WO2001020236A1

WO2001020236A1 - Cooling device

Info

Publication number: WO2001020236A1
Application number: PCT/JP2000/005823
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hiroshi Ichigaya
Original assignee: Seft Development Laboratory Co.,Ltd.
Priority date: 2000-08-29
Filing date: 2000-08-29
Publication date: 2001-03-22
Also published as: AU2000267336A1

Abstract

A cooling device simple in structure, less in power consumption, and capable of reducing total costs, wherein outside air is circulated through the inside of a first flow passage (25) by a fan (12) so that water is evaporated forcibly on an evaporation sheet (34) to increase the amount of evaporation in order to absorb more heat than usual, whereby the temperature of a cooling unit (30) in contact with the evaporation sheet (34) is lowered suddenly, and thus the air in a room circulating through the inside of a second flow passage inside the cooling unit (30) can be cooled.

Description

Description Cooling device Technical field

The present invention relates to a cooling device that efficiently cools a cooling target with low power consumption by utilizing the removal of vaporization heat from the surroundings when water vaporizes.

Background art

At present, the most common indoor cooling system is a type of air conditioner that uses a compressor. Various types of such air conditioners have been developed for household, automotive and commercial use.The basic principle is that a compressor compresses refrigerant and the heat generated at this time is exchanged by heat exchange. The common feature is that the refrigerant is adiabatically expanded after being discharged, and at that time, heat is taken from the surroundings to cool the target space.

However, the air conditioner has a problem that the structure is complicated and expensive, and the running cost is high because the power consumption is large. For this reason, places where air conditioners can be installed are limited, and installation must be hesitated in places where there are relatively few people. In addition, due to its large power consumption, if it spreads so much in the world, the effect on global warming cannot be ignored. レ Furthermore, in the case of air conditioners that use chlorofluorocarbon as a refrigerant, the equipment must be discarded. Occasionally, chlorofluorocarbons leak into the atmosphere, causing the problem of destruction of the ozone layer.

The present invention has been made in view of such a technical background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cooling device that has a simple structure, consumes little power, and can reduce the overall cost.

Disclosure of the invention

In order to achieve the above object, a cooling device according to the present invention includes a first flow passage through which air flows, and a fluid to be cooled, which is provided at a predetermined interval inside the first flow passage. A plurality of second flow paths through which flow without flowing out to the first flow path; Air blowing means for feeding air into the first flow path, water holding means provided on the outer surface of the second flow path, and water supply means for supplying water to the water holding means. The fluid flowing through the second flow passage is cooled by flowing air through the first flow passage and promoting the vaporization of water from the water holding means to lower the temperature of the second flow passage. And

The second flow passage is formed in a hollow flat plate shape using a metal, and has a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet. A plurality of the second flow passages are set up in the first flow passage. They are installed in parallel in a state where they are set.

A spillage drain is provided at the bottom of the first flow passage to take out excess water accumulated at the bottom to the outside.

The water supply means is provided at an upper portion of the first flow passage, and supplies the water by dropping water from above the water holding means.

The water holding means has a sheet shape and is provided so as to cover at least an upper portion and both side portions of the second flow passage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a schematic overall view in the case of cooling a room using the cooling device of the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a cooling device main body of the first embodiment,

3 (a) is a side view of the cooling box, (b) is a plan view of the cooling box, FIG. 4 (a) is a perspective view of the cooling unit, (b) is a bottom view of the cooling unit, and (c) is a bottom view of the cooling unit. Side view of the cooling unit,

FIG. 5 is a schematic overall view when a room is cooled using the cooling device of the second embodiment, FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a pre-processing unit,

FIG. 7 is a schematic overall view when a room is cooled using the cooling device of the third embodiment.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Hereinafter, a case where the cooling device of the present invention is used as a room cooling device will be described.

[Embodiment 1]

FIG. 1 is a schematic overall view when a room is cooled using the cooling device of the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the cooling device main body of the first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1, the air in the room 2 is sent into the cooling device 1 via the pipe 4 by the fan 3 and cooled to return to the room. In FIG. 1, the water piping system is omitted for simplicity.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the cooling device 1 of the present embodiment includes a cooling device main body 5, a control unit 6 for controlling the cooling device main body 5, a cooling box 11 and a fan 1 2 for sucking outside air. , A spill catcher 13 for collecting excess water in the cooling box 11, a concentration detector 14 for detecting the impurity concentration of water in the spill catcher 13, and a water in the spill catcher 13 , A valve 16 for circulating and using the water in the spill receiver 13, a valve 17 for opening and closing tap water, an outside air inlet 18, Exit 19 is provided. Although not shown, the cooling device 1 of the present embodiment sets temperature / humidity detecting means for detecting the temperature and humidity of the outside air, air flow detecting means for detecting the air flow of the fan 12, and sets a target indoor cooling temperature. Setting means for performing the setting.

As shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the cooling box 11 has a case 21 having an outside air inlet 2la and an outside air outlet 21b, and a room housed in the case 21 at regular intervals. The air conditioner includes a plurality of cooling units 30 serving as air flow passages, and a water tank 22 provided on an upper part of the case 21. In this embodiment, the outlet 21b of the cooling box 11 also serves as the outside air outlet 19 of the cooling device body 5, but the outlet 21b and the outside air outlet 19 are provided separately. You may do so.

At the bottom of the cooling box 11, a drain pipe 21c for draining accumulated water is provided. A plurality of holes 23 for dropping water are formed in the bottom of the water tank 22 above the cooling unit 30 (that is, on the ceiling of the case 21). The water in the water tank 22 is dropped onto the upper part of the cooling unit 30 from the hole 23 by water pressure.

In FIGS. 2 and 3, only four cooling units 30 are arranged for simplification of the drawing. However, in actuality, this cooling unit depends on the size of the room to be cooled. Dozens of them are arranged accordingly. For example, when cooling a room of 8 tatami mats, it is necessary to arrange about 40 cooling units 30 for 15 Omm x 15 OmmX width and 3 band width. The space between the cooling units is about 5 mm. This cold The 5 mm gap between the cooling units forms the outside air flow passage (hereinafter, also referred to as the first flow passage) 25, and the hollow portion of the cooling unit having the three widths forms the indoor air flow passage (hereinafter, the second flow passage). 3 5 The reason why the first flow passage 25 and the second flow passage 35 are narrowed in this way is to increase the efficiency of heat exchange between the outside air and the indoor air. If the cooling unit width or interval is too large, the heat exchange efficiency will be poor. If it is too small, the resistance at the time of air blowing will increase, and the load on the fan 12 will increase. Therefore, when the object to be cooled is a gas as in the present embodiment, the width of the cooling unit is preferably 2 mm to 20 mm, and the interval is preferably about 2 mm to 30 mm.

The cooling unit 30 includes a main body 31 formed in a hollow shape as shown in FIG. 4, and a vaporization sheet 34 attached to cover an upper portion and both side portions of the main body 31. I have. The main body 31 serves as an indoor air flow passage (second flow passage 35), and is used to discharge indoor air intake 32, indoor air outlet 33, and dew condensation water. And a hole 36 formed at the bottom. The main body 31 is formed using a material having high thermal conductivity, for example, aluminum or the like. The vaporized sheet 34 corresponds to the “water holding means J” of the present invention. The vaporized sheet 34 is preferably a fibrous material that is as thin as possible, has low thermal resistance, and easily absorbs water and easily diffuses. In the present embodiment, for example, cotton cut into a predetermined size is used as the vaporizing sheet 34. The water supplied from the pump to the water tank 22 is supplied to the hole 2 of the water tank 22. The water is dropped onto the upper part of the vaporized sheet 34 attached in an inverted U-shape from 3. The dropped water flows from the upper part to the lower part of the side part due to the capillary action of the fibers constituting the vaporized sheet 34. It diffuses and the entire vaporized sheet 34 quickly becomes moist.The holes 23 are not circular but elongated holes, in order to drop as uniformly as possible onto the upper part of the vaporized sheet 34. It may be formed in a shape.

The control unit 6 controls the fans 3 and 12, the valves 15 and 17 and the pump 16 so that the room temperature becomes a constant temperature set by the setting means. Further, the control unit 6 controls the pump 16 and / or the valve based on data such as the outside air temperature, the outside air humidity and the amount of air blown from the fan sent from each detecting means, and the set temperature sent from the setting means. Control 17 to adjust the amount of water supplied. When the amount of water supplied to the vaporizing sheet is small and the vaporizing sheet dries, impurities in the water will evaporate as described later. And the water retention capacity of the vaporized sheet decreases. For this reason, in the present embodiment, the amount of water to be supplied is adjusted by the control unit 6 so that the vaporized sheet does not dry even if water is vaporized by the vaporized sheet. Even without such control by the controller 6, the pump 16 and the valve 17 may be manually adjusted in advance so that the vaporized sheet does not dry.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described. First, the valve 17 is opened, tap water is supplied to the water tank 22, and the water is dropped from the hole 23 to the vaporizing sheet 34. As a result, the entire surface of the vaporization sheet 34 holds water, and the surplus water is accumulated in the spill receiver 13 via the pipe 21 c at the bottom of the cooling box 11. The water accumulated in the spill reservoir 13 is supplied again to the water tank 22 by the pump 16 and reused. The reason for recovering a certain amount of water as surplus water is to prevent the precipitation of impurities. Tap water contains impurities mainly composed of calcium carbonate. When all water is evaporated by the vaporization sheet 34, the impurities are precipitated as residues. When such a residue is deposited, water cannot be efficiently vaporized in the vaporization sheet 34, and the cooling effect is greatly reduced. For this reason, the problem is avoided by supplying more water than the amount of water that actually evaporates and recovering some water as “spill water”. As another method, a residue of the tap water may be removed by a water purifier or the like, and the residue may be supplied to the vaporizing sheet 34. In addition, not only surplus water supplied to the vaporization sheet but also water condensed in the cooling box is collected in the spill water receiver 13. This dew water contains no impurities unlike tap water, is close to distilled water, and is superior in water quality to tap water. For this reason, in the present embodiment, the condensed water is reused together with the remaining water. When the value from the concentration detector 14 provided in the spill receiver 13 is smaller than a certain value, the control unit 6 controls the drive of the pump 16 to reuse the collected water. I do. On the other hand, when the value from the concentration detector 14 exceeds a predetermined value, the pump 16 is stopped and the valve 15 is opened in order to discharge the water in the spill receiver 13. State. By performing such control, it is possible to reliably prevent impurities from being deposited on the vaporized sheet 34 even when water is circulated and used.

The outside air is sucked in from the outside air intake port 18 on the left side of Fig. Send it to the box. The supplied outside air passes through the first flow passage 25 between the cooling units and is discharged to the outside from the outside air discharge port 19. When the outside air is circulated through the first flow passage 25, the water held in the vaporization sheet 34 comes into close contact with the outside air flowing through the first flow passage 25. Thereby, the vaporization of the water held in the vaporization sheet 34 is promoted, and the amount of evaporation is greatly increased as compared with the case where the outside air is not circulated.

By the way, when water evaporates, it absorbs around 580 calories of heat of vaporization per cc from the surroundings. Therefore, when air is flowed through the first flow passage 25 and water is forcibly vaporized in the vaporization sheet 34 to increase the amount of evaporation, a large amount of heat is absorbed, and the vaporization sheet 34 contacts the vaporization sheet 34. The temperature of the cooling unit 30 is rapidly reduced. As a result, the room air flowing through the second flow passage 35 of the cooling unit 30 is cooled. On the other hand, the vaporized moisture is discharged to the outside from the outside air exhaust port 19 together with the air flowing through the first flow passage 25, so that the humidity in the room 2 does not increase.

The outside air flows through the first flow passage 25 from the left side to the right side of FIG. 2 as shown by the arrow A in FIG. 2, and the indoor air flows through the second flow passage 35 as shown by the arrow B in FIG. Flows from the right side to the left side. In this way, by making the flow direction of the outside air and the room air reverse, the air can be efficiently cooled by the principle of the heat exchanger. That is, in the first flow passage 25, the outside air flows from the left side to the right side in FIG. 2, and therefore, the humidity of the outside air is lower toward the left side in the first flow passage 25. The lower the humidity, the more water evaporates, so the cooling effect is high, and the temperature of the cooling unit 30 is lower on the left than on the right. In this state, when the room air in the second flow passage 35 flows in the direction from the left side to the right side in FIG. 2, the temperature difference between the room air and the cooling unit 30 is very large on the left side, The temperature difference between the cooling unit and the room air becomes smaller. This results in uneven cooling of the air and lowers the cooling efficiency. On the other hand, when the air in the second flow passage 35 is caused to flow from the right side to the left side as in the present embodiment, the temperature difference between the cooling unit and the air becomes relatively uniform, and the indoor air Is cooled gradually, so that the cooling efficiency can be improved.

The cooling device of the present invention is the same as a conventional cooling device in that cooling is performed by utilizing the heat of vaporization taken from the surroundings when the liquid refrigerant evaporates. You. However, since water is used as an inexpensive and favorable material for the global environment as a refrigerant, even if it is vaporized to remove heat of vaporization from the surroundings and then discharged directly into the atmosphere, it has no effect on the global environment. Has no effect. This eliminates the need for the process of compressing refrigerants, which are expensive and have a negative impact on the global environment, for reuse as in conventional cooling systems. Generally, a large amount of power is consumed in this compression process, but the power consumption is greatly reduced by eliminating the need for the compression process as in the present invention. Therefore, the electric power required to operate the cooling device of the present embodiment is a fan 12 for circulating outside air in the first flow passage 25, and a fan for circulating room air to the cooling unit 30. 3. Very little power is needed to drive pumps 16 and so on.

Further, since the cooling device 1 of the present embodiment has a relatively simple structure as described above, even when a large cooling box is used to cool a large building, the required manufacturing costs and installation costs are extremely low. Small enough. For this reason, if it is used as a cooling system for large-scale warehouses that store products that must maintain a certain low temperature, such as agricultural products, the operating costs of warehouses can be reduced. In the livestock industry, it may be necessary to cool down the barn in order to maintain the milking capacity of dairy cows in hot seasons such as midsummer. In such a case, the cooling device of the present embodiment 1 Is very effective. Of course, it is suitable not only for dairy cows but also as a cooling facility for stables for raising pigs and sheep, or stables for riding and racehorses.

In a factory with a heat source inside, the temperature inside the factory becomes extremely high. Some of these factories cannot easily ventilate indoor air with the outside air from the viewpoint of security, and the factories handling chemical substances take into consideration the surrounding environment. The cooling device of the present embodiment is suitable as a cooling device for such a facility because the temperature inside the facility can be reduced without replacing the internal air with the outside air.

Further, since the installation cost and the running cost of the cooling device 1 of the present embodiment can be extremely small, a place where the air conditioner has conventionally been hesitated to be installed from an economic viewpoint, For example, it can be easily attached to toilets, etc. be able to. Also, because of low power consumption and low running cost, a small amount of electricity is required even if the switch is turned on and the operation is continued for a long time in summer.

Further, since the cooling device 1 of the present embodiment has a simple structure and low running cost, it is installed not only in indoor facilities but also in outdoor facilities such as parks and auto campsites, or in stalls, for example. Even when used in a mode where only a specific area is partially cooled, a sufficiently practical cooling effect can be obtained without paying much attention to the electricity bill.

[Embodiment 2]

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The cooling device 10 of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 5 is different from the cooling device 1 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 in that the cooling device 10 of the second embodiment includes an outside air drying device 40. . Other parts are the same as those of the cooling device 1 of the first embodiment. Therefore, in the second embodiment, components having the same functions as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals or corresponding reference numerals, and the detailed description thereof is omitted.

According to the present invention, the inside of the room 2 is cooled by utilizing absorption of heat of vaporization from the surroundings when water is vaporized. With this method, there is a problem that the temperature of the cooling unit 30 drops only to the temperature of the wet bulb of the thermometer even in an ideal case. Since the temperature of the wet bulb depends on the temperature and humidity of the atmosphere at that time, it may not be possible to obtain a sufficient cooling effect in high humidity conditions.

Therefore, in the second embodiment, when the humidity of the outside air is high, the outside air drying device 40 is operated to first dry the outside air to sufficiently reduce the humidity, and thereafter, the first flow passage 25 of the cooling box 11 Flowing inside. When the humidity of the outside air is low, the room is cooled only by the cooling device 1 without operating the outside air drying device 40.

Although not shown, the cooling device 10 of the present embodiment includes a detecting means for detecting the humidity of the outside air, a detecting means for detecting the temperature of the room, and a setting means for setting the target cooling temperature of the room. The control unit 60 determines the operation rate of the outside air drying device 40 based on the data from these means, that is, the humidity of the outside air, the target cooling temperature of the star, and the room temperature.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the outside air drying device 40 used in the present embodiment. Outside air drying equipment The device 40 includes a drying unit 41 and a heat exchanging unit 42, as shown in FIG. The drying section 41 has a disk-shaped member 43 as shown in FIG. 3 (b). The disk-shaped member 43 has a fine honeycomb structure, and the outside air can pass from one side of the disk to the other side through the space between the members constituting the honeycomb structure. Silica gel is attached to the surface of the members constituting the honeycomb structure, and comes into contact with the silica gel when air permeates. As shown in Fig. 6 (b), the drying section 41 has a reproduction area 44 at the lower angle range of about 90 degrees and a drying area 45 at the remaining angle area of about 2.7 degrees. Have been. The disc-shaped member 43 is rotatable, and is rotated in a fixed direction at a relatively slow speed during use. Therefore, each part of the disc-shaped member 43 repeats the state in the reproduction area 44 and the state in the drying area 45 at a constant cycle. Such outside air drying devices are widely used in various fields where dry air is required.

As shown in FIG. 6 (a), outside air is allowed to pass through the drying area 45 from left to right. When the outside air passes through the drying area 45, the moisture coming out of the drying area 45 is dried because the moisture is absorbed by the silica gel. However, silica gel cannot absorb more water after absorbing a certain amount of water. For this reason, in the regeneration area 44, hot air is sent from a heat source (not shown) from right to left in order to blow off the water absorbed by the silica gel. This hot air causes the silica gel to release the absorbed water and become ready to absorb water again. This hot air is preferably 100 or more if possible. As a heat source, fuel using kerosene, solar heat, or the like can be used. When hot air is used, the temperature of the disk-shaped member 43 increases. Also, the temperature of silica gel itself rises when it absorbs moisture. For this reason, the temperature of the outside air passing through the drying area 45 also increases. Therefore, the temperature of the outside air passing through the drying area 45 is reduced by using the heat exchange section 42.

In addition, instead of the outside air drying apparatus using the above desiccant, dehumidification may be performed using an ion exchange membrane. By applying pressure to the ion exchange membrane and sending air in, the water vapor can be separated and removed, and the outside air can be dried.

The outside air thus obtained is guided to the first flow passage 25 described above, and is allowed to flow through the first flow passage 25. In this way, even if the atmospheric humidity is high, the vaporizing sheet Sufficient moisture can be vaporized from 34, and the cooling effect can be secured. According to the second embodiment, the same operation and effect as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[Embodiment 3]

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The cooling device 100 of the third embodiment differs from the cooling device 100 of the second embodiment in that the cooling device 100 of the third embodiment includes a heat exchange device 70. Other parts are the same as those of the cooling device 10 of the second embodiment. Therefore, the components having the same functions as those of the second embodiment are given the same reference numerals or corresponding reference numerals, and the detailed description is omitted. The heat exchange device 70 of the third embodiment cools the high-temperature outside air to be sucked by using the outside air cooled through the cooling device main body 5. That is, although the air that has passed through the first flow passage 25 of the cooling device main body 5 contains a lot of moisture, the temperature has decreased to some extent due to the vaporization of the water. By exchanging heat between the cooled air and the high-temperature outside air to cool the outside air, and then guiding the outside air to the first flow passage 25, the cooling effect can be further enhanced. it can.

When the heat exchange device 70 of the present embodiment is stopped, the damper 180 is kept in an open state, and the wet outside air is directly discharged to the outside similarly to the second embodiment. The operation rate of the heat exchange device 70 of the present embodiment can be controlled, but since the heat exchange device 70 consumes almost no energy such as electric power, the means for controlling the operation rate of the heat exchange device 70 is omitted. It is also possible to abbreviate.

According to the third embodiment, even when the outside air is at a high temperature, the inside of the room 2 can be cooled comfortably. Other operations and effects are the same as those of the second embodiment.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above embodiment, a hollow flat plate is used as the second flow passage, but the second flow passage may be a pipe. Also, a large number of fins may be formed inside the second flow passage. Thereby, the room air flowing through the second flow passage can be efficiently cooled. Further, a guide may be provided in the second flow passage so that the air flows evenly and evenly in the second flow passage.

In the above embodiment, the case where the vaporized sheet is used as the water holding means is described. As described above, the water holding means may be formed integrally with the second flow passage. For example, fine grooves are formed on the surface of the cooling unit by etching the surface (for example, the upper surface and both side surfaces). The grooves to be formed consist of a large number of grooves arranged at a high density in parallel with the direction of air flow, and a groove arranged in a direction perpendicular to the direction of air flow, the smaller the density. The radius of each groove is, for example, about 30 microns.

When such fine grooves are formed on the front side of the cooling unit and water is dropped on the upper surface, the water is diffused toward the lower ends on both sides by capillary action. For this reason, just like the case of the vaporized sheet, the front side of the aluminum cooling unit can be used as water holding means.

Instead of installing the cooling device 1 of the present invention alone, a widely-used general cooling device (air conditioner) is installed in front of the cooling device 1, and first, the cooling device cools the outside air. And dehumidification, and the air thus obtained is cooled.

It can also be made to flow to the 1st 1st flow channel 25. In this way, even when the humidity of the outside air is high and the wet bulb temperature of the thermometer is high, vaporization of water in the first flow passage 25 is promoted, and the cooling effect of the cooling device 1 can be further enhanced. In this case, when the wet bulb temperature of the thermometer is high, the cooling device of the preceding stage is activated to enhance the cooling effect of the cooling device 1, and when the wet bulb temperature is relatively low, the cooling device of the preceding stage is stopped and cooled. Only the device 1 may be operated. Thus, even when a general cooling device and the cooling device of the present invention are connected in series, the power consumption throughout the year can be significantly reduced as compared with a case where only a general cooling device is installed. You. As described above, when the general cooling device and the cooling device 1 of the present invention are connected in series, the operation ratio of the cooling device is determined in substantially the same manner as the method of determining the operation ratio of the second embodiment. You may make it.

Further, in the above embodiment, the case where the room is cooled using the cooling device of the present invention has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. You can also. As described above, since the present invention consumes less power, the load on the vehicle-mounted battery can be reduced even when power is supplied from the vehicle-mounted battery. For this reason, for example, during delivery by truck, If the engine stops idling when the vehicle is taking a break in the vehicle, the cooling system can be operated only with the power of the onboard battery during that time. Therefore, in a hot season such as midsummer, when the driver who has completed delivery returns to the car, the inside of the car can be kept cool and the working environment can be improved.

In addition, products that reduce the temperature inside a car that has stopped idling by putting ice in an ice box and letting the air flow through the car are actually sold at car supply stores. This utilizes the fact that ice absorbs heat of fusion from the surroundings when it melts, but the heat of fusion of ice is about an order of magnitude lower than the heat of vaporization of water. For this reason, cooling efficiency is not sufficient, and there is also a problem that cooling cannot be performed if the ice is completely melted.

Further, in a hot season such as midsummer, the temperature of the vaporizing sheet 34 rises due to the sunlight shining on the roof of the car, so that more moisture vaporizes even if the amount of air to be circulated is the same. For this reason, the cooling device of the present embodiment has an excellent feature that the cooling effect is higher in hotter months. Furthermore, if solar cells are installed on the roof of a car and power is obtained from them, the amount of power generated will increase, especially in summer when the sun is strong, and the fans 1 and 3 will operate at high speed. To increase the amount of water vaporized. In other words, the feature that the cooling effect increases as the temperature increases is further enhanced. When the cooling device of the present embodiment is used in a car, if the outside air intake port is arranged in the front direction of the car and the outside air discharge port is arranged in the rear direction of the car, a fan for taking in the outside air during traveling is provided. Even if stopped, sufficient outside air can be sent into the first flow passage. When Embodiment 2 is used in an automobile, heat of the engine of the automobile or solar heat may be used as the heat source.

Further, in the above embodiment, the case where tap water is used as the water to be supplied to the cooling unit has been described. However, the water to be supplied to the cooling unit may be fresh water such as well water, or fresh water may be obtained. When difficult, seawater may be used. That is, in the claims of the present application, the water supplied to the water holding means is a concept that includes not only fresh water but also seawater.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the case where the fluid to be cooled is air will be described. However, the cooling object of the present invention is not limited to air, but may be a liquid such as water. For example, the present invention can be used instead of a closed cooling tower. A large amount of cooling water is used in various manufacturing processes such as chemical factories. These waters are usually circulated by pumps, cooled in cooling towers and reused. By using the present invention, it is possible to provide a cooling tower that has a simpler configuration than conventional ones, has low energy consumption and low noise, and has high cooling efficiency. Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to reliably prevent foreign matter such as dust from entering water to be cooled.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to flow air through the first flow passage, forcibly vaporize the water held in the water holding means, and take heat of vaporization from the surroundings when the water evaporates. Since the temperature of the fluid flowing through the second flow passage is reduced by using the air conditioner, the structure of the device is greatly simplified as compared with a general air conditioner, and the manufacturing cost and installation cost can be reduced. it can. In addition, since the power consumption is extremely low compared to a general air conditioner, the running cost is low, and even if the installation of the air conditioner has been hesitant so far, it can be installed easily. There is a feature that can be.

Industrial applicability

As described above, the present invention is an apparatus that can efficiently cool a target space with low power consumption by utilizing the heat of vaporization taken from the surroundings when water evaporates. In the field where cooling devices such as air conditioners are widely used, air conditioners can be used in the same way, and because of their low power consumption characteristics, air conditioners must be used in the past. It can also be used in open places, for example outdoors. Therefore, it can be widely used in industry.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. A first flow passage through which air flows,

A plurality of second flow passages provided at predetermined intervals inside the first flow passage, through which a fluid to be cooled flows without flowing out to the first flow passage;

Blowing means for feeding air into the first flow passage,

Water holding means provided on the outer surface of the second flow passage;

Water supply means for supplying water to the water holding means,

With

By flowing air through the first flow passage and promoting the vaporization of water from the water holding means to lower the temperature of the second flow passage, it is possible to cool the fluid flowing through the second flow passage. Characterized cooling device.

2. The second flow passage is formed as a hollow flat plate using metal, and has a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet. The plurality of second flow passages are provided in the first flow passage. 2. The cooling device according to claim 1, wherein the cooling devices are provided in parallel in a state in which they are set up.

3. The cooling device according to claim 1, wherein a spillage drain is provided at a bottom of the first flow passage to take out excess water accumulated at the bottom to the outside.

4. The water supply means is provided at an upper part of the first flow passage, and supplies water so as to drop water from above the water holding means. 3. The cooling device according to 3.

5. The water holding means is sheet-shaped, and is provided so as to cover at least an upper portion and both side portions of the second flow passage. The cooling device according to 3 or 4.

6. The cooling according to claim 1, wherein the flow direction of the air in the first flow passage and the flow direction of the fluid in the second flow passage are opposite to each other. Equipment.

7. Concentration detecting means for detecting the impurity concentration of the water recovered from the sewage drain, and when the impurity concentration exceeds a certain value, discarding the water collected from the sewage drain, constant When the value is smaller than the value, the collected water is reused. The cooling device according to claim 3.

8. The fluid is air, and a drain port is formed at the bottom of the second flow passage to discharge dew condensation water to the outside. 5. The cooling device according to 5, 6, or 7.

9. Pre-processing means for performing a process of lowering at least one of the temperature and the humidity of the air sent into the first flow passage, wherein the pre-processing means is provided.

4. The cooling device according to 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8.

10. The cooling according to claim 9, wherein the pretreatment means is a cooling device. 11. The pretreatment means dries air using a desiccant and absorbs moisture using a heat source. 10. The cooling device according to claim 9, wherein the moisture absorbent is reused by heating the moisture absorbent.

12. The cooling device according to claim 11, wherein solar heat is used as the heat source.

13. The cooling device according to claim 11, wherein heat of an automobile engine is used as the heat source.

14. The cooling device according to claim 9, wherein the pretreatment means is a heat exchange means for cooling air sent into the first flow passage by using air discharged from the first flow passage. apparatus.

15. Temperature / humidity detecting means for detecting at least one of temperature and humidity of the air sent into the first flow passage, setting means for setting a cooling target temperature of a cooling target, and a target for detecting a temperature of a cooling target A temperature detecting unit, and a control unit that determines an operation rate of the preprocessing unit based on data from the temperature and humidity detecting unit, the setting unit, and data from the target temperature detecting unit. Terms 9, 10 and

1 1,

12. The cooling device according to 12, 13, or 14.