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US 5,971,061 AGranted
Edge-hanging orbital rod support and drive for vertical tube-type heat exchanger
AssigneeY.T. Li Engineering, Inc.
InventorYao-Tzu Li
Life of this patent
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AssigneeY.T. Li Engineering, Inc.
InventorYao-Tzu Li
Estimating the term…
A tube-type heat exchanger has a low wear support and drive for a whip rod that orbits over the inner surface of the heat transfer tube to spread a process liquid into a thin falling film. The support and drive includes a conical thrust bearing near the upper end of the rod. An edge of the thrust bearing engages and rolls over a circular rim bearing surface. A stem pin axially aligned with the rod extends upwardly over the rod and through a circular hole in an orbiting drive plate. In one form, the rim bearing surface is formed on the upper edge of the tube, or on the upper edge of a generally cylindrical bearing secured on or over the tube. The thrust bearing is secured between the rod and the stem. A stop disc carried on the stem pin limits the fall of the rod in the tube when the orbiting stops. In another form, the rim surface is formed on a cylindrical collar secured on the upper surface of the drive plate surrounding in the drive hole and the thrust bearing is formed on the lower face of the stop disc fixed on the stem.
In a heat exchanger having at least one heat transfer tube that exchanges heat radially through the tube wall between hot and cold fluids, one of which is a process fluid that flows through the tube at least along the inner surface of the tube, and an orbitable whip rod disposed in the tube, an improved whip rod support and drive comprising:
A method of supporting a whip rod within an open-ended, vertically-oriented heat transfer tube, comprising the steps of
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.