Ejector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9857102-B2
Application number	US-201314382647-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 21, 2013
Priority date	Mar 7, 2012
Publication date	Jan 2, 2018
Grant date	Jan 2, 2018

Abstract

An ejector includes a swirl flow channel that is arranged on an upstream side of a nozzle portion. The swirl flow channel swirls the high pressure refrigerant and allows the refrigerant in a state of a gas-liquid mixed phase to flow into the nozzle portion. The ejector further includes a flow-rate changeable mechanism that is disposed at the upstream side of the swirl flow channel, and is capable of changing a flow rate of the high pressure refrigerant that flows into the swirl flow channel. Accordingly, a nozzle efficiency can be improved, and an operation according to a load of the refrigeration cycle is possible.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An ejector for a vapor compression refrigeration cycle, comprising:
a nozzle portion that decompresses and expands a high pressure refrigerant flowing from a high pressure side of the refrigeration cycle;
a suction portion that draws a low pressure refrigerant lower in pressure than the high pressure refrigerant by a suction force of an ejected refrigerant ejected from the nozzle portion;
a diffuser portion disposed on a downstream side of the nozzle portion in a refrigerant flow direction, the diffuser portion having a flow channel that gradually enlarges in cross-sectional area toward the downstream side in the refrigerant flow direction, the diffuser portion decelerating a mixed refrigerant of the ejected refrigerant ejected from the nozzle portion and the low pressure refrigerant drawn from the suction portion to increase a pressure of the refrigerant;
a swirl flow channel swirling the high pressure refrigerant, wherein an outlet of the swirl flow channel is positioned upstream of an inlet of the nozzle portion in the refrigerant flow direction and the refrigerant in a state of a gas-liquid mixed phase flows from the swirl flow channel to the nozzle portion; and
a flow-rate changeable mechanism disposed on the upstream side of the swirl flow channel in the refrigerant flow direction, the flow-rate changeable mechanism being capable of changing a flow rate of the high pressure refrigerant that flows into the swirl flow channel, wherein
the flow-rate changeable mechanism includes at least one guide member that protrudes into the swirl flow channel from an inner wall defining the swirl flow channel and extends in a swirl direction of the swirl flow channel, the guide member guiding the high pressure refrigerant flowing into the flow-rate changeable mechanism in the swirl direction of the swirl flow channel,
the guide member defines a guide flow channel that extends in the swirl direction, the guide member being capable of changing the flow rate of the high pressure refrigerant flowing into the swirl flow channel by changing a cross-sectional area of the guide flow channel,
the guide member includes a fixed guide and a movable guide,
the guide flow channel is provided between the fixed guide and the movable guide,
the movable guide is driven to change a gap between the fixed guide and the movable guide to change the cross-sectional area of the guide flow channel, and
the fixed guide and the movable guide each extending inward from the inner wall in the swirl flow channel and curved along the swirl direction.

2. The ejector according to claim 1 , wherein the swirl flow channel is configured to make a larger amount of gas phase refrigerant present on a radially inner side than on a radially outer side with respect to an imaginary swirl center line by swirling the high pressure refrigerant.

3. The ejector according to claim 1 , wherein the high pressure refrigerant is a liquid phase refrigerant.

4. The ejector according to claim 1 , wherein the flow-rate changeable mechanism is configured so that the high pressure refrigerant flows into the flow-rate changeable mechanism in parallel to an axis of the nozzle portion.

5. The ejector according to claim 4 , wherein the swirl flow channel is arranged between the flow-rate changeable mechanism and the nozzle portion in a direction of the axis of the nozzle portion.

6. The ejector according to claim 1 , wherein
the flow-rate changeable mechanism includes a plurality of fixed guides and a plurality of moveable guides, and
the plurality of fixed guides and the plurality of movable guides are arranged along the swirl direction of the swirl flow channel.

7. The ejector according to claim 1 , wherein the guide member is located within the swirl flow channel.

8. The ejector according to claim 1 , wherein
the flow-rate changeable mechanism includes a substrate having a disc shape and located upstream of the guide member,
the substrate includes an inflow hole extending through a part of the substrate close to an outer edge of the substrate, and
the inflow hole communicates with the guide flow channel.

9. The ejector according to claim 8 , wherein the fixed guide and the movable guide extend in the swirl direction and are in contact with the substrate.

10. The ejector according to claim 1 , wherein the fixed guide and the movable guide extend radially inward from the inner wall.

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Yamada Etsuhisa
• Nishijima Haruyuki
• Takano Yoshiaki

Classifications

• F25B2341/0012

  Ejectors with the cooled primary flow at high pressure · CPC title

• B60H2001/3298

  Ejector-type refrigerant circuits · CPC title

• F04F5/46

  Arrangements of nozzles · CPC title

• F25B1/06 Primary

  with compressor of jet type, e.g. using liquid under pressure ({F25B1/005,} F25B1/10 take precedence) · CPC title

• F04F5/48

  Control · CPC title