Rankine cycle waste heat recovery system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9334760-B2
Application number	US-201414329367-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 11, 2014
Priority date	Jan 6, 2011
Publication date	May 10, 2016
Grant date	May 10, 2016

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a waste heat recovery (WHR) system and to a system and method for regulation of a fluid inventory in a condenser and a receiver of a Rankine cycle WHR system. Such regulation includes the ability to regulate the pressure in a WHR system to control cavitation and energy conversion.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of generating energy from an internal combustion engine, the method comprising:
pumping, via a first pump positioned upstream of a condenser, a first portion of a liquid working fluid to the condenser from a receiver container positioned upstream of the condenser;
pumping, via a second pump positioned downstream of the condenser, a second portion of the liquid working fluid from the condenser to at least one heat exchanger positioned downstream of the condenser;
receiving a waste heat fluid from the internal combustion engine at the heat exchanger;
causing heat transfer from the waste heat fluid to the first portion of the liquid working fluid; and
receiving the first portion of the liquid working fluid by an energy conversion device positioned downstream of the heat exchanger.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein pumping, via the first pump, the first portion of the liquid working fluid to the condenser from the receiver container is responsive to a temperature of the liquid working fluid between the second pump and the condenser exceeding a predetermined temperature.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein heat transferred from the waste heat fluid to the first portion of the liquid working fluid causes rotation of a turbine.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein rotation of the turbine causes electricity to be generated.

5. A method of generating energy from an internal combustion engine, the method comprising:
pumping a liquid working fluid from a condenser to at least one valve positioned downstream of the condenser;
moving the at least one valve to a first position from a second position, the first position permitting flow of the liquid working fluid to a heat exchanger positioned downstream of the at least one valve and blocking flow of the liquid working fluid to a receiver positioned downstream of the at least one valve, the second position permitting flow of the liquid working fluid to the receiver and blocking flow of the liquid working fluid to the heat exchanger;
receiving a first portion of the liquid working fluid at the heat exchanger;
receiving a waste heat fluid from the internal combustion engine at the heat exchanger;
causing heat transfer from the waste heat fluid to the first portion of the liquid working fluid; and
receiving the first portion of the liquid working fluid by an energy conversion device positioned downstream of the heat exchanger.

6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising:
moving the at least one valve from the first position to the second position; and
receiving a second portion of the liquid working fluid at the receiver from the at least one valve.

7. The method of claim 5 , wherein the at least one valve includes a three way valve.

8. The method of claim 5 , further comprising moving the at least one valve from one of the first position and the second position to a third position, the third position permitting flow of the liquid working fluid to the heat exchanger and the receiver.

9. The method of claim 5 , wherein heat transferred from the waste heat fluid to the first portion of the liquid working fluid causes rotation of a turbine.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein rotation of the turbine causes electricity to be generated.

11. The method of claim 5 , wherein heat transferred from the waste heat fluid to the first portion of the liquid working fluid causes rotation of a driveline coupled to the internal combustion engine.

12. The method of claim 5 , wherein the condenser includes a sub-cooler.

13. The method of claim 5 , wherein receiving the waste heat fluid from the internal combustion engine includes receiving recirculated exhaust gas.

14. The method of claim 5 , further comprising moving the at least one valve to the first position from the second position in response to a temperature of the liquid working fluid exceeding a predetermined temperature.

15. The method of claim 5 , wherein the at least one valve is moved from the first position to the second position in response to receipt of a control signal from a controller communicably coupled to the at least one valve.

16. An internal combustion engine system comprising:
a working fluid circuit, including:
a condenser including a liquid working fluid;
a first pump fluidly coupled to the condenser downstream of the condenser so as to receive at least a portion of the liquid working fluid from the condenser;
a heat exchanger fluidly coupled to the first pump downstream of the condenser so as to receive the at least a portion of the liquid working fluid from the first pump, the heat exchanger including a waste heat fluid circuit;
an internal combustion engine fluidly coupled to the waste heat fluid circuit of the heat exchanger; and
an energy conversion device fluidly coupled to the heat exchanger and to the condenser so as to receive the at least a portion of the liquid working fluid from the heat exchanger; and

a fluid management system, including:
a second pump fluidly coupled to the condenser, the second pump configured for bi-directional pumping; and
a receiver container fluidly coupled to the condenser and to the second pump,
wherein the second pump is configured to transfer the liquid working fluid between the receiver and the condenser.

17. The system of claim 16 , further comprising a temperature sensor positioned between the first pump and the condenser, the temperature sensor configured to sense a temperature of the liquid working fluid.

18. The system of claim 17 , further comprising a controller communicably coupled to the temperature sensor and the second pump, the controller configured to activate the second pump in response to the temperature of the liquid working fluid.

19. The system of claim 16 , wherein the internal combustion engine is fluidly coupled to the waste heat fluid circuit of the heat exchanger via an exhaust gas recirculation line.

20. The system of claim 16 , wherein the condenser includes a sub-cooler.

Assignees

• Cummins Ip Inc

Inventors

• Ernst Timothy C
• Nelson Christopher R

Classifications

• F01K23/065 Primary

  the combustion taking place in an internal combustion piston engine, e.g. a diesel engine · CPC title

• F01K25/08

  using special vapours · CPC title

• F01N5/02

  the devices using heat · CPC title

• Y02T10/166

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• F02G5/04

  in combination with other waste heat from combustion engines · CPC title