The invention relates to a cooling system (1) comprising at least: a Stirling heat pump (2) designed to cool an inlet gas (G.sub.e) down to a cryogenic temperature so as to form a cryogenic liquid (L), a primary electric motor (3), intended to put said Stirling heat pump (2) into operation, a primary pump (4) intended to cause said cryogenic liquid (L) to circulate under pressure, and a cooling means (5) intended to cool said primary electric motor (3) with the aid of the cryogenic liquid (L) output by said primary pump (4). The invention is particularly suitable for the production of a cryogenic liquid and the applications thereof.

Plant and method for liquefying a flow of gas, comprising a cooling circuit which is provided with an upstream end which is intended to be connected to a source of pressurised gas to be liquified and a downstream end which is intended to be connected to a user member, the plant comprising, between the upstream and downstream ends, a set of members which are intended to liquefy the gas and comprise at least one exchanger for cooling the gas, and at least one expansion turbine which is mounted on a rotary axle which is supported by at least one bearing of the gas-static type, the cooling circuit comprising a pressurised gas injection conduit having an upstream end which is intended to receive pressurised gas supplied by the source and a downstream end which is connected to the bearing in order to provide support to the rotary axle, the plant comprising a conduit for recovering the gas which has been used in the bearing, the conduit for recovering the gas comprising an upstream end which is connected to the bearing and a downstream end, characterised in that the downstream end of the conduit for recovering the as is connected to the cooling circuit between the upstream and downstream ends thereof in order to recycle at that location at least a portion of the gas which has been used to support the rotary axle of the bearing with a few to liquefying said gas.

The amount of consumption of gas is reduced when the gas is expanded to be cooled by using a plurality of expansion turbines. A high-pressure expansion turbine includes: a gas supply passage through which bearing gas is supplied to a bearing portion; and a gas discharge passage through which the bearing gas which has been supplied from the gas supply passage to the bearing portion is discharged from the bearing portion. A low-pressure expansion turbine includes: a gas supply passage through which the bearing gas is supplied to a bearing portion; and a gas discharge passage through which the bearing gas which has been supplied from the gas supply passage to the bearing portion is discharged from the bearing portion. The bearing gas discharged from the gas discharge passage of the high-pressure expansion turbine is supplied to the gas supply passage of the low-pressure expansion turbine.

A raw material gas liquefying device includes a feed line; a refrigerant circulation line; and a controller. In a refrigerant liquefaction route, a refrigerant flows through a compressor, a heat exchanger, a circulation system JT valve, a liquefied refrigerant storage tank, and the heat exchanger, and returns to the compressor. In a cryogenic energy generation route, the refrigerant flows through the compressor, the heat exchanger, an expansion unit, and the heat exchanger, and returns to the compressor. The controller determines if a refrigerant storage tank liquid level is within an allowable range, manipulates a feed system JT valve opening rate to control refrigerant temperature at the high-temperature-side refrigerant flow path exit side of the heat exchanger, and manipulates the opening rate of the feed system JT valve to control the refrigerant storage tank liquid level so that the refrigerant storage tank liquid level falls into the predetermined allowable range.

The present invention relates to a cryogen-gas liquefaction system (1) and method comprising: a storage container (2) comprising a liquid storage portion (3) and a neck portion (4) with a liquefaction region (8) above said bath (7); a coldhead (9) arranged at the neck portion (4) comprising one or more refrigeration stages (10, 11); a gas intake module (12) containing an amount of gas-phase cryogen for its introduction into the storage container (2); and a pressure control mechanism (13) for controlling the cryogen gas pressure within the liquefaction region (8) of the storage container (2). Advantageously, the coldhead (9) further comprises: a refrigeration compressor (17) for distributing gas-phase cryogen inside the coldhead (9); one or more extraction orifices (22) communicating a gas circulation circuit inside the coldhead (9) with the external region of the refrigeration stages (10, 11), acting as pass-through ports (23); and a gas injection source (19) connected with the gas circulation circuit of said refrigeration compressor (17) through a gas injection valve (20), that maintains a total amount of gas constant in the compressor gas circuit, to compensate for the amount of gas extracted and liquefied through the extraction orifices (22).

A system, apparatus and method for a superduct representing a unique process for helium distillation/liquefaction by means of a hypersonic stochastic switch is described. A supersonically expanded isentropic continuum is switched into a stochastic vortex flux by means of a thermally reactive slanted shafted nosecone and an extreme high pressure source hypersonic vortex flux. The concept can be further developed to a bridge spanning 1-10 miles of superduct segments, owing to its virtual nature and extreme power packaged kinetic energy of the hypersonic stochastic motive system.

The present invention pertains to a cooling method for liquefying a feed gas, comprising the steps of providing a cooling cycle with a refrigerant stream; dividing the refrigerant stream into a first partial stream and a second partial stream; expanding the first partial stream in a first expansion device; and transferring cooling energy from the expanded first partial stream to a feed gas stream to be cooled, particularly comprising hydrogen and/or helium. Further the method comprises the steps of guiding the expanded first partial stream to a suction inlet of an ejector; and guiding the second partial stream to a propellant inlet of the ejector such that, upon expanding the second partial stream in the ejector, the expanded first partial stream is compressed and merged with the expanded second partial stream.

The present invention relates to a refrigerant composition. According to the invention it is envisioned that the composition comprises comprising an inert gas selected from nitrogen, argon, neon and a mixture thereof, and a mixture of at least two C.sub.1-C.sub.5 hydrocarbons. The present invention further relates to the use of the refrigerant composition in a method for liquefying a gaseous substance, particularly hydrogen or helium.

A dilution refrigerator, such as for a quantum computing system, includes a cryostat having a plurality of temperature-controlled flanges inside a vacuum chamber. A dilution unit is disposed inside the cryostat and operable to cool a first group of the flanges. A continuous flow helium refrigerator is in heat transfer communication with a lowest temperature flange of a second group of flanges, disposed at progressively lower temperatures that are greater than those of the first group of flanges, to provide primary cooling thereto to a first temperature. The continuous flow helium refrigerator resides at least partially in the cryostat and includes a helium liquefier and a first closed-loop circuit thermally coupling the helium liquefier to the lowest temperature flange of the second group of flanges. The helium liquefier provides liquid helium to the lowest temperature flange of the second group of flanges via the first closed-loop circuit.

A raw material gas liquefying device includes a feed line which feeds a raw material gas, a refrigerant circulation line which circulates a refrigerant, the refrigerant circulation line including an expansion unit of a turbine type which expands the refrigerant to generate cryogenic energy, and an expansion unit entrance valve provided at an entrance side of the expansion unit, a heat exchanger which exchanges heat between the raw material gas and the refrigerant, a cooler which performs initial cooling of the raw material gas and the refrigerant by heat exchange with liquid nitrogen, and a controller which manipulates the opening rate of the expansion unit entrance value and performs a feedback control so that the rotation speed of the expansion unit reaches a predetermined target value, and outputs the opening rate command to the expansion unit entrance valve, at start-up and stop of the expansion unit.