Dry type, liquid-solid cooling system

Claim 2

A process of cooling a hot liquid first material, the material being liquid at the ambient temperature, comprising: bringing the hot liquid first material into heat exchange relationship with a particulate solid second material which is solid at the ambient temperature and which liquefies through such heat exchange, removing the liquefied second material from heat exchange with the first material, cooling and converting the removed liquefied second material into solid particulates, and recontacting the solid particulate second material in heat exchange with the hot liquid first material.

Claim 3

The process of claim 1 in which the heat exchange is effected by direct contact between the first and second materials.

Claim 4

The process of claim 2 in which the first material is water and the second material is essentially insoluble in water.

Claim 5

The process of claim 3 in which the second material has a specific gravity less than water.

Claim 6

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises directly contacting a hot liquid first material, said material being liquid at ambient temperature, with a second material, which is solid at ambient temperature and essentially insoluble in the first material, in solid particulate form to liquefy the second material, separating the liquid second material from the first liquid material, cooling and converting the separated liquid second material into solid particulate form, and recycling the solid particulate second material into contact with hot liquid first material.

Claim 7

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises directly contacting a hot liquid first material, said material being liquid at ambient temperature, with a second material, which is solid at ambient temperature and essentially insoluble in the first material, in solid particulate form to liquefy the second material, separating the liquid second material from the first liquid material, cooling and converting the separated liquid second material into solid particulate form, and recycling the solid particulate second material into contact with hot liquid first material.

Claim 8

The process of claim 5 in which the first material is hot water.

Claim 9

The process of claim 6 in which the hot water is an intermediate coolant obtained from a power generation plant.

Claim 10

The process of claim 5 in which the liquid second material has a specific gravity less than the hot liquid first material and the liquids are separated from each other by gravity.

Claim 11

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises directly contacting a hot liquid first material, said material being liquid at ambient temperature, with a second material, which is solid at ambient temperature and essentially insoluble in the first material, in solid particulate form to liquefy the second material, said liquid second material having a specific gravity less than the hot liquid first material, separating the liquid second material from the first liquid material by gravity into two layers, circulating the liquid first material through a power generation plant as an intermediate coolant, dispersing and cooling the second material liquid layer in air into solid particulates, and recycling the solid particulates of the second material into contact with the hot first liquid material recycled from the power generation plant.

Claim 12

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises directly contacting a hot liquid first material, said material being liquid at ambient temperature, with a second material, which is solid at ambient temperature and essentially insoluble in the first material, in solid particulate form to liquefy the second material, said liquid second material having a specific gravity less than the hot liquid first material, separating the liquid second material from the first liquid material by gravity into two layers, circulating the liquid first material through a power generation plant as an intermediate coolant, dispersing and cooling the second material liquid layer in air into solid particulates, and recycling the solid particulates of the second material into contact with the hot first liquid material recycled from the power generation plant.

Claim 13

The process of claim 9 in which the first material is water and the second material melts at 10*F. above the ambient air temperature.

Claim 14

The prOcess of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises spraying hot water obtained as an intermediate coolant from a power generation plant into intimate contact with a second material, which is solid at ambient temperature and essentially insoluble in hot water in solid particulate form to liquefy the second material, separating the liquid second material from the water by settling the liquids into two layers in a reservoir chamber, cooling and converting the separated liquid second material into solid particulate form, and recycling the solid particulate second material into contact with hot water.

Claim 15

The prOcess of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises spraying hot water obtained as an intermediate coolant from a power generation plant into intimate contact with a second material, which is solid at ambient temperature and essentially insoluble in hot water in solid particulate form to liquefy the second material, separating the liquid second material from the water by settling the liquids into two layers in a reservoir chamber, cooling and converting the separated liquid second material into solid particulate form, and recycling the solid particulate second material into contact with hot water.

Claim 16

The process of claim 11 in which liquid second material from the layer thereof is removed and sprayed into a cooling tower through which air flows upwardly to cool the sprayed liquid second material into solid particulates.

Claim 17

The process of claim 12 in which the reservoir is located in the bottom portion of the tower.

Claim 18

The process of claim 12 in which the water is sprayed into contact with the solid particulate material in the cooling tower below the flow of air.

Claim 19

The process of claim 12 in which the solid particles fall downwardly countercurrent to the air flow.

Claim 20

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises: forming a dispersion comprising a first liquid material and a second solid particulate material dispersed in the first liquid material, said first material being liquid at ambient temperature and said second material being solid at ambient temperature and insoluble in liquid form in the first material, feeding the dispersion in indirect heat exchange through a heat source adequate to melt the second material to thereby form a liquid-liquid mixture, separating the liquid-liquid mixture into liquid first material and liquid second material, cooling and converting the liquid second material into solid particulate form, recycling the solid particulate second material into contact with the separated liquid first material to reform the dispersion, and repeating the described process.

Claim 21

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises: forming a dispersion comprising a first liquid material and a second solid particulate material dispersed in the first liquid material, said first material being liquid at ambient temperature and said second material being solid at ambient temperature and insoluble in liquid form in the first material, feeding the dispersion in indirect heat exchange through a heat source adequate to melt the second material to thereby form a liquid-liquid mixture, separating the liquid-liquid mixture into liquid first material and liquid second material, cooling and converting the liquid second material into solid particulate form, recycling the solid particulate second material into contact with the separated liquid first material to reform the dispersion, and repeating the described process.

Claim 22

The process of claim 14 in which the first material is hot water.

Claim 23

The process of claim 17 in which the hot water is an intermediate coolant obtained from a power generation plant.

Claim 24

The process of claim 17 in which the liquid second material has a specific gravity less than the hot liquid first material and the liquids are separated into two layers by gravity settling in a reservoir chamber.

Claim 25

The process of claim 19 in which the liquids are separated into two layers by gravity, the second material liquid layer is dispersed and cooled in air into solid particulates and the solid particulates are dispersed in liquid from the first material liquid layer to reform the dispersion.

Claim 26

The process of claim 17 in which the second material melts at 10*F. above the ambient air temperature.

Claim 27

The process of claim 16 in which liquid second material from the layer thereof is removed and sprayed into a cooling tower through which air flows upwardly to cool the sprayed liquid second material into solid particulates.

Claim 28

The process of claim 22 in which the solid particulates are removed from the cooling tower and dispersed in liquid first material withdrawn from the reservoir.

Claim 29

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises: feeding a dispersion comprising a first liquid material and a second solid particulate material dispersed in the first liquid material, said first material being liquid at ambient temperature and said second material being solid at ambient temperature, insoluble in and of a different specific gravity in liquid form than the first material, in indirect heat exchange through a heat source adequate to melt the second material to thereby form a liquid-liquid mixture, spraying the liquid-liquid mixture into a reservoir of the first material having a temperature low enough to solidify the second material in particulaTe form dispersed in the reservoir of first material, and removing particulate second material with liquid first material from the reservoir and refeeding it in indirect heat exchange through the heat source.

Claim 30

The process of effecting heat exchange and cooling which comprises: feeding a dispersion comprising a first liquid material and a second solid particulate material dispersed in the first liquid material, said first material being liquid at ambient temperature and said second material being solid at ambient temperature, insoluble in and of a different specific gravity in liquid form than the first material, in indirect heat exchange through a heat source adequate to melt the second material to thereby form a liquid-liquid mixture, spraying the liquid-liquid mixture into a reservoir of the first material having a temperature low enough to solidify the second material in particulaTe form dispersed in the reservoir of first material, and removing particulate second material with liquid first material from the reservoir and refeeding it in indirect heat exchange through the heat source.

Claim 31

The process of claim 24 in which the second material has a specific gravity less than the first material.

Claim 32

The process of claim 25 in which the first material is water.

Claim 33

The process of claim 24 in which the heat source is a power generation plant.

Claim 34

The process of claim 27 in which the reservoir of the first material is a portion of a river or lake of fresh water.

Claim 35

A process of cooling a hot first material comprising: bringing the hot first material into heat exchange relationship with a particulate solid second material which liquefies through such heat exchange, removing the liquefied second material from heat exchange with the first material, cooling and converting the removed liquefied second material into solid particulates, and recontacting the solid particulate second material in heat exchange with the hot first material.

Claim 36

A process of cooling a hot first material comprising: bringing the hot first material into heat exchange relationship with a particulate solid second material which liquefies through such heat exchange, removing the liquefied second material from heat exchange with the first material, cooling and converting the removed liquefied second material into solid particulates, and recontacting the solid particulate second material in heat exchange with the hot first material.