, it was found that there is a temperature difference of 0.55 ° C. when one reaches the ambient temperature from the intersection point d of the heat radiation curve, the heat leakage is about 18%, and the heat radiation is lower than that of the cold and hot storage surface.

Further, the use of the Peltier element 21 as a heat source eliminates the need for a compressor required when a conventional refrigeration cycle is used, thereby enabling the development of a small, lightweight, noise-free, vibration-free refrigerator. It became. still,
In the above embodiment, of the two panel plate members 25a and 25b constituting the panel body 25, one of the panel plate members 25a and 25b is used.
The expansion pipes 30a and 30b are formed by expanding the expansion pipes 30a and 30b. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.
b may be expanded to form expanded tubes 30a, 30b. In this case, two panel plate members 25a, 2b are formed.
5b can be processed in the same manner, and the cost can be reduced. Further, the working fluid (filled amount) can be increased by increasing the cross-sectional area of the inflatable tubes 30a, 30b (increasing the volume in the panel). In addition, the vacuum insulation area increases, and as a result, there is an advantage that the temperature control width of the panel body 25 is widened and the range of practical use is widened.

[0024]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the heat source is mounted on the wall surface of the storage case, and the wall surface of the storage case is constituted by a panel body having two types of inflated tubes. One of the expansion tubes is filled with a refrigerant that is thermally coupled to a heat source, and the other expansion tube is evacuated so that one expansion tube is insulated by the other expansion tube. The combined use of one of the expansion tubes containing the refrigerant and the other expansion tube for vacuum insulation improves heat transfer by the refrigerant, and leaks heat energy to the outside of the storage case due to vacuum insulation. Can be reduced,
The thermal efficiency can be improved, and at the same time, the thickness of the wall surface of the storage case can be reduced to reduce the weight.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, two systems of inflatable tubes are alternately arranged.
The distance between the inflatable tubes is increased, so that heat interference between the inflatable tubes can be reduced, and heat leakage to the outside of the storage case can be more effectively reduced, and the thermal efficiency can be further improved. The invention according to claim 3 has the effect of claim 1,
Since the two systems of the inflatable tubes are formed in a comb-teeth shape, the inflatable tubes can be wrapped around the entire wall surface of the storage case, and the heat transfer by the inflated tubes is performed more efficiently.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, one of the expansion tubes filled with the refrigerant is inclined in the height direction of the panel body. By inclining one of the expansion tubes so that the side does not become upward, the transfer of vapor heat or condensation heat of the refrigerant sealed in the expansion tubes can be performed more smoothly, and the heat transfer can be further activated. Can be planned.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the panel body having the two types of inflated tubes is bent to form the wall surface of the storage case. By using the body as the wall surface of the storage case, the two systems of inflatable tubes that constitute the heat transfer path and the vacuum heat insulating portion are routed around almost the entire wall surface of the storage case, and the thermal efficiency in the storage case is reduced. It can be further improved.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, since the heat source is a Peltier element, a compressor which is required when a conventional refrigeration cycle is used becomes unnecessary, and the size and the size are reduced. It is possible to develop a refrigerator that is lightweight and free of noise and vibration.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of the present embodiment,
(B) is a perspective view of a panel body constituting a wall surface of the storage case, and (c) is a cross-sectional view illustrating a shape of an inflatable tube.

FIG. 2A shows an example of a development view of a panel body,
(B) shows another example.

FIG. 3 (a) is an external view of the cold storage unit, and FIG. 3 (b) is a front view of a display panel.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the cold and hot storage;

FIG. 5 is a graph comparing cooling characteristics and heat radiation characteristics of the above storage case and a normal aluminum drawing case.

FIG. 6 is a graph in which the heat radiation characteristics of FIG. 5 are enlarged.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 21 Peltier element 24 Storage case 25 Panel body 30a One expanded tube 30b The other expanded tube

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A heat source is attached to a wall of a storage case,
The wall surface of the storage case is formed of a panel body having two systems of expanded tubes, and one of the expanded tubes is filled with a refrigerant thermally coupled to a heat source, and the other expanded tube is evacuated to form one expanded tube. A cold and hot storage, characterized by being insulated by the other expansion tube. 2. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein two expansion tubes are alternately arranged. 3. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the two systems of expanded tubes are formed in a comb shape. 4. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein one of the expansion tubes filled with the refrigerant is inclined in the height direction of the panel body. 5. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein a wall of the storage case is formed by bending a panel body having two expansion tubes. 6. The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the heat source is a Peltier device.