Sanden Holdings Corporation

Nissan Motor Company Limited

Sanden Corporation

Shinichiro Mizoguchi

Hiroyuki Nagai

Takayuki Ishikawa

Tomonori Haraguchi

Satoshi Ogihara

Riyako Iwahashi

Shinji Nakamura

Hirofumi Wada

Tomohiko Saitou

Apparatus for utilizing heat wasted from an engine includes: a Rankine cycle (); a transmission mechanism that couples an output shaft of an expansion device () to a rotary shaft of an engine via an electromagnetic clutch () that can be engaged and disengaged; a passage () through which refrigerant exiting a heat exchanger () flows so as to bypass the expansion device (); and a bypass valve () interposed in the passage. To stop the expansion device (), the electromagnetic clutch () is switched from an engaged state to a disengaged state after switching the bypass valve () from a closed state to an open state. If the bypass valve () becomes stuck in the closed state, expansion device front-rear differential pressure limiting processing in which a front-rear differential pressure of the expansion device is limited while maintaining the electromagnetic clutch () in the engaged state is performed.

Apparatus for utilizing heat wasted from engine

Apparatus for utilizing heat wasted from an engine includes first pressure detecting means () and first temperature detecting means () for detecting a pressure and a temperature in a refrigerant passage extending from a condenser () to a refrigerant pump (), second pressure detecting means () and second temperature detecting means () for detecting a pressure and a temperature in a refrigerant passage extending from a heat exchanger () to an expansion device (), and control means () responsive to these four detecting means when operating a Rankine cycle (). Means () is for diagnosing whether or not an electromagnetic clutch () is stuck responsive to either the first pressure detecting means () and the first temperature detecting means (), or the second pressure detecting means () and the second temperature detecting means ().

An engine-waste-heat utilization device includes a Rankine cycle which includes a heat exchanger through which cooling water coming out from an engine flows to recover waste-heat of the engine to refrigerant, an expander which generates power using the refrigerant coming out from the heat exchanger, a condenser which condenses the refrigerant coming out from the expander and a refrigerant pump which supplies the refrigerant coming out from the condenser to the heat exchanger, and a cooling water passage in which the cooling water having a higher temperature flows when the Rankine cycle is operated than when the Rankine cycle is not operated.

Engine waste-heat utilization device

A Rankine cycle includes a refrigerant pump, a heat exchanger, an expander and a condenser. The Rankine cycle further includes a clutch provided in a power transmission path extending from an engine to the refrigerant pump. Prior to the operation of the Rankine cycle and during the deceleration of the vehicle, the clutch is fastened and the refrigerant pump is driven with use of the vehicle inertia force.

Rankine cycle

A waste heat utilization apparatus is provided with a Rankine cycle and a power transmission mechanism that transmits power regenerated by an expander to an engine. The power transmission mechanism includes an expander clutch that interrupts or permits the transmission of the power from the expander to the engine. The expander includes a rotational speed sensor that detects a rotational speed of the expander. An increase in friction of the expander is detected on the basis of an increase in the rotational speed of the expander detected by the rotational speed sensor when the expander clutch is disconnected.

Waste heat utilization apparatus

A Rankine cycle includes an waste-heat recovery device that is configured to exchange heat between cooling water coming out from an engine and exhaust gas exhausted from the engine, a heat exchanger including an evaporator through which the cooling water coming out from the engine flows to recover waste-heat of the engine to refrigerant, and a superheater through which the cooling water coming out from the waste-heat recovery device flows to recover the waste-heat of the engine to the refrigerant, an expander that is configured to generate power using the refrigerant coming out from the heat exchanger, a condenser that is configured to condense the refrigerant coming out from the expander, and a refrigerant pump that is configured to supply the refrigerant coming out from the condenser to the heat exchanger by being driven by the expander. The cooling water coming out from the superheater is returned to the engine after being joined with the cooling water coming out from the evaporator.

An engine-waste-heat utilization device includes a Rankine cycle with a heat exchanger that is configured to recover engine-waste-heat to refrigerant, an expander that is configured to generate power using the refrigerant coming out from the heat exchanger, a condenser that is configured to condense the refrigerant coming out from the expander and a refrigerant pump that is configured to supply the refrigerant coming out from the condenser to the heat exchanger by being driven by the expander, a power transmission mechanism (crank pulley, pump pulley, belt) that is configured to transmit surplus power to the engine when the expander has spare power even if the refrigerant pump is driven, a clutch that is configured to connect and disconnecting power transmission by the power transmission mechanism, and a case provided near a high-temperature part of the engine such that a shaft of the expander and that of the refrigerant pump are coaxially arranged, the clutch, the refrigerant pump and the expander are integrally housed in this order and the expander has a higher temperature than the clutch.

Growing community of inventors

Atsugi, Japan

Shinichiro Mizoguchi