Generator

Abstract: A generator for absorption refrigerators, said generator having heat transfer pipes (2) within shell main body (1), and having absorbing solution injecting port (3) and absorbing solution exhausting port (4), absorbing solution exhausting port (4) is provided through dam (41) which is higher than the inner wall top of shell main body (1) at the absorbing solution injecting port (3) side, and steam box (7) is provided at the absorbing solution exhausting port (4) side of shell main body (1) so that the inner wall top of the steam box (7) is higher than dam (41).

Description: This invention is related to a generator for absorption refrigerators in which, for instance, water is used as refrigerant and a salt solution such as lithium bromide is used as absorbing solution. As a generator of this type, for instance, that disclosed in the Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 243670/1988 official gazette is known. The generator proposed herein is constructed such that a group of heat transfer pipes which can transmit high temperature steam are placed in the lower portion within the shell main body, a space (steam chamber) for generating refrigerant vapor is provided above the absorbing solution which is injected so as to enable the heat transfer pipes to be dipped, and an eliminator is further provided in the upper portion to isolate the absorbing solution accompanying the refrigerant vapor. The generator of the above construction is a so-called open type heat exchanger which has a space for the refrigerant to freely vaporize, and has an action of heating and concentrating the absorbing solution by pool boiling. There are two stages in a heat transfer process in which an absorbing solution is heated by heat transfer pipes in a generator. The first one is convective heat transfer which occurs when the degree of subcooling is decreased because of a subcool state in which the absorbing solution supplied to the generator is lower than the saturation temperature, and it is further increased to a temperature required for causing a phase change. The second stage is heat transfer involving a phase change, which occurs when the absorbing solution overheated by the convective heat transfer of the first stage boiles or surface vaporization at the level takes place. In the above-mentioned conventional generator, since the absorbing solution has free level throughout the generator, the absorbing solution having entered the generator flows at an extremely low speed, and thus the convective heat transfer portion inherently has low heat transfer characteristics corresponding to free convective heat transfer. That is, even if the absorbing solution is injected into the generator using a pump or the like, the pressure at the time of injection is opened to the free level and does not directly act as a pressure fluidizing the absorbing solution, so that the fluidizing speed of the absorbing solution becomes very low and heat exchange cannot fully be performed at the surface of the heat transfer pipes, US-A-2398279 discloses a generator according to the preamble of claim 1. EP-A-0110763 discloses a closed type heat exchanger including a separator separating bubbles from a solution. Even if it is designed so that the portion of heat transfer with boiling which is another heat transfer mode at the outer surface of heat transfer pipes, and heat transfer on the inner surface of the heat transfer pipes, that is, heat transfer with condensation or heat transfer by forced convection of hot water have high heat transfer coefficients, the total heat transfer characteristics of the generator including the abovementioned convective heat transfer would be remarkably degraded. It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a generator in which insufficient concentration by heating of the absorbing solution in the generator is avoided and wherein no large heat transfer area is necessary. This object is achieved by a generator as defined in the claims. Since, in the closed type heat exchanger portion at the absorbing solution injecting port side, there is no escape for the pump pressure for injecting the absorbing solution, the pump pressure at the time of injecting the absorbing solution also directly acts on the absorbing solution in the closed type heat exchanger, and the absorbing solution is pressed toward the absorbing solution exhausting port with a strong force. For this, even if baffles are mounted zigzag at a small pitch in the closed type heat exchanger at the absorbing solution injecting port side, the absorbing solution meanders fast to the absorbing solution exhausting port, and thus the amount of heat exchange with the heat source increases through the heat transfer pipes, and the absorbing solution is overheated until it reaches the open type heat exchanger at the absorbing solution exhausting port side and generates much refrigerant vapor at the open type heat exchanger. And, the generated refrigerant vapor is exhausted via the steam box, and the absorbing solution, the concentration of which has been increased by isolation of the refrigerant vapor, is exhausted from the absorbing solution exhausting port. Fig. 1 is a partly broken explanatory view as seen from the front. Fig. 2 is a sectional explanatory view along line A-A of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an explanatory view showing the effects. This invention is now described according to the drawings. In Figs. 1 and 2, 1 is a shell main body, 2 are heat transfer pipes, 3 is a port for injecting an absorbing solution, 4 is a port for exhausting the absorbing solution, 5 is a heat source inlet port, 6 is a heat source outlet port, 7 is a steam box for refrigerant, 8 is a port for exhausting the refrigerant vapor, 9 are baffles, and an absorbing solution pump (not shown) is connected to the absorbing solution injecting port 3 through piping. Shell main body 1 is a tubular body, in which a large number of heat transfer pipes 2 are disposed in parallel in the longitudinal direction. The heat transfer pipes are respectively mounted so that a heat source such as high temperature vapor or hot water is received from heat source inlet port 5 provided in a header at the lefthand side of the drawing, passes through the inside thereof, and is exhausted from heat source outlet port 6 provided in a header at the righthand side of the drawing. Absorbing solution injecting port 3 is provided in shell main body 1 at the heat source outlet port 6, and absorbing solution exhausting port 4 is provided at the heat source inlet port 5 side. Absorbing solution injecting port 3 is directly provided in the upper portion of shell main body 1, but absorbing solution exhaust port 4 is provided in the bottom of exhaust box 42 placed in a side of shell main body 1 through dam 41. The height of dam 41 is adjusted so that it is higher than the top of the inner wall of shell main body 1 at the absorbing solution injecting port 3 side. In addition, absorbing solution injecting port 3 is provided at a position higher than dam 41. Further, steam box 7 communicating with shell main body 1 is placed in the upper portion of shell main body 1 at the heat source inlet port 5 side, with the top of the inner wall thereof being adjusted so as to be higher than the dam 41. Accordingly, when an absorbing solution is injected from absorbing solution injecting port 3 and exhausted over dam 41 from absorbing solution exhausting port 4, the shell main body 1 at the absorbing solution injecting port 3 side, the inner wall top of which is lower than dam 41, is filled with the absorbing solution to the inner wall top, and the steam box 7 at the absorbing solution exhausting port 4 side, the inner wall top of which is formed higher than dam 41, is not filled with the absorbing solution. The space between the inner wall top and dam 41 which is not filled with the absorbing solution is a region where refrigerant vapor is generated. Consequently, the absorbing solution injecting port 3 side (heat source outlet port 6 side) is a closed type heat exchanger, and the absorbing solution exhausting port 4 side (heat source inlet port 5 side) is an open type heat exchanger. Baffles 9 are provided zigzag so that the absorbing solution flows, meandering from absorbing solution injecting port 3 to absorbing solution exhausting port 4. In addition, baffles 9 are attached so that the pitch becomes larger from absorbing solution injecting port 3 to absorbing solution exhausting port 4. Since the baffles 9 cause the absorbing solution to meander for putting the absorbing solution in even contact with heat transfer pipes 2 thereby to decrease temperature fluctuation, basically the effect becomes greater as the number of the attached baffles 9 increases. However, the absorbing solution becomes difficult to flow if many baffles 9 are mounted at a small pitch, and thus many baffles 9 are mounted at a small pitch in the closed type heat exchanger side having no escape for the injection pump pressure, whereas a small number of baffles 9 are mounted at a large pitch in the open type heat exchanger side having steam box 7 in which the pressure is released. If the absorbing solution is heated, for instance, to 127°C and supplied into shell main body 1 from absorbing solution injecting port 3, the absorbing solution is low as compared with the preset inner pressure of 70 mmHg and saturation temperature of 154°C of the generator, and thus it meanders through the inside of the closed type heat exchanger at the absorbing solution injecting port 3 side, heated by heat transfer pipes 2, for instance, to 146°C through convective heat transfer, and begins boiling to generate tiny bubbles on the surface of heat transfer pipes 2. The bubbles generated in the closed type heat exchanger gradually grow up, but, from the conventional weak upward flow, they grow up with a lateral flow as they approach steam box 7 at the absorbing solution exhausting port 4 side, because of the pump pressure is acting. The bubbles grow large since the passage is structurally long in the lateral direction, and they become a gas-liquid two-phase flow of forced convection. In addition, since this flow is very strong, the energy of this still remains even at the open type heat exchanger having steam box 7, and the lateral flow of bubbles is stronger than the traditional upward flow. Accordingly, the liquid side heat transfer coefficient of the open type heat exchanger which is a region for boiling greatly increases. Further, since absorbing solution injecting port 3 is provided at a position higher than dam 41, the absorbing solution of the generator can be prevented form flowing out to the absorbing solution pump when the absorbing solution pump stops. For this, the lacking of the absorbing solution of the generator can be prevented to avoid crystallization. In Fig. 3, an example of the performance of the generator according to this invention is shown comparatively with the prior example. Temperature difference ΔT on the abscissa is the difference between the average temperature of the high temperature vapor passing in heat transfer pipes 2 and the average temperature of the absorbing solution in the generator, and the ordinate represents heat flux. As obvious from this figure, by the generator of this invention, a heat flux larger than the conventional generator can be obtained at any temperature difference ΔT. For instance, if they are compared when temperature difference ΔT is 8°C, a heat flux of 40,705 W/m 2 (35000 Kcal/m 2 hr) can be obtained with the generator of this invention whereas only a heat flux of 23,260 W/m 2 (20000 Kcal/m 2 hr) can be obtained with the conventional generator, and thus it is seen that a heat flux 1.75 times the conventional generator can be obtained with this invention. In addition, the heat transfer characteristics do not degrade even at temperature difference ΔT not higher than 7°C. As described above, the generator according to this invention has improved in heat transfer characteristics over the conventional generator. According to comparison under the same condition, the heat transfer characteristics 1.75 times the conventional generator have been obtained. In addition, even if the temperature difference between the temperature of the heat source supplied to heat transfer pipes and the temperature of the absorbing solution is only in the order of 5 to 6°C, the heat transfer characteristics are substantially the same as the conventional apparatus running at a temperature difference of 8°C. Further, because of being a closed type generator, the amount of the absorbing solution such as lithium bromide to be filled can greatly be reduced as compared with the conventional open type generator, so that cost reduction can be achieved, and the apparatus has also large industrial merits in the point of excellent heat transfer characteristics as well as possibility of being made small-sized and lightweight.

Claims: A generator for an absorption refrigerator comprising: a shell (1) having a heat source fluid inflow side (5) and a heat source fluid outflow side (6), said shell (1) containing heat transfer pipes (2) for transmitting a heat source fluid within said shell, an injection port (3) provided in the shell (1) for injecting an absorbing solution, said injected absorbing solution filling said shell at said injection port (3) and over an extent of said shell to form a closed type heat exchanger, an exhaust port (4) located on said shell (1) for exhausting the absorbing solution at the heat source fluid inflow side, wherein first means (41, 42, 7) are provided at said exhaust port (4) and over an extent of said shell to provide an open space above the flowing absorbing solution and to form an open type heat exchanger, characterized by a plurality of baffles (9) in the shell (1), the baffles (9) having a first pitch in the closed type heat exchanger side and a second pitch greater than said first pitch in the open type heat exchanger side. A generator for an absorption refrigerator as claimed in claim 1, characterized by a dam (41) which separates the interior of said shell (1) at the open type heat exchanger side and said exhaust port (4), the absorbing solution injection port (3) being provided at a position higher than the dam (41).

Inventors: HURUKAWA MASAHIRO, SEKOGUCHI KOTOHIKO, HURUKAWA, MASAHIRO, SEKOGUCHI, KOTOHIKO
Applicants: SANYO ELECTRIC CO, SEKOGUCHI KOTOHIKO, SANYO ELECTRIC CO., LTD., SEKOGUCHI, KOTOHIKO
Application year: 1992
Main classification: F25B33
IPC codes: F25B33