Patent ID: 6216773
Filing Date: 2001-04-17
Classification: F28D,F28F

Abstract:
A heat exchanger (20) having a plurality of flow tubes through which a fluid flows, each flow tube formed by the facing inner surfaces (38) of a pair of generally stamped plates (32), with the plate pairs (26) stacked together in a generally box shaped configuration, characterized in that,each stamped plate (32) of each complete plate pair (26) includes an identical adjacent pair of protruding stamped cups (34, 36) at each end thereof, with a first cup (34) of each pair being open to the inner surface (38) of said plate (32) and a second cup (36) of each pair being discrete both from the first cup (34) and from the plate inner surface (38), so that as the complete plate pairs (26) are stacked together, a header pipe (48) is formed on each side of the heat exchanger (20) adjacent to a discrete transfer pipe (50),a last plate pair (24, 40) at the far end of the heat exchanger includes a special plate (40) having a single protruding stamped cross over cup (42) on one side of said heat exchanger open to the first (34) and second (36) stamped cups of the adjacent stamped plate (32) and a pair of protruding stamped cups (34', 36') at the other side of said heat exchanger (20) identical to the first (34) and second stamped cups (36),at least one flow separator (34') is located in the header pipe (48) on said side of said heat exchanger (20) at a location between the near and far end thereof, and,means (22, 24) at the near and far end of the heat exchanger (20) that blocks both ends of the header pipe (48) and transfer pipe (50) on the other side of said heat exchanger (20) and leaves the header pipe (48) and transfer pipe (50) open only on said one side of the near end of said heat exchanger (20),whereby the fluid flow enters or exits the open discrete transfer pipe (50) located on said one side of the heat exchanger (20) at the heat exchanger near end and flows to the heat exchanger far end, flows through the cross over cup (42) and into the header pipe (48) on said one side of the heat exchanger (20), against said at least one flow separator (34'), through the flow tubes located between said far end and separator (34') and into the header pipe (48) on the other side of the heat exchanger (20), without entering the adjacent transfer pipe (48) on said other side of said heater exchanger (20), and then back through the flow tubes located between said separator (34') and the near end of said heat exchanger (20), back into the header pipe (48) on said one side of the heat exchanger (20) and then exits or enters the heat exchanger (20) back at said one side of the heat exchanger (20) near end.