Electrothermal transducer and method of operating same

Claim 1

AN ELECTROTHERMAL TRANSDUCER COMPRISING AT LEAST TWO INTERCONNECTED MOLTEN SALT ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS, EACH OF SAID CELLS HAVING A NEGATIVE ELECTRODE CHAMBER WITH AN INERT POROUS NEGATIVE ELECTRODE, A POSITIVE ELECTRODE CHAMBER WITH AN INERT POROUS POSITIVE ELECTRODE, AND AN ELECTROLYTE CHAMBER FOR A MOLTEN SALT THEREBETWEEN, AN ALKALI METAL HALIDE SALT IN SAID ELECTROLYTE CHAMBER FOR PROVIDING ION COMMUNICATION BETWEEN SAID NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE ELECTRODES, ONE OF SAID CELLS ADAPTED FOR OPERATION AT A HIGHER TEMPERATURE THAN THE OTHER, SAID OTHER CELL ADAPTED FOR OPERATION AT A LOWER TEMPERATURE THAN SAID ONE CELL, MEANS FOR DRAWING ELECTRICAL POWER FROM THE LOWER TEMPERATURE CELL, MEANS FOR APPLYING PART OF THE ELETRICAL POWER GENERATED BY THE LOWER TEMPERATURE CELL TO THE HIGHER TEMPERATURE CELL SO AS TO ELECTOLYZE THE ALKALI METAL HALIDE SALT IN THE LATTER TO PRODUCE FREE ALKALI METAL AT ITS NEGATIVE ELECTRODE AND FREE HALOGEN AT ITS POSITIVE ELECTRODE, MEANS FOR CONVEYING THE FREE HALOGEN FROM THE POSITIVE ELECTRODE OF THE HIGHER TEMPERATURE CELL TO THE POSITIVE ELECTRODE OF THE LOWER TEMPERATURE CELL FOR REACTION THEREAT, MEANS FOR CONVEYING THE FREE ALKALI METAL FROM THE NEGATIVE ELECTRODE OF THE HIGHER TEMPERATURE