The invention relates to an arrangement in order to transmit and utilize heat energy from a unit which produces heat energy to a unit which utilizes heat energy in which arrangement heat energy is transferred through a pipe system with water that functions mainly as a heat transfer medium.
Energy plants, the ground, water systems and for example industrial processes are previously known as units that produce heat energy. Of these objects energy plants and industrial processes deliver it at such a temperature that it can be utilized directly or its temperature can even be lowered when they sell heat energy.
Heat energy from the ground or the water system is known as free energy that is transferred to a usage target with the help of pipe systems and with the help of the liquid circulating in them. The temperature of the liquid when it is being transferred is however so low—usually under +10° C.—that its temperature has to be increased with the help of a heat pump to a level where it can be utilized better. The disadvantage of this free energy is the fact that it is hard to get during cold weather and usually transfer distances of this free energy are limited to a couple of hundred meters. There is a lot of heat energy also at a temperature that is lower than the temperatures that are used in the district heating network and respectively at a temperature which is higher than the temperature of the ground and the temperature of the water system. The present invention has a solution for utilizing this kind of energy the temperature level of which varies between approximately +10° C.-50° C. in a new way. It is characteristic of the arrangement according to the invention regarding the transfer from the heat producing unit to the utilizer that heat energy is transmitted at such a delivery temperature of the heat transfer medium—at least at a temperature of +20° C., but under 60° C.—that in order to utilize the heat energy the above mentioned temperature is changed at the end of the user unit with the help of a heat pump in order to be suitable for utilization.
Other characteristic features of the invention are presented in the dependent claims. The advantage of the arrangement according to the invention is the fact that heat energy can be transmitted long distances in pipe systems which are constructed of plastic in the same way as district heating, heat losses during transfer are minor due to a low temperature and that also the energy of the heat pump to be utilized can be fully utilized at the user end. Due to the low temperature of the transferred energy it is possible to use this energy in the summer time also to cool down buildings because the temperature of the transferred energy can be arranged to the needed temperature level, approximately to a value +10° C. with the help of one part of the arrangement or also in such a way that a hot intermediate agent that comes from the compressor in the cooling system is condensed to the temperature of this transferred liquid the temperature of which is lower than for example the outside temperature during hot weather. If sea water is the heat source, the temperature difference between the sea surface and bottom can be utilized by placing vapour/liquid circulation process to function by means of the temperature difference so, that a rotation motion producing power craft can be get in connection with the process either to produce electricity by means of a generator or to give rotation motion for example to a compressor in a heat pump.
In the following the invention is described more detailed by referring to the accompanying drawing in which
One arrangement according to the invention is shown in
The arrangement according to the invention comprises therefore a heat pump 8 with the help of which the temperature level is risen to a desired level with a very good operating efficiency. The arrangement comprises units for heat transfer known as such, like an evaporator 4, a condensing apparatus 7 and the water lines LV and KV and the circulating cycle of the cooling agent of the heat pump 8 in order to organize heating water and household water according to
The cooling unit 5 can be connected to the return pipe system 2 according to the
Extra process heats can be directed also by using delivery/return pipe systems from the industry processes, like from unit 6 to the condensing apparatus 7 also as a remote, if parallel heat sources are available.
In
In the example of the
The lines 16 and 17 can be relative long in the example of the
The heat engine 10-13 in the
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
PCT/FI2010/000016 | 3/3/2010 | WO | 00 | 9/3/2012 |