COMBINED LOOP HEAT PUMP

• Main Authors: ROBINSON, GLEN P. (JR.), SHELTON, SAMUEL V
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French
• Published: 19.12.1978
• Subjects: BLASTING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; HEATING; LIGHTING; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; REFRIGERATION MACHINES, PLANTS OR SYSTEMS; REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; WEAPONS

Disclosed is a dual loop heat pump system which includes an expansion-compression device defining a chamber therein and including a linearly movable free piston slidably carried in the chamber for linear movement along the chamber. The free piston divides the chamber into a first subchamber of varying size as the free piston moves along the chamber and a second subchamber of varying size as the free piston moves along the chamber. The system further has a Rankine cycle power loop having a working fluid and a vapor compression heat pump loop having a working fluid. Control means provide for selectively introducing the power loop working fluid into the first subchamber at a first pressure to move the free piston linearly toward the second subchamber while inducing linear kinetic energy in the free piston, and for stopping the introduction of the power loop working fluid into the first subchamber when the free piston reaches a prescribed velocity and linear kinetic energy so that the power loop working fluid and the induced linear kinetic energy in the free piston continues to move the free piston toward the second subchamber. The heat pump loop working fluid is operatively associated with the moving free piston so that the heat pump loop working fluid is compressed and substantially all of the linear kinetic energy induced in the free piston is transferred to the system working fluids as work of compression.