Abstract:
A binary-fluid heat and mass exchanger has a support structure with a plurality of horizontal vertically spaced groups of tubes mounted thereon. Each group of tubes comprises a pair of horizontal spaced hollow headers. A plurality of small diameter hollow tubes extend between the headers in fluid communication therewith. Fluid conduits connect a header of one group of tubes with a header of an adjacent group of tubes so that all of the groups of tubes will be fluidly connected. An inlet port for fluid is located on a lower group of tubes, and an exit port for fluid is connected to a higher tube group to permit fluid to flow through the tubes in all of the groups. A second inlet port for introducing a solution of fluid downwardly over the tubes is located above the support structure. An outlet port is located at the top of the support structure to convey generated vapor upwardly through the groups and out of the heat exchanger. A fluid exit port is located below the support structure for the removal of fluid collected from the various groups of tubes.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/669,056 filed Sep. 25, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,802,364 which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/253,155 filed Feb. 19, 1999 now abandoned. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Absorption heat pumps are gaining increased attention as an environmentally friendly replacement for the CFC-based vapor-compression systems that are used in residential and commercial air-conditioning. These heat pumps rely heavily on internal recuperation to yield high performance. Several studies have shown that the high coefficients of performance of these thermodynamic cycles cannot be realized without the development of practically feasible and compact heat exchangers. While significant research has been done on absorption cycle simulation, innovations in component development have been rather sparse, in spite of the considerable influence of component performance on system viability. There have been some advances in the design of compact geometries for components such as condensers and in the use of fluted tubes to enhance single-phase components such as solution-solution heat exchangers. But absorption and desorption processes involve simultaneous heat and mass transfer in binary fluids. For example, in a Lithium Bromide-Water (LiBr—H 2 O) cycle, absorption of water vapor in concentrated LiBr—H 2 O solutions occurs in the absorber with the associated rejection of heat to the ambient or an intermediate fluid. Successful designs for such binary fluid heat and mass exchangers must address the following often contradictory requirements:
         low heat and mass transfer resistances for the absorption/desorption side.   adequate transfer surface area on both sides.   low resistance of the coupling fluid—designs have been proposed in the past that enhance absorption/desorption processes, but fail to reduce the single-phase resistance on the other side, resulting in large components.   low coupling fluid pressure drop—to reduce parasitic power consumption.   low absorption side pressure drop—this is essential because excessive pressure drops, encountered in forced-convective flow at high mass fluxes, decrease the saturation temperature and temperature differences between the working fluid and the heat sink.
 
Most of the available absorber/desorber concepts fall short in one or more of the above-mentioned criteria essential for good design.
       

     It is therefore a principal object of this invention to provide a method and means for miniaturization of binary-fluid heat and mass exchangers which will permit designs that are compact, modular, versatile, easy to fabricate and assemble, and wherein use can be made of existing heat transfer technology without special surface preparation. 
     These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention addresses the deficiencies of currently available designs. It is an extremely simple geometry that is widely adaptable for a variety of miniaturized absorption system components. It can be used for fluid pairs with non-volatile and volatile absorbents. It promotes high heat and mass transfer rates through flow mechanisms such as counter-current vapor-liquid flow, vapor shear, droplet entrainment, adiabatic absorption between tubes, species concentration redistribution due to liquid droplet impingement, significant interaction between vapor and liquid flow around adjacent tubes in the transverse and vertical directions, and other deviations from idealized falling films. It ensures uniform distribution of the liquid and vapor films and high wettability of the transfer surfaces. 
     Short lengths of very small diameter tubes are placed in a square array, with several such arrays being stacked vertically. Successive tube arrays are oriented in a transverse orientation perpendicular to the tubes in adjacent levels. In an absorber application, the liquid solution flows in the falling-film mode counter-current to the coolant through the tube rows. Vapor flows upward through the lattice formed by the tube banks, counter-current to the falling solution. The effective vapor-solution contact minimizes heat and mass transfer resistances, the solution and vapor streams are self-distributing, and wetting problems are minimized. Coolant-side heat transfer coefficients are extremely high without any passive or active surface treatment or enhancement, due to the small tube diameter. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic broken-away perspective view of an apparatus of this invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an enlarged scale perspective view of adjacent groups of coolant tubes; 
         FIG. 3  is an enlarged scale plan view of a typical group of coolant tubes; 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic elevational view of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5  is an enlarged scale perspective view of a header used in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic view of a system to practice the invention; 
         FIG. 7  is an exploded perspective schematic view of an alternate form of the invention; and 
         FIG. 8  is an enlarged-scale plan view of the assembled components of  FIG. 7 . 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     With reference to  FIG. 1 , the numeral  10  designates a support structure wherein alternate groups of coolant tubes  12  and  14  ( FIG. 1 ) are mounted in spaced vertical relation in structure  10 . Each group  12  and  14  is comprised of a plurality of small diameter coolant tubes  16  which extend between opposite headers  18 . ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ). The orientation of the tubes  16  in group  12  is at right angles to the orientation of tubes  16  in group  14  ( FIG. 2 ). The tubes  16  in each group are in fluid communication with headers  18 . 
     Hydronic fluid is introduced into the lowermost group of tubes at  20  ( FIG. 1 ), and successive groups are fluidly connected by conduits  22 . 
     The short lengths of very thin tubes  16  (similar to hypodermic needles) are placed in an approximately square array. This array forms level  1  ( FIG. 2 ), depicted by the square A 1 -B 1 -C 1 -D 1 . The second array (level  2 ) of thin tubes  16  is placed above level  1 , but in a transverse orientation perpendicular to the tubes in level  1 , depicted by A 2 -B 2 -C 2 -D 2 . A lattice of these successive levels is formed, with the number of levels determined by the design requirements. Hydronic fluid (coolant) is manifolded through these tubes  16  pumped into the system by pump  24  through conduit  20  ( FIG. 2 ). Thus the fluid enters level  1  at A 1  and flows in the header in direction A 1 -B 1 . As it flows through the header, the flow is distributed in parallel through all the tubes in level  1 . In an actual application, the number of parallel passes can be determined by tube-side heat transfer and surface area requirements, and pressure drop restrictions. The fluid flows through the tubes  16  from A 1 -B 1  to C 1 -D 1 . The fluid collected in the outlet header C 1 -D 1  flows through the outlet connector tube D 1 -D 2  to the upper level. The inlet and outlet headers  18  are appropriately tapered to effect uniform hydronic flow distribution between the tubes. In level  2 , the fluid flows in parallel through the second row of tubes from D 2 -B 2  to C 2 -A 2 . This flow pattern is continued, maintaining a globally rotating coolant flow path through the entire stack until the fluid exists at the outlet of the upper-most header. 
     This configuration yields extremely high coolant-side heat transfer coefficients even though the flow is laminar, due to the small tube diameter. In conventional heat exchangers, however, the coolant side heat transfer resistance is often dominant, resulting in unduly large components. The high values are achieved without the application of any passive or active heat transfer enhancement techniques, which typically add to the cost and complication of heat exchangers. In addition, the coolant-side pressure drop can be maintained at desirable values simply by modifying the pass arrangement (even to be in parallel across multiple levels), thus ensuring low parasitic power requirements. 
     The headers  18  are tapered in cross section from one end to the other. One form of construction is best shown in  FIG. 5  where a length of hollow cylindrical pipe has been cut both longitudinally and diagonally to create a larger end  18 A and a narrow end  18 B. The ends  18 A and  18 B are closed by appropriately shaped end pieces, and the diagonal cut is closed with a plate  18 C. A plurality of apertures are drilled in the plates  18 C to receive the ends of hollow tubes  16  so that the interiors of the tubes  16  are in fluid communication with the interior of headers  18 . The plates  18 C in the opposite headers of each group are preferably parallel to each other (See  FIG. 3 ). 
     In an absorber application, a distribution device  26  (e.g., punched orifice plate) located above the uppermost row of tubes  16  through outlet  28  distributes weak solution so that it flows in the falling-film mode counter-current to the coolant through this lattice of heat exchanger rows. (Plate  26  has been omitted from  FIG. 1  for clarity.) Vapor is introduced into the heat exchanger  10  at the bottom thereof via tube  30  ( FIG. 1 ). The vapor flows upward through the lattice formed by the coolant tubes  16 , counter-current with respect to the gravity-driven falling dilute solution. Spacing (vertical and transverse) between the tubes  16  is easily adjustable to ensure the desired vapor velocities as the local vapor and solution flow rates change due to absorption, and adequate adiabatic absorption of refrigerant vapor between levels. Such an arrangement virtually eliminates inadequate wetting of the heat exchanger surface (of tubes  16 ) which is a common problem in conventional heat exchangers. The resulting effectiveness of the contact between the vapor and the dilute solution, and the solution and the coolant through the tubes, minimizes heat and mass transfer resistances. The heat of absorption is conveyed to the coolant with minimal tube-side resistance due to the high heat transfer coefficients described above. 
     The influence of vapor shear and the resulting film turbulence is very significant, especially at the vapor velocities required to maintain compactness. This is not only important in enhancing the transfer coefficients typical of smooth films, but also will cause droplet entrainment in the vapor phase. Adequate spacing between tubes  16  can be provided to avoid flooding and flow reversal of the liquid solution due to high counter current vapor velocities. Because of the proximity of tubes  16  in the horizontal plane, surface tension effects will act in opposition to vapor shear and determine the conditions necessary for the bridging of the vapor film. Liquid phase droplets play a key role in several aspects of the absorption process by providing adiabatic absorption surface area. Thus, the concentration and temperature of the fluid droplets arriving at the top of a tube  16  will be different from the values at the bottom of, the preceding tube  16 . The amount of absorption that can occur depends on various factors including the equilibrium concentration, which would be reached only when the entire droplet reaches saturation. The approach to this “ideal” concentration depends on the distance between the successive tubes  16  and also in the gradients established within the drop. An associated phenomenon is droplet impingement on succeeding tubes and the consequent re-distribution of the concentration gradients. This helps establish a new, well-mixed concentration profile at the top of each tube. In some situations, the droplet impingement could also result in secondary droplets leaving the tube to be re-entrained. Surface wettability is not a concern for the proposed configuration of  FIG. 1 . This configuration is self-distributing, and offers adequate surface area for the fluid to contact the surfaces of tubes  16  due to the lattice structure of the tube banks. In addition, if carbon steel tubes  16  are used with ammonia-water solutions, the oxide layer formed provides a fine porous surface that promotes wetting. The concentrated solution flowing around tubes  16  and moving by gravity to drain  31  and concentrated fluid discharge pipe  32  are best shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     The concept of  FIGS. 1 and 2  is an extremely simple geometry that is widely adaptable to a variety of absorption system components. It can be used for fluid pairs with non-volatile and volatile absorbents. It promotes high heat and mass transfer rates through flow mechanisms such as counter-current vapor-liquid flow, vapor shear, adiabatic absorption between tubes, species concentration redistribution due to liquid droplet impingement, and significant interaction between vapor and liquid flow around adjacent tubes in the transverse and vertical directions. It ensures uniform distribution of the liquid and vapor films and high wettability of the transfer surfaces. 
     The coolant-side heat transfer coefficients are extremely high even though the flow is laminar, due to the small tube diameter (h=Nu k/D, D→O.). The high values are achieved without any passive or active heat transfer enhancement, which typically increases cost and complexity. In addition, coolant pressure drop (ΔP) can be minimized simply by modifying the pass arrangement (parallel flow within one level and/or across multiple levels), ensuring minimal parasitic power requirements. In an absorber application, the distribution plate  26  (e.g., orifice plate) above the first row of tubes distributes solution so that it flows in the falling-film mode counter-current to the coolant through the heat exchanger rows. Vapor is introduced at the bottom, and flows upward through the lattice formed by the tube groups through outlet  30 , counter-current to the gravity-driven falling solution. The spacing (vertical and transverse) between the tubes is adjustable to ensure the desired vapor velocities, and adequate adiabatic absorption of vapor between levels. Such an arrangement virtually eliminates inadequate wetting of the heat exchanger surface (a common problem in conventional heat exchangers). The effective vapor-solution contact minimizes heat and mass transfer resistances. The heat of absorption is conveyed to the coolant with minimal tube-side resistance due to the high heat transfer coefficients described above. This concept, therefore, addresses all the requirements for absorber design cited above, in an extremely compact and simple geometry. 
     Again with reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , each group  12  and  14  consist of 40 carbon steel tubes  16 , 0.127 m long and 1.587 mm in diameter, with a tube center-to-center spacing of 3.175 mm, which results in a bundle 0.127 m wide×0.127 m long. These rows are stacked one on top of the other, in a criss-cross pattern, with a row center-to-center vertical spacing of 6.35 mm. This larger vertical spacing is allowed to accommodate the headers at the ends of the tubes. This arrangement, with 75 tube rows, results in an absorber that is 0.476 m high, with a total surface area of 1.9 m 2 . The best coolant flow orientation for counterflow heat and mass transfer is to route it in parallel through all the tubes in one row, and in series through each row from the bottom to the top. However, such an orientation would result in an excessively high pressure drop on the coolant side, due to the very small cross-sectional area of each row, and high L/D i  values. Thus, the coolant should be routed through multiple rows in parallel. 
     An alternate form of the invention is shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8  which is a modification of the groups  12  and  14  of  FIGS. 1 and 2 . 
     Vertical tube masts  34  and  36  have coolant fluid pumped upwardly into headers  18 , and which are secured in cantilever fashion by their larger ends. Each mast  34  and  36  has a header  18  at a level opposite to a header  18  on the opposite mast. Tubes  16  extend between these opposite headers  18  when they are juxta-positioned as shown in  FIG. 8 . This arrangement allows coolant to be simultaneously supplied to all the tubes in about 15 to 20 rows in parallel fashion with multiple sets of these rows of 15 to 20 tubes being in series, rather than each tube row being in series fashion as with the structure of  FIG. 1 . It also reduces the size of the pump required to move the coolant through the tubes  16 . 
       FIG. 6  shows a schematic system wherein an absorber support structure  10  is present in a single-effect hydronically coupled heat pump cooling mode. Minor modifications to the system enable heating mode operation. With reference to  FIG. 6 , an evaporator  38  is connected by means of chilled water/hydronic fluid line  41  to indoor coil  40 . Line  42  is a return line from coil  40  to the evaporator  38 . The previously referred to tube  30  connects the evaporator  38  to the absorber  10  to deliver refrigerant vapor to the absorber. 
     Line  44  connects absorber  10  to condenser  46 . Condensed liquid refrigerant moves from condenser  46  in line  48  through expansion device  52  and thence through line  50  back to evaporator  38 . 
     Previously described line or tube  20  connects condenser  46  to outdoor coil  54  which receives outdoor ambient air from the source  56 . 
     A generator/desorber  58  receives thermal energy input (steam or gas heat) via line  60 . Line  62  transmits refrigerant vapor from generator/desorber  58  back to condenser  46 . 
     A solution heat exchanger  64  is connected to absorber  10  by previously described tube  28  in which valve  65  is imposed. Previously described concentrated solution tube  32  extends from absorber  10  to solution heat exchanger  64 . Solution pump  70  is imposed in line  32 . 
     The dotted line  72  in  FIG. 6  designates the dividing line in the system with the low pressure components being below and to the left of the line and the high pressure components are above and to the right of the line. 
     The dilute solution being introduced through inlet  28  ( FIG. 1 ) is a solution of ammonia and water with about a 20% concentration of ammonia. The concentrated solution moving out of the device  10  through conduit  32  ( FIG. 1 ) is also comprised of a solution of ammonia and water with about a 50% concentration of ammonia. The vapor supplied to the system through conduit  30  is an ammonia vapor. 
     The present device  10  also may be used to generate a vapor or cause a vaporization phenomenon. The vaporization phenomenon is accomplished through a process known as desorption whereby a hot hydronic fluid is passed through coolant tubes  16  via conduit  30  and progresses upwardly through the grids of structure  10 . At the same time, a concentrated fluid is passed externally over the tubes  16  and over the grids of the structure  10  downward via gravity. As the concentrated fluid passes over the tubes  16 , the concentrated fluid forms a falling film on the exterior of the tubes  16 . Droplets of the concentrated fluid intermix with each other during impingement on each succeeding set of groups  12  and  14 . The droplets of the concentrated fluid vaporize on the exterior surface of the tubes  16  due to desorption. The vapor generated flows upwardly through structure  10  due to buoyancy. 
     This invention reveals a miniaturization technology for absorption heat and mass transfer components. Preliminary heat and mass transfer modeling of the temperature, mass, and concentration gradients across the absorber shows that this invention holds the potential for the development of extremely small absorption system components. For example, an absorber with a heat rejection rate of 19.28 kW, which corresponds approximately to a 10.55 kW space-cooling load in the evaporator, can be built in a very small 0.127 m×0.127 m×, 0.476 m envelope. The concept allows modular designs, in which a wide range of absorption loads can be transferred simply by changing the number of tube rows, tube-to-tube spacings, and pass arrangements. Furthermore, the technology can be used for almost all absorption heat pump components (absorbers, desorbers, condensers, rectifiers, and evaporators) and to several industries involved in binary-fluid processes. It is believed that this simplicity of the transfer surface (smooth round tube), and modularity and uniformity of surface type and configuration throughout the system will be extremely helpful in the fabrication and commercialization of absorption systems to the small heating and cooling load markets. 
     It is therefore seen that this invention will achieve at least all of its stated objectives.