Loading patent…
AssigneeMartin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc.
InventorsViung C. Mei, Fang C. Chen
Estimating the term…
A refrigeration system having a vapor compression cycle utilizing a liquid over-feeding operation with an integrated accumulator-expander-heat exchanger. Hot, high-pressure liquid refrigerant from the condenser passes through one or more lengths of capillary tubing substantially immersed in a pool liquid refrigerant in the accumulator-expander-heat exchanger for simultaneously sub-cooling and expanding the liquid refrigerant while vaporizing liquid refrigerant from the pool for the return thereof to the compressor as saturated vapor. The sub-cooling of the expanded liquid provides for the flow of liquid refrigerant into the evaporator for liquid over-feeding the evaporator and thereby increasing the efficiency of the evaporation cycle.
A refrigeration system comprising compressor means for compressing a vaporous refrigerant to an elevated pressure and an elevated temperature greater than ambient pressure and temperature, condensing means for condensing the compressed vaporous refrigerant to liquid refrigerant at substantially said elevated pressure and temperature, means for expanding the condensed liquid refrigerant to a substantially lower pressure than said elevated pressure, evaporator means for receiving and evaporating a major portion of the condensed liquid refrigerant after the expansion thereof to said substantially lower pressure, first conduit means connecting the compressor means to the condensing means, second conduit means connecting the condensing means to the evaporator means, third conduit means connecting the evaporator means to the compressor means, and housing means having a cavity therein containing a first portion of said second conduit means and a portion of said third conduit means and adapted to contain a pool of liquid refrigerant at a temperature lower than said substantially lower temperature, said portion of the third conduit means comprising first and second open-ended sections with said first section being adapted to receive and convey a mixture of liquid and vaporous refrigerant from the evaporator means into the cavity of said housing means for forming and replenishing the pool of liquid refrigerant therein and with said second section being adapted to receive and convey vaporous refrigerant from the cavity of said housing means to said compressor means, said first portion of said second conduit means defining said means for expanding the expanded liquid refrigerant and comprising elongated capillary tubing means essentially entirely containable within the pool of liquid refrigerant and adapted to receive and convey therethrough the condensed liquid refrigerant from the condensing means for the expansion thereof within said capillary tubing means to said substantially lower pressure, said condensed liquid refrigerant in the elongated capillary tubing means being disposed in a heat exchange relationship with said mixture of liquid and vaporous refrigerant and primarily with the liquid refrigerant in said pool of liquid refrigerant for cooling the condensed liquid refrigerant to a temperature of at least about 25.degree. F. less than said elevated temperature and for converting liquid refrigerant in said pool to vaporous refrigerant for conveyance thereof along with vaporous refrigerant from said mixture to said compressor means through said second section of the third conduit means.
A method for operating a refrigeration system having refrigerant compressing means connected by first conduit means to refrigerant condensing means, and refrigerant evaporating means having cooling regions therein and connected to the condensing means by second conduit means and to the compressing means by third conduit means, comprising the steps of forming a portion of the second conduit means from capillary tube means, passing compressed refrigerant vapor at a pressure and temperature greater than ambient pressure and temperature from the compressing means into the condensing means for the condensation thereof into liquid refrigerant at substantially said pressure and temperature, passing liquid refrigerant discharged from the condensing means through the capillary tube means in a heat exchange relationship with a relatively cool mixture of liquid and vaporous refrigerant discharged from the evaporating means and primarily with liquid refrigerant in a pool of liquid refrigerant formed by liquid refrigerant from said mixture for vaporizing liquid refrigerant contained in said mixture and in said pool for simultaneously expanding and sub-cooling the liquid refrigerant in the capillary tube means to a pressure substantially lower than said pressure and to a temperature that is at least about 25.degree. F. lower than the temperature of the liquid refrigerant discharged from the condensing means to provide for the introduction of the resulting expanded and sub-cooled liquid refrigerant into the evaporating means with essentially no additional expansion or evaporation thereof for over feeding of the evaporating means with liquid refrigerant and thereby effecting contact of essentially all cooling regions within the evaporating means with liquid refrigerant and to provide said mixture of liquid and vaporous refrigerant discharged from the evaporating means, and thereafter conveying vaporous refrigerant from said mixture and from the vaporization of the liquid refrigerant in said mixture and in said pool to the refrigerant compressing means for the compression thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.