The present invention relates to heat exchangers, and in particular, metal foam heat exchangers for transferring heat between two fluid streams.
Heat exchangers are devices that transfer heat between two fluid streams at different temperatures. Heat transfer is typically accomplished by convection in each fluid stream and conduction through a barrier separating the two fluid streams. Heat exchangers are critical in many applications, including space heating, air conditioning, refrigeration, and dehumidification. Conventional heat exchangers include shell and tube, bayonet, concentric tube, plate, and spiral plate, each being a type of indirect-contact heat exchanger.
Metal foam heat exchangers are a further category of indirect-contact heat exchangers, showing great promise for many commercial and industrial applications. Metal foams have attractive properties for heat transfer applications and provide an extended surface with high surface area and complex flow paths. The open porosity, low relative density, high thermal conductivity, and large accessible surface area per unit volume contribute to making metal foam thermal management devices efficient, compact, and lightweight.
Metal foam heat exchangers are characterized by the size of the windows, or pore diameter, which correlates to the nominal pore density (usually as pores per inch or PPI), the strut diameter and length, and the porosity (volume of void divided by the total volume of the solid matrix and void). Aluminum has been used as the primary material for metal foams due to its low density, high thermal conductivity, and low price. However, there remains a continued need for improved heat exchangers, and in particular, metal foam heat exchangers suitable for use under wet and dry operating conditions for a variety of commercial applications.
Improved heat exchangers according to several embodiments are provided. The improved heat exchangers provide excellent heat transfer for air flow in wet and dry operating conditions and strike a favorable balance between thermal capacitance and pressure differential. The improved heat exchangers perform well in wet operating conditions, reducing the risk of condensate blow-off and frost formation during operation in cold temperatures.
According to one embodiment, an improved heat exchanger includes a plurality of metal foam fins between adjacent heat exchange conduits, the heat exchange conduits being arranged parallel to each other to define parallel flow paths between an inlet header and an outlet header. The metal foam fins occupy a cross-flow region between adjacent conduits, the metal foam fins being fixed or being rotatable in unison to vary the thermal capacitance of the heat exchanger. The metal foam fins extend between, and interconnect, exteriors surfaces of adjacent heat exchange conduits, which optionally include a rectangular cross-section. The metal foam fins comprise unitary metal foam bodies, optionally formed from aluminum, copper, nickel, silver, gold, or alloys thereof. The angular orientation of each fin can be adjusted in unison in a first direction to raise the thermodynamic capacitance of the heat exchanger and adjusted in unison in a second direction to lower the thermodynamic capacitance of the heat exchanger, while simultaneously raising or lowering the pressure differential across the heat exchanger.
According to another embodiment, an improved heat exchanger includes a metal foam body joined to and encapsulating the exterior surface of at least two heat exchange conduits in a region between a first header and a second header. The metal foam body completely occupies a cross-flow region along a lengthwise portion of the heat exchange conduits, being centrally disposed between the first header and the second header. The metal foam body is optionally a unitary cuboid having a rectangular cross-section, being formed from aluminum, copper, nickel, silver, gold, or alloys thereof. The heat exchange conduits can include any desired cross-section, including for example a circular cross-section, an elliptical cross-section, or a rectangular cross-section. The heat exchange conduits pass through an interior portion of the metal foam body, defining parallel flow paths between the inlet header and the outlet header.
According to another embodiment, an improved heat exchanger includes a plurality of wire mesh sections disposed in the cross-flow regions between parallel heat exchange conduits. The wire mesh sections completely occupy the cross-flow regions, providing a porous media through which air can pass with a lower pressure differential as compared to metal foam. The wire mesh sections are formed from a heat conductive metal and are generally more porous than the metal foam heat exchangers discussed herein.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the invention, when viewed in accordance with the accompanying drawings and appended claims.
I. Heat Exchanger Configuration
The heat exchangers of the current embodiments, illustrated in
More specifically, the parallel flow conduits 10 are arranged at a distance from one another to define a cross-flow region therebetween. The parallel flow conduits 10 are tube-like flow passages with any cross-sectional shape, for example rectangular, circular, or elliptical cross-sections. The second fluid may include liquids, gases, or a combination of liquids and gases. For example, the second fluid can include air, water, or refrigerant. The parallel flow conduits 10 can be manufactured of copper, aluminum, steel, or other metal or metal alloys to facilitate the transfer of heat from the first fluid to the second fluid.
The inlet header 12 and the outlet header 14 are hollow members that distribute the second fluid to the plurality of flow passages or that collect the second fluid from the plurality of flow passages. The inlet header 12 includes an inlet 16 and a first plurality of fluid ports as input ends for the plurality of internal flow passages. The outlet header 14 and includes an output port 18 and a second plurality of fluid ports as output ends for the plurality of internal flow passages. The parallel flow conduits 10 are illustrated as providing separate flow paths between the inlet header 12 and the outlet header 14, but can be modified to provide a single flow path, optionally as a single heat exchange conduit following a serpentine pattern for guiding the second fluid between the inlet header 12 and the outlet header 14.
II. Metal Foam Fins Separating Adjacent Flow Conduits
Referring now to
More specifically, and as shown in
Alternative rows of metal foam fins 20 are angled oppositely from each other as shown in
The parallel flow conduits 10 each define a rectangular cross-section in the current embodiment, such that the metal foam fins 20 extend between and interconnect opposing major surfaces of adjacent flow conduits 10. The metal foam fins 20 define a rectangular body having a height approximately equal to the distance separating adjacent flow conduits 10. Each fin is a monolithic metal foam body, while in other embodiments each fin can include a metal core structure that is coated with a metal foam exterior. Suitable metal foams can include aluminum, copper, nickel, silver, gold, and alloys thereof. The metal foam fins 22 can include a desired pore density, for example less than and including 100 PPI, further optional less than and including 10 PPI, still further optionally less than and including 5 PPI.
As one non-limiting example, a heat exchanger in accordance with the current embodiment was constructed. The heat exchanger included eleven rectangular flow conduits and ten rows of ten metal foams fins each, for a total of 100 metal foam fins. Each metal foam fin was formed from copper alloy and bonded to adjacent metal flow conduits using a high-density polysynthetic silver thermal compound from Artic Silver, Inc., with a fixed angle of incidence of 45 degrees. The metal foam fins included a pore density of 80 PPI, a fin height of 15 mm, a fin width of 15 mm, a fin thickness of 1 mm. The cross-flow region between each flow conduit was 15 mm, and the side-to-side width of each flow conduit was 25 mm.
III. Metal Foam Block Surrounding Adjacent Flow Conduits
Referring now to
As illustrated in
In one example, a heat pump includes the heat exchanger of
IV. Wire Mesh Separating Adjacent Flow Conduits
Referring now to
As one non-limiting example, heat exchangers in accordance with the current embodiment were constructed. The heat exchangers included eleven rectangular flow conduits and ten sections of wire mesh in the cross-flow region between adjacent flow conduits. Each wire section was formed from copper alloy or stainless steel (64 W/m-K) with a wire diameter of 0.3 mm. The wire mesh sections included a thickness of 10 mm, being coextensive with the rectangular fins in front-to-back depth, and were bonded to adjacent flow conduits using a high-density polysynthetic silver thermal compound from Artic Silver, Inc. The flow conduits include a tube diameter of 10 mm, a tube thickness of 0.5 mm. The total frontal area of the heat exchangers was 200 mm×150 mm.
The above description is that of current embodiments of the invention. Various alterations and changes can be made without departing from the spirit and broader aspects of the invention as defined in the appended claims, which are to be interpreted in accordance with the principles of patent law including the doctrine of equivalents. Any reference to elements in the singular, for example, using the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” or “said,” is not to be construed as limiting the element to the singular.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application 62/880,126, filed Jul. 30, 2019, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.
This invention was made with government support under Contract No. DE-AC05-00OR22725 awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy. The government has certain rights in the invention.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20210033318 A1 | Feb 2021 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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62880126 | Jul 2019 | US |