Patent Grant
10302343
The present disclosure relates to a defrost system applied to a refrigeration apparatus which cools the inside of a freezer by permitting CO2 refrigerant to circulate in a cooling device disposed in the freezer, for removing frost attached to a heat exchanger pipe disposed in the cooling device, and relates to a cooling unit that can be applied to the defrost system.
To prevent the ozone layer depletion, global warming, and the like, natural refrigerants such as NH3 or CO2 has been reviewed as refrigerant in a refrigeration apparatus used for room air conditioning and refrigerating food products. Thus, refrigeration apparatuses using NH3, with high cooling performance and toxicity, as a primary refrigerant and using CO2, with no toxicity or smell, as a secondary refrigerant have been widely used.
In the refrigeration apparatus, a primary refrigerant circuit and a secondary refrigerant circuit are connected to each other through a cascade condenser. Heat exchange between the NH3 refrigerant and the CO2 refrigerant takes place in the cascade condenser. The CO2 refrigerant cooled and liquefied with the NH3 refrigerant is sent to a cooling device disposed in the freezer, and cools air in the freezer through a heat transmitting pipe disposed in the cooling device. The CO2 refrigerant partially vaporized therein returns to the cascade condenser through the secondary refrigerant circuit, to be cooled and liquefied again in the cascade condenser.
Frost attaches to a heat exchanger pipe disposed in the cooling device while the refrigeration apparatus is under operation, and thus the heat transmission efficiency degrades. Thus, the operation of the refrigeration apparatus needs to be periodically stopped, to perform defrosting.
Conventional defrosting methods for the heat exchanger pipe disposed in the cooling device include a method of spraying water onto the heat exchanger pipe, a method of heating the heat exchanger pipe with an electric heater, and the like. The defrosting by spraying water ends up producing a new source of frost, and the heating by the electric heater is against an attempt to save power because valuable power is wasted. In particular, the defrosting by spraying water requires a tank with a large capacity and water supply and discharge pipes with a large diameter, and thus increases plant construction cost.
Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose a defrost system for the refrigeration apparatus described above. A defrost system disclosed in Patent Document 1 is provided with a heat exchanger unit which vaporizes the CO2 refrigerant with heat produced in the NH3 refrigerant, and achieves the defrosting by permitting CO2 hot gas generated in the heat exchanger unit to circulate in the heat exchanger pipe in the cooling device.
A defrost system disclosed in Patent Document 2 is provided with a heat exchanger unit which heats the CO2 refrigerant with cooling water that has absorbed exhaust heat from the NH3 refrigerant, and achieves the defrosting by permitting the heated CO2 refrigerant to circulate in the heat exchanger pipe in the cooling device.
Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose a defrost system for the refrigeration apparatus described above. A defrost system disclosed in Patent Document 1 is provided with a heat exchanger unit which vaporizes the CO2 refrigerant with heat produced in the NH3 refrigerant, and achieves the defrosting by permitting CO2 hot gas generated in the heat exchanger unit to circulate in the heat exchanger pipe in the cooling device.
A defrost system disclosed in Patent Document 2 is provided with a heat exchanger unit which heats the CO2 refrigerant with cooling water that has absorbed exhaust heat from the NH3 refrigerant, and achieves the defrosting by permitting the heated CO2 refrigerant to circulate in the heat exchanger pipe in the cooling device.
Patent Document 3 discloses a method of providing a heating tube in the cooling device separately and independently from a cooling tube, and melts and removes the frost attached to the cooling tube by permitting warm water or warm brine to flow in the heating tube at the time of a defrosting operation.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2010-181093
Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2013-124812
Patent Document 3: Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2003-329334
Each of the defrost systems disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 requires the pipes for the CO2 refrigerant and the NH3 refrigerant in a system different from the cooling system to be constructed at the installation site, and thus might increase the plant construction cost. The heat exchanger unit is separately installed outside the freezer, and thus an extra space for installing the heat exchanger unit is required.
In the defrost system in Patent Document 2, a pressurizing/depressurizing adjustment unit is required to prevent thermal shock (sudden heating/cooling) in the heat exchanger pipe. To prevent the heat exchanger unit where the cooling water and the CO2 refrigerant exchange heat from freezing, an operation of discharging the cooling water in the heat exchanger unit needs to be performed after the defrosting operation is terminated. Thus, there is a problem in that, for example, an operation is complicated.
The defrost unit disclosed in Patent Document 3 requires the heating tube, and thus the size of the heat exchanger unit of the cooling device is large and a heat source for heating the warm water and the warm brine is required. Furthermore, the defrost unit has a problem in that the heat transmission efficiency is low because the cooling tube is heated from the outside with plate fins and the like.
In a cascade refrigerating device including: a primary refrigerant circuit in which the NH3 refrigerant circulates and a refrigerating cycle component is provided; and a secondary refrigerant circuit in which the CO2 refrigerant circulates and a refrigerating cycle component is disposed, the secondary refrigerant circuit being connected to the primary refrigerant circuit through a cascade condenser, the secondary refrigerant circuit contains CO2 gas with high temperature and high pressure. Thus, the defrosting can be achieved by permitting the CO2 hot gas to circulate in the heat exchanger pipe in the cooling device. However, the cascade refrigerating device has the following problems. Specifically, the device is complicated and involves high cost because selector valves, branch pipes, and the like are provided. Furthermore, a control system is unstable due to high/low temperature heat balance.
The present invention is made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to enable reduction in initial and running costs required for defrosting a cooling device disposed in a cooling space such as a freezer, in a refrigeration apparatus using CO2 refrigerant, as well as power saving.
A defrost system according to at least one embodiment of the present invention is:
(1) a defrost system for a refrigeration apparatus including: a cooling device which is disposed in a freezer, and includes a casing, a heat exchanger pipe led into the casing, and a drain receiver unit disposed below the heat exchanger pipe; a refrigerating device configured to cool and liquefy CO2 refrigerant; and a refrigerant circuit connected to the heat exchanger pipe, for permitting the CO2 refrigerant cooled and liquefied by the refrigerating device to circulate to the heat exchanger pipe, the defrost system including:
a defrost circuit which is branched from an inlet path and an outlet path of the heat exchanger pipe and forms a CO2 circulation path together with the heat exchanger pipe;
an on-off valve which is disposed in each of the inlet path and the outlet path of the heat exchanger pipe and is configured to be closed at a time of defrosting so that the CO2 circulation path becomes a closed circuit;
a pressure adjusting unit for adjusting a pressure of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the closed circuit at the time of defrosting; and
a first heat exchanger unit for heating the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the defrost circuit with brine, which is disposed below the cooling device and to which the defrost circuit and a first brine circuit in which the brine as a first heating medium circulates, are led, in which
the CO2 refrigerant is permitted to naturally circulate in the closed circuit at the time of defrosting by a thermosiphon effect.
In the configuration (1), the closed circuit is formed by closing the on-off valve at the time of defrosting. The pressure in the closed circuit is adjusted by the pressure adjusting unit, so that the temperature of the CO2 refrigerant in the closed circuit is kept at condensing temperature higher than the freezing point (for example, 0° C.) of water vapor in the freezer inner air.
A part of the CO2 refrigerant returns to the refrigerant circuit when the pressure of the CO2 refrigerant in the closed circuit exceeds the set pressure for keeping the CO2 refrigerant at the condensing temperature. Thus, the pressure in the closed circuit is maintained at the set pressure.
The liquid CO2 refrigerant in the closed circuit falls in the defrost circuit down to the first heat exchanger unit with gravity, and is heated and vaporized with the brine in the first heat exchanger unit. The vaporized CO2 refrigerant rises in the defrost circuit by a thermosiphon effect, and the CO2 refrigerant gas that has risen heats and melts frost attached on an outer surface of the heat exchanger pipe disposed in the cooling device. The CO2 refrigerant that has emitted heat to the frost and thus liquefied falls in the defrost circuit with gravity. The liquid CO2 refrigerant that has fallen to the first heat exchanger unit is heated and vaporized again in the first heat exchanger unit.
The “freezer” includes anything that forms a refrigerator and other cooling spaces. The drain receiver unit includes a drain pan, and further includes anything with a function to receive and store drainage.
The “inlet path” and the “outlet path” of the heat exchanger pipe are areas of the heat exchanger pipe disposed in the freezer. The areas extend from an area around a partition wall of the casing of the cooling device to the outer side of the casing.
The configuration (1) is described. In the convention defrosting method, the sensible heat of the brine is transmitted to the heat exchanger pipe (outer surface) through external heat transmission through the fins as disclosed in Patent Document 3. On the other hand, in the configuration (1), the frost attached to the outer surface of the heat exchanger pipe is removed with the condensation latent heat of the CO2 refrigerant at the condensing temperature higher than the freezing point of the water vapor in the freezer inner air through a pipe wall from the inside of the heat exchanger pipe. Thus, more heat can be transmitted to the frost.
In the conventional defrosting method, the amount of heat input at an early stage of defrosting is wasted for vaporizing the liquid CO2 refrigerant in the cooling device, and thus the thermal efficiency is low. On the other hand, in the configuration (1), heat exchange between the closed circuit formed at the time of defrosting and other portions is blocked, whereby the thermal energy in the closed circuit is not emitted outside, and thus the power saving defrosting can be performed.
The CO2 refrigerant is permitted to naturally circulate in the closed circuit formed of the refrigerant circuit and the defrost circuit by the thermosiphon effect. Thus, a power source such as a pump for circulating the CO2 refrigerant is not required, and thus further power saving can be achieved.
When the temperature of the CO2 refrigerant at the time of defrosting is kept at the temperature not lower than and closer to the freezing point of the water vapor in the freezer inner air, the defrosting requires a longer time, but the pressure of the CO2 refrigerant can be reduced. Thus, the pipes and the valves forming the closed circuit may be designed for lower pressure, whereby further cost reduction can be achieved.
In some embodiments, in the configuration (1),
(2) the first brine circuit includes a brine circuit led to the drain receiver unit.
In the configuration (2), the first brine circuit is led to the drain receiver unit. Thus, the drainage that has dropped to the drain receiver unit can be prevented from refreezing at the time of defrosting. Thus, no defrosting heater needs to be additionally provided to the drain receiver unit, whereby the cost reduction can be achieved.
In some embodiments, in the configuration (1),
(3) the defrost circuit and the first brine circuit are led to the drain receiver unit,
the first heat exchanger unit includes the defrost circuit led to the drain receiver unit and the first brine circuit led to the drain receiver unit, and
the defrost system is configured to heat the drain receiver unit and the CO2 refrigerant in the defrost circuit with the brine circulating in the first brine circuit.
In the configuration (3), the first heat exchanger unit can heat the drain receiver unit and the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the defrost circuit at the same time.
Thus, no defrosting heater needs to be additionally provided to the drain receiver unit, whereby the cost reduction can be achieved.
In some embodiments, the configuration (1)
(4) further includes a second heat exchanger unit for heating the brine with a second heating medium, in which
the first brine circuit is disposed between the first heat exchanger unit and the second heat exchanger unit.
Any heating medium can be used as the second heating medium. For example, such a heating medium includes refrigerant gas with high temperature and high pressure discharged from a compressor included in the refrigerating device, warm discharge water from a factory, a medium that has absorbed heat emitted from a boiler or potential heat of an oil cooler, and the like.
In the configuration (4), the extra exhaust heat from the factory can be used as the heat source for heating the brine. When the first heat exchanger unit is formed of a plate heat exchanger unit and the like, for example, the efficiency of the heat exchange between the brine and the CO2 refrigerant can be improved.
In some embodiments, any one of the configurations (1) to (4)
(5) further includes a second brine circuit branched from the first brine circuit, and led into the cooling device, for heating the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the heat exchanger pipe with the brine.
In the configuration (5), the frost attached to the heat exchanger pipe is heated from the inside and the outside of the heat exchanger pipe at the time of defrosting, and thus higher heating effect can be achieved, and the defrosting time can be shortened. Furthermore, the frost can be easily removed from fins attached on an external surface of the heat exchanger pipe.
Instead of shortening the defrosting operation, the condensing temperature of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the closed circuit can be set to be lower. Thus, the thermal load and the water vapor diffusion can be prevented as much as possible.
In some embodiments, any one of the configurations (1) to (5)
(6) further includes a first temperature sensor and a second temperature sensor which are respectively disposed at an inlet and an outlet of the first brine circuit, for detecting a temperature of the brine flowing through the inlet and the outlet.
In the configuration (6), the frost attached to the heat exchanger pipe is heated with sensible heat with the brine, whereby the timing at which the defrosting operation is completed can be determined based on a difference between the detection values of the first temperature sensor and the second temperature sensor. More specifically, a small difference between the detection values of the two temperature sensors indicates that the defrosting is almost completed. Thus, the timing at which the defrosting is completed can be accurately determined.
Thus, the excessive heating and the water vapor diffusion in the freezer can be prevented, whereby further power saving can be achieved, and the quality of the food products cooled in the freezer can be improved with a more stable freezer inner temperature.
In some embodiments, in the configuration (1),
(7) the refrigerating device includes:
a primary refrigerant circuit in which NH3 refrigerant circulates and a refrigerating cycle component is disposed;
a secondary refrigerant circuit in which the CO2 refrigerant circulates, the secondary refrigerant circuit led to the cooling device, the secondary refrigerant circuit being connected to the primary refrigerant circuit through a cascade condenser; and
a liquid CO2 receiver for storing the CO2 refrigerant liquefied in the cascade condenser and a liquid CO2 pump for sending the CO2 refrigerant stored in the liquid CO2 receiver to the cooling device, which are disposed in the secondary refrigerant circuit.
In the configuration (7), the refrigerating device using natural refrigerants of NH3 and CO2 is obtained, whereby an attempt to prevent the ozone layer depletion, global warming, and the like is facilitated. NH3, with high cooling performance and toxicity, is used as a primary refrigerant and CO2, with no toxicity or smell, is used as a secondary refrigerant, and thus the refrigerating device can be used for room air conditioning and for refrigerating food products.
In some embodiments, in the configuration (1),
(8) the refrigerating device is a NH3/CO2 cascade refrigerating device including:
a primary refrigerant circuit in which NH3 refrigerant circulates and a refrigerating cycle component is disposed; and
a secondary refrigerant circuit in which the CO2 refrigerant circulates and a refrigerating cycle component is disposed, the secondary refrigerant circuit led to the cooling device, the secondary refrigerant circuit being connected to the primary refrigerant circuit through a cascade condenser.
In the configuration (8), the natural refrigerants are used and thus an attempt to prevent the ozone layer depletion, global warming, and the like is facilitated. Furthermore, the cascade refrigerating device is obtained, and thus the COP of the refrigerating device can be improved.
In some embodiments, the configuration (7) or (8)
(9) further includes a cooling water circuit led to a condenser as a part of the refrigerating cycle component disposed in the primary refrigerant circuit, in which
the second heat exchanger unit includes a heat exchanger unit to which the cooling water circuit and the first brine circuit is led, for heating the brine circulating in the first brine circuit with cooling water circulating in the cooling water circuit and having been heated in the condenser.
In the configuration (9), the brine can be heated with the cooling water heated in the condenser. Thus, no heating source is required outside the refrigeration apparatus.
The cooling water exchanges heat with the brine and thus can have the temperature reduced at the time of defrosting. Thus, the COP (coefficient of performance) of the refrigerating device can be improved by lowering the condensing temperature of the NH3 refrigerant at the time of refrigerating operation.
In an exemplary embodiment where the cooling water circuit is disposed between the condenser and the cooling tower, the heat exchanger unit can be disposed in the cooling tower, whereby an installation space for a device used for the defrosting can be downsized.
In some embodiments, the configuration (7) or (8)
(10) further includes a cooling water circuit led to a condenser as a part of the refrigerating cycle component disposed in the primary refrigerant circuit, in which
the second heat exchanger unit includes:
a cooling tower for cooling cooling water circulating in the cooling water circuit with spray water; and
a heating tower for receiving the spray water and heating the brine circulating in the first brine circuit with the spray water.
In the configuration (10), by integrating the heating tower and the cooling tower, the installation space for the second heat exchanger unit can be downsized.
In some embodiments, in the configuration (1),
(11) the pressure adjusting unit includes a pressure adjustment valve disposed in the outlet path of the heat exchanger pipe.
In the configuration (1), the pressure adjusting unit can be simplified and can be provided with a low cost. A part of the CO2 refrigerant returns to the refrigerant circuit through the pressure adjustment valve when the pressure of the CO2 refrigerant in the closed circuit exceeds a set pressure. Thus, the pressure in the closed circuit is maintained at the set pressure.
In some embodiments, in the configuration (1),
(12) the pressure adjusting unit is for adjusting a temperature of the brine flowing into the first heat exchanger unit to adjust the pressure of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the closed circuit.
In the configuration (12), the CO2 refrigerant in the closed circuit is heated with the brine to increase the pressure of the CO2 refrigerant in the closed circuit.
In the configuration (12), the pressure adjusting unit needs not to be provided for each cooling device, and only a single pressure adjusting unit needs to be provided. Thus, the cost reduction can be achieved, and the pressure in the closed circuit can be easily adjusted with the pressure in the closed circuit adjusted from the outside of the freezer.
In some embodiments, in any one of the configurations (1) to (3),
(13) the drain receiver unit further includes an auxiliary heating electric heater.
In the configuration (13), the auxiliary heating electric heater can prevent the drainage stored in the drain receiver unit from refreezing. Even when the amount of heat of the brine circulating in the first brine circuit led to the drain receiver unit falls short, the auxiliary heating electric heater can add the vaporization heat of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the defrost circuit when the first heat exchanger unit is formed on the drain receiver unit.
A cooling unit according to at least one embodiment of the present invention is:
(14) a cooling unit including:
a cooling device which includes: a casing; a heat exchanger pipe led into the casing; and a drain pan disposed below the heat exchanger pipe;
a defrost circuit which is branched from an inlet path and an outlet path of the heat exchanger pipe and forms a CO2 circulation path together with the heat exchanger pipe;
an on-off valve which is disposed in each of the inlet path and the outlet path of the heat exchanger pipe and which is configured to be closed at a time of defrosting so that the CO2 circulation path becomes a closed circuit; and
a heat exchanger unit which includes the defrost circuit led to the drain pan and a first brine circuit led to the drain pan and is configured to heat the drain receiver unit with the brine circulating in the first brine circuit.
In the configuration (14), the cooling device with a defrosting device can be easily attached to a freezer. When the components of the cooling unit are integrally assembled, the cooling unit can be more easily attached.
In some embodiments, the configuration (14)
(15) further includes a second brine circuit branched from the first brine circuit and led into the cooling device, for heating the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the heat exchanger pipe with the brine.
In the configuration (15), the cooling device with the defrosting device which heats the heat exchanger pipe in the cooling device from both inner and outer sides at the time of defrosting and thus can improve the heating effect can be easily attached.
When an auxiliary heating electric heater is further provided to the drain pan of the cooling unit, the cooling device with the defrosting device which can auxiliary heat the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the defrost circuit led to the drain pan, as well as the drain pan, can be easily attached.
According to at least one embodiment of the present invention, the heat exchanger pipe disposed in the cooling device is defrosted from the inside with the CO2 refrigerant, whereby reduction in initial and running costs required for defrosting the refrigeration apparatus and power saving can be achieved.
Some embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is intended, however, that dimensions, materials, shapes, relative positions, and the like of components described in the embodiments shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not limitative of the scope of the present invention.
For example, expressions indicating a relative or absolute arrangement such as “in a certain direction”, “along a certain direction”, “parallel to”, “orthogonal to”, “center of”, “concentric to”, and “coaxially” do not only strictly indicate such arrangements but also indicate a state including a tolerance or a relative displacement within an angle and a distance achieving the same function.
For example, expressions such as “the same”, “equal to”, and “equivalent to” indicating a state where the objects are the same, do not only strictly indicate the same state, but also indicate a state including a tolerance or a difference achieving the same function.
For example, expressions indicating shapes such as rectangular and cylindrical do not only indicate the shapes such as rectangular and cylindrical in a geometrically strict sense, but also indicate shapes including recesses/protrusions, chamfered portions, and the like, as long as the same effect can be obtained.
Expressions such as “comprising”, “including”, “includes”, “provided with”, or “having” a certain component are not exclusive expressions that exclude other components.
The refrigeration apparatuses 10A to 10F each include: cooling devices 33a and 33b respectively disposed in freezers 30a and 30b; a refrigerating device 11A or 11D for cooling and liquefying CO2 refrigerant; and a refrigerant circuit (corresponding to a secondary refrigerant circuit 14) which permits the CO2 refrigerant cooled and liquefied by the refrigerating device to circulate to the cooling devices 33a and 33b. The cooling devices 33a and 33b respectively include: casings 34a and 34b; heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b disposed in the casings; and drain pans 50a and 50b disposed below the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b.
The refrigerating device 11A shown in
The refrigerating cycle component disposed in the primary refrigerant circuit 12 includes a compressor 16, a condenser 18, a liquid NH3 receiver 20, an expansion valve 22, and the cascade condenser 24.
The secondary refrigerant circuit 14 includes a liquid CO2 receiver 36 which stores the liquid CO2 refrigerant liquefied in the cascade condenser 24 and a liquid CO2 pump 38 for permitting the liquid CO2 refrigerant stored in the liquid CO2 receiver 36 to circulate to the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b.
A CO2 circulation path 44 is disposed between the cascade condenser 24 and the liquid CO2 receiver 36. CO2 refrigerant gas introduced from the liquid CO2 receiver 36 to the cascade condenser 24 through the CO2 circulation path 44 is cooled and liquefied with the NH3 refrigerant in the cascade condenser 24, and then returns to the liquid CO2 receiver 36.
The refrigerating devices 11A and 11D use natural refrigerants of NH3 and CO2 and thus facilitate an attempt to prevent the ozone layer depletion, global warming, and the like. Furthermore, the refrigerating devices 11A and 11D use NH3, with high cooling performance and toxicity, as a primary refrigerant and use CO2, with no toxicity or smell, as a secondary refrigerant, and thus can be used for room air conditioning and for refrigerating food products.
In the refrigeration apparatuses 10A to 10F, the secondary refrigerant circuit 14 is branched to CO2 branch circuits 40a and 40b outside the freezers 30a and 30b. The CO2 branch circuits 40a and 40b are connected to an inlet tube 42c and an outlet tube 42d of the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b led to the outside of the casings 34a and 34b, respectively.
The “inlet tube 42c” and the “outlet tube 42d” described above are areas of the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b outside the casings 34a and 34b and in the freezers 30a and 30b (refer to
In the freezers 30a and 30b, solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b are disposed in the inlet tube 42c and the outlet tube 42d. Defrost circuits 52a and 52b are connected to the inlet tube 42c and the outlet tube 42d between the solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b and the cooling devices 33a and 33b.
The defrost circuits 52a and 52b form a CO2 circulation path together with the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b. The CO2 circulation path becomes a closed circuit when the solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b close at the time of defrosting.
Solenoid on-off valves 55a and 55b are disposed in the defrost circuits 52a and 52b. At the time of a refrigerating operation, the solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b are opened and the solenoid on-off valves 55a and 55b are closed. At the time of defrosting, the solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b are closed and the solenoid on-off valves 55a and 55b are opened.
In the refrigeration apparatuses 10A to 10E, pressure adjusting units 45a and 45b are disposed in the outlet tube 42d of the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b. The pressure adjusting units 45a and 45b respectively include: pressure adjustment valves 48a and 48b disposed in parallel with the solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b disposed in the outlet tube 42d; pressure sensors 46a and 46b disposed in the outlet tube 42d on the upstream side of the pressure adjustment valves 48a and 48b and detecting pressure of the CO2 refrigerant; and control devices 47a and 47b to which detected values of the pressure sensors 46a and 46b are input. The control devices 47a and 47b control valve apertures of the pressure adjustment valves 48a and 48b at the time of defrosting based on the detected values from the pressure sensors 46a and 46b. Thus, the pressure of the CO2 refrigerant is controlled in such a manner that condensing temperature of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the closed circuit becomes higher than a freezing point (for example, 0° C.) of water vapor in the air in the freezer.
In the refrigeration apparatus 10F shown in
The brine circuit 60 (the first brine circuit shown with a dashed line) in which the brine as a first heating medium circulates is disposed. The brine circuit 60 is branched to the brine branch circuits 61a and 61b (shown with a dashed line) outside the freezers 30a and 30b.
In the embodiments shown in
In the embodiments shown in
In this configuration, sensible heat of the brine circulating in the brine branch circuits 61a and 61b or 63a and 63b can prevent drainage that has dropped onto the brine branch circuits 61a, 61b or 63a, from refreezing at the time of defrosting.
In the embodiments shown in
The brine circuit 60 is branched to brine branch circuits 72a and 72b outside the freezers 30a and 30b. The brine branch circuits 72a and 72b are respectively led to the heat exchangers 70a and 70b.
In the embodiments shown in
The brine circulating in the brine branch circuits 63a and 63b can heat the drain pans 50a and 50b.
In the embodiments described above, the brine circulating in the brine circuit 60 can be heated with another heating medium.
In some embodiments shown in
Cooling water circulating in the cooling water circuit 28 is heated with the NH3 refrigerant in the condenser 18. The heated cooling water (second heating medium) heats the brine circulating in the brine circuit 60 as the heating medium at the time of defrosting, in the heat exchanger unit 58.
For example, when a temperature of the cooling water introduced to the cooling water branch circuit 56 is 20 to 30° C., the brine can be heated up to 15 to 20° C. with the cooling water.
An aqueous solution such as ethylene glycol or propylene glycol can be used as the brine for example.
In other embodiments, for example, any heating medium other than the cooling water can be used as the second heating medium. Such a heating medium includes NH3 refrigerant gas with high temperature and high pressure discharged from the compressor 16, warm discharge water from a factory, a medium that has absorbed heat emitted from a boiler or potential heat of an oil cooler, and the like.
In the exemplary configurations in some embodiments shown in
The closed-type cooling tower 26 includes: a cooling coil 26a connected to the cooling water circuit 28; a fan 26b that blows outer air a into the cooling coil 26a; and a spray pipe 26c and a pump 26d for spraying the cooling water onto the cooling coil 26a. The cooling water sprayed from the spray pipe 26c partially vaporizes. The cooling water flowing in the cooling coil 26c is cooled with the vaporization latent heat thus produced.
In the embodiment shown in
The brine circuit 60 is connected to the closed-type heating tower 91. The closed-type heating tower 91 includes: a heating coil 91a connected to the brine circuit 60; and a spray pipe 91c and a pump 91d for spraying the cooling water onto the cooling coil 91a. An inside of the closed-type cooling tower 26 communicates with an inside of the closed-type heating tower 91 through a lower portion of a common housing.
The cooling water that has absorbed the exhaust heat from the NH3 refrigerant circulating in the primary refrigerant circuit 12 is sprayed onto the cooling coil 91a from the spray pipe 91c, and is used as a heating medium which heats the brine circulating in the brine circuit 60.
In the embodiments shown in
In the embodiment shown in
In the embodiment shown in
In some embodiments shown in
In the embodiment shown in
In the refrigerating device 11B, a lower stage compressor 16b and a higher stage compressor 16a are disposed in the primary refrigerant circuit 12 in which the NH3 refrigerant circulates. An intermediate cooling device 84 is disposed in the primary refrigerant circuit 12 and between the lower stage compressor 16b and the higher stage compressor 16a. A branch path 12a is branched from the primary refrigerant circuit 12 at an outlet of the condenser 18, and an intermediate expansion valve 86 is disposed in the branch path 12a. The NH3 refrigerant flowing in the branch path 12a is expanded and cooled in the intermediate expansion valve 86, and is then introduced into the intermediate cooling device 84. In the intermediate cooling device 84, the NH3 refrigerant discharged from the lower stage compressor 16b is cooled with the NH3 refrigerant introduced from the branch path 12a.
The intermediate cooling device 84 can improve the COP of the refrigerating device 11B.
The liquid CO2 refrigerant, cooled and liquefied by exchanging heat with the NH3 refrigerant in the cascade condenser 24, is stored in the liquid CO2 receiver 36. Then, the liquid CO2 pump 38 makes the liquid CO2 refrigerant circulate in the cooling device 33 disposed in the freezer 30, from the liquid CO2 receiver 36.
The refrigerating device 11C forms a cascade refrigerating cycle. A higher temperature compressor 88a and an expansion valve 22a are disposed in the primary refrigerant circuit 12. A lower temperature compressor 88b and an expansion valve 22b are disposed in the secondary refrigerant circuit 14 connected to the primary refrigerant circuit 12 through the cascade condenser 24.
The refrigerating device 11C is a cascade refrigerating device in which a mechanical compression refrigerating cycle is formed in each of the primary refrigerant circuit 12 and the secondary refrigerant circuit 14, whereby the COP of the refrigerating device can be improved.
In the embodiments shown in
The cooling device 33a shown in
The defrost circuit 52a and the brine branch circuit 63a disposed on the back surface of the drain pan 50a are formed to have winding shapes in the upper and lower direction and the horizontal direction. The cooling device 33b in
In an exemplary configuration of the cooling device 33a shown in
In exemplary configurations of the cooling device 33a shown in
In an exemplary configuration of the cooling device 33a shown in
In the embodiments shown in
The cooling units 31a and 31b respectively include: the casings 34a and 34b forming the cooling devices 33a and 33b; the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b led into the casings; the inlet tube 42c; the outlet tube 42d; and the drain pans 50a and 50b disposed below the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b.
The heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b are connected to the CO2 branch circuits 40a and 40b disposed outside the freezers 30a and 30b through the contact part 41, to be attached to the freezers 30a and 30b.
The cooling units 31a and 31b respectively include: defrost circuits 52a and 52b branched from the inlet tube 42c and the outlet tube 42d outside the casings 34a and 34b; and the solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b disposed in the inlet tube 42c and the outlet tube 42d. The solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b can make the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b, which are more on the cooling device side than the defrost circuits 52a and 52b and branch portions of the defrost circuits, the closed circuit at the time of defrosting.
The cooling units 31a and 31 respectively include the pressure adjustment valves 48a and 48b disposed in the outlet tube 42d outside the casings 34a and 34b for adjusting pressure in the closed circuit.
The cooling units 31a and 31b respectively include the brine branch circuits 63a and 63b and the defrost circuits 52a and 52b that are led to the drain pans 50a and 50b, and form a heat exchanger unit which heats the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the defrost circuits 52a and 52b with the brine circulating in the brine branch circuits 63a and 63b.
The brine branch circuits 63a and 63b are connected to the brine branch circuits 61a and 61b disposed outside the freezers 30a and 30b through the contact part 62 to be attached to the freezers 30a and 30b.
The components of the cooling units 31a and 31b may be integrally formed in advance.
In the embodiment shown in
The brine branch circuits 78a and 78b are connected to the brine branch circuits 74a and 74b disposed outside the freezers 30a and 30b through the contact part 76 to be attached to the freezers 30a and 30b.
The components of the freezers 30a and 30b may be integrally formed in advance.
In an exemplary embodiment shown in
The components of the cooling unit 93a can be integrally formed in advance.
In the exemplary configuration of the cooling device 33a shown in
The exemplary configurations of the cooling devices 33a and 33b are described. For example, in the cooling device 33a shown in
The brine branch circuit 78a has headers 80a and 80b disposed at an inlet and an outlet of the cooling device 33a. The defrost circuit 52a is disposed on the back surface of the drain pan 50a to be adjacent to the drain pan 50a and the brine branch circuit 63a, and is formed to have a winding shape in the horizontal direction.
A large number of plate fins 82a are disposed in the upper and lower direction in the cooling device 33a. The heat exchanger pipe 42a and the branch circuit 78a are inserted in a large number of holes formed on the plate fins 82a and thus are supported by the plate fins 82a. With the plate fins 82a, supporting strength for the heat exchanger pipe 42a and the brine branch circuit 78 is increased, and the heat transmission between the heat exchanger pipe 42a and the brine branch circuit 78a is facilitated.
The drain pan 50a is inclined from the horizontal direction, and is provided with the drain outlet tube 51a at a lower end. Return paths of the defrost circuit 52a and the brine branch circuit 63a are also inclined along the back surface of the drain pan 50a.
As described above, the return path of the defrost circuit 52a is inclined in such a manner that a portion more on the downstream side is positioned higher. Thus, the CO2 refrigerant gas heated and vaporized by the brine b circulating in the brine branch circuit 63a can be favorably outgassed in the return path of the defrost circuit 52a. This can prevent a sudden pressure rise due to the vaporization of the CO2 refrigerant.
In the exemplary configuration of the cooling device 33a shown in
The cooling device 33b has a configuration that is similar to that of the cooling device 33a.
In the configuration of the present embodiment, the solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b are opened and the solenoid on-off valves 55a and 55b are closed in the refrigerating operation. Thus, the CO2 refrigerant supplied from the secondary refrigerant circuit 14 circulates in the CO2 branch circuits 40a and 40a and the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b. The fans 35a and 35b form a circulation flow of the freezer inner air c passing in the cooling devices 33a and 33b inside the freezers 30a and 30b. The freezer inner air c is cooled by the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b, whereby the internal temperature of the freezers 30a and 30b is kept as low as −25° C., for example.
The solenoid on-off valves 54a and 54b are closed and the solenoid on-off valves 55a and 55b are opened at the time of defrosting. Thus, the closed CO2 circulation path including the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b and the defrost circuits 52a and 52b is formed. The pressure of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the closed circuit is adjusted with the pressure adjusting units 45a and 45b or the pressure adjusting unit 67 in such a manner that the condensing temperature of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b is adjusted to be at, for example, +5° C. (4.0 MPa) that is a temperature higher than the freezing point (for example, 0° C.) of the freezer inner air c.
The pressure adjusting units 45a and 45b may be provided with a temperature sensor that detects a temperature of the CO2 refrigerant instead of the pressure sensors 46a and 46b. Thus, the control devices 47a and 47b may convert the saturation pressure of the CO2 refrigerant corresponding to the temperature detected value.
At the time of defrosting, frost attached to the surfaces of the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b is melted by the condensation latent heat (for example, 219 kJ/kg under +5° C./4.0 MPa when warm brine at +15° C. is used as the heating source) of the CO2 refrigerant circulating in the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b, and drops onto the drain pans 50a and 50b.
The water as a result of the melting that has dropped onto the drain pans 50a and 50b is prevented from refreezing with the sensible heat of the brine circulating in the brine branch circuits 61a and 61b or 63a and 63b led to the drain pans 50a and 50b. Furthermore, heating and defrosting of the drain pans 50a and 50b can be achieved.
The CO2 refrigerant circulating in the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b naturally circulate in the closed circuit by an effect of a looped thermosiphon obtained with, for example, the brine b at +15° C. used as the heating source and the frost attached on the surfaces of the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b used as a cooling source.
More specifically, in the embodiments shown in
In the embodiments shown in
The temperatures of the brine at the inlet and the outlet of the brine circuit 60 are detected by the temperature sensors 66 and 68. It is determined that the defrosting is completed when the difference between the detected values decreases so that the temperature difference reduces to a threshold value (for example, 2 to 3° C.), and thus the defrosting operation is terminated.
In some embodiments of the present invention, condensation latent heat of the CO2 refrigerant with the condensing temperature exceeding the freezing point of the water vapor in the freezer inner air c is used to heat the frost attached to the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b from the inside of the heat exchanger pipes. Thus, a large amount of heat can be transmitted to the frost, and no heating means needs to be disposed outside the heat exchanger pipes 42a and 42b, whereby power saving and cost reduction can be achieved.
The CO2 refrigerant is permitted to naturally circulate in the closed circuit by the thermosiphon effect. Thus, a power source such as a pump for circulating the CO2 refrigerant is not required, and thus further power saving can be achieved.
With the condensing temperature of the CO2 refrigerant at the time of defrosting kept at a temperature closer to the freezing point of the moisture content as much as possible, fogging can be prevented, and the thermal load can be lowered and the water vapor diffusion can be prevented as much as possible. The pressure of the CO2 refrigerant can be reduced, whereby the pipes and the valves forming the closed circuit may be designed for lower pressure, whereby further cost reduction can be achieved.
The water as a result of the melting that has dropped onto the drain pans 50a and 50b can be prevented from defrosting by the sensible heat of the brine circulating in the brine branch circuits 61a and 61b or 63a and 63b led to the drain pans 50a and 50b. Furthermore, the drain pans 50a and 50b can be heated and defrosted by the sensible heat of the brine. Thus, no heater needs to be additionally provided to the drain pans 50a and 50b, whereby the cost reduction can be achieved.
According to the embodiments shown in
According to the embodiments shown in
In the refrigeration apparatus 10C shown in
With the cooling device 33a shown in
The difference between the detection values from the temperature sensors 66 and 68 is obtained, and a timing at which the difference between the detection values reduced to the threshold is determined as the timing at which the defrosting operation is completed. Thus, the timing at which the defrosting operation is completed can be accurately determined, whereby the excessive heating and the water vapor diffusion in the freezer can be prevented.
Thus, further power saving can be achieved, and the quality of the food products cooled in the freezers 30a and 30b can be improved with a more stable freezer inner temperature.
In some embodiments, the brine can be heated with the cooling water heated in the condenser 18 of the refrigerating device. Thus, no heating source is required outside the refrigeration apparatus.
The temperature of the cooling water can be reduced with the brine at the time of defrosting. Thus, the COP of the refrigerating device can be improved with the condensing temperature of the NH3 refrigerant at the time of the refrigerating operation lowered.
Furthermore, in the exemplary configuration where the cooling water circuit 28 is disposed between the condenser 18 and the cooling tower 26, the heat exchanger unit 58 can be disposed in the cooling tower. Thus, the installation space for the device used for the defrosting can be downsized.
With the refrigeration apparatus 10E shown in
By using the spray water in the closed-type cooling tower 26 as the heat source for the brine, the heat can also be acquired from the outer air. When the refrigeration apparatus 10E employs an air cooling system, the cooling water can be cooled and the brine can be heated with the outer air as the heat source, with the heating tower alone.
A plurality of the closed-type cooling towers 26, incorporated in the closed-type cooling and heating unit 90, may be laterally coupled in parallel to be installed.
In some embodiments, the pressure adjusting units 45a and 45b adjust pressure of in the closed circuit, whereby the pressure adjusting units can be simplified and can be provided with a low cost.
In the embodiment shown in
In the cooling device 33a shown in
In the embodiments shown in
According to the embodiment shown in
When the components of the cooling units 31a and 31b are integrally assembled, the cooling devices can be more easily attached
According to the embodiment shown in
The configurations of some embodiments are described above. The embodiments can be combined as appropriate in accordance with an object and a purpose of the refrigeration apparatus.
According to the present invention, reduction in initial and running costs required for defrosting a refrigeration apparatus used for forming a freezer and other cooling spaces and power saving can be achieved.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-259751 | Dec 2013 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2014/081042 | 11/25/2014 | WO | 00 |
| Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| WO2015/093233 | 6/25/2015 | WO | A |
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| Number | Date | Country | |
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| 20150377541 A1 | Dec 2015 | US |
