Refrigeration – Using electrical or magnetic effect – Thermoelectric; e.g. – peltier effect
Patent
1997-12-08
1999-07-06
Doerrler, William
Refrigeration
Using electrical or magnetic effect
Thermoelectric; e.g., peltier effect
62393, 2221466, F25D 1600, F25B 2102, B67D 100, B01F 304
Patent
active
059184680
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for cooling a body of liquid.
In recent years there has been an increasing demand by consumers for chilled drinks. However, purchasing cans of drink and storing them in refrigerated conditions is relatively expensive and takes up valuable refrigeration space. At the same time there has been an increase in the buying of carbonated drinks. Expense has resulted in the increased use of carbonation devices for home use, such as the Sodastream.RTM. range of products, which allow a user to carbonate a suitable amount of water and then mix it with a concentrate to prepare a carbonated drink. The use of such devices has largely replaced the earlier use of soda water bottles for such purposes.
However, convenient though these are, they are limited to preparation of relatively small amounts of carbonated water manually in batches and are relatively awkward to use as well as store in refrigerated conditions.
There is a need therefore for an apparatus capable of cooling liquid for drinking as it is required and also for an apparatus for carbonating such liquids automatically with a minimum of manual effort by the user.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention there is provided an apparatus for cooling a body of fluid, comprising first and second sidewalls; forming therewith a coolant chamber on a first side of the cell; and can be withdrawn from the coolant and the fluid to be cooled in a direction generally across the flow path of the fluid and a body of refrigerated coolant can be maintained adjacent to the first sidewall of the cell thereby enhancing the cooling of the fluid.
By such apparatus, using water for example as a phase-change coolant, a body of ice may be maintained against the first sidewall of the cell to provide a coolant store avoiding the need to cool the whole body of coolant each time cooled fluid is required to be withdrawn from the apparatus.
The wall may be formed integrally with the cell or may be separate, for example in the form an insulated double walled jacket. Preferably, the cooling device is disposed against the second sidewall of the cell.
The invention also includes a method of cooling a body of fluid using such apparatus.
The apparatus can provided a low cost, low power (eg 70 W) cooling device capable of short term, high power (eg 3500 W) cooling. The cooling capacity will depend on a number of factors, including the size of the coolant reservoir and the phase change coolant.
Preferably, the cell has a plurality of fins extending into the coolant chamber to aid the conduction of heat through the first sidewall. The fins may vary in size, both in width, thickness and length as desired to suit particular applications and fins may, for example, be alternately longer and shorter. The fins may be formed as webs connecting the wall of the coolant chamber and the first sidewall of the cell.
The cooling device preferably comprises a Peltier device secured to a surface of the second sidewall, but it may be disposed elsewhere as long as it is thermally connected to the cell and coolant chamber.
The use of a phase-change coolant allows fluid in the cell to be cooled at a uniform rate and thus to a uniform exit temperature, over a wide range of states of `charge` of the fluid reservoir. The device may be used for cooling both liquids and gases.
The cooling apparatus may be integral with a carbonating apparatus for carbonating the fluid to be cooled, in which case carbon dioxide is supplied to the apparatus along with the fluid to be carbonated.
The apparatus may be operated in a `batch` mode whereby the fluid to be cooled is recycled within the apparatus to enhance the speed of cooling.
The apparatus has a wide range of uses other than that mentioned above, including `instant` chilling for foods etc. (by cooling air passed through the apparatus) and conventional food refrigeration for example.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
One example of an apparatus and method a
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patent: 5572872 (1996-11-01), Hlavacek
Cassells John Maclaren
Halket Andrew Richard Buchanan
Miller Anne Tregoning
Woodward Adrian Michael
Doerrler William
TTP Group PLC
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