Back to results
US 4,186,559 AGranted
Heat pipe-turbine
OwnerBert J. Decker, deceased, by Jean S. Decker, executrixinventors
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Loading patent…
Loading patent…
OwnerBert J. Decker, deceased, by Jean S. Decker, executrixinventors
Estimating the term…
A turbine, such as a steam turbine, which may be employed to drive an electric generator, is operated by movement through it of gas vaporized in a heat pipe. The turbine is enclosed in the heat pipe structure and the pipe is sealed so that the vaporizable fluid therein is not lost during use. The fluid is maintained at a desired pressure at which it is readily vaporized by heating means, such as heated air brought into contact with the heat pipe, and is also readily condensed by cooling means, such as ambient air. In modifications of the more basic invention an auxiliary heat pipe or a plurality of such pipes is employed to extract energy from a source of heat after it has heated the turbine-containing heat pipe and such auxiliary heat pipe(s) may also be used to pre-heat a heat transfer fluid. Turbines may be present in the auxiliary heat pipes too and they may be connected to the same or different generators. The generators may be enclosed in an insulating medium common to the heat pipe to prevent external heat losses and in a further modification of the invention, may be mounted inside the heat pipe with the turbine. Although the invention is primarily intended for efficient power production it may be adapted for use as an indicator of temperature differences by utilizing the flow of evaporated fluid, which is proportional to the temperature difference, to generate electricity, the voltage or current flow of which may be measured.
A heat pipe-turbine assembly which comprises:
A heat pipe-turbine which comprises a heat pipe having evaporating and condensing sections, the condensing section being of effective heat transfer surface area greater than that of the evaporating section, being located above the evaporating section and including walls bare of capillary return means and suitable for returning condensate from the condensing section toward the evaporating section by gravity, means for heating the evaporating section, means for cooling the condensing section, a vaporizable liquid in the pipe, capillary return means for returning condensate from the condensing section and through at least part of such section, to the evaporating section and a turbine inside the heat pipe so located that fluid evaporated in the evaporating section of the heat pipe passes through the turbine as a gas and drives it, after which said gas is condensed to a liquid in the condensing section and is returned to the evaporating section as a liquid through the return means.
A heat pipe-turbine which comprises a heat pipe having evaporating and condensing sections, means for heating the evaporating section, means for cooling the condensing section, a vaporizable liquid in the pipe, return means for returning condensate from the condensing section to the evaporating section, a turbine inside the heat pipe so located that fluid evaporated in the evaporating section of the heat pipe passes through the turbine as a gas and drives it, after which said gas is condensed to a liquid in the condensing section and is returned to the evaporating section as a liquid through the return means, and means for recovering at least part of the heat extracted from the gas condensed in the condensing section, and returning it to the evaporating section to assist in evaporating the vaporizable liquid in the heat pipe at such section.
A heat pipe-turbine which comprises a heat pipe having evaporating and condensing sections, means for heating the evaporating section, fluid means for cooling the condensing section, said fluid means extracting heat from said condensing section after which said fluid means is heated to raise its temperature and is employed to heat the evaporating section of the heat pipe, whereby the heat removed from the condensing section is conserved, a vaporizable liquid in the pipe, capillary means for returning condensate from the condensing section to the evaporating section and a turbine inside the pipe so located that fluid evaporated in the evaporating section of the heat pipe passes through the turbine as a gas and drives it, after which said gas is condensed to a liquid in the condensing section and is returned to the evaporating section as a liquid through the return means.
A heat pipe-turbine which comprises a finned tubular heat pipe of heat conductive material, having evaporating and condensing sections, means for conducting a heating gas to the evaporating section to heat it, means for conducting a cooling gas to the condensing section to cool it, a vaporizable liquid in the heat pipe, capillary return means in the heat pipe adjacent the wall thereof for returning condensate from the condensing section to the evaporating section by capillary action, a turbine inside the heat pipe so located that gas from liquid evaporated in the evaporating section of the heat pipe passes through the turbine and drives it, after which said gas is condensed to a liquid in the condensing section and is returned to the evaporating section as a liquid through the capillary return means, said turbine including an inlet section at an end thereof which is frustoconical in shape with the larger end thereof being located upstream and being of a cross-sectional area, taken transversely with respect to the heat pipe, essentially the same as such cross-sectional area of the heat pipe inside the capillary material, also taken transversely with respect to such pipe, so as effectively to utilize for turning the turbine all the gas produced by evaporation of the liquid in the evaporating section of the heat pipe.
A heat pipe-turbine which comprises a finned tubular heat pipe of heat conductive material, having evaporating and condensing sections, means for conducting a heating gas to the evaporating section to heat it, means for conducting a cooling gas to the condensing section to cool it, a vaporizable liquid in the heat pipe, capillary return means in the heat pipe adjacent the wall thereof for returning condensate from the condensing section to the evaporating section by capillary action, a turbine inside the heat pipe so located that gas from liquid evaporated in the evaporating section of the heat pipe passes through the turbine and drives it, after which said gas is condensed to a liquid in the condensing section and is returned to the evaporating section as a liquid through the capillary return means, said turbine including an inlet section at an end thereof which is frustoconical in shape with the larger end thereof being located upstream and being of a cross-sectional area, taken transversely with respect to the heat pipe, essentially the same as such cross-sectional area of the heat pipe inside the capillary material, also taken transversely with respect to such pipe, so as effectively to utilize for turning the turbine all the gas produced by evaporation of the liquid in the evaporating section of the heat pipe, and said heat pipe-turbine being vacuum insulated from its surroundings.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.