Method for sealing heat exchanger tubes
OwnerAnthony Joseph Cesaroniinventor
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Abstract
The present invention comprises a heat exchanger and method for sealing a heat exchanger tube to a header of the heat exchanger. The method comprises melt-bonding the tube to a header of the heat exchanger to form a bond and sealing the bond with a sealant material to form a seal.
Claims24
A method for substantially sealing a heat exchanger tube to a header of the heat exchanger, the method comprising melt-bonding the tube directly to a header of the heat exchanger to form a direct bond between the tube and the header and sealing the bond by depositing a sealant material to form a seal, wherein said melt-bonding the tube directly to the header of the heat exchanger to form the direct bond between the tube and the header and said depositing of the sealant material to form the seal is done simultaneously.
A method for substantially sealing a heat exchanger, the heat exchanger comprising a plurality of tubes and a pair of headers, each header having a plurality of holes, an outer side and an inner side, the inner side of one header facing the inner side of the other header, one end of each tube placed in a respective hole in one header and the other end of each tube placed in a respective hole in the other header, the method comprising melt-bonding one end of each tube directly to one header of the heat exchanger to form a direct bond between each tube and the header and sealing each bond by depositing a sealant material to form a seal, wherein said melt-bonding one end of each tube directly to one header of the heat exchanger to form the direct bond between each tube and the header and said depositing of the sealant material to form the seal is done simultaneously.
A method for substantially sealing a heat exchanger tube to a header of the heat exchanger, the method comprising:
- generating a stream of heated fluid, the heated fluid having a temperature sufficient to melt portions of the heat exchanger tube and the header;
- projecting the heated fluid stream toward the heat exchanger tube and the header such that at least a portion of the heated fluid stream impinges on an interface between the heat exchanger tube and the header;
- applying heat to an interface between the heat exchanger tube and the header;
- introducing a sealant to the heated fluid stream so that the sealant is applied to the interface during the application of heat to the interface;
- and
- melting the sealant and portions of the heat exchanger tube and the header to bond the heat exchanger tube and the header to each other at the interface and to seal the bond formed at the interface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.