KR20090069920A - Air conditioning system - Google Patents

Abstract

An air conditioning system is provided to remove frost on the outdoor heat exchanger while heating an indoor room by making high temperature refrigerant flow into the indoor heat exchanger. An air conditioning system comprises a compressor(110) discharging the refrigerant of high pressure and high temperature, an indoor heat exchanger(120) condensing the refrigerant from the compressor, an expansion device(130) expanding the refrigerant from the indoor heat exchanger, an outdoor heat exchanger(140) evaporating the refrigerant from the expansion device, and a defrost unit defrosting the outdoor heat exchanger by bypassing a part of the refrigerant flowing in the indoor heat exchanger to the outdoor heat exchanger in the defrost mode.

Description

Air conditioning system

The present invention relates to an air conditioning system, and more particularly, to an air conditioning system that defrosts an outdoor heat exchanger while introducing a high temperature refrigerant into an indoor heat exchanger.

Air conditioners generally include compressors, condensers, expanders and evaporators. The refrigerant discharged from the compressor is condensed in the condenser and then expanded in the expander. The expanded refrigerant is evaporated in the evaporator and then sucked into the compressor. In the heating operation, the outdoor heat exchanger functions as an evaporator. However, when the outdoor temperature is low, frost is formed on the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger. When the outdoor heat exchanger is implanted, since the heat exchange is not performed well in the outdoor heat exchanger, the performance of the heating operation is greatly reduced. In order to solve this problem, conventionally, during a heating operation, a defrosting operation of temporarily switching to a cooling operation to remove the frost of the outdoor heat exchanger is performed. However, when the cooling operation is switched, since the low-temperature refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger, the indoor space becomes cold.

An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioning system that defrosts an outdoor heat exchanger while introducing a high temperature refrigerant into an indoor heat exchanger.

The present invention provides a compressor for discharging a high temperature and high pressure refrigerant, an indoor heat exchanger for condensing the refrigerant flowing from the compressor, an expansion device for expanding the refrigerant flowing from the indoor heat exchanger, and a refrigerant flowing from the expansion device. To provide an air conditioning system comprising an outdoor heat exchanger and a defrosting means for defrosting the outdoor heat exchanger by bypassing a part of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger during the defrosting operation to the outdoor heat exchanger.

In the present invention, the defrosting means includes a first bypass pipe for bypassing a part of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger to the outdoor heat exchanger, and a first bypass valve provided on the first bypass pipe. It may include. In addition, during the defrosting operation, the expansion device may be opened so that refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger.

In addition, in the present invention, the air conditioning system may further include an indoor blower for introducing air into the indoor heat exchanger. During the defrosting operation, the blowing amount of the indoor blower may be reduced, or the operation of the indoor blower may be stopped.

In addition, the present invention may further include a pressure increasing means for increasing the pressure of the refrigerant flowing into the compressor. The pressure increasing means may include a second bypass pipe for bypassing a part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to an inlet of the compressor, and a second bypass valve installed on the second bypass pipe. .

In the present invention, the target high pressure of the compressor can be increased during the defrosting operation. The air conditioning system may terminate the defrosting operation by blocking the refrigerant bypassed to the outdoor heat exchanger.

Further, in the present invention, the defrosting operation can be automatically started based on the degree of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the present invention, the indoor heat exchanger and the outdoor heat exchanger disposed to correspond to the indoor and outdoor, respectively, a compressor for discharging a high temperature and high pressure refrigerant, and during the defrosting operation, the discharge from the compressor to the indoor heat exchanger It provides an air conditioning system including defrosting means for defrosting the outdoor heat exchanger by bypassing a portion of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to the outdoor heat exchanger while introducing the refrigerant.

In the air conditioning system according to the present invention, the inside of the outdoor heat exchanger can be removed while the high temperature refrigerant is introduced into the indoor heat exchanger to heat the indoor space. Therefore, the thermal comfort of the user is improved, and the performance of the air conditioning system is improved.

The air conditioning system includes a general household air conditioner performing only cooling operation, a heating air conditioner performing only heating operation, a heat pump air conditioner performing both heating and cooling operation, and multi-type air cooling / heating a plurality of indoor spaces. Includes all harmonics Hereinafter, as an embodiment of the air conditioning system, a heating air conditioner and a heat pump type air conditioner will be described in detail.

1 and 2, an air conditioner (hereinafter, referred to as an “air conditioner”) 100 for heating according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. 1 is a configuration diagram of the air conditioner 100, and FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing a flow of a refrigerant during heating operation of the air conditioner 100 shown in FIG. 1 and 2, the air conditioner 100 includes a compressor 110, an indoor heat exchanger 120, an expansion device 130, and an outdoor heat exchanger 140. The compressor 110 compresses the low temperature low pressure gaseous refrigerant into the high temperature high pressure gaseous refrigerant. The compressor 110 may be a variable displacement compressor or a variable displacement compressor. The variable displacement compressor may have various structures, but may be an inverter structure compressor for ease of control.

The high temperature and high pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 is introduced into the indoor heat exchanger 120. In the indoor heat exchanger (120), the refrigerant in the gas phase exchanges heat with the indoor air and condenses it. In order to improve heat transfer in the indoor heat exchanger 120, the air conditioner 100 further includes an indoor blower 125. The indoor blower 125 introduces indoor air into the indoor heat exchanger 120.

The high pressure refrigerant condensed in the indoor heat exchanger 120 is introduced into the receiver dryer 175. The liquid refrigerant is separated in the receiver dryer 175 and flows into the expansion device 130. The liquid refrigerant is throttled in the expansion device 130 and then flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 140. In the outdoor heat exchanger 140, the refrigerant exchanges heat with outdoor air and evaporates. In order to improve heat transfer in the outdoor heat exchanger 140, the air conditioner 100 further includes an outdoor blower 145. The outdoor blower 145 introduces outdoor air into the outdoor heat exchanger 140. The refrigerant introduced from the outdoor heat exchanger 140 flows into the accumulator 170. The refrigerant in the gas phase separated from the accumulator 170 flows into the compressor 110.

The air conditioner 100 includes a first bypass pipe 151 and a first bypass pipe 151 that bypass some of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 120 to the outdoor heat exchanger 140. It further includes a first bypass valve 161 is installed in. In addition, the air conditioner 100 further includes a pressure increasing means for increasing the pressure of the refrigerant flowing into the compressor 110. Various devices can be used for the pressure increasing means. In the present embodiment, the pressure increasing means includes a second bypass pipe 152 for bypassing a part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 to the compressor inlet, and a second bypass pipe 152 installed on the second bypass pipe 152. And a two bypass valve 162.

The outdoor heat exchanger 140 is provided with an outdoor heat exchanger temperature sensor 191 that detects a surface temperature. In addition, in order to detect the evaporation pressure in the outdoor heat exchanger 140, the evaporation pressure sensor 193 is installed in the outlet pipe of the outdoor heat exchanger 140. When the evaporation pressure of the refrigerant is sensed, the evaporation temperature of the refrigerant may be derived. In addition, in order to sense the temperature of the outdoor space, the outdoor temperature sensor 192 is disposed. In order to measure the discharge pressure of the compressor 110, a discharge pressure sensor 194 is provided in the discharge pipe of the compressor 110.

3 is a block diagram showing a control flow of the air conditioner 100. Referring to FIG. 3, the controller 180 may use the data received from the outdoor temperature sensor 192, the evaporation pressure sensor 193, and / or the outdoor heat exchanger temperature sensor 191 of the outdoor heat exchanger 120. Determine the degree of conception. For example, when an frost is generated in the outdoor heat exchanger 140, the evaporation temperature is greatly reduced than during normal operation. Therefore, when the evaporation temperature is lowered below the set range, the controller 180 may determine that the conception has occurred in the outdoor heat exchanger 140. The controller 180 may determine not only the presence or absence of the implantation but also the degree of implantation with reference to the evaporation temperature.

When frosting occurs on the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger 140, the surface temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 tends to decrease significantly with respect to a specific outdoor temperature. Therefore, when the surface temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is lower than the set temperature with respect to the specific outdoor temperature, the controller 180 determines that an implantation has occurred in the outdoor heat exchanger 140. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the degree of conception of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 may be determined using various methods.

The controller 180 controls the operation of the expansion device 130, the first bypass valve 161, the second bypass valve 162, the compressor 110, the indoor blower 125, and the outdoor blower 145. . As an example, the controller 180 may control the opening and closing of the first bypass valve 161 to control the amount of refrigerant bypassed to the outdoor heat exchanger 140 among the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 120. .

4 and 5, the defrosting operation of the air conditioner 100 will be described in detail. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a control step of the defrosting operation of the air conditioner 100, and FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the flow of the refrigerant during the defrosting operation.

When the heating operation mode is started (step S110) and the heating mode is in progress, the outdoor air temperature is set at a time interval set using the outdoor temperature sensor 192, the evaporation pressure sensor 193, and the outdoor heat exchanger temperature sensor 191. In operation S115, data about the evaporation pressure and the surface temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger are sensed. Based on the detected data, the degree of conception of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is determined. If the degree of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 does not deviate from the set range, the heating operation continues and if the degree of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 deviates from the set range, the defrosting operation is started (step S120). ). The expansion device 130 does not close and maintains an open state (step S130). However, the opening degree of the expansion device 130 need not be the same as the opening degree during the heating operation, and the opening degree may be adjusted to be suitable for the defrosting operation. Since the expansion device 130 is kept open, a high temperature refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger 140 even during defrosting operation. Therefore, heating may be provided to the indoor space even during defrost operation. During the defrosting operation, since cold air is not discharged to the indoor space, the thermal comfort of the occupant is greatly improved. In the defrosting operation, as in the heating operation, the indoor heat exchanger 120 performs the function of the condenser, and the outdoor heat exchanger 140 performs the function of the evaporator. Therefore, since there is no big change in the entire cycle of the air conditioner 100, the possibility of damage to the air conditioner due to the operation change of the air conditioner 100 is greatly reduced.

The first bypass valve 161 is opened, and a part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 140 through the first bypass valve 161 (S135). Therefore, since the high temperature refrigerant flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 140, frost formed on the surface of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is removed. At this time, the opening degree of the first bypass valve 161 may be adjusted to control the pressure of the refrigerant flowing from the first bypass pipe 151.

The target high pressure of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 is increased (step S140). When the target high pressure of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 is increased, the temperature of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 is also increased. Therefore, since the temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 140 through the first bypass pipe 151 increases, the defrosting performance of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is further improved.

The second bypass valve 162 is also opened (step S145). At the beginning of the defrosting operation, since the heat transfer performance is low in the outdoor heat exchanger 140, it is difficult to effectively perform the function as an evaporator. Therefore, there is a possibility that the liquid phase refrigerant is mixed in the refrigerant flowing into the compressor 110 via the outdoor heat exchanger 140 and the accumulator 170. Therefore, the refrigerant flowing into the compressor 110 is heated by using the high temperature refrigerant flowing from the second bypass pipe 152, so that the possibility of liquid compression in the compressor 110 is greatly reduced. In addition, since the pressure and the temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the compressor 110 increase by the heating, the pressure and the temperature of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 110 increase. As described above, the defrosting performance of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is greatly improved by increasing the temperature of the discharged refrigerant.

The blowing amount of the indoor blower 125 is reduced (S150). When the air blowing amount of the indoor blower 125 during heating operation is 'strong', the air blowing amount of the indoor blower 125 during the defrosting operation is switched to 'weak'. When the amount of heat released from the indoor heat exchanger 120 to the outside of the refrigerant is small, the refrigerant pressure of the air conditioner 100 is increased as a whole. Therefore, since the temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 140 from the expansion device 130 and the first bypass pipe 151 increases, the defrosting performance of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is greatly improved. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the indoor blower 125 may be stopped.

When the outdoor temperature is equal to or higher than 0 ° C., the outdoor blower 145 is operated or the blowing amount of the outdoor blower 145 is increased to promote defrosting of the outdoor heat exchanger 140. However, when the outdoor temperature is less than 0 ° C., the operation of the outdoor blower 145 is stopped or the air blowing amount of the outdoor blower 145 is reduced.

After the defrosting operation is started, by measuring the outdoor air temperature, the evaporation pressure of the refrigerant and the surface temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger (step S150), the degree of implantation is determined. The degree of frost removal can be estimated from the degree of implantation. If the degree of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger 140 is less than or equal to the set value, the defrosting operation is terminated and the heating operation is restarted (step S155).

 6 and 7, a heat pump type air conditioner (hereinafter, referred to as a "heat pump") 200 according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of the heat pump 200, and shows a flow of a refrigerant during heating operation. The heat pump 200 is an air conditioning system for cooling or heating an indoor space, and the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the heat pump 200 shown in FIG. 6. In the following, description will be made mainly on points different from the above-described embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 6, the heat pump 200 includes a compressor 210, an indoor heat exchanger 220, an expansion device 230, an outdoor heat exchanger 240, and a four-way valve 285. The compressor 210 compresses the incoming low temperature low pressure gas phase refrigerant into a high temperature high pressure gas phase refrigerant. During the heating operation, the high temperature and high pressure gaseous refrigerant discharged from the compressor 210 is introduced into the indoor heat exchanger 220 through the four-way valve 285. However, during the cooling operation, the four-way valve 285 is switched so that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 210 flows into the indoor heat exchanger 220 through the four-way valve 285.

In the indoor heat exchanger 220, the gaseous refrigerant exchanges heat with indoor air to condense. An indoor blower 225 is disposed in the indoor heat exchanger 220. The high pressure refrigerant condensed in the indoor heat exchanger 220 is introduced into the receiver dryer 275. The liquid refrigerant is separated in the receiver dryer 275, flows into the expansion device 230, is throttled, and then flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 240. In the outdoor heat exchanger 240, the refrigerant exchanges heat with outdoor air and evaporates. The outdoor blower 245 is disposed in the outdoor heat exchanger 240. The refrigerant introduced from the outdoor heat exchanger 240 flows into the accumulator 270 via the four-way valve 285. The refrigerant in the gas phase separated from the accumulator 270 flows into the compressor 210.

The heat pump 200 may be provided on the first bypass pipe 251 and the first bypass pipe 251 to bypass some of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 220 to the outdoor heat exchanger 240. The apparatus further includes a first bypass valve 261 to be installed. In addition, the heat pump 200 includes a second bypass pipe 252 for bypassing a part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 210 to the compressor inlet in order to increase the pressure of the refrigerant flowing into the compressor 210, and The second bypass valve 262 is provided on the second bypass pipe 252.

The heat pump 200 includes an outdoor heat exchanger temperature sensor 291 for detecting a surface temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger 240, and an evaporation pressure sensor 293 for detecting an evaporation pressure of the outdoor heat exchanger 240 during a heating operation. ), An outdoor temperature sensor 292 for detecting a temperature of the outdoor space, and a discharge pressure sensor 294 for detecting a discharge pressure of the compressor 210. As described in the above-described embodiment, the degree of implantation of the outdoor heat exchanger is determined using the outdoor heat exchanger temperature sensor 291, the evaporation pressure sensor 293, and / or the outdoor temperature sensor 292.

7 is a block diagram showing the flow of the refrigerant during the defrosting operation of the heat pump 200. Referring to FIG. 7, when it is determined that frost of a set value or more is implanted in the outdoor heat exchanger 240, the controller (not shown) starts defrosting operation. Similar to the above-described embodiment, during the defrosting operation, the expansion device 230 remains open and opens the first bypass valve 261 and the second bypass valve 262. In addition, the target high pressure of the compressor 210 is increased, and the blowing amount of the indoor blower 225 is reduced, or the indoor blower 225 is stopped. In addition, the outdoor blower 245 controls the air blowing amount in consideration of the outdoor temperature.

During the defrosting operation, since a high temperature refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger 220, the heating of the indoor space can be maintained. In addition, since the high temperature refrigerant flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 240 through the first bypass pipe 251, the frost of the outdoor heat exchanger 240 may be removed.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, this is merely exemplary, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention will be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a block diagram showing the flow of the refrigerant during the heating operation of the air conditioner shown in FIG.

3 is a block diagram illustrating a control flow of the air conditioner illustrated in FIG. 1.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a control step of a defrosting operation of the air conditioner illustrated in FIG. 1.

5 is a block diagram showing the flow of the refrigerant during the defrosting operation of the air conditioner shown in FIG.

6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a heat pump according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, illustrating a flow of a refrigerant during a heating operation.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram illustrating a flow of a refrigerant during defrosting of the heat pump illustrated in FIG. 6.

<Brief description of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: air conditioner 110, 210: compressor

120, 220: indoor heat exchanger 125, 225: indoor blower

130, 230: expansion device 140, 240: outdoor heat exchanger

145 and 245: outdoor blowers 151 and 251: first bypass piping

152, 252: second bypass pipe 161, 261: first bypass valve

162, 262: second bypass valve 170, 270: accumulator

175, 275: receiver drier 180: control unit

191, 192: Surface temperature sensor for outdoor heat exchanger

192, 292: outdoor temperature sensor 193, 293: evaporation pressure sensor

194, 294: discharge pressure sensor 200: heat pump

Claims (10)

A compressor for discharging a high temperature and high pressure refrigerant; An indoor heat exchanger to condense the refrigerant flowing from the compressor; An expansion device for expanding a refrigerant flowing from the indoor heat exchanger; An outdoor heat exchanger for evaporating the refrigerant flowing from the expansion device; And And a defrosting means for defrosting the outdoor heat exchanger by bypassing a part of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger to the outdoor heat exchanger during the defrosting operation. The method according to claim 1, The defrosting means includes an air conditioning system including a first bypass pipe for bypassing some of the refrigerant flowing into the indoor heat exchanger to the outdoor heat exchanger, and a first bypass valve disposed on the first bypass pipe. . The method according to claim 1, And the expansion device is opened to allow refrigerant to flow into the indoor heat exchanger during the defrosting operation. The method according to claim 1, Further comprising an indoor blower for introducing air to the indoor heat exchanger, When the defrosting operation, the air blowing amount of the indoor blower is reduced, or the operation of the indoor blower is stopped air conditioning system. The method according to claim 1, And air pressure increasing means for increasing the pressure of the refrigerant flowing into the compressor. The method according to claim 5, The pressure increasing means includes an air conditioner including a second bypass pipe for bypassing a part of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to an inlet of the compressor, and a second bypass valve provided on the second bypass pipe. system. The method according to claim 1, And an air conditioning system for increasing a target high pressure of the compressor during the defrosting operation. The method according to claim 1, Air conditioning system for terminating the defrosting operation by blocking the refrigerant bypassed to the outdoor heat exchanger. The method according to claim 1, And the defrosting operation is automatically started based on the degree of frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger. An indoor heat exchanger and an outdoor heat exchanger disposed to correspond to indoor and outdoor, respectively; A compressor for discharging a high temperature and high pressure refrigerant; And defrosting means for defrosting the outdoor heat exchanger by bypassing some of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to the outdoor heat exchanger while introducing the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to the indoor heat exchanger during defrosting operation.

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