Refrigeration – Atmosphere and sorbent contacting type
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-15
2002-04-16
Esquivel, Denise L. (Department: 3744)
Refrigeration
Atmosphere and sorbent contacting type
C062S094000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06370900
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a dehumidifying air-conditioning apparatus and a dehumidifying air-conditioning system, and more particularly to a dehumidifying air-conditioning apparatus having a desiccant, and a dehumidifying air-conditioning system having such a dehumidifying air-conditioning apparatus.
BACKGROUND ART
Heretofore, there has been used a desiccant air-conditioning apparatus which utilizes a low temperature heat source and a high temperature heat source, as shown in FIG.
16
. The air-conditioning apparatus has a path for process air A from which moisture is adsorbed by a desiccant wheel
103
, and a path for regeneration air B which is heated by the high temperature heat source and then passed through the desiccant wheel
103
that has adsorbed the moisture to desorb the moisture in the desiccant for regenerating the desiccant. In order to heat the regeneration air with the high temperature heat source, a heating medium is supplied to a heat exchanger
120
via a path
151
connected to a high temperature heat source supply port
42
, and returned to a high temperature heat source return port
43
via a path
152
.
The air-conditioning apparatus shown in
FIG. 16
comprises a sensible heat exchanger
104
for exchanging heat between the process air from which moisture is adsorbed and the regeneration air before it regenerates a desiccant in the desiccant wheel
103
and before it is heated by the heat exchanger
120
. The regeneration air is heated to a certain extent by the sensible heat exchanger
104
before being heated by the heat exchanger
120
, and the process air that has been dried by the desiccant is cooled to a certain extent by the sensible heat exchanger
104
. Thereafter, the process air is further cooled by a low temperature heat source which is supplied to a heat exchanger
115
from a low temperature heat source supply port
40
via a path
161
and discharged to a low temperature heat source return port
41
via a path
162
. In the conventional example shown in
FIG. 16
, the process air that has been discharged from the heat exchanger
115
is humidified by a humidifier
106
, and supplied, with an increased humidity and a lowered dry-bulb temperature, to an air-conditioned space
101
.
With this air-conditioning apparatus, the sensible heat exchanger
104
for exchanging heat between the process air that has been discharged from the desiccant wheel
103
and the regeneration air that is to be supplied to the heat exchanger
120
increases an energy-saving effect. The high temperature heat source and the low temperature heat source of the conventional air-conditioning apparatus shown in
FIG. 16
are provided by a compression heat pump (not shown).
FIG. 17
shows a Mollier diagram of the compression heat pump used in the conventional air-conditioning apparatus shown in FIG.
16
. This diagram is a Mollier diagram in the case where HFC
134
a
is used as the refrigerant. A point a represents a state of the refrigerant evaporated by an evaporator of the heat pump, and the refrigerant is in the form of a saturated gas. The refrigerant has a pressure of 4.2 kg/cm
2
, a temperature of 10° C., and an enthalpy of 148.83 kcal/kg. A point b represents a state of the gas drawn and compressed by a compressor of the heat pump, i.e., a state at the outlet port of the compressor. In this state, the refrigerant has a pressure of 24.1 kg/cm
2
and a temperature of 85° C., and is in the form of a superheated gas. The refrigerant gas is cooled by a heating medium in a condenser of the heat pump (heats the heating medium), and reaches a state represented by a point c in the Mollier diagram. In the point c, the refrigerant is in the form of a saturated gas and has a pressure of 24.1 kg/cm
2
and a temperature of 75° C. Under this pressure, heat is removed from the refrigerant by the heating medium, and the refrigerant is condensed and reaches a state represented by a point d. In the point d, the refrigerant is in the form of a saturated liquid and has the same pressure and temperature as those in the point c, i.e., a pressure of 24.1 kg/cm
2
and a temperature of 75° C. and an enthalpy of 127.13 kcal/kg. The refrigerant liquid is depressurized by an expansion valve to a saturation pressure of 4.2 kg/cm
2
at a temperature of 10° C. A mixture of the refrigerant liquid and the gas at a temperature of 10° C. is delivered to the evaporator, in which the mixture removes heat from a chilling medium and is evaporated to reach the saturated gas at the point a in the Mollier diagram. The saturated gas is drawn into the compressor again, and the above cycle is repeated.
FIG. 18
shows the manner in which the temperature changes in the heat exchange between the refrigerant and the heating medium.
The cooled chilling medium is supplied via the path
161
to the heat exchanger
115
, and returned via the path
162
to the evaporator of the heat pump. The heating medium that has been heated to about 70° C. is supplied via the path
151
to the heat exchanger
120
, in which the heating medium is cooled to 60-65° C., and then returned via the path
152
to the condenser of the heat pump. The sensible heat exchanger
104
comprises a rotary heat exchanger as shown in
FIG. 16
, or a cross-flow type heat exchanger in which a process air and a regeneration air flow perpendicularly to each other.
In the above conventional air-conditioning apparatus, the sensible heat exchanger
104
for preliminarily cooling the process air before it is cooled by the heat exchanger
115
plays an important role. However, since the sensible heat exchanger
104
generally occupies a large volume in the system, it is difficult to design the system, and the system is forced to be large in size. Further, since a large amount of the heating medium and the chilling medium is used in the system, the diameter of heating medium pipes through which the heating medium circulates becomes large. Therefore, it is difficult to install those heating medium pipes. Furthermore, a pump for delivering the heating medium tends to consume large power.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a compact dehumidifying air-conditioning apparatus, and a dehumidifying air-conditioning apparatus and a dehumidifying air-conditioning system with reduced power consumed for delivering a heating medium or a chilling medium.
To achieve the above object, a dehumidifying air-conditioning apparatus according to the present invention described in claim 1 has, as shown in
FIG. 1
, a moisture adsorption device
103
having a desiccant for adsorbing moisture from process air, adsorbed moisture being desorbed by regeneration air; a first heat exchanger
120
for exchanging heat between the regeneration air and a heating medium, the first heat exchanger
120
being disposed upstream of the moisture adsorption device
103
with respect to a flow of the regeneration air; a second heat exchanger
220
for exchanging heat between the process air and the heating medium, the second heat exchanger
220
being disposed downstream of the moisture adsorption device
103
with respect to a flow of the process air; and a heating medium supply device HP for heating the heating medium supplied to the first heat exchanger
120
and the second heat exchanger
220
; wherein the arrangement is such that the heating medium supplied from the heating medium supply device HP flows through the first heat exchanger
120
and the second heat exchanger
220
in the order named.
With the above arrangement, since the heating medium supplied from the heating medium supply device HP flows through the first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger in the order named, heat equivalent to a portion of heat used to heat the regeneration air in the first heat exchanger can be recovered from the process air in the second heat exchanger.
As described in claim 2, the dehumidifying air-conditioning apparatus may further comprise a third heat exchanger
115
for exchanging heat between the process air and a chil
Armstrong Westerman & Hattori, LLP
Ebara Corporation
Esquivel Denise L.
Jiang Chen-Wen
LandOfFree
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