EP3423765B1 - Heat pump having a foreign gas collection chamber, method for operating a heat pump, and method for producing a heat pump - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to heat pumps for heating, cooling or any other application of a heat pump.

Fig. 8A and Fig. 8B represent a heat pump as described in the European patent EP 2016349 B1 The heat pump comprises an evaporator 10 for evaporating water as the working fluid in order to generate steam in a working steam line 12 on the output side. The evaporator comprises an evaporation chamber (in Fig. 8A (not shown) and is designed to generate an evaporation pressure of less than 20 hPa in the evaporation chamber, so that the water evaporates at temperatures below 15 °C in the evaporation chamber. The water can be, for example, groundwater, brine circulating freely in the ground or in collector pipes, i.e., water with a certain salt content, river water, lake water, or sea water. All types of water can be used, i.e., calcareous water, lime-free water, saline water, or salt-free water. This is because all types of water, i.e., all these "hydrogens," share the favorable water property: water, also known as "R 718," has a usable enthalpy difference ratio of 6 for the heat pump process, which is more than twice the typical usable enthalpy difference ratio of, for example, R134a.

The water vapor is fed through the suction line 12 to a compressor/condenser system 14, which has a turbomachine such as a radial compressor, for example in the form of a turbocompressor, which is Fig. 8A designated 16. The turbomachine is designed to compress the working steam to a vapor pressure of at least greater than 25 hPa. 25 hPa corresponds to a condensation temperature of approximately 22 °C, which can already be a sufficient heating flow temperature for an underfloor heating system, at least on relatively warm days. To generate higher flow temperatures, pressures greater than 30 hPa can be generated with the turbomachine 16, with a pressure of 30 hPa corresponding to a condensation temperature of 24 °C, a pressure of 60 hPa to a condensation temperature of 36 °C, and a pressure of 100 hPa to a condensation temperature of 45 °C. Underfloor heating systems are designed to provide sufficient heating even on very cold days with a flow temperature of 45 °C.

The turbomachine is coupled to a condenser 18, which is designed to condense the compressed working steam. Through condensation, the energy contained in the working steam is fed to the condenser 18, which is then fed to a heating system via the flow line 20a. The working fluid flows back into the condenser via the return line 20b.

According to the invention, it is preferred to extract the heat (energy) from the energy-rich steam directly through the colder heating water, which is absorbed by the heating water, thus heating it. In this process, so much energy is extracted from the steam that it is liquefied and also participates in the heating circuit.

This results in a material input into the condenser or the heating system, which is regulated by a drain 22, such that the condenser has a water level in its condenser chamber which always remains below a maximum level despite the constant supply of water vapor and thus condensate.

As already explained, it is preferable to use an open circuit, i.e., the water, which serves as the heat source, is evaporated directly without a heat exchanger. Alternatively, however, the water to be evaporated could first be heated by an external heat source via a heat exchanger. Furthermore, to avoid losses for the second heat exchanger, which is currently required on the condenser side, the medium can also be used directly there. If a house with underfloor heating is being considered, the water from the evaporator can be circulated directly in the underfloor heating system.

Alternatively, however, a heat exchanger can be arranged on the condenser side, which is fed with the flow 20a and which has the return 20b, whereby this heat exchanger cools the water in the condenser and thus heats a separate underfloor heating fluid, which will typically be water.

Due to the fact that water is used as the working medium, and due to the fact that only the evaporated portion of the groundwater is fed into the flow machine, the purity of the water is irrelevant. is always supplied with distilled water, just like the condenser and any directly connected underfloor heating, so the system requires less maintenance than current systems. In other words, the system is self-cleaning, as only distilled water is ever supplied to the system, thus preventing the water in drain 22 from being contaminated.

Furthermore, it should be noted that turbomachines have the characteristic that, similar to an aircraft turbine, the compressed medium does not come into contact with problematic substances such as oil. Instead, the steam is simply compressed by the turbine or turbocompressor, but does not come into contact with oil or any other medium that impairs purity and thus becomes contaminated.

The distilled water discharged through the drain can thus be easily returned to the groundwater—provided there are no other regulations that prevent this. Alternatively, it can be allowed to seep into the ground, for example, in the garden or an open space, or it can be fed into a sewage treatment plant via the sewer, if regulations permit it.

The combination of water as the working fluid with a usable enthalpy difference ratio that is twice as good as that of R134a and the resulting reduced requirements for system closure, as well as the use of the flow machine, which achieves the required compression factors efficiently and without compromising purity, creates an efficient and environmentally neutral heat pump process.

Fig. 8B shows a table illustrating various pressures and the evaporation temperatures associated with these pressures, which shows that, particularly for water as the working medium, relatively low pressures must be selected in the evaporator.

The DE 4431887 A1 discloses a heat pump system with a lightweight, large-volume, high-performance centrifugal compressor. Vapor leaving a second-stage compressor has a saturation temperature that exceeds the ambient temperature or that of any available cooling water, thereby enabling heat removal. The compressed vapor is transferred from the second-stage compressor to the condenser unit, which consists of a packed bed within a cooling water spray device is provided at the top, which is supplied by a water circulation pump. The compressed water vapor rises through the packed bed in the condenser, where it comes into direct countercurrent contact with the downwardly flowing cooling water. The vapor condenses, and the latent heat of condensation, absorbed by the cooling water, is expelled to the atmosphere via the condensate and cooling water, which are removed from the system together. The condenser is continuously purged with non-condensable gases by means of a vacuum pump via a pipeline.

The WO 2014072239 A1 discloses a condenser with a condensation zone for condensing vapor to be condensed in a working fluid. The condensation zone is designed as a volume zone and has a lateral boundary between the upper end of the condensation zone and the lower end. Furthermore, the condenser comprises a vapor introduction zone that extends along the lateral end of the condensation zone and is designed to feed vapor to be condensed laterally across the lateral boundary into the condensation zone. This makes the actual condensation a volume condensation without increasing the volume of the condenser, because the vapor to be condensed is introduced not only frontally from one side into a condensation volume or into the condensation zone, but laterally and preferably from all sides. This not only ensures that the available condensation volume is increased compared to direct countercurrent condensation with the same external dimensions, but also that the efficiency of the condenser is improved at the same time because the vapor to be condensed in the condensation zone has a flow direction transverse to the flow direction of the condensation liquid.

Particularly when heat pumps are operated at relatively low pressures, e.g. pressures that are lower or significantly lower than atmospheric pressure, there is a need to evacuate the heat pump so that a pressure so low is created in the evaporator that the working fluid used, which can be water, for example, begins to evaporate at the available temperature.

However, this also means that this low pressure must be maintained during operation of the heat pump. On the other hand, it is potentially possible that leaks may exist in the heat pump, especially in designs with reasonable costs. At the same time, foreign gases may also escape from the liquid or gaseous medium. which no longer condense in the condenser, thus leading to an increase in pressure in the heat pump. It has been shown that an increasing proportion of foreign gas in the heat pump leads to increasingly lower efficiency.

Despite the fact that foreign gases exist, it must generally be assumed that the gas space primarily contains the desired working steam. Thus, a mixture of working steam and foreign gases occurs, such that it contains predominantly working steam and only a relatively small proportion of foreign gases.

If continuous evacuation were to take place, this would result in the removal of foreign gases. However, at the same time, working steam would also be continuously extracted from the heat pump. Particularly if evacuation were to take place on the condenser side, this extracted working steam would already be heated. However, extracting compressed or heated working steam is disadvantageous in two respects. Firstly, energy is withdrawn unused from the system and typically released into the environment. Secondly, the continuous heating of working steam leads to a drop in the working fluid level, particularly in closed systems. Working fluid must therefore be topped up. In addition, the vacuum pump requires a considerable amount of energy, which is particularly problematic because energy is used to extract the working steam that is actually required in the heat pump. The foreign gas concentration in the heat pump is relatively low, but even low concentrations lead to efficiency losses.

The WO 2009/156125 A2 discloses an evaporator or condenser with a surface on which a working fluid is arranged. Furthermore, turbulence generators are provided for generating turbulence in the working fluid on the working surface. Alternatively or additionally, a laminarizer is provided in the condenser to laminarize the vapor flow generated by the compressor. The evaporation efficiency is increased in the evaporator, and the condenser efficiency is increased in the condenser, which is particularly useful for a heat pump for heating buildings, in order to be able to significantly reduce the size of these components without sacrificing performance. Furthermore, a gas trap with a collection container is provided, the wall of which is arranged in the evaporator.

The object of the present invention is to create a more efficient heat pump concept.

This object is achieved by a heat pump according to patent claim 1, a method for operating a heat pump according to patent claim 14 or a method for producing a heat pump according to patent claim 15.

The heat pump according to the present invention comprises a condenser for condensing compressed or, if necessary, heated working steam and a gas trap coupled to the condenser by an external gas supply. In particular, the gas trap comprises a housing with an external gas supply inlet, a working fluid supply line in the housing, a working fluid discharge line in the housing, and a pump to pump gas out of the housing. The housing, the working fluid supply line, and the working fluid outlet are designed and arranged such that, during operation, a working fluid flow occurs from the working fluid supply line to the working fluid outlet in the housing. Furthermore, the working fluid supply line is coupled to the heat pump such that, during operation, the heat pump is supplied with working fluid that is colder than the working vapor to be condensed in the condenser.

Depending on the implementation, the working fluid supply line is coupled to the heat pump to conduct working fluid during heat pump operation. This temperature is colder than the saturated vapor pressure of the working steam to be condensed in the condenser. Thus, the saturated vapor pressure of the working steam always corresponds to a temperature, which can be determined, for example, from the h-logp diagram or a similar diagram.

This brings foreign gas and working steam, both mixed in a specific ratio through the foreign gas supply into the condenser, into direct or indirect contact with the working fluid flow, resulting in foreign gas enrichment. Foreign gas enrichment occurs when the working steam condenses through direct or indirect contact with the relatively cold working fluid flow. Foreign gases, however, cannot condense, so the foreign gas gradually accumulates in the gas trap housing. The housing thus acts as a gas trap for the foreign gas, while the working steam can condense and remain in the system.

The pump used to pump gas from the housing removes the enriched foreign gas. Unlike the ratio between foreign gas and working vapor in the condenser, where the concentration of foreign gas is still very low, pumping gas from the gas trap housing does not result in a particularly strong extraction of working vapor from the system because the majority of the working vapor has condensed in the working fluid flow, either through direct or indirect contact, and thus can no longer be pumped out by the pump.

This provides several advantages. One is that working steam releases its energy and this energy remains in the system and is not lost to the environment. Another advantage is that the amount of extracted Working fluid is greatly reduced. This means that there is little or no need to top up the working fluid, which reduces the effort required to maintain the correct working fluid level and also reduces the effort required to collect and remove any extracted working fluid. A further advantage is that the pump has to pump out less gas from the housing because relatively concentrated foreign gas is removed. The pump's energy consumption is therefore low and the pump does not need to be as powerful. A less powerful pump does mean that the initial evacuation of the system takes a little longer. However, this time is not critical for normal applications because normally only service technicians will carry out an initial evacuation during commissioning or after maintenance. Such service technicians can, if necessary, connect an external pump they have brought with them if they want it to go faster; however, this does not have to be permanently connected to the system.

In a further aspect of the present invention, a foreign gas collection chamber is already provided within the condenser. A heat pump according to this further aspect comprises a condenser for condensing compressed or, if appropriate, heated working steam, a foreign gas collection chamber mounted in the condenser, said foreign gas collection chamber having a condensation surface that, during operation of the heat pump, is colder than a temperature of the working steam to be condensed, and a partition wall arranged between the condensation surface and a condensation zone in the condenser. Furthermore, a foreign gas discharge device is provided, which is coupled to the foreign gas collection chamber in order to discharge foreign gas from the foreign gas collection chamber.

Depending on the implementation, the condensation surface is colder than a temperature corresponding to the saturated vapor pressure of the working steam to be condensed in the condenser. Thus, as explained above, the saturated vapor pressure of the working steam always corresponds to a temperature that can be determined, for example, from the h-Iogp diagram or a similar diagram.

In one implementation, the foreign gas now enriched in the condenser can be discharged directly to the outside. Alternatively, however, the foreign gas discharge device can be coupled to the gas trap according to the first aspect of the present invention, so that a gas in which the foreign gas is enriched is already fed into the gas trap. in order to further increase the efficiency of the entire device. However, a direct discharge of already enriched foreign gas from the foreign gas collection chamber in the condenser already leads to increased efficiency compared to a procedure in which gas present in the condenser would simply be pumped out. In particular, the condensation surface in the foreign gas collection chamber ensures that working steam condenses on the condensation surface and thus enriches the foreign gas. To ensure that this foreign gas enrichment can take place in a relatively turbulent condenser, a partition wall is provided, which is arranged between the (cold) condensation surface and the condensation zone in the condenser. This separates the condensation zone from the foreign gas collection chamber, creating a somewhat calmer zone that is less turbulent than the condensation zone. In this calmer zone, any working steam still present can condense on the relatively cold condensation surface, and the foreign gas collects in the foreign gas collection chamber between the condensation surface and the partition wall. The partition wall therefore works in two ways. On the one hand, it creates a calm zone and on the other hand, it acts as an insulation, so that no unwanted heat loss occurs on the cold surface, i.e. the condensation surface.

The accumulated foreign gas is then discharged through the foreign gas discharge device coupled to the foreign gas collection chamber, depending on the implementation, directly to the outside or into the gas trap according to the first aspect of the present invention.

The gas trap and the external gas collection chamber in the condenser can be used together. However, both aspects can also be used separately to achieve a significant efficiency improvement based on the advantages described above.

Fig. 1A

eine schematische Ansicht einer Wärmepumpe mit einer verschränkten Verdampfer/Kondensierer-Anordnung;

Fig. 1B

eine Wärmepumpe mit einer Gasfalle gemäß einem Ausführungsbeispiel der vorliegenden Erfindung bezüglich des ersten Aspekts;

Fig. 2A

eine Darstellung des Gehäuses der Gasfalle gemäß einer Implementierung mit indirektem Kontakt;

Fig. 2B

eine alternative Implementierung der Gasfalle mit direktem Kontakt und schräger Anordnung;

Fig. 3

eine alternative Implementierung der Gasfalle mit maximal turbulenter senkrechter Anordnung und direktem Kontakt;

Fig. 4

eine schematische Darstellung eines Systems mit zwei Wärmepumpenstufen (Dosen) in Verbindung mit einer Gasfalle;

Fig. 5

eine Schnittdarstellung einer Wärmepumpe mit einem Verdampferboden und einem Kondensatorboden gemäß dem Ausführungsbeispiel von Fig. 1;

Fig. 6

eine perspektivische Darstellung eines Verflüssigers, wie er in der WO 2014072239 A1 gezeigt ist;

Fig. 7

eine Darstellung der Flüssigkeitsverteilerplatte einerseits und der Dampfeinlasszone mit Dampfeinlassspalt andererseits aus der WO 2014072239 A1 ;

Fig. 8a

eine schematische Darstellung einer bekannten Wärmepumpe zum Verdampfen von Wasser;

Fig. 8b

eine Tabelle zur Veranschaulichung von Drücken und Verdampfungstemperaturen von Wasser als Arbeitsflüssigkeit;

Fig. 9

eine schematische Darstellung einer Wärmepumpe mit einem Fremdgassammelraum im Kondensierer gemäß einem Ausführungsbeispiel bezüglich des zweiten Aspekts der vorliegenden Erfindung;

Fig. 10

einen Querschnitt durch eine Wärmepumpe mit verschränkter Verdampfer/Kondensierer-Anordnung;

Fig. 11

eine Fig. 10 ähnliche Darstellung zur Erläuterung des Funktionsprinzips;

Fig. 12

eine Querschnittsdarstellung einer Wärmepumpe mit verschränkter Verdampfer/Kondensierer-Anordnung und einer kegelstumpfförmigen Trennwand.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are explained in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. They show:

Fig. 1A

a schematic view of a heat pump with an interleaved evaporator/condenser arrangement;

Fig. 1B

a heat pump with a gas trap according to an embodiment of the present invention relating to the first aspect;

Fig. 2A

a representation of the gas trap housing according to an indirect contact implementation;

Fig. 2B

an alternative implementation of the gas trap with direct contact and oblique arrangement;

Fig. 3

an alternative implementation of the gas trap with maximally turbulent vertical arrangement and direct contact;

Fig. 4

a schematic representation of a system with two heat pump stages (cans) in conjunction with a gas trap;

Fig. 5

a sectional view of a heat pump with an evaporator base and a condenser base according to the embodiment of Fig. 1 ;

Fig. 6

a perspective view of a condenser as used in the WO 2014072239 A1 is shown;

Fig. 7

a representation of the liquid distribution plate on the one hand and the steam inlet zone with steam inlet gap on the other hand from the WO 2014072239 A1 ;

Fig. 8a

a schematic representation of a known heat pump for evaporating water;

Fig. 8b

a table illustrating pressures and evaporation temperatures of water as a working fluid;

Fig. 9

a schematic representation of a heat pump with a foreign gas collection chamber in the condenser according to an embodiment relating to the second aspect of the present invention;

Fig. 10

a cross-section through a heat pump with an interleaved evaporator/condenser arrangement;

Fig. 11

one Fig. 10 similar representation to explain the functional principle;

Fig. 12

a cross-sectional view of a heat pump with an interleaved evaporator/condenser arrangement and a truncated cone-shaped partition wall.

Fig. 1A shows a heat pump 100 with an evaporator for evaporating working fluid in an evaporator chamber 102. The heat pump further comprises a condenser for condensing evaporated working fluid in a condenser chamber 104, which is delimited by a condenser base 106. As shown in Fig. 1A As shown, which can be viewed as a sectional view or as a side view, the evaporator chamber 102 is at least partially surrounded by the condenser chamber 104. Furthermore, the evaporator chamber 102 is separated from the condenser chamber 104 by the condenser base 106. Furthermore, the condenser base is connected to an evaporator base 108 to define the evaporator chamber 102. In one implementation, a compressor 110 is provided above the evaporator chamber 102 or elsewhere, which in Fig. 1A is not described in more detail, but is in principle designed to compress evaporated working fluid and to convey it as compressed vapor 112 into the condenser chamber 104. The condenser chamber is further delimited to the outside by a condenser wall 114. The condenser wall 114, like the condenser base 106, is also attached to the evaporator base 108. In particular, the dimensioning of the condenser base 106 in the area that forms the interface to the evaporator base 108 is such that the condenser base in the Fig. 1A shown embodiment is completely surrounded by the condenser chamber wall 114. This means that the condenser chamber, as shown in Fig. 1A shown, extends to the evaporator bottom, and that the evaporator space simultaneously extends very far upwards, typically almost through almost the entire condenser space 104.

This "interlocking" or interlocking arrangement of condenser and evaporator, which is characterized by the fact that the condenser base is connected to the evaporator base, delivers a particularly high heat pump efficiency and therefore allows for a particularly compact heat pump design. In terms of size, the heat pump, for example, in a cylindrical shape, is dimensioned such that the condenser wall 114 represents a cylinder with a diameter between 30 and 90 cm and a height between 40 and 100 cm. However, the dimensioning can be selected depending on the required performance class of the heat pump, but preferably in the dimensions mentioned. This results in a very compact design that is also simple and inexpensive to manufacture because the number of interfaces, particularly for the evaporator chamber, which is almost under vacuum, can be easily reduced if the evaporator base is designed according to preferred embodiments of the present invention to encompass all liquid inlet and outlet lines, thus eliminating the need for liquid inlet and outlet lines from the side or top.

Furthermore, it should be noted that the operating direction of the heat pump is as shown in Fig. 1A shown. This means that during operation the evaporator base defines the lower section of the heat pump, apart from connecting lines to other heat pumps or to corresponding pumping units. This means that during operation the vapor generated in the evaporator chamber rises and is diverted by the motor and fed from top to bottom into the condenser chamber, and that the condenser liquid is fed from bottom to top, is then fed from top to bottom into the condenser chamber and then flows in the condenser chamber from top to bottom, such as by individual droplets or by small liquid streams, to react with the preferably transversely fed compressed vapor for the purpose of condensation.

This "interlocked" arrangement, in which the evaporator is located almost entirely or even completely within the condenser, enables a very efficient heat pump design with optimal space utilization. Since the condenser chamber extends to the evaporator base, the condenser chamber is located within the entire "height" of the heat pump, or at least within a significant portion of it. At the same time, however, the evaporator chamber is also as large as possible because it also extends almost the entire height of the heat pump. This interlocked arrangement, in contrast to an arrangement in which the evaporator is located below the condenser, ensures optimal use of space. This enables particularly efficient operation of the heat pump and, on the other hand, a particularly space-saving and compact design, because both the evaporator and the condenser extend across the entire height. This does reduce the "thickness" of both the evaporator chamber and the condenser chamber. However, it was found that reducing the "thickness" of the evaporator chamber, which tapers inside the condenser, is not problematic because the main evaporation takes place in the lower area where the Evaporator chamber almost fills the entire available volume. On the other hand, reducing the thickness of the condenser chamber, especially in the lower area, i.e. where the evaporator chamber almost fills the entire available space, is not critical because the main condensation takes place at the top, i.e. where the evaporator chamber is already relatively thin, leaving sufficient space for the condenser chamber. The interlocking arrangement is therefore optimal in that each functional chamber is given the large volume where it needs the large volume. The evaporator chamber has the large volume at the bottom, while the condenser chamber has the large volume at the top. Nevertheless, the corresponding small volume that remains for the respective functional chamber where the other functional chamber has the large volume, also contributes to an increase in efficiency compared to a heat pump in which the two functional elements are arranged one above the other, as is the case, for example, in the WO 2014072239 A1 is the case.

In preferred embodiments, the compressor is arranged at the top of the condenser chamber in such a way that the compressed vapor is deflected by the compressor on the one hand and simultaneously fed into an edge gap of the condenser chamber. This achieves particularly efficient condensation because a crossflow direction of the vapor to a descending condensing liquid is achieved. This crossflow condensation is particularly effective in the upper region, where the evaporator chamber is large, and no longer requires a particularly large area in the lower region, where the condenser chamber is small in favor of the evaporator chamber, to nevertheless allow condensation of vapor particles that have penetrated to this area.

An evaporator base, which is connected to the condenser base, is preferably designed to accommodate the condenser inlet and outlet, whereby certain feedthroughs for sensors can also be provided in the evaporator or condenser. This ensures that no feedthroughs for the condenser inlet and outlet are necessary through the evaporator, which is almost under vacuum. This makes the entire heat pump less prone to failure, because every feedthrough through the evaporator would represent an opportunity for a leak. For this purpose, the condenser base is provided with a respective recess at the points where the condenser inlets and outlets are located, so that no condenser inlets or outlets run in the evaporator chamber, which is defined by the condenser base.

The condenser chamber is defined by a condenser wall, which can also be attached to the evaporator base. The evaporator base thus provides an interface for both the condenser wall and the condenser base, and also houses all liquid supply lines for both the evaporator and the condenser.

In certain designs, the evaporator base is designed to have connection nozzles for the individual feeds, which have a cross-section that differs from the cross-section of the opening on the other side of the evaporator base. The shape of the individual connection nozzles is then configured such that the shape or cross-sectional shape changes over the length of the connection nozzle, but the pipe diameter, which plays a role in the flow velocity, remains almost the same within a tolerance of ± 10%. This prevents water flowing through the connection nozzle from starting to cavitate. Due to the favorable flow conditions achieved by the shape of the connection nozzles, it is ensured that the corresponding pipes/lines can be made as short as possible, which in turn contributes to a compact design of the entire heat pump.

In a special implementation of the evaporator base, the condenser inlet is divided into two or more separate streams, almost like a "glass," making it possible to feed the condenser liquid into the condenser at two or more points simultaneously at the top of the condenser. This creates a strong yet extremely uniform condenser flow from top to bottom, enabling highly efficient condensation of the vapor, which is also introduced into the condenser from the top.

Another smaller sized supply in the evaporator base for condenser water can also be provided to connect a hose that supplies cooling liquid to the compressor motor of the heat pump, whereby not the cold liquid supplied to the evaporator is used for cooling, but the warmer liquid supplied to the condenser, which is still cool enough to cool the heat pump motor in typical operating situations.

The evaporator base is characterized by its combined functionality. On the one hand, it ensures that no condenser supply lines have to be routed through the evaporator, which is under very low pressure. On the other hand, it represents an interface to the outside, which preferably has a circular shape, since a circular shape leaves as much evaporator surface as possible. All supply and discharge lines lead through one evaporator base and from there into either the evaporator chamber or the condenser chamber. In particular, manufacturing the evaporator base from plastic injection molding is particularly advantageous because the advantageous, relatively complex shapes of the inlet/outlet nozzles can be easily and inexpensively implemented using plastic injection molding. On the other hand, due to the design of the evaporator base as an easily accessible workpiece, it is easily possible to manufacture the evaporator base with sufficient structural stability so that it can easily withstand the low evaporator pressure.

In the present application, identical reference symbols refer to identical or equivalent elements, whereby not all reference symbols are shown again in all drawings if they are repeated.

Fig. 1B shows a heat pump with a gas trap according to the first aspect of the present invention in a preferred embodiment, which may generally have an interleaved arrangement of evaporator and condenser or any other arrangement between the evaporator and the condenser.

In particular, the heat pump generally comprises an evaporator 300 coupled to a compressor 302 for sucking in, compressing, and thus heating cold working steam via a steam line 304. The heated and compressed working steam is discharged to a condenser 306. The evaporator 300 is coupled to a region to be cooled 308 via an evaporator inlet line 310 and an evaporator outlet line 312, in which a pump 314 is typically provided. Furthermore, a region to be heated 318 is provided, which is coupled to the condenser 306 via a condenser inlet line 320 and a condenser outlet line 322. The condenser 306 is configured to condense heated working steam in the condenser inlet channel 305.

Furthermore, a gas trap is provided, which is coupled to the condenser 306 by an external gas supply 325. The gas trap comprises, in particular, a housing 330 with an external gas supply inlet 332 and, if necessary, further external gas supply inlets 334, 336. Furthermore, the housing 330 comprises a working fluid supply line 338 and a working fluid discharge line 340. The heat pump further comprises a pump 342 for pumping gas out of the housing 330. In particular, the working fluid supply line 338, the working fluid discharge line 340 and the housing are designed and arranged such that, during operation, a working fluid flow 344 takes place from the working fluid supply line 338 to the working fluid discharge line 340 in the housing 330.

The working fluid supply line 338 is further coupled to the heat pump in such a way that, during operation, the heat pump is supplied with working fluid that is colder than the working vapor to be condensed in the condenser, and which is preferably even colder than the working fluid entering or leaving the condenser. For this purpose, working fluid is preferably taken from the evaporator drain line at a branch point 350, since this working fluid is the coldest working fluid in the system. The branch point 350 is located downstream of the pump 314 (in the direction of flow), so that no separate pump is required for the gas trap. Furthermore, it is preferred to couple the return from the gas trap, i.e., the working fluid drain 340, to a branch point 352 of the drain line, which is located upstream of the pump 314.

Depending on the implementation, the working fluid flow through the gas trap, i.e. the working fluid flow, represents a volume that is less than 1% of the main flow handled by the pump 314, and preferably even in the order of 0.5 to 2 ‰ of the main flow flowing from the evaporator via the evaporator outlet 312 into the region 308 to be cooled or a heat exchanger to which the region to be cooled can be connected.

Although it is Fig. 1B While it is shown that the working fluid flow originates from a liquid in the heat pump system, this is not the case in all embodiments. Alternatively or additionally, the flow can also be provided by an external circuit, i.e. an external cooling liquid. This can flow through the gas trap and be discharged, which is not a problem with water anyway. If, however, a circuit is used, the liquid runs at the outlet of the gas trap into a cooling area where the liquid is cooled. Here, cooling can be used, for example, using a Peltier element, so that the liquid entering the gas trap is colder than the liquid leaving the gas trap.

As it is in Fig. 1B As shown, a mixture of working steam and foreign gases passes from the condenser 306 via the foreign gas supply 325 into the housing 330 of the Gas trap. There, condensation of the working vapor in the gas mixture in the cold working fluid takes place, as indicated at 355. At the same time, however, foreign gas cannot be removed by condensation; instead, the foreign gas accumulates in the gas trap, as shown at 357. To create space for the accumulated foreign gas, the housing includes a collection chamber 358, which is arranged, for example, at the top.

Due to the pressure differences between the pressure in the condenser 306 and the gas trap, which, due to the low temperature of the working fluid, has a pressure on the order of magnitude of the evaporator, a flow automatically occurs from the condenser 306 through the external gas inlet 325 into the gas trap housing 330. The water vapor in the mixture of external gas and water vapor that enters the housing at the external gas inlets 332, 334, 336 tends to flow toward the coldest point. The coldest point is where the working fluid enters the housing, i.e., at the working fluid inlet or working fluid supply line 338. Thus, a water vapor flow from bottom to top occurs in the housing 330. This water vapor flow entrains the foreign gas atoms, which then, as indicated at 357, accumulate at the top of the gas trap because they cannot condense with the working fluid. The gas trap thus results in a somewhat automatic flow from the condenser into the housing, without the need for a pump. The foreign gas then flows from bottom to top in the gas trap, accumulating in the upper region of the housing 330, from where it can be pumped out by the pump 342.

As it is in Fig. 1B As shown, it is preferred to couple the working fluid supply line 338 to a pump outlet of pump 314, i.e., at branching point 350. Depending on the implementation, however, any other relatively cool fluid can be used, for example, at the evaporator return, i.e., in line 310, where the temperature level is still lower than in the condenser return 320, for example. However, the coldest fluid in the system provides the greatest efficiency for the gas trap. The arrangement of the working fluid inlet 338, which is coupled to branching point 350 after pump 314, means that no separate pump is required for the working fluid supply to the gas trap. However, if a pump is provided that "serves" the gas trap alone or as an additional function, the working fluid supply line 338 can also be coupled to another point in the system to direct a specific flow of working fluid into the gas trap. The working fluid could even be after a heat exchanger, as it is referred to, for example, in Fig. 4 shown, i.e., on the "customer side." However, this approach is not preferred, given that the system should have as little customer influence as possible, but it is fundamentally possible.

As it is in Fig. 1B As shown, the pump 342 is configured to pump gas out of the housing 330. For this purpose, the pump 342 is coupled to the collection chamber 358 via a suction line 371. On the output side, the pump has a discharge line 372 configured to discharge the extracted mixture of enriched foreign gas and residual water vapor. Depending on the implementation, the line 372 can simply be open to the environment or lead into a container where the remaining water vapor can condense to ultimately be disposed of or reintroduced into the system.

The pump 342 is controlled by a controller 373. The pump can be controlled based on a pressure difference or an absolute pressure, based on a temperature difference or an absolute temperature, or based on absolute time control or time interval control. One possible control is, for example, via a pressure P _trap 374 prevailing in the gas trap. Alternative control is via the inlet temperature T _in 375 at the working fluid supply line 338 or via an outlet temperature T _out 376. In particular, the outlet temperature T _out 376 at the working fluid outlet 340 is a measure of how much water vapor from the external gas supply 325 has condensed into the working fluid. At the same time, the pressure in the gas trap P _trap 374 is a measure of how much external gas has already accumulated. As the enriched foreign gas increases, the pressure in the housing 330 rises. When a certain pressure is exceeded, for example, the controller 373 can be activated to turn on the pump 342 until the pressure returns to the desired low range. The pump can then be turned off again.

An alternative control variable for the pump is, for example, the difference between T _in 375 and T _out 376. If, for example, the difference between these two values turns out to be smaller than a minimum difference, this means that hardly any more water vapor is condensing due to the increased pressure in the gas trap. Therefore, it is advisable to switch on pump 342 until a difference above a certain threshold. Then the pump is switched off again.

Possible measured variables include pressure, temperature, e.g., at the condensation point, a temperature difference between the water supply and the condensation point, a driving pressure increase for the entire condensation process, etc. As shown, however, the simplest option is control via a temperature difference or a time interval, for which no sensors are required. This is easily possible in the present embodiment because the gas trap creates a very efficient foreign gas enrichment, and therefore problems related to excessive extraction of working steam from the system are eliminated when the pump is not operated continuously.

Fig. 2A , Fig. 2B and Fig. 3 show different implementations of the gas trap. Fig. 2A shows a semi-open variant of the gas trap. A pipe 390, preferably made of metal, is arranged in the gas trap and coupled to the working fluid inlet 338. The working fluid then flows down the pipe to the working fluid outlet 340. The working fluid vapor, which is introduced into the gas trap through the inlet 332, no longer condenses directly in the working fluid, but rather on the (cold) surface of the pipe 390. The end of the pipe is arranged in a working fluid level 391, into which the water condensed on the pipe surface also flows down along the pipe.

Fig. 2A shows a half-open gas trap with condensation on a cold surface, namely the surface of object 390.

Fig. 2B shows another variant with more laminar flow. Here, the gas trap is arranged at an angle, or rather, the housing 330 is designed at an angle, so that the water flows downwards from the inlet line 338 to the outlet line 340 relatively calmly, i.e., with little turbulent flow and more laminar. The vapor supplied through the inlet line 332 condenses with the laminar flow, while foreign gas components 357 collect in the foreign gas enrichment chamber 358. Again, an open system is shown, in which condensation takes place directly in the cold liquid, but now with more laminar flow.

Fig. 3 shows another variant with an open design. In particular, a very turbulent flow takes place, namely directly and essentially vertically from the top from the inlet 338 downwards to the outlet 340. Furthermore, in Fig. 3 It is shown that the outlet 340 is designed in the form of a siphon, for example, to ensure that a liquid level 391 is maintained at the bottom of the housing. This ensures that the working medium vapor supplied through the inlet 332 cannot run directly into the evaporator outlet or into the cold flow from which the working medium inlet 338 is branched off, since then the foreign gas would not be separated but would be directly reintroduced into the system on the evaporator side.

To improve condensation, it is particularly important in the Fig. 3 In the embodiment shown, it is useful to fill the housing 330 with turbulence generators so that the flow of the working fluid from the inlet 338 to the outlet 340 is as turbulent as possible.

While Fig. 2B , Fig. 3 and also Fig. 1B open variants, where condensation takes place directly in the cold liquid, shows Fig. 2A a variant in which the condensation on a cold surface of a switching element 390, such as the one shown in Fig. 2A described tube, which has a cold surface because the cold working fluid flows from the inlet 338 to the outlet 340 inside the switching element. Depending on the implementation, however, the cooling can also be achieved by other variants, i.e. by any other measure using internal liquids/vapors or external cooling measures in order to have an efficient gas trap in the heat pump, which is coupled to the condenser 306 via the external gas supply line 325.

Preferably, the housing 330 is elongated, specifically as a tube that has a diameter of 50 mm or larger at the top in the foreign gas enrichment chamber 328 and a diameter of 25 mm or larger at the bottom, i.e., in the condensation region. Furthermore, it is preferred that the condensation region or flow region, i.e., the difference between the inlet 338 and the outlet 340 in terms of vertical height, be at least 20 cm long. Furthermore, it is preferred that there is a flow, i.e., that the gas trap has at least a vertical portion, although it can be arranged at an angle. A completely horizontal gas trap, on the other hand, is not preferred, but is possible as long as there is a working fluid flow from the working fluid inlet to the working fluid outlet in the housing during operation.

Fig. 4 shows an implementation of a heat pump with two stages. The first stage is formed by the evaporator 300, the compressor 302, and the condenser 306. The second stage is formed by an evaporator 500, a compressor 502, and a condenser 506. The evaporator 500 is connected to the compressor 502 via a vapor intake line 504, and the compressor 502 is connected to the condenser 506 via a compressed vapor line, designated 505. The system comprising the two (or more) stages includes an outlet 522 and an inlet 520. The outlet 522 and the inlet 520 are connected to a heat exchanger 598, which can be coupled to a region to be heated. Typically this takes place on the customer side and the area to be heated is a heat sink, such as an exhaust air device in the example of a cooling application or a heating device in the example of a heating device.

In addition, the inlet 310 into the system 300 and the outlet 312 from the system 300 are also coupled to a heat exchanger 398, which in turn can typically be coupled by the customer to an area 308 to be cooled. In the example of a cooling application for the heat pump, the area to be cooled is a room to be cooled, such as a computer room, a process room, etc. In the example of a heating application for the heat pump, the area to be cooled would be, for example, an environmental area, e.g., air in the case of an air source heat pump, ground in the case of a heat pump with ground collectors, or a groundwater/seawater/brine area from which heat is to be extracted for heating purposes.

The coupling between the two heat pump stages can vary depending on the implementation. If the coupling is such that one stage is a "cold" stage or "cold can," the second stage is the "warm" stage or "warm can." This designation stems from the fact that the temperatures in the respective elements in the first stage are colder than in the second stage when both stages are in operation.

A particularly advantageous feature of the present invention is the fact that the condensers of the second and any further stages can all be connected to one and the same gas trap or to one and the same gas trap housing 330. Fig. 4 shown that the external gas supply line 325 of the first condenser 306 is coupled to the housing 330. In addition, a further The external gas supply line 525 from the second condenser 506 is coupled to the inlet 334. It is preferable to connect the cold can or the condenser of the cold can, e.g., the first stage, i.e., the condenser 306, further up in the gas trap housing 330 than the condenser of the second stage, i.e., the warm can. This ensures that the longest possible distance remains in the gas trap for condensation and external gas enrichment where the greatest external gas problems can occur. The working steam mixed with foreign gas can flow from the inlet 334 past the working fluid flow from the inlet 338 to the outlet 340 for a longer time than the flow of working steam and foreign gas from the foreign gas supply line 325. Depending on the implementation, however, all foreign gas supply lines can also be connected at the very bottom, i.e. via the single inlet 334, if the housing 330 of the gas trap allows sufficient space. In addition, Fig. 4 shown that the working fluid for the gas trap is tapped at the coldest point of the entire system consisting of two heat pump stages, namely at the outlet 312 of the evaporator 300 of the first stage, which is coupled to the heat exchanger 398. Although in Fig. 4 not shown, typically between branch 352 and branch 350 the pump 314 of Fig. 1B However, alternative designs can also be selected.

Furthermore, it should be noted that the branching of working fluid into the gas trap is less than or equal to 1% of the main flow, i.e. of the total flow from the evaporator 1 300 to the heat exchanger 398, and is preferably even less than or equal to 1 ‰.

The same applies to the branching of steam from the condenser via supply line 325 or 525. Here, the cross-section of the line from the condenser into the housing 330 is typically designed such that a maximum of 1% of the main gas flow is branched into the condenser, or preferably even less than or equal to 1% of the gas flow is branched into the condenser. However, since the entire control takes place automatically based on the pressure difference from the respective condenser into the gas trap, the precise dimensioning is not essential for functionality.

Fig. 6 shows a condenser, where the condenser is Fig. 6 a steam introduction zone 102 which extends completely around the condensation zone 100. In particular, Fig. 6 a part of a condenser is shown, which has a condenser base 200. A condenser housing section 202 is arranged on the condenser base, which, due to the representation in Fig. 6 is drawn transparent, which, however, does not necessarily have to be transparent in nature, but can be made of plastic, die-cast aluminum or something similar. The lateral housing part 202 rests on a sealing rubber 201 in order to achieve a good seal with the base 200. Furthermore, the condenser comprises a liquid outlet 203 and a liquid inlet 204 as well as a vapor inlet 205 arranged centrally in the condenser, which extends from bottom to top in Fig. 6 rejuvenated. It should be noted that Fig. 6 represents the actual desired installation direction of a heat pump and a condenser of this heat pump, whereby in this installation direction in Fig. 6 The evaporator of a heat pump is arranged below the condenser. The condensation zone 100 is delimited to the outside by a basket-like boundary element 207, which, like the outer housing part 202, is drawn transparent and is normally basket-shaped.

Furthermore, a grid 209 is arranged, which is designed to hold filling bodies which are in Fig. 6 are not shown. As it is Fig. 6 As can be seen, the basket 207 extends downward only to a certain point. The basket 207 is designed to be vapor-permeable to hold packing elements, such as so-called Pall rings. These packing elements are introduced into the condensation zone, specifically only within the basket 207, but not into the vapor introduction zone 102. However, the packing elements are also filled outside the basket 207 to such a high level that the height of the packing elements extends either to the lower limit of the basket 207 or slightly above it.

The condenser of Fig. 6 comprises a working fluid feeder, which is particularly characterized by the working fluid feed 204, which, as shown in Fig. 6 As shown, it is arranged wound around the steam supply in the form of an ascending coil, formed by a liquid transport region 210 and a liquid distribution element 212, which is preferably designed as a perforated plate. In particular, the working fluid supply is thus designed to supply the working fluid into the condensation zone.

In addition, a steam feeder is also provided, which, as it is in Fig. 6 shown, preferably consists of the funnel-shaped tapered feed area 205 and the upper steam guide area 213. In the steam line area 213, a wheel of a radial compressor is preferably used and the radial compression leads to steam being sucked from bottom to top through the feed 205 and then, due to the radial compression by the radial wheel, is deflected 90 degrees outwards, so to speak, from a flow from bottom to top to a flow from the middle to the outside in Fig. 6 regarding element 213.

In Fig. 6 Not shown is a further deflector, which deflects the steam already deflected outward by another 90 degrees, in order to then direct it from above into gap 215, which represents the beginning of the steam introduction zone, which extends laterally around the condensation zone. The steam feeder is therefore preferably annular and provided with an annular gap for feeding the steam to be condensed, with the working fluid feed being formed within the annular gap.

For illustration purposes, Fig. 7 referred to. Fig. 7 shows a view of the "lid area" of the condenser of Fig. 6 from below. In particular, the perforated plate 212 is shown schematically from below, which acts as a liquid distribution element. The steam inlet gap 215 is shown schematically, and it results from Fig. 7 that the steam inlet gap is only annular, such that no steam to be condensed is fed into the condensation zone directly from above or below, but only laterally. Thus, only liquid flows through the holes of the distributor plate 212, but not steam. The steam is only "sucked" into the condensation zone laterally, due to the liquid that has passed through the perforated plate 212. The liquid distributor plate can be made of metal, plastic, or a similar material and can be designed with different hole patterns. Furthermore, as described in Fig. 6 As shown, it is preferable to provide a lateral boundary for liquid flowing from the element 210, this lateral boundary being designated 217. This ensures that liquid which already emerges from the element 210 with a swirl due to the curved feed 204 and is distributed from the inside to the outside on the liquid distributor does not splash over the edge into the steam introduction zone, unless the liquid has already dripped through the holes in the liquid distributor plate and condensed with steam.

Fig. 5 shows a complete heat pump in sectional view, which includes both the evaporator base 108 and the condenser base 106. As shown in Fig. 5 or also in Fig. 1 As shown, the condenser base 106 has a tapered cross-section from an inlet for the working fluid to be evaporated to a suction opening 115, which is coupled to the compressor or motor 110, where the preferably used radial wheel of the motor extracts the steam generated in the evaporator chamber 102.

Fig. 5 shows a cross-section through the entire heat pump. In particular, a droplet separator 404 is arranged within the condenser base. This droplet separator comprises individual blades 405. These blades are inserted into corresponding grooves 406 in order to keep the droplet separator in place. Fig. 5 are shown. These grooves are arranged in the condenser base in an area directed towards the evaporator base, in the inside of the evaporator base. In addition, the condenser base further has various guide features, which can be designed as rods or tongues, to hold hoses that are provided for condenser water guidance, for example, which are thus plugged onto corresponding sections and couple the feed points of the condenser water supply. This condenser water supply 402 can, depending on the implementation, be designed as shown in the Fig. 6 and 7 shown at reference numerals 102, 207 to 250. Furthermore, the condenser preferably has a condenser fluid distribution arrangement having two or more feed points. A first feed point is therefore connected to a first section of a condenser inlet. A second feed point is connected to a second section of the condenser inlet. If more feed points are present for the condenser fluid distribution device, the condenser inlet will be divided into further sections.

The upper part of the heat pump from Fig. 5 can therefore be used in the same way as the upper area in Fig. 6 be designed in such a way that the condenser water supply is via the perforated plate of Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 takes place, so that downward trickling condenser water 408 is obtained, into which the working steam 112 is preferably introduced laterally, so that the cross-flow condensation, which allows a particularly high efficiency, can be achieved. As is also the case in Fig. 6 As shown, the condensation zone can be provided with a purely optional filling, in which the edge 207, which is also designated 409, remains free of filling bodies or similar things, in such a way that the working steam 112 can penetrate not only from the top but also from the bottom and laterally into the condensation zone. The imaginary boundary line 410 is intended to represent the Fig. 5 illustrate. In the Fig. 5 However, in the embodiment shown, the entire area of the condenser is formed with its own condenser base 200, which is arranged above an evaporator base.

The following refers to Fig. 9 A heat pump according to the second aspect is described, which can be used separately from the first aspect described so far or in addition to the first aspect. The heat pump according to the second aspect comprises a condenser 306, which can be designed in the same way as the condenser described above for condensing heated or compressed working steam, which is fed to the condenser 306 via the line 305 for heated working steam. However, according to the second aspect, the condenser 306 now comprises an external gas collection chamber 900 arranged in the condenser 306. The external gas collection chamber comprises a condensation surface 901a, 901b, which, during operation, is colder than a temperature of the working steam to be condensed. Furthermore, the external gas collection chamber 900 comprises a partition wall 902 arranged between the condensation surface 901a, 901b and a condensation zone 904 in the condenser 306. In addition, a foreign gas discharge device 906 is provided, which is coupled to the foreign gas collection chamber 900, for example, via the foreign gas supply line 325, in order to discharge foreign gas from the foreign gas collection chamber 900. The foreign gas discharge device 906 comprises, for example, a combination of a pump, such as the pump 342, an intake line 371 and an exhaust line 372, as shown in Fig. 1B described. Then the foreign gas collection chamber would be sucked directly out.

Alternatively, the foreign gas discharge device 906 is designed as a gas trap, with the housing and the supply/discharge lines, as shown in Fig. 1B , Fig. 2A , Fig. 2B , Fig. 3 , Fig. 4 has been described. Then, the foreign gas removal device would also include the gas trap in addition to the pump 342, the intake line 371, and the discharge line 372. This would represent a sort of "indirect" foreign gas removal, in which already enriched foreign gas is first brought from the foreign gas collection chamber together with working steam into the gas trap, where the enrichment of foreign gas is further increased by further condensation of working steam until it is then sucked off by the pump. The combination of the first and second aspects of the present invention thus represents a sort of two-stage enrichment of foreign gas, i.e., a first enrichment in the foreign gas collection chamber 900 and a second enrichment in the foreign gas enrichment chamber 358 of the gas trap from Fig. 1B before the foreign gas is extracted. Alternatively, a single-stage foreign gas enrichment can also take place, namely either through the foreign gas collection chamber 900 of Fig. 9 , from which the gas is then extracted directly, i.e. without an intermediate gas trap with a gas trap housing 330, or, alternatively, by suction from the condenser 306 without foreign gas collection chamber 900, as shown in Fig. 1B for example, has been described.

However, due to the optimal foreign gas enrichment and the associated simplifications with regard to filling and disposal of extracted working steam, it is preferred to choose the two-stage variant, i.e. the combination of aspect 1 and aspect 2 of the present invention.

Fig. 10 shows a schematic arrangement of a heat pump with an interlaced design, as used for example in Fig. 1 and Fig. 5 In particular, the evaporator chamber 102 is arranged within the condenser chamber 104. The steam is supplied via a steam supply 1000 after being driven by a motor located in Fig. 10 not shown, has been compressed, is fed laterally, as shown at 112, into the condensation zone 904. In addition, a Fig. 10 In the embodiment shown, a roughly truncated cone-shaped partition wall 902 is shown in cross-section, which separates the condensation zone 904 from the condensation surface 106, which is formed by the condenser base, and from the further condensation surface 901b, which is formed by the water or condenser liquid supply 402. This results in a gap between the partition wall 902 on the one hand and the surface 106, which also corresponds to the condensation surface 901a of Fig. 9 corresponds, and the upper region 901b of the water supply 402 of the foreign gas collection chamber 900, which represents a calm zone compared to the conditions in the condensation zone 904.

The dividing wall 901a has a temperature on the side facing the condenser below the saturated steam temperature in the condenser. Furthermore, the dividing wall 901a has a temperature on the side facing the evaporator above the saturated steam temperature prevailing there. This ensures that the suction port or steam channel is dry and that no water droplets are present in the steam, especially when the compressor motor is activated. This prevents the impeller from being damaged by drops in the steam.

In particular, the steam supply continuously allows steam 112 to flow in, typically at a rate of at least 1 l of steam per second. The pressure of the steam is equal to or higher than the resulting saturated steam pressure of the condenser water supplied through the water supply 402. which also with 1002 in Fig. 10 . Typically, at least 0.1 l/s of condenser working fluid 1002 flows in here. The condenser fluid preferably flows or falls downwards as turbulently as possible, and the supplied water vapor 112 already largely condenses into the moving water. The water vapor thus disappears into the water, leaving only the foreign gas. The partition wall 902 directs the condensed water and the inflowing water downward and simultaneously provides the calm zone through which the foreign gas collection chamber 900 is created. This zone forms beneath the partition wall 902. This is where the foreign gas enrichment takes place.

A functionality representation is in Fig. 11 given. Here, it is particularly shown that a small portion of the water vapor flows to the cold water vapor supply 901b to condense there. This region 901b of the water supply, in which the working fluid to be heated in the condenser, which may be water but does not necessarily have to be, is preferably the relatively cold spot in the condenser. This water vapor supply is also preferably made of metal, which has good thermal conductivity, so that the small amount of water vapor 1010 flowing upwards in the settled space, i.e., in the foreign gas collection space, "sees" a "cold surface." At the same time, however, it should be noted that the wall of the evaporator suction mouth, designated 901a, is also relatively cold. Although this wall is preferably made of plastic, which has a relatively poor thermal conductivity coefficient, due to its easier moldability, the evaporator space 102 is nevertheless almost the coldest area of the entire heat pump. Thus, the water vapor 1010, which typically enters the foreign gas collection chamber through a gap 1012, also sees a cold sink on the side wall 901a, which motivates the water vapor to condense. Through this water vapor flow, as indicated by the arrow 1010 in Fig. 11 As symbolized, foreign gas atoms are carried into the foreign gas collection chamber. The foreign gas is thus entrained and, because it cannot condense, accumulates throughout the settled zone.

When condensation ceases, the foreign gas content and thus the partial pressure are higher. At this point, or even when condensation decreases, the foreign gas removal system must remove the foreign gas, for example, using a connected vacuum pump that extracts it from the settled zone, i.e., from the foreign gas collection chamber. This extraction can be regulated, continuous, or controlled. Possible measured variables include pressure, temperature at the condensation point, a temperature difference between the water supply and the condensation point, a driving pressure increase for the entire condensation process to the water outlet temperature, etc. All of these variables can be used for control. However, it can also be easily controlled using a time interval control that switches the vacuum pump on for a specific period of time and then off again.

Fig. 12 shows a more detailed representation of a heat pump with a condenser having the partition wall, based on the Fig. 5 heat pump shown in cross-section. In particular, the partition wall 902 is again shown in cross-section, which separates the foreign gas collection chamber 900 from the condensation zone 408 or 904, thus creating a zone, namely the foreign gas collection chamber 900, in which a "calmed climate" prevails compared to the rest of the condensation zone, into which the water vapor flow 1010 enters, simultaneously carrying in the foreign gas present in the condensation zone. Furthermore, a hose 325 is provided as an extraction device. The extraction hose 325 is preferably arranged at the top of the foreign gas collection chamber, as indicated at 1020, where the hose end is arranged in the foreign gas collection chamber. The walls of the foreign gas collection chamber are formed by the condensation surface 901a on one side, by the water supply section 901b upwards, and by the partition wall 902 on the other side. The hose 325, i.e., the external gas discharge, is preferably led out through the evaporator base, but in such a way that the hose does not pass through the evaporator, in which a particularly low pressure prevails, but rather leads past it. Furthermore, the condenser is designed such that a certain level of condenser liquid is present. However, this level is designed in such a way that the partition wall 902 is separated from the level by the gap 1012 of Fig. 11 is removed so that the water vapor flow 1010 can enter the foreign gas collection chamber.

Preferably, the partition wall 902 is in the Fig. 9 to 12 In the embodiments shown, the working fluid or "water" supply 402 is sealed at the top, so that the working fluid or "water" supply 402 only supplies working fluid to the condensation zone 904, but not to the settled zone. In other embodiments, however, this seal does not need to be particularly tight. A loose seal is sufficient, which serves to allow the settled zone to develop. A settled zone in the foreign gas collection chamber compared to the condensation chamber is already created by the fact that less working fluid is supplied to the foreign gas collection chamber than to the condensation zone, so that the environment there is less turbulent than outside the partition wall. The water supply could thus be designed such that there is still some Water is added to achieve efficient condensation of water vapor, which, as schematically shown at 1010, flows into the foreign gas collection chamber, taking the foreign gas with it. However, the foreign gas collection chamber should be quiet enough that the foreign gas can accumulate there and is not forced out again against the flow 1010 under the partition wall and undesirably redistributed in the condenser.

As it is in Fig. 12 As further shown, the foreign gas discharge device 906 is designed to operate on the basis of corresponding control/regulating variables 1030 and to discharge enriched foreign gas from the foreign gas collection chamber 900 to the outside or into another gas trap, as indicated at 1040.

Claims (15)

1. Heat pump comprising following featrures:

   a compressor (110, 302), which is configurated to compress vaporized working fluid to deliver compressed working vapor;

   a condenser (306) comprising a condensation zone (904) wherein the condenser is configured to condense compressed working vaporin the condensation zone (904);

   a foreign gas collection space (900) arranged within the condenser (904), the foreign gas collection space (900) comprising following features:

   a condensation surface (901a, 901b) which during operation of the heat pump is colder than a temperature of the compressed working vapor and which surface is arranged within the condenser (306); and

   a partition wall (902) that is arranged between the condensation surface (901a. 901b) and the condensation zone (904) in the condensor (306); and

   a foreign gas discharge device (906) that is coupled to the foreign gas collection space (900) so as to discharge foreign gas from the foreign gas collection space (900).
2. Heat pump according to claim 1,
   further comprising an evaporator (300), wherein a channel (102) for the evaporated working vapor which leads from the evaporator (300) to the compressor (300), is arranged at least partly within the condenser (306) and comprises a channel wall representing at least a part (901)) of the condensation surface (901a, 901b).
3. Heat pump according to claim 1 or 2,
   wherein the condenser (306) comprises a liquid feed inlet (402) to direct working liquid, which is to be heated by means of condensation, into the condenser (306), the liquid feed inlet (402) comprising a wall (901b) which represents at least a part (901b) of the condensation surface (901a, 901b).
4. Heat pump according to claim 1,

   wherein a channel (102) for the evaporated working vapor is arranged within the condenser (306),

   wherein the partition wall (902) surrounds the channel (102) and is spaced apart fromthe channel (102), and

   where the condensation zone (904) is formed between the partition wall (902) and a condenser housing (114) of the condensor.
5. Heat pump according to claim 4,

   wherein the condenser (306) has a liquid feed inlet (402) to direct a working fluid to be heated by condensation into the condenser (306) wherein the liquid feed inlet (402) has a wall (901) which represents at least a part (901b) of the condensation surface (901a, 901b),

   where the liquid feed inlet (402) is configured to feed working liquid, which is to be heated by means of condensation, to the condenser (306) from the top within a feed area during operation of the heat pump, and

   where the compressor (302) is configured to feed compressed working vapor lateral of the feed area during operation of the heat pump.
6. Heat pump according to claim 1 or 2,
   wherein a liquid feed inlet (402)is configured in the condenser to feed working liquid, which is to be heated by means of condensation, to the condensation zone (904), the liquid feed inlet (402) being arranged such that between the partition wall (902) and the condensation surface (901a, 901b), less working liquid is fed to the foreign gas collection space (900) than to the condensation zone (904), or no working liquid is fed.
7. Heat pump according to any one of the preceding claims,
   where the foreign gas collection space (900) extends, within the condenser, from a bottom end to a top end, a foreign gas entrance (1020) of the foreign gas discharge device (906) being arranged closer to the upper end than to the lower end or being arranged directly at the upper end of the foreign gas collection space (900).
8. Heat pump according to any one of the preceding claims,
   where the partition wall (902) is arranged, in relation to the condensation surface (901a, 901b), such that a steadied zone, within which a directed flow (1010) comprising working vapor and foreign gas enters, forms within the foreign gas collection space (900), so that due to condensation of the compressed working vapor from the directed flow (1010) on the condensation surface (901a, 901b), foreign gas accumulation may occur within the foreign gas collection space (900).
9. Heat pump according to any one of the preceding claims,
   where the condensation surface (901a, 901b) is at least partly made of metal.
10. Heat pump according to claim 1,

    which further comprises an evaporator (300) connected to the compressor (302, 110) via a channel (102), the channel (102) extending from the bottom upwards, in a direction of operation oft he heat pump, within a condenser housing (114),

    a wall (901a) of the channel (102) representing at least part of the condensation surface (901a, 901b), the partition wall (902) being spaced apart from the wall (901a) of the channel (102) and being arranged around the same, and

    the condensation zone (904) being laterally demarcated by the partition wall (902), so that the foreign gas collection space (900) results which extends from the bottom upwards.
11. Heat pump according to claim 10,
    where the condenser (306) is configured and operated such that a liquid level forms at a base of the condenser (306) during operation oft he het pump, wherein a lower end of the partition wall (902) is arranged such that a gap (1012) results between the liquid level and the lower end, said gap being configured that a directed flow of compressed working vapor and foreign gas (1010) may enter into the foreign gas collection space (900) through said gap (1012).
12. Heat pump pump according to any one of the preceding claims,
    where the partition wall (902) is arranged such that compressed working vapor may better enter into the foreign gas collection space (900) at a lower end of the foreign gas collection space (900) than at an upper end thereof during operation of the heat pump, or that no compressed working vapor may enter into the foreign gas collection space (900) at the upper end of the foreign gas collection space (900).
13. Heat pump according to any one of claim 1 or 2,
    wherein the partition wall (902) is impenetrable to a working liquid to be heated and is configured to draw off a working liquid which is to be heated and is applied to the partition wall (902), and to form a steadied zone underneath the partition wall (902), said zone representing the foreign gas collection space (900), the condensation surface (901a, 901b) being arranged within the steadied zone.
14. Method of operating a heat pump comprising the following features: a compressor (110, 302), which is configurated to compress vaporized working fluid to deliver compressed working vapor; a condenser (306) comprising a condensation zone (904) wherein the condenser is configured to condense said compressed working vapor in the condensation zone (904); and a foreign gas collection space (900) arranged within the condenser (306), and a condensation surface (901a, 901b) that is arranged in the condenser (306), and a partition wall (902) that is arranged between the condensation surface (901a, 901b) and a condensation zone (904), said method comprising following steps:

    cooling the condensation surface (901a, 901b) so that the condensation surface (901a, 901b) be colder than a temperature of the compressed working vapor; and

    discharging foreign gas from the foreign gas collection space (900).
15. Method of producing a heat pump comprising the following features: a compressor (110, 302), which is configurated to compress vaporized working fluid to deliver compressed working vapor; a condenser (306) comprising a condensation zone (904) wherein the condenser is configured to condense the compressed working vapor in the condensation zone (904); and a foreign gas collection space (900) arranged within the condenser (306), and a foreign gas discharge device (906) which is coupled to the foreign gas collection space (900) so as to discharge foreign gas from the foreign gas collection space (900), said method comprising the following steps:

    Arranging, inside the condenser (306), a condensation surface (901a, 901b), which, during operation of the heat pump, is colder than a temperature of the compressed working vapor; and

    Arranging, inside the condenser (306), a partition wall (902) between the condensation surface (901a, 901b) and a condensation zone (904).