Thermosyphon coil arrangement for heat pump outdoor unit

Patent · Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1984

OSTI ID:865013

Draper, Robert ^[1]

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1. Churchill, PA

For a heat pump, the outdoor unit is provided with a coil and a refrigerant flow arrangement therefor which is such that in the heating mode of operation of the heat pump they operate in a thermosyphon fashion. The coil 32 has a feed portion 30 and an exit portion 34 leading to a separator drum 36 from which liquid refrigerant is returned through downcomer line 42 for recirculation to the feed portion. The coil is tilted upwardly from entry to exit by the angle alpha to enhance the clearance of the two phases of refrigerant from each other in the heating mode of operation. There is no thermosyphon function in the cooling mode of operation.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-26
• Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Corp. (Pittsburgh, PA)
• Patent Number(s): US 4449377
• OSTI ID: 865013
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

thermosyphon
coil
arrangement
heat
pump
outdoor
unit
provided
refrigerant
flow
heating
mode
operation
operate
fashion
32
feed
portion
30
exit
34
leading
separator
drum
36
liquid
returned
downcomer
line
42
recirculation
tilted
upwardly
entry
angle
alpha
enhance
clearance
phases
function
cooling
heat pump
liquid refrigerant
coil arrangement
outdoor unit
refrigerant flow
heating mode
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