Refrigeration – Intermediate fluid container transferring heat to heat... – Flow line connected transfer fluid supply and heat exchanger
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-31
2002-07-16
Esquivel, Denise L. (Department: 3744)
Refrigeration
Intermediate fluid container transferring heat to heat...
Flow line connected transfer fluid supply and heat exchanger
C062S406000, C062S425000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06418746
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a storage facility and a storage method using the storage facility. For example, the invention relates to a storage facility and a storage facility involving low-temperature, high-humidity storage of an object to be stored (e.g. agricultural product such as potato, vegetable, fruits, etc.), or precooling of vegetable, and also to a storage method using the system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As the conventional storage facility and storage method of the above-noted type, there are known the system and method utilizing the direct-cooling refrigerating cycle. For example, there is known a system and method utilizing such direct-cooling refrigerating cycle from e.g. Japanese laid-open patent gazette No. Hei. 5-26557.
Basically, this system is designed to maintain low temperature by absorbing respiration heat of the vegetable stored inside a storage house. Accordingly, for reducing the temperature its inside, this system employs a moisture permeable film (Japanese laid-open patent gazette No. Hei. 6-74646) for maintaining moisture or additionally includes a humidifier (Japanese laid-open patent gazette No. Hei. 8-42960), for forcibly increasing the humidity.
As a small-scale storage, there is known a system referred to icehouse. According to this, in a snowfall region, a hole is dug in the earth, Into this hole, vegetables are introduced, on which snow is put for storage. In recent years, as exemplified by e.g. Japanese patent gazette No. 2598574, there have been attempts in cold districts such as storage facility/storage method in which a heat-exchanger pipe is employed for cooling inside of a storage house in which agricultural products are stored, or storage facility/storage method in which a heat pipe having good cold conducting property during winter time is employed for making artificial frozen soil to be used as cold source (Japanese laid-open patent gazette No. Hei. 7-218080).
Further, regarding precooling, as exemplified by Japanese published patent gazette No. Hei. 7-99991, there is storage facility/storage method in which a product is sealed in a plastic bag to be cooled.
According to the conventional art described above, there is required a significant amount of electricity since a large refrigerator is employed as the ice making machine. Also, in the conventional storage facility too, there is the problem of large consumption of electricity since refrigerating cycle is employed as the heat source. Moreover, in he case of such method using refrigerating cycle, in order to maintain the low temperature inside the storage house of the vegetables, not only the respiration heat is absorbed from the vegetables, but also significant dehydration of the vegetables occurs as the result. Hence, a humidifier or the like needs to be employed, but, this too adds to the electricity consumption.
Further, in order to solve the problem of electricity consumption by the refrigerating cycle, it it conceivable to employ the system called icehouse using snow. However, the density of snow has such small value as 0.27 approximately. Then, in order to adapt it to the system/method, an extremely large amount of snow needs to be prepared and also a large-scale facility too will be necessary for storing the snow. As a result, significant costs will be needed for transportation of snow and building of the facility. Also, in cold districts without snow accumulation, the snow must be transported from a distant place, hence leading to especially high costs.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a storage facility/storage method solving the above-described problems, not requiring large amount of electricity, suitable of multiple of purposes, allowing storage of storage objects kept under good storage conditions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to
FIGS. 4-8
and
11
, the system comprises a heat-insulating outer shell capable of insulating inner space; an ice storage water tank capable of storing water therein disposed in an ice storage water tank disposing space provided in the inner space of the heat-insulating outer shell; a storage space for storing objects to be stored provided in the inner space of the heat-insulating outer shell; an outside-air inlet opening provided at a lower portion of the heat-insulating outer shell, the inlet opening being capable of introducing outside air into the inner space; an inside-air outlet opening provided at an upper portion of the heat-insulating outer shell, the outlet opening being capable of discharging inside air from the inner space of the heat-insulating outer shell to the outside; and an object entrance-exit opening provided at an upper portion of the heat-insulating outer shell for allowing entrance-exit of the objects to and from the storage space.
According to one feature of the invention defined in claim 1, when the outer air becomes sub-zero condition, the outer air enters through the outside-air inlet opening into the ice storage water tank disposing space, so that the air absorbs latent heat from the water stored in the ice storage water tank for freezing this water. Further, the air contacting the ice storage water tank, by absorbing latent heat from the water, experiences temperature rise, and due to reduction of its density associated therewith, the air is caused to rise in the inner space of the heat-insulating outer shell to be discharged through the inside-air outlet opening to the outside.
Therefore, within the inner space of the heat-insulating outer shell, there is generated upward air current due to the transfer of latent heat associated with freezing of the water, so that the introduction of outside air into the ice storage water tank disposing space and discharge thereof can take place in automatic and continuous manner. Thus, it has become possible to freeze the water inside the ice storage water tank by utilizing the cold source of the cold district which is the natural resource of the earth. Hence, ice can be made inexpensively and energy can be saved, so that the system can contribute significantly to the reduction of carbon dioxide gas output on the earth.
And, by the cold from the ice made in the ice storage water tank disposing space, the storage space can be maintained under refrigerating condition (about 0° C.), for allowing storage objects stored in the storage space.
Moreover, since the storage space can be maintained at a high humidity by means of saturated water vapor pressure, storage of objects under low-temperature, high-humidity environment can be realized.
Therefore, it becomes possible to provide an environment suitable for storage of agricultural products (potatoes, vegetables, fruits, live flowers, etc). Furthermore, since the storage space can be maintained at the temperature of 0° C. approximately, the system may be used also for freezing storage of frozen articles frozen below zero.
Further, due to the relationship between the temperature and density of the air (i.e. the lower the temperature, the higher the humidity), even if the entrance-exit opening is kept open during the entry or exit of the objects into or from the storage space, in case the outside air temperature is higher than the inside air temperature of the storage space, it is possible to minimize entry of the outside air into the inner space of the heat-insulating outer shell.
Therefore, it becomes possible to minimize the leak of the cool air of the storage space to the outside, so that the temperature of the storage space can be maintained easily.
Next, the above-described freezing of water utilizing latent heat will be described with reference to FIG.
1
(
a
).
The figure records temperature variation relative to time base occurring in water placed in a vat disposed inside a freezer. When the temperature of the freezer becomes below 0° C., the temperature of the water in the vat is kept at 0° C. approximately. Upon lapse of certain time, however, the water changes into ice and the temperature becomes below 0° C. gradually. However
Daicolo Co., Ltd.
Esquivel Denise L.
Jones Melvin
Webb Ziesenheim & Logsdon Orkin & Hanson, P.C.
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