Integrated vapor cycle and pumped two-phase cooling system with latent thermal storage of refrigerants for transient thermal management

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10907869-B2
Application number	US-201816048632-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 30, 2018
Priority date	May 24, 2018
Publication date	Feb 2, 2021
Grant date	Feb 2, 2021

Abstract

A cooling system uses refrigerants for two-phase cooling and thermal energy storage for a transient heat source. The cooling system includes a flash tank downstream of a heat load to be cooled. A subcooler/super-heater is downstream of the flash tank. A compressor is downstream of the subcooler/super-heater. A condenser is downstream of the compressor and upstream of the flash tank.

First claim

We claim:

1. A cooling system, comprising:
a flash tank downstream of a heat load to be cooled;
a subcooler and super-heater downstream of the flash tank;
a compressor downstream of the subcooler and super-heater;
a condenser downstream of the compressor and upstream of the flash tank;
a bypass valve configured to inject high pressure refrigerant to the compressor from the heat load; and
an expansion valve intermediate the flash tank and the subcooler and super-heater, the expansion valve configured to discharge a mixture of vapor and liquid refrigerant to the subcooler and super-heater,
wherein the flash tank is configured to discharge liquid refrigerant to the expansion valve and the subcooler and super-heater.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the flash tank is configured to receive a liquid refrigerant from the condenser.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the subcooler and super-heater is upstream of the heat load.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the expansion valve comprises a first expansion valve, and wherein the system further comprises a second expansion valve intermediate the condenser and the flash tank.

5. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a pump intermediate the subcooler and super-heater and the heat load.

6. A cooling system, comprising:
a flash tank downstream of a heat load to be cooled;
a subcooler and super-heater downstream of the flash tank;
a regenerative heat exchanger downstream of the subcooler and super-heater;
a compressor downstream of the subcooler and super-heater;
a condenser downstream of the compressor and upstream of the flash tank;
a bypass valve configured to inject high pressure refrigerant to the compressor from the heat load; and
an expansion valve intermediate the flash tank and the subcooler and super-heater, the expansion valve configured to discharge a mixture of vapor and liquid refrigerant to the subcooler and super-heater,
wherein the flash tank is configured to discharge liquid refrigerant to the expansion valve and the subcooler and super-heater.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the regenerative heat exchanger is directly upstream of the heat load.

8. The system of claim 6 , wherein the regenerative heat exchanger is configured to receive a refrigerant discharge from the heat load.

9. The system of claim 6 , wherein the regenerative heat exchanger is configured to discharge refrigerant directly to the flash tank.

10. The system of claim 6 , wherein the regenerative heat exchanger is configured to discharge refrigerant indirectly, via a check valve, to the flash tank.

11. The system of claim 6 , further comprising a pump intermediate the subcooler and super-heater and the regenerative heat exchanger.

12. A cooling system, comprising:
a flash tank downstream of a heat load to be cooled;
a subcooler and super-heater downstream of the flash tank;
a non-regenerative heat exchanger downstream of the subcooler and super-heater;
a compressor downstream of the subcooler and super-heater;
a condenser downstream of the compressor and upstream of the flash tank;
a bypass valve configured to inject high pressure refrigerant to the compressor from the heat load; and
an expansion valve intermediate the flash tank and the subcooler and super-heater, the expansion valve configured to discharge a mixture of vapor and liquid refrigerant to the subcooler and super-heater,
wherein the flash tank is configured to discharge liquid refrigerant to the expansion valve and the subcooler and super-heater.

13. The system of claim 12 , wherein:
the heat load is in a cooling loop and not in a thermal lift loop; and
the non-regenerative heat exchanger is in both the cooling loop and the thermal lift loop.

14. The system of claim 12 , wherein the non-regenerative heat exchanger is configured to receive a refrigerant discharge from the heat load.

15. The system of claim 12 , wherein the non-regenerative heat exchanger is configured to receive a coolant discharge from the heat load.

16. The system of claim 12 , wherein the non-regenerative heat exchanger is configured to discharge a refrigerant to the flash tank.

17. The system of claim 12 , further comprising a pump intermediate the subcooler and super-heater and the non-regenerative heat exchanger.

18. The system of claim 1 , wherein the subcooler and super-heater comprises a single heat exchanger.

19. The system of claim 1 , wherein the subcooler and super-heater is configured to:
cool the liquid refrigerant from the flash tank; and
heat the vapor refrigerant from the expansion valve.

Assignees

• Honeywell Int Inc

Inventors

• Hagh Bijan F
• Zheng Daguang
• Borghese Joe

Classifications

• F25B49/02 Primary

  for compression type machines, plants or systems · CPC title

• F25B40/02 Primary

  Subcoolers · CPC title

• F25B41/39

  Dispositions with two or more expansion means arranged in series, i.e. multi-stage expansion, on a refrigerant line leading to the same evaporator · CPC title

• F25B5/02

  arranged in parallel · CPC title

• F25B2400/13

  Economisers · CPC title