Claims
- 1. A heat exchange assembly comprising:a plurality of plates disposed in a spaced-apart arrangement, each of said plurality of plates includes a plurality of passages extending internally from a first end to a second end for directing flow of a heat transfer fluid; a plurality of first end-piece members equaling the number of plates and a plurality of second end-piece members also equaling the number of plates, each of said first and second end-piece members including a recessed region adapted to fluidly connect and couple with the first and second ends of said plate, respectively, and further adapted to be affixed to respective adjacent first and second end-piece members in a stacked formation, and each of said first and second end-piece members further including at least one cavity for enabling entry of said heat transfer fluid into the plate, exit of said heat transfer fluid from said plate, or 180° turning of said fluid within the plate to create a fluid flow path between points of entry and exit of said fluid; at least two fluid conduits extending through the stacked plurality of first and second end-piece members for providing first fluid connections between the parallel fluid entry points of adjacent plates and a fluid supply inlet, and second fluid connections between the parallel fluid exit points of adjacent plates and a fluid discharge outlet so that the heat transfer fluid travels in parallel paths through each respective plate; sealing means located at each end of the stacked plurality of first and second end-piece members for fluidly sealing said at least one cavity and said at least two fluid conduits from exterior; and liquid releasing means located proximate to said plurality of plates for releasing a liquid onto the surface of said plurality of plates.
- 2. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein said liquid releasing means is located proximate the first ends of the plurality of plates and wherein the liquid released therefrom flows from the first ends of the plurality of plates to the second ends thereof.
- 3. The heat exchange assembly of claim 2 further comprising liquid collecting means located proximate the second ends of the plurality of plates for collecting the liquid flowing from the first ends thereof.
- 4. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the liquid releasing means further comprises:a supply conduit extending longitudinally within the stacked plurality of first end-piece members for supplying the liquid; a plurality of supply lines each extending within each first end-piece member from the supply conduit to each plate; and a distribution web extending from and in fluid communication with each of said plurality of supply lines, said distribution web being adapted for releasing the liquid onto a surface portion proximate the first end of at least one corresponding plate.
- 5. The heat exchange assembly of claim 4 wherein the distribution web further comprises multiple distribution grooves in fluid communication with the supply line through which the liquid is released onto the surface portion proximate the first end of said at least one corresponding plate.
- 6. The heat exchange assembly of claim 5 wherein the multiple distribution grooves extend downwardly along both sides of each of said distribution webs.
- 7. The heat exchange assembly of claim 5 wherein the multiple distribution grooves each extend in a straight path.
- 8. The heat exchange assembly of claim 5 wherein the multiple distribution grooves each extend in a nonlinear path.
- 9. The heat exchange assembly of claim 4 wherein the distribution web further includes at least one fluid passage through which the liquid passes from the supply line onto the surface portion proximate the first end of said at least one corresponding plate.
- 10. The heat exchange assembly of claim 4 wherein the distribution web further comprises a porous material through which the liquid flows from the supply line onto the surface portion proximate the first end of said at least one corresponding plate.
- 11. The heat exchange assembly of claim 4 wherein the first end-piece member further comprise a purge through hole which forms a purge cavity in the stacked plurality of first end-piece members, the purge cavity is fluidly connected to the plurality of supply lines opposite from the supply conduit, for allowing a portion of the liquid to bypass the distribution web.
- 12. The heat exchange assembly of claim 3 wherein the liquid collecting means further comprises:a reservoir formed by a front and rear sidewall being formed by the stacked plurality of second end-piece members for collecting the liquid flowing along the surface of the plurality of plates from the first ends to the second ends thereof; and a drain conduit in fluid communication with the reservoir and extending longitudinally within the stacked plurality of second end-piece members for receiving the collected liquid from the reservoir.
- 13. The heat exchange assembly of claim 12 wherein the recessed region of the second end-piece member includes a sloped edge portion for urging the liquid towards the drain conduit during operation.
- 14. The heat exchange assembly of claim 12 wherein:the rear sidewall near the drain conduit includes a trailing edge-air dam; and the front sidewall opposite the drain conduit includes a leading edge-air dam.
- 15. The heat exchange assembly of claim 3 wherein the liquid is a desiccant.
- 16. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein said sealing means is a coverplate.
- 17. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein adjacent turning cavities longitudinally aligned within the stacked plurality of first and second end-piece members are fluidly connected therebetween by a fluid bypass conduit.
- 18. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the adjacent cavities within the respective first and second end-piece members are fluidly connected therebetween by a bypass channel.
- 19. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the depth of the recessed region is equal to the thickness of the plate.
- 20. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the depth of the recessed region is less than the thickness of the plate, and the opposed surface from the recessed region of the corresponding first and second end-piece members includes a recessed portion for receiving a protruding end portion of an adjacent plate.
- 21. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the depth of the recessed region is greater than the thickness of the plate, and the opposed surface from the recessed region of the corresponding first and second end-piece members includes a raised portion adapted for fitting into the recessed region of an adjacent end-piece member in conjunction with the end portion of an adjacent plate.
- 22. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the plurality of plates are curved in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the plates, said first and second end-piece members curved in a similar manner.
- 23. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the fluid supply inlet and fluid discharge outlet are present on areas of the stacked plurality of first and second end-piece members including at least on front and back portions, end portions, top and bottom portions, or combinations thereof.
- 24. The heat exchange assembly of claim 1 wherein the plurality of plates and said first and second end piece members are curved in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the plates.
- 25. A heat exchange assembly comprising:a plurality of plates disposed in a spaced-apart arrangement, each of said plurality of plates includes a plurality of passages extending internally from a first end to a second end for directing flow of a heat transfer fluid; a plurality of end-piece members equaling the number of said plates, each of said end-piece members includes a recessed region adapted to fluidly connect and couple with the first end of said plate, and further adapted to be affixed to respective adjacent end-piece members in a stacked formation, and further including at least two cavities for enabling entry of said heat transfer fluid into the plate, exit of said heat transfer fluid from said plate, or 180° turning of said fluid within the plate to create a fluid flow path between points of entry and exit of said fluid; fluid turning means at the second end of said plates for turning the flow of fluid into said plates; a fluid supply inlet and a fluid discharge outlet each associated with the affixed end-piece members and arranged in a manner so that the heat transfer fluid travels in parallel paths through each respective plate; and liquid releasing means located proximate to said plurality of plates for releasing a liquid onto the surface of said plurality of plates.
Parent Case Info
This application is a divisional of Ser. No. 09/887,453 filed Jun. 22, 2001 now Pat. No. 6,568,466, which claims benefit of No. 60/213,619 filed Jun. 23, 2000.
GOVERNMENTAL INTEREST
The invention described and claimed herein may be manufactured, used and licensed by or for the United States Government.
This invention is made with Government support under NREL Subcontract No. AAR-0-30404-01, Prime Contract No. DE-AC36-99GO10337 awarded by the Department of Energy. The Government has certain rights in this invention.
US Referenced Citations (12)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
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42 37 672 |
Nov 1994 |
DE |
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
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60/213619 |
Jun 2000 |
US |