Rotary heat regenerator using parallel plate media

Abstract

Rotary wheel regenerator are described that use polymer, paper, metallic or other substrate having a parallel-plate heat transfer surface or media configuration. The substrate media can be either non-desiccant-coated “sensible” substrate, or “enthalpic” desiccant coated substrate. In exemplary embodiments, the spirally wound substrate media strips are arranged in a parallel plate manner using an embossed formation periodically to hold the strips in a parallel plate configuration. The strip layers are arranged so that every other layer is embossed and every other layer is without embossments. The embossed standoffs are not required to be aligned with one another periodically, and a parallel plate arrangement is achieved.

The invention claimed is: 
     
         1 . A parallel-plate rotary wheel regenerator comprising:
 a plurality of plates that are parallel, wherein the plurality of plates includes at least one central plate having a plurality of embossments that touch and physically separate the central plate from two other adjacent plates.   
     
     
         2 . The regenerator of  claim 1 , wherein the central plate is made of aluminum. 
     
     
         3 . The regenerator of  claim 1 , wherein one of the adjacent plates is made of aluminum. 
     
     
         4 . The regenerator of  claim 2 , wherein the aluminum has a thickness of about 1 to about 5 mils. 
     
     
         5 . The regenerator of  claim 2 , wherein the aluminum comprises 1100 series aluminum alloy. 
     
     
         6 . The regenerator of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of embossments comprise a compressed sine wave shape. 
     
     
         7 . The regenerator of  claim 6 , wherein the compressed sign wave shape includes features joined at an angle in the range of approximately 5 degrees to approximately 15 degrees.