An air conditioner includes a battery temperature adjustment device which adjusts the temperature of a battery and has a refrigerant-heat medium heat exchanger to exchange heat between a refrigerant and a heat medium. A controller executes a first heating/battery cooling mode to let the refrigerant discharged from a compressor radiate heat in a radiator, decompress the refrigerant, and then let the refrigerant absorb heat in an outdoor heat exchanger and the refrigerant-heat medium heat exchanger, and a second heating/battery cooling mode to let the refrigerant discharged from the compressor radiate heat in the radiator and the outdoor heat exchanger, decompress the refrigerant, and then let the refrigerant absorb heat in the refrigerant-heat medium heat exchanger.

An air-conditioning system which may be included in a motor vehicle may include a single pair of tube-and-plate heat exchangers arranged within a common vacuum enclosure, the heat exchangers selectively coupled with a heat source, a radiator, and an air-conditioning core. During an adsorbing/evaporating mode, coolant may circulate between a first heat exchanger and the radiator and vapor may evaporate from the surface of non-adsorbent-coated plates of the second heat exchanger and be adsorbed at adsorbent-coated plates of the first heat exchanger while coolant circulates between the second heat exchanger and the core. During a desorbing/condensing mode, coolant may circulate between a heat source and the first heat exchanger to effect desorption of vapor from the adsorbent in the first heat exchanger, while melting PCM in the core exchanges heat with air blown through the core to provide cooling.

An air-conditioning system which may be included in a motor vehicle may include a single pair of tube-and-plate heat exchangers arranged within a common vacuum enclosure, the heat exchangers selectively coupled with a heat source, a radiator, and an air-conditioning core. During an adsorbing/evaporating mode, coolant may circulate between a first heat exchanger and the radiator and vapor may evaporate from the surface of non-adsorbent-coated plates of the second heat exchanger and be adsorbed at adsorbent-coated plates of the first heat exchanger while coolant circulates between the second heat exchanger and the core. During a desorbing/condensing mode, coolant may circulate between a heat source and the first heat exchanger to effect desorption of vapor from the adsorbent in the first heat exchanger, while melting PCM in the core exchanges heat with air blown through the core to provide cooling.

A method and device for cooling and/or heating media, preferably in a motor vehicle, the method in which at least one first heat source is cooled and at least one second heat sink is heated by a thermal management system. In a method in which the heating or cooling can occur on demand, heat and/or cold are shifted by the thermal management system in space and time to the heat sink and/or heat source, which is characterized by need.

A method and device for cooling and/or heating media, preferably in a motor vehicle, the method in which at least one first heat source is cooled and at least one second heat sink is heated by a thermal management system. In a method in which the heating or cooling can occur on demand, heat and/or cold are shifted by the thermal management system in space and time to the heat sink and/or heat source, which is characterized by need.

A thermodynamic system for powering a reciprocating device includes a refrigerant passing in a closed loop between a refrigerant compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, and an evaporator. The system includes a heat source for heating the refrigerant, and an engine for receiving the heated refrigerant. The engine includes a housing, a shaft axially movable within the housing, a piston attached to the shaft, a shifter for reversing piston direction, and porting for passing the refrigerant into and out of the engine housing.

A thermodynamic system for powering a reciprocating device includes a refrigerant passing in a closed loop between a refrigerant compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, and an evaporator. The system includes a heat source for heating the refrigerant, and an engine for receiving the heated refrigerant. The engine includes a housing, a shaft axially movable within the housing, a piston attached to the shaft, a shifter for reversing piston direction, and porting for passing the refrigerant into and out of the engine housing.

A system for producing a heat source for heating or electricity, using medium/low-temperature waste heat includes: an absorption-type heat pump (100) supplied with a driving heat source and heat source water to heat a low-temperature heat medium; a regenerator heat exchange unit (210) for supplying a regenerator (110) with a driving heat source using waste heat; an evaporator heat exchange unit (220) for supplying an evaporator with heat source water; a heat medium circulation line (310) for circulating a heat medium; a generation unit (400) branching off from the heat medium circulation line (310) and producing electricity; a heat production unit (500) branching off from the heat medium circulation line (310) and supplying a heat-demanding place with a heat source for heating; and a switching valve unit (600) for controlling the flow of heat medium supplied the generation unit (400) or the heat production unit (500).

A system for producing a heat source for heating or electricity, using medium/low-temperature waste heat includes: an absorption-type heat pump (100) supplied with a driving heat source and heat source water to heat a low-temperature heat medium; a regenerator heat exchange unit (210) for supplying a regenerator (110) with a driving heat source using waste heat; an evaporator heat exchange unit (220) for supplying an evaporator with heat source water; a heat medium circulation line (310) for circulating a heat medium; a generation unit (400) branching off from the heat medium circulation line (310) and producing electricity; a heat production unit (500) branching off from the heat medium circulation line (310) and supplying a heat-demanding place with a heat source for heating; and a switching valve unit (600) for controlling the flow of heat medium supplied the generation unit (400) or the heat production unit (500).

A heat recovery device, including a pillar-shaped honeycomb structure comprising an outer peripheral side wall having one or more planar outer peripheral side surfaces; one or more thermoelectric conversion modules arranged to face the one or more planar outer peripheral side surfaces; a tubular member that circumferentially covers the outer peripheral side surfaces of the honeycomb structure and the one or more thermoelectric conversion modules; and a casing that circumferentially covers the tubular member; wherein the partition walls are mainly configured of ceramics; and wherein the casing has an inflow port and an outflow port for a second fluid having a temperature lower than that of the first fluid, and a flow path for the second fluid is formed circumferentially around the tubular member between an inner surface of the casing and an outer surface of the tubular member.