WO1999043995A1

WO1999043995A1 - Method and device for heat pump with spontaneous flow

Info

Publication number: WO1999043995A1
Application number: PCT/FR1999/000448
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jean-Luc Brochet
Original assignee: Brochet Jean Luc
Priority date: 1998-02-26
Filing date: 1999-02-25
Publication date: 1999-09-02
Also published as: FR2775340A1; AU2629199A; FR2775340B1

Abstract

The invention concerns a device consisting of a capacitor whereof the negatively charged armature is made up of at least a metal plate (10), coated with a thin dielectric, supporting a positively charged grid, separated from the other plate (20) by insulating pads (13) and by a gas. An air to air heat exchanger (30), for example, comprises a stack of plates (10), provided with their dielectric and their grid, separated by insulating pads (13) located in a chamber (15), defined, on the sides, by metal walls (32), resting against the lower plate (10) outer surface and against the insulating pads (13) respectively, located on the grid of the plate found on stack top, and delimited at the edge by insulating walls (16, 17). All the grids are connected in parallel to the high voltage produced by a direct voltage generator (33); the plates being connected to the ground.

Description

1

RBQCEΠE E-r HEAT BQMPE DEVICE A

ECQUi - EMEI - {- LSPQN-I-Al ^

The invention relates to a spontaneous flow heat pump method and device.

It is known to transfer heat from a cold environment to a warm environment, this is the role of any heat pump process. A refrigerator, for example, works by this process. It is, very generally, a device with mechanical compression. Other, more sophisticated devices are used, such as absorption or resorption cycles, or thermoelectric processes with Peltier effect, or a new process operating according to the technology of thermoelectronic vacuum diodes (international patent application WO 97/02460) applied to a device such as that described in the patent of the same invention US 5,675,972 making it possible to facilitate the electronic transfer from one electrode to the other by covering them with a special coating. But, because of their mode of operation, all these processes, without exception, are subject to a limited coefficient of performance, defined by the Carnot theorem. No process, in fact, has yet been able to escape this law. For this reason, no heat pump has ever allowed the conversion of ambient heat into work, referenced in Figures 37 to 39. It is possible, for example, to heat cold water by expending energy in the form of work (for example an electric current), but the reverse operation, that is to say to cool more cold water to produce work, has never been carried out. All engines, regardless of the type of fuel they use, all human activities, induce heat rejection in the environment, characterized by an increase in entropy. Thanks to this new heat pump, which can be described as an entropy reducer, it becomes possible to produce work by cooling the environment, that is to say to recover energy considered unfit for job.

This invention, as it is characterized, solves the problem of defining a process and creating a heat pump device from a cold part to a hot part, with which, on the one hand, no change of state of a heat transfer fluid is not necessary and, on the other hand, a spontaneous flow is obtained. By spontaneous flow is meant heat transfer, without the necessary consumption of energy.

The method of heat pump with spontaneous flow by electrostatic polarization of a gas, according to the invention, is characterized in that it consists in transferring heat in a gas between two close plates A and B of different temperatures, of the cold plate B towards the hot plate A, thanks to an electric field created on the surface of a plate A called "electrostatic", which attracts the gas molecules to make them give up energy by thermal accommodation. Upon entering the electric field, each molecule is attracted as in a gravity field and sees its kinetic energy Ec increase by a value which is a function of the electric field, which causes an increase in the temperature T of the gas at the surface of this plate A, as shown in the diagram in FIG. 1.

A simple and colorful way of representing the expected phenomenon consists, as shown schematically on the Figure 2, to replace the gas molecules by a multitude of billiard balls, in perpetual motion on a table C which would have a "ditch" at one of the two edges. For the image to be fair, it would be necessary, of course, that the movement of the balls is not slowed down between two impacts, as it is in reality, because of the slight friction of the balls on the carpet, and that a shock does not induce any loss of energy (the balls heat up in a shock, from where a loss of their kinetic energy after the rebound), but preserves it perfectly as in a gas, otherwise the movement would stop.

These two conditions fulfilled, we could see that the average kinetic energy of the balls hitting the left edge, at the bottom of the ditch, is greater than the average kinetic energy Ec of the balls on the horizontal part of the table, each ball entering in the ditch being accelerated by an energy value corresponding to the potential energy of the ball in this drop. The average kinetic energy Ec being able to be assimilated to the temperature T, it comes that the "temperature" of the balls striking the left edge is higher than the "temperature" of the balls striking the right edge.

Before describing the operating principle of the invention, it is good to examine how the heat transfer takes place between two ordinary plates, of different temperatures.

To simplify the representation, imagine, as shown schematically in Figure 3, two plates A and B infinite and close together, of different temperatures, with rarefied gas in between, so that the molecules oscillate between the two plates A and B without collision between the molecules, and let us observe a molecule, first when this one moves towards the right plate B according to the marked path 1, this plate B having a temperature higher than l other (the arrows indicate only the direction of movement and the energy level of the molecule, but not its location or its direction. It can move perpendicular to the plates A and B or at an angle. The horizontal arrow, marked 1, therefore means only that the molecule moves at constant speed between plates A and B).

Arriving on the right plate B, the molecule adapts its kinetic energy Ec to the temperature of plate B (Ecinetics = 3/2 KT °), in this case, it will heat up by bouncing at a higher speed after having drawn energy in thermal form from plate B, according to the reference 2 in FIG. 3. This phenomenon is known by the name of thermal accommodation.

The opposite effect will occur on contact with the cooler left plate A (item 3) with an energy supply in the form of heat corresponding to a loss of kinetic energy of the molecule, i.e. a cooling of the molecule and warming of the plate.

This exchange, multiplied by the considerable frequency of round trips, since the speed of a gas molecule is of the order of 400 to 500 m / s, as well as the considerable density of molecules in a gas, has the effect gradually equalize the temperature of plates A and B. -}

Still with a rarefied gas, let us now suppose that the molecule, arriving near the left plate A, called "electrostatic", penetrates into what will be called a gravity field or acceleration field. This is reflected on the energy or thermal curve in FIG. 4 by a ditch 1, like the pool table shown in FIG. 2.

This gravity field increases the kinetic energy of the molecule and can bring it to a temperature higher than that of the plate. In this case, by thermal accommodation, the molecule will give up energy on contact with the plate and start again at a lower speed (reference 2).

The molecule will now have to "go up" and lose as much kinetic energy as it gained by "falling". The end result is a cooling of the molecule (reference 3), although originally, before entering the gravity field, it was cooler than the plaque it was going to meet.

This cooling must be identical to that which it would have undergone on an ordinary plate, with an identical temperature difference between the molecule and the plate at the time of contact (reference 4).

It should now be emphasized that, the potential energy of the gravity field being equivalent to only a small fraction of the average kinetic energy of the molecules (a few tens of degrees at best, compared to the kinetic energy medium at room temperature, ^ 300 K), they are not likely to be trapped, or in a probability without consequence, and therefore do not need to recover from thermal energy on the plate to extract itself from the gravity field, which, of course, would cancel the expected effect. To take a comparison, a car driving at normal speed is not likely to be blocked by a pothole.

The energy exchange which has just been described tends to heat the electrostatic hot plate A and to cool the ordinary cold plate B, this, until the temperature difference between the plates A and B reaches a value corresponding to the potential energy of the gravity field, as shown in Figure 5. The thermodynamic equilibrium is then reached when the average energy of the molecules, arriving in contact with each plate, corresponds to the temperature of each respective plate. In this case, the energy exchange is canceled, thermal accommodation no longer plays any role, there is no longer any heat transfer. This situation corresponds to the configuration of the pool table, where the balls bounce off a wall without yielding or drawing energy, while retaining their kinetic energy.

The introduction of a gravity field would therefore have no other effect than to tilt the thermal curve in the vicinity of the electrostatic plate, which would allow the spontaneous flow of heat from a cold plate B to a plate warmer A.

With a higher density (or pressure), that is to say when the mean free path (collision-free path) is smaller than the distance between the plates, collisions take place within the gas, and this, d 'especially as the density is high (the average free path of a molecule 7

in an argon gas at atmospheric pressure is 50 nanometers, or 0.05 microns).

These collisions tend to equalize the temperature on a given plane between the plates A and B (reference 2 of the diagram in FIG. 6) and shorten the thermodynamic cycles, as is symbolically represented in FIG. 6, reference 1.

If we consider what happens in the area outside the gravity field (horizontal arrows), the temperature would therefore vary according to the position relative to the plates A and B, according to a thermal gradient or slope, reference 3, which will moreover allow to calculate the heat transfer power, as between two ordinary plates A and B.

Since this thermal slope determines the heat current (or transfer power), thermodynamic equilibrium will be reached when the slope is flat in this area, as shown in the diagram in Figure 7. We find the configuration "pool table ", described in the diagram of FIG. 5, with rarefied gas.

As between two ordinary plates A and B, the thermal conductivity of the rarefied gas decreases when the mean free path of the molecules becomes as large as the distance between the plates A and B. This is the only difference in behavior to be expected in the process, between a dense gas and a rarefied gas.

To calculate the heat flux, use the formula: heat flux φ = - λ grad T 8

with λ: thermal conductivity of the gas graα T: thermal gradient within the gas.

Imagine the case of two plates separated by 0.1 mm, the hot electrostatic plate A attracting the molecules in a gravity field equivalent to 2 degrees. In thermal equilibrium, that is to say when the thermal slope is flat in the area outside the field, the electrostatic plate A would be hotter than the other plate B by 2 degrees. By reducing this difference by half, the thermal slope is straightened by the same amount, which would therefore be 1 degree for 0.1 mm, ie grââ = 104 κ / m.

If the gas used is SF ₆ whose thermal conductivity is λ = 0.14 W / mk, the heat current through / - would be: φ = 0.14 x 10 ⁴ = 1400 W, from the cold plate to the plate warm, 1 degree warmer (see Figure 8).

According to the electrostatic principle illustrated in FIG. 9, let us imagine a metal bar 5 positively charged, inside a cylindrical metal grid 60 connected to ground, that is to say a Faraday cage. This neutralizes the electric field outside the cage, thanks to the negative charge which it acquires by influence. If a gas molecule 7 is far from the cage, it does not perceive an electric field and nothing happens. On the other hand, if it approaches the grid 60 sufficiently, the screen effect disappears and the molecule 7 polarizes under the effect of the electric field residing between the bar 5 and the grid 60, as shown in FIG. 9.

In the case where it enters between two bars of the grid 60, the electrons of the molecule 7 are attracted and its nucleus pushed back. But, as the electrons are closer to the 5 bar, and therefore, in a field more intense than the nucleus, the attraction of the electrons outweighs the repulsion of the nucleus: the whole molecule is attracted, as shown in FIG. 10. In the case where it approaches a bar 61 of the grid 60, the nucleus of the molecule 7 is attracted and the electrons repelled. As the nucleus is closer to grid 60, and therefore in a more intense field than the electrons, the attraction of the nucleus outweighs the repulsion of the electrons. Again, molecule 7 is attracted.

If we still take the case of a molecule 7 moving on the axis of symmetry of a dipole 62, 63, that is to say perpendicular to the electric field, as shown in Figure 11, the nucleus of the molecule 7 is attracted towards the negatively charged bar and the electrons towards the positively charged bar, each of these forces being directed tangentially to the field line. As this line is curved, the two opposite forces of attraction, which do not have the same point of application, are therefore not parallel, hence a result of force directed towards the increasing field.

The penetration of a molecule into an electric field always has the effect of attracting it towards the growing field, without relation to the direction or the direction of the field. This phenomenon of attraction by electrostatic polarization of a gas is known under the name of Debye force, which is, for example, at the origin of the formation of hydrates of rare gases (Ar _n , H ₂ O), with heat production resulting from the energy of attraction between molecules. 1 0

The energy of attraction can be calculated using the formula:

Energy of attraction: E pol = 1/2 F ² with F = electric field and α = polarizability of the molecule.

The energy of attraction results from the value of the field, but not from the electric potential.

(Electric potential = electric field x inter-electrode distance)

The table below gives the energy of attraction per molecule and the equivalence in degree of heating, for some examples of gas, penetrating in a field of 5 x

10 ⁸ V / m (500 Kv / mm), assuming that the molecules come from a zero field area. Other gases could be used, all the more interesting since they are polarizable. The heating of 1 degree is equivalent to approximately 2 x 10 ²³ joules per molecule (3/2 K, with K = 1.38 x 10 ²³ joules).

gas polarization energy of attraction degrees in Cm / Vm ^"1 with 5 x 10 ⁸ V / m of heating

Argon 1.85 x 10 ^"0 2 x 10 ^'23 joules 1 K

Krypton 2N6 10 ^"40 3.2 x lO ^-23 joules 6 K

Xenon 4.66 X 1G- ⁰ 5 x lO ^"23 joules 2.5 K

SF ₆ 7.40 x 1 Q- ⁴⁰ 8 x lO ^'23 joules 4 K

As shown in the diagram in FIG. 12, the device for applying the method according to the invention consists of a capacitor, the armature of which, negatively charged, consists of a metal plate 10 supporting the assembly. The insulator 11 is a dielectric 1 1

thin deposited on this plate 10, and finally, the grid 12, in contact with the gas, constitutes the positively charged reinforcement.

This grid 12 can be produced, for example, by etching extremely thin strips in a layer of metal deposited under vacuum on the insulator 11.

The width of the bands should be as small as possible. Indeed, the width and the height of the bands (which must remain in proportion) determine the average electric potential between the dielectric surface and the metallic surface of the bands connected to the ground. However, in this zone, ions (accidentally formed) will be accelerated in the direction of the field towards the dielectric surface and breakdown phenomena are all the more likely as the bands are high and wide.

The average value of the electric field on the surface of the electrostatic plate determines the energy of attraction of the molecules and heating of the plate.

Consequently, for the same energy of attraction of the molecules, the necessary potential is all the lower as the insulator is thin.

As shown in the diagram in FIG. 13, separation pads 13, distributed over the entire surface of the plates 20, maintain regular spacing between the two plates 10 and 20. They are as few and as narrow as possible, so to limit the return of heat in the normal direction hot plate. cold plate. 1 2

- One embodiment of the studs could consist in depositing, on the underside of each plate (opposite the engraved face), an adherent plastic layer, of thickness equal to the desired separation distance, then removing this layer by chemical etching or by milling, apart from what we want to keep for the studs (figure 14).

- Another possibility, making it possible to reduce the separation distance, and consequently to increase the heat transfer power, would consist in forming oxide microbubbles 14 on the surface of the metal, for example by ion implantation (Figure 15 ).

In the overall configuration, the heating of a few degrees from one plate relative to the other must be multiplied to obtain a sufficient temperature difference between the cold source and the hot source. The solution consists in proceeding by stages of temperature, that is to say in superimposing the sheets in mille-feuilles, in a sealed enclosure 15 containing the gas; whether it is an air-air heat exchanger 30, as shown in Figure 16, or water-water 40, as shown in Figure 17, all the grids are connected in parallel to the high voltage produced by a DC voltage generator 33 and all plates to ground. The mille-feuille consists of a stack of plates 10, provided with their dielectric 11 and their grid 12, separated by insulating pads 13 located in an enclosure 15 containing a gas, delimited, on the sides, by metal walls 32 bearing, respectively, against the external face of the lower plate 10 and against the insulating pads 13, located on the 1 3

grid 12 of the plate located on the top of the stack, and delimited by edge by insulating walls 16, 17.

The main advantage of the configuration described above is to use existing production techniques. However, these very expensive techniques risk limiting the process to specific uses and, by the same token, emptying it of its interest by prohibiting it from the mass applications for which it is intended, according to the applications mentioned below.

Different techniques could, in fact, be developed to reduce the cost of production, all remaining based on the same principle, that is to say the creation, on the surface of a plate, of an electric field allowing attract gas molecules to give them energy by thermal accommodation.

According to a first simplified embodiment of the process described above, taking into account that the most expensive aspect of the configuration described is the lithography process, the rectilinear strips are replaced by a mesh made up of a thin conductive layer, pierced with a multitude of cylindrical holes, proceeding as follows and as shown in Figures 18a to 18d. Microparticles

18, deposited and distributed at random on the photosensitive layer 170, could act as an etching mask. They could be provided with an electric charge at the time of deposition, to obtain a uniform distribution. In addition to the lower cost, this simplified process would make it possible to reduce the dimensions of the etching and the thickness of the dielectric, hence a reduction in the electrical potential and, consequently, in the energy consumed, however small it may be. 1 4

in the original process. The metal strips, which previously were relatively thick, are replaced by a very thin conductive layer 120 (or semiconductor), at the top of the insulating layer 11 to be etched. The substrate of this insulating layer 11 is a weakly resistive dielectric layer 111, since the exposed metal would induce, with such a field, a very significant electronic emission (tunnel effect), which would cause breakdown in the very short term. This layer would preferably be a dielectric with ionic conductivity, so as to obtain a layer of negative ions over the entire surface, capable of strongly maintaining the negative charge and of avoiding a large leakage current.

In the following configuration, ions, uniformly distributed on the surface, replace the strips or the metallic mesh of the previous configuration, as shown in FIGS. 19a and 19b. The gas molecules 7 are attracted to the negative ions 121, arranged on the surface of the layer 18, or of an oxide layer 19.

The advantages of this solution are as follows:

- obtaining a high field near the ions,

- a free electron in the gas can no longer acquire the ionization potential,

- the dielectric becomes too thin to crack.

According to another embodiment of the device, two types of very fine particles are mixed, with different surface potential. This process consists, as shown 1 5

in FIG. 20, to deposit, on a metal substrate, a mixture of two hyperfine powders, with different surface potential, so as to create an electric field between two neighboring grains of different nature. If it is possible to obtain fairly fine grains (^ 10 nm), to mix them and to adhere them correctly, we can then obtain, for example with two metals, one of low potential and the other of high potential , a field of 3V / 10 nm or 300 KV / mm.

The advantages of this embodiment are as follows: - more potential to maintain in a capacitor, more ions to produce, therefore more energy expended and more need for generator.

If a gas molecule accidentally ionizes near the surface (ionizing radiation, etc.), the free electron goes to a grain of low potential and the ion to a grain of high potential. If things stopped there, there would be a dispersion of the charge and a decrease in the electric field. However, the ionization potential of the gas molecule being stronger than the surface potential of the grain, everything has to go in order: the ionized molecule recovers its lost electron, then the electron gained by the grain of low potential returns to the high potential grain by electrical conductivity.

As a variant of the embodiment described above, it would be possible: a) rather than depositing two powders simultaneously, it would be possible to use only one powder in a sparse monolayer on a different metal, as shown in FIG. 21, 1 6

b) one could also deposit, by CVD, a metallic layer of a few nanometers on a metallic substrate of different nature, then etch the layer using, as mask, hyperfine grains, as represented in FIGS. 22a and 22b, c) a last variant would consist in directly exposing a photosensitive layer by electron beam, by means of the electronic lithography method, which would make it possible to obtain sufficiently fine lines. A priori, this possibility is only of interest for carrying out an experiment, given the considerable time necessary for the exposure of the photosensitive layer, as shown in FIGS. 23a to 23c, showing respectively the mask 171 of lNm wide, then the microbands 112 finally obtained.

In the following configuration, it is proposed to use the electric field naturally existing on the surface of all materials, which is at the origin of adsorption (chemisorption or physiosorption). However, there appear to be two obstacles to this use: if the adsorption energy is high, the gaseous molecules are trapped, that is to say that they have too long a residence time and they clutter the space where the free molecules could be attracted in their turn, with a smooth surface, the zone of attraction or interaction is probably confused with the zone of contact and heat exchange, so that the gas molecule could not be accelerated before to transfer energy in thermal form, and would not be slowed down either by starting again. The two interaction and heat exchange functions would be simultaneous, which would allow the molecule to start again by resuming 1 7

the energy it gave up on the plate when it arrived. The energy exchange balance would therefore be zero, as shown schematically in Figure 24b, while Figure 24a shows schematically the expected effect in the invention.

The problem of simultaneity of the interaction and heat exchange functions disappears if one expands the interaction zone to make it extend beyond the heat exchange zone, and this is apparently the case in a micropore. We know that a vapor molecule 7 undergoes a strong energy of attraction by penetrating into a micropore 21 (depending on the size of the micropore, of molecule 7 and of its polarizability), but the molecule remains free inside and rebounds as on a normal wall, which suggests that the heat exchange zone is covered by the attraction zone, as shown in the diagram in Figure 25, representing porous glass, activated carbon, gel silica or synthetic zeolite, having micropores 21 of dimensions 5 to 15 A, with contact and heat exchange zone at the base of the micropores 21 and attraction zone situated at the top of said micropores 21, this under a uniform field .

The disadvantage of a too long stay in the micropores would be reduced by reducing the interaction energy by the use of a large non-polar molecule. Still with the aim of limiting the size in the pores, the density of the gas will be reduced to 0.001 bar.

The advantages obtained, thanks to this invention, are those of thermoelectric pumps (Peltier): compactness, simplicity, no moving part so no noise, but with, in addition, a very good coefficient of performance 1 8

(COP), since it does not entail any necessary energy consumption. It is therefore no longer limited, as with all other procedures, to the maximum coefficient defined by Carnot's theorem.

Indeed, the disadvantage of the limited coefficient of current heat pumps, from an economic and ecological point of view, can be summarized by the diagram in Figure 26.

The overall coefficient (over a year) of current pumps

703 rarely exceeding 3, it does not allow to restore more heat than that produced at the power plant

704 to run the heat pump 705: we say, in this case, that there is no primary energy saving.

Consequently, if it becomes possible to raise this coefficient, such a primary energy saving becomes achievable, hence a reduction in pollution. Why the coefficient of performance of the process can exceed that defined by Carnot's theorem

Comparison of thermodynamic cycles.

According to Carnot's theorem, shown diagrammatically in Figure 27, if we have a cold source at 150K and a hot source at 300K (T ° hot source / T ° cold source = 2), the sampling I calorie at the cold source 707 will induce the rejection of 2 calories at the hot source 708, the second calorie coming from the work supplied to the pump (4, 18 joules). To shed light on the cause of this irreducible work in all current processes, it is necessary to observe in detail the Carnot cycle, which constitutes a perfect method from the point of view of the economy of the work to be provided in a heat pump. compression, as shown schematically in Figure 28. 1 9

Consider 1 mole of perfect gas at 150K

1) the gas is compressed adiabatically to heat it up to the temperature of the hot source 708,

2) after having brought it into contact with the hot source 708, it is again compressed in an isothermal manner to drain heat therein. This operation must be done very slowly so as not to heat the gas relative to the hot source,

3) it is adiabatically expanded to cool it down to the temperature of cold source 707,

4) after having brought it into contact with the cold source, it is still relaxed in an isothermal manner (very slowly) in order to draw heat therefrom.

We see that we obtain, with very little, the same result by removing the compression and isothermal expansion and replacing them with a small temperature difference between the gas and the hot or cold source at the time of putting them in contact. This method, described below and represented diagrammatically in FIG. 29, brings us clearly closer to the thermodynamic cycle of the invention and will clearly show the difference and the originality of the invention, compared to the Carnot cycle:

- Adiabatic compression (1) of the gas (l mole) and heating from 150 to 302K (302K is chosen arbitrarily)

W _t = 1895.66 joules with W = 3/2 R (T ₂ -T 2 0

- Cooling (2) of the gas in contact with the hot source, from 302 to 300K. Heat released dU = 24.94 d (with U = 3 / 2RT)

- Adiabatic expansion (3) of gas and cooling from 300 to 149.0066K W ₂ = 1883.11 joules

This time the temperature of 149.0066K is determined by the ratio of the volumes V _j / V ₂ , identical in compression and expansion with

T ₂ = (V ^) ² 'x T _! and V ₂ = V ^ T r _! ) '

- Heating (4) of the gas in contact with the cold source, from 149.0066K to 150K. Stored heat = 12.39 joules.

We can summarize the situation by the energy cycle of the gas represented in Figure 30: If we take 12.39 joules at the cold source, we reject 24.94 joules at the hot source, a difference of 12.55 d , which corresponds exactly to the work globally spent in the cycle (Wj - W). As expected, 1 calorie taken from the cold source induces the rejection of 2 calories from the hot source (24.94 / 12.39 = 2013), the second calorie coming from the work provided.

It can be seen that the energy of the gas, that is to say its temperature, is on average higher in compression than in expansion, for the simple reason that it is heated just before the compression phase and cooled just before the relaxation phase. However, if the gas is hotter in compression, its pressure is also higher. Consequently, the compression work Wj is necessarily more important than the expansion work W ₂ , hence an irreducible overall work to be provided 2 1

(12.55 d in this case), which could be called Carnot's work = Wi - W ₂ .

If we now examine the cycle of the electrostatic pump, we notice, in the diagram in Figure 31, that we successively obtain:

- Acceleration or warming (1) of the gas molecule in the gravity field.

- Cooling (2) by thermal accommodation.

- Slowing down or cooling (3) of the molecule in the gravity field.

- Heating (4) by thermal accommodation.

The work of the piston in the Carnot cycle is replaced here by the work of the gravity field, and the contacting of the gas with the hot or cold source, in the Carnot cycle, is carried out here by thermal accommodation. But, while, in the Carnot cycle, the compression work necessary to heat the gas (Wi) was greater than the expansion work (W ₂ ) which cooled it, this time, the gravity field accelerates then slows down the molecule, according to the same potential energy: W _} - W ₂ = 0.

To highlight this aspect, we could, as shown schematically in Figure 32, compare the molecule that falls on the plate, to a balloon 700 in space that falls on a planet (It must be assumed that there is no atmosphere and the balloon has a high initial speed). By entering the gravity field 701 of the planet 2 2

702, the ball is accelerated. By the effect of the shock, it gives up energy in the form of heat and therefore rebounds at a lower speed. Going up, it slows down and returns to space with a kinetic energy lower than it had before falling on the planet. Its energy curve would correspond exactly to that described in the left part of the diagram in Figure 31.

Once out of the field of gravity 701, the balloon 700 owes it nothing more: the energy which it had "borrowed" from it when falling is totally "reimbursed" by going back up, while the energy released in the shock is paid for by a final slowdown of the balloon 700, but absolutely not by the gravity field 701.

It is the same for the molecule in the field of electrostatic gravity. Once it comes out of the electric field and depolarized, it no longer owes it anything. The energy which it was able to leave in the form of heat on the plate is totally paid for by a final reduction in its kinetic energy, but absolutely not by the electric field, which itself has not undergone any modification.

It was not the same in the Carnot cycle, where the expenditure of energy for the acceleration of molecules in compression could, in no case, be fully reimbursed by their deceleration in expansion. The heat released at the hot spring was partially paid for by the work of the piston.

In conclusion, there is no more overall work to be provided, which would be transformed into heat and discharged to the hot source 708. Each calorie, taken from the cold source 707, is 23

rejected at the hot spring, no more, as shown in Figure 33. We will see, in applications, the consequences induced by this new property.

Other characteristics and advantages will appear in the following description of different applications of the method and of the device according to the invention, given by way of nonlimiting example, with regard to the appended drawings, in which:

FIG. 34a represents an air-air heat exchanger with fins, for space heating and air conditioning, in the air conditioning position,

FIG. 34b represents the heat exchanger according to FIG. 34a, in the heating position,

FIG. 35a represents a side view of a refrigerator,

FIG. 35b represents a top view of the refrigerator according to FIG. 35a,

FIG. 36a shows diagrammatically the impossibility of producing a central unit for converting ambient heat into work, with an ideal heat engine and an ideal conventional heat pump,

FIG. 36b shows diagrammatically the possibility of producing an ambient heat conversion plant, with a heat engine and an electrostatic pump, 2 4

FIG. 37 represents a schematic view of the conversion center according to FIG. 36b,

FIG. 38 represents a schematic view of a power plant for producing energy and fresh water from sea water,

FIG. 39a represents a schematic view of a thermoelectric generator,

Figure 39b shows a schematic view of a thermoelectric generator according to Figure 39a, provided with a larger heat exchanger, preferable if the heat is provided by the air.

Now examining the figures in more detail, it can be seen in FIG. 34a that the air-air heat exchanger 50 in question, used for air conditioning, consists essentially of a mille-feuille 51, similar to that shown in FIG. 16, arranged between two finned air exchangers 52 and 53: the assembly being disposed behind a double partition 54, corresponding to the level of the floor and the ceiling of the room, provided with grids 541 and 542 for communication with said room, in order to allow the free circulation of air on the fins of the cold part exchanger 53. The outside air communicates via conduits 551 and 552 with the space between the double partition 54 and the mille-feuille 51, where it is channeled by sliding nozzles 553 and 554 on the fins of the hot part exchanger 52, against the current with respect to the indoor air, that is to say say by entering through the lower duct 551 and re- returning through the upper duct 552. 2 5

In FIG. 34b, which corresponds to the use in heating mode of the air-air heat exchanger 50, represented in FIG. 34a, it is noted that the adaptation of said exchanger to this use is obtained by simple sliding, towards the wall 55, sliding nozzles 553 and 554, in order to obtain, on the fins 53 of the exchanger 50 situated towards the wall 55, a top-to-bottom circulation of the outside air and, on the fins 52 of the exchanger 50 located towards the double partition 54, a circulation from the bottom to the top of the interior air.

FIGS. 35a and 35b, which represent an application of the invention to the refrigeration of products, show that, by analogy with the heat exchanger shown in FIG. 16, the cooling of the enclosure of a refrigerator 600, provided with a door 601, can be obtained by a finned air-air heat exchanger, consisting of a mille-feuille 602 disposed between two air exchangers, one of which 603 is located outside and the other of which is embedded in the bottom 604 of the refrigerator 600.

Applications specific to the invention

Referring to FIGS. 36a and 36b, giving a schematic representation of a central unit for converting ambient heat into work, it is noted that the principle of this conversion consists in associating a heat pump 71 with a heat engine 72, in the purpose of making it produce more work than the pump 71 consumes. The ambient heat, drawn from the environment (groundwater, river, river, lake, sea, atmosphere ...), provides the energy necessary for the production of useful work. The engine works in 2 6

flowing heat from the hot source 73 to the cold source 74 (hot piping and cold piping), while converting a part into work, while the pump 71 "transfers" the heat from the cold source 74 to the hot source 73 .

Such a system can only operate with a heat pump 71 whose coefficient of performance is higher than that defined by Carnot's theorem, as shown in Figure 36b. Indeed, as long as the heat pumps were subject to this coefficient, the coupling of such a pump with a heat engine could, at best, only lead to the reciprocal neutralization of their effects: the totality of the work provided by the motor being consumed by the pump, as shown in the diagram in Figure 36a.

On the other hand, the desired effect would be obtained if the coefficient of performance of the pump 71 became higher than that defined by Carnot's theorem. In the case where the pump no longer consumes energy, all the work produced by the motor 72 can be released. This work would result from the conversion of ambient heat drawn from the environment, as shown schematically in Figure 36b.

The thermodynamic cycle, with arbitrarily chosen temperatures, would be as follows, following steps (a) to (e):

a) Or 1 calorie taken from the hot source 73 by the evaporator of the engine 72. 2 7

b) The engine converts part of this calorie into work (0.16 calorie maximum).

c) The rest (0.84 cal. minimum) is discharged by the condenser to the cold source 74.

d) To maintain the temperature of the cold source 74, the heat pump 71 must raise this quantity of heat to the hot source 73. If its energy consumption is zero, any calorie taken from the cold source 74 is rejected to the hot source 73, nothing more.

e) Ultimately, the hot source 73 is cooled by 0.16 cal., that is, the amount of heat converted into work. It is therefore heated by taking heat from the environment, by means of an auxiliary heat pump 75, since the environment is cooler than the hot source 73.

According to this principle, the design and operation of the ambient heat conversion plant to work would be as follows, repeating steps (a) to (e) already used above and referring to the diagram in Figure 37 :

a) The working fluid, generally ammonia, arrives in the evaporator 76, where it takes heat from the hot source 73. The hot fluid therefore undergoes a cooling of a few degrees (the hot plates of the pump to heat 71 could directly play the role of evaporator 76. Similarly, the cold plates of said heat pump 71 could play the role of condenser). 2 8

b) The ammonia vapor arrives in the turbine acting as an engine 72, where it expands producing a job, the value of which depends on the temperature difference between the hot source 73 and the cold source 74.

c) The steam enters the condenser 77, where it transfers heat to the cold source 74. The cold fluid therefore undergoes heating. The ammonia, which has become liquid, is pumped and pressurized by a 721 pump, then it performs a new cycle.

d) To maintain the temperature of the cold source 74, the heat pump 71 must "raise" the heat flowing by the motor 72. Thanks to its high coefficient of performance, it can do this using only a small part of the work supplied by motor 72.

e) The role of the auxiliary heat pump 75 is to take heat from the environment, that is to say the energy which is converted into work, to introduce it to the hot source 73. But, one could also directly heat the cold source 74 by means of a simple heat exchanger, according to the configuration of FIG. 38.

The power made available in this way is as follows:

Each calorie taken from the environment is fully converted into work. If it is a watercourse, each gram of water discharged and cooled by 1 ° C would provide 4.18 joules (4.18 MW / m ³ / s). A plant that 2 9

cooling all the water discharged by the Rhine by 1 ° C would give an average of 9,196 MW (average flow: 2,200 m / s), the Rhône 7,106 MW, the Loire 3,300 MW, the Seine 1,567 MW, the Garonne 836MW.

If we apply the conversion plant according to figure 38, to the production of energy and fresh water from sea water, always respecting the steps (a) to (e) defined above and as shown in Figure 38, we see that the principle is the same as for the production of energy alone, except that the working fluid used in the thermal machine is, this time, sea water, with production of fresh water at condenser 77. This possibility has already been applied in Thermal Energy of the Seas (Georges Claude Process), but it was then necessary to have a hot source and a cold source, the latter being produced by the reservoir cold and deep water from tropical seas, while surface water was the hot spring. In the present case, a single source is sufficient and all the seas can be suitable.

The design and operation of the plant are as follows:

a) Part of the water, intended to heat the cold source

74, is divided by a pump 78 to the evaporator 76, where it is heated to the temperature of the hot source 73.

b) Under the effect of heat and depression

(the evaporator 76 and the condenser 77 are 10 m above sea level), the water evaporates. To avoid the 30

salt formation, a salt water return 79 is provided at a moderate flow rate.

c) The water vapor passes through the turbine 72, where it expands producing a job. Then it enters the condenser 77 and liquefies in fresh water at the temperature of the cold source 74, between 0 and 5 ° C.

d) As in the configuration where only energy is produced, the system must be supplied with heat taken from the environment to produce work. In the present case, the sea water being only slightly hotter than the cold source 74, the cold source 74 can be directly heated directly by means of a simple heat exchanger, which avoids the auxiliary heat pump.

Now examining FIGS. 39a and 39b, illustrating the description of a thermoelectric generator produced according to the invention, it can be seen that the principle consists in interposing a thermoelectric element 91 between the hot plate and the cold plate of two neighboring mille-feuilles 92 , the thermoelectric element 91 replacing the turbine 72 and the generator 70 of the thermodynamic power plant. The alternating arrangement of mille-feuilles 92 and thermoelectric elements 91 allows a homogeneous and constant circulation of heat, as indicated in the diagrams of FIGS. 39a and 39b. Indeed, unlike the thermodynamic power plant, where the heat of two juxtaposed mille-feuilles should converge on the hot piping, here the mille-feuilles 92 are all arranged in the same direction, to circulate the heat in the same direction. Thermoelectric elements 91 allow heat to flow 3 1

from the hot part to the cold part, by converting a small part into electric current, while the mille-feuilles 92 "transfer" this heat from the cold part to the hot part. They therefore recycle the heat passed through the thermoelectric elements 91, to convert it entirely into work (electricity).

Such a thermoelectric generator works as follows:

1) Using a voltage generator, not shown, the mille-feuilles 92 are started up. The hot plate of each mille-feuille 92 is heated and the cold plate is cooled. During this time, the heat begins to flow in the thermoelectric elements 91, in an increasingly intense current, which produces electricity.

2) The mille-feuilles 92 recycle the heat passed through the thermoelectric elements 91, but, as a part is converted into electricity, the system would tend to cool, hence the introduction of metal plates 93 welded to the exchanger thermal 94 and wedged in the middle of each mille-feuille 92, the role of which is to supply the system with ambient heat taken by the heat exchanger 94.

This heat can be provided by a fluid (air, water, etc.), or by a combustion gas, radiation, the disintegration of radioisotopes, as in current thermoelectric converters, or even by simple thermal conduction with a solid. supporting the device (ex = earth). 3 2

The generator fully converts the heat into electricity, which can represent a considerable advantage compared to current thermoelectric generators, which convert only a small part and dissipate a large amount of heat.

Applications: generator for satellite, isolated station, beacon, buoy, meteorology. Other applications can be envisaged for electrical devices currently operating with a battery or a cell.

In addition to the conversion applications described above, exclusively reserved for the invention and represented by FIGS. 37, 38 and 39, one can also cite all the traditional applications of heat pumps, the benefit of which would be greatly increased by a coefficient high performance:

1) Applications involving heat exchange with the environment (atmosphere, water table, river ...):

- Heating and air conditioning of collective and individual housing, hospitals, hotels, schools, performance halls and offices.

- Water heaters, heating of swimming pools, grape harvests, greenhouses, soil for growing mushrooms, water for fish farming.

- Refrigerators. - Refrigerating machines for the canning industry and the food industry, as well as for the air conditioning of port sheds. 3 3

2) Heat recycling applications, without heat exchange with the environment:

- Drying of skins, saltings, wood, paper, cereals (corn; barley).

- Evaporation for the concentration of aqueous solutions in the food industry, stationery and chemical industry.

- Desalination of sea water.

3) Other applications of the same nature, provided that the process is capable of providing a hot source up to 120 °:

- Oil refinery.

- Paper making.

- Food industry.

- Alcohol distillery.

An experimental technique is set out below making it possible to verify that the object pursued by the invention has been achieved, namely a heat transfer between two plates as described schematically in FIG. 13. The demonstrator used for this experimentation includes, according to an embodiment shown in Figure 40a: a thick metal plate

101, constituting the so-called electrostatic hot plate covered with a dielectric polarized on the surface like an electret by means of an electronic or ionic gun, and etched over its entire thickness to obtain a microgrid

12. This polarizable dielectric (PP, PTFE or other) will preferably be deposited on a thin sheet of silicon

102, which enjoys recognized advantages over 3 4

compared to a metal; a thin metal plate 201 with adjustment of the distance relative to the thick plate 101 by means of plastic screws 202 and 203, then finally a thermal probe 204.

Preferably, the thick metal plate has a thickness of 20 to 30mm, the square studs of the microgrid 12 have a width of 1 to 3 microns, as well as the holes arranged alternately, which should make the microgrid look like, seen from above. , to a checkerboard. The thin metal plate 201, 2 to 3 mm thick, is separated from the thick plate 101 by a distance reduced to a minimum of 0.1 to 0.2 mm. The electric field E in the holes of the microgrid must be between 5 x 10 ^ and 10 ^ V / m (500 to 1000 KV / mm).

The thickness of the thick plate 101 is intended to give it, during the experiment, a temperature inertia, that is to say a very low heating allowing the cooling of the thin plate 201 to be more easily measured.

Indeed, it is preferable to measure the cooling of the thin plate 201 in order to clearly highlight the heat transfer between the two plates, rather than the heating of the hot plate, which could be interpreted in various ways, without being necessarily retained the desired conclusion.

Referring now to FIG. 40b relating to the apparatus and to the experimentation, it is noted that the demonstrator shown in FIG. 40a has been introduced into a sealed enclosure 80 fitted with a base 81, a bracket 82 supporting an electronic gun 83 3 5

connected to an external voltage generator 830, of an upright 84 supporting a winch 840 driven by a motor 841, with external control 842, of a cable 843, connecting the winch 840 to a fixed ring 205, on the top of the thin metal plate 201 of the demonstrator, of an external thermometer 85 connected to the thermal probe 204 of the demonstrator.

The thin metal plate 201 is connected to an electrometer 206 comprising a capacitor 207 and a voltmeter 208.

The enclosure 80 is connected, by means of a pipe, to a vacuum pump 86, to a compressed gas cylinder 87 and to a pressure gauge 88. The gas is chosen according to its polarizability or dielectric susceptibility, because it depends on the acceleration of the molecules, when they reach the holes of the microgrid 12, and on its dielectric strength, sufficiently high so as to avoid breakdown in the gas.

It is important to note on this subject that the dielectric rigidity of the gas, for very short interelectrode distances (in the holes of the microgrid 12) can no longer be deduced from the Paschen curves, but depends only on the electronic emission of field from the cathode; apart from the immobility of the negative charges trapped in the polarizable dielectric constitutes the best asset for solving the problem posed by the very high field prevailing in the holes of the microgrid 12. With regard to the pressure, it appears, from the Paschen curves, that the experiment can be carried out under a pressure of 1 bar or else 10-2 bar, the intermediate pressure inducing a potential 3 6

disruptive too low for the 0.1mm gas gap separating plates 101 and 201; but in this case, the risk of breakdown is much less with the polarized dielectric playing the role of cathode. By introducing the gas into the enclosure 80, the thin metallic plate 201 should normally be observed to cool, the temperature difference observed being proportional to the square of the electric field in the holes of the microgrid 12, which must remain as long as the plate is loaded. It is therefore possible to verify this principle for different load levels and measure the cooling rate so as to deduce the heat transfer power.

The demonstrator being placed in the enclosure 80, the thin metal plate 201 being raised and placed vertically against the upright 84 by means of the winch 840, the thick plate 101, called electrostatic, is charged to the desired level, by scanning with the electronic gun 83 (or ionic) whose role is to eliminate the positive surface charges which neutralize the negative charges trapped in the polarizable dielectric. This operation must be carried out by maintaining in the enclosure 80, a high vacuum so that the electrons (or the ions) conserve their kinetic energy to reach the surface of the dielectric, which repels the electrons (or the ions) in the holes of the microgrid 12 as it loads.

By means of the electrometer 206, it is possible to measure the charge of the thick electrostatic plate 101. If the thin metal plate 201 is lifted using the winch 840 while the thick metal plate 101 is 3 7

assumed to be charged, the mass having been previously disconnected by the switch 209, it is necessary to detect an increase in voltage of the thin metal plate 201 corresponding to the positive charge which it held by influence when it rested by means of the screws. setting 202, 203 on the thick metal plate 101.

Claims

3 8 CLAIMS

1. A heat pump method between two closely spaced plates, of different temperatures, separated by a gas, from the cold plate (B) to the hot plate (A), characterized in that it consists in creating an electric field at the surface of the hot plate (A), called "electrostatic", so that it attracts gas molecules as in a gravity field, capable of increasing the kinetic energy (Ec) of each molecule and, consequently, the temperature of the gas on the surface of the plate (A), to cause the molecules to yield energy to this plate by thermal accommodation.

2. Heat pump method according to claim 1, characterized in that the electrostatic polarization of the gas in the electric field and the increase in the kinetic energy of the molecules which results therefrom allow a spontaneous flow of heat, as between two ordinary plates, of different temperatures, but from the cold plate (B) to the electrostatic hot plate (A), within the limit of a temperature difference, which is a function of the polarization energy of the molecules. By spontaneous flow is meant the fact that there is no longer any energy necessarily consumed.

3. Device for applying the method according to claims 1 and 2 above, characterized in that it consists of a cold metal plate (20) and a hot metal plate (10), which is covered a dielectric (11) and a grid (12), separated from the plate 3 9

metallic cold (20) by insulating pads (13) and by the chosen gas, the hot metallic plate (10) and the grid (12) being each connected to an opposite terminal of a DC voltage generator.

4. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that it consists of a stack of elementary plates (10) contained in an enclosure (15), so as to increase the temperature difference between the cold source and the hot source .

5. Application of the method according to claims 1 and 2 and of the device according to claims 3 and 4, to the conditioning of the air of premises.

6. Application of the method according to claims 1 and 2 and of the device according to claims 3 and 4, to the conversion of ambient heat into work.

7. Application of the method according to claims 1 and 2 and of the device according to claims 3 and 4, to a power plant for producing energy and fresh water from sea water.

8. Application of the method according to claims 1 and 2 and of the device according to claims 3 and 4, to a thermoelectric generator.