Air-conditioning apparatus with leak detection control

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11231199-B2
Application number	US-201716639893-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 5, 2017
Priority date	Oct 5, 2017
Publication date	Jan 25, 2022
Grant date	Jan 25, 2022

Abstract

An air-conditioning apparatus includes a refrigeration circuit, a first shut-off device provided at a pipe connecting a heat-source-side heat exchanger and an expansion device, a refrigerant leak detection device, and a controller. The controller controls a flow switching device to switch a connection state between a first connection state in which a discharge side of a compressor is connected to the heat-source-side heat exchanger, and a second connection state in which a suction side of the compressor is connected to the heat-source-side heat exchanger via an accumulator. When a refrigerant leak is detected, the controller performs a refrigerant retrieval operation and a refrigerant transfer operation.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An air-conditioning apparatus comprising:
a refrigeration circuit in which a compressor, a flow switching device, a heat-source-side heat exchanger, an expansion device, a use-side heat exchanger, and an accumulator are connected by pipes, the compressor being configured to compress refrigerant and discharge the compressed refrigerant, the flow switching device being provided on a discharge side of the compressor and configured to change a flow passage of the refrigerant in a switching manner, the expansion device being configured to reduce a pressure of the refrigerant, the use-side heat exchanger being configured to condition air in an indoor space, the accumulator being provided on a suction side of the compressor and configured to store liquid refrigerant;
a first shut-off device provided at a pipe that connects the heat-source-side heat exchanger and the expansion device;
a refrigerant leak detection device configured to detect a leak of refrigerant into the indoor space; and
a controller configured to control the compressor, the flow switching device, and the first shut-off device, and to cause a leak-amount reduction operation to be performed when the refrigerant leak detection device detects the leak of refrigerant,
wherein the controller is configured to control the flow switching device to switch a connection state set by the flow switching device between a first connection state and a second connection state, the first connection state being a connection state in which the discharge side of the compressor is connected to the heat-source-side heat exchanger and the suction side of the compressor is connected to the use-side heat exchanger via the accumulator, the second connection state being a connection state in which the discharge side of the compressor is connected to the use-side heat exchanger and the suction side of the compressor is connected to the heat-source-side heat exchanger via the accumulator, and
wherein at time of performing the leak-amount reduction operation, the controller determines whether the heat-source-side heat exchanger has space to store refrigerant or not,
when determining that the heat-source-side heat exchanger has the space, the controller exerts control to perform a refrigerant retrieval operation in which the first shut-off device is closed, the flow switching device is caused to switch the connection state to the first connection state, the compressor is driven, and refrigerant in the use-side heat exchanger is retrieved therefrom into a storage unit including the accumulator and the heat-source-side heat exchanger,
when determining the heat-source-side heat exchanger does not have the space, the controller exerts control to perform a refrigerant transfer operation in which the flow switching device is caused to switch the connection state to the second connection state, the compressor is stopped, and refrigerant condensed at the heat-source-side heat exchanger is transferred to the accumulator through the flow switching device, and
wherein at the time of performing the leak-amount reduction operation, the controller determines whether refrigerant on an indoor side is completely retrieved or not,
when determining that the refrigerant on the indoor side is completely retrieved, the controller exerts control to perform an outflow prevention operation in which the retrieved refrigerant is shut up in the heat-source-side heat exchanger and the accumulator, and
when determining that the refrigerant on the indoor side is not completely retrieved, the controller exerts control to repeatedly perform the refrigerant retrieval operation and the refrigerant transfer operation to continuously retrieve refrigerant.

2. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1 , wherein, at the time of performing the refrigerant transfer operation, the controller exerts control to fully open the expansion device.

3. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller includes a timer configured to measure time for which the refrigerant transfer operation is performed, and ends the refrigerant transfer operation when the time measured by the timer reaches or exceeds a set time.

4. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at the time of performing the outflow prevention operation, the controller exerts control to stop the compressor to reduce outflow of refrigerant stored in the storage unit to the use-side heat exchanger by performing the refrigerant retrieval operation and the refrigerant transfer operation.

5. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 4 , wherein, at the time of performing the outflow prevention operation, the controller exerts control to cause the flow switching device to switch the connection state to the second connection state, to fully close the first shut-off device, and to fully close the expansion device.

6. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising a check valve provided at a pipe that connects the flow switching device and the accumulator, and configured to allow a flow from the flow switching device to the accumulator, and to shut off a flow from the accumulator to the flow switching device,
wherein, at the time of performing the outflow prevention operation, the controller exerts control to cause the flow switching device to switch the connection state to the first connection state, to fully close the first shut-off device, and to fully close the expansion device.

7. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising a second shut-off device provided at a pipe that connects the flow switching device and the use-side heat exchanger,
wherein, at the time of performing the outflow prevention operation, the controller exerts control to cause the flow switching device to switch the connection state to the first connection state, to fully close the first shut-off device and the second shut-off device, and to fully close the expansion device.

8. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising a second shut-off device provided at a pipe that connects the compressor and the flow switching device,
wherein, at the time of performing the outflow prevention operation, the controller exerts control to cause the flow switching device to switch the connection state to the second connection state, to fully close the first shut-off device and the second shut-off device, and to fully close the expansion device.

9. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a heat-source-side fan configured to supply air to the heat-source-side heat exchanger; and
a use-side fan configured to supply air to the use-side heat exchanger,
wherein the controller is configured to:
set a rotation speed of the heat-source-side fan to a maximum value when the controller causes the refrigerant retrieval operation or the refrigerant transfer operation to be performed, and
set a rotation speed of the use-side fan to a maximum value when the controller causes the refrigerant retrieval operation, the refrigerant transfer operation, or the outflow prevention operation to be performed.

10. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1 , comprising an outdoor unit that houses at least the compressor, the flow switching device, the heat-source-side heat exchanger, the first shut-off device, and the accumulator.

11. The air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a heat medium heat exchanger configured to cause heat exchange to be performed between the refrigerant and a heat medium,
wherein the use-side heat exchanger causes air in the indoor space to be conditioned by the heat medium after the heat medium is subjected to the heat exchange at the heat medium heat e

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Electric Corp

Inventors

• Ikeda Soshi
• Nishio Jun
• Ishimura Katsuhiro
• Ogura Kohei
• Yamashita Koji

Classifications

• F24F11/36 Primary

  to leakage of heat-exchange fluid · CPC title

• F25B41/22

  between evaporator and compressor · CPC title

• F25B41/24

  Arrangement of shut-off valves for disconnecting a part of the refrigerant cycle, e.g. an outdoor part · CPC title

• F25B41/20

  Disposition of valves, e.g. of on-off valves or flow control valves (expansion valves F25B41/31) · CPC title

• F25B13/00 Primary

  Compression machines, plants or systems, with reversible cycle (defrosting cycles F25B47/02) · CPC title