Waermeaustauscher mit zwei von Waermesteinen durchsetzten Kammern, in denen eine mitnapffoermigen Koerpern versehene Welle umlaeuft

摘要

A heat exchanger comprises a cylindrical housing 10 with an inlet for pebbles which may be catalytic at its upper end and an outlet for pebbles at its lower end, a fluid inlet 20 adjacent the pebble outlet and a fluid outlet 22 adjacent the pebble inlet, a shaft 32 extending through the housing, and a series of dished perforated plates 14, 16 fixed to the shaft to rotate therewith and hence provide an elongated flow path for the pebbles. The latter fall on to the centre of the uppermost plate 14 and are caused by a combination of gravitational and centrifugal forces to travel in a spiral path to the outer periphery of the plate 14 where they fall on to the outer periphery of the uppermost plate 16 which is more steeply inclined than the plate 14 so that the pebbles travel towards the shaft 32 and fall through openings 38 onto the next plate 14 and so on. In an alternative construction, all of the plates form the same angle with the shaft 32 and alternate plates are fixed to the housing 10 to direct the pebbles towards the centre of the casing. The pebbles, which may have a metal or ceramic base and be inert or catalytic, transfer heat from a hot combustion gas flowing through the casing 10 to a cold gas flowing through a similar housing 12. An elevating means 29 returns the pebbles to the top of the housing 10. The shaft 32 may extend through both housings, or if the latter are not in alignment, separate shafts may be used. Seals may be used in ducts 28, 30 and at 18 between the housings.