Rotating heat exchanger with improved heat transfer efficiency

A plurality of foils for forming a heat regenerating rotor structured to rotate about a longitudinal axis extending parallel to longitudinal directions of flow of provided first and second flowing fluids, the rotor being structured to have a plurality of fluid-confining flow-through channels that each can rotate to receive respective portions of the flows of the first and then of the second provided flowing fluids as the rotor rotates and to each confine in the respective channel the received respective portion as its flowing-through channel fluid;

• wherein the flow-through channels are defined by a spiral winding of the plurality of foils in a circumferential direction that is orthogonal to the longitudinal axis;
• wherein each foil includes a heat transfer layer arranged to interface with the respective fluid-confining flow-through channels formed in part by that foil and each foil includes a heat accumulating layer thermally coupled to the heat transfer layer and arranged to store heat transferred thereto by way of the heat transfer layer;
• wherein the heat accumulating layer of at least one of the foils has alternating regions, as successively encountered in the longitudinal direction, of relatively higher thermal conductivity and of comparatively and substantially lower thermal conductivity such that conduction of heat in the longitudinal direction through channel boundaries of each of the flow-through channels defined by the at least one of the foils is hindered by presence in the respective heat accumulating layer of the regions of comparatively and substantially lower thermal conductivity.