EP2345861B1

EP2345861B1 - Heat exchanger with extruded multi-chamber manifold with machined bypass

Info

Publication number: EP2345861B1
Application number: EP11250048.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: James D. Gowan; Alexander N. Kurochkin
Original assignee: CLOSED JOINT-STOCK Co "HAMILTON STANDARD-NAUKA"; CLOSED JOINT STOCK Co HAMILTON STANDARD NAUKA; Hamilton Sundstrand Corp
Current assignee: CLOSED JOINT-STOCK Co "HAMILTON STANDARD-NAUKA"; CLOSED JOINT STOCK Co HAMILTON STANDARD NAUKA; Hamilton Sundstrand Corp
Priority date: 2010-01-15
Filing date: 2011-01-17
Publication date: 2018-09-19
Anticipated expiration: 2031-01-17
Also published as: CN102128557B; EP2345861A2; RU2470244C2; CN102128557A; EP2345861A3; US20110174472A1; RU2011102325A

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to heat exchangers, and more particularly, to an extruded multi-chamber manifold with a machined bypass.
Heat exchanger manifolds must be strong enough to withstand elevated pressures exerted by fluids flowing through the manifold during operation. Many heat exchangers require multiple panels to be put together to allow increased fluid flow. These panels are aligned adjacent to each other and connect to separate chambers. Therefore, there are situations where it is necessary for adjacent chambers of a manifold to be in fluid communication with one another.
A heat exchanger with a D-shaped manifold has been proposed which has a single chamber manifold typical of that used in automotive and commercial air conditioning applications. The heat exchanger consists of a single row of tubes and fins stacked together to form a panel. The panel is capped with the D-shaped manifold on either end.
Multi-chamber manifolds can pose a problem when extruded as the manifolds made by the extrusion process do not allow fluid bypass. Where multi-chamber manifolds are necessary, fluid communication between chambers typically requires an external bypass between two or more of the above mentioned D-shaped manifolds. This results in increasing the distance the fluid must travel as well as increasing the pressure to unacceptable levels at the external bypass.
When heat exchangers have multiple panels, individual headers will not suffice. It is necessary to have a manifold which can accommodate each panel individually, thus requiring multiple manifolds or a multi-chamber manifold. EP1657513A1 , FR2681419 , WO02/103263 , FR2913490 and US2009/025914 disclose multi-chamber manifolds for heat exchangers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A heat exchanger (claim 5) with extruded multi-chamber manifolds according to the invention includes at least two panels, with each panel having at least one channel which communicates fluid. The heat exchanger includes a first extruded manifold and a second extruded manifold, the first manifold and the second manifold each having at least two manifold chambers. Each panel is attached to a manifold chamber of the first manifold and a manifold chamber of the second manifold, with each chamber having an inner wall between two chambers and outer wall. There is also an opening through the outer wall including a bypass slot in the inner wall. The bypass slot allows fluid communication between the chambers, and the opening is sealed with a plug.
The opening further includes a seat, wherein the plug is disposed in the seat, and wherein the bypass slot extends to the seat in the outer wall.
Each panel is further attached to a manifold chamber of the first manifold and to a manifold chamber of the second manifold to allow fluid flow in one direction, and the bypass slot allows fluid communication between two manifold chambers. A method of forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold (claim 1) with internal bypass comprises creating an extruded manifold with at least two manifold chambers, an outer wall, and an inner wall between the two chambers, each chamber being suitable to be attached to a separate heat exchanger panel; machining at least one opening in the outer wall and the inner wall of the manifold chambers, the opening including a bypass slot in the inner wall part of the opening and a seat in the outer wall part of the opening, the bypass slot is disposed inward of the seat relative to the outer surface of the outer wall and the bypass slot extends to the seat; and inserting a plug into the opening to seal the outer wall of the manifold, the plug being located in the seat.
These and other features of the present invention can be best understood from the following specification and drawings, the following of which is a brief description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a heat exchanger with extruded multi-chamber manifold.
Figure 2 is a cross-section of the extruded multi-chamber manifold.
Figure 3 is a top view of the extruded multi-chamber manifold with both plugged and unplugged openings.
Figure 4 is a sectional, top view of the extruded multi-chamber manifold showing the machined seat and bypass slot.
Figure 5 is a sectional, top view of the extruded multi-chamber manifold showing the bypass slot and a plug filling the seat.
Figure 6A is a front view of the heat exchanger showing a second example of fluid movement between a first extruded manifold and a second extruded manifold.
Figure 6B is a front view of the heat exchanger showing a first example of fluid movement between a first extruded manifold and a second extruded manifold.
Figure 7A is a step in a first example method for forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold with machined bypass.
Figure 7B is another step in the first example method for forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold with machined bypass.
Figure 7C is another step in the first example method for forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold with machined bypass.
Figure 8A is a step in a second example method for forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold with machined bypass.
Figure 8B is another step in the second example method for forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold with machined bypass.
Figure 8C is another step in the second example method for forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold with machined bypass.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to Figure 1, a heat exchanger system 26 includes panels 22, a first extruded multi-chamber manifold 16, a second extruded multi-chamber manifold 18, an inlet chamber 12, an outlet chamber 14, and a fluid source 10. The fluid source 10 provides fluid to the inlet chamber 12. The fluid can be, but is not limited to, water, coolant or refrigerant. The panels 22 connect to both the first extruded multi-chamber manifold 16 and the second extruded multi-chamber manifold 18, communicating fluid between them. Fluid can be communicated through the panels in one direction, or single pass.
Referring to Figures 2-5, with continuing reference to Figure 1, an extruded multi-chamber manifold 16 (18 will be similar) is shown having an inner wall 40 and an outer wall 42 exposed outside the manifold chambers. At least two chambers 20 are present in the manifold 16, with an inner wall 40 separating the chambers 20. The inner wall 40 is formed through extrusion such that there is no fluid communication between chambers 20 without further machining. Openings 62 are machined into the outer surface 56 of the outer wall 42 and include seats 52 and bypass slots 54. The openings 62 can be spaced a predetermined distance apart from each other down the length of the manifold 16. The bypass slot 54 sits inward of the seat 52 in the manifold 16. The bypass slot 54 is machined out of the inner wall 40 and extends to the seat 52 in the outer wall 42. The bypass slot 54 allows for fluid communication between chambers 20 of the manifold 16. The bypass slot 54 can be a different size than the seat 52 to allow for various configurations of chambers 20 and necessary levels of fluid communication. After the bypass slot 54 is created, a plug 44 is inserted into each seat 52. The plug 44 can be welded, or otherwise secured using brazing, epoxy adhesives, or other known means, in place to seal the opening 62. Once in the seat 52, the plug 44 seals the chamber 20. The plug 44 can be larger than the bypass slot. The plug 44 may create an even surface with the outer wall 42. Alternatively, the plug 44 may sit above or below the outer wall 42, creating an uneven surface. Figures 3-5 show one configuration of the seats 52, bypass slots 54, and plugs 44. Other configurations are also possible.
Referring to Figures 6A and 6B, fluid flow between the extruded multi-chamber manifolds 16,18 is shown. Figure 6A shows a single pass configuration, where fluid flows within the panels 22 in one direction, from the second extruded multi-chamber manifold 18 to the first extruded multi-chamber manifold 16. Fluid can be communicated between the chambers 20 of each manifold through the bypass slots 54. Figure 6B shows a multi-pass configuration not covered by the invention where fluid flows within the panels 22 in multiple directions and is able to communicate between chambers 20 through bypass slots 54. These embodiments show manifolds 16 having three chambers 20 with slots found as above.
Referring to Figure 7A, a method of creating an extruded multi-chamber manifold 16 with internal bypass is shown. An extruded multi-chamber manifold 16 with chambers 20 is created with a solid, inner wall 40. Referring to Figure 7B, an opening 62 including a bypass slot 54 and seat 52 is cut out of the inner wall 40 by machining through the outer wall 42 and into the inner wall 40 using a cutting tool 80. The seat 52 can be machined again to be a different size than the bypass slot 54. Referring to Figure 7C, a plug 44 is then inserted into the opening 62 to seal the manifold chambers 20. The plug 44 can be welded, or attached by other means, after insertion.
Alternatively, referring to Figure 8A, the method of creating an extruded multi-chamber manifold 16,18 with internal bypass is shown. An extruded multi-chamber manifold 16,18 with chambers 20 is created with a solid, inner wall 40. An opening 62 including is machined into outer wall 42 using a cutting tool 80. The machined opening 62 first includes a seat 52. Referring to Figure 8B, a bypass slot 54 is cut out of the inner wall 40 by machining into the inner wall 40 inside each seat 52 using a cutting tool 80. The bypass slot 54 extends to the seat 52. The bypass slot 54 can be a different size than the seat 52. Referring to Figure 8C, a plug 44 is then inserted into the seat 52 to seal the manifold chambers 20. The plug 44 can be welded into place after insertion.
Although a preferred embodiment of this invention has been disclosed, a worker of ordinary skill in this art would recognize that certain modifications would come within the scope of this invention. For that reason, the following claims should be studied to determine the true scope and content of this invention.

Claims

A method of forming an extruded multi-chamber manifold with internal bypass for a heat exchanger comprising:
creating an extruded manifold (16, 18) with at least two manifold chambers (20), an outer wall (42), and an inner wall (40) between the two chambers, each chamber being suitable to be attached to a separate heat exchanger panel;

machining at least one opening (62) in an outer surface of the outer wall (42) and the inner wall (40) of the manifold chambers (20), the opening including a bypass slot (54) in the inner wall part of the opening (62) and a seat (52) in the outer wall part of the opening (62), wherein the bypass slot is disposed inward of the seat (52) relative to the outer surface of the outer wall (42), wherein the bypass slot (54) extends to the seat (52);

inserting a plug (44) into the opening (62) to seal the outer wall (42) of the manifold, the plug (44) being located in the seat (52).
The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises welding the plug (44).
The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein an additional step is included comprising machining the seat (52) to be wider than the bypass slot (54).
The method of claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the bypass slot (54) and the seat (52) are machined separately.
A heat exchanger (26) comprising:
at least two panels (22), each panel comprising at least one channel (24) for fluid;

a first manifold (16) and a second manifold (18), each manifold (16, 18) having at least two manifold chambers (20), an inner wall (40) between the two chambers, and an outer wall (42), each chamber being suitable to be attached to a separate heat exchanger panel; and

an opening (62) in the outer wall which extends to a bypass slot (54) formed in the inner wall (40), the bypass slot (54) allowing fluid communication between at least two manifold chambers (20), and the opening (62) being sealed with a plug (44), wherein the opening includes a seat (52), wherein the plug (44) is disposed in the seat (52), and wherein the bypass slot (54) extends to the seat (52) in the outer wall (42);

each panel (22) being attached to a manifold chamber (20) of the first manifold (16) and to a manifold chamber (20) of the second manifold (18) to allow fluid flow in one direction; and

the bypass slot (54) allowing fluid communication between two manifold chambers (20).
The heat exchanger of claim 5, wherein the manifold includes at least three manifold chambers (12, 20), with at least one manifold chamber (12) lacking a bypass slot.
The heat exchanger of claims 5 or 6, wherein the opening (62) is in an outer surface of the outer wall (42), and wherein the bypass slot (54) is disposed inward of the seat (52) relative to the outer surface of the outer wall (42).
The heat exchanger of claims 5, 6 or 7, wherein the plug (44) sits above or below the outer wall (42).
The heat exchanger of claim 5, 6, 7 or 8, wherein the bypass plug (44) is sealed to the manifold (16, 18) by welding.