MXPA00012117A - Microcomponent assembly for efficient contacting of fluid - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is a fundamental method and apparatus of a microcomponent assembly that overcomes the inherent limitations of state of the art chemical separations. The fundamental elementenabling miniaturization is the porous contactor (200) contained within a microcomponent assembly for mass transfer of a working compound from a first medium to a second medium. The porous contactor (200) has a thickness, and a plurality of pores extending through the thickness. The pores are of a geometry cooperating with a boundary tension of one or the other or both of the media thereby preventing migration of one, other or both through the microporous contactor while permitting passage of the working compound. In the microcomponent assembly, the porous contactor (200) is placed between a first laminate (208) such that a first space or first microplenum is formed between the microporous contactor (200) and the first laminate (208). Additionally, a cover sheet (206) provides a second space or second plenum between the porous contactor and the cover sheet.

Description

MICROCOMPONENT ASSEMBLY FOR AN EFFICIENT FLUID CONTACT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to a microcomponent assembly for efficient contact of a fluid.The fluid can be liquid or gas, and can make contact with liquid, gas or solid.

The microcomponent is a porous contact in a housing that forms at least one micro-chamber between the porous contact and the housing. The assembly of microcomponent in chemical separations, especially separations involving interfacial diffusion. 15 DEFINITIONS As used herein, interfacial diffusion is mass transfer through a phase boundary, and includes sorption, which encompasses absorption, adsorption, desorption; liquid-liquid extraction; distillation and combinations thereof. Sorption is also useful in thermal sorption machines. As used herein, a thermal machine is defined as a device that converts heat or thermal energy into work, or converts work into energy thermal or heat by means of a working fluid. As used herein, the limit voltage is defines to encompass the surface tension, interfacial tension, and strength of the solid material. As generally understood, the term surface tension refers to a gas / liquid interface, interfacial tension refers to a liquid / liquid interface, and solid resistance refers to a solid / gas, solid / liquid, solid / solid or combinations thereof. As used herein, adsorption includes the sorption of a solute, or working compound, from a gas or a liquid to a solid. As used herein, the term "boundary layer" refers to the "boundary layer of mass transport", and is generally smaller than the corresponding boundary layers for fluid flow and heat transfer. Outside the boundary layer, the concentration gradient for the solute, or the working compound, or the rate of concentration change as a function of distance from a boundary, is relatively small compared to the concentration gradient or velocity of change of concentration within the boundary layer, and it is functional for both fluids and solids. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The interfacial diffusion of one material into another is fundamental for many chemical separation methods, as well as selected energy conversion processes. The Sorption processes include absorption, adsorption and desorption. The sorption may be used alone or in combination with other unit operations, including, but not limited to, heat exchange, chemical reactions, pumping and expansion to provide chemical products, space conditioning, including cooling, power generation, or combinations of the same. CHEMICAL SEPARATIONS Chemical separations are industrially important processes for applications, including, but not limited to, the removal of impurities or the purification of material products, the removal of contaminants from liquid and gas streams, and separation of materials. for recycling or to be used as by-products to a main product stream. Conventional hardware is usually very large, measurable in tens to hundreds of cubic meters in volume, thus necessitating the application of economies of scale in engineering, in large chemical processing plants, in order to provide effective chemical separations by the cost. Processes Interfacial diffusion Many of the separation processes commonly used are based on the physical phenomena of interfacial diffusion, including sorption (for example, adsorption, absorption, desorption), distillation, extraction of liquid-liquid and combinations thereof. The gas absorption process involves contact • of a gas with a liquid, one or more of the 5 constituents of the gas absorbed within the liquid. A phase change occurs with this process, and considerable heat is normally evolved (ie, the heat of absorption). Because the solubility of the liquid is usually inversely proportional to the temperature of the liquid, this heat can be a limiting factor in the design of units of • gas absorption, unless methods are incorporated to remove heat from absorption as it is generated. The extraction of liquid-liquid is similar to the absorption of gas, except that both media are liquid.

Typically, a liquid is a first solvent or a first medium containing a solute, or working compound, which is the material to be transferred or extracted, and the second liquid or second medium is often referred to as the solvent, which receives the solute or the working compound. Because no When no phase change occurs, there is usually very little heat generated in the liquid-liquid extraction processes, unless another unit operation, such as a chemical reaction, also occurs. The adsorption is very similar to the absorption of gas in a liquid, except that the gas is now sucked into a solid medium As with gas absorption, heat is generated as the gas is adsorbed, and this may limit the rate at which the gas is adsorbed, unless it is removed immediately from the adsorbent medium. The adsorption further includes adsorption of liquid in a solid, as for an ion exchange resin. Accordingly, fluid adsorption, as used herein, includes both gas adsorption and liquid adsorption. Desorption is generally understood as the removal of a material from a liquid stream, or a solid medium, evolving as a gas, and is the opposite of absorption or adsorption. Multiple compounds can be observed in the effluent from a desorber. For example, when ammonia is desorbed from a liquid mixture of water and ammonia, both water and ammonia are present in the gaseous effluent. The desorption can be done through the addition of heat or a change in the partial pressure of the working compound inside the fluid. Note that, as used herein, desorption includes processes that are commonly referred to as water extraction, separation and dehydration. Distillation is the separation of miscible materials based on differences in their boiling points. Normally they are carried out in multiple stages, with the vapor and liquid phases flowing back-to-back, and the net effect over several or many stages can be a substantial degree of separation or purity. All these processes that involve diffusion ^ R: Interfacial may also involve chemical reactions, such as reactive distillation, or may not involve chemical reactions. In general, the interfacial diffusion processes involve a phase interface (gas-liquid, liquid-liquid, gas-solid or liquid-solid), and the transport of the working compound or the solute through at least one layer. fluid limit. For those that do not include a solid, the microscopic steps that must be presented include: a) transport of the molecules of the working compound inside the fluid in volume up to the boundary layer, b) transport through the boundary layer to the interface of phases, c) transport of the molecules of the working compound through the phase interface (perhaps requiring a phase change), d) transport of the molecules of the working compound ^ *? through the solvent boundary layer, and e) transportation of the molecules of the working compound moving away from the fluid boundary layer. Ecruipo of Interfacial Diffusion The processes of interfacial diffusion for the separation of chemical products in volume traditionally have been made by the chemical process industry to through the use of columns, moving two fluids in opposite directions through the column. For example, liquid-liquid extraction is performed between two immiscible fluids, usually by introducing the lighter fluid at the bottom of the column, and introducing the heavier fluid at the top of the column. In this example, it will be assumed that the lighter fluid contains the solute, i.e. the material to be extracted, and it will be assumed that the heavier fluid contains a suitable solvent. In general, a high degree of solvent loading is often desired for the effluent from the column. In the present, gravity provides a motivation for fluid flow, and as the two fluids make contact with one another, the solute is transferred from the feed stream to the solvent. The disadvantages associated with the example equipment include the non-uniform fluid flow characteristics of the column, and the significant time that is required to allow the mass transport and then the re-separation (by gravity) of the two fluids. For these reasons, the designers of the separation team usually give a strong attention to the phenomenological processes at work, especially including the application of the principles of mass transport. For example, for laminar flow conditions, mass transport is due to diffusion, being the time for a molecule to move a net distance directly proportional to the square of the distance and inversely proportional to its diffusivity in mass. In the same way, the residence time for a collective quantity of mass and sorption transport has the same proportionalities, and in general, the capacity of a given piece of separation equipment is inversely proportional to the residence time. Therefore, the designers try to create geometries and flow conditions such that the characteristics of the equipment are the short residence times, allowing high processing speeds for a given volume of hardware. Frequently, short residence times have been obtained for the traditional interfacial diffusion separation equipment through the incorporation of actuators or packages. For example, the addition of mechanical mixing equipment is commonly used within the liquid-liquid extraction units to force the creation of, and intimate contact with, the thin fluid streams through which the mass transport would be Quick. 0 in the case of gas absorption, where the limiting transport passage is often due to a much lower diffusivity of the liquid solvent, the gas can be passed through a spray of the liquid solvent, or it can be brought into contact with a falling film of the solvent fluid. This makes it possible for the gas, or a component of the gas, to be more quickly sucked and transported inside the fluid film. In the same way, packages designed in the equipment of sorption separations are used, in order to reduce the times of mass transport. For example, structured gauze or sheet metal gaskets are often used inside the distillation columns, in order to improve mass transport efficiency, and there are a number of designs for the types of packaging. Designed packages have been designed and applied to the distillation units, liquid-liquid extraction units, and gas absorption units. In addition to reducing the thickness of the fluid stream, the packing also improves the uniformity of the fluid flow fields, so that processing speeds are optimized throughout the hardware system. However, the thickness of the fluid stream generally exceeds the thickness of the boundary layer, thereby retaining all of the transport steps described above. In recent years, the development in advanced packaging has provided significant improvements in the capacities of the sorption units (the speed at which a material is processed) and in their efficiencies (product purities). For example, Humphrey and Keller ("Separation Process Technology", McGraw-Hill, 1997) refer to phase contacts membrane for absorption and separation. In these units, hollow fiber membranes are incorporated, a fluid stream flowing inside the fiber hole, and another on the outside of the fibers. In these cases, the membranes contain random micropores, which are filled with the liquid phase, and are normally made of materials such as propylene. The main resistances to mass transport for these units are presented inside the membrane material, where the diffusion path is tortuous and subject to contamination, and is external to the unit, where the diffusion lengths are significantly longer than inside the hollow fibers. In general, the operation of the interfacial diffusion units for chemical separations is mainly limited by the mass transport resistors. The "dead space" plus the non-uniform flow fields, combined with the long distances of the mass transport, make the separation equipment normally have residence times that are characterized by minutes or hours, thus requiring a large hardware in order to provide a significant production capacity. Often a substantial capital investment is required due to these inherent limitations. Often economies can only be made through the application of economies of scale, requiring a large capacity for production in order to justify the inclusion of the separations team. For some operations (eg absorption, desorption, adsorption, distillation, etc.), the resistance of heat transport can also range from operating limits.As can be seen from the continuous evolution of conventional hardware, there is in general a need for efficient fluid contact, which reduces the resistance of heat and mass transport, through short diffusion paths, uniform fluid flow fields, resistance to contamination, and the ability to intimately add or extract heat The chemical separations of the state of the art tend to be more cost-effective as central systems, and are less effective because of the cost in distributed systems on a smaller scale.CONNECTION OF SPACE CONDITIONING Chemical processes or unit operations are also used in space conditioning or in the control hardware of the cli The microclimate control applications include, but are not limited to, portable cooling and distributed space conditioning, for example, 1) vehicle space conditioning; 2) distributed cooling of buildings, where the use of multiple small heat pumps can eliminate the need of duct systems, which normally waste 50 percent of the cooling produced by a central cooling system; 3) space conditioning? transportable by lightweight air; 4) autonomous cooling for boarding, and 5) autonomous cooling for portable containers. In portable cooling situations, individuals should wear protective clothing, which significantly reduces the transfer of heat from the body.

Examples include workers exposed to hazardous materials, for example, chemicals, smoke and / or radionuclides, police wearing body armor, and individuals potentially exposed to chemical or biological agents. Although the protective suits provide protection against risks, significantly reduce the effectiveness of an individual. Personnel who perform labor-intensive tasks in a hot environment are susceptible to heat stress, especially when wearing protective clothing. The time that is can go through performing the essential tasks, before succumbing to heat damage, it is limited under these conditions. The complementary cooling will allow the tasks to be performed under hazardous conditions in hot climates, with higher efficiency and reduced heat stress.

Thermodynamically, a cooling cycle is the inverse of an energy cycle. Although theoretically there are many thermodynamic cycles from which to select, there are three commercially prominent thermodynamic cooling cycles in use: ^ P (1) vapor compression, which requires a high input of mechanical work (electricity); and that is normally physically heavy, due to the need of both the cooling unit and the (electric) motor; Heat-driven heat pumps of two subtypes, (2) absorption to and from a liquid, and (3) adsorption to and from a solid. Of course, it is well understood that a thermodynamic cycle can ^ P operate inversely to convert thermal energy into work. Steam Compression Cycle A steam compression cycle uses a compressor mechanical to compress a working fluid in a vapor phase. The mechanical compressor can be driven by an electric motor. As the working fluid is compressed, its temperature increases. The compressed working fluid ^ is condensed in a heat exchanger, releasing heat to its surroundings, and reducing the temperature of the working fluid. The cooled working fluid is decompressed through an expander, which can be an expansion valve or an orifice that reduces its temperature below that of the space to be cooled. The working fluid 25 cooled and decompressed is returned to the vapor phase, receiving the heat from the space to be cooled, and return to the mechanical compressor. Although the present vapor compression cooling systems can be integrated with protective suits and spaces distributed for cooling, the present cooling systems are too heavy to be worn for extended periods. Normally, a complete system sized for a four-hour operation with a cooling capacity of 350, weighs more than 10 kilograms. Steam compression cycles require significant work (or electrical power) to compress the working fluid. Although gains can be made using microcomponents, for example, condensers and evaporators, the overall weight and size of a steam compression microchannel cooling system, including a motor, will be greater than for a sorption cycle (absorption or adsorption). for the same thermal load. Absorption Cycle An absorption heat pump is similar to the vapor compression heat pump, except that the mechanical compressor in the vapor compression cycle is replaced with a chemical compressor. The chemical compressor has five components; two are chemical separation units, a desorbent and an absorber, expander, regenerative heat exchanger, and a pump. In the desorbent, a mixture of Fluids (circulating fluid, eg, lithium bromide, and a refrigerant, eg, water) are heated, and the refrigerant leaves the mixture as a vapor. The refrigerant is at a high pressure in the condenser, and provides cooling in the evaporator after passing the expander and reducing its pressure. The refrigerant under reduced pressure is absorbed back into the circulating fluid in the absorbent. The absorbed mixture is pressurized by a pump, and returned to the desorbent, preferably through a regenerative heat exchanger. Because the mixture is a liquid, the pumping work is usually about 1/100 of the amount of work (electricity) required to compress a vapor. Accordingly, the absorption cycle has a lower electricity requirement, when compared to the vapor compression cycle. However, the absorption cycle requires a source of thermal energy. There are many variations of absorption cycles, including, but not limited to, a single effect, double effect, Generator / Absorber / Heat Exchanger (GAX), Diffusion Absorption, and combinations thereof. A conventional absorption cycle system relies on gravity to form falling films, which provide a contact of the liquid with the gas in the absorbent and the desorbent. This approach has two decisive disadvantages for many applications of portable space conditioning. First, the heat pump should be oriented in such a way that the solution falls on the tubes of the heat exchanger, and forms a thin film. Deviations from proper orientation will prevent the heat pump from working. Second, the falling films have a film thickness of the order of 1 millimeter, preventing an effective mass transfer by diffusion, and resulting in a physically large sorbent and desorbent. For the cooling of distributed space, weight is not as significant a factor for portable cooling, but for the cooling of vehicles, including shipping containers and aircraft, weight reduction is an important consideration. Although vapor absorption and compression cycles differ in the way compression is provided, both systems take the same approach to heat absorption and rejection. In both cycles, the superheated refrigerant enters the condensing heat exchanger, where it undergoes heat rejection at constant pressure. The resulting condensate or mixture of condensate and vapor is then expanded adiabatically through a drowning valve or a capillary. The mixture is then directed to an evaporative heat exchanger for constant pressure heat absorption. The compression is carried out in the absorption heat pump system with a single-effect thermochemical compressor or a desiccant consisting of an absorbent, a solution pump, a regenerative heat exchanger, and a desorbent (gas generator). The absorption cycles can be grouped based on the combination of fluids and cycle configurations. The most widely used fluid combinations are lithium bromide (LiBr) and water, where water is the coolant; and water and ammonia (NH3), where ammonia is the refrigerant. Cycle configurations include the single-effect cycle described above, for multiple effects that are progressively more efficient, but complicated, for example, a double-effect cycle. The single-effect LiBr / H20 cycle requires a low-pressure solution pump (approximately 41 kPa (6 psi) of pressure rise), but the cycle is less efficient than the double-effect cycle. Although it is more efficient, the dual-effect LiBr / H20 cycle requires a higher-pressure pump (approximately 410 kPa (60 psi) of pressure rise), and is more complicated than the single-effect cycle. The pressure rise required for a H20 / NH3 solution pump (2400 kPa, 350 psi) is too high for the small pumps currently available, and results in a heavy and inefficient system. Therefore, both single-effect and double-effect LiBr / H20 absorption cycles are Preferred candidates for cooling applications, where weight and size are key issues. The H20 / NH3 system is needed in cases requiring both heating and cooling, or requiring cooling below 0 ° C (32 ° F). A condenser and microchannel evaporator has been demonstrated by Cuta, J.M. , CE. McDonald and A. Shekarriz. 1996. "Forced Convection Heat Transfer in Parallel Channel Array Microchannel Heat Exchangers". Advances in Energy Efficiency, Heat / Mass Transfer Enhance in PID-Volume 2 HTD-Volume 338, American Society of Mechanical Engineering, New York, and also in U.S. Patent Number 5,611,214, both incorporated herein by reference . Briefly, the microchannel condenser consists of a set of microchannels, with channel widths between 100 and 300 microns, and channel depths of up to 1 millimeter. Heat transfer speeds greater than 30 / cm2 were achieved with a small temperature difference and a low pressure drop. The microchannel evaporator also consists of a set of microchannels with channel widths between 100 and 300 microns, and channel depths of up to 1 millimeter. The results show that convection heat transfer coefficients can easily be obtained from 1.0 to 2.0 W / cm2-K, and heat transfer rates up to 100 W / cm2 can be obtained with a small temperature difference. These heat transfer coefficients and speeds exceed those of conventional evaporators by a factor of 4 to 6. The pressure drop is typically less than 6 kPa (1 psi). The absorption systems require a heat source for the desorbent. Drost, M.K. C.J. Cali, J.M. Cuta and R.S. Wegeng. 1996. "Microchannel Integrated Evaporator / Combustor Thermal Processes". Presented at the 2nd U.S. Japan Seminar in Molecular and Microscale Transport Phenomena, August 8-10, Santa Barbara, California, and United States of America Patent Application Number 08 / 883,643, both incorporated herein by reference. The microchannel burner produces thermal energy at a speed of at least 30 W / cm2, with thermal efficiency between 82 and 85 percent. The efficiency of the absorption system is increased with a regenerative heat exchanger, where there is no phase change for the working fluid or the heat transfer fluid. The heat transfer of microchannels without phase change is well known, for example, Ravigururajan, T.S., J. Cuta, C. McDonald and M.K. Drost. 1995. "Single Phase Flow Thermal Performance of a Parallel MicroChannel Heat Exchanger", presented at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 1995 National Heat Transfer Conference. The microchannels with channel widths between 100 and 300 microns, and Channel depths of up to 1 millimeter provide heat transfer coefficients by convection with single-phase microchannel heat transfer from 1.0 to 1.2 W / cm2-K. These heat transfer coefficients exceed the operation of the conventional regenerative heat exchanger by a factor of 3 to 6. Adsorption Cycle Adsorption cycle systems rely on the adsorption of a refrigerant in a solid to provide heat pumping. A typical system would contain two pressure vessels filled with the adsorbent. The adsorbent in a container has adsorbed a refrigerant. When the vessel is heated, the refrigerant is desorbed from the solid adsorbent at a high pressure, the refrigerant is cooled to room temperature, and then passed through an expander (orifice or expansion valve), where the pressure is reduced ( and consequently, the temperature) of the refrigerant. The thermal energy is then transferred from the cooled space to the refrigerant, and then the refrigerant is adsorbed in the adsorbent in the second pressure vessel. The second container is cooled to remove heat from the adsorption, and to maintain a low pressure. This continues until all refrigerant inventory has been removed from the first tank, and adsorbed in the second tank. At this point, the process is reversed, and the second tank is heated, driving towards outside the coolant, which provides cooling and returns to the first tank. There are many variations on the adsorption cycle, and a wide range of materials for adsorbents and coolants has been investigated. However, all these systems rely on adsorption in one form or another. Although the adsorption cycle has been extensively researched in both the United States and foreign countries, the concept has had virtually no impact, and there are few commercially available systems.

Problems with adsorption systems include difficulty ^ 1 ^ to add or remove the thermal energy of the adsorbent, the large inventory of adsorbent required, and the degradation of the adsorbent by the repeated cycle. Need 15 There is a need for a fundamental method and apparatus that overcomes the limitations inherent in the heat and / or mass transport of chemical separations of the state of the art, and cooling systems that • allow to have distributed chemical separations more compact, and that allow portable cooling systems. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a fundamental method and apparatus of a microporous contact assembly that exceeds the limitations inherent in the transport of heat and / or mass of the chemical separations of the state of the art. For chemical separations, a porous contact with a microcamera is used on at least one side of the porous contact, to provide substantial improvements in mass transport, thereby providing reduced residence times, and higher processing speeds for a volume of fixed hardware. A microcamera is defined herein as a chamber having a height or thickness of cross section that is less than, or equal to, a thickness of the mass transfer boundary layer. This provides the advantage of eliminating mass transport to and from the mass transfer boundary layer from a bulk volume, thereby reducing hardware volume, by reducing the amount of "dead volume" that does not contribute to the process of separation. Compared with the hardware of conventional separations, a substantial reduction in hardware volume is obtained (usually one to two orders of magnitude). A solid or a liquid, or both, is present in a micro-chamber. For a liquid, it is well understood that the boundary layer is the layer in contact with a boundary or surface where a parametric spatial gradient exists. The parametric spatial gradient can be temperature, velocity, concentration or combinations thereof. Outside the boundary layer volume or volume flow is considered, where the parametric spatial gradient is substantially zero, or, in other words, where the parameter is substantially constant with the position. A bulk transfer boundary layer is for the concentration parameter. For a solid, especially a solid confined behind a porous contact, it is necessary that the solid is surrounded by stagnant fluid or that it does not flow. Accordingly, adsorption and desorption will be presented by interfacial diffusion between the solid and the fluid, by direct diffusion through the fluid, through the porous contact and into the fluid flowing through the chamber opposite the solid. In this case, the mass transfer boundary layer is a composite mass transfer boundary layer. Accordingly, the thickness of a mass transfer boundary layer, and therefore, the depth of the microcamera, for an adsorbent material, is determined by considering the "effective mass transport boundary layer", which is a combination of the diffusivity in mass of the solid and diffusivity in mass of the fluid, instead of considering only the mass diffusivity of the solid adsorbent or of fluid alone. A preferred embodiment includes the porous contact fabricated as a microporous contact using micromachining techniques, producing micropores that are extremely accurate, with essentially no tortuosity. This gives as resulting in a microporous contact with a low resistance to mass diffusion transport, and which is additionally resistant to contamination. A number of chemical separation units that rely on interfacial diffusion are enabled by the porous contact assembly. These include the units for absorption, adsorption, liquid-liquid extraction, desorption, and distillation, including multiple stages. In addition to providing contact of the two media, the porous contact unit additionally provides a barrier to momentum transport, allowing backflow operation where convenient, for example, liquid-liquid extraction to counter-flow, reducing this way the need for multiple stages of contacts. Where the separation process involves two fluids with similar or low mass diffusivities, for example, two immiscible liquids, the pores with micropores from a size of approximately 1 miera to approximately 30 micras, and the unit is assembled with microcameras on each side of the microporous contact, thus providing a stable location for the phase interface inside the micropores, and effecting a high degree of separation with a compact hardware volume. In addition, when a substantial degree of heat is generated or needed to facilitate the separation process, as in gas absorption, adsorption, Desorption, or distillation, the unit can be put in intimate contact with, or can be manufactured with, integral designed microchannel heat exchangers, so that a high separation speed can again be realized by a compact hardware unit. In many cases, it may be desirable to put two separation processes in series, such as an absorption unit to purify a gas stream, and a desorbent to remove the captured gas, allowing the solvent to be recirculated to the absorbent. If a pump is included, this system becomes a thermochemical compressor, releasing the effluent gas at a higher pressure than that to which it was absorbed. This could be done in an alternative way with adsorption units instead of the absorption unit. In this way both temperature variations and pressure variations in absorption / adsorption are enabled. In the same way, it may be desirable to combine a liquid-liquid extraction unit with another separation unit, again allowing the recirculation of the solvent. There are a number of chemical separation applications for the porous contact assembly. For example, significant research is under way to develop fuel processing systems for fuel cell-powered cars. One of the needs for the fuel processing system automotive is the removal of catalyst poisons (eg, hydrogen sulfide, carbon monoxide, and combinations thereof) from the fuel stream, so that the operation of the fuel cell or other reactors is not degraded catalytic onboard for fuel processing. The absorption or adsorption units of gas on board can provide this function, because they can be made small, comparing with the required processing speeds. Another application is the capture of carbon dioxide from the production of fossil fuels on coastal platforms. If you want to reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, in order to reduce the risk of global warming, it may eventually be necessary to sequester CO2 in the depth of the ocean, or in the same geological stratum (or similar) where the fossil fuel was obtained. In fact, C02 injection is a common method to increase production yields of oil fields. Currently, conventional separation units can not reasonably be placed in the small space available on offshore oil platforms, and therefore, there is a need for extremely compact gas separation units, which nonetheless process large quantities of material. For cooling, the porous contact is used in combination with heat exchangers and pumps to make a thermal microchannel sorption machine for microclimate control, preferably in the form of a miniature heat absorption pump, or a miniature heat adsorption pump. The thermal microchannel sorption machine of the present invention is compact, and conceivably could be as small as a sugar cube. This would allow to use a system to cool electronic components. In larger sizes, the system is useful for distributed space conditioning (heating or cooling), specifically where weight is a primary concern, for example, in portable applications, or in automotive, aerospace, or other transport container applications. Heat Absorption Pump A miniature heat absorption pump, for example, can be sized to provide 350 W of cooling, with dimensions of 9 cm x 9 cm x 6 cm, weighing approximately 0.65 kg. Compared to a macro-scale heat absorption pump, this represents a reduction in volume by a factor of 60. It is estimated that a complete microcomponent cooling system, including the heat pump, an air-cooled heat exchanger, batteries, and fuel, weighs between 4 and 5 kilograms, compared to the weight of 10 kilograms of alternative systems. Reductions in size and weight are obtained by developing a device that can simultaneously take advantage of the high heat and mass transfer speeds that can be achieved in microscale structures, while being large enough to allow efficient conversion of work into energy (it is say, pumping with electric power). The reduced weight and size are made possible by the use of microchannel heat exchangers that typically have heat transfer coefficients exceeding 2 W / cm2-K, and microporous contact assemblies that have very high heat transfer rates and mass in absorbers, desorbents, rectifiers and microscale analyzers. Normally, the size and weight of microscale components and systems can be reduced by a factor of about 1 to about 2 orders of magnitude, when compared to a macroscale device with the same performance. The device of preference will be driven by thermal energy. The thermal energy can be from any source, for example, the combustion of liquid hydrocarbon fuels. The energy storage density of liquid fuels exceeds the energy storage density that can be achieved in batteries conventional by a factor of 130 (13,000 thermal watts, Wt / kg) for liquid hydrocarbon fuel, compared with 100 electrical watts (We / kg) for batteries. An absorption cooling system still requires electrical power to operate a liquid pump and a fan, but its overall electrical power requirements are approximately one order of magnitude lower than for a conventional vapor compression system. The combination of the reduced demand for electrical energy and the use of liquid fuels significantly reduces the weight of the absorption energy source, compared with cooling schemes that require significant work, such as a cycle. of vapor compression. The miniature heat absorption pump depends on the extraordinarily high heat transfer and mass transfer speeds available in the microstructures, to radically reduce its size, while maintaining capacity and cooling efficiency. Its performance ultimately depends on the microstructure, with individual characteristics as small as 1 miera. The heat pump is a miniature device, but it is large enough to use a small but conventional solution pump. These features of the device are a mandatory example of the advantage of devices in a range of miniature sizes. The specific cooling (cooling per unit volume) of the miniature heat pump is higher than that of a conventional macroscopic heat pump by a factor of 60 (1.25 W / cm3, compared to 0.02 W / cm3) for a macroscale device. The heat absorption pump also requires considerably less electrical energy than a steam compression heat pump (10 W compared to 120 W). This will reduce the need for portable power generation or batteries to power the microclimate control systems. Heat pump cycles, including, but not limited to, "Single-acting, double-acting, Generator / Absorber / Heat Exchanger (GAX) cycle, and Diffusion Absorption cycle, can use the contact unit microporous heat adsorption pump One disadvantage of the adsorption cycle systems is overcome by the use of a porous contact and a thin adsorbent (microcamera), which allows rapid mass transfer to and from the adsorbent, even when the adsorbent forms lumps after a repeated cycle, is contained by the porous contact.Fast is defined as a reduction of an order of magnitude in time, because the sorption time is proportional to the inverse of the square of the thickness of the sorbent. , a reduction of a factor of 10 in the thickness of the sorbent that can be reached in the present invention, it provides a reduction of a factor of 100 in the sorption time, compared to the prior art. In addition, the availability of microvalves with very high cycle speeds allows the adsorbent to be rapidly cycled. Accordingly, the present invention uses 1) microstructures to improve heat transfer, 2) microstructures to reduce the impact of adsorbent degradation, 3) microactuators and valves to allow very high cycle speeds, and 4) small microstructures and volumes small adsorbents to reduce losses due to thermal inertia (repeated heating and cooling of adsorbent and pressure vessels). An adsorbent that is rapidly cycled is an important aspect of the present invention, allowing to have a small size with a high efficiency. The rapid cycle is achieved by using an adsorbent material with a thin cross-section, and enclosing it between sheets forming a microcamera, wherein one of the sheets is porous or perforated, for example, a porous contact, such that the Adsorbent material is contained even after the structural failure or formation of the adsorbent material. Thin adsorbent films in combination with microchannel heat exchangers achieve rapid heating and cooling of the adsorbent. I also know They use microchannel heat exchangers for heating and cooling with refrigerant. Because the mass diffusivity within a solid adsorbent is substantially lower than the mass diffusivity within a fluid (liquid or gas), it is preferable to structure the adsorbent material, so that the fluid makes contact with a large portion. of the solid adsorbent. For example, the solid adsorbent can be configured in the form of small spheres or other repetitive or random unit structures, and can be packed inside the microcamera, such that the fluid can surround the structures. However, note that the fluid that surrounds the structures is stagnant or does not flow, so that mass transfer from the solid structures to the fluid and through the porous contact is by diffusion. For these cases, the effective mass transport boundary layer is greatly increased, approaching that of the mass transport boundary layer inside the fluid. The present invention also includes reversing the thermodynamic cycle to achieve a conversion of thermal energy into work, where a sorption cycle is used to pressurize a working fluid, which is then expanded through a working extractor (turbine or piston). Objects It is an object of the present invention to provide a Microcomponent assembly for efficient fluid contact. It is still another object of the present invention to provide a mechanically limited thin film adsorbent, desorbent, rectifier or analyzer. It is another object of the present invention to provide compact chemical separation units, which employ interfacial diffusion. It is another object of the present invention to provide a distributed chemical separator. It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal microchannel sorption machine. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a light weight portable cooling machine. It is another object of the present invention to provide lightweight heat sorption pumps. It is a further object of the present invention to use high frequency microvalves to rapidly cycle the adsorbent. The subject matter of the present invention is particularly pointed out and claimed in a distinctive manner in the concluding portion of this specification. However, both the organization and the method of operation, together with the advantages and additional objects thereof, can be better understood by reference to the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like elements. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is an isometric view of an external thin sheet with a microporous contact integral with it. Figure Ib is an amplified view of the microporous contact. Figure 2 is a part separated view of a liquid / gas sorbent with a microporous contact. Figure 3 is a graph of the concentration of ammonia versus the thickness of the absorption film for Example 1. Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of an experimental apparatus for demonstrating a liquid / gas desorbent for Example 2. Figure 5 is a cross section of a solid sorption cell. Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of an experimental apparatus for demonstrating a microchannel heat absorption pump for Example 3. Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a solid sorption heat adsorption pump.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODALITIES The microcomponent assembly of the present invention is a porous contact placed in a housing that provides at least one microcamera between the porous contact and the housing. In the chemical separations, the porous contact or the porous membrane, which has a plurality of pores extending through the thickness, is selected such that the pores co-operate with a limit voltage of one or the other or both of a first medium and a second means, preventing the migration of one, the other or both, through the porous contact, and allowing the passage of a solute or working compound. Accordingly, for example, in an aqueous lithium bromide system, the absorbent receives a water vapor as the first medium (non-humectant), and receives a solution of lithium bromide in water as the second medium (humectant), with the working compound like water. In a solid sorption adsorbent, the first medium is the solid sorbent, the second medium is the gas carrier, and the working compound is the sorbed or desorbed compound. Porous Contact Porous contact 100 (Figure la, Figure Ib) is a porous or perforated material, where the term "microporous material" refers to the material through which the diffusion, but flow in volume or "draining" flow is prevented. When the pores or holes are of a size to allow volume flow or runoff, the material is referred to herein as a perforated material. A perforated material can be used for mixer two streams. The term "porous" includes both microporous and perforated. The porous or perforated material is a solid material, or has a solid material on it. In a porous material, the pores 102 or holes may be straight through the thickness, or not straight like the interconnected porosity. The microporous contact 100 can be made by micromachining a metal, ceramic or plastic, by, for example, LiGA (Lithography, Galvanoformung (electrodeposition), Abformung (injection molding)), micromachining with laser, or electrochemical micromachining. The advantages of microporous microporous contacts include precise control of the size of the pores through microporous contact. Sintering produces random pore geometry and orientation. The porous contact 100 can be combined with active microcomponents, for example, microactuators to impart movement to a fluid, thereby increasing the mass transport speeds. For absorption (liquid-gas), or for extraction liquid-liquid, the microporous contact 100 is selected such that a first medium or solvent does not wet the microporous contact, but a second medium or solvent moistens the microporous contact, and the working compound is transferred between the first and second media and through microporous contact. The geometry of the pores is selected in such a way that the limit voltage of one or the other or both means, prevent it from passing through the pores. The pore geometry is both the size (e.g., diameter or cross-sectional area) and the shape (e.g., circular, polygonal, including regular polygon and irregular polygon, e.g., groove, cross) of the pore. Therefore, the geometry of the pore can not exceed that which prevents the crossing or volume flow of the non-wetting fluid. It is preferred that the pores have substantially the same geometry for maximum diffusion. Accordingly, a microporous contact does not allow runoff or volume flow through it, the solvent or the medium. Preferably, the geometry of the pores is as large as possible, and will still prevent the passage of the non-wetting medium. For example, the geometry of the pores for a liquid or solid can be circular holes with diameters from the limit of micromachining capacity (i.e., from about 1 miera to about 30 micras). The small pore size provides strong resistance to a film speed intermediate or pressure gradient. In the liquid-liquid solvent extraction, one or both solvents can enter the micropores. However, the interfacial tension in the contact inside the pores prevents the solvent from mixing, and allows a solute to be transferred between them. Because the thickness of the microcamera is less than a liquid or solid mass transfer boundary layer thickness, the time for the working compound to transfer substantially completely from one medium to the other is reduced from one medium to the other. a substantial way, comparing with the sorption of the state of the art. The residence time is proportional to the square of the thickness of the fluid (depth of the chamber), and inversely proportional to the diffusivity of the fluid. Accordingly, the depths or thicknesses of the solvent flow paths become small, from about 1 micron to about 300 microns for a liquid or solid, and up to about one millimeter for a gas. Due to the better mass transfer speeds, the residence time is substantially reduced, compared with conventional systems. A microporous contact unit is a microporous contact sheet as shown in Figure 2, placed between cover sheets or laminates. Each cover or laminate sheet has or defines a micro-chamber between the microporous contact sheet and the laminate, or at least one microcomponent together with an inlet and an outlet that allow the flow of fluid through them, but not through the microporous contact sheet. Then the diffusion of mass through the microporous contact sheet is presented. Microcomponents, for example microgrooves, can be manufactured on one or both sides of the microporous contact sheet. Additionally, the microporous contact sheet may not have micro-components itself, but the cover sheet or laminate may have micro-components to direct the flow of fluid through the microporous contact sheet. An additional embodiment is simply a micro-chamber of fluid on either side of the microporous contact sheet. In operation, fluids such as solvents or medium can flow in parallel, counter-flow, or cross-flow. Parallel flow results in less mass flow or extraction, but allows a lower differential or pressure gradient through microporous contact. When the gas is one of the fluids, and the gas will be absorbed. { or a constituent of the gas in a liquid, it is preferred that the gas or constituent of the gas passes through the microporous contact, but that the liquid does not pass through the microporous contact. In accordance with the foregoing, it is preferred that the microporous contact be coated, so that the liquid does not wet the microporous contact, or has pores small enough for the liquid to be supported by its limit voltage, and not to flow through the pores. In the case where a microporous contact is not sufficiently self-supported between the covers, the covers can be made with projections or floors to support the microporous contacta. Alternatively, as described above, the microporous contact may have grooves or microcomponents. In any case, the projections or floors would support the microporous contact. In many practical systems, to achieve high absorption / desorption rates, heat may need to be transferred either to or from the absorption / desorption fluids. Accordingly, the heat transfer, preferably with a microchannel heat exchanger, can be combined with the microporous contact unit. In Figure 2 a microporous contact unit is shown. A microporous contact 200 is placed between two covers 202, 204, each having an end block 206 and a thin inner sheet 208 which create the microcamera between the microporous contact 200 the end blocks 206 after assembly. Note in this mode that the entry and exit are through the side of the thin internal sheets 208. In the assemblies that use polymeric microporous assemblies, it is possible to use thin inner sheets of metal and thin outer sheets, but the bond would be by means of clamping or screwing, leaning on the margin of the polymer to seal. Alternatively, the thin inner sheets and the thin outer sheets may be a polymer, also where the entire assembly could be bonded by heat or chemically. Chemical Separations Chemical separations, as used herein, include any interfacial diffusion or exchange of a solute or work compound from one solvent or medium to another, wherein the medium may be liquid, gas, solid or combinations thereof. For example, in an absorption system, a microporous contact is selected, such that a first medium contains the working compound, and the second medium receives the working compound. One or the other or both media moistens the microporous contact, and the working compound is transferred at an interface between the two media and through the microporous contact. In a liquid-liquid extraction, one or both solvents can moisten the microporous contact. The limit voltage prevents the mixing of the two media. In the case of an adsorption system, the contact can be a porous contact, through which the first medium passes (gas or liquid), and surrounds the second medium in the micro-chamber containing the second medium. The second means is an adsorbent solid. During the transient operation, such as during start-up, the first medium can enter or exit the micro-chamber containing the second medium, but during the continuous-state operation, the first medium will become stagnant inside the micro-chamber containing the second medium. Absorbent When used as an absorbent, a gas is introduced into the cover 202 through the inlet 210. A weak solution in solute (circulation fluid) enters the cover 204 through the inlet 212, and the strong solution in solute exits through 1 outlet 214. In the case during the absorber is part of a heat absorption pump, the solute or working compound is a refrigerant. Rectifier and / or Analyzer A rectifier and / or analyzer can be used to purify a current, for example, to remove water vapor from a current of gaseous ammonia. Accordingly, it can have a mixed gaseous inlet stream, a purified gaseous outlet stream, and a liquid outlet stream. Example 1 An experiment was conducted to demonstrate separation in the form of gas absorption in a liquid. More specifically, ammonia vapor was absorbed into liquid water. A microporous contact made of sintered stainless steel, with a nominal thickness of 4 millimeters (1/16 inch), a range of pore diameters from about 5 to about 30 microns, and a porosity of 30 percent to 50 percent. The cover sheets provided microchambers with a thickness or distance from the microporous contact sheet to the inner surface of the cover sheet (film thickness) of about 100 to 300 microns. Inside the liquid film on the microporous contact, the ammonia was absorbed into the water. The ammonia flow rate varied from 0 to 4 grams / minute, the water flow rate being from 0 to 33 grams / minute. The temperature was 20 ° C to 50 ° C for isothermal and adiabatic test runs. The pressure in the absorbent was 1.05 to 2.1 kg / cm2 (15 to 30 psia). The data indicate that the ammonia could be absorbed in water at a rate that generates between 10 and 30 W / cm2. This rate of absorption exceeds the performance of conventional absorbers by more than a factor of 10. The results are shown in Figure 3. Considering first the measured data for the adiabatic test, the 300 points represent the actual measurements of the ammonia concentration in film thicknesses of 100 to 300 microns. The theoretical maximum absorption or "equilibrium" (which is a function of temperature) was calculated, and was represented by point 302 for the adiabatic test. TO As the thickness of the absorption film was reduced, the measured ammonia concentration approached the theoretical maximum. Similar results are shown for the isothermal test represented by the actual measurement points 304 and the equilibrium points 306. If the test had been truly isothermal, the equilibrium line would have been horizontal. The slight inclination of that line indicates a difference in temperature in the different film thicknesses. Comparing the adiabatic data and the isothermal data, it is clear that greater absorption can be achieved with heat removal (isothermal) than without heat removal (adiabatic). Acid Gas Absorption The absorption of an acid gas, for example, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and combinations thereof, is beneficial for the cleaning of gas streams. Example 2 An experiment was conducted to demonstrate the use of the microporous contact unit of the present invention to absorb carbon dioxide in gas phase (C02) in liquid diethanolamine (DEA) (gas-liquid absorption). A microporous polymeric (Kapton) contact was made using a mask pattern process. A machine Commercial excimer laser (Resonetics, Inc., Nashua, NH) had a rectangular beam profile (approximately 8 millimeters by approximately 25 millimeters), allowing multiple holes to be made at the same time through a mask, reducing in one way significant the total machining time. Holes with a diameter of 31 microns separated at 61.5 microns were made in a matrix of 10 millimeters by 80 millimeters in approximately 20 minutes. The KrF excimer laser (248 nanometers) had an impulse energy of 257 mj, and an impulse velocity of 100 Hz was used. The test used the fluid film thickness of 400 microns on both sides of microporous microporous Kapton contact of 25 microns thick, with holes of 29 to 34 microns in diameter, and an active area of 1 by 8 centimeters. The DEA flow rate was kept constant at 0.1 milliliters / minute, and the DEA concentration was varied from 0 to 40 percent (volume / volume of deionized water). The gas concentration was kept constant at 20 percent C02 (volume / volume of N2), and the gas flow rate was varied from 0.67 to 26.9 milliliters / minute. The results showed that it was absorbed as much as 99 to 100 percent of C02. In a control, it was observed that only a small amount of C02 was absorbed by the deionized water that did not contain DEA.

Desorbent When a sorption unit is used as a desorber, a rich and fluid circulating solution enters the inlet. The rich solution is heated, and the working compound leaves the circulating fluid by vaporization of the working compound, and passes through the contact to an outlet, while the circulating fluid exits through another outlet. In a heat adsorption pump, the working compound is a refrigerant. Example 3 An experiment was conducted to demonstrate the operation of a desorbent in accordance with the present invention. LiBr / H20 was used. In Figure 4 a diagram of the prototype test apparatus is illustrated. Desorbent 400 was a microporous contact unit, as shown in Figure 2, leaded between three tanks 402, 404, 406. A resistance heater 408 was placed on the desorbent 400. A vacuum pump (not shown) provided a pressure differential for the fluid flow. A condenser 409 was used to capture water vapor from desorbent 400. The deposit with low concentration of LiBr 402, and the reservoir with condensed water 404 were established at scales 410 to determine the mass balance. The instrumentation included pressure sensors P, sensors of temperature T, an electric power sensor, a density sensor D, a mass flow sensor M, a conductivity sensor C, and a DP differential pressure sensor. The results show that water is desorbed from the solution at a rate of 0.3 grams / cm2 / minute. This exceeds the operation of the conventional desorbers by a factor of 20. Liquid-Liquid Extraction When the microporous contact unit (Figure 2) is used for solvent extraction, the solvent enters the cover 202 through the inlet 210, and leaves through an exit (not shown). The feed enters through an inlet (not shown) up to the distribution sheet 208, and exits through the outlet 214. For the absorption or extraction of liquid-liquid, if heat is to be removed or added a heat exchange sheet can be used of microchannels 218 as shown. When used as a chemical reactor, for example, partial oxidation of liquid organics, the gas is oxygen passing through the microporous contact sheet 200. Example 4 Two experiments were conducted to demonstrate a microporous contact unit for extraction of liquid-liquid solvent. In the first, the proportions of equilibrium concentration over a range of total solute concentrations to quantify the equilibrium partition coefficients for the theoretical comparison. In the second, cyclohexanol was added to the water stream, and cyclohexane was used as the extractant. Two types of microporous contacts, micromachined and sintered plastic, were used. Two thicknesses of microporous microporous plastic contacts were used in the microchannel device. Microporous microporous plastic contacts were manufactured by laser drilling an array of holes through a Kapton polymer film of 1 thousandth and 2 thousandths (25 microns and 50 microns) covering an area of 1 centimeter wide by 8 centimeters long . The holes are conical, averaging 25 microns in diameter on one side, and 35 microns in diameter on the other side of the films with a thickness of 25 microns. The porosity was estimated at 26 percent. Microporous microporous plastic contacts were coated with Teflon (polytetrafluoroethylene), to make them more non-wetting to water, giving higher crossover pressures. For a comparison with the operation of microporous microporous plastic contacts, experiments were carried out with a 3 micron Zefluor Gelman PTFE microporous membrane (Teflon), as a microporous plastic synthesized contact. This microporous contact The plastic compound has a microporous Teflon layer approximately 15 microns thick mounted on a macroporous Teflon substrate of 165 microns thick, for a total thickness of 180 microns. The porosity of the microporous layer of 15 microns is calculated at 44 percent, based on the empty volume information obtained from Gelman. The microporous plastic composite contact was consistently placed with the Teflon layer located towards the organic liquid side for all experiments. The experiments were performed using a microporous contact unit to distribute the flow through the micromachined contact plate or the microporous Teflon membrane at different channel heights and flow rates. The channels in the housing or laminate were. 10 centimeters long, 1 centimeter wide, and can be configured with different channel heights, which may be different for the feed and solvent sides. In all the experiments reported here, the same channel heights were used on both sides of the microporous contact, and at equal flow rates. The heights of channels used were 200 microns, 300 microns, 400 microns and 500 microns. Microporous microporous plastic contacts had 8 centimeters of active porous area, while the microporous plastic composite used 10 centimeters of channel length.

A Harvard Apparatus syringe infusion pump, Model # 22, was used to pump liquids at a constant flow rate through the microporous contact unit. The pressure differential between the two liquid streams was measured in the pipe immediately downstream of the discharge gates of the microporous contact unit using a water manometer. The discharge pressure of the water stream remained slightly higher than the discharge pressure of the cyclohexane stream, although the pressure differential was generally less than 2.54 centimeters of water column. The equilibrium partition coefficient data were collected by mixing a 1000 milligram / liter supply solution of cyclohexanol in water, with cyclohexane in different proportions by volume. The mixtures were allowed to equilibrate for several days. Then samples of the water phase were taken and analyzed by gas chromatography. The equilibrium partition data showed that, within the precision of the measurements, the partition coefficient was regularly constant over the range of total concentrations examined. An equilibrium partition coefficient of 1.3 + 0.2 was used in the following theoretical calculations. The solvent extraction data were acquired with cyclohexanol as the extractant, using three channel heights in the microporous contact experiments composed of plastic, and a channel height with microporous micromachined plastic contact. The data of each was acquired in sequence by varying the flow velocity with different purge volumes between the extraction samples. The tests with the microporous plastic composite contact showed a significant improvement in operation when the flow channel heights were reduced from 400 microns to 300 microns, indicating an appreciable mass transfer resistance in the flow channels of the 400 channels. mieras However, no discernible improvement was observed in reducing the channel heights up to 200 microns, indicating that the mass transfer resistance in the micropores dominates this smaller channel height. Microporous plastic microporous contact worked at least as well as plastic composite microporous contact. Adsorbent The adsorbent of the adsorber can be any solid material capable of sorbing a gas. Coal is a common adsorbent. In an adsorbent, the strength and geometry of the solid adsorbent material is considered the "limit stress", as defined herein, provided that the strength of the material in combination with its geometry (size and shape) prevents its passage through the pores of porous contact. The individual solid sorption cell or cell, as shown in Figure 5, consists of: 1) a heat exchanger of microchannels 500 made of a metal sheet of 200 microns thick 502 with microchannels 504, 2) a thin region (100 to 1000 microns) of adsorbent material (carbon) 506, 3) a porous contact 100 that can be made by micromachining, and 4) a fluid chamber 508. When the fluid is a gas, during discharge (desorption), the hot heat transfer fluid passes to through the microchannels 504, by heating the adsorbent 506, and consequently, desorbing the gas. The gas passes through the porous 102 in the porous contact 100 to the chamber 508, from where it leaves the cell. The porous contact 100 contains the adsorbent 506, even when it has formed lumps in small particles during the repeated cycle. The loading and unloading of the adsorbent can also be done by changes in pressure, as well as by changes in temperature. During adsorption, the gas passes through the porous contact 100, and diffuses into the adsorbent 506. A cooling fluid in the microchannel heat exchanger removes the heat released during adsorption. The inventory or the amount of adsorbent is kept small by rapidly cycling the system, while losses due to thermal cycling are minimized, maintaining the thermal mass of the small adsorption cell. The adsorbent has an initial geometry of a geometric solid that has a thickness of up to about 1 millimeter. The adsorbent is surrounded or enveloped by a pair of sheets or covers, at least one of which is a porous contact that is porous or perforated to allow mass diffusion therethrough to the adsorbent. The adsorbent achieves rapid mass transfer to and from the adsorbent, even when the adsorbent forms clumps after repeated cycling, and the adsorbent is effectively contained between the sheets. Rapid cycling of the adsorbent is critical to reduce the size or miniaturize an adsorbent. Microvalves for rapid activation, microchannels for rapid heating / cooling (convection heat transfer coefficients of 1.0 to 2.0 W / cm2-K, and heat transfer speeds up to 100 W / cm2) of the adsorbent, and of the mechanically limited thin film adsorbent material / content cyclizing the adsorbent from about 1 cycle per hour to about 1 cycle per second, or from about 10 cycles per hour to about 10 cycles per minute, preferably a cycle time of at least approximately one order of magnitude shorter than in the prior art. This reduces or minimizes the required inventory of the adsorbent. The low thermal mass of the system reduces or minimizes the losses associated with thermal inertia.

When the adsorbent is an ion exchange resin, the desorption of the solute can be effected through the introduction of an eluting chemical. Thermal Microchannel Sorption Machine The thermal machine, as used herein, includes any device that uses a working fluid to convert thermal energy (heat) into mechanical work, or to convert mechanical work into heat. The thermal sorption machine is a thermal machine that uses sorption to interact with the working fluid. An example is a thermochemical compressor. In turn, a thermochemical compressor with additional components can be used to make an absorption cycle refrigeration system. A thermal microchannel sorption machine is made by combining the porous contact with a sorbent (absorbent or adsorbent), and a unit that exchanges heat with the working fluid. The porous contact can also be combined with a pressure machine to impart or extract work to or from the working fluid. A pressure machine is a pump, turbine, hydraulic roller or a combination thereof. Example 5 An experiment is conducted to demonstrate a prototype absorption cycle heat pump in accordance with the present invention. The experimental apparatus is illustrated in Figure 6. The desorbent 400, the resistance heater 408, and the instrumentation, are substantially the same as those of Example 2. The absorbent 600 is of the same construction as the desorbent 400, but cooled instead of heated. The condenser 604 and the evaporator 602 are of the same construction, and are double-sided counter-flow microchannel heat exchangers. Example 6 An experiment is conducted to demonstrate a prototype absorption cycle heat pump used as a cooler in accordance with the present invention. The data of the desorbent and adsorbent tests (Examples 1 and 2), together with the computer simulation, are used in the present for the prediction of the operation of the single-effect LiBr / H20 absorption heat pump, dimensioned to provide 350 W of cooling. The system includes a water-cooled condenser and an absorber, a water heat source for the evaporator, and a microchannel burner with exhaust gas at 250 ° C as the heat source of the desorbent. In many applications, water cooling will be available (from the vehicle radiator for vehicle cooling, and from a cooling tower for space conditioning). Other applications, such as portable cooling, will require an air-cooled heat exchanger for the rejection of final heat of the system. The projected weight or based on the simulation, and the performance characteristics for the two systems, one appropriate for portable cooling applications, and the other for vehicle or space conditioning applications. For portable cooling applications, it is assumed that the cooling water has a temperature of 15 ° C (60 ° F), and a heat rejection temperature from the condenser of 46 ° C (115 ° F). For vehicle or space conditioning applications, it is assumed that the cooling water has a lower temperature of 7 ° C (45 ° F), and a lower heat rejection temperature of 32 ° C (90 ° F). ). The two systems are almost identical, with a total weight of the heat pump of approximately 650 grams in a volume that is 1/60 the volume of a conventional LiBr heat pump, and a coefficient of performance (COP) of 0.68 for the portable design, and 0.71 for the design of space conditioning. The coefficient of performance is the proportion of the amount of cooling provided divided by the thermal energy supplied to the desorbent. For the portable design, 1 W of heat provided from the combustion fuel would provide 0.68 W of cooling. The electrical energy for pumping is reduced by a factor of 7, compared to vapor compression heat pumps.

Heat Adsorption Pump The porous adsorbent described above is used with a refrigerant for the gas, and the additional components shown in Figure 7, to make an adsorption cycle heat pump in accordance with the present invention. The microcomponent heat adsorption pump has two solid sorbent cells of microchannels 700, 702, two heat exchangers of microchannels 704, 706, and an expander 708. Heat is supplied to the first solid sorbent cell acting as a desorbent, extracting the refrigerant from the solid sorbent. The refrigerant is cooled in one of the microchannel heat exchangers, expanded through the pressure reducing valve 708, heated in the other of the microchannel heat exchangers, and adsorbed in the second solid sorbent cell. . The system can be adapted with 710 valves (conventional or microvalves) to allow the system to invert, allowing desorption in the second cell, and adsorption in the first cell. Alternatively, a reversible pump (not shown) may be used. The solid sorbent stack can have one or many cells of solid sorbent. It is preferred that a solid sorbent stack have many solid sorbent cells.

CLOSURE Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications can be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects. Accordingly, it is intended that the appended claims cover all changes and modifications that fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims (52)

1. NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the foregoing invention, it is considered as a novelty, and therefore, the content of the following is claimed as property: CLAIMS 1. A porous contact assembly for the mass transfer of a working compound from a first medium to a second medium, which comprises: (a) a porous contact having a thickness, and further having a plurality of pores extending through the thickness, the pores being of a geometry capable of cooperating with a tension limit one or the other or both of the first means and the second means, to prevent the migration of one, the other or both, through the porous contact, and allowing the passage of the working compound through the plurality of pores, the porous contact being placed between: (b) a first laminate defining a first micro-chamber between the porous contact and the first laminate, to receive the first medium, the micro-chamber having a lower depth than a mass transfer boundary layer of the aforementioned first medium; and (c) a cover sheet defining a second chamber between the porous contact and the cover sheet, to receive the second mentioned means.
2. 2. The porous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the plurality of pores is a plurality of micropores, each one having a cross-sectional dimension from about 1 miera to about 30 micras, as a microporous contact assembly.
3. 3. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that said first medium is a liquid.
4. 4. The porous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the pores are oriented randomly.
5. 5. The porous contact assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that the micropores are oriented substantially parallel.
6. 6. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that the first medium is an aqueous solution, the second medium is a vapor or gas, wherein the aqueous solution is prevented from passing through the plurality. of micropores, and the working compound is allowed to pass through them, the microporous assembly being selected from the group consisting of absorbent, desorbent and combinations thereof.
7. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that the working compound is selected from the group consisting of acid gas, ammonia, water and combinations thereof.
8. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that this assembly comprises the working compound, and this working compound is selected from the group consisting of carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and combinations thereof.
9. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that this assembly comprises the first medium, and this first medium is selected from the group consisting of aqueous lithium bromide, aqueous diethanolamine, aqueous ammonia, and combinations thereof.
10. The porous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that this assembly comprises the first medium which is an adsorbent solid which can not pass through the plurality of pores, and the second medium which is a fluid , and the working compound which is a fluid constituent to be adsorbed or desorbed to or from the adsorbent solid, the porous assembly being selected from the group consisting of adsorbent, desorbent and combinations thereof.
11. 11. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that this assembly comprises the first means which is a first liquid solvent, and the second medium which is a second liquid solvent, and the working compound which is a solute, wherein the first solvent and the second solvent mentioned, cooperate to form a limit voltage which impedes the flow of the liquid. first or second solvent through the microporous contact, allowing the contact of the first and second solvents with the plurality of micropores, allowing the aforementioned solute to be transferred between the first and second solvents, and the microporous contact assembly is a liquid extractor -liquid.
12. 12. A distillation unit, which comprises: (a) the microporous contact assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that, during the operation, said working compound is evaporated from a multiple liquid. components, passing the working compound through the microporous contact; and (b) a second microporous contact assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that the working compound is allowed to make contact with, and condense within, a multi-component liquid, which has the same constituents. than the first liquid of multiple components.
13. The porous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the depth of the microcamera is less than, or equal to, approximately 500 microns.
14. 14. An interfacial diffusion unit, comprising: a porous contact assembly comprising: (a) a porous contact having a thickness, and further having a plurality of pores extending through the thickness, these pores being of a geometry able to cooperate with a limit voltage of one or the other or both of a first medium and a second means, to prevent the migration of one, the other or both through the porous contact, and allowing the passage of a working compound to through the plurality of pores, this porous contact being placed between: (b) a first laminate defining a first micro-chamber between the porous contact and the first laminate, to receive the first medium, the micro-chamber having a depth less than a boundary layer; mass transfer of the first medium; and (c) a cover sheet defining a second chamber between the porous contact and the cover sheet, to receive the second mentioned means, and a microchannel heat exchanger in contact with the porous contact assembly.
15. 15. A thermochemical or desiccant compressor, which comprises: (a) the interfacial diffusion unit according to claim 14, characterized in that the working compound is a gas that is absorbed in a working fluid, producing a absorb, thus releasing heat; (b) a pump to pressurize the absorbate; and (c) a desorbent comprising a microporous contact assembly comprising a liquid, and a vapor or gas, wherein this liquid is prevented from passing through the plurality of micropores; where heat is added, and vapor or gas is desorbed from the absorbate.
16. 16. The thermochemical compressor or desiccant according to claim 15, characterized in that it further comprises: (d) a regenerative heat exchanger of microchannels, where heat is transferred from a desorbent output stream to a current of Desorbent input.
17. 17. A microcomponent heat pump, which comprises: (a) the thermochemical compressor according to claim 16, characterized in that the gas is a refrigerant; (b) a second microchannel heat exchanger for condensing the refrigerant; (c) an expander to reduce the refrigerant pressure; and (d) a third microchannel heat exchanger for evaporating the refrigerant.
18. 18. An adsorption compressor, which comprises: (a) an adsorbent made from the interfacial diffusion unit. in accordance with what is claimed in claim 14; and (b) a desorbent made from the interfacial diffusion unit in accordance with claim 14; where (c) the adsorbent and the Desorbent are cyclically operated with a gas as the working compound.
19. 19. A heat adsorption pump, which comprises: (a) the adsorption compressor according to claim 18, characterized in that the gas is a refrigerant; (b) a first microchannel heat exchanger for condensing the refrigerant; (c) an expander for decompressing the condensed refrigerant; and (d) a second microchannel heat exchanger for evaporating the decompressed and cooled refrigerant.
20. 20. A thermal sorption machine, which comprises: (a) a porous contact positioned between: (b) two covers, wherein each cover has at least one micro-chamber that faces toward the porous contact, and (c) a pressure connected to the at least one micro chamber, to impart or extract mechanical work with respect to a fluid flowing therein.
21. 21. The thermal sorption machine according to claim 20, characterized in that the porous contact is a microporous contact, and a micro chamber receives a liquid, and another micro chamber receives a gas.
22. 22. A heat adsorption pump, which comprises the thermal sorption machine according to claim 20.
23. 23. An adsorbent, which comprises: an adsorbent having an initial geometry of a geometric solid having a thickness of approximately 1 millimeter; and a pair of sheets that surround or wrap the adsorbent, in an adsorbent region that is 100 to 1000 microns thick, comprising at least one sheet of the pair of sheets, a porous contact to allow mass diffusion of a working compound through it, to the adsorbent; wherein the adsorbent achieves rapid mass transfer to and from the adsorbent, even when the adsorbent forms clumps after repeated cycling, and this adsorbent is effectively contained between the sheets.
24. 24. A microcomponent assembly for the mass transfer of a working compound from a first medium to a second medium, wherein the first medium, the second medium, or both, are a liquid, the microcomponent assembly comprising: (a) ) a microporous contact having a thickness, and further having a plurality of micropores extending through the thickness, these micropores being of a geometry of such size and shape that a limit voltage of the liquid is capable of preventing migration of the liquid through it, and allows the passage of the working compound, and the geometry is substantially equal for each of the plurality of micropores, this microporous contact being placed between: (b) a first laminate such that a first or first space is formed camera between the microporous contact and this first laminate, for receiving the first medium, the first chamber having a depth that is smaller than a bulk transfer boundary layer of the aforementioned first medium; and (c) a cover sheet such that a second space or a second chamber is formed between the microporous contact and the cover sheet, to receive the second medium.
25. 25. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that the plurality of micropores are substantially parallel to the thickness.
26. 26. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that the plurality of micropores are randomly oriented.
27. 27. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that this assembly comprises the first medium which is an aqueous solution, and the second medium which is a vapor or gas, where the aqueous solution is prevented from passing. through the plurality of micropores, and the working compound is allowed to pass through them, the microporous assembly being selected from the group consisting of absorbent, desorbent, and combinations thereof.
28. 28. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 27, characterized in that the working compound is selected from the group that It consists of acid gas, ammonia, water and combinations thereof.
29. 29. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 28, characterized in that the acid gas is selected from the group consisting of carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and combinations thereof.
30. 30. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 27, characterized in that the aqueous solution is selected from the group consisting of aqueous lithium bromide, aqueous diethanolamine, aqueous ammonia, and combinations thereof.
31. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that this assembly comprises the first medium, which is a first liquid solvent, and the second medium which is a second liquid solvent, and a working compound that is a solute, wherein the first solvent and the second solvent cooperate to form a limit voltage that prevents the flow of the first or second solvent through the microporous contact, but which allows the contact of the first and second solvents inside the plurality of micropores , allowing the solute to be transferred between the first and second mentioned solvents, and the microporous contact assembly is a liquid-liquid extractor.
32. 32. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that each of the plurality of micropores has a geometry of about 1 miera to about 30 microns.
33. 33. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that the first chamber has a thickness of approximately 500 microns or less.
34. 34. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the porous contact is made using micromachining techniques.
35. 35. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 34, characterized in that the microporous contact is made of plastic, and the pores are formed using a laser device.
36. 36. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that the microporous contact is made of steel.
37. 37. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 36, characterized in that said micropores have diameters of about 5 to about 30 microns.
38. 38. The microcomponent assembly according to claim 35, characterized in that The first micro-chamber has a thickness between 300 and 400 microns.
39. 39. The adsorbent according to claim 23, characterized in that at least one of the pair of sheets is made of metal.
40. 40. The porous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the first micro chamber has a depth of about 1 miera to about 300 micras.
41. 41. The porous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that it also comprises projections or floors to support the porous contact.
42. 42. The porous contact assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the second chamber is a microcamera.
43. 43. The porous contact assembly according to claim 24, characterized in that the second space or the second chamber is a microcamera.
44. 44. A contact assembly comprising a first sheet, a porous contact and a second sheet; wherein the first sheet and the porous contact define a first micro-chamber; wherein the second sheet and the porous contact define a second micro-chamber; and wherein the first sheet, the porous contact and the second sheet, are essentially coplanar.
45. 45. The contact assembly according to claim 44, characterized in that the porous contact is microporous. •
46. 46. The heat exchanger in association 5 operative with the assembly in accordance with that claimed in claim 45.
47. 47. The heat exchanger according to claim 46, characterized in that the heat exchanger is a heat exchanger. heat of 10 microchannels •
48. 48. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 45, characterized in that said porous contact comprises micromachined pores that essentially do not have 15 tortuosities.
49. 49. The microporous contact assembly according to claim 45, made by linking the first and second sheets, the porous contact and the first and second internal sheets; where the The first inner sheet separates the first mentioned sheet and the porous contact, and the second sheet separates the second mentioned sheet and the porous contact; wherein the first and second inner sheets have openings; and wherein the first and second microcameras are in the openings. 25
50. 50. A contact assembly comprising one fluid microcamera on at least one side of a microporous contact sheet, combining with a microchannel heat exchanger.
51. 51. The contact assembly as claimed in claim 50, characterized in that the microchannel heat exchanger transfers the heat to or from a fluid that can absorb or desorb.
52. 52. The absorbent according to claim 23, in thermal contact with a microchannel heat exchanger.