Refrigerant-capable heat exchanger made from bendable plastic tubing and method
OwnerKevin Bergevin, Gregory Allan Campbellinventors
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Abstract
The present invention relates to a plastic tube heat exchanger suitable for refrigerant use is provided by wrapping a layer of tubes around a curved surface, on a base which is generally perpendicular to the surface. Several to many tubes can be in each layer. Then, further layers can be wrapped continuously by overlaying the first layer. Heat exchangers, including refrigerant apparatus, condensers and evaporators, can be made in this configuration. Processes and articles of manufacture are parts of the invention.
Claims32
A plastic tube heat exchanger utilizing for separation of one heat exchange fluid from another heat exchange fluid multilayered plastic tubes wherein at least one of the layers is at least 50% by weight of polyamide resin and at least one of the layers is at least 50% by weight thermotropic liquid crystal polymer blended with other polymer to make it tough enough so that in the form of 1.5 mm outside-diameter tube it can be bent around a radius of 12.5 mm without cracking or delaminating.
A plastic tube heat exchanger having a set of at least three plastic tubes positioned around a surface having the shape of a closed curve and on a multiplicity of spaced-apart spacers which hold said tubes in a spatial relation to each other, said spacers providing a generally planar base, to form a layer of tubes, said base being generally perpendicular to said surface, wherein the set of tubes is positioned on said base in a generally planar relation to form a layer, with a first tube in said layer having an inward side adjacent said surface and an outward side opposite the inward side, a second tube in said layer proximate the first tube and on the outward side of said first tube opposite said surface, and each succeeding tube on the spacers with an inward side proximate the outward side of previous tube, with a first end of each of said tubes projecting off the base so that they can be joined together in a first header, where the layer of tubes is about to reach the part of said tubes that projects off of said base, the elevation of the set of tubes relative to the plate rises relative to the base so the next layer of tubes lies on the first layer of tubes with the first tube adjacent said surface, with a multiplicity of layers, each overlaying the previous layer to form a group of layers, the second end of each tube projecting away from said group, and the first end of said tubes joined together to form said first header and said second end of said tubes joined together to form a second header.
The plastic tube heat exchanger of claim 11 wherein at least three spacers are provided on each layer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.