Counter-flow heat pump

A heat transport system, comprising:

• a counter-current heat exchanger having a first conduit that conveys a heat carrying medium having a first specific heat, along a forward path from a starting zone to an ending zone, and a second conduit that conveys a heat carrying medium having a second specific heat along a reverse path from the end zone toward the starting zone, the reverse path being anti-parallel to the forward path, the first specific heat being different from the second specific heat;
• a plurality of heat pumps distributed along the lengths of the first and second conduits and configured to pump heat between a first plurality of points along the forward path and an adjacent second plurality of points along the reverse path;
• a first thermally conductive connection that transfers heat from an object to the heat-carrying medium in the vicinity of one of the starting zone and the ending zone, and
• a second thermally conductive connection that transfers heat from the thermally conductive medium to a heat sink in the vicinity of the other of the starting zone or the ending zone.

A temperature control system, comprising

• a forward-flow fluid conduit having first-input port configured to receive fluid from an open external volume and a first output-port configured to convey fluid to a confined interior volume;
• a reverse-flow fluid conduit configured to receive fluid from the confined interior volume and a second output port to convey fluid to the open exterior volume, the reverse flow fluid conduit being arranged anti-parallel and adjacent to the forward-flow fluid conduit;
• a plurality of heat pumps coupling the forward flow fluid conduit to the reverse flow fluid conduit and distributed to pump heat between a first plurality of points along the length of the forward conduit and a second plurality of points along an adjacent length of the reverse flow conduit;
• a first fluid pump configured to urge fluid flow from the first input port toward the first output port;
• a second fluid pump to configured to urge a fluid flow from the second input port toward the second output port;
• a detector to provide a signal indicating the temperature of the confined volume of fluid, and
• a controller that receives the signal, and which is operatively connected to the plurality of heat pumps and to at least one of the first and second fluid pumps to regulate the rate of fluid flow and the rate of heat pumping responsively to the signals.

A Peltier cooling device comprising

• a first conductor configured to conduct a current flow in a forward direction from a warm zone to a cool zone;
• a second conductor different from the first conductor and configured to conduct current in a reverse direction substantially anti-parallel to the forward direction from a cool zone to the warm zone;
• and
• an electrically conductive junction between the first conductor and the second conductor, the conductive junction being positioned at least at the cool zone;
• and
• a thermally conductive, electrically insulating junction between the first and second conductors along a portion of their length.