US 2013/0255291 A1Published application

Retrofittable thermal storage for air conditioning systems

AssigneeWhirlpool Corporation

InventorGuolian Wu

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Abstract

A system and method to retrofit a building structure having a forced air cooling system with a thermal storage system. The method typically includes the steps of installing a coolant loop that is free of a compressor, and a condenser, where the coolant loop comprises a refrigerant fluid pump and refrigerant fluid conduits that deliver coolant loop refrigerant fluid to a coolant loop evaporator spaced within a building air cooling passageway that delivers air to at least a portion of the interior volume of the a building structure and in thermal communication with air passing through the passageway and where the coolant loop is in thermal communication with a thermal energy storage material within a thermal energy thermal storage fluid tank; and activating the coolant loop pump to provide cooling to the coolant loop evaporator thereby cooling air moving in the building air passageway of a building structure.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A retrofittable thermal storage system configured to be used in connection with a building structure forced air cooling system comprising:

a forced air cooling system comprising:
a compressor;
a condenser;
a thermal expansion device;
a forced air evaporator positioned within a building air cooling passageway that delivers air to at least a portion of the interior volume of the a building structure and in thermal communication with air passing through the passageway;
and
fluid conduits carrying refrigerant fluid and operably and refrigerant fluidly coupling, the compressor, the condenser, the thermal expansion device, and the evaporator;
and
a retrofitted thermal storage system comprising:
a coolant loop that is free of a compressor and free of a condenser, wherein the coolant loop comprises a refrigerant fluid pump and refrigerant fluid conduits that deliver coolant loop refrigerant fluid to a coolant loop evaporator spaced within the building air cooling passageway that delivers air to at least a portion of the interior volume of the a building structure and in thermal communication with air passing through the passageway and wherein the coolant loop is in thermal communication with a thermal energy storage material within a thermal energy thermal storage fluid tank;
and
a charging vapor compression system comprising:
a charging vapor compression system evaporator positioned in thermal communication with the thermal energy storage material;
a charging compressor, a charging condenser;
and a charging thermal expansion device.

12 more elements

A retrofittable thermal storage system configured to be used in connection with a building structure forced air cooling system comprising:

a forced air cooling system comprising:
a compressor;
a condenser;
a thermal expansion device;
a forced air evaporator positioned within a building air cooling passageway that delivers air to at least a portion of the interior volume of the a building structure and in thermal communication with air passing through the air passageway;
and
fluid conduits carrying refrigerant fluid and operably and refrigerant fluidly coupling, the compressor, the condenser, the thermal expansion device, and the evaporator;
and
a retrofitted thermal storage system comprising:
a coolant loop that is free of a compressor, a condenser, and a thermal exchange element wherein the coolant loop comprises a refrigerant fluid pump and refrigerant fluid conduits that deliver coolant loop refrigerant fluid to a coolant loop evaporator spaced within the building air cooling passageway that delivers air to at least a portion of the interior volume of the a building structure and in thermal communication with air passing through the passageway and wherein the coolant loop is in thermal communication with a thermal energy storage material within a thermal energy thermal storage fluid tank.

7 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 13/800,908Filed 13 Mar 2013
Priority: 2 Apr 2012
Published: 3 Oct 2013
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification17 codes

F25B 5/02
Compression machines, plants or systems, with several evaporator circuits, e.g. for varying refrigerating capacity: arranged in parallel
F24F 3/1405
By humidification; by dehumidification: in which the humidity of the air is exclusively affected by contact with the evaporator of a…
F25B 1/00
Compression machines, plants or systems with non-reversible cycle
F25B 1/10
Compression machines, plants or systems with non-reversible cycle: with multi-stage compression