Method and apparatus for inoculating crystallization seeds into a liquid latent heat storage substance

Patent · Tue Jul 24 04:00:00 EDT 1984

OSTI ID:6278070

Lindner, F; Scheunemann, K

A method and apparatus for inoculating a liquid latent heat storage substance of the type convertible to the solid state on cooling is disclosed. A portion of the substance is caused to crystallize on a cooled active surface, immersed in the substance and preferably vertically arranged, whereupon the active surface is heated to fuse-off the formed crystals to release them into the liquid portion of the storage substance to thus form inoculation seeds on which further crystallization of the storage substance takes place on withdrawal of heat from same. In one described embodiment, a pair of active surfaces is provided by using a Peltier element operating with a DC source having selectively reversible polarity whereby one surface is cooled down while the other is heated and vice versa, depending on the instant polarity of the DC source. In another embodiment, the active surface is alternately heated and cooled by heat carrier medium of a heat pump circulation system drawn from the respective sections of the system in alternating fashion. Due to the formation of crystallization seeds from the heat storage substance, problems normally associated with the use of a foreign inoculation substance are avoided.

• Assignee: Deutsche Forschungs- und Versuchanstalt fur Luft- und Raumfahrt
• Patent Number(s): US 4461153
• OSTI ID: 6278070
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

25 ENERGY STORAGE
250600* -- Energy Storage-- Thermal
CRYSTALLIZATION
CRYSTALS
DESIGN
ENERGY STORAGE
EQUIPMENT
FLUIDS
HEAT PUMPS
HEAT STORAGE
HEAT TRANSFER FLUIDS
INOCULATION
LATENT HEAT STORAGE
MATERIALS
PHASE CHANGE MATERIALS
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
STORAGE
THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE EQUIPMENT