RO135278A0 - Air conditioning systems with decontamination by thermal treatment - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to air conditioning systems meant for breathing air with decontamination by thermal treatment, using a process in which successive air portions are compressed, maintained at a certain temperature for a period of time, then left to expand until reaching the pressure and temperature of use. According to the invention, the decontamination systems use this succession of operations which are performed in one or more calciners made by assembling various thermo-technical components: some compressors (2.1) and some expansion regulators (2.2) of various types, with a piston (2.3) or rotational ones, equipped with some one-way valves (2.15 and 2.25), or with valves with large passage cross-section, some electro-mechanical mechanisms (2.33) which enable the regulation of flows, pressures and temperatures of the circulated air, some resistive heating elements and heat exchangers, some decontaminated air tanks (2.3), dust filters, aerosol filters, carbon dioxide filters, by-passing valves, and after calcination, the decontaminated air is directed towards the active enclosure accommodated by an individual ventilated mask by an enclosure for individual treatment, or by a room with public destination, where the calciner may be also integrated in a centralized air conditioning system (SCCA), made only with devices known from the state of the art, or with new added devices that are subject of this invention, namely densifying and rarefying components, heat economizers with small temperature gap, the proposed densifying and rarefying components being characterized by the presence of a thermal pad characterized by a large surface in contact with the gas being compressed, surface which does not decrease during the compressing process.

Description

HEAT-TREATMENT DECONTAMINATION AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEMS

The invention relates to a process by which any state-of-the-art air conditioning system, local or centralized, can be implemented, by heat treatment, a thermodynamic system for decontamination of air for respiration. This decontamination and sterilization system can also be applied independently of the air conditioning system, but it can also be applied to new configurations of air conditioning systems proposed by this invention.

In addition to contaminated air filtration systems (individual or centralized) with a higher or lower degree of pathogen (and non-pathogenic) retention, there are a variety of habitat sterilization processes in the state of the art at the state of the art. which is based on the behavior of pathogens under the destructive action of various physical or chemical processes: germicidal irradiation with ultraviolet rays, adsorption of activated carbon germs, ionization sterilization, plasma sterilization, sterilization by passing air contaminated by an electronically polarized medium, oxidation photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical, attracting particles in a bioreactor, oxidizing particles by generating ozone (a very strong oxidant), etc. The efficiency of these technologies, at least in laboratory conditions, can be particularly high. Although some of these technologies are in a less advanced stage of research, or developed and are being applied more and more, some sterilization procedures based on these phenomena, but still have to solve a number of security issues, such as production and maintenance costs, etc.

Thermodynamic sterilization (air decontamination systems by heat treatment) destroys pathogens by incineration. Although these systems are easy to make and implement and can be extremely efficient (100% efficiency, for a sufficiently high incineration temperature, applied for a sufficiently long period of time), they are quite little used in the current state of the art. . Several processes have been studied and proposed for patenting and use. Here are some examples: - US2564898 (A): Air sterilizer - US5441710 (A): Airflow sterilizer

- GB499074 (A): Arrangement for electrically heated air and other gases to high temperatures - US3654432 (A): Electrically heated catalytic air purifier

- US5874050 (A): Room air sterilization device

- FR2574298 (Al): Device for sterilization by means of ducts with high temperature gradient - EP2522371 (A 1): Melhod and device for sterilization of a fluid phase

- CN203984693 (U) Ceramic heating core and air purifier employing same)

- WO2005007207: Method and apparatus for the sterilization of air that is intended to ventilate spaces requiring air with a low micro-organism content

Most of these patents and patent applications propose the heating, most of the time by electrical means, of a flow of air, in free or forced convection, to a temperature considered sufficient to burn all the pathogens concerned, followed by the expulsion of air. warm in the chosen habitat (after recovery, at least partially of the received heat or, after mixing it with the ambient air). Some of the systems based on these processes have reached the marketing stage. The most widely used such product uses electric heaters to heat a ceramic core with a multitude of narrow channels through which the air intended for use passes. Most often. heat decontamination air decontamination systems are used independently. Only decontamination systems based on sterilization processes by filtration, ionization, or germicidal irradiation with ultraviolet rays are used. in the current state of the art, in air conditioning systems.

(ȚKȚ / ¹

RO 135278 AO

Another thermodynamic sterilization process is to bring the air intended for respiration, by its quasi-diabetic compression to a suitable pressure, beyond the calcination temperature. The process was proposed in patent applications US3966407 (A): “Air sterilizing compressor system”, FR2539629A1 / 1983: “Process for producing sterile air for medical use and installation forcarrying out said method”, FR2758987A1 / 1997: “Sterilization of air from hospital operating theater ”, etc. For example, in the first of these, a system is proposed which consists of a closed loop for the circulation of air flow, a loop which includes the medical enclosure requiring sterilized air, a compressor (an axial one is proposed) which can bring the air up to a temperature close to that of sterilization (proposed to be 300 ° F), a regenerator that corrects and maintains this temperature long enough to neutralize pathogens (using the temperature of the gas turbine exhaust gas used to drive the compressor), a holder quasi-diabetic (an expansion turbine is proposed) to reduce the temperature of the gas supplied by the regenerator to the required temperature, adjacent air conditioning systems (filtration, humidification, heat treatment, etc.). In other patent applications, other types of compressors are proposed for compressing and expanding the air, including piston compressors, but all the proposed processes are designed for high air flow, intended for high-volume rooms, especially for medical purposes.

The invention presented here starts from CIB A / 00025 / 27.01.2021 which describes a “system for decontamination of air by heat treatment”, based on the same process of thermodynamic sterilization, to bring the temperature of the air intended for respiration (air in a certain location, at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure) to calcination. by compressing it quasi-diabatically to the pressure corresponding to this temperature, followed by a period of keeping the air at that temperature in a regenerator, and by a quasi-diabatic relaxation "in the mirror" until the ambient temperature. A cooling, or heating (electrically or thermodynamically) of the air in the regenerator, allows its delivery to a predetermined temperature (which may be different from that of the environment). Unlike the systems described above, in this patent application, both the compressor and the holder are positive displacement devices, electrically operated, and the temperature correction in the regenerator is also done by electrical processes, or by mechanical action. These new features allow the new system to be used in many more areas, to be more flexible, to allow a wide and easily modifiable range of flow rates, pressures and temperatures, and to be made to a small size, so that individual protection systems as well as portable systems can also be made. Another great advantage of this system is that most of the mechanical energy consumed by the compressor is returned to the system by the holder, minimizing the energy consumption required for sterilization. This is a crucial advantage over any other sterilization system, and the flexibility of the system makes it easy to implant in any ventilation, heating / cooling and air conditioning system for breathing. It is compatible and can be coupled with most other state-of-the-art sterilization systems. The main purpose of the proposed sterilization system is to obtain the most efficient sterilization possible, at the lowest possible cost.

The disadvantage of the system is that, when it is located in circulating spaces, it requires safety and protection measures to be taken to avoid the consequences of accidents that could be caused by material defects (wear, manufacturing defects) or operation, because the a calcination temperature of at least 200 ° C, by adiabatic compression, requires pressures higher than 5.4 atmospheres, and for higher temperatures (necessary in the case of fast processes), even higher pressures are reached. For this reason, the sterilization systems proposed in application A / 00025 / 27.01.2021 are recommended, in particular, for centralized installations, located in a secure technical space. For local and individual systems, these types of sterilization systems are complete, according

RO 135278 AO of the invention we propose here, with additional devices, which provide the necessary protection. By adding additional air conditioning devices, combined sterilization and air conditioning systems can be obtained that are more efficient and cheaper than those of the state of the art.

A first way to achieve this combination can be achieved by implanting sterilization systems, as described in CIB A / 00025, directly in state-of-the-art air conditioning systems, thus cumulating both the advantages and the disadvantages. disadvantages of the two types of installations.

An improved way to achieve this combination is to create new systems. in which the components of the sterilization system, through the operations they perform, also play a role in the air conditioning system, the result being, for all fields of application, the achievement of air conditioning systems at least as efficient, and which simultaneously performs the sterilization function.

The most efficient method of realizing the combined sterilization and air conditioning systems is to modify the structure of the air conditioning systems, replacing some of their components used in the current state of the art, with a series of new components, proposed in this invention, components that allow all the specific requirements of both objectives to be met simultaneously, with acceptable production and operating costs. Achieving this goal requires that the thermotechnical devices in the composition of the combined system (in particular compressors and holders) have different energy characteristics from similar devices in the current state of the art. Obviously, these new, more powerful devices can be used in other areas of technical interest, such as waste energy recovery, gas liquefaction and energy storage systems.

The description of the invention will be made in connection with the following figures:

- fig. 1: Schematic diagram of a single piston and one-way valve

- fig. 2: Schematic diagram of the single-piston and 3-way valve

- fig. 3: Schematic diagram of the two-piston burner, a tank and two one-way valves - fig. 4: Schematic diagram of the two-piston burner, a 3-way tank and valve

- fig. 5: Schematic diagram of the two-piston burner and 3-way valve

- fig. 6: principle diagram of the vane compressor

- fig. 7: Schematic diagram of the computer with paddle and intermediate tank devices

- fig. 8: ventilated individual mask

- fig. 9: Schematic diagram of the combined sterilization and air conditioning unit

- fig. 10: principle diagram of the densifier

- fig. 10a: densifier with windows for intake and discharge

- fig. 10b: densifier with minidensifier for discharge

- fig. 11: thermal sponge made of helical springs with a rectangular section

- fig. 1 to: thickener with discharge box

- fig. 12: thermal sponge made of helical springs and metal plates

- fig. 12a: coupling system between plates and springs

- fig. 12b: thermal sponge made of helical springs and interlocking metal plates

- fig. 12c: thermal sponge made of springs and interlocking metal plates, in the compressed position

- fig. 13: thermal sponge made of elastic cords and horizontal metal plates

- fig. 14: thermal sponge made of helical springs and horizontal metal plates with vertical fins - fig. 14a: the thermal sponge from fig. 14 in a state of maximum compression

- fig. 14b: the thermal sponge of fig. 14 in a state of partial compression

- fig. 15: thermal sponge made of arched elastic metal plates

- fig. 16: thermal sponge made of flat metal plates and arched elastic plates; cross section and plan section

RO 135278 AO

- fig. 17: thermal sponge made of horizontal flat metal plates mounted on sliding supports - fig. 18: thermal sponge made of horizontal flat metal plates mounted on harmonic supports - fig. 19: telescopic rod of a solid hydraulically operated piston

- fig. 20: thickened liquid piston densifier

- fig. 21: thickened liquid piston densifier and sprinklers

- fig. 22: horizontal section of the liquid piston densifier from fig.21 - fig. 23: installation detail of the sprinklers from fig.21

- fig. 24: configuration resulting from the combination of a liquid piston densifier, a group of solid piston densifiers and a gas piston densifier

- fig. 25: two-stage densifier made on the structure of a plate heat exchanger - fig. 26: two-stage densifier, in which the first stage is made with bubble liquid piston densifiers

A. Sterilization plant. In order to obtain the decontamination effect, the invention proposes the apparatus, hereinafter referred to as "calciner". Based on this device, by combining it with elements of the state-of-the-art systems (mainly individual masks and components necessary for the ventilation of the work room) a multitude of individual, multi-use systems can be created for a multitude of purposes, with different degrees of complexity and with performances adapted to the proposed purpose. All these systems must ensure the flow of sterilized air necessary for comfortable breathing for an individual, with maximum safety, and with optimal medical, physical and chemical parameters. as the air requirement is not always the same (approx. 12 L / min during light activities, approx. 60 L / min during intense activities), the dimensions of the system are designed for a flow rate of 100 L / min (taking into account the losses through leaks) and is equipped with a valve (or other process) for regulating the flow, manually, or automatically. To flatten the pressure fluctuations caused by alternating inspiration / expiration, the volume of air between the burner and the mask must be large enough or variable, for example by inserting an air bag. In this case, the sterilization installation is obtained by combining two components: the calciner (the active device, which produces the decontaminated air) and the individual ventilated mask (the passive part, which protects the decontaminated air along the entire route). To ensure that the owner is able to travel, the system must be fitted with a safe and economical supply system.

Obtaining centralized installations is achieved by combining a burner with appropriate flow, with air collection systems, with decontaminated air distribution systems, with other devices specific to ventilation / air conditioning systems, with other types of decontamination devices and with individual systems. protective. The invention proposes other technical solutions by which the other elements of the system: masks, filters, connecting pipes, valves, power supply systems, etc. are modified to capitalize on the full potential offered by the calcination method.

1. The calciner. The design of this device is made taking into account its precise destination: the class (or classes) of microorganisms to be controlled. This determines the minimum temperature T _m up to which the air must be heated to obtain the calcination effect and the minimum duration t, n to maintain it, necessary for the complete destruction of this / these classes of pathogens. If this minimum temperature is exceeded, and an permissible value T _M i _m is reached, there is a time period td <t _m , in which the air temperature exceeds the minimum temperature T, „, sufficient for a complete calcination. This allows the adoption of a non-stop calcination strategy: the progressive increase of the air temperature up to the value of T _M tm. over the value T _m . followed by an immediate decrease (without pause) below this value, so that the time in which the temperature value exceeds the value T _m is greater than the value tj. Depending on the chosen strategy, the configuration of the calculator is chosen.

RO 135278 AO

Obtaining the temperature required for calcination is done by quasi-diabatic compression of the aspirated gas from the environment, made with a compressor, and the temperature required for respiration, through a process of its expansion (combined, if necessary, with other additional thermal processes). The calciner can be made with any type of compressor and holder that can meet the requirements of the chosen operating variant, therefore its choice is made according to the performance of volume, weight, cost, convenience, etc. of the whole. In the following description, we will refer, for example, especially to compressors and piston holders.

Ideally, the process of compressing the aspirated air should be perfectly adiabatic, in which case, the process of perfectly adiabatic expansion that would succeed it would fully recover the energy consumed for compression. As such a process cannot be performed due to the inherent heat exchange between the air and the compressor body (respectively the holder), to which is added the heat exchange between the compressor body and the environment, the compression-expansion process leads to a pump. heat consuming. One of the main objectives of the designer of this appliance should be to achieve a minimum energy consumption per cycle, in order to ensure a low energy consumption (for individual appliances, this objective determines a small power supply) and a lighter system, more convenient and easier to handle, at a lower cost.

C.l Variant with a piston. If the operating mode, described below, allows the complete destruction of the pathogen, the calcining apparatus provided with a suitable actuator can be made with a single compressor 1, or l.a (Fig. 1), which also takes over the role of the holder. The compressor of this device consists of the cylinder 1.1, the cover 1.2, the piston 1.3 and the actuator 1.4. In the compressor cover are mounted two one-way valves (check valves) 1.5a and 1.5b (one for each flow direction). The lower part of the cylinder, through which the rod or piston rod moves, opens towards the crankcase. The air being blown out by the calciner is intended for breathing, an oil filter and other purifying devices are fitted at the exit of the calciner.

If the nature of the pathogens allows, a non-stop strategy is adopted. in which the compressor at (Fig. 1) is driven by a classic crankshaft system. The length of the compressor cylinder is longer than the stroke of the piston, so that a reservoir is formed between the top dead center and the cover in which components of the device can be installed (eg electrical heating elements Ir, thermocouples, heat exchangers, etc.). The speed of the drive motor (which determines the duration of a cycle) is chosen to be small enough that the time required for the piston to travel the distance between the point T at which the minimum temperature T _m is reached during the compression stroke and the point at which this temperature is reached in during the expansion stroke, to be greater than the value of td.

Initially, with the PMS piston, there is air in the tank at atmospheric pressure, the intake valve 1.5a is open, and the discharge valve 1.5b (in this configuration, the valve 1.5b is operated by mechanical or electrical controls) is closed. In steady state, the displacement of the piston towards PMI, which causes the lower part of the cylinder to be filled with air at atmospheric pressure, is immediately followed (without pause) by a displacement towards PMS, passing through point T. This displacement is accompanied by air compression to nominal temperature, corresponding to the temperature Tadm. The piston does not stop in this position either, but moves again towards the PMI. With both valves closed, the air expands to a pressure close to the recovery of the compression energy. When the piston reaches the PMI. the control valve 1.5b opens in command, so that on the next trip to the PMS, a volume of air equal to that between the PMI and the PMS is pushed back to the workspace.

RO 135278 AO

If a fluctuating feed rate is required (for example, if the working chamber has a small volume), the system will be composed of several compressors (with the corresponding phase shift between the positions of the pistons) operated by the same shaft.

If there is no reason to limit this temperature above, the choice of the maximum temperature T _M im must be a compromise between the advantage of reducing (even to zero) the minimum duration of its maintenance (with consequences of constructive simplification and cost reduction) and the disadvantage increased energy losses, increased thermal insulation costs and additional safety measures.

Temporary parking of the piston in the top dead center (or slowing down the speed of the piston in this area) can be achieved, for example, by a grooved disc mechanism 1.4b, or by another type of cam system, by actuating piston by means of a variable speed motor, by using a variable flow (or variable speed) hydraulic motor which generates a liquid piston whose travel speed varies according to a prescribed function 1,4g, etc. Fig. 1 shows a device using the grooved disk mechanism. An example of such a system is that of patent applications FR2747155, WO / 2008/094058. In this type of mechanism, the piston rod 1.3a is driven by the actuating mechanism 1.4a, by means of a shaft and the discs 1.4b. On one of the surfaces of these discs are profiled 1.4p guide channels (whose profile is dictated by the equation of motion 1.4g) in which the 1.4c bearings run, which transmit mechanical energy both from the motor shaft to the piston and in the direction inverse. In Fig. 1 it can be noticed, both on the 1.4g curve and on the 1.4p channel configuration, that during a cycle (a 1.4p grooved disk rotation), the piston passes twice through the PMI and once through PMS.

In this mode, after a full stroke of the piston, from the upper dead center PMS to the lower dead center PMI (time in which the air in the cylinder through the intake valve takes place), the valve closes and the piston moves in the opposite direction. After reaching the minimum calcination temperature inside the compressor (point T), the piston continues its stroke to the upper dead center, to point A (point where the gas temperature is above the minimum calcination limit), where it stands for a time t, '/ , after which the compressor becomes the holder and the piston executes the return stroke, both valves of the compressor being closed. During this return stroke, the piston yields to the engine the energy received during the compression stroke (minus that lost by friction and that lost by heat transfer to the environment, both during the round trip and during stationary). After passing the piston through the PMI, the discharge valve opens and the gas is discharged from the cylinder to the point of use.

From the point of view of heat transfer processes, their intensity depends on the temperature of the piston cylinder walls and the temperature of the lubricant during the steady state. The steady state occurs only after a period of time from the start of the device, being necessary a transition period until the stabilization of the nominal mode (whose parameters change even when there are significant fluctuations in the parameters of the environment). In steady state, the temperature of the lubricant (usually a few degrees Celsius above ambient temperature) is almost constant and depends mainly on how it is designed and how its cooling system works. The temperature of the cylinder walls also stabilizes at certain values, but it is not uniform, with both radial (in the thickness of the cylinder walls) and axial variations. In the PMI lower dead zone, the wall temperatures are only slightly higher than the ambient temperature, but they take on higher and higher values as we approach the PMS upper dead center. Fig. 2 shows an approximate T-s diagram of the thermodynamic cycle of air in this device:

- curve a-b corresponds to the inlet of the gas at atmospheric pressure po, having the specific volume vo, interval in which the gas, in contact with the warmer walls, undergoes a slight isobaric heating, the more pronounced the longer the duration of this stage

RO 135278 AO

- the curve bc corresponds to the quasi-centropic compression: at the beginning of the transformation, simultaneously with the compression, a heat absorption from the cylinder walls takes place, so that, after the gas temperature exceeds that of the walls, the direction of the heat transfer reverses. is simultaneous throughout the cylinder). Point c (corresponding to point A of the cylinder) is where the temperature of the gas in the cylinder reaches its maximum value.

- curve c-d describes the isochoric cooling from the time in which the piston is stationary at the upper point c (A).

- the curve corresponds to an almost adiabatic expansion, accompanied by heat exchanges with the cylinder walls. If the piston returns to the PMI, the points a and e are located on the same isocore. The temperature and pressure at this point are closely related to the speed of the piston (which, within a cycle, can be changed in the desired direction by the cam system), the maximum temperature in the cylinder (which corresponds to a maximum pressure, dependent the length of the piston stroke to point A and the stationary time of the piston at point A. In most cases, due to heat loss from the system to the environment, both the temperature and pressure at point e are lower than at point a. , in terms of thermal comfort, a lower temperature may be desired, a lower atmospheric pressure requires additional mechanical work (which will be partially compensated by a reverse compression, the engine being the atmospheric pressure). with which the device is fitted, allows the change in direction of movement of the piston, after expansion, to occur at a point other than the PMI (point I m on the graph l.4g). By replacing the .4p profiled disk, the Im position can be moved to any other predetermined point in the stroke (for example, its point, on the same isotherm, or point e ₂ , on the same isobar with point b). The corresponding positions of the piston are shown in Fig.l. By this method, temperatures of the sterilized air lower than the ambient temperature can be obtained, at the cost of additional energy consumed and an increase in the temperatures of a refrigerant, or of the environment in which the regenerator is located.

A reduction in energy losses can be achieved by further insulating the warmest area of cylinder li and / or by reducing heat transfer between the cylinder walls in this region and the colder walls, near the PMI, by incorporating a Low thermal conductivity ring.

In both described configurations (depending on the chosen strategy), in order to reduce the losses generated by the valves with a reduced passage section, the appliance cylinder can be equipped (Fig.2) with a single inlet-outlet (to achieve a diameter as cylinder path), connected to the body of a 3-way 1.6 valve (which only supports fixed positions: closed 1.6a, environment 1.6b, active enclosure 1.6c) electrically or mechanically controlled. The 1.6 3-way valve is a 1.7 spherical valve in which the gas passageways are processed. The valve ball is actuated by means of the 1.8 axis and a camshaft for the correct synchronization of the operating stages.

Position 1.6a is an intermediate (passage) position between the discharge phase and the inlet phase, position 1.6b is the position where the ambient air intake takes place, position 1.6c is the position where the decontaminated air is discharged and position 1, 6d, similar to position 1,6a, is the position in which compression and expansion take place.

This type of valve can be used successfully in other applications.

C.2 Variant with two pistons. In the above version, in order to supply the active enclosure with a quantity of decontaminated air equal to the volume of the cylinder, the piston must perform two almost complete strokes. In addition, a stationary piston station near PMS increases the time required to supply this volume of air. The same amount of decontaminated air can be obtained with a two-cylinder device, each having a volume equal to half the volume of the cylinder in the previous version, if a tranche of air is delivered at each round trip cycle.

The components of the device are represented in Fig. 3, the 5 steps of

RO 135278 AO

achievement of the proposed objective are the same, but are divided between the compressor 2J (the first two phases of the complete cycle) and the holder 2.2 (the other 3 phases), the movement of the two pistons being ensured by cam mechanisms or profiled discs mounted on the same shaft, providing the two devices with cycles of the same duration:

- in a first phase I, with the intake valve open, piston 2.13 moves from PMS to PMI, absorbing air from the atmosphere

- in the second phase II, the piston 2.13 moves in the opposite direction, with both valves closed, up to point A, of maximum temperature, compressing the admitted gas quasi-asentropically. When piston 2.13 reaches point A, piston 2.23 reaches PMS of cylinder 2.2.

- a correlated phase III follows, in which the valves 2.15b and 2.25a open, in which the piston 2.13 moves towards the PMS of cylinder 2.1 and the piston 2.23 moves towards the PMI of cylinder 2.2. to point B (the correspondent on this cylinder of point A). The two movements are performed in such a way that the volume bounded by the two pistons remains constant during this transfer. Following this phase, the compressed gas from cylinder 2.1 is transferred to cylinder 2.2. (on the pipe shown with a dashed line in Fig.3) without energy consumption and without the gas changing its temperature. From this point on, the communication path between the two cylinders is closed, the inlet valve of compressor 2.1 is opened and it resumes the cycle described above. Also from this moment, a programmed stationary stationary phase of the piston can take place in the holder, phase in which a heat transfer takes place (cooling, or isochoric heating of the gas admitted from the holder, depending on the characteristics imposed on the gas in the active enclosure.

- the next phase in the holder is the quasi-diabetic expansion IV, with the valves 2.25a and 2.25b closed, in which the holder transfers mechanical energy to the central axis of the drive mechanism. As in the previous case, the piston can be programmed, before starting the device (by replacing the 1.4p profiled disc), to stop, after expansion, in the position corresponding to the most favorable point on the diagram, which satisfies and minimum energy consumption requirements and maximum comfort in the active enclosure. In this sense, the length of the holder may be different from that of the compressor.

- phase V also takes place in the valve, consists in the evacuation of the gas from the cylinder, through the exhaust valve 2.25b. to the active chamber and terminates when piston 2.23 reaches PMS at the same time as piston 2.13 arrives at point A.

C.3 Variant with two pistons and an intermediate tank. When the destruction of the pathogen requires a longer period of time, or when a higher level of comfort is desired in the active enclosure, it is appropriate to insert a tank 5 between the compressor and the holder. Its presence does not substantially alter the operating diagram described above. It completely takes over phase III of isochoric cooling. The gas is transited through the two valves: valve 2.31. connecting through a pipe, with the compressed gas outlet from the first cylinder and the valve 2.32. which connects to the gas inlet in the holder. The requirement that the movement of the two pistons be synchronized in such a way that the volume of gas between them does not change during the transfer is also maintained.

The presence of the tank allows all components of the appliance (including the tank) to be provided with a high level of thermal insulation, minimizing energy losses. Apart from the inherent heat loss, the only heat transfer is done in a controlled way, through a circuit provided with two heat exchangers through which the thermal agent circulates (hot or cold): one installed in the tank, the other outside it (it fails ambient heat, or receives it from an energy source). The presence of the tank also offers the possibility to improve the characteristics of the decontaminated gas by introducing additional thermodynamic processes. For example, piston 2.33 in Fig.2, in the time interval between two operations of transferring gas through the tank, can perform a compression, followed by a relaxation (with almost complete recovery of energy consumed

RO 135278 AO

in the compression process), in order to achieve an additional calcination, simultaneously with the controlled heat transfer.

Switching on the appliance after any downtime requires bringing the system (gas and appliances) to the optimum parameters of the operating mode. For this, each appliance has an electrical resistance, automatically / manually controlled, between the outer wall and the thermal insulation. It is recommended that the walls of the cylinders be made of low-conductivity materials (or at least have an insulating ring located in the wall structure, near the PMS, to reduce the flow of heat along the walls).

We also mention the valves and connecting pipes through which the working gas flows: they must have a section as large as possible (especially in the case of high circulation speeds), with surfaces as smooth as possible, in order to reduce to the maximum. irreversible processes. The length of the connecting pipes between the calcinals and the individual mask must be as small as possible, so that, where possible, these components are placed close to each other.

C3.1. Variant with two pistons, with large passage sections. And this variant of calcinator can be made with large sections of the elements traversed by the working gas. In Fig.4 and 5, between the compressor 2.1 and the holder 2.2 a spherical valve 2.4 is mounted, controlled electrically or mechanically, with the help of the shaft 2.61.

In the first case (Fig. 5), the spherical ball of the valve is hollow inside, forming the intermediate tank of decontaminated air (therefore, the inner diameter of the tank is calculated according to the time required to keep the gas at maximum temperature). The valve can have two positions. In position b, two circulation channels are opened: the atmospheric air enters the compressor 2.1, by moving the piston 2.13 from the PMS to the PMI, and simultaneously, the decontaminated air from the holder 2.2 is pushed back to the active enclosure, by moving the piston 2.23 from the PMI to the PMS. Once the two pistons have reached these extreme positions, the valve switches to position a, in which, apparently, all communication channels are closed. The compressed air is first compressed by moving the compressor piston 2.1 to point c in the Ts diagram in Fig.2 (maximum pressure and temperature point). At this point, following a mechanical control, valves 2.41 and 2.42 open simultaneously, which compress the springs 2.43. Piston 2.13 continues to move from position c to PMS. and piston 2.23 of the PMS of cylinder 2.2 in position c thereof. In this way, the compressed air in the compressor is transferred to the tank, and an equivalent volume, having approximately the same pressure and the same temperature, enters the holder. At this point, the two valves close and the 2.2 piston piston continues to travel to PMI (during which time, the 2.12 compressor piston is stationary in the PMS position). From this point the cycle is resumed identically.

In the second case (Fig.5). the spherical ball 2.4 of the valve is provided with two identical cavities, with the volume equal to that of a tranche of compressed air. The valve, with a one-way rotational movement, is stationary in 6 main positions, shifted by approx. 60 °. In its position, the 2.13 piston of the compressor leaves the PMS and reaches the PMI, sucking in atmospheric air, and the 2.23 piston of the holder leaves the PMI and reaches the PMS, pushing the decontaminated air back to the individual ventilated mask. In position b. The piston of the valve is stationary in PMS, and that of the compressor starts from PMI and reaches PMS, compressing the air in the cylinder into the corresponding cavity of the valve. When the piston reaches PMS, the valve switches to position c. Both pistons are stationary in the corresponding PMS. The compressed air is transvasal above the piston of the holder. Now the compressed gas relaxes, giving the 2.23 piston the accumulated mechanical energy and moving the piston in PMI. A new 60 ° switch brings us back to position a and the cycle is resumed identically, delivering two tranches of gas at each complete rotation of the valve 2.6.

C.4. Variant with rotating devices. Note that in these variants, the operations performed by the compressor piston are very simple, requiring a small number.

RO 135278 AO adjustment. For this reason, in order to simplify the construction of the appliance and to obtain a smaller size and a reduced price, these phases of the process (intake, compression and transfer of compressed gas) can be taken over by a rotary compressor (with rotor blades, screw , snail, with lobes). Regardless of the type of compressor chosen, its synchronization with the piston of the holder (during the time in which it performs the gas intake operation) must be designed in such a way that the energy losses of the computer are minimal.

For example, we will use a very simple device: a variant of a compressor with a paddle in the rotor. Although it is rarely used in the current state of the art, we consider this device very suitable for this application. The variant that we will analyze, characterized by the fact that it uses a single blade in the rotor (fig.6) is described in more detail in the patent application RO 128041 (A2). The device consists of a stator (a hollow cylinder 3.1), inside which rotates around its center, the rotor (another cylinder 3.2, usually full, but which can be hollow, for some applications), with a larger diameter than the stator radius. A notch is drilled in the rotor, usually along the diameter, in which a 3.3 vane is inserted with a length less than the depth of the notch, and with a thickness equal to its width (the lateral surfaces of the vane slide tightly on the inner surfaces of the notch) . The width of the blade is equal to the height of the stator (the surfaces of the blade bases also slide tightly on the inner surfaces of the stator bases). The rotor is usually tangent at one point to the inner surface of the stator wall. In our application, a contact on a larger surface is preferable, therefore, we resorted to a deformation of the stator wall in the contact area. The blade can slide along the notch, and when its tip touches the stator wall, it divides it into two chambers, sealed together. This extreme position of the vane is ensured by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the vane, as well as by the pressure of a spring 3.4 placed in the notch. The mechanical energy accumulated in the spring is returned to the drive motor by the force with which the blade presses on the stator wall when it comes out of the notch. Sometimes the spring can be replaced with a pressurized fluid. closed between the vane and the bottom of the notch (a gas, or a lubricant if a passageway between the notch and a tank can be conveniently provided). In addition to its functional role, to ensure the advancement of the blade to the stator wall, this liquid leads to the formation of a lubricating film around the blade, as well as between the sliding surfaces of the rotor and the stator, which also has a sealing role.

the height of the rotor may be equal to the internal height of the stator (section 1 -1 bis), in which case the two surfaces slide on each other, or it may be larger (section 1-1), in which case the sliding motion between the bases of the stator and the rotor walls are secured by 3.9 bearings, or by segments, gaskets, etc. The rotor of the machine is mechanically coupled with a motor (electric or mechanical), and in the case of a holder, with a generator or a mechanical load. On either side of the tangent generator are the two inlets for the intake and the discharge of the working fluid. If the device has a compressor function, the inlet 3.6 is free, and a 3.7a valve is mounted on the discharge pipe 3.7. If the car has a holder function. the intake is made through a valve 3.6a. and repression is usually free. For some applications valves can be used on both channels, and when used as a blower, both channels can be permanently opened.

Fig. 7 exemplifies how the vane compressor can be used to make a computer equipped with an intermediate tank. A slice of atmospheric air is absorbed by the compressor by moving the blade from PMI to PMS while compressing the air already in the cylinder. The calcination temperature is reached when the sliding blade reaches position T. and the maximum temperature when it reaches position A, the position in which the opening of the exhaust valve is controlled 3.6a. At this point, the valve blade is located in the PMI, and the valve 3.7a of the valve opens simultaneously with that of the compressor. The compressed gas, which is currently in the compressor, is transferred to the tank, and an equal volume of gas is transferred to the tank. Due to the geometry

RO 135278 AO different from these two gas volumes. During this process the gas is subjected to volume changes in both directions, with almost zero energy consumption. When the compressor blade reaches PMS, the holder blade reaches position A. The displacement of this blade to PMI is done with energy release to the motor shaft and results in the expansion of the compressed gas introduced in the first sector of the cylinder, reaching the working temperature, as and the discharge of existing gas in the second sector to the active enclosure.

The assembly of the 3 main components of the computer can be done by overlapping them, so that the compressor and the idler have a common rotor (in which the two blades are staggered), with a fairly uniform distribution of mechanical load.

Therefore, the system proposed in this description achieves the complete destruction of these microorganisms by heating the respiratory air to a temperature high enough to destroy the microorganisms, followed by returning to the optimum temperature indicated for the respiration process and introducing it into the circuit by delivering decontaminated air. , to the “active enclosure” (in the case of individual devices: the hermetically sealed space located between the mask and the user's face, and in the case of the centralized ones: the room where the joint activity takes place). This process ensures maximum safety for the individual device user. In order to extend the safety and the space in which the carrier is located, the process must be repeated on the exhaled air, before its evacuation to the environment.

2. Individual ventilated mask. The presence of an individual air circulation system through the active enclosure of the individual mask offers the possibility to increase its degree of protection (by creating an overpressure in the active enclosure, which creates a barrier against accidental penetration of undecontaminated air) and comfort ( decontaminated air can be delivered at the desired pressure and temperature). The performance of the filter elements can be increased due to higher energy consumption. To take advantage of these advantages, the mask intended to work with this system must create an air space for breathing (active enclosure) as tight as possible and as comfortable as possible. The materials used to make this enclosure must be rigid, but offer some flexibility to adapt to different facial configurations and different movements of the facial muscles. The variant we recommend is the use between the mask and the face, of a toroidal chamber 4.4 from Fig.8 (having shapes and sizes adapted to potential users), made of a very elastic, malleable and light material, placed on the closed contour of the mask, as a wall, so that, in the area of the active enclosure, it is the only component part in direct contact with the mask wearer (Fig.8). The inside of this torus is filled with air, the pressure of which must ensure the best compromise between the degree of comfort (exerting moderate pressure on the face) and the tightness of the active enclosure. In the case of people with intense and varied activity, the pressure can be changed without removing the mask, using even the air provided by the compressor of the device, through a connection intended for this purpose. In some cases, the inside of the active enclosure can be divided into two areas, by an additional wall, made of the same materials as the outer wall. It completely separates the activity of air inspiration from that of expiration.

Various devices can be installed inside the active enclosure in this way to increase the degree of comfort: heating elements, bags with hygroscopic substances, simple microphone systems. sensors of some measuring systems, etc. and the related electrical conductors, the starting point of which is a connector plug located on the outer wall of the mask. Two 4.3 holes are drilled in the outer wall of this enclosure in which the connections for the two hoses are mounted. To ensure optimal breathing conditions, as well as an optimization of the circulating air flow (if the power of the blower or the computer is adjustable). One-way flaps (actuated by pressure differences that occur during breathing) or solenoid valves (automatically controlled, depending on the

RO 135278 AO of signals received from pressure sensors, or from sensors that detect chest movements).

The materials from which the mask is made must be easily decontaminated by conventional methods (wiping with alcohol, disinfectants, etc.). The mask becomes very safe (and has been designed for this purpose) if the active enclosure is never opened between decontamination.

This mask can be made in various sizes and configurations, with a more or less voluminous active area, depending on the activity carried out by its wearer. Where needed, it can be wrapped in a protective suit. The choice of the size and configuration of the system should be made taking into account the advantages that an individual system offers as compact as possible (by mounting the computer and, possibly, the feeding system, on the same support as the mask). The fastening system 4.2 is the one with straps and buckles, with quick closing / opening systems. In addition to the mask, worn before mounting it, headphones, hoods, simple hair or beard protection systems, gloves, etc. can be used. Both the mask and the connecting hoses and complementary devices are made of smooth outer surfaces, made of reusable materials, easily and quickly decontaminated.

3. Power supply system. The energy consumption of these decontamination systems is supplied from the existing electricity network, in the case of fixed systems, or from a battery system, in the case of mobile systems. As any mobile system becomes fixed at some point and the batteries require regular recharging, these installations are equipped with a power cord, with the rectifier for current conversion, and for an increased safety, with an alternator. In this way, the wearer of an individual mask must be offered as many possibilities as possible to supply the individual system, by installing power outlets in public transport, classrooms, libraries, performance halls, public places, etc. , even in parks and on various footpaths.

In the absence of a nearby power supply, the wearer of the mask may create the necessary energy himself, by means of a crank, a hand pump, a foot-operated pedal, or other suitable device. For people on the move, there are various systems that convert some of the carrier's moving energy into electricity. Also, the alternator can be operated by taking mechanical energy from the vehicle with which it is traveled: bicycle, scooter, rollers, wheelchair, hand-towed trolleys and specially designed for the transport of a small fixed installation, etc.

I would. Decontamination systems.

As the description of the system components shows, the proposed device can be made in a variety of variants, with multiple possibilities of use, in different environments, with different degrees of safety and comfort, at a wide range of cost prices. In all cases, the safety of the recipient must prevail.

Aii. Individual swingarm systems. This system is extremely simple, small in size, with low power consumption. It is part of all individual systems as a safety system in case of failure, but can also be realized as an independent system, if its lower degree of safety is accepted.

The system consists of (Fig.8) the individual mask, hose and inlet filter, mounted on the inlet connection of the mask 4.31. outlet hose and filter, fitted to outlet connection 4.32. the blower, mounted on the route of the supply hose, preferably on a fixed support, the supply system, mounted on the same support, a bypass pipe and a two-way damper. which allows the by-pass of the blower in case it does not work. The presence of the blower on the supply hose requires that this hose be made of stronger materials and be equipped with a system for fixing it to supports attached to the wearer's equipment.

RO 135278 AO

The 4.5 filters for this system are made of non-perishable materials, which allow easy decontamination and multiple reuse. They can be made with large air absorption surfaces. In Figure 4 we have exemplified a balloon filter (a cylindrical filter, which has a light skeleton, consisting of a 4.52 cage, a 4.51 cover and a 4.53 connection. The filter can be made of a single compact piece, or can be produced under the shape of rollers from which a variable number of filter layers unfold, depending on the recommended degree of filtration). The flexible hoses, which are easy to extend, offer the possibility of placing the filter in the most favorable areas from which the air intended for breathing is sucked in and in which the exhaled air is expelled. The filter can also be made in the form of a pocket filter (flat filter, which contains a flat layer of air, closed between a multilayer, absorbent face and a solid face, placed on the equipment).

As we have already shown, the individual mask is ventilated, by the presence of the blower (or the computer). which produces a continuous flow of air, offers superior comfort to systems of the current state of the art. Even in emergency mode, when the blower does not work, it offers the advantage of using reusable filters, with large absorption areas and the possibility of selecting the location.

Ai2. Individual systems with a computer. Compared to the system described above, this system is in addition to one of the types of calculator described above. If a simpler and lighter system has been chosen, it can be mounted on the suction hose, in parallel with the blower and the by-pass, or in series with it, but in parallel with another by-pass. Another possibility is to convert (in case of failure) the burner into a blower (for example, in the case of the version with vane compressors, by locking the valves in the open position).

Another mounting option is to make one, or two separate enclosures, in which to place most of the mechanical and electrical components of the system. These boxes, equipped with appropriate fasteners, can be mounted on the belt, on the back, on the chest, on the helmet. Their location must ensure that routes are as short and safe as possible. When the calciner is turned on. the suction filter can be by-passed, with a significant pneumatic resistance removed. This by-pass can be done by mounting a nozzle on the suction line, after the emergency filter. A simple filter cartridge with a lid is mounted on the lime branch. Removing the cover opens a direct path to the environment.

Ai3. Individual systems with two burners. These are the most complex, but also the most secure systems, because in addition to a safe protection of the wearer, it also ensures a protection of the environment, by calcining the exhaled air. They are made by mounting on the discharge pipe of the system described above, an additional calciner. All safety systems are also provided: bypassing of the burner, inclusion of pipes and flaps that allow the interchangeability of the two burners, bypassing of the discharge filter, etc. The system also offers the possibility that, by introducing carbon dioxide filters on the discharge line, the exhaled air can be reintroduced into the system, reducing the flow of air passing through the computer through the suction line.

Needle. Centralized systems are based on the creation of a well-calculated and implemented air circulation system, so that it can effectively reach a multitude of users, combined with a centralized decontamination, by calcination, by chemical and mechanical filtration, by ozonation, nebulization. . ultraviolet treatment, etc.

Ac.l. Centralized purification systems. These systems are intended to purify the air intended for breathing in all types of rooms, as well as to supply decontaminated air to groups of individual ventilated masks. Most of the time, they are composed of a properly sized calciner, distribution pipes, additional air treatment plants, etc. Depending on the destination of the rooms served, the independent calcination systems must make a judicious collection of the contaminated air, its calcination and distribution in the respective enclosure. The most economical solution is to combine

RO 135278 AO these systems with existing ventilation and air conditioning installations, and in the case of new projects, the realization of economical multifunctional installations.

Public rooms (public transport by car, rail, air, classrooms, performance halls, restaurants, etc.) may be equipped with a properly sized calciner and a series of collection and distribution pipes. Both types of pipes are provided, from place to place, with individual connection points (additionally, and with electrical sockets), to which individual carriers of ventilated masks can be connected. These masks will be used in the simplest mode (without calciner, with / without blower), minimizing the energy consumption of the mask wearer.

Ac.2. Individual treatment systems. If the effluent on the discharge line has a flow rate equal to or slightly higher than that of the calciner on the supply line, an active chamber with negative pressure can be made, at which the gas leaks to the environment are reduced to a minimum. . This system may be used for carriers of declared or suspected pathogens. In these cases, the active enclosure is adapted to the new requirements.

For the individual mask version described above, the version with a barrier between the inspiration and the expiration circuit, which offers the possibility to increase the pressure difference between the two compartments, up to a predetermined value by mounting a one-way valve in the partition wall, may be useful. , with adjustable opening pressure. The wearer of such a mask can voluntarily eliminate (when speaking, reading aloud, or singing) by expiration, a large amount of viruses, which is directed towards the computer. We can assume that by repeating these operations, the amount of virus removed from the respiratory system can lead to a temporary slowdown of the negative influences produced by them and increase the effectiveness of antivirus treatment. In these cases, the individual mask can be replaced with a fixed treatment point: a simple helmet (for example, a transparent cylindrical wall, open at the bottom, covering the whole) If this possibly contaminated air intake system is made on a larger scale (by replacing the small cylinder and increasing the power of the burner), it may receive other uses, in the treatment wards, or in public spaces. For example, the use of an active enclosure that can accommodate a patient and a small table, in combination with a number of measures to protect against direct contact, can ensure their feeding (or other activities) in conditions of advanced health safety. slightly larger enclosures with negative pressure, can ensure that the activities are carried out with several people, while which safety people not directly involved in these activities.

B. Combined sterilization and air conditioning systems SCSC.

The individual sterilization systems, described above, have the role of supplying decontamination air to a single individual, possibly a small group of individuals, located in the same location and connected by individual hoses to the same device. They supply a ventilated mask, together with an insulated breathing apparatus. similar to the current state of the art (PAPR). If the calcination device of this appliance is equipped with a sterilized air tank, its contents may, as already described, be subjected to additional treatments (heating, cooling, drying, humidification, ionization, deodorization, etc.). The appliance will supply, in open circuit, the nominal flow (approx. 100 L / min) of sterilized and conditioned air, ensuring the necessary air of an individual. If the computer is designed for a higher flow rate, it can treat the air needed to ventilate an enclosure or an adjacent space and can successfully replace local air conditioners, additionally bringing the function of air sterilization.

Similarly, centralized sterilization systems for a given space, described above, may become combined centralized sterilization and air conditioning systems.

RO 135278 AO air, if it ensures the treated air flow and the climatic comfort characteristics imposed by the requirements valid for the destination spaces ,.

In both cases, the combined sterilization and air conditioning unit, UCSC will be composed (Fig9) of:

- an AHU1 air collection system, similar to AHU air collection systems, specific to an HVAC system designed for that space

- an AC adiabatic compressor, which raises the temperature (and thus the pressure) of the collected air above the calcination temperature, specific to one of the SSA sterilization systems described above

- an RG regenerator, specific to SSA sterilization systems

- an adiabatic DAI holder, which reduces the temperature, and thus the sterilized air pressure, to the desired temperature and pressure in the treatment unit. If the temperature and pressure of the sterilized air obtained after compression are suitable for air conditioning operations, this holder and regenerator are no longer required.

- the UT treatment unit, which is a tank in which the air conditioning operations specific to an HVAC system designed for that space take place.

- an adiabatic DA2 holder, which reduces the temperature (and thus the pressure) of the sterilized air in the UT to the final temperature. If the final temperature is suitable for air conditioning operations, a single valve mounted between the regenerator and the UT is sufficient.

- an AHU2 sterilized and conditioned air distribution system, similar to AHU air handling systems, specific to a space-appropriate HVAC system

- optionally, one or more CI compressors and isothermal DI holders, mounted between two elements of the system, when the temperature at the outlet of the first element is suitable for the operations of the next element, but a change in pressure is recommended

All the components of these USCS systems can be found among the devices and devices that are produced in the current state of the art, but to obtain a satisfactory performance, the characteristics of some of them must be modified, different from those of the air processed in air conditioning systems. This category includes isothermal compressors and holders and the treatment unit.

The CI isothermal compressor (densifier) is used to increase the pressure of a given volume of gas, without substantially changing its temperature. In the current state of the art, this goal can be satisfactorily achieved by "almost isothermal" compressors, in which, by construction, some measures are taken to reduce as much as possible the polytropic index of compression: increasing the ratio between cylinder diameter and active stroke of the piston, abundant spraying of a liquid (water. most often) during compression, generation, or introduction of foam during compression, insertion into the cylinder of metal inserts with a large contact surface, combined with the use of a liquid piston. All these measures give results only correlated with variable piston speeds during a complete cycle: at the beginning of the compression, when the instantaneous mechanical work required is reduced, for a certain power yielded by the actuator, the speed can be comparable to that of adiabatic compressors but , as the gas pressure increases, the instantaneous mechanical work required increases, therefore, for the same power, the piston speed must decrease. In the present state of the art, for compression ratios of the order of hundreds, the duration of a cycle may be of the order of seconds, for higher compression ratios more compression steps are required, or cycles with an even lower frequency. The results can be improved if the piston speed is controlled throughout the compression cycle, so that this speed decreases with increasing cylinder pressure, as it approaches the final value, as the surface area decreases (hence the flow). thermal) through which the excess heat of the compressed gas is transferred to the external environment, or to another cold source).

RO 135278 AO

The compressor proposed by this invention, for which we will continue to use the name "densifier", uses to a greater or lesser extent, depending on the specific applications served and the chosen construction variant, one or more techniques for reducing polytropic index of compression, from the current state of the art. In addition, in all the variants described, used in various applications, between the inner face of the piston 5.2 (Fig. 10), and the cylinder head 5.1. the densifier has a "thermal sponge" 5.3. This is a solid deformable body, with variable volume, but with a surface in direct contact with the almost constant ambient gas, the deformation of which is constantly controlled by the position of the piston. The simplest to implement is a sponge in the form of a multialveolar system (foam obtained from metallic or non-metallic compounds, plates with large, irregular surfaces) made of materials with controllable deformation, with high thermal capacity, preferably metallic (they also have conductivity high thermal), or natural rubber, synthetic rubber, elastomers, elastic polymers, isoprene, etc. The alveoli of the system consist of gaps formed between various strips, or metal plates, elastic cords or bars, springs, springs, membranes, fabrics of elastic and non-elastic materials, metallic and non-metallic, various products with open alveoli (which all communicate with each other), of other types of elastic or non-elastic metal components, airbags with elastic walls, etc. Ideally, the instantaneous volume of the sponge Vb, consisting of the total volume of its solid components and that of the gas in the wells, for any of the positions of the piston, should not change significantly after a large number of compression processes. However, some small variations are acceptable if they are oscillations around an average value.

Such a body is made by joining a solid part, with a slightly variable volume Vs when compressed, and a gaseous part, with a _{decreasing variable volume Vgi n} , when the sponge is compressed. The alveoli of the Vgin volume communicate with each other and with the environment. If the system also contains closed gas wells, they are considered to be part of the Vs volume (even if they undergo volume variations in the compression process and also absorb mechanical energy, directly from the energy supplied by the piston). In the initial state (at rest, or after a slight compression), with the piston in PMI (lower dead center), the sponge can be framed in an initial volume Vi and an initial limiting outer surface Si. In the final state (maximum compression), with the piston in PMS (top dead center), it can be framed in a final volume V / and a final limiting outer surface Sf The solid elements that make up the solid part Vy each have an individual outer surface , in contact with the Vgi „component of the sponge. The sum of all these individual surfaces is the contact surface Sc, through which the sponge absorbs some of the heat introduced by the piston during gas compression. During the compression operation, this surface shrinks quite a bit due to the deformation produced by the compression, but can undergo significant variations when two individual surfaces overlap, removing the gas between them, or forming a closed alveolus.

Also, during the compression process, in different phases of it, inside the compressor cylinder (we will consider the concept of cylinder in its broadest sense, the section perpendicular to the shaft may have some shape, not necessarily circular) may appear some volume, variable, of liquid Vl. bordered by the variable limiting surface Sl. In areas where the liquid part adheres to solid elements of the piston, or of the thermal sponge, the covered surface is considered to be part of Sl. For example, if all the inner surfaces of the cylinder components are covered with lubricant, the heat transfer takes place between gas and liquid through the surface Sl. following the evacuation of the excess heat by the heat transfer between the liquid and the metal components. The volume of the liquid can be made up of a single component, or a large number of components, scattered both in and out of the Vgin component of the sponge and in the volume of gas between the sponge and the walls of the compressor.

RO 135278 AO

Therefore, when the densifier piston is in PMI, the initial volume of cylinder C _CY i consists of a volume of gas Vgi = Vgi _n + Vg _ex , the volume of the sponge solid part Vs and possibly the initial volume of liquid Vu ( here, including the initial amount of lubricant in the cylinder). In the case of solid piston compressors, the volume Va and temperature Tu of this lubricant have insignificant variations in the compression process: an amount of lubricant equal to that introduced (continuously, or at a certain point in the cycle) through the inlet pipe, is evacuated in the same way through the discharge pipe. With the evacuation of this slice of lubricant, a part Q1 of the heat input of the piston action during that compression cycle is also evacuated.

In the case of solid piston compressors, as the piston moves towards PMS, Vi. and Vy remain unchanged, however, both components Vg / n and Vg ,,,. of Vg decreases accordingly. An amount of thermal energy Qi equal to the instantaneous mechanical work Wi performed by the piston is instantly transferred to the entire amount of gas in the cylinder, which tends to increase its temperature evenly. Gas particles in the immediate vicinity of the piston, cylinder cap and walls, lubricant particles, as well as those in and near the thermal sponge, transfer some of this heat to them, so that the polytropic index of compression is higher. lower than the adiabatic index. The temperature distribution inside the gas volume becomes uneven, leading to an instantaneous average temperature T ,,,, of the gas. Also, solid and liquid particles that have received thermal energy from the gas in the cylinder, transfer some of the same heat to the solid and liquid particles in their immediate vicinity, and they transmit it, through conduction, to the rest of the body (liquid or solid). ), which leads to uneven temperatures of the piston, cap, walls, lubricant and sponge and their occurrence of instantaneous average temperatures: Tp _m i, Tc _m i. Tw _m , Tuni. respectively Tsm,. It should be noted that, due in particular to the high ratio of solid and liquid elements in the process to mass of gas in the cylinder, at not very high compression ratios (below 100), the temperature of solids and liquids increases very little during a single cycle ( however prolonged it may be). Significant growth occurs only at very high compression ratios, or after a large number of cycles. Therefore, we will analyze the compression process that takes place in a stationary regime, in which the instantaneous average temperatures Tp _m i. Tc _m i. Tw _m i. Tuni, and Tsmi do not change during a cycle.

An isothermal compression, in which the gas and the surrounding environment have the same temperature (ideal temperature T _um b), is not possible because, in order to evacuate the energy received from the piston, the temperature of the gas Tg must be (however slightly) higher. that of the environment T _am b. The rate at which this energy is discharged depends on the magnitude of the difference between these temperatures. Theoretical and experimental studies undertaken by many researchers on these processes have concluded that from an energy point of view, the most efficient strategy by which a mg quantity of gas with pressure pi and temperature Tamb is brought to pressure p2 and temperature Tamb is a process in three steps:

- an isentropic compression up to the working temperature Ti-

- an isothermal compression at the working temperature Ti-, up to a pressure pj> p2 - an isentropic expansion up to the temperature Tamb and the pressure p2

The choice of working temperature Ti _: is made for each particular case and is a compromise between the amount of energy consumed in addition to the ideal compression (at the ideal temperature? <, „, />) And the duration of the compression cycle.

Obtaining a perfectly isothermal compression at a temperature E- of the gas in the cylinder can be obtained if the instantaneous thermal energy transmitted by the piston to the gas in the cylinder (equal to the instantaneous mechanical work yielded by the piston) is equal to the instantaneous thermal energy taken from the gas. to the components of the compressor (piston, cover, walls, lubricant and sponge), which are in direct contact with this gas, through the surfaces Ap, Ac, Ave, Al, respectively As.

RO 135278 AO

This heat transfer is patronized by Newton's law: Qi = hiAi (Ti-Tanib). where Qi is the instantaneous heat transfer rate for component i (i = p, c, w, l, or s). and hi is the respective heat transfer coefficient. Therefore, the equation Wi-Xh, Ai (Ti _: -T _im b) must be satisfied. for each moment of the compression cycle. Here, Wi is the instant mechanical work of the piston. In general, the variables that appear in this equation are known, except for the hi coefficients, for which theoretical research, but especially experimental research, can provide approximations, satisfactory for many practical situations. We note, however, that few results are published on the influence of pressure and temperature changes (due to compression) on this coefficient.

For compressors whose dimensional and material characteristics are known (both of the compressor and of the environment), for a temperature Ti- of the gas and an initial temperature T _am ba of the environment and of the components of the compressor, the imposition of the condition to achieve isothermal compression leads us to a differential equation in which the only unknown is the function Vi- (t): the variation over time, during a cycle, of the speed of movement of the piston. If the motion relation described by the gas temperature is observed, it remains at the value Tî _: throughout the cycle t, - and the energy consumed for compression is minimal, compared to any other motion relation v (t), for a cycle with duration ti-. For a standardized temperature difference AT = Ti _Z -T _um b b, a standard isothermal start speed can be defined, equal to the speed Vi- (to) from the initial moment of the cycle, a quantity that can characterize any compressor (or holder) in terms of its ability to exchange heat with its environment.

This equilibrium equation justifies all the procedures used in the current state of the art to increase the polytropic coefficient of the processes of expansion and compression of gases and vapors. All these processes increase, by different methods, the sum of Ct-FIvAî (global heat transfer coefficient): by increasing the heat transfer coefficient of one or more components, or by increasing the heat transfer surface, by introducing solid components, or additional liquids: lubricant, liquid drops, aqueous foam, metal inserts, etc. The common feature of these processes is their uneven and limited effect both in the cylinder space and during the compression cycle. The overall heat transfer coefficient is dependent on the position of the piston, and a relationship for the calculation of Vi _: (t) is, in this situation, quite difficult.

The elastic thermal sponge can be made in such a way that, under the concrete temperature and pressure conditions of the respective process, the total surface of its constructive components ΣΑμ (and the corresponding thermal transfer coefficient ZhjbAjb, where j refers to the order of the components) remain almost constant. throughout the compression. If this area is large enough, the contribution of the other elements contributing to the overall heat transfer coefficient (eg side walls) is insignificant. If the coefficients hii, are constant, or if their variation can be considered linear in relation to the pressure, we will obtain for n / t), in the case of compression, an exponential decrease in time, much less accentuated than in the situation where the EhAi coefficient is decreases as the piston moves (especially at high pressures). Therefore, the amount of compressed gas having a certain pressure and temperature, obtained in the same time interval, by using two compressors. characterized by the same isothermal starting speed, but different from a constructive point of view (one being equipped with a liquid piston and metal inserts with the initial surface A /, decreasing as the piston moves, the other equipped with a solid piston and a sponge elastic metal having a constant heat transfer surface A /), differs from one to another, all the more so as the compression ratio increases.

For example, in a conventional solid-piston compressor made of metal parts kept at a constant temperature T _um h, the cylinder having a length of 30 cm and a diameter of 20 cm, if the temperature of the aspirated gas has the pressure p _an ib and the temperature Ti- = T _at mb + 10 ° C, se

RO 135278 AO can produce an isothermal compression up to a pressure pi = ~ l.39p _a mb (7.39 = e ² ) with a duration of 166s, if the initial piston speed is 3.6 mm / s, and then decreases exponentially to 0.49 mm / s. In this way, in an hour, approx. 20 cycles and about 0.2 m ³ of compressed gas are obtained. In a compressor identical to this one, but with a diameter of 200 cm, the variation curve of the piston speed for an isothermal compression is the same (the contribution of the side wall to the evacuation of the excess heat we considered, in both cases, negligible), but it is they obtain about 20 m ³ of compressed gas, consuming (and transferring to the environment) an energy 100 times higher. If we insert in this compressor an elastic thermal sponge, made of 100 plates, of the same metal with the piston and the cover, with a thickness of 0.1 mm and a diameter of about 199 cm, spaced apart by means of elastic spacers, at an initial distance of 3 mm, isothermal compression with speed v ^ t), from the first cycle, occurs at a piston speed of about 100 times higher. If an efficient heat dissipation process is implemented in the system, the isothermal regime is maintained for the following cycles. To maintain the original volume of the compressor, the length of the cylinder must be increased by about 1 cm to compensate for the thickness of the sponge in the fully compressed state (plus a length corresponding to the implementation of a suitable cooling system), in which case. get about 2000 m ³ of compressed gas.

In an isothermal compression, the mechanical energy transferred by the piston to the gas in the cylinder (whose temperature is TA and transformed into heat is taken up entirely by the components of the compressor) which, being in contact with the environment, transmit part of it. of this energy) and by the thermal sponge (which is in contact with the components of the compressor in very small portions, otherwise it is in contact only with the gas in the cylinder) Therefore, if the active surface of the sponge is much larger Compressor active parts, most of the excess thermal energy is taken up by the sponge, the temperature of which gradually increases, the temperature of the compressor components changing much less. - the gas cannot be maintained at this value unless the piston speed is reduced accordingly. Since the density of the sponge and the solid and liquid elements of the sponge are very high, if the equation of motion Vi- (t) is still observed, the increase in their temperature (and, consequently, of the gas in the cylinder) is slow, being necessary. a significant number of piston strokes N for this change to be noticeable as the mechanical power absorbed by the piston actuator increases (N is greater the larger the sponge mass). If the densifier continues to operate without removing the heat accumulated by the sponge, the mechanical energy received from the outside by the piston is accumulated both as potential energy stored in the compressed gas tank and in the thermal sponge as internal energy. When the temperature of the sponge reaches high values, the energy accumulated in the sponge is equivalent to the potential energy stored in a tank of appreciable size, containing compressed gas at an appreciable pressure. These theoretical considerations justify two different strategies for using the densifier:

without a sponge cooling system, which allows the accumulation inside of it of an appreciable amount of thermal energy with sponge cooling system, which allows it to be kept at a constant temperature Tumb, so keeping the gas temperature at a value Ti-

It should be noted that in this type of compressor configuration and in this mode of piston movement, because the coefficient ΣΕΑι is almost constant throughout the isothermal compression, even if the compression ratio is very high, the division of the compression process into several stages ( different stages, between which the gas is cooled in external heat exchangers, until Τ _Μ „Α becomes useless, but it remains useful,

RO 135278 A simple, state-of-the-art AO with which to obtain the initial volume of gas (introduced through the inlet valve at a half-stroke of the piston), having a temperature T ,. (so with the replacement of the adiabatic compressor that had the role of bringing the gas to this temperature) and the starting pressure ει-po. In this way, the rapid movements of the piston, those with high speed in the initial phase are avoided and the portion of the cylinder near PM1 is used more efficiently.

Depending on the characteristics of the application in which the need for isothermal compression appears, a very wide variety of possible configurations for the construction of the compressor and the thermal sponge can be achieved. Figures 10-18 show some examples of solid piston densifiers (they use fixed amounts of liquid only for lubrication, to cool the sponge during compression and to evacuate the compressed gas left in the cylinder when the piston reaches PMS. Without any role in gas compression)

The simplest configurations are obtained by modifying the configuration of the compressors of the current state of the art, by inserting a thermal sponge in such a device. The compressor in Fig. 10 consists of the housing 5.1 (composed of the cover with the valves 5.5 and the side walls), the piston 5.2 and the thermal sponge 5.3. Its operation is identical to that of a sponge-free compressor: the inlet gas is made through the inlet valve, by moving the piston from the upper dead center PMS to the lower dead center PMI, with the discharge valve closed, and the compression to the desired pressure pf, through its displacement from the lower dead center PMI to the T-point, with both valves closed, during which the predominant heat transfer from the gas to the sponge takes place. When the piston reaches this point, the discharge valve opens, so that the gas with the pressure pf is discharged to the desired destination, by moving the piston from point T to the top dead center PMS. If the destination tank is large enough, during this time, the gas receives only the mechanical displacement energy W </ = pf Vg /.

When the piston is in PMS, large volumes of compressed gas (so-called "dead volume") may remain inside the sponge and in the space between the sponge and the cylinder walls, which will expand to the _pin before opening the intake valve. , which, as in the case of state-of-the-art compressors, leads to a decrease in the final compressed gas flow rate, which is all the more important as the compression ratio of the compressor is higher. In order to avoid this phenomenon, a series of constructive solutions can be implemented, some of which are described in Fig. 10a, 10b, Fig.11 and 11a.

The compressor in Fig. 11 illustrates this type of configuration: the thermal sponge 5.4 of this compressor is a helical elastic metal spring. with the section of the coil rectangular, one end of the spring being fixed to the cover 5.1, the other to the piston 5.2. With the piston in the PMI. the spring is de-energized (or has a slight pre-tension). As shown in the figure, the piston is in an intermediate position, which may coincide with the T-point. which includes a cylindrical space with a diameter equal to the inner diameter of the spring and the annular space between the spring and the walls of the cylinder) is quite large. It can be reduced by introducing additional springs with small diameters in this space, increasing the heat transfer surface. A complete elimination of the dead volume can be achieved by introducing into the cylinder, from the initial phase, a liquid phase of the thermal sponge: an appropriate amount of lubricant, or heat transfer fluid. One solution that can simultaneously solve the elimination of a significant amount of excess thermal energy accumulated by the thermal sponge is to achieve a complete cooling circuit, by circulating a constant flow of lubricant, or by continuously introducing aqueous cooling foam, with cyclic removal of excess liquid, or continuous or intermittent spraying (towards the end of the compression cycle) of a coolant, or by any other method which advantageously combines the action of the solid piston with that of a liquid piston. If the coolant flow

RO 135278 AO

5221 flowing through this circuit is properly correlated with the instantaneous gas pressure in the cylinder and the instantaneous speed of the piston, the compression is isothermal.

In these new configurations, it becomes advantageous to use new processes, corresponding to the new conditions, for the discharge of compressed gas from the cylinder. In Figure 10a, both 5.5 valves in Figure 10 have been replaced with 5.6 wide windows, created in the side walls of the cylinder (in the case of a cylinder with a rectangular section, the width of the window may be equal to the thickness of the sponge when the piston is in PMS, and its length can be equal to the width of the wall), which allow a rapid, low-irreversibility circulation of gas and liquid. The thermal sponge is made of flat plates 5.11. As shown in the figure, the piston is in PMS. with the 5.6a intake valve open. The valve remains open until the piston reaches the PMI. During this time, with the piston in an intermediate position, the cooling circuit can be activated (not shown in the figure, consisting of densifier, heat exchanger, closed / open valves and connecting pipes). By intermittently introducing a coolant into the cylinder (once for a number of N cycles), the excess heat accumulated after a large number of compression cycles can be removed. During the cooling operation, the piston can improve, through short trips, the efficiency of this operation. At the end of the cooling phase, the piston must travel to the PMS to evacuate the coolant from the cylinder, then, after proper switching of the valves, gas is admitted into the cylinder by moving the piston in PMI. The exact amount of liquid required to remove dead volume remains in the cylinder.

The operation of discharging the compressed gas is done through the window 5.6r and the pipe 5.6c, which connects to the storage tank (or another useful destination) and which can be filled with the working gas, or with the liquid from the associated hydraulic circuit, having pf pressure. If liquid is found in the pipe, window 5.6a is used only for gas inlet. In this case, when the piston, in its stroke towards PMS, reaches point T, the opening of the window 5.6r allows the liquid from the pipe 5.6c to enter the cylinder and to replace the compressed gas at the pressure pf. This, due to the archimedean forces, reaches the top of the storage tank, being replaced by an equal volume of liquid. In turn, some of this fluid is discharged back into the pipe by moving the piston from the T-point to the PMS. When the piston reaches PMS and the discharge window closes at the control of the control system, the exact amount of liquid required to remove the dead volume remains in the cylinder. This amount of liquid can remain permanently in the cylinder as a liquid fraction of the thermal sponge. In this configuration, the removal of excess heat is done by replacing this fraction with cooler liquid. during the discharge operation (the warmer liquid being subjected to ascending forces), an operation whose duration can be extended (periodically, or at each cycle) by the commands transmitted to the piston by the control system. Another possibility to replace this fraction, with increasing the flow of gas circulated, is to remove the liquid remaining in the cylinder, during the operation of fresh gas inlet, by opening a valve located in the piston (with the discharge of liquid into the crankcase). or by its absorption through a component duct of a cooling circuit, equipped with a suitable heat exchanger.

Other possible configurations for compressed gas exhaust are shown in Figure 10b. wherein 5.1a is a small densifier, the intake window of which 5.6a is at the same time an outlet window for the 5.1 densifier, with which it has a common wall. This mini-densifier is equipped with a 5.2a piston and a thermal sponge made of 5.1 la flat plates. The displacement of the piston 5.2 from PMS to PMI leads to the intake of working gas in both cylinders at pressure p,. The first phase of compression is performed by moving the piston 5.2 of the PMI at point T, during which the volume of the gas in the 5.1a densifier does not change, but the gas in this cylinder is compressed in the same ratio as the gas in the 5.1 cylinder, and its sponge contributes to the accumulation of excess thermal energy. As the compression conditions in the two densifiers are different, they will be different.

RO 135278 AO throughout the compression, and the temperatures of the gas and thermal sponges they contain. The liquid fraction of the sponge in the 5.1 densifier can be chosen so that, when the piston 5.2 reaches the PMS, it occupies the entire volume of the cylinder not occupied by the solid fraction, without penetrating at all into the cylinder 5.1a, all the initial volume of gas from cylinder to be transferred to cylinder 5.1a, and its pressure to reach the final value pf. In cylinder 5.1a, the gas may be subjected to a new isothermal compression stage, or may be discharged into the storage tank by moving piston 5.2a from PMI to PMS. In applications where the compressed gas is subjected to severe purity conditions, the thermal sponge of the 5.1a densifier is made only with a solid fraction, so that the dead volume is as small as possible. Otherwise, it is preferable to supplement the solid fraction 5.3a with a liquid fraction 5.3b, which ensures the maximum flow of compressed gas (mini-densifier to the right of figure 10b).

The removal of the thermal energy absorbed by the thermal sponge can be done, for all the configurations described, with one of the processes described above. When, for the purpose for which the densifier is used, it is useful to recover the energy supplied to the system by means of the piston, devices for recovering the thermal energy accumulated by the thermal sponge may be implemented. Figure 11a shows such a process, applied to the densifier in Figure 11. This densifier has a thermal sponge composed of a solid fraction (a helical arc with a rectangular section) and a liquid fraction that completely eliminates the dead volume of the cylinder, when the piston is in PMS. Gas inlet and discharge are made through the 5.5 valves in the densifier cover (Fig. 11), or through the 5.6c windows in the side walls. As mentioned above, if the densifier is not equipped with a cooling circuit, the temperature of the gas (and thus the mechanical work required for compression for one cycle) and the thermal sponge increase progressively after a sufficiently large number of N compression cycles. . The heat received by the gas is stored, together with the accumulated mechanical energy, in the compressed gas storage tank. After a large number of compression cycles, when the sponge temperature reaches a convenient value, the sponge of the densifier can be completely removed from the densifier, stored in a separate enclosure and replaced with an identical sponge with the temperature T _um b This is possible if the cylinder has a rectangular section, the side windows 5.6c and the lids closing them shall be the same width as the compressed sponge and the length equal to the side wall and if, at the time immediately prior to extraction, the side covers 5.6c and the edge plates of the sponge 5.4a they are mechanically coupled to each other so that they can be translated. sliding on the surface of the piston, then on the outer rails (for example, pushed by a 5.2d piston, or by dragging).

When designing and making the thermal sponge, several objectives must be taken into account:

thermal capacity as much as possible minimizing the distance between any point of the volume occupied by the gas and the nearest point of the volume occupied by a solid element, or a liquid, throughout the compression process keeping for as long as possible of its thermal, elastic characteristics and of the constructive dimensions from the unstressed state, the total volume of its component elements should be as small as possible (unless the sponge is also a useful storage of thermal energy) “dead volume” as small as possible increase the heat transfer coefficients and ensure the smoothest possible circulation of gas and liquid throughout the densifier, to reduce frictional losses, the deliberate creation, in the volume of gas, of regions with different temperatures, to cause convective displacement of the gas. : making small holes in the sponge elements, using plates made of metal fabrics , with small mesh, etc

EN 135278 AO Minimize the friction between the sponge components and between the cylinder walls

To eliminate the possibility of the sponge moving freely in the cylinder and to eliminate the possibility of it coming into contact with the walls of the cylinder, one solution is to mount guide rods 5.7 (Fig. 12 and 15) fixed to the piston, which pierce cover through holes provided with seals 5.8 (or vice versa). If these rods are made of thermal tubes, an increase in the overall heat transfer coefficient is obtained, both by their own heat transfer coefficient and by the convective circulation it causes inside the gas.

At the densifier in FIG. 12. coil spring springs (circular, rectangular, etc.) 5.12 (with springs 5.13 smaller in diameter in the inner space) serve as a support for a series of horizontal plates 5.11. In order to keep the properties of the arches 5.12 unchanged, it is most often necessary to fix the plates 5.11 by means of a deformed coating 5.12a as in figure 12a. This casing can be continuous, along the entire length of the coil, or it can be made of rings mounted from place to place. Fixing the plates to the springs is facilitated when conical springs are used (the diameter of the coils decreases from the base to the upper coil). In this way. the number of plates mounted at the bottom increases greatly, thus ensuring a very large heat transfer area and, consequently, a high speed of the piston, or a very small difference between the temperature of the gas and that of the thermal sponge. In the case of combined densifiers (solid piston, supplemented with a liquid piston, spring 5.13 may be replaced by a helical tube, open at the inner end, of a deformable material (eg polyethylene) through which liquid flows at a pressure equal to of the gas in the cylinder.

In the configuration of Fig. 12b, repeated direct fixing of the plates to the side of the springs is avoided by increasing the number of springs used: starting from a base plate on which a small number (4,6,8, ...) of springs is placed of equal length L, on which the second plate is placed. The next plate is fixed to the side of the springs by means of the support material 13.a. at the desired distance (maximum density is obtained when this distance is zero, with the springs fully compressed). This plate serves as a support for a new set of springs of the same length L. For their installation, appropriate passage holes are required in all intermediate plates. A new horizontal plate is mounted over these springs. The installation is continued, in this order, until all the intermediate spaces are filled. Figure 12c is a section through the lower plates of the sponge, when the piston is in PMS.

The densifier in Fig. 13 is made of horizontal plates 11, fixed to the elastic cords 5.7a, by means of a support cover 5.7b. When the piston is in PMI, the elastic strings are slightly tensioned, and when the piston is in PMS, the tension is maximum. To ensure a maximum density of the plates, the number of mounted ropes and the interleaving of the sets of metal plates can be increased.

Figure 14 shows a densifier configuration in which, starting from the configuration in Figure 12. the surface through which the heat absorption of the gas being compressed by the thermal sponge is achieved is considerably increased by the installation of vertical fins. There is a very high degree of freedom in the shape of these fins, their size (a large thickness ensures a slower rise in sponge temperature. A shorter distance between the fins ensures better gas cooling, a wider width reduces the number of horizontal plates required, a larger diameter of the holes in both the vertical and horizontal plates ensures efficient convective circulation and lower friction losses in the liquid to be introduced at the end of compression to evacuate the compressed gas, etc). The smaller number of horizontal plates ensures that the stability of the sponge can be ensured by gaskets (not necessarily sealed) mounted on the circumference of each of these plates (the pressure in the cylinder remains uniform due to

holes in the plates), or through guide rollers, the friction of which is minimal. Figure 14 shows the thermal sponge of such a densifier, with the piston in an intermediate position, and Figure 14a, the same sponge with the piston in PMS. When the piston is in PMS, the compressed gas is distributed evenly throughout the cylinder volume. Its evacuation can be done by the procedure described in figure 10a: opening the window 5.6r to the discharge pipe 5.6c (where liquid is found at the pressure pf. Determines, if this window is located at maximum level, the replacement of the gas in the cylinder with liquid At the same pressure, if the temperature of the liquid is lower than the temperature of the sponge, it will take up and evacuate part of the thermal energy accumulated by the sponge, the higher it will be, the longer it will stay in the cylinder.

Configurations can be made in which the vertical fins are the side walls of an area of the cylinder (in a horizontal section, they are a succession of concentric circles, or rectangles with smaller and smaller sides, or other geometric figures placed in each other), and the horizontal plates have raised edges, like trays (5.1 Ic, figure 14b). the height of the edges of the trays will determine the size of the liquid fraction of the sponge 5.1 at, which must ensure, when the piston is in point T. that the pressure in the cylinder reaches the value /? /, otherwise the discharge valve will open in another position of the piston.

The configuration in Figure 14b shows another difference from the configuration in Figure 14: the thermal sponge is made without elastic springs between the horizontal plates, but the densifier is provided with a locking-unlocking mechanism (not shown in the figure) which causes the action of the piston transmit to these boards successively, not simultaneously. This results in both the change in the pressure variation curve in the cylinder and the time and space distribution of the thermal energy distribution accumulated by the thermal sponge. As shown in the figure, the piston is in the position where only two horizontal plates have been moved, and the liquid on these plates has been pushed to occupy the spaces between the vertical plates.

The densifiers in Figs. 15 and 16 also contain thermal sponges made of elastic and non-elastic metal components which, when the piston is in PMS, occupy almost entirely the inner volume of the densifier. The one in Fig. 15 is constructed by alternating flat plates 5.11 with a series of arched plates 5.14, the whole assembly being stabilized by a rod 5.7, which has one end fixed to the cylinder cover and the other end pierces the piston through a hole made in the piston and sealed with gasket 5.8. The densifier in Figure 16 is similar, but the intermediate plates, mounted between the flat plates, are a joint between flat portions 5.11, and portions 5.15 made of arched elastic elements. Section 1-1 shows an inside, top view of the system.

This type of thermal sponge, as well as other configurations at which the volume reached by the gas when the piston is in PMS is very small. can be used to reduce the energy consumption of compressors with polyunit superunit index, compressors in which the main objective is not to perform an isothermal compression, but to obtain a large volume of compressed gas in a short time. This objective can be achieved in a more economical way than in the current state of the art by introducing into the compressor a thermal sponge with an absorption surface as large as possible, obtained with storage elements with a volume as small as possible, associated with a system. continuous flow lubrication, which also takes over the cooling function of the sponge and reduces the dead volume as much as possible when the piston is in PMS. In addition, the introduction of a piston actuator system which (at a compression cycle duration equal to that of a conventional compressor), introduces a higher piston speed in the discharge phase, in the intake phase and in the first part of the active stroke of the piston, and a lower speed towards the end of the compression process, further reduces the energy consumption and streamlines the operation of the cooling system.

Any state-of-the-art polytropic index compressor may be reduced in energy consumption if a sponge is inserted inside its cylinder.

RO 135278 Thermal AO complying with these recommendations. In most cases, this involves some constructive modifications of the original compressor, necessary to shorten the piston stroke (or lengthen the useful part of the cylinder) with a Gh value, equal to the thickness of the sponge in the fully compressed state and to adapt the lubrication system to the new requirements. . Given the evolution of energy prices and the objectives of reducing thermal and noxious pollution, the costs necessary for these adaptations will be reimbursed.

Configurations without elastic components can also be made for densifiers. The densifier in figure 17 (a horizontal section through the cylinder) consists of a thermal sponge made of metal plates with the smallest thickness (if a high density is desired), but large enough so that the plates do not suffer, due to their own weight , or of the executed movements, residual deformations. In order to ensure a stable horizontal position of the plates, as well as a variable spacing (depending on the position of the piston), a sufficient number of brackets 5.19 are mounted inside the cylinder, located in the immediate vicinity of the walls, so that the movements one of them not to disturb the movements of the other. In Figure 17, section 1 -1 is a vertical section through the cylinder, made in the area where the brackets are mounted. The support holder is made in the form of a narrow blade on whose inner face (the one facing inwards of the cylinder) are mounted, (by welding, riveting, stamping, etc.) the supports 5.20 of the plates. The supports are made of sheet metal, wire, parts machined by cutting, etc. and are in a number equal to that of the plates, or a submultiple of this number, if the technique of intercalated plates is used. One end of the support bracket is fixed, by means of a movable joint, to a 5.18 clamp rigidly fixed to the piston. At the other end of the blade, a short rotating arm is also fixed by a movable joint, which has a 5.16 guide roller attached, which can run on a rail, or in a 5.17 channel in the cylinder cover. The horizontal plates are rectangular, occupying almost the entire surface of the horizontal section, but they practiced a series of cuts to avoid collision with the holder and the supports on the neighboring levels, as well as to create the 5.21 cuffs that tread on all the supports on the level. respectively.

When the piston is in PMI, the support brackets make the minimum angle (almost 0 °) with the vertical axis, and the distance between the plates is maximum. As the piston moves, the angle of the longitudinal axis of the vertical support brackets increases and the distance between the plates decreases. When the piston is in PMS, the support brackets make the maximum angle (almost 90 °) with the vertical axis, and the distance between the plates is minimal. With careful processing of the components, the plates can overlap perfectly, without intermediate spaces, ensuring a small dead volume and easy circulation for the liquid intended to replace this gas.

Figure 18 shows a horizontal section through the cylinder of a densifier which also consists of a thermal sponge made of 5.11 very thick metal plates, supported on a support system. The support brackets are made of a row of pairs of eclipses 5.23 and 5.24, placed in parallel vertical planes. Both eclipses have a centrally located hole through which a bolt can rotate, which can be one of the supports of a horizontal plate, or can be rigidly attached to the plate. The ends of the eclipses are coupled by movable joints with two other pairs of eclipses (one lower and one upper), and the pairs of extreme eclipses are shorter and are coupled by movable joints with a support 5.22, one fixed on the piston, the other on the cover cylinder. In the "magnifying glass" in Fig. 18A shows a front view of the support system. in the position corresponding to the piston allied in PMS, and in section 1-1 a front view of the entire sponge, corresponding to the piston in an intermediate position. In this configuration, a high density of horizontal plates 5.11 can only be ensured by increasing the number of brackets. associated with a horizontal plate interleaving process.

The mode of operation of the pistons of these types of densifiers is chosen according to the objective pursued by the compression of the gas. When inserting the thermal sponge into

RO 135278 AO the structure of the cylinder aims only to achieve a reduction of the energy consumed, by changing the polytropic index, the actuation of the piston is done by one of the processes of the prior art entered into current use. However, if a compression as close as possible to isothermal compression is sought (especially when a high compression ratio is also sought), it is necessary to use a system that instantly changes the piston speed according to its position (instantaneous compression ratio). . One of the methods used for this purpose is the implementation in the drive system of a suitable cam system, for example the drive system with profiled channel described above and shown in Figure 1. Another method according to this objective is that of the linear electric motor drive ( usually mounted on the piston rod), with constant voltage and variable current. This process is advantageous in the case of isothermal compression as this type of compression involves the equality between the mechanical energy released by the piston and the thermal energy released by the gas to the sponge and the components of the densifier. In the case of a constant global heat transfer coefficient, this equality implies the constant maintenance of the supplied current.

Large compression ratios involve large differences between the instantaneous mechanical work done by the piston at the start and the end of the compression process. For this reason, the use of a hydraulic drive is recommended in these cases. where the force causing the piston to move is the pressure of a fluid supplied by a variable speed (or variable flow) hydraulic motor. Therefore, the large difference in mechanical work between different stages of the process translates into large variations in liquid flow. In some prior art systems, the reduction of the flow gap between the different moments of the process is solved by the combined use of a solid piston and a liquid one.

Figures 19 and 19.a show a solid telescopic piston, hydraulically operated, with the piston in PMI, respectively in an intermediate position. In the configuration in the figure, the first part of the piston stroke is divided, by the telescopic construction of the piston rod, into 4 segments of equal length and a segment of variable length, but both the number of segments and their length are at the discretion of the designer. The first part 6. Io, of the rod is rigidly attached to the piston in its center and ends with an outer ring 6.2, with a diameter larger than the diameter of the rod. The other sections 6.la, 6.1b, 6.1c and 6.1d are ring cylinders with an inner diameter equal to the outer diameter of the outer ring 6.2 of the preceding segment and an outer diameter equal to the inner diameter of the inner ring 6.3 of the next segment. The outer rings of each segment slide on the inner surface of the next segment, and the inner rings slide on the outer surface of the previous segment, the gaskets 5.8 ensuring sealing. In the configuration in the figure, the space between the lower surface of the piston and the upper surfaces of the inner rings, as well as that between the outer surfaces of one segment and the inner surfaces of the next segment are emptied, but configurations can be made in which this space is occupied by a fluid. liquid, or gaseous, at atmospheric pressure, if in the thickness of the inner wings are provided channels for its circulation, and through the body of one of the segments is made a channel, which through a flexible tube makes a connection between this fluid and an outer tank. It is also possible to make configurations in which the pressure of this fluid differs from the atmospheric one.

When the piston is in PMI, the fluid supplied by a hydraulic motor enters through the gate 6.4 and presses on the outer ring of the segment 6. Io. whose surface is much smaller than the surface of the piston and as the gas pressure in the densifier is reduced, the speed of the piston will be high. As the gas pressure in the densifier increases, the piston speed decreases. When this outer ring steps on the lower surface of the inner ring of segment 6.1a, the displacement motion is also transmitted to this segment, which causes the working fluid to penetrate below the lower face of its inner ring. as the active surface area increases, the piston speed has an increasing jump to decrease again as the piston moves. The piston speed jump is repeated by each

when the outer ring of one segment steps on the underside of the inner ring of the next segment. When the segment 6. Id is also driven in motion, the active surface becomes equal to that of the piston and its continuous movement, without jumps, with decreasing speed, until the moment when the power of the piston equals that necessary for compression. Engine power may be exceeded if telescoping continues in the same way with ring segments with the inner surface of the outer ring larger than the diameter of the piston (and than the denser cylinder), adding an additional cylinder of appropriate diameter.

A liquid component is used in state-of-the-art liquid piston compressors, which have outstanding lubricating and sealing properties, minimizing dead volume, coolant and mechanical compressive power transfer agent. In a liquid piston thickener, these properties are used in such a way that the heat transfer spray between the gas and the thermal sponge remains unchanged (or decreases as slowly as possible) for as long as possible. An example is the liquid piston densifier in Figure 20, in which the liquid component has predominantly the role of a piston acting simultaneously in / V elementary compressors. The gas in each of these elementary compressors gives off heat mainly to two circular surfaces 7.3a, with a diameter almost equal to the diameter of the cylinder in which they are installed. If the horizontal plates 7.3a were missing, the cylinder 7.1, the cover 7.2 and the liquid piston would constitute a liquid piston compressor, with an initial volume approximately equal to the sum of the volumes of the elementary V / V compressors, but with a heat transfer surface (variable), only with a higher fraction than that of an elementary compressor. Due to the way these plates are arranged, the liquid piston operates simultaneously in each of the / V elementary compressors, leading to the formation of a / V elementary pistons, the speed of each of them being / V times slower than the speed of the single piston, and the thermal energy corresponding to this power is distributed over a contact surface / V times larger. Therefore, we can perform an isothermal compression for approximately the same amount of gas, with a hydraulic motor speed (which supplies the liquid agent) N times higher (same power, distributed in a time interval N times shorter).

Starting from this idea, a multitude of configurations can be made. In figure 20, the densifier is cylindrical (in some applications a rectangular section is more advantageous), and in figure 22 is represented a section in plan, horizontal, at the level of an elementary compressor. The horizontal plates 7.3 and 7.4 separate the compressor from the 7g constant pressure tank and the liquid piston 71. respectively. Here, the liquid piston consists of a volume of liquid agent (the same liquid as the 7g tank) contained in the space between plate 7.4 and solid piston 7.5. equal to the free volume of the compressor. The condenser absorbs the compressed gas through valve 7a (located in the upper elementary compressor) as the piston 7.5 moves from PMS to PMI. Simultaneously, the liquid from the densifier is transferred to the tank 71. The discharge of the compressed gas is done at the level of each elementary compressor, through the windows 7.6a, practiced in the partition wall 7.6. This partition wall, together with the side wall 7.1 and the two vertical intermediate walls 7.6b (figure 22) border an annular sector 7s, which communicates freely with the tank 7g, being permanently flooded by the liquid agent with the pressure pj in the tank. The windows 7.6a are opened by moving a movable cover (piston 7.7) which presses tightly (by means of gaskets) on the wall 7.6 and is controlled by a differential pressure switch 7p, when the piston 7.5 is in position T and the pressure /? / A the liquid in the thickener is equal to that in the 7g tank. At this point, the gas pressure in each elementary compressor is equal to the pressure pf, plus the weight of the liquid column between the measuring point and the level of the liquid in that compressor. The displacement of the piston 7.7 causes the replacement of the entire amount of compressed gas in the densifier with liquid agent in the 7g tank and causes the liquid level in this tank to drop. If the 7.5 piston continues to run towards PMS, the amount of liquid between T-level and PMS level (equal to

RO 135278 AO the volume of compressed gas during a piston stroke) is discharged through the pipes 7r to another device with pressure pf (for example, a tank, or a hydraulic generator).

Cooling of the liquid and the plates in the densifier can be done by recirculating (continuous or intermittent) the liquid agent from the tank 71. An increase in heat transfer surfaces can be achieved if the pipe through which the gas is admitted to the densifier is fed by a foam generator. Foam or compressed gas can also be inserted directly into the liquid of each elementary compressor at the right time using thin pipes. In some configurations, this compressed gas may even come from the 7g tank.

The condenser in Figure 21 is built on the same principle, overlapping a large number of elementary compressors with liquid piston, made by intermittently mounting their upper and lower walls, 7.3s and 7.3i, respectively. Compared to the previous configuration, each elementary compressor has an agent distributor attached, from which the liquid compression agent is sprayed into the compressor, taking over the role of gas coolant. Similar to the previous configuration, a horizontal wall 7.3 separates the densifier 7c from the tank 7g, which is in direct communication with a tank 7s located, this time, in the center of the densifier, having a cylindrical shape and being separated from the densifier by the cylindrical wall 7.6, in which are executed windows 7.6a, at the level of each elementary compressor. Each of these windows corresponds to a similar window, located at the same level, in the cylindrical wall 7.7. placed inside cylinder 7.6 so that these windows overlap in the 'open' position and allow gas and liquid to pass from one compartment to another. Closing these windows in the "closed" position is done by rotating the cylindrical wall 7.7 at an appropriate angle, or by moving it vertically, so that the seals mounted on the outer surface of the cylinder 7.6 around the windows block all passageways. of gas. A section of the side wall, equal in height to that of the densifier, fitted with suitable sealing gaskets and provided with a horizontal displacement system, constitutes a window 7.8, through which the liquid agent is removed from the elementary compressors (after the discharge of the compressed gas and closing the valves 7.6a) and the compressed gas is introduced through the window 7a at the initial pressure.

In some configurations, when the densifier is made by means of parallel plates very close to each other, or by means of inserts with small alveoli, or of woven nets with very small meshes, in the case of liquids whose viscosity exceeds a certain limit, it is efficient implementation of devices to reduce the time required to evacuate the liquid from the densifier. after the compressed gas discharge phase. In Figures 21 (magnifying glass 7.10a) and 23, such a device is made by fragmenting the upper plates 7.3s of each elementary compressor, by cutting an annular sector and replacing it with a movable annular sector having a larger outer diameter, and the smaller interior. than the similar diameters of the cut sector. The movable ring sectors are all fixed to one or more rods 7.9. in a position lower than the corresponding plate 7,3s, so that, through the gaskets mounted on the edges of the upper surface, it does not allow the circulation of air and liquid to the lower compressor, when the rods 7.9 are in the "closed" position. Moving the entire plate-rod system to a lower position causes the opening of access paths in which the liquid-plate friction is greatly reduced. An increase in the efficiency of the liquid circulation is obtained when these movements are made at high speeds, with sudden starts and stops, so as to overcome the forces generated by the surface tension of the liquid.

Here is the sequence of phases in the densifier: the liquid agent is introduced into the tank 71, where it is distributed in the liquid distributors between the lower plates 7.3i of one elementary compressor and the upper 7.3s of the next elementary compressor. The gas layer between these plates is pushed through the holes 7.10 of the lower plate inside the compressor above. Various devices for regulating the flow of gas passing through these orifices can be implemented. In the configuration in figure 23. a simple plug (whose collar steps on the rod

RO 135278 AO microcompressor pistons 7.l0p, which in the initial position contain gas at atmospheric pressure) completely obstructs the access path when the gas pressure in the distributor reaches the value at which all distributors are filled with liquid. The pressure of the liquid continues to increase (not that of the gas) until the opening of the valves 7.1 at which they allow the liquid to enter the sprinklers 7.11. Various opening and adjustment systems can also be implemented for 7.11 valves, suitable for the specific application in which the densifier is used. You can also choose different types of sprinklers, or even a combination of several types, mounted in different positions. In the configuration of figure 23, the valve is a sealing plug directed by a prestressed spring, and the sprinkler is a simple disc-shaped cap, having provided on the side the horizontal spray holes. This valve opens when the difference between the pressure of the liquid in the distributor and that of the gas in the corresponding elementary compressor is greater than a preset value. This difference remains almost constant throughout the compression, but may differ slightly from one elementary compressor to another. The penetration of the liquid into the elementary compressors increases the pressure in each of them, as well as the corresponding increase in the thermal energy transmitted by the gas to the thermal sponge, a sponge in which an important role belongs to the liquid droplets dispersed in the gas being compressed. In the case of high compression ratios, when the height of the gas column in the elementary compressors is small and the stroke of the dispersed liquid droplets is low, the increase in heat absorption is increased by maintaining a large volume of liquid introduced into the system. exterior of excess fluid.

Using the same idea, numerous configurations of liquid piston densifiers can be made, having as main subassembly one or more solid piston densifiers. Any of the densifiers described above, or made on the same constructive principles may be used. In these configurations, the functionality of the system and its adaptation to various particular applications depend on the number and initial volume of the densifiers, as well as the amount of mechanical energy they can accumulate during compression. Such a configuration is described in Figure 24. 7g densifiers. equipped with a thermal sponge composed of elastic plates 7.3, are inserted into the cylinder of a liquid piston compressor and separated from the fluid in the cylinder by the walls of an elastic material 7.14, or only deformable (in some configurations the deformable walls of the piston densifiers are sufficient solid). The enclosures thus created communicate with the upper 7gs gas layer in the liquid piston compressor cylinder below the 7.2 cylinder cover. If a thermal sponge is installed in this layer (in the figure, a crosslinked metal mesh), it becomes an additional isothermal compressor, equipped with inlet and outlet valves 7.12. The liquid compression agent introduced into the cylinder will compress the gas here, causing it to move to the upper 7gs layer. and from here, to the inside of the 7g compressors. At the same time, the pressure of the liquid agent is exerted on the walls of the 7g compressors. Due to the elasticity of the plates that make up the thermal sponges. In the first phase, the change in the volume of the 7g compressors is small, as well as the thermal energy produced by the compression of the gas in the cylinder, it is partially transferred to the 7g thermal sponges. At this stage, both 7g compressors. as well as the 7gs densifier behaves like a gas piston compressor. the pressure that compresses the gas inside them is mainly given by the gas that enters the compressor. In the second phase, the walls of the 7g compressors are pressed until the plates that make up the sponge overlap, the liquid phase of each sponge occupies the dead volume of each elementary compressor, and the compressed gas is accumulated only in the 7gs compressor. From this point on, the compression can continue until the desired compression ratio is achieved. in the 7gs compressor. the only one left active and became a classic liquid piston compressor. The mechanical energy accumulated in the elastic elements of the 7g compressors is recovered in the post-discharge phase, by directing the liquid discharged from the cylinder to a hydraulic generator.

RO 135278 AO

The D2T two-stage compressor is made according to the principle diagram in Figure 25. The first TI compression stage can be any state-of-the-art 8.3 compressor, any of the types of 8.1 densifiers described in the previous sections, or any combination of compressors and densifiers that discharges into the same collector 8.8. The conditions that ensure a superior efficiency of the system are: a large and unobstructed section of the gas inlet and outlet, a sensitive opening, fast and with low pressure losses of the outlet, the existence of a liquid fraction of the thermal sponge of the whose volume is so adjusted (before, or during operation), that each time the piston reaches PMS, the dead volume of the compressor cylinder is zero. Depending on the application served, the discharge valve can be opened at a fixed gas pressure in the manifold (fixed position of the T-point of the piston), or at a variable pressure (starting from p,).

The best efficiency of the energy received by the system is obtained when the TI performs an isothermal compression, up to the pressure pp, with a minimum AT (when the active compressor of this stage is a densifier). There are many applications in which there is also a demand for heat (cogeneration systems, energy storage systems with heat storage, etc.). In such situations, as well as when a high energy conversion speed is required, it is useful to use adiabatic compressors.

In applications where heat storage is required, the first stage of D2T also contains a constant pressure SCP heat exchanger, which has the role of bringing the gas to a temperature as close as possible to T _um h, without changing the outlet pressure. from the compressor. For different purposes, various methods can be used to determine the optimum volume of the exchanger, but it is certain that it must be at least an order of magnitude larger than that of the compressor. In most applications, plate heaters can be used, gas / liquid (or gas / refrigerant at boiling temperature), in countercurrent, so that at the output of the mayor compressed gas is obtained, at pressure p / i and temperature equal to the inlet temperature of the coolant (usually T _am b \ and at the outlet of the secondary is obtained liquid with the temperature Tf.

In both types of applications, in this compression stage gas is obtained at pressure pp and temperature Ti, close to T _lim b. The collector of this stage is the second stage of compression T2, made as a gas piston densifier, with the inlet pressure pn and the discharge pressure pp, associated with an efficient system of elimination of excess thermal energy. And this time, the volume of this densifier must be higher than that of the first stage compressors. Until the pp pressure is reached, the volume of this densifier is kept approximately constant, with small oscillations caused by the cooling system, the system being devoid of moving solid elements. Also, the total surface area of solid surfaces that absorb heat from the gas being compressed does not change. There will be variations only of the instantaneous surfaces of the liquid phase of the thermal sponge, but especially of the flow of coolant, which in the initial phase may be zero, but must increase as the pressure increases.

After reaching the pp pressure, the compression can continue by decreasing the volume of the densifier, or the gas with this pressure is transferred to a tank. Both of these operations can be performed using a liquid piston, but can also be performed with solid piston configurations.

And this time, the chosen configuration is very flexible and adaptable to the most complex practical applications. When an isothermal compression with a high compression ratio is desired, the system works by absorbing in TI gas with pressure p, from the source tank (usually from the atmosphere) and compressing it isothermically. At the first stroke of the piston, the gas pressure in all system components is the same (pi), therefore the TI discharge valve is open, so that all the gas will be compressed. The energy required for compression is very small (approximately equal to the energy required to move the respective volume of gas. Under the respective constant pressure. At the next stroke of the piston, because p _t = p ,, the opening

RO 135278 AO of the valve takes place shortly after starting the piston, the energy consumption being, and this time, very low, therefore the speed of movement of the piston can be very high. Simultaneous use of several compressors is also justified. Gradually, the pressure of the discharge valve increases, the volume at which the gas in the cylinder reaches this pressure increases. decreases, therefore increases the compression energy in both stages, increases the temperature of the solid and liquid components of the system, as well as the thermal energy discharged to the environment. The increase in pressure in the second compression stage remains small, but the energy required for compression increases due to the increase in pressure. Note that in the SCP, in addition to the heat exchange between the two fluids, there is an isothermal compression of the gas from the exchanger mayor (gas piston compression).

A simple solution to achieve the 8.2 gas piston densifier is to use a plate heat exchanger, whose gaskets are sized for pressures higher than pp. A coolant flows through the secondary 8.2a of the exchanger 8.2 continuously, in a closed circuit, at a speed depending on the instantaneous compression ratio. This circuit includes, on the outside, an 8.5 fluid / ambient heat exchanger. The inlet of the primary circuit is connected to the manifold, which in turn is connected, through the discharge valves, to the compressors in the first stage, or to the SCP, while the outlet of the primary circuit (used for the evacuation of compressed gas) is usually , closed.

A considerable increase in the efficiency of the whole system, by reducing the gap ΔΤ, can be achieved by introducing in the secondary of the densifier a refrigerant in a state of liquid / vapor equilibrium, and implementing in this system the necessary pipes for this secondary to become a system of thermal tube cooling (gravitational, or capillary). In another embodiment, by introducing a refrigerant into a secondary state in a state close to equilibrium, it can become the evaporator of a Rankine cycle heat engine. or ORC. To make the heat engine, the heat exchanger 8.5 is replaced by a condenser, which receives the agent through the turbine 8.4 and discharges the condensate with the pump 8.6. In this configuration, the speed of all the pistons in the compression phase can be increased, because the mechanical energy consumed additionally, due to the increase of the temperature difference ΔΤ, is fully recovered in the heat engine. It is also easy to implement a combined system of the two configurations, in which the energy recovery system is activated only after exceeding a temperature limit.

If the constant pressure gas tanks 8.7 are also introduced in this system, the densifier gains a new compression stage: after the gas in T2 (and the one in collector 8.8) has reached the value pp, a supply path opens in this collector. , of the tanks 8.7. Tanks 8.7 will continue to store compressed gas in IT. When there is enough gas in these tanks, it is possible to proceed to the next compression stage: the compressors and densifiers in the IT (if they are designed to withstand these pressures) will be supplied with gas at pp pressure, from the tanks under constant pressure 8.7, which will cause the previously described compression process to repeat itself, but in a new area of pressure.

Figure 26 shows another type of gas piston densifier. It is in the form of a tank 9.1. An advantageous solution for cooling the walls is to install this tank inside a larger, liquid tank in which the pressure is maintained. permanently equal to that in the tank 9.1. This allows the walls of the 9.1 tank to be made thinner, allowing for faster heat dissipation.

Gas supply at temperature Ti and pressure pp. variable, is done through a system of densifiers. compressors and heat exchangers, with a common collector 9.2, similar to the one in the previous example (figure 25). A thermal sponge according to the invention is installed inside the tank, designed according to the characteristics and requirements of the system, adapted to the gas supply system and the cooling system. In Figure 26, the main part of the sponge is a 9.1b system of bars of various thicknesses and vertical plates of various widths.

RO 135278 AO arranged at a sufficiently small distance from each other (to achieve a good capture of the heat accumulated by the gas in the tank), but large enough to allow easy cooling of the coolant.

The gas required to cool the gas is distributed between the bottom of the tank 9.1, between the heat exchanger scc, the sprinkler system 9.1b, the pump body 9.4 and the piping system. The system allows the installation of any type of sprayer at the state of the art, their number and distribution, flow and pressure difference, dispersion angle, size of drops produced, and other characteristics, being chosen according to the characteristics of the application. In many applications, a sprinkler system is enough to generate a dense and permanent mist of very small drops, the sprinkler support taking on the role of solid sponge. It is also advisable to create areas with different temperatures, which generate rising gas currents.

In the configuration in Figure 26, a sprinkler system mounted at the top of the densifier was chosen, which spreads the liquid droplets horizontally. A significant amount of this liquid remains attached to the solid sponge elements, helping to limit their temperature rise.

In addition, in this configuration, the coolant contributes to the compression and cooling of the gas in the TI stage, through the 9.3 bubble densifiers, made right on the transport pipes of the coolant, by injecting them with gas from the TI stage collector. From here, the gas reaches the sprinklers and is discharged into the densifier, even in the areas with the highest gas temperatures. If the gas in the TI stage is injected into a bundle of pipes with a sufficiently small diameter, it will not form bubbles but, due to the surface tension of the liquid, successive layers of gas, alternating with layers of liquid, which improves the transfer conditions. heat between the two environments.

The chosen configuration also uses other state-of-the-art cooling processes, namely, increasing the heat transfer surfaces by introducing or creating aqueous foam. To achieve this goal, in the liquid phase 9.11 of the thermal sponge at the base of the densifier, to which poles are added trays with liquid 9.12, a series of surfactants are added to reduce the surface tension of the liquid, which favors the formation of foam when in liquid is introduced compressed gas coming from the manifold of the first stage.

Claims (22)

demand 1. A process for decontaminating air, characterized in that its temperature is raised rapidly by mechanical compression, and after a period of time it is brought, by mechanical expansion, to the temperature necessary for use. Mechanical device, hereinafter referred to as calciner, characterized in that it performs the technical process of claim 1 by means of an orderly sequence of operations. Calcinator according to claim 2, characterized in that the gas compression and expansion operations take place in the same enclosure. Valve with 3 or more ways, for equipping the cylinders of a calciner according to claim 2, or of another mechanical device, characterized in that it is provided with a spherical damper with multiple channels on the outer surface, which through the occupied positions ensures multiple ways communication between the elements of the system. A 3-way or more valve according to claim 4, characterized in that a tank is located inside the ball valve. Calcinator according to claim 2, characterized in that at least some of the calcination steps are performed by flap compressors. A device, hereinafter referred to as a ventilated mask, characterized in that it ensures a permanent replacement of the air in the active enclosure and being an end-user of the calcination system, meets a number of properties which lead to an increase in the efficiency of the process of claim 1. Inflatable wall, characterized in that it seals the active enclosures of ventilated masks according to claim 7 and other types of masks. Ventilated mask according to Claim 7, characterized in that it is provided with two connections, one for the decontaminated air duct connected to the inlet filter and the other for the contaminated air connected to the exhaust filter, devices being mounted on the path of each duct. intended for the treatment of that gas. Gas purification filter for ventilated masks of claim 7 and other types of masks, characterized in that it is mounted at the end of a flexible hose, which allows its position and location to be changed. Piston compressor of the composition of the said calciner according to claim 2. Further, densifier, characterized in that the movement of the piston is controlled by mechanical and electrical devices. so that the gas temperature in the compressor remains approximately constant during compression Piston holders in the composition of the calciner of claim 2, hereinafter referred to as "thinner", characterized in that the movement of the piston is controlled by mechanical and electrical devices. so that the gas temperature in the compressor remains approximately constant during expansion Densifier made according to claim 11 and thinner made according to claim 12, characterized in that. Inside their cylinder is mounted a device, hereinafter referred to as thermal sponge, made of solid and liquid components, whose total surface area in contact with the gas in the cylinder is large and relatively constant during the compression and expansion of the gas. Thermal sponge according to Claim 13, characterized in that it is made of helical springs and other elastic and inelastic elements, arranged in such a way as to return to their original shape after removal of the deforming sheet RO 135278 AO Thermal sponge according to Claim 14, characterized in that it is made of elastic cords and flat metal plates. Thermal sponge according to Claim 13, characterized in that it is made of horizontal flat metal plates mounted on sliding supports Thermal sponge according to Claim 13, characterized in that it is made of horizontal flat metal plates mounted on harmonic supports Liquid piston condenser according to claim 11, characterized in that the piston rod is telescopic, made of segments by the addition of which the pressure exerted by the liquid on the gas in the cylinder increases in steps Liquid piston condenser according to Claim 11, characterized in that the liquid agent is spread over a large number of overlapping flat plates. A condenser made according to claim 11, hereinafter referred to as a gas piston densifier, characterized in that it does not contain moving solid parts inside, the volume of liquid inside is approximately constant and the gas is introduced permanently by means of densifiers with solid and / or liquid piston with a pressure equal to that of the gas inside Gas piston condenser according to Claim 20, characterized in that it is made on the structure of a plate heat exchanger. Gas piston densifier according to claim 20, characterized in that its first compression stage is made of liquid bubble piston densifiers.