US20040035561A1

US20040035561A1 - Heat exchanger

Info

Publication number: US20040035561A1
Application number: US10/337,294
Authority: US
Inventors: Cheol-Soo Ko; Se-Yoon Oh; Sai-Kee Oh; Yong-Cheol Sa; Dong-Yeon Jang
Original assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Current assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Priority date: 2002-08-23
Filing date: 2003-01-07
Publication date: 2004-02-26
Also published as: CN1307400C; KR20040017768A; JP2004085169A; CN1477366A

Abstract

A heat exchanger, which is able to improve heat transmission function and reduce distances between fins to improve heat exchanging function and reduce a size by coating surfaces of the fins with certain materials to make condensate water attached on the surfaces of the fins discharged smoothly, comprises fins arranged with certain gaps therebetween to flow the air; and a tube, through which the fluid passes, installed to penetrate the fins, and the fins are arranged so that one surfaces treated by hydrophilic material and the other surfaces treated by water repellent material face each other with certain gaps therebetween.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a heat exchanger, and particularly, to a heat exchanger which is able to improve heat exchanging function by making condensate water, which is generated in heat exchanging operation, discharge smoothly.

2. Description of the Background Art

Generally, a heat exchanger is a device for exchanging heat by contacting two different fluids to each other directly or indirectly, and is mainly used for a heater, a cooler, an evaporator or a condenser.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a fin and tube type heat exchanger used in the freezing device according to the conventional art, and FIG. 2 is a plane view showing a fin in the heat exchanger according to the conventional art.

The conventional heat exchanger comprises a plurality of

fins

102 disposed with certain gaps therebetween, and a tube 104, through which a fluid passes, installed as penetrating the fins 102.

The

fins

102 are plate types having predetermined lengths and widths respectively, and include a plurality of penetrating holes 108 through which the tube 104 passes and a louver 106 bent as a predetermined angle in order to increase heat transmission area.

In addition, an end of the

tube

104 is connected to an inlet tube 110 to which the fluid is inflowed, and the other end of the tube 104 is connected to an outlet tube 112 through which the fluid completing the heat exchange is discharged. And the tube 104 is bent a plurality of times to pass the penetrating holes 108 of the fins 102 in zigzags.

In the conventional heat exchanger as above, when the fluid is inflowed through the

inlet tube

110, the fluid passes the tube 104 which is bent in zigzags to exchange the heat with the air passing through the fins 102. At that time, the heat exchanged between the air passing out of the tube 104 and the fluid passing in the tube 104 can be made by the fins 102.

In heat exchanging operation as above, moisture included in the air is attached to surface of the

tube

104 and the surfaces of the fins 102 by a difference in temperatures of inner/outer sides of the tube 104. In addition, the moisture attached on the surfaces of the tube 104 and the fins 102 is moved downward due to the gravity, then collected in a drain pan (not shown) and discharged to outer side.

However, according to the conventional heat exchanger as above, condensate water generated during the heat exchanging operation may be stayed on the surfaces of the

fins

102 by a surface tension, and thereby obstructing flows of the air passing between the fins 102, and the heat exchanging function between the air and the fluid is lowered.

Also, distances between the

fins

102 should be maintained more than certain degrees in order to prevent the condensate water from staying in the spaces between the fins 102 through which the air passes, and thereby a size of the heat exchanger is increased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a heat exchanger which improves a heat transmission function and reduces distances between fins to reduce a size thereof having same heat exchanging function, by coating surfaces of the fins with a certain material to make condensate water attached on surface of the fins be discharged smoothly.

To achieve the object of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, there is provided a heat exchanger comprising: fins disposed with predetermined gaps therebetween to make air pass therethrough; and a tube, through which fluid passes, installed to penetrate between fins. In addition, the fins are arranged so that one surfaces on which hydrophilic material is coated and another surfaces on which water repellent material is coated face each other with a certain distance therebetween.

The fins of the heat exchanger are arranged as follows. That is, a first fin having both surfaces coated by the water repellent material, and a second fin having both surface coated by hydrophilic material and facing the first fin are arranged sequentially.

First coating layers applied by the water repellent material are formed on both surfaces of the first fins, and second coating layers applied by the hydrophilic material are formed on both surfaces of the second fins.

The fins of the heat exchanger include side surfaces coated by the water repellent material and the other side surfaces coated by the hydrophilic material, respectively. And the fins are arranged so that one surfaces coated by the water repellent material faces to the other side surfaces coated by the hydrophilic material with certain distances therebetween.

In addition, the first coating layers applied by the water repellent material are formed on one surfaces of the fins, and the second coating layers applied by the hydrophilic material are formed on the other surfaces of the fins.

The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. [0020]
In the drawings: [0021]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a heat exchanger according to the conventional art; [0022]
FIG. 2 is a plane view showing fins of the conventional heat exchanger; [0023]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a heat exchanger according to the present invention; [0024]
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view in line III-III in FIG. 3; [0025]
FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating condensate water discharging treat of the heat exchanger according to the present invention; and [0026]
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a heat exchanger according to another embodiment of the present invention.[0027]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. [0028]
There may be a plurality of embodiments for a heat exchanger according to the present invention, and the most preferred embodiment will be described as follows. [0029]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the heat exchanger according to the present invention. [0030]
The heat exchanger according to the present invention comprises: a [0031] tube 6, through which fluid passes, bent in zigzags and having one side connected to an inlet tube 2 to which the fluid is inflowed and the other side connected to an outlet tube 4 through which the fluid completing the heat exchanging is discharged; and a plurality of fins 10 disposed with certain gaps therebetween and including a plurality of penetrating holes 8 so as to pass the tube 6, for expanding an area contacting to air.
The [0032] fins 10 are formed to be plate shapes having certain lengths and widths, and louvers 12 which are protruded as certain angles for expanding the area contacting to the passing air are formed on both surfaces of the fins 10. In addition, water repellent material and hydrophilic material are coated on both surfaces of the fins to discharge the condensate water smoothly, respectively.
That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the [0033] fins 10 can be divided into first fins 20 having first coating layers 26 surface treated by the water repellent material on both surfaces of the first fins 20, and second fins 22 having second coating layers 28 surface treated by the hydrophilic material on both surface of second fins 22. And these first and second fins are arranged sequentially.
Herein, the hydrophilic material is a material having hydrophilicity, and make the condensate water attached on the surfaces of the [0034] fins 10. And the water repellent material is a material which is repulsive to the water, and makes the condensate water not to be attached on the surfaces of the fins 10.
It is desirable that the water repellent material and the hydrophilic material are treated on the both surfaces of the [0035] fins 10 by a surface treatment such as a coating method, respectively.
Operations of the heat exchanger constructed as above will be described as follows. [0036]
The fluid inflowed into the [0037] inlet tube 2 passes through the tube 6 which is bent in zigzags, and then, is discharged through the outlet tube 4. In addition, the air passes between the fins 10. At that time, the fluid passing through the tube 6 and the air passing between the fins 10 flow to cross each other, and thereby, heat exchanging with each other is made.
When the heat exchanging operation as above is performed, moisture included in the air is attached on a surface of the [0038] tube 4 or on the surfaces of the fins 10 by a temperature difference between the fluid and the air.
The treates that the condensate water is attached on the surfaces of the [0039] fins 10 and discharged will be described with reference to FIG. 5.
When the heat exchanging is performed, the condensate water is condensed as water drop shapes (L) on both surfaces of the [0040] first fins 20 on which the first coating layers 26 are formed, and the condensate water of water drop shape (L) is gradually increased by being mixed with other drops as time goes by.
In addition, when. the water drop (L) is expanded more than a certain degree, the drop is contacted to the surfaces of the [0041] second fins 22 on which the second coating layers 34 are formed. Then, the drop flows down along with the surface of the second fins 22. At that time, since the drop (L) is heavy, the flowing down speed of the drop (L) is fast and the condensate water can be removed rapidly.
In addition, when the condensate water generated on the surface of the [0042] first fins 20 is contacted to the surfaces of the second fins 22, the condensate water is discharged promptly. Therefore, the condensate water can be discharged regardless of the drop size. Thus, the gaps between the first fins 20 and the second fins 22 can be reduced, and the entire size of the heat exchanger can be reduced.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a heat exchanger according to another embodiment of the present invention. [0043]
The heat exchanger according to another embodiment of the present invention comprises: a [0044] tube 6, through which the fluid passes, formed to be bent in zigzags; and a plurality of fins 30 having a plurality of penetrating holes 8 to pass the tube 6, and arranged with certain gaps therebetween to expand an area contacting to the air. In addition, the fins 30 include first coating layers 32 on one side surfaces made by applying water repellent material, and second coating layers 34 on the other surfaces made by applying the hydrophilic material, respectively. And these fins 30 are arranged with certain gaps therebetween.
At that time, the [0045] fins 30 are arranged so that the surfaces on which the first coating layers 32 are formed and the other surfaces on which the second coating layers 34 are formed face each other.
In treat for discharging the condensate water of the heat exchanger, the condensate water is condensed as drop shape on one side surfaces of the [0046] fins 30 on which the first coating layers 32 are formed by the water repellent material, and the condensate water of drop shape is increased by being mixed with other drops as the time goes by. In addition, when the drops are increased more than certain degree and contacted to the other surfaces of the fins 30 on which the second coating layers 34 are formed, the water drops falls down along with the other surfaces of the fins 30 rapidly.
Effects of the heat exchanger according to the present invention constructed and operated as above will be described as follows. [0047]
According to the present invention, the water repellent material and the hydrophilic material are treated on the both surfaces of the heat exchanger, and the surface treated by the water repellent material and the surface treated by the hydrophilic material are arranged to face each other. Therefore, the condensate water generated when the heat exchanging operation is performed is formed on the surface treated by the water repellent material as water drop shape, and then, discharged to downward direction as soon as the drop is contacted to the other surface treated by the hydrophilic material. Thereby, the discharging speed of the condensate water can be increased due to the weight of the water drop, and therefore, the flow of the air passing between the fins can be made smooth and the condensate water attached on the surfaces of the fins can be discharged rapidly. Therefore, the heat exchanging function can be improved. [0048]
Also, the condensate water can be discharged easily regardless of the size of water drops, and the gaps between the fins can be reduced, and thereby, the size of entire heat exchanger can be reduced. [0049]
As the present invention may be embodied in several forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof, it should also be understood that the above-described embodiments are not limited by any of the details of the foregoing description, unless otherwise specified, but rather should be construed broadly within its spirit and scope as defined in the appended claims, and therefore all changes and modifications that fall within the metes and bounds of the claims, or equivalence of such metes and bounds are therefore intended to be embraced by the appended claims. [0050]

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A heat exchanger comprising:

fins disposed with certain gaps therebetween so that air passes through; and

a tube, through which fluid passes, installed to penetrate the fins,

wherein the fins are arranged so that one surfaces thereof on which a hydrophilic material is treated and the other surfaces thereof on which a water repellent material is treated face each other.

2. The heat exchanger of claim 1, wherein the fins include first fins having both surfaces treated by the water repellent material and second fins having both surfaces treated by the hydrophilic material, and these first and second fins are arranged sequentially.

3. The heat exchanger of claim 2, wherein the first fins have first coating layers on both surfaces thereof by applying the water repellent material, and the second fins have second coating layers on both surfaces thereof by applying the hydrophilic material.

4. The heat exchanger of claim 1, wherein the fins have one surfaces treated by the water repellent material and the other surfaces treated by the hydrophilic material, and the one surfaces of the fins on which the water repellent material is treated and the other surfaces of the fins on which the hydrophilic material is treated face each other with certain gaps therebetween.

5. The heat exchanger of claim 4, wherein first coating layers are formed on the one surfaces of the fins by applying the water repellent material, and second coating layers are formed on the other surfaces by applying the hydrophilic material.