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The present invention provides a unitary sliding-vane type compressor-expander comprising a housing with a compressor inlet and outlet, and an expander inlet and outlet. A single rotor is disposed therein defining in cooperation with the housing a compression chamber on one side and an expansion cha

The present invention provides a unitary sliding-vane type compressor-expander comprising a housing with a compressor inlet and outlet, and an expander inlet and outlet. A single rotor is disposed therein defining in cooperation with the housing a compression chamber on one side and an expansion chamber on the opposite side. The rotor includes a plurality of regularly spaced vanes slidingly disposed in slots about the periphery of the rotor. The bottoms of the vane slots may be vented through a passage in the housing to the inlet air, or alternatively through a groove between the vane and vane slot to the compression or exhaust chambers. Permanent magnets are used in the vanes and housing to increase or decrease the contact force between the vane tip and housing. An integral condenser-humidifier is provided in the path of the expanded gas exhausting from the turbine outlet for condensing water out of the expanded gas and returning the condensed water to the compressor-expander. The integral condenser may comprise a substantially vertically oriented spout or an internal chamber. In another embodiment of the invention an electrical generation system is provided comprising a unitary sliding vane type compressor-expander in combination with a fuel cell. The compressor portion of the compressor-expander provides compressed air to an oxidant inlet of the fuel cell, and the spent oxidant exhaust from the fuel cell is expanded through the expander portion of the compressor-expander.

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The present invention provides a unitary sliding-vane type compressor-expander comprising a housing with a compressor inlet and outlet, and an expander inlet and outlet. A single rotor is disposed therein defining in cooperation with the housing a compression chamber on one side and an expansion cha

The present invention provides a unitary sliding-vane type compressor-expander comprising a housing with a compressor inlet and outlet, and an expander inlet and outlet. A single rotor is disposed therein defining in cooperation with the housing a compression chamber on one side and an expansion chamber on the opposite side. The rotor includes a plurality of regularly spaced vanes slidingly disposed in slots about the periphery of the rotor. The bottoms of the vane slots may be vented through a passage in the housing to the inlet air, or alternatively through a groove between the vane and vane slot to the compression or exhaust chambers. Permanent magnets are used in the vanes and housing to increase or decrease the contact force between the vane tip and housing. An integral condenser-humidifier is provided in the path of the expanded gas exhausting from the turbine outlet for condensing water out of the expanded gas and returning the condensed water to the compressor-expander. The integral condenser may comprise a substantially vertically oriented spout or an internal chamber. In another embodiment of the invention an electrical generation system is provided comprising a unitary sliding vane type compressor-expander in combination with a fuel cell. The compressor portion of the compressor-expander provides compressed air to an oxidant inlet of the fuel cell, and the spent oxidant exhaust from the fuel cell is expanded through the expander portion of the compressor-expander. ement piston type compressor comprising said housing including a front housing and a cylinder block coupled to the front housing and having a plurality of cylinder bores arranged around the rotary shaft, pistons accommodated in the cylinder bores as the compression members to delimit the compression chambers, a tiltable swash plate arranged in a control pressure chamber in the front housing and rotated by the rotary shaft, so that a tilt angle of the swash plate is changed by adjusting a pressure in the control pressure chamber, the accommodation space and the suction chamber being separated from each other by the control pressure chamber and the cylinder block, and a second shaft seal device to shut off the communication between the accommodation space and the control pressure chamber, along the circumferential surface of the rotary shaft. 5. A compressor according to claim 1, wherein the shaft seal device comprises a mechanical seal. 6. A compressor according to claim 1, wherein the shaft seal device comprises a lip type seal. 7. A compressor according to claim 6, wherein said lip seal has a plurality of lip rings. 8. A compressor according to claim 7, wherein said lip rings have grooves having an oil returning action into the housing by a relative rotation of the grooves to the rotary shaft. 9. A compressor according to claim 4, wherein said front housing comprises a support housing having said accommodation space, and a chamber-forming housing having said control pressure chamber. 10. A compressor according to claim 1, wherein a downstream portion of said passage extending between said outlet and said suction chamber is arranged in the compressor. 11. A compressor according to claim 10, wherein said outlet and said downstream portion are arranged in the compressor. 12. A compressor according to claim 10, wherein said outlet is arranged in said rotary shaft, and a some of said downstream portion is formed in said rotary shaft. the control passage is a supply passage, which connects the crank chamber to the discharge pressure zone, wherein the pressure sensitive chamber is located in the supply passage, wherein an upstream part of the supply passage, which connects the pressure sensitive chamber to the discharge pressure zone, serves as a pressure detecting passage that applies the discharge pressure to the pressure sensitive chamber. 6. The control valve according to claim 2 further comprising an external controller for determining a target value of the discharge pressure, wherein the pressure sensitive member moves the valve body such that the discharge pressure seeks the target value. 7. The control valve according to claim 6, wherein the external controller is an electromagnetic actuator, which urges the valve body with a force in accordance with the magnitude of a supplied electric current, wherein the force of the electromagnetic actuator corresponds to the target value of the discharge pressure. 8. The control valve according to claim 7, wherein as the force of the electromagnetic actuator increases, the target value of the discharge pressure increases. 9. The control valve according to claim 7, wherein as the force of electromagnetic actuator increases, the target value of the discharge pressure decreases. 10. A control valve used for a variable displacement type compressor, which varies the displacement in accordance with the pressure of a crank chamber, wherein the compressor has a discharge pressure zone, the pressure of which is a discharge pressure, a suction pressure zone, the pressure of which is a suction pressure, and a control passage, which connects the crank chamber to the discharge pressure zone or the suction pressure zone, wherein the control valve is located in the control passage, the control valve comprising: a valve housing; a valve body located for adjusting the size of the opening of the control passage, wherein the valve body is exposed to the pressure of the control passage; a pressure sensitive chamber defined in the valve housing, wherein the pressure sensitive chamber is connected to the discharge pressure zone, the suction pressure or the pressure of the crank chamber; and a pressure sensitive member accommodated in the pressure sensitive chamber, wherein the pressure sensitive member moves the valve body in accordance with the pressure of the pressure sensitive chamber such that the displacement is varied to counter changes of the discharge pressure, and the direction in which the valve body moves in response to an increase of the discharge is the same as the direction in which the valve body moves when the pressure of the control passage increases.