Heat storage apparatus and method of completing crystallization of heat storage material

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10222095-B2
Application number	US-201715448678-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 3, 2017
Priority date	Mar 18, 2016
Publication date	Mar 5, 2019
Grant date	Mar 5, 2019

Abstract

A heat storage apparatus according to the present disclosure includes a casing, a heat storage material, and movable components. An internal space in the casing is partitioned into a plurality of spaces. The heat storage material is located in each of the plurality of spaces. At least one movable component is disposed in contact with the heat storage material in each of the plurality of spaces, and is capable of changing a position thereof relative to a position of the casing as time proceeds.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A heat storage apparatus, comprising:
a casing having an internal space partitioned into a plurality of spaces;
a heat storage material that is located in each of the plurality of spaces; and
at least one movable component that is disposed in contact with the heat storage material in each of the plurality of spaces, and that is capable of changing a position thereof relative to a position of the casing as time proceeds,
wherein each of the plurality of spaces has a volume of 10 cm 3 or less.

2. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the casing includes a pair of inner peripheral surfaces that are disposed side by side in a specified direction and face opposite directions, and
wherein D/L is 1.02 to 2.70, where D is a distance between the pair of inner peripheral surfaces, and L is a dimension of the at least one movable component in the specified direction.

3. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a partitioning member which serves as a structural member, which has a structure that allows passage of the heat storage material in a liquid phase, and which partitions the internal space in the casing into the plurality of spaces.

4. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the partitioning member serves as the at least one movable component.

5. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the number of the plurality of spaces is at least 10.

6. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of spaces has a volume of 1 cm 3 or less.

7. A method of completing crystallization of a heat storage material of a heat storage apparatus,
the heat storage apparatus comprising:
a casing having an internal space partitioned into a plurality of spaces, the casing including an inner peripheral surface;
the heat storage material that is located in each of the plurality of spaces; and
at least one movable component that is disposed in contact with the heat storage material in each of the plurality of spaces, and that is capable of changing a position thereof relative to a position of the casing as time proceeds,
wherein each of the plurality of spaces has a volume of 10 cm 3 or less,
the method comprising:
continuing at least one of movements of
(i) repeated contact and separation between the movable components or sliding between the movable components,
(ii) repeated contact and separation between the inner peripheral surface of the casing and the at least one movable component, or sliding between the inner peripheral surface of the casing and the at least one movable component, and
(iii) repeated contact and separation between a surface of a structural member in the casing and the at least one movable component, or sliding between the surface of the structural member in the casing and the at least one movable component,
to cancel supercooling of the heat storage material and complete the crystallization of the heat storage material in a predetermined time.

8. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the casing includes a pair of the inner peripheral surfaces that are disposed side by side in a specified direction and face opposite directions, and
wherein D/L is 1.02 to 2.70, where D is a distance between the pair of inner peripheral surfaces, and L is a dimension of the at least one movable component in the specified direction.

9. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the at least one of the movements is caused to occur by changing the position of the casing and the position of the at least one movable component relative to each other as time proceeds as a result of applying vibration energy to the casing or the at least one movable component.

10. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the at least one movable component includes a magnetic body, and
wherein the at least one of the movements is caused to occur by changing the position of the casing and the position of the at least one movable component relative to each other as time proceeds as a result of generating a magnetic field around the at least one movable component.

11. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the at least one of the movements is caused to occur by changing the position of the casing and the position of the at least one movable component relative to each other as time proceeds as a result of applying an external force to and deforming the casing.

12. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the at least one of the movements is caused to occur by changing the position of the casing and the position of the at least one movable component relative to each other as time proceeds as a result of applying an external force to the casing and directly or indirectly displacing the at least one movable component.

13. The method according to claim 7 , wherein each of the plurality of spaces has a volume of 1 cm 3 or less.

14. A heat storage apparatus, comprising:
a casing having an internal space partitioned into a plurality of spaces which are arranged in plural columns and plural rows;
a heat storage material that is located in each of the plurality of spaces; and
at least one movable component that is disposed in contact with the heat storage material in each of the plurality of spaces, and that is capable of changing a position thereof relative to a position of the casing as time proceeds.

15. A heat storage apparatus, comprising:
a casing having an internal space partitioned into a plurality of spaces;
a heat storage material that is located in each of the plurality of spaces; and
at least one movable component that is disposed in contact with the heat storage material in each of the plurality of spaces, and that is capable of changing a position thereof relative to a position of the casing as time proceeds,
wherein each of the plurality of spaces and the at least one movable component in each of the plurality of spaces are configured so that multiple crystal nuclei can be generated at a same time in each of the plurality of spaces.

16. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 15 , wherein each of the plurality of spaces has a volume of 100 cm 3 or less.

17. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 15 , wherein each of the plurality of spaces has a volume of 10 cm 3 or less.

18. The heat storage apparatus according to claim 15 , wherein each of the plurality of spaces has a volume of 1 cm 3 or less.

Assignees

• Panasonic Corp

Inventors

• Machida Hironobu
• Suzuki Motohiro
• Takeguchi Shinsuke
• Shii Kentaro
• Nagai Masaaki

Classifications

• F28D20/028 Primary

  Control arrangements therefor · CPC title

• F28D20/021 Primary

  the latent heat storage material and the heat-exchanging means being enclosed in one container (F28D20/023 - F28D20/028 take precedence) · CPC title

• F24V30/00 Primary

  Apparatus or devices using heat produced by exothermal chemical reactions other than combustion · CPC title

• F28D20/003

  using thermochemical reactions · CPC title

• Y02E60/145

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic