MXPA01000901A - Auxiliary power unit using compressed air - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention concerns an auxiliary power unit using compressed air for energy and equipped with a motor alternator driving, or being driven by a motor compressor with compressed air which compresses air under high pressure in a high pressure storage tank and which when there is a power cut automatically drives the motor compressor in alternating mode to supply electricity. The invention is applicable to fixed or mobile auxiliary power units.

Description

ASSEMBLY GENERATORAUXILIAR, THAT USES COMPRESSED.

The invention relates to an auxiliary generator set that operates with compressed air. 5 The current generator sets mainly comprise an electric alternator, responsible for producing electricity, while the assemblies are operating, driven by a combustion engine that sells gasoline, diesel or some other fuel. These engines scín particularly noisy and polluting and consume expensive energy that often has to be supplied. Systems that allow the use of compressed air, as a reserve of energy, have been described, in particular, in U.S. Patent No. 5296799. but they use solutions complex, involving numerous parts with air compressors, a compressed air motor, an electric alternator and an electric motor. The author has filed numerous patent applications, WO 96/27737, WO 97/48884, WO 98/12062, WO 98/15440, regarding the use of compressed air as an energy store, particularly for driving vehicle engines or for other uses. The generator assembly, according to the invention, shows how to solve the problems associated with the supply of generator sets with fuel, __. ___. j¡C_-j_ ^^^^^^^^^^^^ ** "ÍM ^^^ M -'----- fe__S_Í _____________________. -" - tfiY using the compressed air for its operation; It comprises a reversible compressed air motor, which can operate as a motor or as a compressor - compressed air compressor - powered by, or driven by an electric motor, which is also reversible and which can operate as a generator - generator engine. During the operation, the motor-generator, in the mode of the electric motor, which receives its power from a grid of electricity, for example, the main network of the city, operates, driving the compressed-air motor-compressor, which is , therefore in compression mode and filling one or more compressed air reservoirs at high pressure, for example 200 bar, and keeps them full. When there is an interruption in the supply of electricity, for example, during a power outage, the motor-compressor is automatically interrupted in the motor mode and supplied with energy by the compressed air contained in one or more storage tanks, drives the motcr-generator, which has also been automatically interrupted, in generator mode, to supply electricity. The change from one mode of operation to the other is made by an electromechanical, electronic or some other device. Preferably, the auxiliary generator assembly, according to the invention, comprises a system for recovering the environmental thermal energy, as described by the author in his patent application No. FR 97/00851, wherein the compressed air, content in the storage tank, at very high pressure, for example 200 bar, and at room temperature, for example 20 ° C, before its final use in the motor-compressor, at a pressure below 30 bar, for example , has its reduced pressure close to that needed for its final use, in a system of variable volume, for example a piston inside a cylinder, which produces work, which can be recovered and used by any known, mechanical, electrical resource, hydraulic or other. This reduction of the working pressure results in the cooling of the compressed air, which has its reduced pressure close to the operating pressure at a very low temperature, for example, of minus 100 ° C. This compressed air with reduced pressure at its operating pressure and at very low temperature, is then sent to an exchanger with the ambient air, it is reheated to a temperature close to the ambient temperature and thus increases its pressure and / or its volume, recovering the thermal energy taken from the atmosphere. As another preference, the operating motor, according to the invention, comprises a thermal heating system, as described by the author in his patent application EP 98/00877, in which he proposes a solution that allows the amount of energy available and that can be used, be increased, characterized by the fact that the compressed air, before entering the combustion chamber and / or expansion of the engine, coming from the storage tank, or directly or after passing through the air-air heat exchanger and before entering the combustion chamber, is guided through a heater, in which its pressure and / or volume increases further, before entering the combustion chamber and / or expansion, thus improving considerably the performance. When the auxiliary generator set is used in constructions supplied with gasoline from the city, the heater can advantageously be supplied with this gasoline. The auxiliary generator set, according to the invention, can be installed in a location established in the constructions or in other private residences. It can also be equipped to a mobile unit, which will be energized with electricity and will have its tanks filled before being used on exterior sites. Other objects, advantages and characteristics of the invention will be evident from the reading of the description, without implying a limitation, of the various modalities, which is supplied with reference to the attached drawings, in which: The only figure represents a block diagram of the operation of the generator set, according to the invention, in which the electric motor-generator 1, with power from the electricity network by an electric cable 2 or energized from this electricity network by an electric cable 3 which drives, or is driven through a transmission 4, by the motor-compressor 5, which, in the compressor mode, fills a high-pressure storage tank 6 by means of a pipe 7 and which in the mode of the compressed air motor, receives from the storage tank 6 the compressed air, which already has its reduced pressure, with work, in a device of variable volume, which allows a considerable reduction in the air temperature , whose pressure is reduced to a pressure approximately equivalent to the working pressure of the motor-compressor, this reduction of the pressure with the work of the compressed air at high pressure, stored in the tank 6, will be It is made in an assembly comprising a connecting rod 53 and a working piston 54, directly coupled to a crankshaft 18C, connected to the crankshaft 18 of the engine by a transmission 21A. This piston 54 slides inside a blind cylinder 55 and determines a working chamber 35, in which there is a high-pressure air intake tube 37, on the one hand, open, whose opening and closing are controlled by an operated valve electrically 38, and ^ On the other hand, an exhaust gas pipe is connected to an air-air heat exchanger, or radiated 41, itself connected by a pipe 42 to a regulating volume 43 at an almost constant end-use pressure, equipped with a thermal insulation 43A. During the operation, when the working piston 54 is in its dead center superior, the valve 38, electrically operated, opens and then closes again to admit a load of compressed air at very high pressure, which will expand, driving the piston 54 back to its lower dead center, producing work, and by means of the connecting rod 53, drives the crankshaft 18C by means of the transmission 21A, driving the crankshaft of the engine-compressor 18. During the upward stroke of the piston 54 , the valve, electrically operated, 40, of the exhaust gas is then opened and the compressed air, whose pressure has been reduced practically to the operating pressure and the very low temperature contained in the working chamber, is discharged (in the direction of the arrow F) inside the air-air exchanger, or radiator 41. This air will thus be heated to a temperature close to the ambient temperature and will increase in volume, as it reaches the compensation volume. n 43, which has recovered a non-negligible amount of energy from the atmosphere. Between the air-air exchanger 41 and the compensated volume 43, in the tube 42, there is also a heater 56, consisting of the burners 57, which will considerably increase the temperature and, therefore, the pressure and / or volume of the compressed air from (in the direction of the arrows F ) the air-air exchanger 41, as it passes through the coil 58 of the exchanger. The modes of interruption, the types of motor-generator and motor-compressor, the design of the storage tanks and their volume, can, of course, employ known methods or not, without changing, in any way, the principle of present invention, which has been justly described. _ m ^^? = g > IÍM __________________ ftt- • i-ii - .- .... -M .L. .. "

Claims (5)

1. CLAIMS 1. An auxiliary generator set, which operates with compressed air reserves, characterized in that the compressed air motor is reversible and operates either in the mode of a compressed air motor or in the mode of a compressed air compressor - motor - compressor compressed air driven by, or that drives, an electric motor, which is also reversible and can act as a generator-motor-generator, in which, during operation, it is motor-generator, in a mode electric motor, which receives its power from a grid of electricity, operates, driving the compressed-air compressor-motor, operating in the compressor mode, which fills one or more high-pressure compressed air tanks, and keeps them full and wherein, when there is an interruption of power supply, the motor-compressor is automatically switched to it so the engine and powered with energy from the compressed air in one or more tanks sto It drives, and drives the motor-generator, which has also been automatically switched to the generator mode, to supply the supporting electric power.
2. 2. An auxiliary generator set, according to claim 1, characterized in that, before entering the compressor motor, the compressed air contained in the ^ G ^ i |? ^ S ^ storage tank high pressure has its reduced with work producing a drop in its temperature and is then sent to an exchanger with ambient AIIE pressure to be reheated and so have its pressure and / or its volume increased, recovering thermal energy.
3. 3. The set auxiliary generator, according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that, before entering the motor-compressor, the compressed air from 0 storage tank is guided, either directly or after passing through the air-air heat exchanger, through a thermal heater, to further increase its pressure and / or its volume.
4. 4. The auxiliary generator set, according to claim 3, characterized in that the energy used for the thermal heater is from the gasoline of the city.
5. 5. The auxiliary generator assembly, according to any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the entire generator, together with its storage tank and its accessories, is mounted on a mobile body, which allows it to be used in one place. To the exterior. ________._ •.? & * u ^. ..