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Post by ronyon on Sept 1, 2017 15:34:38 GMT -8
So, I had an idea for an outside batch rocket boiler that would purposefully boil off a batch of water as steam, only for it to condense inside the building as heated storage. The idea is to not worry about accidentally creating steam and instead do it on purpose,thus taking advantage of the phase change. Furthermore I think I could use sections of metal downspout to deliver the steam inside,at a cost lower than copper, galvanized or black iron.
The water could be returned to the boiling vessel by flowing back down the sides of the down spouts.
Or if we choose to pump the water, we should be able to use low cost plastic pipe,as the tempature will be low enough.
Why build outside? Well, I have a mortgage, and need to maintain I insurance.
Anyway, thought I'd share this idea.
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Post by keithturtle on Sept 1, 2017 21:54:53 GMT -8
As far as ducting the steam inside, you want material that is an insulator. Copper or aluminum will extract a lot of heat that you don't want to lose.
Maybe something that transfers heat better than low-density steam, like heat transfer oil, would be better. Or just water, move a higher volume, IDK
I just picked up a heat exchanger to experiment with www.youngheatexchanger.com/fixed_tube_bundle/F/F-503-DY-4P.html
High heat fluid carries intense heat without the expansion of steam. We'll see how it goes
Turtle
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Post by ronyon on Sept 3, 2017 0:31:55 GMT -8
It takes about 180 BTUs to take a pound of water from 32 ° to 212° . It takes about 970 BTUs to make that water into steam. When it condenses, the heat is released. Steam seems like an efg8cent way to move heat, even at 0 psi.
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Post by keithturtle on Sept 3, 2017 20:40:20 GMT -8
Yes, it does look that way. Can the steam be moved so it does not lose too much heat? Maintain pressure? As air or steam expands, it cools. Should be possible to test the approach
Turtle
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Post by Nathan - visiting on Dec 29, 2017 20:49:54 GMT -8
What you're describing is the basic principle behind a 'heat pipe'. Hot source boils a liquid which then condenses at the cold side and the liquid then returns to the hot source by gravity (or a wick system). Heat pipes are extremely efficient at transferring heat quickly! (Small versions are used to cool most CPUs nowadays)
an ideal I've had is to use a finned pipe (baseboard heater pipe or finned water-air heat exchanger) as the cold side on the interior and a very well insulated line between the house and the stove/boiler - main points to keep in mind is that 1) all plumbing should drain back to the boiler and 2) insulate the parts you don't want to lose heat from.
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stoker
Junior Member
Posts: 61
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Post by stoker on Feb 8, 2018 22:10:50 GMT -8
I've wondered about this as well. Steam heat used to be fairly common in buildings in some places... mostly in the first half of the 20th century, I think? So there must be a lot of practical detail about doing this written down somewhere.
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