Compressor with liquid injection cooling
AssigneeHicor Technologies, Inc.
InventorsPedro Santos, Jeremy Pitts, Andrew Nelson, Johannes Santen, John Walton, Mitchell Westwood, Harrison O'Hanley
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Abstract
A positive displacement rotary compressor is designed for near isothermal compression, high pressure ratios, high revolutions per minute, high efficiency, mixed gas/liquid compression, a low temperature increase, a low outlet temperature, and/or a high outlet pressure. Liquid injectors provide cooling liquid that cools the working fluid and improves the efficiency of the compressor. A gate moves within the compression chamber to either make contact with or be proximate to the rotor as it turns.
Claims27
A method of operating a compressor having a casing defining a compression chamber, an inlet port into the compression chamber, and a rotatable drive shaft configured to drive the compressor, the method comprising:
- moving a working fluid into the compression chamber through the inlet port, wherein the working fluid is a multi-phase fluid that includes gas and liquid components and has a liquid volume fraction at the inlet port of at least 0.5%;
- and
- compressing the working fluid using the compressor such that a single stage pressure ratio of the compressor is at least 3:1.
A compressor comprising:
- a casing with an inner wall defining a compression chamber and an inlet port into the compression chamber;
- a positive displacement compressing structure movable relative to the casing to compress a working fluid that moves into the compression chamber via the inlet port;
- and
- a rotatable drive shaft configured to drive the compressing structure,
- wherein a single stage pressure ratio of the compressor is at least 3:1, and
- the compressor is shaped and configured for the working fluid to be a multi-phase fluid that includes gas and liquid components and has a liquid volume fraction at the inlet port of at least 0.5%.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.