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US 12,363,865 B2Granted
Regenerative preheater for phase change cooling applications
AssigneeThe Research Foundation for The State University of New York
InventorsSadegh Khalili, Bahgat Sammakia
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for cooling an information technology system, comprising: receiving a flow of at least a subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant; cooling the information technology system by sensible heat transfer in an evaporator, to produce at least gaseous refrigerant; and exchanging heat from the at least gaseous refrigerant from the evaporator to the subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant. The phase change refrigerant may be a hydrofluorocarbon ether having a boiling point of 30-65° C. at 1-12 bar.
Claims20
A phase change refrigerant cooling system, comprising:
- a pump, configured to lift a phase change refrigerant up a height, wherein the phase change refrigerant has a first pressure and a first subcool at the pump, and a second pressure and a second subcool at the height, the first pressure and the first subcool being higher than the second pressure and the second subcool;
- a manifold at the height, comprising:
- an inlet port configured to receive a flow of the phase change refrigerant from the pump comprising a liquid phase and having the second subcool;
- an outlet port configured to output a flow of the phase change refrigerant comprising both a liquid phase and a gas phase, warmed with respect to the received flow of the phase change refrigerant;
- a cold conduit configured to distribute the phase change refrigerant comprising the liquid phase from the inlet port to each of a plurality of cooling loops, each cooling loop being configured to warm the phase change refrigerant with at least one evaporator, such that the phase change refrigerant exiting the cooling loop comprises a liquid phase and a gas phase;
- and
- a hot conduit configured to receive the warmed phase change refrigerant comprising the liquid phase and the gas phase from the plurality of cooling loops, and convey it to the outlet port;
- a primary heat exchanger, comprising:
- a liquid phase change refrigerant inlet configured to receive a liquid phase change refrigerant having a second subcool from the pump;
- a warm phase change refrigerant outlet configured to supply a mixed liquid phase and gas phase refrigerant to a condenser;
- an inlet port interface configured to supply the flow of the phase change refrigerant comprising the liquid phase having a third subcool to the inlet port, the third subcool being less than the first subcool and the second subcool;
- and
- an outlet port interface configured to interface with the outlet port, and to receive the flow of the phase change refrigerant comprising a liquid phase and a gas phase,
- wherein the primary heat exchanger transfers heat from the received flow of the phase change refrigerant comprising the liquid phase and the gas phase to the liquid phase change refrigerant having the second subcool, to produce the liquid phase change refrigerant having the third subcool;
- a plurality of secondary heat exchangers, each respective secondary heat exchanger being configured to transfer heat from the warmed phase change refrigerant from a respective cooling loop to a portion of the phase change refrigerant comprising a liquid phase from the cold conduit, whereby a subcooling of the phase change refrigerant comprising a liquid phase entering the respective cooling loop is reduced with respect to the phase change refrigerant comprising a liquid phase;
- a controllable bypass valve, configured to control a bypass flow of a portion of the phase change refrigerant from the inlet port to the outlet port, without the bypass flow passing through the cold conduit or the hot conduit;
- and
- a control configured to control the controllable bypass valve to control a subcool of the cold conduit at a defined level, to compensate for changes in the second pressure.
15 more elements
A heat exchanger system for a phase change refrigerant cooled electronic system, comprising:
- an inlet port configured to receive a flow of phase change refrigerant having a first subcool below a boiling point of the phase change refrigerant;
- an outlet port configured to output a flow of heated phase change refrigerant comprising a gas phase;
- an interface cold port configured to supply the phase change refrigerant having a second subcool below the boiling point of the phase change refrigerant to at least one evaporator;
- an interface hot port configured to receive the heated phase change refrigerant comprising a gas phase from the at least one evaporator;
- a first heat exchanger, configured to transfer heat from the heated phase change refrigerant from the at least one evaporator to the liquid phase change refrigerant having the first subcool, to reduce the first subcool and transform the liquid phase change refrigerant having the first subcool to the liquid phase change refrigerant having the second subcool;
- a first valve configured to control a mixing of a portion of the phase change refrigerant having the first subcool below the boiling point of the phase change refrigerant from the inlet port with the heated phase change refrigerant comprising the gas phase from the at least one evaporator, for efflux through the outlet port as the heated phase change refrigerant comprising the gas phase, the mixed portion of the phase change refrigerant bypassing the first heat exchanger;
- a second valve configured to control a level of the second subcool;
- a pump configured to pressurize the flow of phase change refrigerant having the first subcool to cause a flow up a height gradient from a reservoir to a second heat exchanger, wherein a subcooling of the phase change refrigerant is greater at the reservoir than at the second heat exchanger;
- a controller configured to control the second subcool using heat derived from the at least one evaporator through the second heat exchanger;
- a manifold configured to:
- distribute the heated pumped phase change refrigerant through a cold channel in a manifold to the inlet port,
- receive the flow of heated phase change refrigerant comprising a gas phase from the outlet port into a warm channel in the manifold;
- and
- supplying a flow from the warm channel to the second heat exchanger.
11 more elements
A method for cooling an information technology system, comprising:
- receiving a flow of at least a subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant through an inlet port and returning a warmed flow through an outlet port;
- cooling the information technology system by heat transfer in a plurality of evaporators in series, each respective evaporator being configured to produce a warmed at least gaseous phase change refrigerant from a received portion of the flow of at least the pumped subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant;
- exchanging heat from the warmed at least gaseous phase change refrigerant from the plurality of evaporators in series to the received flow of that at least a subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant with at least one first heat exchanger;
- bypassing the at least one first heat exchanger with a portion of a flow of phase change refrigerant from the inlet port to the outlet port to form a mixture of the warmed at least gaseous phase change refrigerant with the at least the subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant using a first controllable bypass valve controlled to maintain a defined a subcool level of the mixture of the warmed at least gaseous phase change refrigerant with the at least the subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant;
- pumping the subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant up a height gradient from a reservoir to a second heat exchanger, wherein a subcooling of the phase change refrigerant is greater at the reservoir than at the second heat exchanger;
- heating the pumped subcooled phase change refrigerant with heat from the warmed at least gaseous phase change refrigerant in the second heat exchanger;
- distributing the heated pumped phase change refrigerant through a cold channel in a manifold to the inlet port;
- receiving the warmed at least gaseous phase change refrigerant from the outlet port into a warm channel in the manifold;
- and
- supplying the collected warmed at least gaseous phase change refrigerant from the warm channel in the manifold to the second heat exchanger;
- and
- controlling a thermodynamic characteristic of the received flow of the at least a subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant with a second valve, comprising controlling a subcool of the received portion of the flow of at least subcooled liquid phase change refrigerant entering the plurality of evaporators in series with a control using heat derived from the plurality of evaporators in series.
9 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.