A New Low-Temperature Gas Expansion Cycle

Abstract

In the companion paper (Part I) a gas expansion refrigeration process is discussed which has several novel features. Gas, compressed in a conventional compressor, is admitted intermittently by means of a mechanically operated inlet valve at room temperature, through a thermal regenerator, to an expansion engine. After expansion, the gas returns through the regenerator and is discharged, again at room temperature, through a mechanically controlled exhaust valve. The most . unique feature of the process is that the expansion engine does not deliver work to the exterior. Instead, it rejects enthalpy in the form of heat, which results in an exhaust stream which has a higher temperature than the inlet stream.