Environmental control unit

Claim 1

An environmental control unit comprising a housing; baffle means disposed within said housing, dividing it into an inlet section and a regeneration section having a regeneration air stream passing therethrough; an S-wheel and an L-wheel disposed in said housing to rotate between said inlet section and said regeneration section; a heating section disposed in siad regeneration section and between said L-wheel and said S-wheel, which further includes: a a plurality of heat pipes, each heat pipe having an evaporative section, a condenser section and an intermediate portion connecting said evaporative and condenser sections, b each of said heat pipes being disposed with its condenser section in said heating section in a vertical plane in vertical, spaced apart alignment with each of the other condenser sections, c means defining a firebox disposed exteriorly of said regeneration section and having disposed therein a fuel gas burner creating a flame in contact with and in heat transfer relation with the evaporative section of each of said heat pipes, such evaporative sections being spaced apart from each other horizontally in said fire box, d said firebox being disposed with relation to said regeneration air stream to isolate the burner combustion products from said aIr stream, e a flue for exhausting combustion products from said burner exteriorly of said regeneration section and without passing through said regeneration section, f louver means comprising a plurality of pivotally mounted louvers disposed in the heating section upstream of the condenser sections of the heat pipes for controlling the volume of air flowing through said regeneration section and to provide laminar air flow over said heat pipes in a predetermined path, g said fuel gas burner having a fuel gas line provided with a valve means for regulating the flow of fuel gas to said fuel gas burner, h temperature sensing means disposed in said regeneration section adjacent the outlet side of said L-wheel for sensing the temperature of the gas in said regeneration section exiting said L-wheel, i operating means operatively connected to said louver means for adjustable pivoting said louvers for adjustably regulating air flow over said condenser sections, j actuating means coupled between said temperature sensing means and said valve means for controlling the flow fo fuel gas to said fuel gas burner in response to the temperature sensed by said temperature sensing means, and k said actuating means being further coupled between said temperature sensing means and said operating means for controlling the position of said louvers in response to the temperature sensed by said temperature sensing means, and l said louver means, condenser sections and said heating section being so operatively constructed and arranged that all of the air passing between the louvers flows in laminar air flow heat exhange relationship over said condenser sections in said predetermined path, Whereby said heat pipes provide a relatively uniform heating of said regeneration air stream and are thermally selfadjusting and rapidly responsive to temperature and volumetric air flow changes in said regeneration air stream.