Patent ID: 8056350

Claim:
An apparatus for cooling, comprising a liquid pump ( 4 ) transporting fluid through a heating cycle ( 5 , 7 , 24 , 16 , 4 , 3 ), an external heat source ( 1 , 2 ) heating the fluid in the heating cycle ( 5 , 7 , 24 , 16 , 4 , 3 ), an expander ( 7 ) with an expander inlet and an expander outlet, the expander inlet having a fluid connection ( 5 ) to the external heat source ( 1 , 2 ) for receiving fluid from the heat source in the gas phase to drive the expander ( 7 ) by expanding the fluid, a compressor ( 9 ) with a compressor inlet and a compressor outlet, the compressor being driven by the expander ( 7 ) for compressing working fluid from a low pressure compressor inlet gas to a high pressure compressor outlet gas, a first heat exchanger ( 22 ) with a fluid connection ( 21 ) to the compressor outlet and connected to the expander inlet, the first heat exchanger transferring heat from the high pressure compressor outlet gas to the fluid in the heating cycle, a second heat exchanger ( 13 ) with a condenser condensing the working fluid from the expander by energy transfer to a second fluid of lower temperature, a third heat exchanger ( 18 ) including an evaporator evaporating the working fluid from the second heat exchanger ( 13 ) by energy transfer from a third fluid ( 19 ) and creating a desired cooling effect in the third fluid ( 19 ), wherein the first heat exchanger ( 22 ) is connected to the fluid connection ( 5 ) as part of the heating cycle between the external heat source ( 1 , 2 ) and the expander ( 7 ) inlet transferring heat from the high pressure outlet gas to the fluid flowing in fluid connection ( 5 ) from the external heat source ( 1 , 2 ).