US 4,497,361 AGranted

Regenerative heat and humidity exchanging apparatus

OwnerDavid J. Hajicekinventor

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Abstract

The apparatus includes a housing that is divided into two parallel passages. A fan in one passage causes air from the outside of a building to flow through one of the passages into the building and a fan in the other passage causes air to be exhausted from inside the building to the outside. A flapper valve prevents entrance of air into the building through either passage when the fans are not operating. A series of media disks, two embodiments of which are disclosed, constitute successive stages, picking up heat and/or moisture from one passage and transferring the heat and/or moisture to the other passage as the disks are rotated within recesses formed in stationary separators. A special drive mechanism is utilized for rotating the disks. Provision is also made for spraying the disks in order to clean them and/or to control the humidity within the building.

Claims16

Dependent claims

Regenerative heat and humidity exchanging apparatus comprising a housing providing a pair of passages through which gaseous fluids having different thermal characteristics flow, a portion of each passage being adjacent the other, a partition extending transversely across each of said passages, each partition having an opening therein, a fan associated with each partition opening, a valve means for closing said partition openings when said fans are not operating, said valve means having a flap valve member pivotally mounted so that one flap portion thereof coacts with one partition opening and a second flap portion thereof coacts with the other partition opening, a plurality of rotary disks pervious to the gaseous fluids passing through said passages, means mounting said disks for rotation about an axis so that one segment of each disk at any given moment resides in one of said adjacent passage portions used and a second segment resides in the other of said adjacent passage portions, and a plurality of stationary separators positioned in said housing having a first portion residing in said one passage portion and formed with an opening therein for the passage of a gaseous fluid therethrough and having a second portion residing in said second passage portion also formed with an opening therein for the passage of a gaseous fluid therethrough, there being one of said pervious disks rotatively positioned between adjacent separators, whereby, when said disks are rotated, heat and/or humidity is transferred by each disk from said one passage portion when the gaseous fluid flowing therethrough has a higher thermal or moisture characteristic to said second passage portion when the gaseous fluid flowing therethrough has a lower thermal or moisture characteristic.

Regenerative heat and humidity exchanging apparatus comprising a housing providing a pair of passages through which gaseous fluids having different thermal characteristics flow, a portion of each passage being adjacent the other, a plurality of rotary disks pervious to the gaseous fluids passing through said passages, means including a rotatable drive member having a free end mounting said disks for rotation about an axis so that one segment of each disk at any give moment resides in one of said adjacent passage portions and a second segment resides in the other of said adjacent passage portions each of said disks having a central opening through which said drive members extends, said drive member is tubular and has an internal gear adjacent its free end, said mounting means including a spur gear in engagement with said internal gear and means for rotating said spur gear to cause rotation of said tubular drive member via said spur and internal gears, and a plurality of stationary separators positioned in said housing having a first portion residing in said one passage portion and formed with an opening therein for the passage of a gaseous fluid therethrough and having a second portion residing in said second passage portion also formed with an opening therein for the passage of a gaseous fluid therethrough, there being one of said pervious disks rotatively positioned between adjacent separators, said separators being stacked with one side of each said separators recessed for the rotative accommodation therein of one of said pervious disks, whereby, when said disks are rotated, heat and/or humidity is transferred by each disk from said one passage portion when the gaseous fluid flowing therethrough has a higher thermal or moisture characteristic to said second passage portion when the gaseous fluid flowing therethrough has a lower thermal or moisture characteristic.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.