Multistage thermal flow device and thermal energy transfer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9500392-B2
Application number	US-201213813588-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 17, 2012
Priority date	Jul 17, 2012
Publication date	Nov 22, 2016
Grant date	Nov 22, 2016

Abstract

Technologies are generally described herein for multistage thermal flow devices and methods effective to transfer thermal energy between a heat source and a heat sink having different surface areas and thermal energy flow characteristics. Some example multistage thermal flow devices may include multiple stages of heat transfer pumps utilizing electrocaloric effect material with thermal collection devices between stages. The heat flux associated with heat transfer pumps of consecutive stages may increase to concentrate the thermal energy through the multistage thermal flow device or may decrease to diffuse the thermal energy through the multistage thermal flow device.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A multistage thermal flow device, comprising:
a source stage that comprises:
a first heat transfer pump that includes a first heat flux, wherein the first heat transfer pump comprises:
a first input interface adapted to thermally couple to a heat source;
a first output interface adapted to provide thermal energy transferred from the first input interface; and
first alternately stacked layers of a thermal rectifier material and a first electrocaloric effect material, wherein the first alternately stacked layers include a plurality of layers of the thermal rectifier material and a plurality of layers of the first electrocaloric effect material; and

a thermal collection device thermally coupled to the first output interface of the first heat transfer pump;

a target stage that comprises:
a second heat transfer pump that includes a second heat flux that is different from the first heat flux of the first heat transfer pump, wherein the second heat transfer pump comprises:
a second input interface thermally coupled to the thermal collection device;
a second output interface adapted to provide thermal energy from the second input interface to a heat sink; and
second alternately stacked layers of the thermal rectifier material and a second electrocaloric effect material, wherein the second alternately stacked layers include a plurality of layers of the thermal rectifier material and a plurality of layers of the second electrocaloric effect material,

a plurality of electrodes coupled to the source stage and the target stage; and
a controller operatively coupled to the plurality of electrodes to control application of at least one oscillatory electrode control signal to the source stage and the target stage;
wherein:
the source stage comprises a plurality of first heat transfer pumps that include the first heat transfer pump and that each include the first heat flux;
the target stage comprises one or more second heat transfer pumps that include the second heat transfer pump and that each include the second heat flux;
a quantity of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps is different than a quantity of the one or more second heat transfer pumps;
thermal energy collected by the one or more first heat transfer pumps thermally coupled to a first surface area of the heat source is concentrated or diffused into a second surface area of the heat sink that is thermally coupled to the one or more second heat transfer pumps and that is smaller or larger than the first surface area of the heat source;
the thermal collection device includes a first surface and a second surface different than the first surface;
the first heat transfer pump of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage has a first shape with a third surface that is directly coupled to the first surface of the thermal collection device;
an other heat transfer pump of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage has a second shape with a fourth surface that is directly coupled to the second surface of the thermal collection device; and
the first shape of the first heat transfer pump of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage is different than the second shape of the other heat transfer pump of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage.

2. The multistage thermal flow device of claim 1 , wherein:
the one or more second heat transfer pumps of the target stage comprise a plurality of second heat transfer pumps of the target stage; and
the source stage further comprises a plurality of thermal collection devices, each thermal collection device thermally coupled to a first quantity of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage and to a second quantity of the plurality of second heat transfer pumps of the target stage that is different from the first quantity.

3. The multistage thermal flow device of claim 2 , further comprising:
a first intermediate stage disposed between the source stage and the target stage, wherein the first intermediate stage comprises:
a plurality of heat transfer pumps of the first intermediate stage, wherein each heat transfer pump of the first intermediate stage comprises a corresponding input interface adapted to thermally couple to a corresponding thermal collection device of the source stage, a corresponding output interface adapted to provide thermal energy transferred from the corresponding input interface, and a third electrocaloric effect material, and wherein each heat transfer pump of the first intermediate stage includes a third heat flux between the first heat flux and the second heat flux; and
a plurality of thermal collection devices of the first intermediate stage, each thermal collection device of the first intermediate stage thermally coupled to a third quantity of heat transfer pumps of the first intermediate stage that is between the first quantity and the second quantity such that each thermal collection device of the source stage is thermally coupled to the second quantity of the plurality of heat transfer pumps of the target stage via the first intermediate stage.

4. The multistage thermal flow device of claim 3 , further comprising:
a second intermediate stage disposed between the first intermediate stage and the target stage, wherein the second intermediate stage comprises:
a plurality of heat transfer pumps of the second intermediate stage, wherein each heat transfer pump of the second intermediate stage comprises a corresponding input interface adapted to thermally couple to a corresponding thermal collection device of the first intermediate stage, a corresponding output interface adapted to provide thermal energy transferred from the corresponding input interface, and a fourth electrocaloric effect material, and wherein each heat transfer pump of the second intermediate stage includes a fourth heat flux between the third heat flux and the second heat flux; and
a plurality of thermal collection devices of the second intermediate stage, each thermal collection device of the second intermediate stage thermally coupled to a fourth quantity of heat transfer pumps of the second intermediate stage that is between the third quantity and the second quantity such that each thermal collection device of the source stage is thermally coupled to the second quantity of the plurality of heat transfer pumps of the target stage via the first intermediate stage and the second intermediate stage.

5. The multistage thermal flow device of claim 4 , wherein:
the first quantity of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage is greater than the second quantity of the plurality of second heat transfer pumps of the target stage; and
the first heat flux of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage is less than the second heat flux of the plurality of second heat transfer pumps of the target stage.

6. The multistage thermal flow device of claim 4 , wherein:
the first quantity of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage is less than the second quantity of the plurality of second heat transfer pumps of the target stage; and
the first heat flux of the plurality of first heat transfer pumps of the source stage is greater than the second heat flux of the plurality of second heat transfer pumps of the target stage.

7. The multistage thermal flow device of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of intermediate stages disposed between the source stage and the target stage.

8. The multistage thermal flow device of claim 1 , wherein:
the source stage further comprises a plurality of thermal collection devices;
the one or more second heat transfer pumps of the target stage in

Assignees

• Kruglick Ezekiel
• Empire Technology Dev Llc

Inventors

• Kruglick Ezekiel

Classifications

• Y02B30/66

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• H01L35/00

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L35/34

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L35/02

  Electricity · mapped topic

• F25B2321/001

  by using electro-caloric effects · CPC title