Evaporating apparatus

Abstract

An evaporator apparatus comprises an evaporator assembly to which a coolant is supplied by an expansion valve and a flow divider. The connecting means between the expansion valve and the flow divider is provided with at least one bend. The bend causes a non-homogeneous coolant flow at the flow divider, resulting in an uneven distribution of gaseous and liquid coolant to the individual evaporator pipe sets. A mixing element, provided directly upstream of the flow divider, has a flow cross-section which expands in the direction of the coolant flow, resulting in a brisk mixing of the gaseous and liquid coolant phases to provide a homogeneous mixture. Preferred embodiments of this mixing element include a cylindrical mixing cell having a preferred inlet diameter/cell diameter ratio, a tapered insert which first decreases and then increases the flow cross-section, and a simple screen. The two latter embodiments may be installed in pipes which have constant diameters.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.