Patent ID: 11879673
Assignee: UNITED ELECTRIC COMPANY. L.P.
Field: Thermal processes and apparatus (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC F | IPC F

Claim 0:
1. A heat pump unit that distributes its total charge of refrigerant between a main refrigerant system and a refrigerant charge control system conductively engaged to the main refrigerant system, wherein the total charge of refrigerant in the heat pump unit is constant; and the refrigerant charge control system comprises at least the following conductively engaged components: at least one refrigerant reservoir, at least one inlet conduit with a tip, and at least one outlet conduit with a tip that extends into the reservoir such that the tip of the inlet pipe is located at a higher location relative to the tip of the outlet pipe; wherein the system further comprises a hot gas reheat system that dehumidifies air and is conductively engaged to the main refrigerant system, wherein the heat pump unit distributes its total charge of refrigerant between said main refrigerant system, said refrigerant charge control system conductively engaged to the main refrigerant system, and said hot gas reheat system; wherein said main refrigerant system is a variable-refrigerant-charge main refrigerant system; and wherein the heat pump unit operates with a first amount of refrigerant in the main refrigerant system during a cooling or heating cycle and a smaller second amount of refrigerant in the main refrigerant system during a heating or cooling cycle, respectively; and
wherein the unit is an air sourced heat pump unit that during a heating cycle operation of the heat pump unit no more than about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the main refrigerant system and at least about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the refrigerant charge control system, and during a cooling cycle operation of the heat pump unit at least about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the main refrigerant system and no more than about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the refrigerant charge control system, and wherein during a hot gas reheat mode of operation, excess refrigerant is discharged from the refrigerant charge control system back to the main refrigerant system; or
wherein the unit is a water sourced heat pump unit that during a cooling cycle operation of the heat pump unit no more than about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the main refrigerant system and at least about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the refrigerant charge control system, and during the heating cycle operation of the heat pump unit at least about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the main refrigerant system and no more than about 50% of the refrigerant charge is in the refrigerant charge control system, and wherein during a hot gas reheat mode of operation, excess refrigerant is collected in the refrigerant charge control system.