Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24H—FLUID HEATERS, e.g. WATER OR AIR HEATERS, HAVING HEAT-GENERATING MEANS, e.g. HEAT PUMPS, IN GENERAL
  • F24H4/00—Fluid heaters characterised by the use of heat pumps
  • F24H4/02—Water heaters
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24D—DOMESTIC- OR SPACE-HEATING SYSTEMS, e.g. CENTRAL HEATING SYSTEMS; DOMESTIC HOT-WATER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; ELEMENTS OR COMPONENTS THEREFOR
  • F24D12/00—Other central heating systems
  • F24D12/02—Other central heating systems having more than one heat source
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24D—DOMESTIC- OR SPACE-HEATING SYSTEMS, e.g. CENTRAL HEATING SYSTEMS; DOMESTIC HOT-WATER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; ELEMENTS OR COMPONENTS THEREFOR
  • F24D2200/00—Heat sources or energy sources
  • F24D2200/04—Gas or oil fired boiler
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24D—DOMESTIC- OR SPACE-HEATING SYSTEMS, e.g. CENTRAL HEATING SYSTEMS; DOMESTIC HOT-WATER SUPPLY SYSTEMS; ELEMENTS OR COMPONENTS THEREFOR
  • F24D2200/00—Heat sources or energy sources
  • F24D2200/12—Heat pump
  • F24D2200/123—Compression type heat pumps
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24H—FLUID HEATERS, e.g. WATER OR AIR HEATERS, HAVING HEAT-GENERATING MEANS, e.g. HEAT PUMPS, IN GENERAL
  • F24H1/00—Water heaters, e.g. boilers, continuous-flow heaters or water-storage heaters
  • F24H1/10—Continuous-flow heaters, i.e. heaters in which heat is generated only while the water is flowing, e.g. with direct contact of the water with the heating medium
  • F24H1/12—Continuous-flow heaters, i.e. heaters in which heat is generated only while the water is flowing, e.g. with direct contact of the water with the heating medium in which the water is kept separate from the heating medium
  • F24H1/14—Continuous-flow heaters, i.e. heaters in which heat is generated only while the water is flowing, e.g. with direct contact of the water with the heating medium in which the water is kept separate from the heating medium by tubes, e.g. bent in serpentine form
  • F24H1/16—Continuous-flow heaters, i.e. heaters in which heat is generated only while the water is flowing, e.g. with direct contact of the water with the heating medium in which the water is kept separate from the heating medium by tubes, e.g. bent in serpentine form helically or spirally coiled
  • F24H1/165—Continuous-flow heaters, i.e. heaters in which heat is generated only while the water is flowing, e.g. with direct contact of the water with the heating medium in which the water is kept separate from the heating medium by tubes, e.g. bent in serpentine form helically or spirally coiled using fluid fuel
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F24—HEATING; RANGES; VENTILATING
  • F24H—FLUID HEATERS, e.g. WATER OR AIR HEATERS, HAVING HEAT-GENERATING MEANS, e.g. HEAT PUMPS, IN GENERAL
  • F24H8/00—Fluid heaters characterised by means for extracting latent heat from flue gases by means of condensation

Definitions

• the present patent application for an industrial invention relates to a unit comprising a two-stage component for heating water and refrigerant gas.
• the field of reference is that of hybrid plants for heating water, comprising a combustion cell and a heat pump.
• the combustion cell comprises an outlet, connected to the outside of the thermal generator, to allow the exit of fumes produced during combustion to the outside of the thermal generator.
• Said classic thermal plants comprising a gas thermal generator are highly polluting and expensive.
• classic thermal plants comprising a heat pump for heating/cooling a house using refrigerant gas are known.
• the known heat pumps comprise an evaporator designed to be passed through by refrigerant gas. External air surrounds the evaporator, heating the refrigerant gas.
• the refrigerant gas of the heat pump is heated only by external air.
• the external air has a temperature that varies continuously throughout the day and depending on the seasons. Therefore, the heating of the refrigerant gas flowing through the evaporator is strongly influenced by external environmental conditions.
• hybrid thermal plants are located in different positions within the house.
• the known hybrid devices require complex, long, and cumbersome installation and commissioning operations and require large installation spaces.
• ITBO20120458 discloses a thermal plant comprising a combustion cell comprising a water/fumes exchanger designed to be connected to a water plant, and a thermal exchanger comprising an evaporator designed to be connected to the refrigerant gas plant of a heat pump.
• the combustion cell and the thermal exchanger are in fluid communication with each other through a channel, so that fumes generated by combustion in the combustion cell enter the heat exchanger and heat the refrigerant gas flowing through the evaporator.
• FR2547027 discloses a thermal plant comprising a boiler, an evaporator, and a channel connected to the boiler and ending at the evaporator, that is surrounded by fumes generated by combustion.
• EP3361179 discloses a monoblock heating device obtained by integrating a gas boiler and an air-to-water heat pump.
• the purpose of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the known art, providing a unit that allows the efficient heating of the refrigerant gas passing through the evaporator, independently of the external air temperature, while simultaneously heating the technical water in the water/fumes exchanger, in order to achieve a great energy efficiency.
• Another purpose is to provide a unit that is compact, easy to install and commission, space-saving, and not bulky.
• the advantages of the unit according to the invention are evident, in fact, due to the fact that the water/fumes heat exchanger and the evaporator are arranged within the same chamber of the component, the fumes generated by the burner, after passing through the water/fumes exchanger, also pass through the evaporator, without significant heat loss.
• the increase in evaporator efficiency allows for the use of smaller exchange surfaces compared to the evaporators of the known art. Therefore, it is possible to create more compact evaporators with smaller size and volumes compared to those of the known technology. As a result, the unit is efficient, compact, and simple to manufacture, install, and maintain.
• a unit according to the invention comprising a two-stage component (100) and a burner (2) designed to initiate combustion of gas and external air, so as to generate high-temperature fumes.
• the component (100) comprises a frame (1) and a chamber (10) delimited by the frame (1).
• the burner (2) is optionally arranged inside the chamber (10) of the component.
• the burner (2) is arranged at the bottom of the chamber (10).
• the chamber (10) is suitable for containing the fumes generated by the burner (2).
• the component (100) comprises a water/fumes exchanger (20) arranged inside the chamber (10) of the frame near the burner (2), optionally above the burner (2), to be externally surrounded by the fumes generated by the combustion.
• the burner (2) is arranged near the water/fumes exchanger (20), more precisely below the water/fumes exchanger (20).
• the water/fumes exchanger (20) is designed to be passed through water from a water plant, preferably from a technical water plant.
• the water/fumes exchanger (20) comprises an inlet (20a) configured to be connected to a return circuit of the water plant and an outlet (20b) configured to be connected to a supply circuit of the water plant.
• the water circulating through the water/fumes exchanger (20) is heated by the high-temperature fumes, generated by the burner (2), that surround the water/fumes exchanger (20).
• the water/fumes exchanger (20) can be any type of heat exchanger, such as a coil, plate, or tube bundle exchanger.
• the component (100) comprises an evaporator (3) arranged within the chamber (10) downstream of the water/fumes exchanger (20), optionally above the water/fumes exchanger (20).
• the evaporator (3) is configured to be passed through by refrigerant gas from a heat pump plant.
• the evaporator (3) comprises an inlet (3a) and an outlet (3b).
• the water/fumes exchanger (20) and the evaporator (3) are arranged in the same chamber (10) and are designed to be externally surrounded by the fumes generated by the burner (2).
• the component (100) comprises:
• the first inlet (11) is formed at the bottom of the frame (1) of the component, below the burner (2).
• the second inlet (12) is formed laterally on the frame (1) of the component, near the evaporator (3).
• the outlet (13) is formed at the top of the frame (1) of the component.
• a mixture of gas and combustion air enters the chamber (10) through the first inlet (11).
• the burner (2) ignites combustion, generating an ascending fumes flow.
• the fumes flow surrounds the water/fumes exchanger (20), heating the water circulating inside the water/fumes exchanger (20).
• the fumes flow mixes with external air entering from the second inlet (12) and surrounds the evaporator (3), heating the refrigerant gas circulating through the evaporator (3).
• the air-fumes flow continues to rise and exits through the outlet (13).
• the water/fumes exchanger (20) and the evaporator (3) are arranged within the same chamber (10), the fumes generated by the burner (2), after surround the water/fumes exchanger (20), also surround the evaporator (3), without significant heat losses.
• the increase in evaporator efficiency allows for the use of smaller heat exchange surfaces compared to evaporators of the known art. Therefore, it is possible to create more compact evaporators with smaller size and volumes than known evaporators. As a result, the component is efficient, compact, and easy to manufacture, install, and maintain.
• the water/fumes exchanger (20) and the evaporator (3) are within the same chamber (1), it is possible to heat the refrigerant gas circulating in the evaporator using a flow that comprises not only external air but also high-temperature fumes generated by combustion initiated by the burner (2). In this way, thermal energy contained in the fumes produced by combustion, mixed with external air, is used to heat the refrigerant gas, improving the efficiency of a plant comprising the component.
• the component according to the invention is two-stage because it allows both the heating of water in the water/fumes exchanger and the heating of refrigerant gas in the evaporator.
• an intermediate wall (14) is arranged within the chamber (10) of the component between the water/fumes exchanger (20) and the evaporator (3), so as to divide the chamber (10) into a first upper compartment (16), arranged above the intermediate wall (14), and a second lower compartment (17), arranged below the intermediate wall (14).
• the water/fumes exchanger (20) and, optionally, the burner (2) are arranged in the second compartment (17), and the first inlet (11) is in communication with the second compartment (17).
• the evaporator (3) is arranged in the first compartment (16), and the second inlet (12) and the outlet (13) are in communication with the first compartment (16).
• the intermediate wall (14) comprises an opening (15) for the passage of the fumes flow from the second compartment (17) to the first compartment (16).
• the intermediate wall (14) is horizontal and has a tapered funnel shape with decreasing dimensions towards the first compartment (16), to channel the fumes flow towards the first compartment (16).
• a variant of the unit according to the invention is disclosed, differing from the unit of Fig. 1 by the following features:
• a plant (200) comprising the unit according to the invention is disclosed.
• the plant (200) also comprises:
• the refrigerant gas helps preheat the technical water returning from the technical water plant before it reaches the water/fumes exchanger (20). Therefore, the burner (2) will need to supply less energy to heat the technical water, reducing gas consumption and CO2 emissions.
• the plant (200) comprises a mixing unit (208) arranged upstream of the burner (2) of the unit and downstream of the aspiration device (209).
• the mixing unit (208) comprises a first inlet connected to the aspiration device (209) for the intake of external air into the mixing unit, a second inlet connected to a gas plant (290) for the entry of gas into the mixing unit, and an outlet in communication with the unit, particularly with the first inlet (11) of the component.
• the aspiration device (209) and the gas plant (290) are directly connected to the unit.
• the burner (2) is arranged outside the chamber of the component and is in fluid communication with the first inlet (11) of the component.
• the first inlet (11) of the component is configured to allow the entry of fumes generated by the burner (2) into the chamber (10).
• the aspiration device of the plant is in fluid communication with the burner to provide combustion air to the burner (2). If the plant comprises the mixing unit (208), the aspiration device of the plant is in fluid communication with the mixing unit, and the outlet of the mixing unit is in communication with the burner (2).

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Thermal Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Heat-Exchange Devices With Radiators And Conduit Assemblies (AREA)
• Heat-Pump Type And Storage Water Heaters (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=90731786

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Citations (4)

• 2024
  • 2024-02-16 IT IT102024000003376A patent/IT202400003376A1/it unknown
• 2025
  • 2025-02-12 EP EP25157335.8A patent/EP4603761A1/de active Pending

Patent Citations (4)

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