Comments Posted By Pi
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I wonder if you could use another liquid that has a medium temperature vaporization point?
Actually, almost anything would work. Put water under a vaccuum and it will boil at room temperature. Maybe turnip juice would make a good substitute for Freon.
That heat pump idea is not new. Been around for centuries. Carnot described way back in the early 1800's. d'Arsonval thought up a system that used the heat form the sun and the cool of deep ocean water. It's been tried on a large scale in tropical islands (Cuba and Hawaii).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_thermal_energy_conversion
But typical efficiency is only 1%-3%. So you have a relatively big cost of startup for a small amount of energy - especially on a small scale.
Since you have moving parts, there is maintenance cost and hastle. (Somewhere, you will have to break the seal on the closed tube to maintain the turbine.)
When the ground is used for cooling, it doesn't conduct heat very well. The heat buildup will reduce efficiency.
But one more thing. Notice the names involved with the heat pumps -- Carnot and d'Arsonval. They're French. The French invented the Laws that limit the heat engines. It's not the oil companies supressing the patent, it's the French.
Comment Posted By Pi On 28.04.2006 @ 21:10
