Brayton Cycle Device And Exhaust Heat Energy Recovery Device For Internal Combustion Engine

Abstract

An exhaust heat energy recovery apparatus for an internal combustion engine that efficiently recovers exhaust heat energy without increasing engine exhaust back pressure, and a Brayton cycle apparatus applicable to the exhaust heat energy recovery apparatus. A Brayton cycle apparatus 1 using a scroll compressor 4 and a scroll expander 6 has a simplified and downsized structure. A working fluid is compressed inside a scroll compressor 4 and expanded inside a scroll expander 6 in spaces partitioned and sealed by combinations of fixed scrolls and orbital scrolls. The conversion efficiency from heat energy to kinetic energy is high. Heat is transferred from the exhaust to the working fluid through a pipe wall of a flow passage 30 a and an expander case 12 of the scroll expander 6 . This further downsizes the Brayton cycle apparatus 1 . The back pressure of the energy source including the exhaust is unaffected.

1 . A Brayton cycle apparatus, comprising: 
 a scroll compressor for compressing a working fluid;    a scroll expander for operating in cooperation with an orbiting action of the scroll compressor, wherein the working fluid compressed by the scroll compressor is fed to the scroll expander; and    a heating device for heating the compressed working fluid fed from the scroll compressor to the scroll expander;    wherein the scroll compressor includes a compressor case, a fixed compression scroll formed in the compressor case, and an orbital compression scroll combined with the fixed compression scroll to come in contact with the compressor case in a slidable manner or to face the compressor case with a narrow gap therebetween; and    the scroll expander includes an expander case, a fixed expansion scroll formed in the expander case, and an orbital expansion scroll combined with the fixed expansion scroll to come in contact with the expander case in a slidable manner or to face the expander case with a narrow gap therebetween, the Brayton cycle apparatus further being characterized by:    an orbital partitioning wall for generating an orbiting action, wherein the orbital compression scroll and the orbital expansion scroll are arranged on the orbital partitioning wall in a manner that the orbital compression scroll and the orbital expansion scroll are located at opposite sides of the orbital partition;    wherein the scroll compressor releases heat transferred from the scroll expander to the orbital partitioning wall in the atmosphere through the compressor case.    
   
   
       2 . (canceled)  
   
   
       3 . (canceled)  
   
   
       4 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the expander case includes a heat absorption chamber into which the working liquid introduced into the scroll expander prior to expansion is introduced, the heat absorption chamber being partitioned by a wall for heating the working liquid when the working liquid is expanding.  
   
   
       5 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the scroll compressor uses atmospheric gas as the working fluid, compresses the atmospheric gas, and releases the expanded working fluid into the atmosphere.  
   
   
       6 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the heating device is a heat exchanger for transferring external heat to the working fluid through heat exchange.  
   
   
       7 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein a wall surface of the expander is kept warm.  
   
   
       8 . A Brayton cycle apparatus comprising: 
 a positive-displacement compressor for compressing a working fluid;    a scroll expander for generating an orbiting action in cooperation with a compression action of the positive-displacement compressor, wherein the working fluid compressed by the positive-displacement compressor is fed to the scroll expander; and    a heating device for heating the compressed working fluid fed from the positive-displacement compressor to the scroll expander;    wherein a wall surface of the expander is kept warm.    
   
   
       9 . (canceled)  
   
   
       10 . An exhaust heat energy recovery apparatus for an internal combustion engine for recovering exhaust heat energy of the internal combustion engine as kinetic energy, wherein the exhaust heat energy recovery apparatus incorporates comprises a Brayton cycle apparatus including: 
 a compressor for compressing a working fluid; and    an expander to which the working fluid compressed by the compressor is fed, wherein the compressed working fluid fed from the compressor to the expander is heated by heat transferred from a flow passage wall of an exhaust flow passage of the internal combustion engine;    wherein the compressor is a scroll compressor including a compressor case, a fixed compression scroll formed in the compressor case, and an orbital compression scroll combined with the fixed compression scroll to come in contact with the compressor case in a slidable manner or to face the compressor case with a narrow gap therebetween;    the expander is a scroll expander including an expander case, a fixed expansion scroll formed in the expander case, and an orbital expansion scroll combined with the fixed expansion scroll to come in contact with the expander case in a slidable manner or to face the expander case with a narrow space therebetween, the Brayton cycle apparatus further being characterized by:    a heating device, for heating the compressed working fluid fed from the scroll compressor to the scroll expander with heat from the flow passage wall, and an orbital partitioning wall for generating an orbiting action, wherein the orbital compression scroll and the orbital expansion scroll are arranged on the orbital partitioning wall in a manner that the orbital compression scroll and the orbital expansion scroll are located at opposite sides of the orbital partition; and    wherein the orbital partitioning wall and the compressor case are made of a high heat-conductive material, and the expander case is made of a heat-resistant material.    
   
   
       11 . (canceled)  
   
   
       12 . (canceled)  
   
   
       13 . (canceled)  
   
   
       14 . The exhaust heat energy recovery apparatus according to  claim 10 , wherein an aluminum alloy is used as the high heat-conductive material, and an iron alloy is used as the heat-resistant material.  
   
   
       15 . The exhaust heat energy recovery apparatus according to  claim 10 , wherein a wall surface of the expander is kept warm.  
   
   
       16 . (canceled)  
   
   
       17 . (canceled)  
   
   
       18 . (canceled)  
   
   
       19 . A Brayton cycle apparatus being characterized by comprising: 
 an orbital partitioning wall having a first surface on which an orbital compression scroll is formed and a second surface on which an orbital expansion scroll is formed;    a scroll compressor including the orbital compression scroll and a fixed compression scroll combined with the orbital compression scroll;    a scroll expander including the orbital expansion scroll and a fixed expansion scroll combined with the orbital expansion scroll;    a compressed working fluid passage for supplying a compressed working fluid from the scroll compressor to the scroll expander; and    a heat source for heating the working fluid in the scroll expander through heat transfer;    wherein the scroll compressor has a compressor case arranged on the first surface, the scroll expander has an expander case arranged on the second surface, the compressed working fluid passage has a through-hole formed in the orbital partition, and the through-hole communicates the interior of the compressor case with the interior of the expander case.    
   
   
       20 . (canceled)  
   
   
       21 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 19 , wherein: 
 the scroll expander has a case fixed to the fixed expansion scroll; and    the heat source comes in contact with the case thereby heating the working fluid in the scroll expander through the case or the fixed expansion scroll.    
   
   
       22 . (canceled)  
   
   
       23 . (canceled)  
   
   
       24 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 2 , wherein the scroll compressor uses atmospheric gas as the working fluid, compresses the atmospheric gas, and releases the expanded working fluid into the atmosphere.  
   
   
       25 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 3 , wherein the scroll compressor uses atmospheric gas as the working fluid, compresses the atmospheric gas, and releases the expanded working fluid into the atmosphere.  
   
   
       26 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 4 , wherein the scroll compressor uses atmospheric gas as the working fluid, compresses the atmospheric gas, and releases the expanded working fluid into the atmosphere.  
   
   
       27 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 5 , wherein the scroll compressor uses atmospheric gas as the working fluid, compresses the atmospheric gas, and releases the expanded working fluid into the atmosphere.  
   
   
       28 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 2 , wherein the heating device is a heat exchanger for transferring external heat to the working fluid through heat exchange.  
   
   
       29 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 3 , wherein the heating device is a heat exchanger for transferring external heat to the working fluid through heat exchange.  
   
   
       30 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 4 , wherein the heating device is a heat exchanger for transferring external heat to the working fluid through heat exchange.  
   
   
       31 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 5 , wherein the heating device is a heat exchanger for transferring external heat to the working fluid through heat exchange.  
   
   
       32 . The Brayton cycle apparatus according to  claim 24 , wherein the heating device is a heat exchanger for transferring external heat to the working fluid through heat exchange.