Patent Application
20210102538
The present invention relates to a compressor.
Known in the related art is an oil separation mechanism being provided in a compressor of an automotive air conditioner or the like so that a lubricant contained in a refrigerant is discharged only to the compressor (see, for example, PTL 1 and 2).
PTL 1 discloses separating a lubricant by causing a refrigerant guided to a separation chamber 11 to orbit in a cylindrical space in which a separation pipe 12a is disposed and discharging the separated lubricant to an oil storage chamber 15.
PTL 2 discloses forming an oil separation chamber 20 and an oil reservoir 25 as one space and guiding an oil-separated refrigerant gas to an internal space 33 from a small hole 32 formed in a small-diameter section 29 of an oil separation cylinder 26.
[PTL 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2014-20306
The mechanism that is disclosed in PTL 1 is a mechanism in which the oil storage chamber 15 storing the separated lubricant is provided separately from the separation chamber 11 in which the lubricant is separated from the refrigerant.
Accordingly, a sufficient space is required for two spaces to be provided and an increase in the size of the compressor cannot be suppressed.
In addition, an increase in manufacturing costs arises from the complex shape in which the two spaces are provided.
In the mechanism that is disclosed in PTL 2, the oil separation chamber 20 and the oil reservoir 25 are formed as one space, and thus the compressor can be reduced in size.
In the mechanism that is disclosed in PTL 1, however, the small-diameter section 29 is formed on the oil reservoir 25 side below the oil separation cylinder 26 and the small hole 32 guiding the refrigerant to the internal space 33 is formed in the small-diameter section 29.
Accordingly, the oil may be wound up from the oil reservoir 25 below the oil separation cylinder 26 by the orbiting flow of the refrigerant gas, the oil may be drawn from the small hole 32 into the internal space 33, and then the oil separation from the refrigerant gas may become insufficient.
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a compressor which enables reliable separation of oil from a refrigerant gas while suppressing increases in the size of equipment and manufacturing costs.
In order to solve the above problems, a compressor of the present invention adopts the following means.
A compressor according to an aspect of the present invention includes a housing forming a suction space for a refrigerant gas inside, a compression mechanism disposed in the housing and compressing the refrigerant gas flowing into the suction space, an oil separation space formed in the housing so as to extend in a gravitational direction, separating oil from the refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism, and guiding the refrigerant gas to a discharge pipe, and a cylindrical member disposed along an axis line of the oil separation space above the oil separation space in the gravitational direction. The cylindrical member has a small-diameter section having a first outer diameter, a large-diameter section formed below the small-diameter section in the gravitational direction and having a second outer diameter larger than the first outer diameter, and an introduction inlet guiding the refrigerant gas from a lower end of the small-diameter section to an internal space of the cylindrical member. The oil separation space has a first space section in which the small-diameter section and the large-diameter section are disposed, the first space section having a first inner diameter larger than the second outer diameter, and a second space section disposed below the first space section in the gravitational direction. The refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism flows into the first space section.
In the compressor of this aspect, the refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism flows into the first space section and orbits around the axis line in the space between the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical member and the inner peripheral surface of the first space section.
The oil contained in the refrigerant gas is separated from the refrigerant gas by the centrifugal force acting during the orbiting, adheres to the inner peripheral surface of the first space, and is guided along the inner peripheral surface to the inner peripheral surface of the second space disposed below in the gravitational direction.
The oil guided to the inner peripheral surface of the second space is moved downward by gravity and forms an oil reservoir below the second space.
After the oil separation in the first space section, the refrigerant gas is guided to the internal space of the cylindrical member from the introduction inlet formed in the small-diameter section of the cylindrical member and is further guided to the discharge pipe.
The large-diameter section larger in outer diameter than the small-diameter section is formed below the small-diameter section of the cylindrical member.
Accordingly, in a case where the refrigerant gas orbiting in the first space section reaches the lower end of the small-diameter section, the refrigerant gas being guided in quantity to the second space below the large-diameter section is suppressed since the interval between the inner peripheral surface of the first space section and the outer peripheral surface of the large-diameter section is small.
Accordingly, a large amount of the refrigerant gas winding up the oil reservoir below the second space section is suppressed.
In this manner, with the compressor of this aspect, it is possible to separate oil from a refrigerant gas in the first space section above the oil separation space and form the oil reservoir in the second space section below the first space section.
It is not necessary to separately provide a space for oil separation and a space for an oil reservoir, and thus increases in the size of equipment and manufacturing costs can be suppressed.
In addition, the orbiting flow of the refrigerant gas being guided in quantity from the first space section to the second space section and the oil reservoir being wound up can be suppressed, and thus oil separation from the refrigerant gas can be performed with reliability.
In the compressor according to an aspect of the present invention, the large-diameter section may be formed in a tapered shape having an outer diameter gradually increasing from the first outer diameter to the second outer diameter from an upper side toward a lower side in the gravitational direction.
As a result, it is possible to appropriately prevent the refrigerant gas from being guided to the second space section while circulating the orbiting flow of the refrigerant gas guided to the large-diameter section without disturbing the orbiting flow.
In the compressor according to an aspect of the present invention, the refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism may flow in from an upper part of the small-diameter section and the introduction inlet may be formed at a lower end of the small-diameter section in the gravitational direction.
As a result, it is possible to form the orbiting flow of the refrigerant gas in a wide range from the upper side to the lower side of the first space section and oil can be appropriately separated from the refrigerant gas.
In the compressor according to an aspect of the present invention, the compression mechanism may be a mechanism compressing the refrigerant gas by a pair of a fixed scroll and an orbiting scroll being disposed so as to face each other and the orbiting scroll being driven to revolve with respect to the fixed scroll.
As a result, in the scroll compressor, oil separation from the refrigerant gas can be performed with reliability with increases in the size of equipment and manufacturing costs suppressed.
According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a compressor which enables reliable separation of oil from a refrigerant gas while suppressing increases in the size of equipment and manufacturing costs.
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a compressor according to the present invention will be described with reference to accompanying drawings.
Illustrated in
As illustrated in
The housing 2 has a front housing 3 and a rear housing 4.
The front housing 3 and the rear housing 4 are fastened by a fastening bolt (not illustrated) such that a refrigerant gas suction space Ss is formed inside.
On the front housing 3 side in the housing 2, a crankshaft 5 is supported so as to be rotatable around an axis line X1 via a main bearing 6 and a sub bearing (not illustrated).
One end side (left side in
Power is input to the pulley 8 from a driving source such as an engine via a driving belt (not illustrated).
A mechanical seal or a lip seal is installed between the main bearing 6 and the sub bearing. As a result, sealing is provided between the inside of the housing 2 and the atmosphere.
A crank pin 9 is integrally provided on the other end side (right side in
The crank pin 9 is connected to an orbiting scroll (described later) via a drive bush 10 and a drive bearing 11.
The orbiting scroll 15 orbits around the axis line X1 by the driving force with which the crankshaft 5 rotates around the axis line X1 being transmitted via the crank pin 9.
A balance weight 12 for removing the unbalance load generated by the orbiting scroll 15 orbiting around the axis line X1 is integrally formed on the drive bush 10.
The balance weight 12 orbits around the axis line X1 together with the orbiting scroll 15.
A driven crank mechanism (not illustrated) making the turning radius of the orbiting scroll 15 variable is provided between the drive bush 10 and the crank pin 9.
The compression mechanism 13 constituted by a pair of a fixed scroll 14 and the orbiting scroll 15 is incorporated in the housing 2.
The compression mechanism 13 is a mechanism compressing a refrigerant gas flowing into the suction space Ss and discharging the compressed refrigerant gas to a discharge space Sd.
An end plate 14A and a scroll-shaped wrap 14B erected from the end plate 14A constitute the fixed scroll 14.
An end plate 15A and a scroll-shaped wrap 15B erected from the end plate 15A constitute the orbiting scroll 15.
As illustrated in
The tooth crest on the outer peripheral side in the orbiting axis line direction is high and the tooth crest on the inner peripheral side in the orbiting axis line direction is low on the tooth crest side with the step sections 14C and 15C and 14D and 15D as boundaries.
On the bottom land side, the bottom land on the outer peripheral side in the orbiting axis line direction is low and the bottom land on the inner peripheral side in the orbiting axis line direction is high.
As a result, in the scroll-shaped wraps 14B and 15B, the wrap height on the outer peripheral side is higher than the wrap height on the inner peripheral side.
The fixed scroll 14 and the orbiting scroll 15 are disposed in a state where the central axes of each other are shifted by the distance of the turning radius of the orbiting scroll 15 and the scroll-shaped wraps 14B and 15B face each other.
In addition, the fixed scroll 14 and the orbiting scroll 15 are assembled such that the scroll-shaped wraps 14B and 15B are meshed 180 degrees out of phase and there is a slight clearance (tens to hundreds of microns) at room temperature between the tooth crest and the bottom land of the scroll-shaped wraps 14B and 15B.
As a result, a pair of suction volumes (compression chambers) 16 formed by the end plates 14A and 15A and the scroll-shaped wraps 14B and 15B between the fixed scroll and the orbiting scroll 15 are formed with a phase difference of 180 degrees with respect to the central axis line.
In the suction volume 16, the heights of the scroll-shaped wraps 14B and 15B are higher on the outer peripheral side than on the inner peripheral side. The suction volume 16 constitutes the compression mechanism 13 capable of performing three-dimensional compression for compressing a refrigerant gas in both the circumferential direction and the height direction of the scroll-shaped wraps 14B and 15B.
The compression mechanism 13 is provided with the step sections 14C and 15C and 14D and 15D. The compression mechanism 13 may be a compression mechanism having no step section.
The fixed scroll 14 is fixed to the inner surface of the rear housing 4 via a fastening bolt (not illustrated).
In the orbiting scroll 15, the crank pin 9 provided on one end side of the crankshaft 5 is connected via the drive bush 10 and the drive bearing 11 to the bearing boss part provided on the back surface of the end plate 15A.
With the back surface of the end plate 15A supported by a thrust bearing surface 3A of the front housing 3, the orbiting scroll 15 is driven to revolve around the fixed scroll 14 while rotation is prevented via a rotation prevention mechanism (not illustrated) provided between the thrust bearing surface 3A and the back surface of the end plate 15A.
In the fixed scroll 14, a discharge port 17 is formed at a central part of the end plate 14A. A refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism 13 is discharged through the discharge port 17.
A discharge reed valve 19 is installed via a retainer 18 at the discharge port 17.
A seal member (not illustrated) is disposed between the back surface on the outer peripheral side of the end plate 14A of the fixed scroll 14 and the inner surface of the rear housing 4.
The discharge space Sd partitioned from the suction space Ss of the housing 2 is formed between the back surface of the end plate 14A and the inner surface of the rear housing 4.
A high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism 13 is discharged to the discharge space Sd via the discharge port 17.
The suction space Ss in the housing 2 communicates with a suction port 20 provided in the upper portion of the front housing 3.
A low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant gas is supplied to the suction port 20 from a refrigeration cycle side.
The low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant gas supplied to the suction space Ss is compressed after being suctioned into the two suction volumes (compression chambers) 16 formed with a phase difference of 180 degrees with respect to the fixed scroll 14 by the orbiting scroll 15 being driven to orbit.
As illustrated in
The low-temperature refrigerant gas suctioned into the suction space Ss from the suction port 20 is suctioned into the suction volume (compression chamber) 16 on the side that is far from the suction port 20 as indicated by arrow b.
The refrigerant gas suctioned into the suction volume 16 is compressed and guided from the discharge port 17 to the discharge space Sd.
Next, a mechanism for separating oil from the refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism 13 and guided to the discharge space Sd and guiding the oil-separated refrigerant gas to a discharge pipe 40 will be described.
This mechanism is a mechanism for separating the refrigerant gas flowing from the discharge space Sd into the oil separation space So in the oil separation space So by means of the separation cylinder 30.
Hereinafter, the mechanism will be described with reference to
As illustrated in
The oil separation space So is a space having a circular cross-sectional view in the horizontal direction and is formed along an axis line X2 extending in the vertical direction.
As illustrated in
Accordingly, the oil separation space So can be formed by a relatively simple work in which a hole having the constant first inner diameter Di1 is drilled along the axis line X2 after the rear housing 4 is manufactured by casting.
As illustrated in
The separation cylinder 30 is a cylindrical member formed so as to have circular outer and inner diameters in a horizontal cross section.
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
The introduction inlet 33 is formed at a plurality of locations around the axis line X2 (such as two locations spaced 180 degrees around the axis line X2 and four locations spaced 90 degrees around the axis line X2).
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
A fastening hole 21 is formed in the rear housing 4. The discharge pipe 40 and the flange section 34 of the separation cylinder 30 are fixed to the rear housing 4 by a fastening bolt (not illustrated) inserted in the through-hole 34b and the through-hole 41 being fastened to the fastening hole 21.
In the scroll compressor 1 of the present embodiment, the tip portion 40a of the discharge pipe 40 is inserted into the recess 34a formed in the flange section 34 of the separation cylinder 30 inserted in the oil separation space So without being directly inserted into the oil separation space So.
Accordingly, it is possible to increase the inner diameter of the oil separation space So without, for example, changing the shape of the tip portion 40a of the discharge pipe 40.
For example, as in the modification example that is illustrated in
By increasing the inner diameter of the oil separation space So, it is possible to increase an oil-separating centrifugal force in forming an orbiting flow Fs of a refrigerant gas (described later) and improve the oil separation performance.
In
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Here, how oil is separated from a refrigerant gas in the oil separation space So in which the separation cylinder 30 is disposed will be described.
A refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism 13 and guided to the discharge space Sd flows from two inflow ports 22 into the upper part of the separation section So1 of the oil separation space So.
The small-diameter section 31 of the separation cylinder 30 is disposed in the separation section So1, and thus the separation section So1 has a cylindrical space extending along the axis line X2.
Accordingly, the refrigerant gas flowing into the separation section So1 from the inflow port 22 forms the orbiting flow Fs and is guided to the introduction inlet 33 formed at the lower end of the small-diameter section 31 while orbiting around the axis line X2.
The oil contained in the refrigerant gas is separated from the refrigerant gas by the centrifugal force acting when the refrigerant gas becomes the orbiting flow Fs and orbits in the separation section So1.
The oil separated from the refrigerant gas adheres to the inner peripheral surface of the separation section So1 and is guided along the inner peripheral surface to the inner peripheral surface of the oil storage section So2 below.
The oil guided to the inner peripheral surface of the oil storage section So2 is moved downward by gravity and forms an oil reservoir Os below the oil storage section So2.
As illustrated in
This is for the refrigerant gas that has flowed into the oil separation space So to form the orbiting flow Fs orbiting around the axis line X2.
By the refrigerant gas being caused to flow along the inner peripheral surface of the oil separation space So, the refrigerant gas becomes the orbiting flow Fs orbiting around the axis line X2.
Desirably, the value of the first inner diameter Di1 and the value of the second outer diameter Do2 are determined such that the value of Do2/Di1 is 0.8 or more and 0.9 or less.
By setting the value of Do2/Di1 to 0.8 or more, it is possible to narrow the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the large-diameter section 32 and the inner peripheral surface of the separation section So1 and suppress the orbiting flow of the refrigerant gas flowing in quantity from the separation section So1 into the oil storage section So2.
By setting the value of Do2/Di1 to 0.9 or less, it is possible to ensure a gap to a certain extent or more between the outer peripheral surface of the large-diameter section 32 and the inner peripheral surface of the separation section So1 and promote the flow of the oil separated from the refrigerant gas from the separation section So1 to the oil storage section So2.
The action and effect of the scroll compressor 1 of the present embodiment described above will be described below.
In the scroll compressor 1 of the present embodiment, a refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism 13 flows into the separation section So1 and orbits around the axis line X2 along the vertical direction in the space between the outer peripheral surface of the separation cylinder 30 and the inner peripheral surface of the separation section So1.
The oil contained in the refrigerant gas is separated from the refrigerant gas by the centrifugal force acting during the orbiting, adheres to the inner peripheral surface of the separation section So1, and is guided along the inner peripheral surface to the inner peripheral surface of the oil storage section So2 below.
The oil guided to the inner peripheral surface of the oil storage section So2 is moved downward by gravity and forms the oil reservoir Os below the oil storage section So2.
After the oil separation in the separation section So1, the refrigerant gas is guided to the internal space Si of the separation cylinder 30 from the introduction inlet 33 formed in the small-diameter section 31 of the separation cylinder 30 and is further guided to the discharge pipe 40.
The large-diameter section 32 larger in outer diameter than the small-diameter section 31 is formed below the small-diameter section 31 of the separation cylinder 30.
Accordingly, in a case where the refrigerant gas orbiting in the separation section So1 reaches the lower end of the small-diameter section 31, the refrigerant gas being guided to the oil storage section So2 below the large-diameter section 32 is suppressed since the interval between the inner peripheral surface of the separation section So1 and the outer peripheral surface of the large-diameter section 32 is small.
Accordingly, winding up of the oil reservoir Os below the oil storage section So2 is suppressed.
In this manner, with the scroll compressor 1 of the present embodiment, it is possible to separate oil from a refrigerant gas in the separation section So1 above the oil separation space So and form the oil reservoir Os in the oil storage section So2 below the separation section So1.
It is not necessary to separately provide a space for oil separation and a space for an oil reservoir, and thus increases in the size of equipment and manufacturing costs can be suppressed.
In addition, the orbiting flow Fs of the refrigerant gas being guided in quantity from the separation section So1 to the oil storage section So2 and the oil reservoir being wound up can be suppressed, and thus oil separation from the refrigerant gas can be performed with reliability.
In the scroll compressor 1 of the present embodiment, the large-diameter section 32 is formed in a tapered shape in which the outer diameter gradually increases from the first outer diameter Do1 to the second outer diameter Do2 from the upper side toward the lower side in the vertical direction.
As a result, it is possible to appropriately prevent the refrigerant gas from being guided to the oil storage section So2 while circulating the orbiting flow of the refrigerant gas guided to the large-diameter section 32 without disturbing the orbiting flow.
The shape of the large-diameter section 32 is not limited to the tapered shape. For example, the large-diameter section 32 may be formed in a tubular shape having a constant second outer diameter Do2 along the vertical direction.
In the scroll compressor 1 of the present embodiment, the refrigerant gas compressed by the compression mechanism 13 flows in from the upper part of the small-diameter section 31 and the introduction inlet 33 is formed at the lower end of the small-diameter section 31 in the vertical direction.
As a result, it is possible to form the orbiting flow Fs of the refrigerant gas in a wide range from the upper side to the lower side of the separation section So1 and oil can be appropriately separated from the refrigerant gas.
Although a scroll compression mechanism is used as the compression mechanism 13 in the present embodiment, another compression mechanism may be used.
Although the axis line X2 extends in the vertical direction and the oil separation space So and the separation cylinder 30 are disposed along the axis line X2 in the present embodiment, the present invention is not limited thereto.
For example, the axis line X2 may be an axis line extending in a direction inclined by a predetermined angle (such as an angle of 13° or more) from the horizontal direction.
In this case, the separation cylinder 30 is disposed along the axis line X2 above the oil separation space So in the gravitational direction.
In addition, the large-diameter section 32 of the separation cylinder 30 is formed below the small-diameter section 31 in the gravitational direction.
The oil contained in the refrigerant gas forms the oil reservoir Os below the oil storage section So2, even when the axis line X2 does not extend in the vertical direction, insofar as the axis line X2 extends in a direction inclined from the horizontal direction.
In other words, the oil contained in the refrigerant gas is separated from the refrigerant gas by the centrifugal force acting during the orbiting, adheres to the inner peripheral surface of the separation section So1, is guided along the inner peripheral surface to the inner peripheral surface of the oil storage section So2 below, and is moved by gravity to the lower part of the oil storage section So2.
1 Scroll compressor
2 Housing
3 Front housing
4 Rear housing
5 Crankshaft
6 Main bearing
7 Electromagnetic clutch
8 Pulley
9 Crank pin
10 Drive bush
11 Drive bearing
12 Balance weight
13 Compression mechanism
14 Fixed scroll
15 Orbiting scroll
16 Suction volume
17 Discharge port
18 Retainer
19 Discharge reed valve
20 Suction port
21 Fastening hole
22 Inflow port
30 Separation cylinder (cylindrical member)
31 Small-diameter section
32 Large-diameter section
33 Introduction inlet
34 Flange section
40 Discharge pipe
Di1 First inner diameter
Do1 First outer diameter
Do2 Second outer diameter
Os Oil reservoir
Sd Discharge space
Si Internal space
So Oil separation space
So1 Separation section (first space section)
So2 Oil storage section (second space section)
Ss Suction space
X1, X2 Axis line
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-140881 | Jul 2017 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2018/023644 | 6/21/2018 | WO | 00 |
