EARLIEST PRIORITY DATE

This Application claims priority from a Complete patent application filed in India having Patent Application No. 202241006125, filed on February 04, 2022, and titled “A SYSTEM AND A METHOD FOR RECOVERING HEAT ENERGY FROM AN AUTOMOBILE TO PROCESS MATERIALS”.

FIELD OF INVENTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the field of heat recovery in automobiles and more particularly to a system and a method for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials.

BACKGROUND

Development of internal combustion engines helped to free men from manual labour. The internal combustion engines provided various forms of transportation and methods of power generation. The Internal combustion engines may be defined as engines which generates motive power by burning a fuel. The fuel may include petrol, diesel, and coke. Due to urbanization, number of vehicles are increasing. In par with increasing number of vehicles, vehicular emissions are also increasing. The vehicular emissions may include, burnt gases, noise, heat, and the like. The burnt gases may cause air pollution and the heat emitted by vehicles may cause formation of hotspots in congested areas. Formation of the hotspots, the air pollution, and plastic menace make human life miserable.

Formation of the hotspots may be reduced by repurposing the heat generated by the vehicles. Existing technology is insufficient to recover and repurpose the heat generated by the vehicles. Also, majority of the vehicles are incapable of processing materials during running. Processing materials may include, preparing food, boiling water, melting, or heating waste materials and the like. Minority of the vehicles may include devices for processing food materials on board upon receiving power from battery of the corresponding vehicles. Utilization of the battery by the devices may reduce battery life of the vehicles. Hence, there is a need for an improved system and method for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials to address the aforementioned issue(s).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

In accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, a system for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials is provided. The system includes one or more conduits helically wound around an exhaust pipe of the automobile. The one or more conduits includes a heat transfer fluid adapted to absorb heat energy from the exhaust pipe of the automobile. The system also includes a heat accumulation unit operatively coupled to the one or more conduits. The heat accumulation unit includes a chamber including the one or more conduits spirally wound at a base of the chamber and helically wound around walls of the chamber. The chamber is adapted to process materials located in the chamber upon receiving the heat energy absorbed by the heat transfer fluid. The heat transfer fluid is circulated around the chamber through the one or more conduits by a pump thereby processing the materials by recovering heat from the automobile.

In accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials is provided. The method includes absorbing, by a heat transfer fluid, heat energy from an exhaust pipe of an automobile. The method also includes circulating, by a pump, the heat transfer fluid around a chamber to provide heat energy absorbed by the heat transfer fluid to the chamber. The heat transfer fluid is adapted to circulate through one or more conduits. The method further includes processing, by the chamber of a heat accumulation unit, materials located in the chamber upon receiving the heat energy provided by the heat transfer fluid.

To further clarify the advantages and features of the present disclosure, a more particular description of the disclosure will follow by reference to specific embodiments thereof, which are illustrated in the appended figures. It is to be appreciated that these figures depict only typical embodiments of the disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting in scope. The disclosure will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail with the appended figures. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosure will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail with the accompanying figures in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a system for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 2 is a flow chart representing the steps involved in a method for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Further, those skilled in the art will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and may not have necessarily been drawn to scale. Furthermore, in terms of the construction of the device, one or more components of the device may have been represented in the figures by conventional symbols, and the figures may show only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present disclosure so as not to obscure the figures with details that will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the description herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the principles of the disclosure, reference will now be made to the embodiment illustrated in the figures and specific language will be used to describe them. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the disclosure is thereby intended. Such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated system, and such further applications of the principles of the disclosure as would normally occur to those skilled in the art are to be construed as being within the scope of the present disclosure.

The terms "comprises", "comprising", or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process or method that comprises a list of steps does not include only those steps but may include other steps not expressly listed or inherent to such a process or method. Similarly, one or more devices or sub-systems or elements or structures or components preceded by "comprises... a" does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other devices, sub-systems, elements, structures, components, additional devices, additional sub-systems, additional elements, additional structures, or additional components. Appearances of the phrase "in an embodiment", "in another embodiment" and similar language throughout this specification may, but not necessarily do, all refer to the same embodiment.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this disclosure belongs. The system, methods, and examples provided herein are only illustrative and not intended to be limiting.

In the following specification and the claims, reference will be made to a number of terms, which shall be defined to have the following meanings. The singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a system and a method for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials. The system includes one or more conduits helically wound around an exhaust pipe of the automobile. The one or more conduits includes a heat transfer fluid adapted to absorb heat energy from the exhaust pipe of the automobile. The system also includes a heat accumulation unit operatively coupled to the one or more conduits. The heat accumulation unit includes a chamber including the one or more conduits spirally wound at a base of the chamber and helically wound around walls of the chamber. The chamber is adapted to process materials located in the chamber upon receiving the heat energy absorbed by the heat transfer fluid. The heat transfer fluid is circulated around the chamber through the one or more conduits by a pump thereby processing the materials by recovering heat from the automobile.

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a system (10) for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The system (10) includes one or more conduits (20) helically wound around an exhaust pipe (30) of the automobile. In one embodiment, the one or more conduits (20) may be composed of at least one of aluminum, iron, copper and the like. In a specific embodiment, the one or more conduits (20) may be placed in proximity with the exhaust pipe (30) of the automobile to facilitate heat transfer between the exhaust pipe (30) and the one or more conduits (20). In some embodiments, a heat exchanger may be used to interface the one or more conduits (20) and the exhaust pipe (30). Further, in a specific embodiment, the heat exchanger may include, but not limited to, a plate heat exchanger, a double tube heat exchanger, a shell and tube heat exchanger, a tube in tube heat exchanger and the like. In one embodiment, the automobile may include, but not limited to, a truck, a bus, a car, a bike and the like. The one or more conduits (20) includes a heat transfer fluid (not shown in FIG. 1) adapted to absorb heat energy from the exhaust pipe (30) of the automobile. In one embodiment, the heat transfer fluid may include, but not limited to, air, water, oil, liquid metal, molten salt and the like.

Furthermore, in one embodiment, the one or more conduits (20) may include an inlet (70) to replenish the heat transfer fluid. In a specific embodiment, the one or more conduits (20) may include an insulating material to prevent heat loss from the one or more conduits (20). In such an embodiment, the insulating material may include at least one of glass wool, and aluminum foil. The system (10) also includes a heat accumulation unit (40) operatively coupled to the one or more conduits (20). The heat accumulation unit (40) includes a chamber (50) including the one or more conduits (20) spirally wound at a base of the chamber (50) and helically wound around walls of the chamber (50). In one embodiment, the chamber (50) may be encapsulated by glass wool insulator (110) to prevent heat loss from the chamber (50).

Also, in some embodiments, the chamber (50) may include a threaded lid (120) to prevent heat loss from the chamber (50). The chamber (50) is adapted to process materials located in the chamber (50) upon receiving the heat energy absorbed by the heat transfer fluid. The heat transfer fluid is circulated around the chamber (50) through the one or more conduits (20) by a pump (60) thereby processing the materials by recovering heat from the automobile. In one embodiment, the materials may include, but not limited to, waste materials, food ingredients, water, and the like. In some embodiments, the processing may include, but not limited to, boiling, cooking, melting, drying and the like. In one embodiment, the chamber (50), the glass wool insulator (110), and the one or more conduits (110) may be enclosed by an outer box (130).

Additionally, in one embodiment, the pump (60) may include, centrifugal pumps, positive displacement pumps and the like. In one embodiment, heat accumulation unit (40) may include a temperature sensor (80) adapted to control temperature of the chamber (50) by providing control signals to the pump (60). In some embodiments, the heat accumulation unit (40) may include an exhaust vent (100) adapted expel fumes from the chamber (50). In a specific embodiment, the heat accumulation unit (40) may include a receiver (90) adapted to receive processed materials from the chamber (50).

FIG. 2 is a flow chart representing the steps involved in a method (500) for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The method (500) includes absorbing heat energy from an exhaust pipe of an automobile in 510. In one embodiment, absorbing heat energy from an exhaust pipe of an automobile includes absorbing heat energy from an exhaust pipe of an automobile by a heat transfer fluid. In one embodiment, the automobile may include, but not limited to, a truck, a bus, a car, a bike and the like. In one embodiment, the heat transfer fluid may include, but not limited to, air, water, oil, liquid metal, molten salt and the like.

The method (500) also includes circulating the heat transfer fluid around a chamber to provide heat energy absorbed by the heat transfer fluid to the chamber. The heat transfer fluid is adapted to circulate through one or more conduits in step 520. In one embodiment, circulating the heat transfer fluid around a chamber to provide heat energy absorbed by the heat transfer fluid to the chamber includes circulating the heat transfer fluid around a chamber to provide heat energy absorbed by the heat transfer fluid to the chamber by a pump. In one embodiment, the chamber may be encapsulated by glass wool insulator to prevent heat loss from the chamber. In some embodiments, the chamber may include a threaded lid to prevent heat loss from the chamber.

Further, in one embodiment, the pump may include, centrifugal pumps, positive displacement pumps and the like. In one embodiment, the one or more conduits may be composed of at least one of aluminum, iron, copper and the like. In a specific embodiments, the one or more conduits may be placed in proximity with the exhaust pipe of the automobile to felicitate heat transfer between the exhaust pipe and the one or more conduits. In some embodiments, a heat exchanger may be used to interface the one or more conduits and the exhaust pipe.

Furthermore, in a specific embodiment, the heat exchanger may include, but not limited to, a plate heat exchanger, a double tube heat exchanger, a shell and tube heat exchanger, a tube in tube heat exchanger and the like. Furthermore, in one embodiment, the one or more conduits may include an inlet to replenish the heat transfer fluid. In a specific embodiment, the one or more conduits may include an insulating material to prevent heat loss from the one or more conduits. In such an embodiment, the insulating material may include at least one of glass wool, and aluminum foil.

The method (500) also includes processing materials located in the chamber upon receiving the heat energy provided by the heat transfer fluid in step 530. In one embodiment, processing materials located in the chamber upon receiving the heat energy provided by the heat transfer fluid includes processing materials located in the chamber upon receiving the heat energy provided by the heat transfer fluid by the chamber of a heat accumulation unit. In one embodiment, the materials may include, but not limited to, waste materials, food ingredients, water, and the like. In some embodiments, the processing may include, but not limited to, boiling, cooking, melting, drying and the like. In one embodiment, heat accumulation unit may include a temperature sensor adapted to control temperature of the chamber by providing control signals to the pump. In some embodiments, the heat accumulation unit may include an exhaust vent adapted expel fumes from the chamber. In a specific embodiment, the heat accumulation unit may include a receiver adapted to receive processed materials from the chamber.

Various embodiments of the system and method for recovering heat energy from an automobile to process materials described above enable various advantages. Provision of the one or more conduits, the heat transfer fluid, and the heat accumulation unit enables repurposing of the heat from the automobile by processing materials. Fabrication of the system with readily available components makes the system cost effective. Further, provision of the insulation around the heat accumulation unit and the one or more conduits prevents heat loss and thereby making the system efficient. The heat generated by the automobile may be recovered for various purposes such as cooking, boiling, melting and drying thereby reducing dependency of the devices on the battery of the automobile.

Further, absence of any complex parts makes the system simple. The system is capable of being installed and operated in an easy manner thereby providing ease of operation. The system is capable of being operated in association with wide range of automobiles thereby achieving operational flexibility. The system provides a way for reducing hotspots being created by restricting emission of the heat from the automobile. Also, the system provides a way for garbage collection trucks to melt waste materials such as plastic thereby increasing waste collection capacity of the garbage collection trucks. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory of the disclosure and are not intended to be restrictive thereof. While specific language has been used to describe the disclosure, any limitations arising on account of the same are not intended. The figures and the foregoing description give examples of embodiments. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that one or more of the described elements may well be combined into a single functional element. Alternatively, certain elements may be split into multiple functional elements. Elements from one embodiment may be added to another embodiment. For example, the order of processes described herein may be changed and are not limited to the manner described herein. Moreover, the actions of any flow diagram need not be implemented in the order shown; nor do all the acts need to be necessarily performed. Also, those acts that are not dependent on other acts may be performed in parallel with the other acts. The scope of embodiments is by no means limited by these specific examples.