Systems and methods for heat exchanger tubes having internal flow features
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsHendrik Pieter Jacobus de Bock, Karthik Kumar Bodla, William Dwight Gerstler, James Albert Tallman, Konrad Roman Weeber
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Abstract
A support form defining a longitudinal axis is provided. The support form includes a first section, a second substantially solid section, and at least one flow feature form. The first section includes a plurality of unit cells of a first material joined together to form a lattice. The second section includes a second material and surrounds the first section. The at least one flow feature form is defined in the second section and is configured to generate a flow feature on a heat exchanger tube formed by plating the support form.
Claims24
A support form defining a longitudinal axis, said support form comprising:
- a first section comprising a plurality of unit cells of a first material joined together to form a lattice;
- a second substantially solid section comprising a second material, said second section surrounding said first section;
- and
- at least one flow feature form defined in said second section, said at least one flow feature form configured to generate a flow feature on a heat exchanger tube formed by plating said support form.
A method of fabricating a heat exchanger tube, the heat exchanger tube defining a longitudinal axis, said method comprising:
- fabricating a support form, wherein the support form includes i) a first section including a plurality of unit cells of a first material joined together to form a lattice, ii) a second substantially solid section including a second material, the second section surrounding the first section, and iii) at least one flow feature form defined in the second section and configured to generate at least one flow feature;
- depositing a third material on the support form to form the heat exchanger tube, wherein the heat exchanger tube includes i) an inlet, ii) an outlet, iii) a sidewall including an outer surface and an inner surface and extending between the inlet and the outlet along the longitudinal axis to define a passageway therebetween, and iv) the at least one flow feature extending from one of the sidewall inner surface and the sidewall outer surface;
- and
- removing the support form from the heat exchanger tube.
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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.