US 11,306,978 B2Granted

Heat recovery apparatus and method

Assignee2078095 Ontario Limited

InventorsVicente Gil, John Gil, Camilo Gil, Adelino Ribeiro, David Ribeiro

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Abstract

A grey water heat recovery apparatus has first and second passes in counter-flow orientation. The hot side is grey water. The cold side is fresh water. It extracts heat from the grey water. The fresh water is carried in tubing bundles in series immersed in grey water sumps in cylindrical plastic, mild steel, or stainless steel pipe. Both ends of the fresh water bundle assembly extend from the same upper end pipe closure, without a pressurized line wall penetration in the walls of the pipe. There is a non-electrically conductive barrier between the fresh water and grey water flow paths. The apparatus has a leak detection circuit and co-operable bypass valves. The tube bundle is wider at the top than at the bottom. The lower manifold has grey water passages between the centering ears. The entire assembly is enclosed in a unitary external housing with easily accessible connection fittings.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A grey water heat recovery apparatus comprising:

at least a first heat exchanger pass having an external shell and a tube bundle;
said external shell being formed of a cylindrical pipe;
said cylindrical pipe having a first end and a second end;
in operation, said first end being located higher than said second end;
said second end being blocked to form a sump within said cylindrical pipe;
said cylindrical pipe having a first port and a second port;
said first port being nearer to said first end than to said second end;
said first port being nearer said first end than is said second port;
said first port defining a resting water level when gray water is contained in said sump;
one of said first and second ports defining an inlet for grey water to said cylindrical pipe, the other of said first and second ports defining an outlet for grey water from said cylindrical pipe, said cylindrical pipe defining a flow path for grey water between said inlet and said outlet thereof;
said first end of said cylindrical pipe providing an entry;
said tube bundle being sized to fit within said entry at said first end of said pipe;
said tube bundle being axially slidable within said external shell;
said tube bundle having a first end and a second end;
said tube bundle having a first manifold at said first end thereof, and a second manifold at said second end thereof;
said tube bundle including an array of pipes, said pipes of said tube bundle being in fluid communication with said first manifold and said second manifold, said pipes of said array each having a respective first cross-sectional area;
said tube bundle including a return extending upwardly beyond said first manifold and extending downwardly to said second manifold;
said return having a second cross-sectional area;
said first cross-sectional area being less than said second cross-sectional area, said first manifold and said second manifold fitting within said cylindrical pipe;
as installed, said second end of said tube bundle being closer to said second end of said cylindrical pipe than is said first end of said tube bundle;
said tube bundle having an inlet and an outlet, said tube bundle defining a fresh water flow path between said inlet and outlet thereof;
both said inlet and said outlet of said tube bundle being located at said first end of said tube bundle;
and
as installed in said cylindrical pipe, said inlet and said outlet of said tube bundle being accessible at said first end of said cylindrical pipe at a level higher than said resting water level of said cylindrical pipe.

21 more elements

A grey water heat recovery apparatus comprising:

a pipe and a tube bundle;
said pipe having a first end and a second end, said first end being an upper end and said second end being a lower end;
said pipe having a cylindrical pipe wall and a first grey water port and a second grey water port formed in said cylindrical pipe wall;
said first grey water port being closer to said first end of said pipe than to said second end of said pipe and defining a resting water level when grey water is contained within said pipe;
said tube bundle having a first manifold, a second manifold, a return pipe, and a pipe array;
said tube bundle including said first manifold and said second manifold insert axially to seat within said cylindrical pipe wall on installation;
said pipe array of said tube bundle having at least a first pipe having a first cross sectional area;
said return pipe having a second cross-sectional area;
said second cross-sectional area being greater than said first cross-sectional area;
said return pipe being in fluid communication with said second manifold and passing axially upwardly beyond said first manifold to terminate at a first pipe connection;
said pipe array extending between, and being in fluid communication with both said first manifold and said second manifold;
said first manifold having a second pipe connection extending upwardly therefrom, said second pipe connection being in fluid communication with said first manifold;
and, at least one of
(a) said pipe array has a smaller connection footprint with said second manifold than with said first manifold;
and
(b) said second manifold has a peripherally extending wall, said first manifold has a peripheral wall, and said peripheral wall of said second manifold has a shorter periphery than has said peripheral wall of said first manifold.

13 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 16/238,253Filed 2 Jan 2019 · continuation in part
Priority: 5 Sep 2014
Published: US 2019/0137192 A19 May 2019
Granted: 19 Apr 2022
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification14 codes

F28D 21/0012
Recuperative heat exchangers: the heat being recuperated from waste water or from condensates
F28D 7/0075
Multi-circuit heat-exchangers, e.g. integrating different heat exchange sections in the same unit or heat-exchangers for more than two fluids:…
F28D 7/024
The conduits being helically coiled: the conduits of only one medium being helically coiled tubes, the coils having a cylindrical configuration
F28D 7/103
The conduits being arranged one within the other, e.g. concentrically: consisting of more than two coaxial conduits or modules of more than two…

Family

Application62/046,570Us provisional application · filed 5 Sep 2014
Application14/845,737Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 4 Sep 2015
Application15/910,673Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 2 Mar 2018
US 2019/0137192 A1Pre-grant publication · published 9 May 2019
US 10,775,112 B2Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 10,203,166 B2Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 2016/0069617 A1Published application
US 2018/0187980 A1Published application
US 11,306,978 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

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