Systems and methods for leak management utilizing sub-barometric refrigerant conduit sleeves
AssigneeJohnson Controls Tyco IP Holdings LLP
InventorDouglas A. Kester
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A refrigerant leak management system includes a sleeve member having an inner surface, the sleeve member configured to be disposed over an outer surface of a length of a refrigerant conduit such that a gap is defined between the inner surface of the sleeve member and the outer surface of the refrigerant conduit. The refrigerant leak management system also includes a fluid moving device configured to fluidly couple to the gap and configured to maintain a sub-barometric pressure within the gap, and a sensor fluidly coupled to the gap and configured to detect a concentration of a leaked refrigerant in the gap.
Claims20
A heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning (HVAC) system, comprising:
- a conduit configured to convey a refrigerant between a first component and a second component of the HVAC system;
- a sensor disposed external to the conduit and configured to detect a leaked portion of the refrigerant;
- and
- a sleeve member disposed about the conduit such that a gap is formed between an inner surface of the sleeve member and an outer surface of the conduit, wherein the gap is configured to receive the leaked portion of the refrigerant, and wherein the sleeve member is configured to direct the leaked portion of the refrigerant over the sensor, to an outdoor environment, or both.
A heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning (HVAC) system, comprising:
- a conduit configured to convey a refrigerant between a first component and a second component of the HVAC system;
- an additional conduit coupled to the conduit at a joint and configured to convey the refrigerant between the first component and the second component of the HVAC system;
- a sensor disposed external to the conduit and the additional conduit, and configured to detect a leaked portion of the refrigerant that is leaked through the joint;
- and
- a sleeve member disposed about the conduit and the additional conduit such that a gap is formed between an inner surface of the sleeve member and outer surfaces of the conduit and the additional conduit, wherein the sleeve member is configured to direct the leaked portion of the refrigerant through the gap, over the sensor, and to an outdoor environment.
A heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning (HVAC) system, comprising:
- a conduit configured to convey a refrigerant between a first component and a second component of the HVAC system;
- a sensor disposed external to the conduit and configured to detect a leaked portion of the refrigerant;
- a sleeve member disposed about the conduit such that a gap is formed between an inner surface of the sleeve member and an outer surface of the conduit, wherein the gap is configured to receive the leaked portion of the refrigerant;
- a fan fluidly coupled with the gap and configured to bias the leaked portion of the refrigerant through the gap and toward a target;
- and
- a controller configured to control, based at least in part on sensor feedback from the sensor, operation of the fan between:
- a first mode corresponding to a condition in which the leaked portion of the refrigerant is not present in the gap;
- and
- a second mode corresponding to a condition in which the leaked portion of the refrigerant is present in the gap.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.