KR101749916B1 - Apparatus For Using Wasted Heat Of Refrigerator - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus for utilizing a refrigerant heat quantity of a refrigerator capable of saving energy by extracting heat from a refrigerant directed to an outdoor unit during operation of a refrigeration cycle in an industrial facility equipped with several refrigerator units in a food factory. The composition is;
A compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, and an evaporator installed in a refrigerator for realizing a refrigeration cycle; A branch supply pipe branched from the high-pressure pipe connecting between the expansion valve and the evaporator; A heat exchanger for exchanging heat with high temperature refrigerant supplied through the branch supply pipe to recover heat therefrom; A refrigerant recovery pipe having one end connected to the heat exchange device and the other end connected to the high-pressure pipe or a low-pressure pipe between the evaporator and the expansion valve; And a recovered heat supply unit installed in the heat exchange apparatus to supply heat obtained from the heat exchange apparatus to a use place; So that the heat of the refrigerant in the refrigeration cycle can be taken out and utilized.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to a refrigerant heat utilization apparatus for a refrigerator, and more particularly, to an industrial facility having a plurality of refrigerators, such as a food factory, which extracts heat from a refrigerant directed toward an outdoor unit during operation of a refrigeration cycle, To a refrigerant heat utilization device of a refrigerator which can save heat.

In many industrial sectors, including food factories, refrigeration equipment is often required to operate during the production or processing of goods. At the factory, there are several refrigerators, each of which is operated independently. Thermodynamically based freezers are activated in accordance with the refrigeration cycle. The refrigeration cycle is a system that continuously circulates the four processes of compression, condensation, expansion, and evaporation of refrigerant, and discharges the latent heat of the refrigeration space to the outside air when the refrigerant evaporates.

In the refrigeration cycle, the heat absorbed in the refrigeration space must be discharged to the outside, and the cooling tower or the outdoor unit acts to discharge the heat to the outside. This process is no different than throwing out the heat energy of the refrigerant to the outside.

On the other hand, hot water should be used in food factories for washing equipment, etc. In this case, the water to be used is heated by using a separate heating source.

Even within one independent production system (factory), heat is being thrown away in one place, and hot water is being obtained by using a separate energy source in one place. This is a dual waste of energy.

Korean Patent Application No. 10-2007-0021111

It is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerant heat quantity utilization device for a refrigerator which is used in a process of operating a refrigeration cycle, in particular, for recovering heat discharged outdoors in a condensation process of a refrigerant, . And more particularly, to a heat exchanging apparatus for recovering heat discarded from each refrigerator in a refrigeration system of a factory equipped with a plurality of refrigerators, thereby efficiently reusing the heat.

The above object is achieved by a refrigeration system comprising a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, and an evaporator,

A branch supply pipe branched from the high-pressure pipe connecting between the compressor and the condenser; A heat exchanger for exchanging heat with high temperature refrigerant supplied through the branch supply pipe to recover heat therefrom; A refrigerant return pipe having one end connected to the heat exchange device and the other end connected to the high pressure pipe or a low pressure pipe between the condenser and the expansion valve; And a recovered heat supply unit installed in the heat exchange apparatus to supply heat obtained from the heat exchange apparatus to a use place; And the heat of the refrigerant in the refrigeration cycle is taken out and utilized.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the refrigerator has a plurality of units, and the branch supply pipe and the refrigerant return pipe are connected in parallel to the plurality of refrigerators, respectively, so that the heat of the refrigerant can be taken out from each of the plurality of refrigerators have.

According to an aspect of the present invention,

A water tank installed upright; A water supply pipe for supplying low temperature water to the water tank; A cylindrical guide pipe vertically installed upright at the center of the water tank; An absorption pipe having one end fixed to the lower central portion of the guide pipe and the other end extending to the outside through the water tank wall; A discharge pipe having one end fixed to the upper center of the guide pipe and the other end extending to the outside through the wall of the water tank; A circulation pump in which an inlet port is connected to the other end of the absorption pipe and an outlet port is connected to the other end of the discharge pipe; And a heat exchange tube installed at both ends to extend from the refrigerant pipe of the freezer and each having an intermediate portion passing through the wall of the water tank to wind the outer periphery of the guide pipe.

Here, an electric heater may be installed in the water tank.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a refrigerant gas detector for detecting discharge of the refrigerant gas into the water tank may be installed.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a guide tube in the form of a conical barrel may be fixedly installed on the upper portion of the absorption tube to guide the descending water stream to be radially diffused.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the heat exchange tube may be installed to wind the guide tube in a spiral shape.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the heat exchange tube may be installed so as to wind the guide tube in a concentric shape and in a spiral shape; A plurality of the heat exchange tubes may be independently provided, and the diameters of the portions surrounding the guide tubes may be different from each other.

According to an aspect of the present invention, by lowering the temperature of the refrigerant supplied to the outdoor unit, the compressor can be operated at a low pressure, thereby reducing the power consumption of the refrigerator. Also, by reducing the frequency of use of the cooling blower provided in the condenser and the outdoor unit of the refrigerator, the power consumption can be reduced. Further, by using the heat extracted from the coolant for heating the hot water, the energy used for heating the hot water can be saved.

1 is a configuration diagram of a refrigeration system to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining an example in which a refrigerant heat quantity utilization device of a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention is utilized.
3 is a schematic perspective view of a heat exchanger of a refrigerant heat utilization apparatus for a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of a heat exchanger of a refrigerant heat utilization apparatus for a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a perspective view of a heat exchange tube of a refrigerant heat utilization apparatus for a refrigerator according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of a heat exchanger of a refrigerant heat utilization apparatus for a refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a perspective view of a heat exchange pipe of a refrigerant heat utilization device of a refrigerator according to another embodiment of the present invention.

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

1, the refrigerating apparatus of the present invention includes a compressor 1, a condenser 3, an expansion valve 5, and an evaporator 7, as shown in Fig. 1, to be installed in a refrigerator for realizing a refrigeration cycle . It is a matter of course that the components of the freezer are shown only in the basic structure based on the refrigeration cycle, so that additional components can be further intervened.

The key of the present invention is to selectively extract refrigerant from a refrigerant pipe directed to a condenser 3 corresponding to an outdoor unit or a cooling tower, that is, a high-pressure pipe 8, and to extract heat therefrom.

The branch supply pipe 9 'is extended from the high-pressure pipe 8 connecting between the compressor 1 and the condenser 3. The branch supply pipe 9 'is connected to the heat exchanger 11. The heat exchanger 11 is for exchanging heat with the high temperature refrigerant supplied through the branch supply pipe 9 'to recover heat therefrom.

 The refrigerant return pipe 9 "is connected between the heat exchanger 11 and the refrigerant pipe. The refrigerant return pipe 9" is connected at one end to the heat exchanger 11 and at the other end to the high pressure pipe 8 or the condenser 3 And a low-pressure pipe 8 'between the expansion valve 5 and the low-pressure pipe 8'. The refrigerant thus recovered may be directly directed to the expansion valve 5 without passing through the condenser 3, but it may be supplied to the high-pressure pipe 8 to pass through the condenser 3 in some cases. Furthermore, it may be possible to select a certain point of the refrigerant pipe depending on the operating environment.

The recovered heat supply unit is installed in the heat exchange device 11 to supply the heat obtained from the heat exchange device 11 to the place of use 15. The use place 15 may vary, and thus the scope of the rights of the present invention is not limited. The three-way valve 13 controls the refrigerant directed to the condenser, either directly to the condenser or to the heat exchanger 11 as desired. In some cases, the flow rate may be divided so that some of the flow is directed to the heat exchanger 11 and the remainder to the condenser 3.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, the refrigerator is provided to independently start several units, and the branch supply pipe 9 'and the refrigerant return pipe 9' 'are connected to a plurality of freezers in parallel So that the heat of the refrigerant can be taken out from each of the plurality of refrigerators by being connected to each other.

The branch supply pipe 9 'and the refrigerant return pipe 9' 'are connected to each other through the heat exchange pipe 9' and the refrigerant return pipe 9 '', respectively, according to the embodiment of the present invention. ). Hereinafter, a heat exchanger, which is another core of the present invention, will be described with reference to FIGS. Although the specific configuration of the heat exchanger 11 may be various, according to the present invention, a highly effective method is suggested.

The water tank 21 is installed upright. The water tank 21 may include a heat insulating means, and it may be an open-top type or a closed type. And is illustrated as being hermetically sealed according to the drawings.

The low temperature water is supplied into the water tank 21 through the water supply pipe 30 provided below the water tank 21. The water heated in the water tank 21 rises while being heated and is taken out by the water take-out pipe 33 and the take-out pump 35 installed on the water tank 21 and supplied to the use place.

A cylindrical guide pipe 23 is vertically opened and installed upright in the center of the water tank 21. The guide tube 23 will be fixedly installed by a predetermined support bracket (not shown). It is preferable that the guide pipe 23 is installed in the middle of the water tank 21 (particularly on a plan view). The support bracket may be in the form of a leg, with the lower end fixed to the bottom plate of the water tank 21 and the upper end connected to the lower end of the guide tube 23.

One end of the absorption pipe 31 is fixedly installed so as to open upward in the lower central portion of the guide pipe 23 and the other end extends outside through the wall of the water tank 21.

One end of the discharge pipe (32) is fixedly installed at the upper center portion of the guide pipe (23) so as to open downward, and the other end is extended to the outside through the wall of the water tank (21).

The circulation pump 27 is connected to the other end of the absorption pipe 31 and the discharge pipe 32. The circulation pump 27 is configured such that the suction port is connected to the absorption pipe 31 and the discharge port is connected to the discharge pipe 32 so that water is sucked from the absorption pipe 31 and water is discharged from the discharge pipe 32 do. At the end of the discharge pipe (32), a nozzle (34) may be installed to increase the discharge speed.

The heat exchange pipe 9 extending from the high-pressure pipe 8 in the refrigerant pipe of the freezer is installed so as to pass through the wall of the water tank 21 and to wind the periphery of the guide pipe 23 spirally. In FIG. 3, only one heat exchange pipe 9 is shown for the convenience of understanding. When a plurality of refrigerators are connected, a corresponding number of heat exchange tubes are installed as shown in FIG.

The heat exchange tube 9 is installed to wind the guide tube 23 radially symmetrically in a plan view so as to form a laminar flow flow of the fluid and ensure a constant heat exchange.

When the refrigerator is one, the heat exchanger tube 9 becomes one as shown in FIG. 3. However, when connecting the heat exchanger tubes from several refrigerator as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of heat exchanger tubes 9a, 9b, 9c can be installed. Here, all the heat exchange tubes 9a, 9b and 9c are arranged concentrically so that the flow of the fluid is kept constant.

In particular, it is preferable that the plurality of heat exchange tubes 9a, 9b, 9c shown in Fig. 5 have a constant length. This is to simplify the control of the refrigerator and the heat exchanger by making the amount of heat exchange constant. For this purpose, the length of each unit heat exchange tube 9a, 9b, 9c can be kept relatively constant by changing the number of turns in a helical form. A plurality of unit heat exchange tubes (9a, 9b, 9c) are independently provided, but the diameters of the portions surrounding the guide tubes (23) are different from each other. The number of turns of the first heat exchange tube 9a provided at the outermost side from the guide tube 23 is minimized (for example, three to four times) (For example, 4 to 5 times), and the innermost third heat exchange tube 9c is provided with the largest number of turns (for example, 5 to 6 times) It will be possible.

According to the above-described structure, the water in the water tank 21 is given a fluidity as a convection phenomenon caused by a temperature difference with a small flow of fluid generated by the circulation pump 27 as a starting point. Accordingly, convection flow is generated inside the water tank 21 as indicated by the arrow F in FIG. 4, which acts to promote heat exchange.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, a guiding member 25 in the form of a conical barrel for guiding the descending water flow to be radially diffused can be fixedly installed on the upper part of the absorption pipe. The guide member 25 serves to allow the fluid to flow in the direction of the arrow F. The guide member 25 may be fixed to the bottom surface of the water tank 21 by a separate support or may be fixed to the absorption pipe 31 or fixed to the guide pipe 23.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the electrothermal heater 37 may be installed in the water tank 21. The electrothermal heater 37 may be provided to prevent freezing of the refrigerator when the refrigerator is not used, or may be provided to compensate for the small amount of heat exchanged.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a refrigerant gas detector 39 may be installed to detect the discharge of the refrigerant gas into the water tank 21. The leakage of the refrigerant due to the damage of the heat exchange tube 9 is detected to prevent the diffusion of the problem.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 3, the heat exchange pipe 9 is provided with a bypass pipe 41 and a bypass pipe 41 for allowing the bypass pipe 41 to be bypassed without being introduced into the water tank A bypass valve 42 may be further installed. Of course, in case of bypassing, the heat exchange pipe 9 entering the water tank 21 must be cut off by a valve not shown. Alternatively, instead of the bypass valve 42, a three-way valve may be provided at the intersection of the tubes.

On the other hand, thermometers 43 and 45 may be installed on the lower part and the upper part of the water tank, respectively. The thermometers 43 and 45 measure the temperature of the water tank 21 and apply the measured temperature to the control unit 47. When the temperature difference becomes equal to or higher than the set value or the temperature at the upper side becomes equal to or higher than the set value, the control unit 47 activates the drawing pump 35 to draw water to the place of use.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a nitrogen supply device may be further connected to the water tank 21 to adjust the back pressure.

7 shows another embodiment of the present invention in which the water supply pipe 30 is connected to the discharge pipe 32 so that water can be sprayed directly onto the guide pipe 23. In this case, the circulation pump 27 may be selectively activated or optionally excluded from the system, if necessary. This embodiment makes it possible to manufacture and operate the heat exchanger more economically. Various valves for controlling the flow direction of the water can be sufficiently predicted by those skilled in the art, so that illustration is omitted, and other reference numerals will be referred to the previous embodiments.

The configuration shown and described above is merely a preferred embodiment based on the technical idea of the present invention. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

1: compressor 3: condenser
5: expansion valve 7: evaporator
8,8 ': Refrigerant pipe 9: Heat exchange pipe
11: Heat exchanger 21: Water tank
23: guide tube 25: guide member
27: circulation pump 30: water supply pipe
31: absorption pipe 32: discharge pipe
33: water outlet pipe 35: draw pump
39: refrigerant gas detector 41: bypass pipe
42: bypass valve 43,45: thermometer
47:

Claims (8)

A compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, and an evaporator installed in a refrigerator for realizing a refrigeration cycle;
A branch supply pipe branched from the high-pressure pipe connecting between the compressor and the condenser; A heat exchanger (11) for exchanging heat with high temperature refrigerant supplied through the branch supply pipe to recover heat therefrom; A refrigerant return pipe having one end connected to the heat exchange device and the other end connected to the high pressure pipe or a low pressure pipe between the condenser and the expansion valve; And a recovered heat supply unit installed in the heat exchange device (11) for supplying the heat obtained from the heat exchange device (11) to a use place, wherein the heat exchange device (11) comprises:
A water tank 21 installed upright; A water supply pipe for supplying low temperature water to the water tank;
A cylindrical guide pipe (23) installed upright in the center of the water tank (21) and opening up and down;
An absorption pipe (31) fixed at one end to the center of the lower portion of the guide pipe (23) and extending at the other end through the wall of the water tank (21);
A discharge pipe (32) having one end fixed to the upper center of the guide pipe (23) and the other end extending to the outside through the wall of the water tank (21);
A circulation pump 27 in which an inlet port is connected to the other end of the absorption pipe 31 and an outlet port is connected to the other end of the discharge pipe 32;
A heat exchange tube (9) installed at both ends to extend from the refrigerant tube of the freezer and the intermediate portion to penetrate the wall of the water tank (21) and to wind the outer periphery of the guide tube (23);
And the refrigerant heat quantity utilization device of the refrigerator.
The method according to claim 1,
The refrigerator is provided with a plurality of units;
Wherein the branch supply pipe and the refrigerant return pipe are connected in parallel to a plurality of freezers, respectively, so that heat from the refrigerant can be taken out from the plurality of freezers.
delete The method according to claim 1,
And an electric heater is further installed inside the water tank.
The method according to claim 1,
And a refrigerant gas detector for detecting discharge of the refrigerant gas into the water tank is installed.
The method according to claim 1,
Wherein an induction member in the form of a conical barrel is fixedly installed on the upper portion of the absorption pipe so as to induce a descending flow of water to be radially diffused.
The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the heat exchanger tube is installed to wind the guide tube in a spiral shape.
The method according to claim 1,
The heat exchange tube may be installed concentrically and winding the guide tube in a spiral shape; Wherein a plurality of the heat exchange tubes are independently provided, and the diameters of the portions surrounding the guide tubes are bent differently from each other.

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