A novel cooling system for tactical shelters is proposed to transform the exhaust gas waste heat from the priority diesel generator into tactical shelter air conditioning. Cooling is provided by a heat pump utilizing reversible metal hydride beds and non-condensible hydrogen gas as the working fluid. This novel concept is based on already demonstrated technology. Fast recycle reversible metal hydride cooling beds have already been demonstrated by ergenics, inc. R. Rfhodes (strbe/fed, ft. Belvoir r&d center) has shown in preliminary work that waste heat recovery from diesel engine exhaust is practical. The proposed heat pump will provide a weight reduction and/or additional electric power for tactical communication shelter. It will have a minimum of moving parts and is capable of high reli- . Ability. A 3000 to 4000 btu/hr proof-of-concept device will be designed, fabricated and tested in phase i. This information will provide the design information for the phase ii full size field test unit.
