Patent ID: 8393382

Claim:
A heat exchanger comprising: a shell comprising: a shell body having a hollow inner chamber defined by a wall structure, the inner chamber having opposed ends; a pair of shell end members attached to adjacent respective shell body ends; and an expansion element that extends around the shell and that is interposed between the shell body and one of the shell end members; a tube stack disposed within the inner chamber and comprising a plurality of tubes, the tubes having opposed ends that are positioned adjacent the shell body opposed ends; and a pair of tube header plates comprising a number of openings that are attached to adjacent respective tube ends, and that are attached to respective shell end members to form a leak-tight seal between the tubes and the shell inner chamber; wherein the shell body is sized having a length that is sufficiently less than that of the tube stack so that both of the tube ends project axially outwardly a distance therefrom, and wherein each shell end member includes a first end that is configured for attachment over an outside surface of the body, and a second end that is configured for accommodating the tube header plate therein, and wherein the first end is sized smaller than the second end.