JP3133635B2 - Cooling device safety device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a safety device provided in a cooling system using a harmful or flammable refrigerant such as ammonia to cope with leakage of the refrigerant.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A cooling apparatus using a harmful flammable refrigerant employs an absorption refrigerator using ammonia as a refrigerant and an aqueous ammonia solution as an absorption liquid as shown in FIG. It is well known.

[0003] Referring to the main parts in Fig. 7, 1 is an absorber, 2 is a generator, 3 is a refrigerant condensing heat exchanger, 4 is a refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger, P1 is a solution pump, and V1 and V2 are decompressors. is there.

[0004] Each of these devices includes a concentrated liquid pipe 10 through which a concentrated liquid having a high refrigerant concentration is absorbed by absorbing a refrigerant vapor and a diluted liquid pipe through which a diluted liquid is passed, in an absorbing liquid circulation path through which the absorbing liquid circulates. 11 and
Refrigerant pipe 12 forming a part of a refrigerant circulation path through which the refrigerant circulates
And connected through.

[0005] First, the circulation of the absorbing liquid will be described starting from the absorbing liquid, that is, the concentrated liquid, which is accumulated at the bottom of the absorber 1. That is, the concentrated liquid of the absorber 1 flows into the generator 2 via the concentrated liquid pipe 10 by the driving force of the solution pump P1. Since the generator 2 is heated by the heater 2a composed of a gas burner or the like, the refrigerant absorbed in the concentrated liquid evaporates, and the high-temperature refrigerant vapor and the high-temperature absorbing liquid having a low refrigerant concentration, that is, the dilute liquid, are generated here. To separate.

The high-temperature diluted liquid returns to the absorber 1 via the diluted liquid pipe 11 and the decompressor V1 and is scattered from above, and the refrigerant vapor coming in through the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4 described later is removed. The liquid is absorbed and returned to the concentrated liquid having a high refrigerant concentration, and the circulation of the absorbing liquid is completed. The decompressor V1 is constituted by, for example, a decompression valve, and supplies the diluted liquid to the absorber 1 in a decompressed state.

Next, the circulation of the refrigerant will be described with the refrigerant vapor flowing into the absorber 1 as a starting point. This refrigerant vapor is absorbed by the dilute liquid sprayed into the absorber 1 to become a concentrated liquid as described in the circulation of the absorbing liquid, and flows into the generator 2 via the concentrated liquid pipe 10 and the solution pump P1. , Where it is heated and evaporated to separate into high-temperature refrigerant vapor.

[0008] The high-temperature refrigerant vapor flows into the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3 via the refrigerant pipe 12, gives heat to a heat-manipulating fluid, for example, water, passing through the heated side 3A and radiates heat, and condenses itself. And is led to the pressure reducer V2. The decompressor V2 is
For example, it is constituted by a pressure reducing valve, and decompresses the liquid refrigerant. The decompressed liquid refrigerant flows into the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4, and the liquid refrigerant evaporates by removing heat from a heat-manipulating fluid, for example, water passing through the cooled side 4A of the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4. The refrigerant that has turned into vapor here returns to the absorber 1 via the refrigerant pipe 12, and completes one cycle of the refrigerant.

Further, the heated condensing heat exchanger 3 has a heated side 3A.
Pipeline provided with a brine pump P2 that circulates and supplies water as a heat operation fluid to the coolant, and brine that circulates and supplies water as a heat operation fluid to the cooled side 4A of the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4. Brine line 15 with pump P3
And a brine pipe 18 for circulating water as a heat operation fluid to the indoor heat exchanger 5 and a brine pipe for circulating water as a heat operation fluid to the outdoor heat exchanger 6. A path 17 is provided, and the eight-way valve 7 is configured so that the side of the brine pipelines 14 and 15 and the side of the brine pipelines 16 and 17 can be switched and connected as appropriate.

That is, when the brine pipes 14 and 18 are connected via the eight-way valve 7 and the brine pipes 15 and 17 are connected, when the brine evaporating heat exchanger 4 passes through the cooled side 4A, Brine pipeline 1 cooled by evaporation of refrigerant
5 is sent to the outdoor heat exchanger 8 to pump heat from the atmosphere, and when passing through the heated side 3A of the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3, the brine pipe is mainly heated by the heat of condensation of the refrigerant. The water 14 is supplied to the indoor heat exchanger 5 to perform a heating operation or a hot water supply operation.

When the brine pipes 14 and 17 are connected to each other and the brine pipes 15 and 16 are connected, the refrigerant is heated by the heat of condensation of the refrigerant when passing through the heated side 3A of the refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 3. The water in the brine pipeline 14 is supplied to the outdoor heat exchanger 6 and radiates heat to the atmosphere. When passing through the cooled side 4A of the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4, the water in the brine pipeline 15 cooled by evaporation of the refrigerant is reduced. Water at a temperature is supplied to the indoor heat exchanger 5 to perform a cooling operation.

In addition, the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3
, Which is a heat-manipulating fluid flowing toward, is once sent to the absorber 1, passes through the heat exchanger 1A inside the absorber 1, and is warmed by heat generated when the refrigerant is absorbed by the absorbing liquid in the absorber 1. After that, it is sent to the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3.

In the cooling and heating apparatus using the refrigerator shown in FIG. 7, the cooling heat generated when the refrigerant evaporates in the refrigerant evaporating heat exchanger 4 is carried to the indoor heat exchanger 5 and the like by the water which is the heat operation fluid. However, there are refrigerators that do not use such a heat-manipulating fluid.

That is, as shown in FIG. 8, ammonia as a refrigerant is directly sent to a refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4 as an indoor heat exchanger and a refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 5 as an outdoor heat exchanger. ing. Such a configuration is called a direct expansion type.
The same parts as those in FIG. 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

In such a cooling system using a harmful or flammable refrigerant such as ammonia, if the heat exchangers 3, 4, 5, 6, etc. are corroded , the refrigerant leaks due to the corrosion. Possibilities need to be addressed. In particular, in the case of a direct expansion type configuration, for example, when corrosion or the like occurs in the indoor heat exchanger, there is a problem that the refrigerant immediately leaks into the room, and there is a great need for measures.

Conventionally, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-94338 discloses a structure in which a portion where ammonia as a refrigerant may leak is covered with a closed container.
When ammonia, which is a refrigerant, leaks, it is generally considered that an absorbent such as water is sprayed.

[0017]

However, the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-94338 has to provide a heat exchanger, which has a high possibility of causing a leak, outside the closed vessel, so that the leak can be effectively prevented. It was hard to prevent. Further, when the leak occurs from the indoor unit, there is a practical problem in spraying the absorbent such as water into the room itself.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and without spraying an absorbent such as water.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a cooling device safety device that can more effectively deal with refrigerant leakage.

[0019]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is directed to a cooling apparatus using a harmful or flammable refrigerant, wherein a heat exchanger through which the refrigerant of an indoor unit flows. It is characterized by comprising a tank provided at a higher place and containing an absorbing liquid for absorbing a refrigerant, and an on-off valve for connecting an absorbing liquid outlet side of the tank and an upper pipe of the heat exchanger.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is further provided a cooling device using a harmful or flammable refrigerant, wherein an absorbing liquid which is provided at a position higher than a heat exchanger of the outdoor unit through which the refrigerant flows and absorbs the refrigerant is used. The tank is provided with an on-off valve for connecting the absorption liquid outlet side of the tank and the upper pipe of the heat exchanger.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the heat exchanger further includes:
A blower for blowing air, a refrigerant detector provided in the indoor unit for detecting leaked refrigerant, and opening and closing the on-off valve when a refrigerant exceeding a predetermined concentration is detected, and operating the blower.
And a control device .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is further provided a heat exchanger for a heat exchanger.
A blower for blowing air, a refrigerant detector provided in the outdoor unit for detecting leaked refrigerant, and, when a refrigerant exceeding a predetermined concentration is detected, opening the on-off valve and operating the blower
And a control device .

[0023]

[0024]

[0025]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the leakage of the refrigerant is confirmed or predicted, the on-off valve is opened, and the absorbing liquid flows from the tank into the upper pipe of the heat exchanger of the indoor unit, and Supply near the exchanger. This allows the absorbing liquid to absorb the refrigerant, thereby preventing the refrigerant from leaking.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when leakage of the refrigerant is confirmed or predicted, the on-off valve is opened, and the absorbing liquid flows from the tank into the upper piping of the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit, and Supply near the exchanger. This allows the absorbing liquid to absorb the refrigerant, thereby preventing the refrigerant from leaking.

Further, when the refrigerant detector provided in the indoor unit detects the leakage of the refrigerant, the control device automatically opens the on-off valve and operates the blower.
And supply the absorbent in the tank to the heat exchanger near the indoor unit.
At the same time, air is blown to the heat exchanger. As a result,
The collected liquid absorbs the refrigerant and copes with the heat generated at the time of absorption
it can.

Further, when the refrigerant detector provided in the outdoor unit detects the leakage of the refrigerant, the control device automatically opens the on-off valve and operates the blower.
And supply the absorbent in the tank near the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit.
At the same time, air is blown to the heat exchanger. As a result,
The collected liquid absorbs the refrigerant and copes with the heat generated at the time of absorption
it can.

[0029]

[0030]

[0031]

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, the cooling device uses a direct expansion type refrigerator. The flow of the absorbing liquid and the ammonia as the refrigerant is the same as in the conventional case (FIG. 8). That is, the absorbing liquid that has exited the absorber 1 is a concentrated liquid that has absorbed a large amount of refrigerant, is sent to the generator 2 by the solution pump P1, and the refrigerant evaporates to become a dilute liquid having a low refrigerant concentration. The diluted liquid returns to the absorber 1 via the decompressor V1, is sprayed, absorbs the refrigerant vapor again, and becomes a concentrated liquid.

The refrigerant vapor evaporated in the generator 2 flows into an outdoor unit exchanger, which is a refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 3, and the blower 21
And radiates heat and condenses into liquid refrigerant. This liquid refrigerant flows into the heat exchanger of the indoor unit, which is the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4, via the decompressor V <b> 2, and evaporates by removing heat from the air blown by the blower 22. The air deprived of heat becomes cold wind and is used for indoor cooling. The evaporated refrigerant vapor returns to the absorber 1 and is absorbed by the absorbing liquid.

The heat exchanger of the outdoor unit has a second heat exchanger 23 for independently circulating a heat operating fluid (for example, water) in addition to the refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 3. The operating fluid flowing out of the second heat exchanger 23 is sent to the heat exchanger 1A inside the absorber 1 via the pump 24, and is generated when the refrigerant is absorbed by the absorber 1 in the absorber 1. Carry away the heat.

A tank 25 is provided at a position higher than the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4 which is a heat exchanger of the indoor unit. This tank 25 contains an absorbing liquid for absorbing the refrigerant, that is, a dilute liquid or water. The amount of this absorbent is
After the absorption liquid is supplied to the vicinity of the heat exchanger and absorbs the refrigerant, the pressure near the heat exchanger is set to be equal to or lower than the atmospheric pressure at a temperature slightly higher than the atmospheric temperature. Also,
The absorption liquid outlet side of the tank 25 is connected to an upper pipe of the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4 via an on-off valve 26. The upper pipe referred to herein means a pipe located at a higher position with respect to the heat exchanger, or means a pipe upstream of the refrigerant flowing into the heat exchanger.

The absorption liquid inlet side of the tank 25 is connected to the dilution liquid pipe 11 on the dilution liquid outlet side of the generator 2 via an on-off valve 27. In the refrigerant evaporative heat exchanger 4 which is a heat exchanger of the indoor unit, a refrigerant detector 28 is provided downstream of the air blown from the blower 22.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. When a leakage point of the refrigerant due to corrosion or the like occurs in the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4, the refrigerant detector 28 detects the leakage. When the detected concentration of the refrigerant exceeds a predetermined concentration, a control device (not shown) opens the on-off valves 26 and 27. With this valve opening, the absorbing liquid in the tank 25 flows into the upper pipe of the refrigerant evaporating heat exchanger 4 as if dropped by gravity. In this way, the refrigerant is supplied to the vicinity of the heat exchanger 4 and absorbs the refrigerant that would otherwise have leaked from the leak location.

At the same time, the control device causes the blower 22 to blow air to the refrigerant evaporative heat exchanger 4, thereby suppressing the heat generated when the absorbing liquid absorbs the refrigerant.

Further, the amount of the absorbing liquid in the tank 25 is set to a predetermined amount in advance, so that even if the absorbing liquid has become slightly higher than the atmospheric temperature after absorbing the refrigerant, the heat exchanger can be used. The internal pressure in the vicinity becomes lower than the atmospheric pressure. Due to this blowing, the temperature of the heat exchanger becomes slightly higher than the atmospheric temperature.

As described above, the operation of the blower 22 and the tank 25
By setting the amount of the absorbing liquid inside, when the absorbing liquid absorbs the refrigerant, it is possible to prevent the internal pressure from increasing and the absorbing liquid or the refrigerant to blow out to the outside. In addition, a large amount of refrigerant that would otherwise have leaked from the leak location is absorbed by the supplied absorbing liquid, and leakage to the outside, that is, indoors, can be effectively prevented.

After the absorbing liquid thus supplied absorbs the refrigerant, the absorbing liquid is sent to the tank 25 via the on-off valve 27 by the pressure from the generator 2 generated by heating the generator 2. You can go back. Therefore, at this point, if the leak is repaired, the recovery operation of the refrigerator can be easily performed.

As described above, according to this embodiment, it is not necessary to employ an imperfect technique of covering a place where there is a possibility of leakage with a closed container as in the prior art. It is not necessary to employ an impractical technique of spraying an absorbent such as water for cleaning. Further, such spraying was uneconomical because a large amount of the refrigerant inside the refrigerator was discarded to the outside, which was uneconomical. It can be used and is economical. Further, equipment for supplying, storing, and spraying an absorbent such as water is not required, so that there is no need to increase the size of the entire apparatus and the cost can be reduced.

Next, the first embodiment (FIG. 1) described above deals with the leakage of the refrigerant from the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 4, which is the heat exchanger of the indoor unit. As shown in FIG. 2), it is also possible to deal with the leakage of the refrigerant from the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3, which is the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit. That is, the absorption liquid outlet side of the tank 25 is connected to the upper pipe of the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3 via the on-off valve 26. The refrigerant detector 28 is provided on the downstream side of the air flow of the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3. Other parts are the same as those in FIG. 1, and the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals.

In the first or second embodiment, the cooling device is of the direct expansion type. However, as shown in the third embodiment (FIG. 3), the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3 and the refrigerant evaporating heat exchanger 4 The present invention can also be implemented in a cooling / heating device using a normal type refrigerator (see FIG. 7 of a conventional example) for temporarily transferring heat from a heat to a heat operation fluid such as water. In FIG. 3, the same parts as those in the conventional example (FIG. 7) are denoted by the same reference numerals.

That is, in this embodiment, the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit includes an outdoor heat exchanger 6 for exchanging heat between air and a heat operating fluid, a refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3, and a refrigerant evaporating heat exchanger 4. There are three. Among these heat exchangers 6, 3, and 4, the refrigerant ammonia flows through the refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 3 and the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4. This embodiment deals with leakage of the refrigerant from the refrigerant evaporator 4. That is, the refrigerant detector 28 is provided near the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4. Further, the absorption liquid outlet side of the tank 25 is connected to an upper pipe of the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4 via an on-off valve 26.

In this way, when the refrigerant detector 28 detects the refrigerant exceeding the predetermined concentration, a control device (not shown) opens the on-off valves 26 and 27, and the absorbing liquid in the tank 25 is discharged by the refrigerant evaporating heat exchanger 4. It is supplied to the vicinity and absorbs the refrigerant that should have leaked from the leak location. In this way, an effect almost equivalent to that of the above embodiment is obtained.

Further, as shown in the fourth embodiment (FIG. 4), it is possible to cope with the leakage of the refrigerant from the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3 among the heat exchangers of the outdoor unit. That is, the refrigerant detector 28 is provided near the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3 and the tank 25
Is connected to the upper pipe of the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3 via an on-off valve 26. With such a configuration, with respect to leakage of the refrigerant from the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3,
An effect equivalent to that of the above embodiment can be obtained.

In the third or fourth embodiment (FIG. 3 or FIG. 4), the refrigerant detector 28 is provided only in one of the refrigerant evaporating heat exchanger 4 and the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3. However, as shown in the fifth embodiment (FIG. 5), both the heat exchangers 4 and 3 are provided with the refrigerant detectors 28, and the tank supplies the absorbing liquid to both the heat exchangers 4 and 3. It can be. At this time, the absorption liquid fills the refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 3 and then fills the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4 through the pressure reducer V2. Even with such a configuration, it is possible to obtain substantially the same effect as in the above-described embodiment.

In the fifth embodiment (FIG. 5), the absorbing liquid from the tank 25 first fills the refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 3 and then fills the refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 4. Conversely, as shown in FIG. 6, the refrigerant condensing heat exchanger 3 may be filled after the refrigerant evaporating heat exchanger 4 is filled. In addition, the refrigerant detector 28 is provided in each of the heat exchangers 4 and 3. Even with the above configuration, it is possible to obtain substantially the same effects as in the above embodiment.

[0049]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, even if a leak occurs in a heat exchanger of an indoor unit that cannot be covered by a closed container as in the prior art, heat exchange of the absorbing liquid occurs. By supplying the refrigerant to the vicinity of the vessel, leakage of the refrigerant can be effectively prevented. Also, there is no need to spray an absorbent such as water.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, even if a leak occurs in the heat exchanger of the outdoor unit which cannot be covered by the closed vessel as in the prior art, the absorbing liquid is supplied to the vicinity of the heat exchanger. Thus, leakage of the refrigerant can be effectively prevented. Also, there is no need to spray an absorbent such as water.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the operation of the refrigerant detector and the control device provided in the indoor unit automatically detects the leakage of the refrigerant and automatically supplies the absorbing liquid.
Can be blown to the heat exchanger together with
Heat generated when the absorbing liquid absorbs the refrigerant
To reduce inconvenience due to heat generation, for example,
It is possible to prevent the absorbent from blowing out.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the leakage of the refrigerant is automatically detected and the supply of the absorbing liquid can be automatically performed by the operation of the refrigerant detector and the control device provided in the outdoor unit.
Can be blown to the heat exchanger together with
Heat generated when the absorbing liquid absorbs the refrigerant
To reduce inconvenience due to heat generation, for example,
It is possible to prevent the absorbent from blowing out.

[0053]

[0054]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram showing a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram showing a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram showing a first conventional example.

FIG. 8 is a circuit diagram showing a second conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Absorber 2 Generator 3 Refrigerant condensation heat exchanger 4 Refrigerant evaporation heat exchanger 7 8-way valve 21 and 22 Blower 25 Tank 26 and 27 On-off valve 28 Refrigerant detector

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Tomonori Tamura 2-5-5 Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shigeru Murayama 2-5-2 Keihanhondori, Moriguchi-shi, Osaka No. 5 Inside Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-6-229644 (JP, A) JP-A-4-27364 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F25B 49/04 F25B 15/00 F25B 15/04

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] In a cooling device using a harmful or flammable refrigerant, a tank provided in an indoor unit at a position higher than a heat exchanger through which the refrigerant flows and containing an absorbing liquid for absorbing the refrigerant is provided. A safety device for a cooling device, comprising: an on-off valve for connecting an absorbent outlet side and an upper pipe of the heat exchanger. 2. A cooling system using a harmful or flammable refrigerant, comprising: a tank provided in an outdoor unit at a position higher than a heat exchanger through which the refrigerant flows, the tank containing an absorbing liquid absorbing the refrigerant; A safety device for a cooling device, comprising: an on-off valve for connecting an absorbent outlet side and an upper pipe of the heat exchanger. 3. A blower for blowing air to a heat exchanger, a refrigerant detector provided in an indoor unit for detecting leaked refrigerant, and a blower for opening and closing an on-off valve when a refrigerant exceeding a predetermined concentration is detected. 2. A safety device for a cooling device according to claim 1 , further comprising: a control device for operating the cooling device. 4. A blower for blowing air to a heat exchanger, a refrigerant detector provided in an outdoor unit for detecting leaked refrigerant, and a blower for opening and closing an on-off valve when a refrigerant exceeding a predetermined concentration is detected. 3. A safety device for a cooling device according to claim 2 , further comprising: a control device for operating the cooling device.