Solar air conditioner
AssigneeWork Smart Energy Enterprises, Inc.
InventorWilliam Leslie Kopko
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An air conditioning system that can be driven by solar energy. A solar collector used energy from the sun to evaporate water from a desiccant fluid. The desiccant fluid is then flows into a mass transfer device which removes moisture from an air stream. Calcium chloride is the preferred desiccant material and can serve as an energy-storage medium. Electric or fuel backup can be used with this system to regenerate the desiccant material. In some embodiments an indirect evaporative cooler is added to provide sensible cooling. A new desiccant cooling system that is specially designed to work with the properties of this desiccant and meet comfort requirements of conventional air conditioning.
Claims30
A solar air conditioner comprising,
- a. a solar collector that comprises a collector surface that is oriented to receive thermal energy from the sun and a means for spreading desiccant fluid over said collector surface so that said solar radiation warms said desiccant fluid and evaporates water from it,
- b. a mass-transfer device that transfers moisture from a primary air stream to said desiccant fluid,
- c. cooling means that is in contact with said primary air stream and that is capable of cooling said primary air stream to a temperature that is lower than the ambient wet-bulb temperature, and
- d. a fluid circuit that includes said mass transfer device and said solar collector so that moisture moves from said primary air stream into said desiccant fluid in said mass-transfer device;
- desiccant fluid moves from said mass transfer device to said solar collector which uses solar energy to evaporate water from the desiccant fluid;
- and concentrated desiccant fluid returns to said mass-transfer device;
- and said cooling means lowers the temperature of said primary air stream so as to cool and dehumidify said primary air stream.
A heat-exchange device comprising:
- a. a first heat exchanger for transferring thermal energy between a two gas streams,
- b. a primary gas stream which flows through a first side of said heat exchanger,
- c. a secondary gas stream which flows through multiple passes on a second side of said heat exchanger in an approximately counterflow configuration with respect to said primary gas stream and which comprises a first portion of said primary gas stream that exits said heat exchanger,
- d. a supply gas stream that comprises a second portion of said primary gas stream that exits said heat exchanger,
- e. a first fluid, and
- f. a mass transfer means between said first fluid and said secondary gas stream whereby evaporation of said first fluid into said secondary gas stream lowers the temperature of said secondary gas stream, which allows thermal energy to move from said primary air stream to said secondary air stream through said heat exchanger and thereby reduce the temperature of the supply gas stream.
An air conditioner that is capable of storing sensible and latent cooling comprising:
- a. a primary air stream,
- b. a secondary air stream that comprises air that was previously cooled by said air conditioner,
- c. a desiccant fluid,
- d. means for storing a quantity of desiccant fluid sufficient for several hours of operation,
- e. a regenerator that heats said desiccant fluid so as to evaporate water from said desiccant fluid,
- f. a mass-transfer device,
- g. a fluid circuit formed by said storage tank and said mass transfer device and said regenerator,
- h. a heat-exchange device that transfers thermal energy from said primary air stream to said secondary air stream,
- i. and means for evaporating water into said secondary air stream before it exits said heat-exchange device so as to cool the secondary air stream.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.