Pressure gain combustion heat generator

Abstract

Disclosed herein is an efficient heat generation device where fuel is burnt in a pressure gain combustion process. The heat generating system has an inner combustion chamber that is housed in heat exchangers. The combustion chamber walls, in one form, include fluid conduits. While different fluids could be utilized, water is most common and the term water herein is intended to define water and all functional equivalents. The water conduits (tubes) may be multi-pass longitudinal, parallel to the combustor axis or they may be winded around the combustion chamber in a spiral fashion. The combustion products exiting the combustion chamber enter the outer liner where water tube bundles extract the heat of the combustion. One embodiment also utilizes an air preheating stage. Heated water and steam generated in the heat exchanger stages wrapped around the combustor enters the final heating stage where it passes through the flame accelerators in the combustion chamber. The flame accelerators within the combustion chamber are in the hottest region in the combustor and therefore exchanging heat at high temperatures increases the efficiency of the steam generation cycle. It also increases the produced steam quality.

1 . A pressure gain combustion heat generator comprising:
 a. an air/fuel inlet;   b. a pressure gain combustion chamber in fluid communication with the air/fuel inlet;   c. a feed fluid inlet;   d. at least one flame accelerator within the combustion chamber wherein the flame accelerator comprises a fluid conduit therein;   e. wherein the fluid conduit with the flame accelerator is operably configured to facilitate heat transfer to a fluid therein; and   f. a heated fluid outlet.   
     
     
         2 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 1  further comprising a fluid preheater in fluid communication with the fluid conduits within the flame accelerators. 
     
     
         3 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 2  wherein the fluid preheater further comprises baffles in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. 
     
     
         4 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 1  further comprising:
 a. a liner comprising an exhaust portion in fluid communication with the combustion chamber; 
 b. wherein the liner substantially encompasses the combustion chamber. 
 
     
     
         5 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 4  further comprising
 a. a fluid preheater in fluid communication with the fluid conduits within the flame accelerators; and 
 b. wherein the fluid preheater is within the liner. 
 
     
     
         6 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 1  wherein the flame accelerators comprise Schelkin spirals. 
     
     
         7 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 1  comprising a pulse detonation combustor. 
     
     
         8 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 1 , operatively configured to an embodiment wherein fluid entering the fluid inlet is saturated steam and the heated fluid in the outlet is superheated steam. 
     
     
         9 . The pressure gain combustion heat generator as recited in  claim 1  wherein the pressure gain combustion heat generator is a detonation based combustor.