KR102106003B1 - An air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

Air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, a compressor having a plurality of compression units for multi-stage compression; An indoor heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between refrigerant and indoor air; An outdoor heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between refrigerant and outdoor air; And a refrigerant separation device accommodating refrigerant between the indoor heat exchanger and the outdoor heat exchanger, wherein the refrigerant separation device comprises: an outer case in which an internal space is formed; A separating connector positioned to contact the inner circumferential surface of the outer case; An inner case coupled to a lower portion of the separation connector so as to be spaced apart from the outer case; And tube channels penetrating the upper and lower portions of the inner case, wherein the refrigerant flowing into the tube channel and the refrigerant flowing into the inner case form heat exchange.

Description

Air conditioner {An air conditioner}

The present invention relates to an air conditioner.

The air conditioner is a device for maintaining the air in a predetermined space in the most suitable state according to the purpose and purpose. In general, the air conditioner includes a compressor, a condenser, an expansion device, and an evaporator, and a refrigerant cycle that performs compression, condensation, expansion, and evaporation processes of the refrigerant is driven to cool or heat the predetermined space. .

The predetermined space may be variously suggested according to a place where the air conditioner is used. For example, when the air conditioner is disposed in a home or office, the predetermined space may be an indoor space in a house or building. On the other hand, when the air conditioner is disposed in a vehicle, the predetermined space may be a boarding space for people to board.

Meanwhile, the air conditioner may be operated to be switched to a cooling mode or a heating mode. When the air conditioner is operated in a cooling mode, the outdoor heat exchanger functions as a condenser and the indoor heat exchanger functions as an evaporator. On the other hand, when the air conditioner is operated in a heating mode, the outdoor heat exchanger functions as an evaporator and the indoor heat exchanger functions as a condenser. In order to switch between cooling operation and heating operation, the air conditioner may be provided with a flow control valve that controls the flow direction of the refrigerant.

The air conditioner includes an accumulator disposed on an inlet side of the compressor to separate a gaseous refrigerant among refrigerants passing through the evaporator and allowing the gaseous refrigerant to flow into the compressor. In addition, the air conditioner further includes a receiver that stores at least a part of the condensed refrigerant.

In addition, the air conditioner further includes an internal heat exchanger between the condenser and the expansion device. The internal heat exchanger may perform a function of achieving supercooling of the condensed refrigerant, and may perform a function of providing a gaseous refrigerant injected directly into a compressor. In more detail, since the internal heat exchanger is heat-exchanged, gaseous refrigerant may be generated, and the gaseous refrigerant may be directly introduced into the compressor according to an operating load of the air conditioner.

Meanwhile, the air conditioner may include the internal heat exchanger inside a gas-liquid separator that separates the gaseous refrigerant and the liquid refrigerant from the condensed refrigerant in order to improve the performance of cooling and heating and utilize the efficient interior space.

Prior literature information related to this is as follows.

[Preliminary literature information]

1.Public number (public date): 10-2013-0026674 (March 14, 2013)

2. Name of invention: Air conditioner

However, the prior literature has the following problems.

First, when the condensed refrigerant flows into the gas-liquid separator, the phase separation efficiency of separating the gaseous refrigerant and the liquid refrigerant according to the inflow amount of the refrigerant is slightly reduced. That is, there is a problem that it is difficult to efficiently perform phase separation.

Second, according to the ratio of the amount of refrigerant introduced into the gas-liquid separator and the liquid refrigerant, the heat exchange deviation of the internal heat exchanger increases, and as a result, there is a problem that heat exchange performance is relatively inferior.

Third, there is a disadvantage in that it is difficult to control the amount of refrigerant circulating through the cycle according to the operation mode of the air conditioner, such as cooling operation, heating operation, cooling partial load operation, and operation that causes fluctuation of load. In general, a receiver is provided to control the difference in the amount of refrigerant encapsulation according to the cooling operation and the heating operation, but in the conventional air conditioner, the capacity to store the refrigerant in the receiver is limited to the volume of the receiver, and the amount of refrigerant stored according to the operation mode Cannot be adjusted. According to this, the amount of refrigerant circulating through the cycle must be varied according to the operation mode. However, due to the limited capacity of the receiver, there is a disadvantage in that optimum cooling and heating efficiency according to each operation mode cannot be achieved.

Fourth, in order to increase the amount of gaseous refrigerant injected into the compressor by increasing the load of the compressor, there is a problem that a plurality of internal heat exchangers must be additionally provided. In this case, the product may be large in size, which may cause problems in terms of installation or performance. For example, in a multi-type air conditioner equipped with a plurality of indoor units, the control range of the amount of refrigerant circulating in the cycle and the amount of refrigerant injected in the compressor may be further expanded. To this end, if a plurality of internal heat exchangers are separately provided, the size of the outdoor unit may be increased, which may cause a problem of securing an installation space. In addition, there is a problem that the cooling and heating efficiency is also relatively low.

Fifth, refrigerants (R-410a, R-134a) with high global warming potential (GWP) used in conventional air conditioners are refrigerants with low global warming index (R-32) according to international regulations. Should be replaced.

However, if the refrigerant (R-32) having a low global warming index (GWP) is used in the air conditioner disclosed in the prior art, a problem occurs in that the discharge temperature of the compressor exceeds the allowable temperature (about 150 ° C). . In addition, there is a problem in that the power consumption by driving the compressor is very increased.

An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner that structurally integrates a conventional receiver and an internal heat exchanger to improve cooling and heating performance and efficiently utilize the internal space.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner capable of efficiently injecting refrigerant into a compressor having a multi-stage compression unit.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a structurally improved air conditioner such that phase separation of the refrigerant passing through the condenser is effectively performed or promoted.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner that improves the heat exchange performance of an internal heat exchanger to efficiently inject refrigerant into a compressor.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner capable of easily and efficiently adjusting the amount of refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant cycle according to the operation mode of the air conditioner, and also increasing the variable range of the amount of refrigerant. do.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner that can solve the problem of having an additional internal heat exchanger when the amount of refrigerant injected into the compressor increases as the compressor load increases.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner capable of minimizing the increase in power consumption of the compressor and reducing the discharge temperature of the compressor within an allowable temperature when a refrigerant having a low global warming index (GWP) is used. .

In order to achieve the above object, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, a compressor forming an refrigerant cycle, an outdoor heat exchanger, an indoor heat exchanger and an expansion device, and a refrigerant passing through the indoor heat exchanger or the outdoor heat exchanger It includes a refrigerant separation device for performing phase separation and heat exchange by introducing a.

The refrigerant separation device, the outer case to form a closed inner space to store the introduced refrigerant, the inner case and the upper portion accommodated in the outer case are in contact with the inner circumferential surface of the outer case, the lower portion is coupled to the inner case A separate connector is included.

By the separation connector and the inner case, the inner space of the outer case may define an upper phase separation space, a lower heat exchange space, and an inner heat exchange space. Therefore, the conventional receiver and the internal heat exchanger can be structurally integrated to further improve cooling and heating performance according to the load, and efficiently utilize the internal space.

In addition, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a pre-separation unit for first (primary) phase separation of the refrigerant introduced into the refrigerant separation device. According to this, the refrigerant introduced into the refrigerant separation device in the heating operation is firstly separated into a gaseous refrigerant and a liquid refrigerant by the pre-separation unit, and then introduced into the phase separation space of the outer case again (secondary) gaseous refrigerant and liquid phase Since the refrigerant is separated, phase separation can be more easily performed, and phase separation efficiency can be improved.

In addition, the pre-separation part includes an upper connection pipe connected to the outer case and a lower connection pipe located below the upper connection pipe, and the upper connection pipe and the lower connection pipe are bent from a through direction to form an internal It includes a bent tube that guides the refrigerant to form a centrifugal force. According to this, since the refrigerant inside the bent pipe can perform circular motion due to inertia, the refrigerant discharged from the bent pipe can form a cyclone flow path in the phase separation space.

In addition, the outer case may include a cylindrical shape. Therefore, the refrigerant discharged from the bent tube can easily form the cyclone flow path along the physical guide of the inner peripheral surface of the outer case.

In addition, since the upper connection pipe and the lower connection pipe are spaced apart in the vertical direction inside the outer case, a dual cyclone flow path may be formed. Therefore, the gas phase refrigerant and the liquid phase refrigerant can be effectively separated.

In addition, the pre-separation unit further includes an upper refrigerant valve installed in the upper connection pipe and a lower refrigerant valve installed in the lower connection pipe. And when the cooling operation is performed, the controller of the air conditioner may be controlled to open the upper refrigerant valve and close the lower refrigerant valve. That is, the refrigerant may be stored in the interior space (phase separation space and heat exchange space) of the outer case to the maximum. According to this, since all of the internal space of the refrigerant separation device of the present invention can be used, the storage capacity of the refrigerant can be increased than when the volume of the conventional receiver is limited. Therefore, the optimal amount of refrigerant that can increase the cooling efficiency as much as possible can cycle through the cycle.

In addition, when the cooling partial load operation is performed, since the amount of refrigerant circulating in the cycle must be increased than in the case of the cooling operation, the controller may control to open the lower refrigerant valve and close the upper refrigerant valve. That is, since the amount of refrigerant circulating through the cycle can be optimized according to the operation mode, it is possible to improve heating and cooling efficiency.

In addition, the separation connector may include a cone shape extending to increase the diameter toward the upper side. In addition, the upper end portion of the separation connector may be formed to be the same as the inner diameter formed by one cross section of the outer case. According to this, since the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing downward becomes faster, phase separation is promoted and can be performed more effectively.

In addition, the refrigerant separation device further includes a heat exchange tube provided to be wrapped along an outer surface of the inner case. In addition, the heat exchange tube may be formed in a spiral shape. According to this, it is possible to improve the heat transfer ability between the refrigerant flowing into the heat exchange tube and the refrigerant passing through the inner case and flowing into the heat exchange space.

In addition, the inner case may include an upper compartment plate and a lower compartment plate to form a closed internal space, that is, an internal heat exchange space.

In addition, the refrigerant separation device may further include a channel tube passing through the inner case. Further, the channel tube may extend from an upper side of the upper compartment plate of the inner case to a lower side of the lower compartment plate. According to this, the phase separation space and the heat exchange space can be connected to allow the refrigerant to flow.

In addition, the refrigerant separation device, a part of the liquid refrigerant discharged to the lower side of the inner case through the channel tube may be branched into the inner space of the inner case, that is, the inner heat exchange space. According to this, in the internal heat exchange space, heat exchange between the refrigerant flowing through the channel tube and the refrigerant rising into the internal heat exchange space is performed, and a relatively medium pressure gaseous refrigerant can be separated and injected into the compressor.

In addition, the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention, the first injection flow path for guiding the separated gaseous refrigerant of high pressure to the compressor, the second injection flow path for guiding the separated gaseous refrigerant of low pressure to the compressor and the separation of the intermediate pressure A third injection flow path for guiding the gaseous refrigerant to the compressor is further included. According to this, when the load of the compressor increases, the separated gaseous refrigerant can be injected into the compressor in three stages, thereby improving the operating range of the compressor and improving heating and cooling performance.

In addition, the refrigerant separation device is formed on the upper portion of the outer case, the first port to which the first injection channel is connected, the outdoor port to which the outdoor connection channel is connected, the separation port located below the outdoor port, the heat exchange Bypass port defined as the inlet of the tube, a second port defined as the outlet of the heat exchange tube and the second injection flow path connected, the inner port connected by the separation port and the inner pipe, and the outer case from the inner case A third port extending outwardly may be further included.

In addition, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed in the first injection valve installed in the first injection flow path, the bypass flow path branched from the outdoor connection flow path and extended to the bypass port, and the bypass flow path It may further include a second injection valve.

In addition, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include an inner pipe connecting the inner port and the branch port and a third injection valve installed in the inner pipe.

In addition, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, the first detection sensor installed in the first injection flow path, the second detection sensor and the third injection flow path installed in the outdoor connection flow path between the outdoor port and the bypass flow path It may further include a third detection sensor installed on. In addition, the control unit controls the opening degree of the first injection valve to the third injection valve based on the detection results of the first detection sensor to the third detection sensor. According to this, it is possible to reduce the load increase of the compressor by controlling at least one of the first injection valve, the second injection valve and the third injection valve. In addition, when it is determined that the refrigerant is a gaseous refrigerant that does not meet the appropriate conditions, the liquid compression refrigerant may be introduced into the compressor together with the gaseous refrigerant by closing the valve to prevent a liquid compression problem.

According to the present invention, the phase separation efficiency of the refrigerant is easily achieved by the pre-separation unit, thereby improving the phase separation efficiency. According to this, since the amount of refrigerant injected from the refrigerant separation device is relatively increased in a compressor requiring a large amount of refrigerant due to an increase in load, it is possible to improve the overall cooling and heating performance. After all, there is an effect that can improve the reliability of the product.

According to the present invention, the heat exchange efficiency between the refrigerants in the refrigerant separation device can be improved by the heat exchange tube provided to surround the inner case and the spiral shape of the heat exchange tube. According to this, the refrigerant discharged from the refrigerant separation device toward the evaporator may be supercooled, and the gaseous refrigerant separated by heat exchange between refrigerants is injected into the compressor in a relatively increased amount, thereby improving the air conditioning and heating performance of the air conditioner. have.

According to the present invention, there is an advantage in that the amount of refrigerant stored in the refrigerant separation device can be easily adjusted according to the operation mode through control of the upper and lower refrigerant valves. According to this, there is an advantage in that it is possible to achieve optimal cooling and heating efficiency compared to the amount of refrigerant according to the operation mode of the air conditioner.

According to the present invention, when the load of the compressor including the multi-stage compression unit increases, it is possible to perform triple injection to provide the high-pressure, medium-pressure, and low-pressure gaseous refrigerant to the compressor by a refrigerant separation device. Therefore, there is an advantage that the operating range of the compressor is expanded.

According to the present invention, there is an advantage that can improve the injection amount of the refrigerant according to the increase in the compressor load without having an additional internal heat exchanger. As a result, there is an effect that a product can be miniaturized while increasing performance.

According to the present invention, even when a refrigerant (R-32) having a low global warming index (GWP) is used, since refrigerant can be injected into a compressor in three stages, an increase in power consumption can be minimized. There is an advantage that the discharge temperature of the compressor can be reduced to within an allowable temperature.

1 is a view showing a schematic configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention
2 is a longitudinal sectional view of a refrigerant separation device provided in an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention
3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A 'in FIG. 1;
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a part of the refrigerant separation device provided in the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention
5 is a view showing a partial configuration of a refrigerant separation device provided in an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention
6 is a view showing an exemplary heat exchange tube shape of the refrigerant separation device provided in the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention
7 to 9 are views showing the refrigerant flow according to the heating operation and the partial load operation of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention
10 and 11 are views showing the refrigerant flow according to the cooling operation and the partial load operation of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention
12 is a graph showing the efficiency according to the operation mode of the air conditioner compared to the amount of refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant cycle
13 is a PH diagram showing a refrigerant cycle of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention

Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail through exemplary drawings. It should be noted that in adding reference numerals to the components of each drawing, the same components have the same reference numerals as possible even though they are displayed on different drawings. In addition, in describing embodiments of the present invention, when it is determined that detailed descriptions of related well-known configurations or functions interfere with understanding of the embodiments of the present invention, detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted.

In addition, in describing the components of the embodiments of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), and (b) may be used. These terms are only for distinguishing the component from other components, and the nature, order, or order of the component is not limited by the term. When a component is described as being "connected", "coupled" or "connected" to another component, that component may be directly connected to or connected to the other component, but another component between each component It should be understood that may be "connected", "coupled" or "connected".

1 is a view showing a schematic configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Figure 1, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, a compressor 10 for compressing a refrigerant to form a refrigerant cycle, a flow switching unit 20 for switching the flow direction of the refrigerant, refrigerant and indoor air A heat exchanger (30) for heat exchange, an outdoor heat exchanger (50) for exchanging refrigerant and outdoor air, and an expansion device located between the indoor heat exchanger (30) and the outdoor heat exchanger (50) to decompress the refrigerant ( 41,42) and an accumulator 60 connected to the suction side of the compressor 10.

In addition, the air conditioner may further include a control unit (not shown) that can control the operation of the configuration according to the operation mode. For example, in a multi-type air conditioner equipped with a plurality of indoor units, the control unit may control a configuration according to cooling operation, heating operation, cooling partial load operation, and heating partial load operation.

Here, the cooling partial load operation may be understood as, for example, an operation mode in which some indoor units are controlled to perform heating operation in the cooling main operation mode in which the plurality of indoor units perform the cooling operation, and the load of the compressor increases.

However, in the embodiment of the present invention, the partial load operation may be defined as an operation mode including a case where the load of the compressor is increased in the heating main operation mode as well as the above-described cooling main operation mode.

In addition, the control unit (not shown) is injected into the compressor 10 through the first and second injection passages 210 and 220, which will be described later, when the temperature of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 10 does not reach a set temperature due to a large compressor load. It can be controlled to increase the amount of refrigerant. According to this, the load of the compressor 10 is reduced and air conditioning performance can be improved.

The compressor 10 may include a plurality of compression units 11, 12, 13, and 14 for multi-stage compression. In one example, the compressor 10 may include a first compression unit 11, a second compression unit 12, a third compression unit 13 and a fourth compression unit 14 so that four-stage compression is performed. have. The refrigerant flowing into the compressor 10 may be compressed in multiple stages while passing through the first compression unit 11, the second compression unit 12, the third compression unit 13, and the fourth compression unit 14. .

In addition, the compressor 10 is located between the discharge side of the third compression unit 13 and the suction side of the fourth compression unit 13, a high pressure port to which the first injection flow path 210 to be described later is connected , A low pressure port located between the discharge side of the second compression section 12 and the suction side of the third compression section 13 and connected to a second injection flow path 220 to be described later, and the first compression section 11 ) Is located between the discharge side and the suction side of the second compression part 12 and may further include an intermediate pressure port to which a third injection flow path 230 to be described later is connected.

The air conditioner may further include a discharge passage 16 extending from the discharge side of the compressor 10 to the flow conversion unit 20. In one example, the discharge passage 16 may extend from the discharge side of the third compression unit 13 and be connected to the flow conversion unit 20. In addition, the refrigerant compressed from the compressor 10 may flow through the discharge passage 16 to the flow conversion unit 20.

The flow switching unit 20 may include a four-way valve. In addition, the flow switching unit 20 may be controlled to switch the flow direction of the refrigerant according to the operation mode of the air conditioner. That is, the flow switching unit 20 may guide the compressed refrigerant discharged from the compressor 10 to flow to the indoor heat exchanger 30 or the outdoor heat exchanger 50.

The air conditioner is a first conversion flow path 31 extending from the flow switching unit 20 to the indoor heat exchanger 30 and a second extending from the flow switching unit 20 to the outdoor heat exchanger 50. The conversion passage 51 may be further included.

When the heating operation is performed, since the indoor heat exchanger 30 operates as a condenser, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 10 flows into the first conversion channel 31 by the flow conversion unit 20, and It can flow to the indoor heat exchanger (30). And when the cooling operation is performed, since the outdoor heat exchanger 50 operates as a condenser, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 10 flows into the second conversion passage 51 by the flow conversion unit 20 It may flow to the outdoor heat exchanger (50).

The accumulator 60 may separate the gaseous refrigerant by introducing the refrigerant evaporated by the evaporator. At this time, the gaseous refrigerant separated by the accumulator 60 may be provided to the suction side of the compressor 10.

The air conditioner further includes an air passage 61 extending from the flow switching unit 20 to the accumulator 60 and a suction passage 66 extending from the accumulator 60 to the suction side of the compressor 10. can do.

The shoulder passage 61 may guide the refrigerant evaporated while passing through the evaporator (indoor heat exchanger 30 or outdoor heat exchanger 50) to be introduced into the accumulator 60 from the flow switching unit 20. have.

The suction passage 66 may guide the gaseous refrigerant separated from the accumulator 60 to flow into the suction side of the compressor 10. In one example, the suction passage 66 may be connected to the suction side of the first compression unit 11.

The air conditioner may further include a refrigerant separation device 100 that separates the gaseous refrigerant and the liquid refrigerant by introducing condensed refrigerant.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may be understood as a device in which the conventional receiver and the conventional internal heat exchanger described above are integrated. Accordingly, the refrigerant separation device 100 may perform a refrigerant storage function, a phase separation function of a gas phase refrigerant and a liquid refrigerant, and a supercooling function of the liquid refrigerant.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may form an exterior with an outer case 110 (see FIG. 2) extending long in one direction. In one example, the refrigerant separation device 100 may extend in a direction perpendicular to the ground, that is, in the vertical direction.

The refrigerant separation device 100 includes a first port 101 through which a relatively high pressure gaseous refrigerant is discharged, a second port 102 through which a relatively low pressure gaseous refrigerant is discharged, and a relatively medium pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged. It may include a third port (107). The first port 101 to the third port 107 may be formed such that some of the refrigerant accommodated in the internal space of the refrigerant separation device 100 is discharged to the outside.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may be divided into upper and lower portions based on the separation connector 120 to be described later. In addition, the internal space of the refrigerant separation device 100 may be divided into an upper phase separation space 115, a lower heat exchange space 135, and an internal heat exchange space 139 based on the separation connector 120.

The refrigerant flowing into the refrigerant separation device 100 passes through the phase separation space 115, the internal heat exchange space 139, and the heat exchange space 130, and has relatively high pressure gas phase refrigerant, medium pressure gas phase refrigerant, and low pressure. It can be separated into a gaseous refrigerant. And the high pressure gaseous refrigerant flows into the first injection flow path 210 to be described later through the first port 101, and the medium pressure gaseous refrigerant flows through the third port 107 to the third injection flow path to be described later ( 230), the low-pressure gaseous refrigerant may be introduced into the second injection passage 220 to be described later through the second port 102.

The first port 101 may be located above the refrigerant separation device 100. For example, the first port 101 may be located at the upper end of the refrigerant separation device 100 so that only the separated gaseous refrigerant is sucked.

The second port 102 may be located under the refrigerant separation device 100. For example, the second port 102 may be located below the first port 101.

In addition, the second port 102 may be integrally formed with one end of the heat exchange tube 140 to be described later. The refrigerant flowing through the heat exchange tube 140 may be discharged to the outside of the refrigerant separation device 100 by the second port 102. That is, the second port 102 can be understood as an outlet of the heat exchange tube 140.

The third port 107 may be located in the middle portion of the refrigerant separation device 100. In one example, the third port 107 may be located between the first port 101 and the second port 102.

The third port 107 may be formed to communicate with the inner heat exchange space 139 which is the inner space of the inner case 130 to be described later. In addition, the gaseous refrigerant generated through heat exchange in the internal heat exchange space 139 may be discharged to the outside of the refrigerant separation device 100 by the third port 107. That is, the third port 107 can be understood as an outlet of the refrigerant in the internal heat exchange space 139.

Therefore, the third port 107 may be located on the upper portion of the inner case 130. As an example, the third port 107 may extend from the top of the inner case 130 toward the outside of the outer case 110.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may further include a bypass port 104. The bypass port 104 may be formed such that some of the refrigerant outside the refrigerant separation device 100 flows into the inside.

The bypass port 104 may be located under the refrigerant separation device 100. For example, the bypass port 104 may be positioned to be symmetric with the second port 102.

The bypass port 104 may be integrally formed with the other end of the heat exchange tube 140 to be described later. And the refrigerant introduced into the bypass port 104 may flow into the heat exchange tube 140. That is, the bypass port 104 can be understood as a suction part of the heat exchange tube 140.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may further include an outdoor port 103. The outdoor port 103 may be formed such that refrigerant flows into or out of the refrigerant separation device 100.

The outdoor port 103 may be connected to allow the outdoor heat exchanger 50 and refrigerant to flow. In more detail, the outdoor port 103 may be connected to the outdoor heat exchanger 50 through an outdoor connection passage 56 to be described later. Accordingly, the outdoor port 103 may introduce refrigerant into the refrigerant separation device 100 or discharge refrigerant to the outside of the refrigerant separation device 100.

The outdoor port 103 may be located in the middle portion of the refrigerant separation device 100. In addition, the outdoor port 103 may be formed in the outer case 110 so as to communicate with the heat exchange space 135 among the internal spaces of the refrigerant separation device 100.

Here, the heat exchange space 135 may be defined as a space formed between the outer case 110 and the inner case 130 under the separation connector 120 to be described later.

When the heating operation is performed, the outdoor port 103 may be formed at a position higher than the upper end portion of the heat exchange tube 140 because the liquid refrigerant forming heat exchange with the heat exchange tube 140 is introduced. For example, the outdoor port 103 may be located above the third port 107. In addition, the outdoor port 103 may be located above the bypass port 104.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may further include a separation port 105, an inner port 106, and an inner pipe for connecting the heat exchange space 135 and the inner heat exchange space 139.

The separation port 105 may be located under the refrigerant separation device 100. For example, the separation port 105 may be located below the outdoor port 103.

The separation port 105 may be formed to communicate with the heat exchange space 135 which is a space between the outer case 110 and the inner case 130.

The inner port 106 may be located under the refrigerant separation device 100. In one example, the inner port 106 may be located above the separation port 105.

The inner port 106 may be formed to communicate with the inner heat exchange space 139. That is, the inner port 106 may be formed to extend from the inner case 130 to the outside of the outer case 110.

The inner pipe may connect the separation port 105 and the inner port 106. For example, the separation port 105 may be coupled to one side of the inner pipe, and the inner port 106 may be coupled to the other side of the inner pipe. Accordingly, the internal piping may guide the heat exchange space 135 and the internal heat exchange space 139 to allow refrigerant to flow.

The air conditioner extends from a first injection passage 210 extending from the first port 101 of the refrigerant separation device 100 to the compressor 10, and from a second port 102 of the refrigerant separation device 100. Further comprising a second injection flow path 220 extending to the compressor 10 and a third injection flow path 230 extending from the third port 107 of the refrigerant separation device 100 to the compressor 10 You can.

The first injection channel 210 may guide a gaseous refrigerant forming a relatively high pressure among gaseous refrigerants separated by the refrigerant separation device 100 to flow into the discharge side of the third compression unit 13. . Therefore, the first injection flow path 210 may be referred to as a high pressure flow path. That is, the high pressure flow path may be connected to the high pressure port.

In addition, the second injection channel 220 guides the gaseous refrigerant forming a relatively low pressure among gaseous refrigerants separated by the refrigerant separation device 100 to flow into the discharge side of the first compression unit 11. You can. Therefore, the second injection flow path 220 may be referred to as a low pressure flow path. That is, the low pressure flow path may be connected to the low pressure port.

In addition, the third injection flow path 230 guides the gaseous refrigerant forming a relatively medium pressure among the gaseous refrigerants separated by the refrigerant separation device 100 to be introduced into the discharge side of the second compression unit 12. can do. Therefore, the third injection flow path 230 may be referred to as an intermediate pressure flow path. That is, the intermediate pressure flow path may be connected to the intermediate pressure port.

The air conditioner extends from the indoor heat exchanger (30) toward the refrigerant separation device (100) to the indoor connection passage (36) and from the outdoor heat exchanger (50) toward the refrigerant separation device (100). A connection passage 56 may be further included.

The indoor connection passage 36 may extend from one side of the indoor heat exchanger 30 to the pre-separation unit 150. In more detail, the indoor connection passage 36 may be coupled to allow the refrigerant to flow in the guide tube 153, which will be described later.

In addition, the outdoor connection channel 56 may extend from one side of the outdoor heat exchanger 50 to the outdoor port 103. In more detail, the outdoor connection passage 56 may be coupled to allow the refrigerant to flow to the outdoor port 103.

The air conditioner may further include a bypass passage 58 branched from the outdoor connection passage 56 and connected to the refrigerant separation device 100.

The bypass passage 58 may be branched so that the refrigerant is branched or laminated at one point of the outdoor connection passage 56 and extends to the bypass port 104. In addition, the bypass flow path 58 may be formed to branch between the second expansion device 42 and the outdoor port 103, which will be described later.

The expansion devices 41 and 42 may include a first expansion device 41 and a second expansion device 42. The first expansion device 41 may be installed in the indoor connecting passage 36. In addition, the second expansion device 42 may be installed in the outdoor connection passage 56.

The refrigerant introduced into the refrigerant separation device 100 may be expanded through reduced pressure by the first expansion device 41 or the second expansion device 43. Similarly, the refrigerant that has passed through the refrigerant separation device 100 may be expanded through reduced pressure by the first expansion device 41 or the second expansion device 43. In addition, the control unit may adjust the opening degree of the first expansion device 41 or the second expansion device 43 according to the operation mode.

The air conditioner is a first injection valve 215 installed in the first injection flow path 210, a second injection valve 225 installed in the bypass flow path 58, and a third injection installed in the internal piping A valve 235 may be further included.

The first injection valve 215, the second injection valve 225 and the third injection valve 235 may include an electronic expansion valve (EEV).

The first injection valve 215 may adjust the amount of gaseous refrigerant introduced into the first injection channel 210 through the opening degree adjustment.

In addition, the second injection valve 225 may control the amount of the gaseous refrigerant flowing into the second injection flow path 220 by adjusting the amount of refrigerant flowing into the heat exchange tube 140.

In addition, the third injection valve 235 adjusts the amount of refrigerant flowing into the inner heat exchange space 139, which is the inner space of the inner case 130, and thus the gaseous refrigerant flowing into the third injection channel 230 The amount can be adjusted.

The control unit adjusts the opening degree of at least one of the first injection valve 215, the second injection valve 225, and the third injection valve 235 according to the load of the compressor, so that the gas phase refrigerant introduced into the compressor 10 The amount can be adjusted.

The air conditioner is connected to the first detection sensor 217 installed in the first injection flow path 210, the second detection sensor 227 installed in the outdoor connection flow path 56, and the third injection flow path 230. A third sensing sensor 237 to be installed may be further included.

The first sensing sensor 217 may sense a state of temperature, pressure, etc. of the refrigerant flowing through the first injection channel 210.

The second sensing sensor 227 may detect a state of temperature, pressure, etc. of the refrigerant flowing through the outdoor connection passage (56). In detail, the second detection sensor 227 may detect the state of the refrigerant flowing through the outdoor connection passage 56 between the bypass passage 58 and the outdoor port 103.

The third detection sensor 237 may sense the state of the temperature, pressure, etc. of the refrigerant flowing through the third injection flow path 230.

The control unit may adjust the opening degree of the first injection valve 215 based on the state of the refrigerant detected by the first detection sensor 217.

In addition, the control unit may adjust the opening degree of the second injection valve 225 based on the state of the refrigerant detected by the second detection sensor 227. In one example, the control unit may close the second injection valve 225 when the information of the refrigerant detected from the second detection sensor 227 does not meet a preset standard.

Here, the preset criteria may include the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant flowing through the outdoor connection passage (56).

Likewise, the control unit may adjust the opening degree of the third injection valve 230 based on the state of the refrigerant detected by the third detection sensor 237. For example, when the third injection valve 235 is closed, the refrigerant flowing into the internal heat exchange space 139 is blocked and flows into the outdoor port 103, so that it flows into the third injection channel 230. Pressure vapor refrigerant may be blocked.

The air conditioner may include a pre-separation unit 150 connected to the refrigerant separation device 100 to guide the refrigerant.

The pre-separation unit 150 may be located between the indoor connection passage 36 and the refrigerant separation device 100. In addition, the pre-separation unit 150 may be formed to guide the flow of refrigerant between the indoor connection passage 36 and the refrigerant separation device 100.

The pre-separation unit 150 may be coupled to allow refrigerant to flow into or out of the refrigerant separation device 100. For example, the indoor connection passage 36 may be connected to one side of the pre-separation unit 150, and the refrigerant separation device 100 may be connected to the other side of the pre-separation unit 150. Therefore, the pre-separation unit 150 may introduce refrigerant into the refrigerant separation device 100 or discharge refrigerant from the refrigerant separation device 100 to the outside.

Based on the heating operation, the pre-separation unit 150 is the first to separate the refrigerant that has passed through the indoor heat exchanger 30 operating as a condenser into the refrigerant separation device 100, as a gaseous refrigerant and a liquid refrigerant. It can perform the phase separation function.

That is, based on the heating operation, the pre-separation unit 150 guides the condensed refrigerant passing through the condenser to be introduced into the refrigerant separation device 100, and separates the condensed refrigerant into a gaseous refrigerant and a liquid refrigerant. The phase separation may be provided to be performed prior to introduction of the refrigerant separation device 100.

And, based on the heating operation, the pre-separation unit 150 may be provided with one refrigerant inlet and two refrigerant outlets. For example, the pre-separation unit 150 may include a “Y” shaped tube.

In detail, the pre-separation unit 150 includes a branch pipe 151 through which phase separation is performed, a guide pipe 153 connected to the branch pipe 151, an upper connection pipe 155, and a lower connection pipe 158. It can contain. For example, the pre-separation unit 150 is an upper connecting pipe 155 connected to an upper side of the branch pipe 151 based on the branch pipe 151, and a lower portion connected to a lower side of the branch pipe 151. A connecting pipe 158 and a guide pipe 153 connected to the central portion of the branch pipe 151 may be provided.

The branch pipe 151 may include a hollow formed tube extending in one direction. And based on the heating operation, the branch pipe 151 may be positioned so that the refrigerant introduced from the guide pipe 153 can be separated in the vertical direction.

The branch pipe 151 may be positioned parallel to the refrigerant separation device 100. For example, the direction in which the long side of the branch pipe 151 extends may be parallel to the direction in which the long side of the refrigerant separation device 100 extends. Then, the branch pipe 151 may be extended in a direction perpendicular to the ground to be affected by gravity.

The guide pipe 153 may be extended so that the refrigerant is branched or laminated at a point of the branch pipe 151.

The branch pipe 151 may be extended from the guide pipe 153 in two directions. In addition, the branch pipe 151 may be extended to be inserted into the refrigerant separation device 100 in two directions.

The guide tube 153 may be extended to the indoor connecting passage 36. In one example, the guide pipe 153 may be connected to the central portion of the branch pipe (151). That is, one end of the guide pipe 153 is connected to the branch pipe 151, and the other end of the guide pipe 153 can be connected to the indoor connecting passage 36.

Therefore, the refrigerant flowing through the indoor connection passage 36 in the heating operation may be introduced into the guide tube 153. And in the cooling operation, the refrigerant flowing through the guide tube 153 may be introduced into the indoor connection passage 36.

The upper connection pipe 155 may extend from one side of the branch pipe 151 to the refrigerant separation device 100. In addition, the lower connection pipe 158 may extend from the other side of the branch pipe 151 to the refrigerant separation device 100.

For example, the upper connection pipe 155 may be extended from the upper end of the branch pipe 151 to be bent in the vertical direction toward the refrigerant separation device 100 and inserted into the refrigerant separation device 100. In addition, the lower connection pipe 158 may be extended to be bent in the vertical direction from the lower end of the branch pipe 151 toward the refrigerant separation device 100 to be inserted into the refrigerant separation device 100.

The upper connector 155 may be located above the lower connector 158. In addition, the upper connection pipe 155 and the lower connection pipe 157 may extend parallel to each other and be inserted into the refrigerant separation device 100. For example, the upper connector 155 and the lower connector 157 may be formed in the same shape.

In addition, the upper connector 155 may be positioned to be closer to the first port 101 than the lower connector 157.

The pre-separation unit 150 may include an upper refrigerant valve 156 installed in the upper connection pipe 155 and a lower refrigerant valve 159 installed in the lower connection pipe 158.

On the other hand, in the heating operation mode, the refrigerant flowing into the guide pipe 153 is branched in the vertical direction from the branch pipe 151 to be introduced into the upper connection pipe 155 and the lower connection pipe 158. have.

At this time, the refrigerant introduced into the branch pipe 151 may be a 2-phase refrigerant. Therefore, in the refrigerant introduced into the center of the branch pipe 151 extending in the vertical direction, the liquid refrigerant having a high density is driven downward rather than upward due to the influence of gravity, and the vapor phase refrigerant is relatively driven upward. According to this, the pre-separation unit 150 may perform primary phase separation before the refrigerant is introduced into the refrigerant separation device 100.

That is, the ratio of the gas phase refrigerant of the refrigerant introduced into the upper connection pipe 155 may be greater than the ratio of the gas phase refrigerant of the refrigerant introduced into the lower connection pipe 158.

As a result, the refrigerant flowing in the upper connection pipe 155 having a relatively high gaseous refrigerant ratio is discharged into the interior of the refrigerant separation device 100 above the refrigerant flowing in the lower connection pipe 158, so that the refrigerant There is an advantage in that the gaseous refrigerant and the liquid refrigerant can be easily and quickly separated up and down inside the separation device 100.

2 is a longitudinal sectional view of a refrigerant separation device provided in an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A 'in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is provided in an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention It is a sectional view showing a part of the refrigerant separation device. In detail, FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view in which the heat exchange tube 140 is omitted in the internal configuration of the refrigerant separation device 100.

The configuration of the refrigerant separation device 100 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may include an outer case 110 forming an inner space. That is, the outer case 110 may form an external appearance of the refrigerant separation device 100.

The outer case 110 may include a cylindrical shape to seal the inner space. In addition, the outer case 110 may have an upper end and a lower end in a dome shape.

The first port 101 may be coupled to the upper end of the outer case 110. In one example, the first port 101 is coupled to the uppermost vertex position of the outer case 110 to guide the refrigerant inflow into the space inside the outer case 110. That is, the first port 101 may be coupled to communicate with the phase separation space 115.

The second port 102 and the bypass port 104 may be coupled to the lower end of the outer case 110. For example, the second port 102 and the bypass port 104 may be coupled to each other spaced apart from the bottom of the outer case 110. In addition, the second port 102 and the bypass port 104 may be coupled to communicate with the heat exchange tube 140.

The outer case 110 may be combined with the pre-separation unit 150. In detail, the upper connection pipe 155 and the lower connection pipe 158 may be inserted into the phase separation space 115 by penetrating two points of the outer circumferential surface of the outer case 110. That is, the upper connection pipe 155 and the lower connection pipe 158 may be coupled to the upper portion of the outer case 110.

The outdoor port 103 and the separation port 105 may be spaced apart and coupled to one side of the outer case 110. For example, the outdoor port 103 and the separation port 105 may be located spaced apart in the vertical direction below the outer case 110. In addition, the separation port 105 may be located below the outdoor port 103.

The separation port 105 may be coupled to the outer case 110 to communicate with the heat exchange space 135. In addition, the separation port 105 may be located below the lower end of the inner case 130.

The outdoor port 103 may be coupled to a lower position than the upper opening 123 of the separation connector 120. In addition, the outdoor port 103 may be formed to communicate with a space between the outer circumferential surface of the separation connector 120 and the inner case 130, which will be described later, and the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 110.

In the outer case 110, the inner port 106 and the third port 107 extending from the inner case 130 may be provided to pass therethrough.

Meanwhile, the upper connection pipe 155 and the lower connection pipe 158 may be inserted into the phase separation space 115 defined as an upper side of the separation connector 120 among the inner spaces of the outer case 110.

Referring to FIG. 3, the lower connector 158 may penetrate the outer case 110 and be inserted into the phase separation space 115. In addition, the lower connecting pipe 158 is a lower bending pipe 158a that is bent toward the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 110 in the phase separation space 115 and a lower portion that is an opening formed at an end of the lower bending pipe 158a. An opening 158b may be included.

For example, a plane in which the lower bend pipe 158a is bent and extends may be perpendicular to a plane in which the lower connecting pipe 158 is bent and extends toward the refrigerant separation device 100. In this case, the lower bending tube 158a may be bent in a vertical direction from a horizontal cross section of the refrigerant separation device 100.

The lower bent pipe 158a may be extended such that a rotating force is generated in the refrigerant flowing therein. In detail, the lower bent pipe 158a may be extended such that an arc is drawn on one plane so that centrifugal force is generated in the refrigerant flowing through the lower connecting pipe 158.

The lower opening 158b may be formed to open toward the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 110. Therefore, in the heating operation mode, the refrigerant flowing inside the lower connection pipe 158 may be rotated through the lower bending pipe 158a and discharged to the inner peripheral surface of the outer case 110. In addition, the refrigerant discharged from the lower opening 158b collides and flows along the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 100 by centrifugal force, thereby forming a cyclone in the phase separation space 115.

Meanwhile, the upper connection pipe 155 may be formed in the same structure as the lower connection pipe 158. Therefore, the description of the upper connector 155 uses the description of the lower connector 158 described above.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the flow of refrigerant discharged from the upper opening 155b and the lower opening 158b and introduced into the refrigerant separation device 100 may form a cyclone flow, respectively. Accordingly, phase separation of the gas phase refrigerant and the liquid phase refrigerant in the phase separation space 115 may be relatively more facilitated. In addition, since the refrigerant introduced into the refrigerant separation device 100 can form a dual cyclone flow, there is an advantage that the phase separation becomes easier.

In addition, in the heating operation, the air conditioner performs primary phase separation (initial) in the pre-separation unit 150 and secondary phase separation (re-) in the refrigerant separation device 100. There is an advantage in that the phase separation of the gas phase refrigerant and the liquid phase refrigerant is performed more effectively.

The refrigerant separating device 100 may further include a separating connector 120 that partitions the internal space.

As described above, the refrigerant separation device 100 may be divided into upper and lower portions based on the separation connector 120. And, based on the upper opening 123 provided to contact the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 110, the inner space of the outer case 110 is the upper phase separation space 115 and the lower heat exchange space 135 and It can be divided into an internal heat exchange space (139). In one example, the refrigerant separation device 100 may be formed such that the volume of the phase separation space 115 is larger than the volume of the heat exchange space 135.

The separation connector 120 may be formed to communicate with the phase separation space 115 and the heat exchange space 135. In detail, the separation connector 120 may form a refrigerant flow path in the inner space of the outer case 110.

The separation connector 120 may be formed of a tube with an open top. Here, the opened upper end of the separation connector 120 may be defined as an upper opening 123. In other words, the separation connector 120 may include an upper opening 123 that divides the inner space of the outer case 110 up and down.

The upper end of the separation connector 120 may be formed to contact the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 110. For example, the outer diameter of the upper opening 123 may be formed to be the same as the inner diameter of the outer case 110. Therefore, some of the refrigerant introduced into the phase separation space 115 in the heating operation may be introduced into the first port 101, and the other part may be introduced into the separation connector 120 through the upper opening 123. You can.

That is, the upper opening 123 may be provided along the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 110. In addition, the upper opening 123 may be located below the lower connector 158 coupled to the outer case 110 and above the outdoor port 103. The upper opening 123 may be understood as a lowermost boundary surface of the phase separation space 115.

The separation connector 120 may be combined with an inner case 130 to be described later. In detail, the lower end of the separation connector 120 may be combined with the upper portion of the inner case 130. In one example, the separation connector 120 may be combined with the upper compartment plate 131 forming the upper portion of the inner case 130. At this time, the outer diameter of the upper compartment plate 131 may be formed to be the same as the inner diameter of the lower end of the separation connector 120.

Therefore, when the heating operation is performed, the refrigerant flowing into the upper opening 123 flows into the plurality of channel tubes 138 inserted into the upper compartment plate 131 and discharges downwardly from the inner case 130 Can be.

In addition, the separation connector 120 may be formed to have a smaller inner diameter toward the lower side. In one example, the separation connector 120 may include a cone (Cone) shape. Therefore, the inner diameter of the upper opening 123 may be formed larger than the outer diameter of the upper partition plate 131 of the inner case 130. That is, the outer diameter of the upper compartment plate 131 may be formed smaller than the inner diameter of the outer case 110.

According to this, when the heating operation is performed, the refrigerant flowing into the channel tube 138 through the separation connector 120 among the refrigerant flowing into the phase separation space 115 has an advantage of improving the flow rate by the Venturi effect. have.

That is, since the flow velocity of the liquid refrigerant flowing downward by the separation connector 120 is increased, there is an effect of promoting the separation of the liquid refrigerant and the gaseous refrigerant in the phase separation space 115 more quickly.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may further include an inner case 130 connected to the separation connector 120.

The inner case 130 may be formed of a cylindrical tube extending in one direction. In addition, the inner case 130 may be formed to seal the inner (inner) space. As an example, the inner case 130 may include an upper compartment plate 131 for sealing the upper end and a lower compartment plate 133 for sealing the lower part.

The upper partition plate 131 and the lower partition plate 133 may form upper and lower portions of the inner case 130. In detail, the upper compartment plate 131 may seal the upper side of the inner case 130. In addition, the lower partition plate 133 may seal the lower side of the inner case 130.

The upper compartment plate 131 may be integrally coupled with the lower end of the separation connector 120. In addition, the lower partition plate 133 may be positioned to be spaced apart from the inner surface of the outer case 110.

In addition, the inner case 130 may be extended to have the same inner diameter toward the lower side. In addition, an inner heat exchange space 139, which is an inner space through which refrigerant can flow, may be formed in the inner case 130.

The inner case 130 may be positioned to be spaced apart from the outer case 110. That is, the inner case 130 may be positioned at a predetermined distance from the outer case 110 in the inner space of the outer case 110.

In detail, the outer diameter of the inner case 130 is formed smaller than the inner diameter of the outer case 110 may be spaced apart from each other in the outer direction of the inner case 130. In addition, the lower end of the inner case 130 is located above the lower end of the outer case 110 and can be spaced apart in the vertical direction.

According to this, when the heating operation is performed, the refrigerant discharged below the inner case 130 through the channel tube 138 to be described later is between the inside of the outer case 110 and the outside of the inner case 130 It can flow to the heat exchange space 135, which is the space of the. In addition, when the cooling operation is performed, the refrigerant flowing into the heat exchange space 135 may be discharged to the phase separation space 115 through the channel tube 138 to be discharged upward of the inner case 130.

The inner case 130 may extend downward from the lower end of the separation connector 120. In addition, the upper partition plate 131 may have the same diameter as the lower end of the separation connector 120. Therefore, the inner case 130 may be separated from the phase separation space 115.

The inner port 106 and the third port 107 may be coupled to the inner case 130. In addition, the inner port 106 may be located below the third port 107.

Therefore, when the heating operation is performed, an abnormal refrigerant may be introduced into the internal heat exchange space 139 through the internal port 106, and the refrigerant flowing through the channel tube 138 in the internal heat exchange space 139 The gaseous refrigerant generated by heat exchange with may be introduced into the third port 107 and injected into the compressor.

The inner port 106 and the third port 107 may be coupled to one side of the inner case 130 to communicate with the inner heat exchange space 139.

In detail, the inner port 106 extends outward from the inner case 130 and may be formed to penetrate the outer case 110. Similarly, the third port 107 extends outward from the inner case 130 and may be formed to penetrate the outer case.

The refrigerant separation device 100 may further include a channel tube 138 that guides the phase separation space 115 and the heat exchange space 135 to allow the refrigerant to flow. In addition, a plurality of channel tubes 138 may be provided.

Referring to FIG. 4, the channel tube 138 may be provided to penetrate the inner case 130. In detail, the channel tube 138 may be positioned to penetrate the inner (inner) space of the inner case 130 in the vertical direction. In addition, the channel tube 138 may be positioned in parallel along the long side of the inner case 130.

That is, the channel tube 138 may be formed as a tube extending in one direction so that the phase separation space 115 and the heat exchange space 135 communicate. In addition, upper and lower portions of the channel tube 138 may be opened to allow refrigerant to flow in or out.

When the heating operation is performed, the channel tube 138 may introduce the refrigerant of the separation connector 120 and guide it downward. When the cooling operation is performed, the channel tube 138 may introduce the refrigerant in the heat exchange space 135 and guide it upward.

The channel tube 137 may penetrate the upper compartment plate 131 and the lower compartment plate 133. That is, the channel tube 138 may extend from an upper side of the upper partition plate 131 to a lower side of the lower partition plate 133. Therefore, the channel tube 138 may be fixed by the upper compartment plate 131 and the lower compartment plate 133.

According to this, the refrigerant flowing into the channel tube 138 may exchange heat with the refrigerant accommodated in the internal heat exchange space 139.

5 is a view showing a partial configuration of a refrigerant separation device provided in an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. In detail, FIG. 5 is a view showing an internal configuration by enlarging a lower portion of the refrigerant separation device 100. And Figure 6 is a view showing an exemplary heat exchange tube shape of the refrigerant separation device provided in the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, the refrigerant separation device 100 may further include a heat exchange tube 140 extending to wind the outer circumferential surface of the inner case 130 multiple times.

The heat exchange tube 140 may include a hollow formed tube. In addition, the heat exchange tube 140 may be coupled to the bypass port 105 and the second port 102. That is, one end of the heat exchange tube 140 may be coupled to the bypass port 105, and the other end of the heat exchange tube 140 may be coupled to the second port 102.

The heat exchange tube 140 may extend from the bypass port 105 upward to wrap the outer circumferential surface of the inner case 130 multiple times, and the heat exchange tube reaching the upper side of the inner case 130 ( 140) may extend to the second port 102.

Here, since the bypass port 104 guides the inflow of refrigerant into the heat exchange tube 140, it can be understood as an inlet of the heat exchange tube 140, and the second port 102 is from the heat exchange tube 140. Since it guides the discharge of the refrigerant, it can be understood as the discharge portion of the heat exchange tube 140.

Refrigerant introduced from the bypass port 104 flows along the inside of the heat exchange tube 140 wound along the outer circumferential surface of the inner case 130 to exchange heat with the refrigerant filled in the heat exchange space 135. have.

In addition, the heat exchange tube 140 may include a spiral tube to improve heat transfer efficiency in the heat exchange space 135.

Referring to FIG. 6, the heat exchange tube 140 may include a plurality of fins 141 protruding outwardly along the circumference and a ridge 143 protruding inwardly.

The fin 141 and the ridge 143 may be formed to be helically continuous along the circumference of the heat exchange tube 140.

The plurality of fins 141 and the ridge 143 are integrally formed on the outer surface of the heat exchange tube 140 and may be formed in a spiral shape. In addition, the plurality of fins 141 and the ridge 143 may be alternately positioned in the longitudinal direction of the heat exchange tube 140.

Therefore, the heat exchange tube 140 may increase the heat transfer area of the heat exchange tube 140 by the plurality of fins 141 and the ridge 143.

Meanwhile, the height of the ridge 143 may be different depending on the maximum inner radius and the maximum outer radius of the heat exchange tube 140 on which the fin 141 and the ridge 143 are formed. Here, the maximum inner radius may be the largest radius of the inner diameter of the heat exchange tube 140 from the central axis of the heat exchange tube 140. And, the maximum outer radius may be the largest radius of the outer radius from the central axis to the end of the pin 141.

Hereinafter, refrigerant flow in the refrigerant separation device according to the operation mode of the air conditioner will be described.

7 to 9 are views showing the refrigerant flow according to the heating operation and the partial load operation of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention. In detail, FIGS. 7 to 9 are views showing refrigerant flow in the refrigerant separation device 100 when the load of the compressor increases based on the heating operation.

First, when the heating operation of the air conditioner is performed without the gas phase refrigerant injection of the compressor 10, the refrigerant flow will be described.

The refrigerant discharged from the compressor (10) may pass through an indoor heat exchanger (30) operating as a condenser through the flow switching unit (20).

And the refrigerant condensed by passing through the indoor heat exchanger 30 may pass through the first expansion device 41 along the indoor connection passage 36 and flow into the guide tube 153 of the pre-separation unit 140. . At this time, the opening degree of the first expansion device 41 may be in a full open state.

The refrigerant introduced into the guide pipe 153 may flow into the interior space of the refrigerant separation device 100 depending on the guides of the branch pipe 151 and the lower connection pipe 158. At this time, the control unit may be controlled to close the upper refrigerant valve 156 and open the lower refrigerant valve 159.

The refrigerant flowing into the internal space of the cold / cold separation device 100 may flow downward along the guides of the separation connector 120 and the plurality of channel tubes 138 by a pressure difference, and may be discharged to the heat exchange space 135. .

The refrigerant discharged to the heat exchange space (135) flows into the outdoor port (103) along the space between the outside of the inner case (130) and the inside of the outer case (110) and expands secondly along the outdoor connection passage (56). It may pass through the device 42. At this time, the control unit may be controlled to reduce the opening degree of the second expansion device 42.

The refrigerant expanded through the second expansion device 42 may pass through an outdoor heat exchanger 50 operating as an evaporator. The evaporated refrigerant that has passed through the outdoor heat exchanger 50 may be recovered through the accumulator 60 and back to the suction side of the compressor 10.

Meanwhile, during the heating operation of the air conditioner, the load of the compressor 10 may increase. In this case, in order to reduce the load of the compressor 10, the air conditioner is connected to the compressor 10 by at least one of the first injection flow path 210, the second injection flow path 220 and the third injection flow path 230. A gaseous refrigerant can be injected.

Referring to FIG. 7, the flow of the high-pressure gaseous refrigerant into the first injection channel 210 will be described in detail.

Referring to FIG. 7, when the load of the compressor 10 increases, the control unit may control the opening of the first expansion device 41 and the upper refrigerant valve 156 to be opened.

According to this, the refrigerant flowing into the guide tube 153 may be a two-phase refrigerant while passing through the first expansion device 41.

The refrigerant introduced into the guide tube 153 may be primarily phase-separated while the upper connecting tube 155 and the lower connecting tube 158 pass through the branch pipes 151 connected vertically.

And the refrigerant flowing into the upper connection pipe 155 and the lower connection pipe 158 rotates according to the guides of the upper bending pipe 155a and the lower bending pipe 158a, respectively, and separates the phases of the refrigerant separation device 100. It may be discharged to the space 115.

The refrigerant discharged into the phase separation space 115 may form a dual cyclone flow (dotted line) along the inner circumferential surface of the outer case 110.

Due to the primary phase separation and the dual cyclone flow (one-dot chain line), secondary phase separation can be easily performed in the phase separation space 115.

In addition, a gas phase refrigerant (solid line) separated by secondary phase separation in the phase separation space 115 may be introduced into the first injection channel 210 through the first port 101. At this time, the control unit may control the first injection valve 215 in an open state. In addition, a relatively high pressure gaseous refrigerant (see FIG. 13) may be injected into the high pressure port of the compressor 10 by the first injection channel 210.

In addition, the secondary phase separation is performed in the phase separation space 115 to separate the liquid refrigerant (dotted line), according to the guide of the separation connector 120 and the channel tube 138, the internal heat exchange space (139) Can penetrate. At this time, the liquid refrigerant flowing into the separation connector 120 and the channel tube 138 may increase the flow rate according to the Venturi effect. Accordingly, there is an advantage that the secondary phase separation is promoted.

Next, with reference to FIG. 8, the flow of the medium pressure gaseous refrigerant flowing into the third injection flow path 230 will be described in detail.

The liquid refrigerant (dotted line) flowing downward along the channel tube 138 may be discharged to the lower side of the inner case 130.

The control unit adjusts the opening degree of the third injection valve 235 according to the load increase level of the compressor 10, so that some of the refrigerant discharged to the lower side of the inner case 130 through the separation port 105 It can be introduced into the internal piping.

The liquid refrigerant introduced into the internal piping may be an abnormal (2-Phase) refrigerant (dotted chain) while passing through the third injection valve 235, and through the internal port 106, the inner case ( 130) may be introduced into the internal heat exchange space 139, which is the internal space.

The abnormal refrigerant introduced into the internal heat exchange space 139 may be heat exchanged with the liquid refrigerant flowing into the channel tube 138. Accordingly, a relatively medium pressure gaseous refrigerant (solid line) may be generated in the internal heat exchange space 129.

The medium pressure gaseous refrigerant may be introduced into the third injection channel 230 through the third port 107. In addition, the medium pressure gaseous refrigerant (see FIG. 13) introduced into the third injection channel 230 may be injected into the intermediate pressure port of the compressor 10.

Next, with reference to FIG. 9, the flow of the low pressure gaseous refrigerant flowing into the second injection flow path 220 will be described in detail.

Meanwhile, the remaining (solid line) of the refrigerant discharged to the lower side of the inner case 130 may flow into the outdoor port 103 along the heat exchange space 135.

The refrigerant flowing into the outdoor port 103 may flow to the second expansion device 42 and the outdoor heat exchanger 50 according to the guide of the outdoor connection channel 56.

At this time, when it is difficult to reduce the load of the compressor 10 with a gaseous refrigerant injected into the high pressure port and the intermediate pressure port of the compressor 10, the control unit controls the opening degree of the second injection valve 225 By doing so, a portion of the refrigerant flowing through the outdoor connection passage 56 can be introduced into the bypass passage 58.

In this case, the refrigerant branched into the bypass flow passage 58 may be depressurized to a predetermined pressure while passing through the second injection valve 225. That is, the refrigerant flowing into the bypass passage 58 may be an abnormal (2-Phase) refrigerant (1-dot chain line) while passing through the second injection valve 225, and the abnormal refrigerant is a bypass port ( 104) may be introduced into the heat exchange tube 140.

The refrigerant flowing into the heat exchange tube 140 flows along the guide of the heat exchange tube 140 wound out of the inner case 130 to flow the heat exchange space 135 and / or the internal heat exchange space. It can be heat exchanged with a liquid refrigerant (solid line).

In addition, in this case, since the heat exchange tube 140 is formed of a spiral tube, the heat transfer efficiency is relatively high.

According to this, the liquid refrigerant flowing into the outdoor port 103 through heat exchange may be supercooled, and the refrigerant flowing along the heat exchange tube 140 may be a relatively low pressure gaseous refrigerant.

In addition, the low-pressure gaseous refrigerant may be introduced into the second injection channel 220 through the second port 102. The low-pressure gaseous refrigerant (see FIG. 13) introduced into the second injection channel 220 may be injected into the low-pressure port of the compressor 10.

10 and 11 are views showing refrigerant flow according to cooling operation and partial load operation of the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, when the cooling operation of the air conditioner is performed without the gas phase refrigerant injection of the compressor 10, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 10, the outdoor heat exchanger (50) operating as a condenser through the flow switching unit 20 ).

And the refrigerant condensed by passing through the outdoor heat exchanger (50) may flow through the second expansion device (42) along the outdoor connection passage (56) and flow into the outdoor port (103) of the refrigerant separation device (100). . At this time, the opening degree of the second expansion device 42 may be in a full open state.

The refrigerant flowing into the outdoor port 103 flows to the lower side of the heat exchange space 135 along the outer periphery of the heat exchange tube 140, and flows into the inner space of the inner case 130 by a pressure difference and moves upward. Can flow.

And the refrigerant introduced into the phase separation space 115 according to the guides of the inner case 130 and the separation connector 120 may be introduced into the upper connection pipe 155 of the pre-separation unit 150. In this case, the control unit may control to open the upper refrigerant valve 156 and close the lower refrigerant valve 159 so that the amount of refrigerant circulating in the refrigerant cycle is reduced.

According to this, there is an advantage that the amount of refrigerant stored in the refrigerant separation device 100 can be increased.

The refrigerant introduced into the guide tube 153 through the upper connection tube 155 may be expanded while passing through the first expansion device 41. At this time, the control unit may be controlled to reduce the opening degree of the first expansion device (41).

The refrigerant that has passed through the first expansion device (41) passes through the indoor heat exchanger (30) acting as an evaporator and can be recovered back to the suction side of the compressor (10) via the accumulator (60).

Meanwhile, during the cooling operation of the air conditioner, the load of the compressor 10 may increase. That is, partial load operation can be performed. At this time, the partial load operation may be understood as an increase in the indoor unit performing the heating operation during the cooling main operation.

In this case, since the amount of refrigerant circulating in the refrigerant cycle must be increased, the amount of refrigerant stored in the refrigerant separation device 100 may be reduced, and gaseous refrigerant may be injected into the compressor 10 through the second injection channel 220.

10 and 11, when a partial load operation is performed, the control unit may control the second injection valve 225 to be opened. In addition, the control unit may control the opening degree of the second injection valve 225 so that the pressure of the refrigerant passing through is achieved.

According to this, some of the refrigerant (solid line) flowing through the outdoor connection passage 56 may be branched to the bypass passage 58 and pass through the second injection valve 225. In addition, the refrigerant that has been decompressed while passing through the second injection valve 225 may be introduced into the heat exchange tube 140 in a 2-phase state (dotted line).

Refrigerant (single-dot chain) introduced into the heat exchange tube 140 flows in accordance with the guide of the heat exchange tube 140, and is relatively hot flowing into the heat exchange space 135 through the outdoor port 103, It can exchange heat with high pressure refrigerant.

According to this, gaseous refrigerant may be introduced into the second injection channel 220 through the second port 102. In addition, the gaseous refrigerant may be introduced into the low pressure port of the compressor 10 according to the guide of the second injection channel 220. Therefore, the load of the compressor can be reduced.

The refrigerant in the heat exchange space 135 may be introduced into the channel tube 138. In addition, the refrigerant introduced into the channel tube 138 may be discharged from the upper side of the inner case 130 to flow into the phase separation space 115.

At this time, the control unit may control the refrigerant to flow into the lower connection pipe 158 by closing the upper refrigerant valve 156 and opening the lower refrigerant valve 159.

Accordingly, the refrigerant in the upper space of the lower connection pipe 158 in the phase separation space 115 is discharged to the lower connection pipe 158 to increase the amount of refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant cycle.

The refrigerant flowing into the lower connection pipe 158 passes through the first expansion device 41 and is decompressed and evaporates through the indoor heat exchanger 30. In addition, the refrigerant that has passed through the indoor heat exchanger 30 may flow into the suction side of the compressor 10 through the accumulator 60.

12 is a graph showing the efficiency according to the operation mode of the air conditioner compared to the amount of refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant cycle.

As described above, the partial load operation includes a case in which the load of the compressor 10 is increased in the heating main operation mode as well as the cooling main operation mode to supply the refrigerant to the compressor 10 through the injection passages 210, 220, and 230. It can be understood as the driving mode.

In addition, when the load of the compressor 10 is increased, it can be understood that the number of indoor units performing the heating operation among the plurality of indoor units is increased. When the load of the compressor 10 is increased, the control unit may control the gaseous refrigerant stored in the refrigerant separation device 100 to be introduced into the injection passages 210 and 220 and injected into the compressor 10.

Referring to FIG. 12, when the standard amount of refrigerant (100%) for realizing the maximum efficiency in the standard operation of heating (solid line) is based, the amount of refrigerant for realizing maximum efficiency in the standard operation of cooling (dotted line) is standard. Contrast is about 75%.

Here, the heating standard operation (solid line) can be understood as a case where all indoor units operate as condensers to provide heating in an air conditioner equipped with a plurality of indoor units. And the standard operation of cooling can be understood as the case where all the indoor units operate as evaporators to provide cooling.

In addition, the amount of refrigerant to achieve maximum efficiency in cooling partial load operation (dotted line) is about 85% of the reference. However, since the maximum efficiency in the cooling partial load operation (dotted line) assumes one exemplary operation, a value may be formed between the maximum efficiency of the heating standard operation and the cooling standard operation according to the load operation of the indoor unit. have.

Accordingly, the air conditioner 10 may control the amount of refrigerant circulated in the cooling operation to be reduced and the amount of refrigerant circulated in the heating operation to be increased as much as possible in order to achieve optimal cooling and heating efficiency according to the amount of refrigerant. .

That is, in order to realize optimum efficiency according to each operation mode, the air conditioner must be controlled such that the amount of refrigerant circulating through the cycle is variable. For example, the variable amount of refrigerant is based on the amount of refrigerant that can achieve optimal efficiency in standard operation (solid line) of heating (100%), and the amount of refrigerant that can achieve optimal efficiency in standard operation of cooling (dotted line) ( 75%).

In summary, in the cooling operation, the amount of refrigerant circulating in the refrigerant cycle can be minimized, and in the heating operation, the amount of refrigerant circulating in the refrigerant cycle can be maximized.

However, the conventional air conditioner has a limit in which the volume of the receiver is fixed, and thus has a limit in the capacity to store the refrigerant. Therefore, there is a problem in that cooling and cooling efficiency is reduced because the amount of refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant cycle is not optimally provided according to the operation mode.

On the other hand, the refrigerant separation device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, when the cooling operation is performed, by opening the upper refrigerant valve 156 and closing the lower refrigerant valve 159, the amount of refrigerant circulating the refrigerant cycle This has the advantage that the volume of the interior space (storage space) can be increased to the maximum.

That is, when the refrigerant storage space of the refrigerant separation device 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is switched from the cooling partial load operation to the cooling operation, the internal space can be varied to be the maximum, and accordingly, the operation mode Therefore, there is an advantage that can achieve the maximum heating and cooling efficiency.

In addition, when the partial load operation is performed and the amount of refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant cycle should be increased, the amount of refrigerant circulating through the refrigerant cycle can be increased by closing the upper refrigerant valve 156 and opening the lower refrigerant valve 159. There are advantages.

13 is a P-H diagram showing a refrigerant cycle of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 13, when the load of the compressor 10 increases, the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention may perform triple injection of gaseous refrigerant.

According to this, there is an advantage of minimizing the increase in power consumption generated in the compression process of the refrigerant than in the case of the conventional (dotted line) other than the three-stage injection.

In addition, even when a refrigerant (R-32) having a low Global Warming Potential (GWP) is used in the air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention, the discharge temperature of the compressor 10 is lower than in the case of the conventional (dotted line). It has the advantage of losing. That is, there is an effect that can satisfy the discharge discharge temperature of the compressor (about 150 ° C).

10: compressor 100: refrigerant separation device
110: outer case 120: separating connector
130: inner case 140: heat exchange tube
150: pre-separation

Claims (16)

A compressor having a plurality of compression units for multistage compression;
An indoor heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between refrigerant and indoor air;
An outdoor heat exchanger that performs heat exchange between refrigerant and outdoor air;
A refrigerant separation device accommodating refrigerant between the indoor heat exchanger and the outdoor heat exchanger; And
An indoor connection passage extending from the indoor heat exchanger is connected to the refrigerant separation device, and includes a pre-separation unit capable of performing a phase separation function,
The refrigerant separation device,
An outer case in which an inner space is formed;
A separating connector positioned to contact the inner circumferential surface of the outer case;
An inner case coupled to a lower portion of the separation connector so as to be spaced apart from the outer case; And
A channel tube penetrating the upper and lower parts of the inner case and guiding the refrigerant to heat exchange with the refrigerant flowing into the inner case.
The pre-separation unit, the air conditioner coupled to the upper portion of the outer case positioned higher than the separation connector.
According to claim 1,
The refrigerant separation device, further comprising a heat exchange tube extending to wind the outer surface of the inner case,
The refrigerant flowing into the heat exchange tube, the air conditioner, characterized in that for exchanging heat with the refrigerant flowing in the heat exchange space defined outside the inner case and the inner case.
According to claim 2,
A first injection flow path extending from the refrigerant separation device to the high pressure port of the compressor;
A second injection flow path extending from the refrigerant separation device to the low pressure port of the compressor; And
And a third injection flow path extending from the refrigerant separation device to the intermediate pressure port of the compressor.
The method of claim 3,
The refrigerant separation device,
A first port communicating with the upper side of the interior space and coupled with the first injection flow path;
A bypass port defined as an inlet of the heat exchange tube;
A second port defined as a discharge portion of the heat exchange tube, to which the second injection flow path is coupled; And
The air conditioner further includes a third port extending from the inner case to the outer case and the third injection flow path is coupled.
The method of claim 4,
The refrigerant separation device,
An outdoor port communicating with the heat exchange space;
An outdoor connection passage extending from the outdoor port to the outdoor heat exchanger; And
An air conditioner further comprising a bypass channel branched from the outdoor connection channel and extending to the bypass port.
The method of claim 5,
A first injection valve installed in the first injection channel; And
An air conditioner further comprising a second injection valve installed in the bypass flow path.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The refrigerant separation device,
A separation port communicating with the heat exchange space defined outside the inner case and inside the outer case;
An inner port extending from the inner case to the outside of the outer case; And
An air conditioner further comprising an internal pipe connecting the separation port and the internal port.
The method of claim 7,
An air conditioner further comprising a third injection valve installed in the inner pipe.
According to claim 1,
The inner case,
Upper compartment plate for sealing the upper side; And
An air conditioner comprising a lower compartment plate sealing the lower side.
The method of claim 9,
The channel tube, the air conditioner, characterized in that extending from the upper side of the upper partition plate to the lower side of the lower partition plate.
The method of claim 9,
The upper compartment plate is an air conditioner, characterized in that coupled to the bottom of the separation connector.

The method of claim 11,
The separation connector is an air conditioner characterized in that the inner diameter is formed to be smaller toward the lower side.
delete According to claim 1,
The pre-separation unit,
A guide tube coupled to the indoor connecting passage;
And a branch pipe extending from the guide pipe so that the refrigerant is branched in two directions,
The branch pipe, the air conditioner, characterized in that extending to be inserted in two directions to the refrigerant separation device.
The method of claim 14,
The pre-separation unit,
An upper connection pipe extending from one end of the branch pipe and inserted into the refrigerant separation device; And
An air conditioner including a lower connection pipe extending from the other end of the branch pipe and inserted into the refrigerant separation device.
According to claim 1,
The channel tube is an air conditioner comprising a plurality of channel tubes.

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