KR102814874B1 - Compander with cooling sturcture - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the present embodiments, the overall efficiency can be improved by recovering the leakage flow and using it for cooling, and various cooling modes can be provided in response to the heat generation characteristics.

Description

COMPANDER WITH COOLING STURCTURE

The present embodiments relate to a compander having a cooling structure.

Figure 1 is a drawing showing the configuration of a typical compander, in which a compressor (10) and an expander (20) are connected to both ends of the shaft of a motor (30) and are driven simultaneously by the torque of the motor (30).

The working fluid of such a compander can be, for example, carbon dioxide. However, if the working fluid leaks from the compressor (10) and expander (20) into the housing that accommodates the motor (30), power is lost, which reduces the efficiency of the entire system.

Meanwhile, it is necessary to release the heat generated from the motor (30) driving the compressor (10) and the expander (20), but since the compressor (10) and the expander (20) are respectively provided at both ends of the motor shaft, there is a problem that it is difficult to provide a separate cooling structure inside the compander housing. In addition, cooling the motor (30) using separate cold air requires additional power, which reduces the system efficiency.

In addition, a thrust bearing (40) is provided to support the high thrust generated from the compressor (10), and in order to prevent deterioration, it is also necessary to release the heat generated from the thrust bearing (40).

Meanwhile, it is necessary to release the heat generated from the motor (30) driving the compressor (10) and the expander (20) and the heat generated from the thrust bearing (40) for supporting the high thrust generated from the compressor (101). However, since the compressor (10) and the expander (20) are respectively provided at both ends of the motor shaft, there is a problem that it is difficult to provide a separate cooling structure inside the compander housing. In addition, cooling the motor (30) or the thrust bearing (40) using separate cold air requires additional power, which reduces the system efficiency and is therefore difficult to adopt.

The present embodiments have been devised against the background described above, and relate to a compander having a cooling structure capable of improving overall efficiency by recovering leakage flow and utilizing it for cooling, and providing various cooling modes in response to heat generation characteristics.

According to the present embodiments, a compander including a motor, a compressor and an expander coupled to one end and the other end of a motor shaft of the motor, a housing for accommodating the motor, and a thrust bearing for axially supporting the motor shaft can be provided, wherein the housing has a first port located on a compressor side, a second port located on one end side of the motor, a third port located on the other end side of the motor, and a fourth port located on the expander side, and further includes a heat exchanger, a first flow path connecting the first port and outside air, a second flow path connecting the first port and the heat exchanger, a third flow path connecting the second port and the heat exchanger, a fourth flow path connecting the second port and outside air, a first valve for opening and closing the first flow path, a second valve for connecting the second port with the heat exchanger or the outside air, a third valve for opening and closing the third port, and a fourth valve for opening and closing the fourth port.

According to the present embodiments, the overall efficiency can be improved by recovering the leakage flow and using it for cooling, and various cooling modes can be provided in response to the heat generation characteristics.

Figure 1 is a configuration diagram of a conventional compander.
Fig. 2 is a configuration diagram of a compander equipped with a cooling structure according to the present embodiments.
Figure 3 is a drawing showing the operating mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments.
Figure 4 is a drawing showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments.
Figure 5 is a drawing showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments.
Figure 6 is a drawing showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments.
Figure 7 is a drawing showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments.
Figure 8 is a drawing showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments.

Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to exemplary drawings. When adding reference numerals to components of each drawing, the same components may have the same numerals as much as possible even if they are shown in different drawings. In addition, when describing the present embodiments, if it is determined that a specific description of a related known configuration or function may obscure the gist of the technical idea of the present invention, the detailed description thereof may be omitted. When “includes,” “has,” “consists of,” etc. are used in this specification, other parts may be added unless “only” is used. When a component is expressed in the singular, it may include a case where the plural is included unless there is a special explicit description.

Additionally, in describing components of the present disclosure, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), etc. may be used. These terms are only intended to distinguish the components from other components, and the nature, order, sequence, or number of the components are not limited by the terms.

In a description of the positional relationship of components, when it is described that two or more components are "connected", "coupled" or "connected", it should be understood that the two or more components may be directly "connected", "coupled" or "connected", but the two or more components and another component may be further "interposed" to be "connected", "coupled" or "connected". Here, the other component may be included in one or more of the two or more components that are "connected", "coupled" or "connected" to each other.

In the description of the temporal flow relationship related to components, operation methods, or manufacturing methods, for example, when the temporal chronological relationship or the chronological flow relationship is described as "after", "following", "next to", or "before", it can also include cases where it is not continuous, as long as "immediately" or "directly" is not used.

Meanwhile, when a numerical value or its corresponding information (e.g., level, etc.) for a component is mentioned, even if there is no separate explicit description, the numerical value or its corresponding information may be interpreted as including an error range that may occur due to various factors (e.g., process factors, internal or external impact, noise, etc.).

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a conventional compander, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of a compander equipped with a cooling structure according to the present embodiments, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments, FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments, FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments, FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments, and FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the operation mode of the cooling structure according to the present embodiments.

A compander (100) having a cooling structure according to the present embodiments is a compander including a motor (103), a compressor (101) and an expander (102) coupled to one end and the other end of a motor shaft of the motor (103), a housing (105) accommodating the motor (103), and a thrust bearing (104) axially supporting the motor shaft, wherein the housing (105) is formed with a first port (111) located on the compressor (101) side, a second port (112) located on one end of the motor (103), a third port (113) located on the other end of the motor (103), and a fourth port (114) located on the expander (102) side, a heat exchanger (140), and a first flow path (121) connecting the first port (111) and outside air, and a first port (111) connecting the heat exchanger (140). It further includes a second duct (122), a third duct (123) connecting the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140), a fourth duct (124) connecting the second port (112) and outside air, a first valve (131) for opening and closing the first duct (121), a second valve (132) for connecting the second port (112) to the heat exchanger (140) or outside air, a third valve (133) for opening and closing the third port (113), and a fourth valve (134) for opening and closing the fourth port (114).

Referring to FIG. 2, a compander (100) having a cooling structure according to the embodiments includes a motor (103) and a housing that accommodates the motor (103), a compressor (101) and an expander (102) coupled to one end and the other end of a motor shaft of the motor (103), a thrust bearing (104) that axially supports the motor shaft, and a heat exchanger (140). The heat exchanger (140) can generate cold heat for cooling the motor (103) or the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104). It receives working fluid leaked from the compressor (101) and cools it by exchanging heat with an external heat source, such as air or water. The cooled working fluid is again supplied into the housing (105) and used to cool the motor (103) or the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104). To this end, a first port (111) to a fourth port (114) are formed in a housing (105) that accommodates a motor (103), and a first flow path (121) to a fourth flow path (124) and a first valve (131) to a fourth valve (134) are provided.

A first port (111) to a fourth port (114) are formed in the housing (105). The first port (111) is positioned adjacent to the compressor (101) in the housing (105), and the fourth port (114) is positioned adjacent to the expander (102) in the housing (105). Accordingly, leakage flow occurring in the compressor (101) can be guided to the first port (111), and leakage flow occurring in the expander (102) can be guided to the fourth port (114).

The second port (112) and the third port (113) are positioned adjacent to one end and the other end of the motor (103), respectively. As will be described in detail later, a fluid for cooling the motor (103) or the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104) can be supplied to the second port (112), and the fluid supplied to the second port (112) can cool the motor (103) or the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104) and then be discharged to the third port (113) and/or the fourth port (114). The third port (113) and the fourth port (114) are each provided with a third valve (133) and a fourth valve (134), and the third port (113) is opened and closed by the third valve (133) and the fourth port (114) is opened and closed by the fourth valve (134).

The first port (111) is connected to the outside air through the first flow path (121) and to the heat exchanger (140) through the second flow path (122). Therefore, the leakage flow generated in the compressor (101) can be discharged to the outside through the first port (111) or supplied to the heat exchanger (140). The first flow path (121) is provided with a first valve (131) for opening and closing the first flow path (121). The leakage flow generated in the compressor (101) can be discharged to the outside through the first port (111) when the first valve (131) is opened and can be supplied to the heat exchanger (140) when the first valve (131) is closed.

The second port (112) is connected to the heat exchanger (140) through the third flow path (123) and to the outside air through the fourth flow path (124). The second valve (132) is, for example, a three-way valve, and can connect the second port (112) to the heat exchanger (140) or to the outside air. The fluid supplied to and cooled by the heat exchanger (140) can be supplied to the second port (112) through the third flow path (123) to cool the motor (103) or the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104). Alternatively, as will be described in detail later, the leakage flow generated in the expander (102) can cool the thrust bearing (104) and the motor (103) and then be discharged to the outside through the second port (112) and the fourth flow path (124).

The compander (100) including the cooling structure according to the present embodiments can improve the efficiency of the entire system by recovering the leakage flow generated from the compressor (101) through the structure described in detail above, supplying it to the heat exchanger (140) through the first port (111) to cool it, and then supplying it back into the housing (105) to use it for cooling, or recovering the leakage flow generated from the expander (102) and using it for cooling. In addition, various cooling modes can be provided in response to the heat generation characteristics, which will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 8 below.

Referring to FIG. 3, according to one embodiment, the first valve (131) may be closed, the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) may be connected by the second valve (132), and the third valve (133) and the fourth valve (134) may be opened.

As the first valve (131) is closed, the leakage fluid generated in the compressor (101) is supplied to the heat exchanger (140) through the second path (122) and cooled. As the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) are connected by the second valve (132), the cooled fluid in the heat exchanger (140) is supplied into the housing (105) through the second port (112). Since both the third valve (133) and the fourth valve (134) are open, the cooling fluid supplied into the housing (105) cools the motor (103) and then is discharged to the outside through the third port (113), or cools the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104) and then is discharged to the outside through the fourth port (114). At this time, the leakage flow generated from the expander (102) can be discharged to the outside through the fourth port (114) together with the cooling fluid after cooling the thrust bearing (104). That is, through the operating mode illustrated in Fig. 3, both the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104) can be cooled using the leakage flow generated from the compressor (101).

Referring to FIG. 4, according to one embodiment, the first valve (131) may be closed, the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) may be connected by the second valve (132), the third valve (133) may be opened, and the fourth valve (134) may be closed.

As the first valve (131) is closed, the leakage flow generated in the compressor (101) is supplied to the heat exchanger (140) through the second path (122) and cooled. As the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) are connected by the second valve (132), the cooled fluid in the heat exchanger (140) is supplied into the housing (105) through the second port (112). Since the third valve (133) is open and the fourth valve (134) is closed, the cooling fluid supplied into the housing (105) cools the motor (103) and then is discharged to the outside through the third port (113). At this time, the leakage flow generated in the expander (102) can cool the thrust bearing (104) and then be discharged to the outside through the third port (113) together with the cooling fluid. That is, the motor (103) can be cooled by utilizing the leakage flow generated from the compressor (101) through the operation mode illustrated in FIG. 4, and the motor (103) can be cooled to a lower temperature compared to the operation mode illustrated in FIG. 3.

Referring to FIG. 5, according to one embodiment, the first valve (131) may be closed, the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) may be connected by the second valve (132), the third valve (133) may be closed, and the fourth valve (134) may be opened.

As the first valve (131) is closed, the leakage fluid generated in the compressor (101) is supplied to the heat exchanger (140) through the second path (122) and cooled. As the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) are connected by the second valve (132), the cooled fluid in the heat exchanger (140) is supplied into the housing (105) through the second port (112). Since the third valve (133) is closed but the fourth valve (134) is open, all of the cooling fluid supplied into the housing (105) cools the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104) and then is discharged to the outside through the fourth port (114). At this time, the leakage flow generated from the expander (102) can be discharged to the outside through the fourth port (114) together with the cooling fluid after cooling the thrust bearing (104). That is, through the operation mode illustrated in FIG. 4, the leakage flow generated from the compressor (101) can be used to cool both the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104), and compared to the operation mode illustrated in FIG. 3, the thrust bearing (104) can be cooled to a lower temperature.

Referring to FIG. 6, according to one embodiment, the first valve (131) may be closed, the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) may be connected by the second valve (132), and the third valve (133) and the fourth valve (134) may be closed.

As the first valve (131) is closed, the leakage fluid generated in the compressor (101) is supplied to the heat exchanger (140) through the second path (122) and cooled. As the second port (112) and the heat exchanger (140) are connected by the second valve (132), the cooled fluid in the heat exchanger (140) is supplied into the housing (105) through the second port (112). Since both the third valve (133) and the fourth valve (134) are closed, the cooling fluid supplied into the housing (105) cools the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104), and is not discharged to the outside through the third port (113) or the fourth port (114), but is discharged through the expander (102). That is, the fluid used for cooling the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104) moves to the expander outlet together with the air expanded in the expander (102), and no leakage flow occurs in the expander (102). That is, through the operation mode illustrated in FIG. 6, both the motor (103) and the thrust bearing (104) can be cooled using the leakage flow generated in the compressor (101), and the flow rate at the outlet of the expander (102) can be increased compared to the operation mode illustrated in FIG. 3.

Referring to FIG. 7, the first valve (131) can be opened, the second port (112) and the outside air can be connected by the second valve (132), the third valve (133) can be opened, and the fourth valve (134) can be closed.

As the first valve (131) is opened, the leakage flow generated in the compressor (101) is not supplied to the heat exchanger (140) but is discharged to the outside. However, the leakage flow generated in the expander (102) is discharged to the outside through the opened third port (113) after cooling the thrust bearing (104), or is discharged to the outside through the second port (112) and the fourth flow path (124) after cooling the motor (103). That is, through the operation mode illustrated in Fig. 7, both the thrust bearing (104) and the motor (103) can be cooled using the leakage flow generated in the expander (102).

Referring to FIG. 8, the first valve (131) can be opened, the second port (112) and the outside air can be connected by the second valve (132), and the third valve (133) and the fourth valve (134) can be closed.

As the first valve (131) is opened, the leakage flow generated from the compressor (101) is not supplied to the heat exchanger (140) but is discharged to the outside. However, the leakage flow generated from the expander (102) cools the thrust bearing (104) and the motor (103) and is then discharged to the outside through the second port (112) and the fourth flow path (124). That is, through the operation mode illustrated in Fig. 8, both the thrust bearing (104) and the motor (103) can be cooled using the leakage flow generated from the expander (102).

The operating modes illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 can be utilized when the heat generation of the motor (103) is low compared to the operating mode illustrated in FIG. 3. That is, when the temperature of the motor (103) is sufficiently low that it is inefficient to drive the heat exchanger (140) to cool the motor (103), the cooling of the motor (103) can be efficiently performed through the operating mode illustrated in FIGS. 7 or 8.

According to a compander having a cooling structure of this type, the overall efficiency can be improved by recovering the leakage flow and using it for cooling, and various cooling modes can be provided in response to the heat generation characteristics.

The above description is merely an example of the technical idea of the present disclosure, and those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains may make various modifications and variations without departing from the essential characteristics of the technical idea of the present disclosure. In addition, the present embodiments are not intended to limit the technical idea of the present disclosure but to explain it, and therefore the scope of the technical idea of the present disclosure is not limited by these embodiments. The protection scope of the present disclosure should be interpreted by the claims below, and all technical ideas within a scope equivalent thereto should be interpreted as being included in the scope of the rights of the present disclosure.

Claims (7)

A compander comprising a motor, a compressor and an expander coupled to one end and the other end of the motor shaft of the motor, a housing accommodating the motor, and a thrust bearing axially supporting the motor shaft,
In the above housing, a first port located on the compressor side, a second port located on one end side of the motor, a third port located on the other end side of the motor, and a fourth port located on the expander side are formed,
A compander having a cooling structure further comprising a heat exchanger, and a first passage connecting the first port and outside air, a second passage connecting the first port and the heat exchanger, a third passage connecting the second port and the heat exchanger, a fourth passage connecting the second port and outside air, a first valve for opening and closing the first passage, a second valve for connecting the second port with the heat exchanger or the outside air, a third valve for opening and closing the third port, and a fourth valve for opening and closing the fourth port. In paragraph 1,
A compander having a cooling structure, characterized in that the first valve is closed, the second port and the heat exchanger are connected by the second valve, and the third valve and the fourth valve are open. In paragraph 1,
A compander having a cooling structure, characterized in that the first valve is closed, the second port and the heat exchanger are connected by the second valve, the third valve is open, and the fourth valve is closed. In paragraph 1,
A compander having a cooling structure, characterized in that the first valve is closed, the second port and the heat exchanger are connected by the second valve, the third valve is closed, and the fourth valve is open. In paragraph 1,
A compander having a cooling structure, characterized in that the first valve is closed, the second port and the heat exchanger are connected by the second valve, and the third valve and the fourth valve are closed. In paragraph 1,
A compander having a cooling structure, characterized in that the first valve is open, the second port and outside air are connected by the second valve, the third valve is open, and the fourth valve is closed. In paragraph 1,
A compander having a cooling structure, characterized in that the first valve is open, the second port and outside air are connected by the second valve, and the third valve and the fourth valve are closed.