A liquefier for a heat pump includes a liquefier space and a process water tank. The process water tank is arranged within the liquefier space such that it is substantially surrounded by liquefied working fluid. A wall of the process water tank, however, is spaced from a wall of the process water tank so that a gap formed to communicate with the region of the heat pump in which compressed gas is present is obtained, so that the process water tank is thermally insulated from the space for liquefied working fluid via this gas-filled gap. The liquefier itself may also be surrounded by the gas region, in order to provide for inexpensive insulation of the liquefier.

An entrochemical energy transfer system and a related process for obtaining work from environmental thermal energy are disclosed. In one example, a plurality of linked entrochemical cells with nested chambers provides an aggregate thermal gradient of each entrochemical cell by transferring environmental thermal energy in and/or out of the plurality of linked entrochemical cells. The aggregate thermal gradient generated from the plurality of linked entrochemical cells can be utilized as an environmentally-friendly energy source for human needs. The entrochemical energy transfer system and the related process for obtaining work from environmental thermal energy utilize a set of entropy transfers from Earth's day and night thermal energy inflows and outflows. Furthermore, in one example, the process for obtaining work from environmental thermal energy involves two steps, each step resulting in entropic increases and transfers.

A heating apparatus includes a gas supply for providing a base gas, a generator configured to excite the base gas to produce a metastable gas mixture that includes a metastable gas, and a housing. The housing includes a wall shaped to contain the metastable gas mixture and selectively enclose a reactive element of a target component. Interaction between the metastable gas and at least one of a coupling material and the reactive element transfers energy to selectively heat the at least one of the coupling material and the target component.

An air permeable envelope has a gripper for securing the envelope to a seat. A mixture contained in the air permeable envelope can react exothermically upon exposure to air. A sealed bag that is relatively air impermeable, initially holds the air permeable envelope and mixture together with the gripper. Upon opening and unsealing the bag, the mixture is exposed to air in order to start an exothermic reaction. The envelope and the gripper are removed from the bag and the gripper is used to attach the envelope upon the seat to warm it.

A device for generating a second temperature variation T.sub.2 from a first use temperature variation T.sub.1, includes an elastocaloric material layer, having an internal temperature which is able to vary by T.sub.2 in response to a given mechanical stress variation applied to the elastocaloric material layer. The variation being induced by the first use temperature variation T.sub.1 There is a suspended element in mechanical contact with the elastocaloric material layer so as to apply to this layer a mechanical stress that varies in response to the use temperature variation T.sub.1. The suspended element is arranged so as to make the mechanical stress applied to the elastocaloric material layer vary by in response to the temperature variation T.sub.1, to generate the second temperature variation T.sub.2.

The invention relates to electrical power engineering and can be used for the production of autonomous sources of thermal and electrical energy. The required technical result, which consists in increasing the effectiveness of the generation of thermal energy whilst at the same time producing electrical energy, is achieved in a method based on the generation of a high-voltage electrical discharge between an anode electrode and a cathode electrode which are mounted in series, said electrical discharge being formed from a hydride-forming metal, and forming a vortex flow of inert gas along the axis between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode in the direction of the cathode electrode with hot steam being injected into this flow, wherein the high-voltage electric discharge between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode is generated by means of the supply of a combined voltage to said electrodes, said combined voltage comprising a DC component and a radio-frequency component, the cathode electrode is in the form of a nozzle with an opening for the hot vapour outflow, and at least one pair of electrode probes for drawing electrical energy is mounted between the electrodes, one of said electrode probes being arranged on the axis of the vortex flow, and the other being arranged at the periphery thereof. The device for implementing the method comprises: a quartz tube in which an electrode anode and an electrode cathode are mounted in series on one axis, with an electrical energy generator being connected to said electrode anode and said electrode cathode, wherein the electrode cathode is formed from a hydride-forming metal; a generator of a vortex flow of inert gas, which is mounted at the inlet end of the quartz tube and is capable of generating a vortex flow of inert gas along the axis between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode in the direction of the cathode electrode; and also at least one pair of electrode probes, which are capable of drawing electrical energy, one of which electrode probes is arranged on the axis between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode, and the other of which is arranged at the periphery of the vortex flow, wherein the electrode anode is in the form of a steam injector, the electrode cathode is in the form of a nozzle with an opening for hot vapour outflow, and an electrical energy generator, which is connected to the electrode anode and the electrode cathode, is capable of generating a combined voltage comprising a DC component and a radio-frequency component.

A heat generating method includes: heating, with a heater, a heat generating element and causing a first heat generating reaction in which the heat generating element generates heat with a first heat generation amount and triggering a second heat generating reaction in which the heat generating element generates heat with a second heat generation amount larger than the first heat generation amount, by imparting a perturbation to an input power to be applied to the heater in a state where the first heat generating reaction is occurring. The heat generating element includes a base made of a hydrogen storage metal, a hydrogen storage alloy, or a proton conductor, and a multilayer film provided on a surface of the base, with a stacked configuration of a first layer and a second layer made of different materials and both having a thickness of less than 1,000 nm.

A Venturi device with a primary flow path and a secondary flow path introduced into the primary flow path, wherein a flow of one or more flowable mediums in the primary flow path and the secondary flow path creates a vortex generating a suction at an inlet of the Venturi device. A hydropower system for converting potential energy of a fluid into electrical energy utilize an upper reservoir and a lower reservoir containing the fluid. A system can be used for converting ambient thermal energy into electrical energy. The system can include a fluid loop to circulate a primary flow of a fluid. A forced induction system for a vehicle to induce ambient airflow can be used to generate electrical energy from the ambient airflow. A cooling system can cool a motor of a vehicle with ambient airflow.

A Venturi device with a primary flow path and a secondary flow path introduced into the primary flow path, wherein a flow of one or more flowable mediums in the primary flow path and the secondary flow path creates a vortex generating a suction at an inlet of the Venturi device. A hydropower system for converting potential energy of a fluid into electrical energy utilize an upper reservoir and a lower reservoir containing the fluid. A system can be used for converting ambient thermal energy into electrical energy. The system can include a fluid loop to circulate a primary flow of a fluid. A forced induction system for a vehicle to induce ambient airflow can be used to generate electrical energy from the ambient airflow. A cooling system can cool a motor of a vehicle with ambient airflow.

A nuclear fuel decay heat utilization system usable for space heating in one embodiment comprises a nuclear generation plant building housing a spent fuel pool containing submerged fuel assemblies which emit decay heat that heats the pool. Plural fluidly isolated but thermally coupled heat removal systems comprising pumped flow loops operate in tandem to absorb thermal energy from the heated pool water, and transfer the thermal energy through the systems in a cascading manner form one to the next to a final external heat sink outside the plant building from which the heat is rejected to the ambient environment. A programmable controller operably regulates the intake and flowrate of water from the heat sink into the heat removal systems and monitors ambient air temperature inside to building. The flowrate is regulated to maintain a preprogrammed building setpoint air temperature by increasing fuel pool water temperature to a maximum permissible limit.