Intelligent control heat exchanger with hot air flow distribution and heat exchange method thereof

Abstract

The application provides a heat exchanger capable of intelligently controlling hot air flow distribution, wherein the upper wall and the lower wall of the heat exchange box body are composed of horizontally arranged plate-shaped heat exchange pipes, a plurality of parallel plate-shaped heat exchange pipes are arranged between the upper wall and the lower wall, the side wall comprises a plurality of vertically arranged plate-shaped heat exchange pipes and a hot air inlet, the hot air inlet pipe is located at the front part of the shell, the front wall of the heat exchange box body facing the hot air inlet is provided with a plate-shaped heat exchange pipe, the rear wall of the heat exchange box body is provided with the hot air inlet, the hot air inlet is provided with a grid, the channels between adjacent plate-shaped heat exchange pipes form hot air channels, and the grid arranged between adjacent plate-shaped heat exchange pipes can be independently adjusted, so that the amount of hot air entering each hot air channel can be independently adjusted. The application independently adjusts the amount of hot air entering each hot air channel, thereby realizing intelligent control of hot air flow distribution.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a heat exchanger, and more particularly to a plate-tube heat exchanger with submerged heat exchange. Background Technology

[0002] Heat exchangers are devices used to transfer heat from a hot fluid to a cold fluid, and they are widely used in industries such as chemical, petroleum, and food processing. Existing heat exchangers generally feature improved designs in their heat exchange elements, i.e., heat exchange tubes, such as double-walled tubes and floating coils. These improvements increase the heat exchange area, generate turbulence, and reduce scaling, all of which have yielded positive results. Conventional shell-and-tube heat exchangers typically consist of a shell, tube sheet, heat exchange tube bundle, tube box, and connecting flanges. Commonly used working media include water-water or steam-water media, with the two media flowing in opposite directions inside and outside the heat exchange tubes during operation.

[0003] Submerged heat exchangers are a type of indirect heat exchanger. They are simple in structure, easy to manufacture, install, clean, and maintain, and inexpensive. They are particularly suitable for cooling and condensing high-pressure fluids, and therefore remain widely used today. These heat exchangers are typically made of wound metal tubes, or designed to fit various container configurations, and are submerged in the fluid within the container.

[0004] Submerged heat exchangers suffer from low heating efficiency and uneven flow distribution. For example, CN106595046A discloses a heat exchanger assembly including a left tube box, a right tube box, and heat exchange tubes connected to both the left and right tube boxes. An electric heating device is disposed within the left and / or right tube boxes. The left and right tube boxes and the heat exchange tubes are filled with a heating fluid, forming a closed-loop circulation. The electric heating device is divided into multiple segments, with at least two segments having different heating power per unit length. This invention addresses the shortcomings of the prior art by providing a segmented heating submerged heat exchanger assembly, which improves heating efficiency and saves energy.

[0005] CN108800568A provides a heat exchanger assembly for controlling uniform heating, including a left tube box, a right tube box, and heat exchange tubes. The heat exchange tube bundle is a coil, and each coil includes multiple arc-shaped heat exchange tubes. The ends of adjacent heat exchange tubes are connected, forming a series structure, and the ends of the heat exchange tubes form free ends. The centerlines of the multiple arc-shaped heat exchange tubes are concentric circles, with the center of the cross-section of the left tube box as the center. The diameter of the tube bundle increases with distance from the center of the left tube box. This invention addresses the shortcomings of existing technologies by providing a heat exchanger assembly with variable tube diameter, which can further improve heat exchange efficiency and control the uniformity of heating.

[0006] CN101641558A provides a falling film evaporator and a mixed falling film evaporator for use in a two-phase refrigeration system or process system. The evaporator includes a housing having an upper and a lower portion, and a tube bundle having tubes extending substantially horizontally within the housing. A cover disposed above the tube bundle has an upper end adjacent to the upper portion of the tube bundle, the upper end having opposing, substantially parallel, downwardly extending walls terminating at an open end relative to the upper end. Once liquid refrigerant, or a mixture of liquid and vapor refrigerant, is deposited onto the tube bundle, the substantially parallel walls of the cover substantially prevent refrigerant vapor, or liquid and vapor, from cross-flowing between the tubes of the tube bundle. A flow distributor disposed adjacent to the open end between the cover and the housing regulates the refrigerant flow rate, thereby providing a more uniform refrigerant flow distribution.

[0007] However, the aforementioned structure is complex and does not utilize hot air heating, thus failing to achieve the desired technical effect. This invention improves upon this, resulting in a heat exchanger with better overall heating performance and adjustable hot air flow. Summary of the Invention

[0008] In order to overcome the defects and shortcomings of the existing technology, the present invention provides a heat exchanger with a novel structure.

[0009] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution of the present invention is as follows: A heat exchanger for intelligent control of hot air flow distribution includes a shell, an internal heat exchange chamber, and a gap for hot air flow between the shell and the heat exchange chamber. The heat exchange chamber includes multiple plate-shaped heat exchange tubes, wherein the upper and lower walls of the heat exchange chamber are composed of horizontally arranged plate-shaped heat exchange tubes, and multiple parallel plate-shaped heat exchange tubes are arranged between the upper and lower walls. The side walls include multiple vertically arranged plate-shaped heat exchange tubes and a hot air inlet. The hot air inlet pipe is located at the front of the shell, and the front wall of the heat exchange chamber facing the hot air inlet is composed of plate-shaped heat exchange tubes. The rear wall of the heat exchange chamber is provided with a hot air inlet, which is equipped with a grille. The channels between adjacent plate-shaped heat exchange tubes form hot air channels, and the grilles between adjacent plate-shaped heat exchange tubes can be adjusted independently to independently adjust the amount of hot air entering each hot air channel.

[0010] As an improvement, a temperature sensor is installed inside the plate-shaped heat exchange tube to detect the fluid temperature inside the tube. The controller controls the opening size of the grille based on the comparison between the internal temperature and the average temperature, thereby independently adjusting the hot air flow rate entering the hot air channel. The average temperature is the weighted average of the measured fluid temperatures inside multiple plate-shaped heat exchange tubes.

[0011] As an improvement, if the detected fluid temperature inside the plate-shaped heat exchanger tube is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the grille is increased to increase the hot air flow rate into the corresponding hot air channel. If the detected fluid temperature inside the plate-shaped heat exchanger tube is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the grille is decreased to reduce the hot air flow rate into the corresponding hot air channel.

[0012] As an improvement, an upper grille is provided between the upper wall and the upper part of the shell, and a lower grille is provided between the lower wall and the lower part of the shell. The upper and lower grilles can be adjusted independently, thereby independently adjusting the amount of hot air entering each upper and lower flow channel.

[0013] As an improvement, if the detected fluid temperature inside the upper wall is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the upper grille is increased to increase the incoming hot air flow rate; if the detected fluid temperature inside the upper wall is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the upper grille is decreased to decrease the corresponding incoming hot air flow rate. Similarly, if the detected fluid temperature inside the lower wall is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the lower grille is increased to increase the incoming hot air flow rate; if the detected fluid temperature inside the lower wall is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the lower grille is decreased to decrease the corresponding incoming hot air flow rate.

[0014] As an improvement, the thermal conductivity of the plate heat exchange tubes gradually increases from bottom to top, and the fluid flow rate inside the plate heat exchange tubes also increases.

[0015] As an improvement, the thermal conductivity of the plate heat exchange tube gradually increases from bottom to top, and the fluid flow rate inside the plate heat exchange tube also increases.

[0016] As an improvement, the gap between the upper wall and the upper part of the shell is smaller than the gap between the lower wall and the lower part of the shell. In one method of operating the heat exchanger described above, hot air enters the cavity from the front of the shell, then enters the hot air channel between the plate heat exchange tubes from the hot air inlet, and finally flows out from the lower outlet of the shell. The upper wall, lower wall, side walls and rear of the heat exchange chamber are all separated from the drying chamber, so that the heat exchange chamber is immersed in hot air.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following advantages: 1. This invention sets the upper wall, lower wall, and side walls of the heat exchange box as plate-shaped heat exchange tubes, thereby increasing the heat exchange area. Moreover, air flow channels are formed between the cavity of the heat exchange box and the shell, so that the entire heat exchange box is immersed in hot air, thereby enabling heat exchange between the inside and outside of the box and the hot air, thus achieving enhanced heat transfer.

[0018] 2. Each air inlet of this application is equipped with an independently adjustable grille, so that the amount of hot air entering each hot air channel can be adjusted independently as needed, thereby achieving the adjustability of the heat source.

[0019] 3. The hot air inlet faces the front wall of the heat exchange box, and the hot air inlet is set on the rear wall of the heat exchange box. This allows the hot air to pass through all the walls of the heat exchange box, avoiding short circuits of the heat source and thus improving the overall heat exchange effect.

[0020] 4. By adjusting the size of the grille according to the average temperature and by setting the distribution of the grille and the thermal conductivity and flow rate of the heat exchange tubes, the adjustability of the hot air can be further realized. Attached Figure Description

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the heat exchanger of the present invention; Figure 2 This is the present invention. Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the heat exchanger's AA section. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The specific embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0023] Unless otherwise specified, the terms "before" and "after" in this application specification refer to... Figure 1 The left and right directions, that is Figure 1 In the middle, the hot air inlet pipe 4 of the shell is located at the "front", and the corresponding position is at the "rear".

[0024] Figure 1-2 A heat exchanger for intelligent control of hot air flow distribution according to the present invention is demonstrated. For example... Figure 1 As shown, the heat exchanger includes a shell 1, and a heat exchange chamber 2 is disposed inside the shell 1. A gap 8 for hot air flow is provided between the shell 1 and the heat exchange chamber 2. The heat exchange chamber includes multiple plate-shaped heat exchange tubes. The upper wall 21 and lower wall 22 of the heat exchange chamber are composed of horizontally arranged plate-shaped heat exchange tubes. Multiple parallel plate-shaped heat exchange tubes 24 are arranged between the upper wall 21 and the lower wall 22. The side wall 23 includes multiple vertically arranged plate-shaped heat exchange tubes and a hot air inlet 3. The hot air inlet pipe 4 is located at the front of the shell 1. The front wall 23 of the heat exchange chamber facing the hot air inlet is configured with plate-shaped heat exchange tubes. The rear wall of the heat exchange chamber is provided with a hot air inlet 3. The hot air inlet is provided with a grille 31. The channel between adjacent plate-shaped heat exchange tubes forms a hot air channel 7.

[0025] This invention sets the upper and lower walls and side walls of the heat exchange box as plate-shaped heat exchange tubes, thereby increasing the heat exchange area. Moreover, hot air flow channels are formed between the cavity of the heat exchange box and the shell, so that the entire heat exchange box is immersed in hot air, thereby enabling heat exchange between the inside and outside of the box and the hot air, thus achieving enhanced heat transfer.

[0026] The hot air inlet faces the front wall of the heat exchange box, and the hot air inlet is set on the rear wall of the heat exchange box. This allows the hot air to pass through all the walls of the heat exchange box, avoiding short-circuiting of the heat source and thus improving the overall heat exchange effect.

[0027] As an improvement, the grilles 31 arranged between adjacent plate heat exchange tubes can be adjusted independently, thereby independently adjusting the amount of hot air entering each hot air channel. Each air inlet of this application is provided with an independently adjustable grille, thus allowing the amount of hot air entering each hot air channel to be adjusted independently as needed, thereby achieving adjustability of the heat source.

[0028] As an improvement, a temperature sensor is installed inside the plate-shaped heat exchange tube 24 to detect the fluid temperature inside the plate-shaped heat exchange tube 24. The controller controls the opening size of the grille based on the comparison between the internal temperature and the average temperature, thereby independently adjusting the hot air flow rate entering the hot air channel 7. The average temperature is the weighted average of the measured fluid temperatures inside multiple plate-shaped heat exchange tubes.

[0029] If the fluid temperature inside the measured plate heat exchanger tube 24 is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the grille is increased to increase the hot air flow rate into the corresponding hot air channel. If the fluid temperature inside the measured plate heat exchanger tube 24 is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the grille is decreased to reduce the hot air flow rate into the corresponding hot air channel.

[0030] Through the above control, the hot air flow rate can be adjusted as needed, so that the fluid temperature in the heat exchange tube can reach a basic equilibrium, avoiding temperature imbalance, thereby achieving enhanced heat transfer and outputting the required temperature.

[0031] As an improvement, an upper grille 6 is provided between the upper wall and the upper part of the shell, and a lower grille 10 is provided between the lower wall and the lower part of the shell. The upper and lower grilles can be adjusted independently, thereby independently adjusting the amount of hot air entering each upper and lower flow channel.

[0032] If the detected fluid temperature inside the upper wall is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the upper grille is increased, thereby increasing the incoming hot air flow rate. If the detected fluid temperature inside the upper wall is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the upper grille is decreased, thereby decreasing the incoming hot air flow rate. If the detected fluid temperature inside the lower wall is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the lower grille is increased, thereby increasing the incoming hot air flow rate. If the detected fluid temperature inside the lower wall is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the lower grille is decreased, thereby decreasing the incoming hot air flow rate.

[0033] Through the above control, the hot air flow rate can be adjusted as needed, so that the fluid temperature in the heat exchange tube can reach a basic equilibrium, avoiding temperature imbalance, thereby achieving enhanced heat transfer and outputting the required temperature.

[0034] As an improvement, the hot air outlet pipe extends downwards from the lower wall of the heat exchanger housing near the front wall and out of the housing. An air passage gap 11 is provided between the plate-shaped heat exchanger tubes between the upper and lower walls and the front wall. With this arrangement, the incoming hot air passes through the heat exchanger tubes and then through the gap into the hot air outlet pipe, thereby ensuring that the hot air thoroughly scours the heat exchanger tubes, preventing short circuits in the heat exchanger tubes, and improving the heat exchange effect.

[0035] As an improvement, the hot air inlets formed between the grilles extend horizontally, with the size of the hot air inlets gradually decreasing from bottom to top in each hot air channel. This improvement is implemented in conjunction with the aforementioned control. This arrangement allows the hot air to flow downwards as much as possible, flushing the heat exchange tubes and improving heat exchange efficiency. It also allows for controllable temperature regulation of the fluid inside the heat exchange tubes by adjusting the grille size. Otherwise, hot air would rise and heat the upper heat exchange tubes, making it impossible to achieve balanced temperature control within the heat exchange tubes even when adjusting the grille size.

[0036] As an improvement, the hot air inlets formed between the grilles extend horizontally, with the size of the hot air inlets gradually decreasing and the airflow continuously increasing from bottom to top in each hot air channel. This design further enhances the heat exchange effect and also allows for controllable fluid temperature inside the heat exchange tubes by adjusting the grille size.

[0037] As an improvement, the hot air inlets formed between the grilles are angled downwards to blow hot air. From bottom to top, the downward angle of the hot air inlets between the grilles in each hot air channel increases. This improvement is implemented in conjunction with the aforementioned control. This configuration allows the hot air to flow downwards as much as possible, flushing the heat exchange tubes and improving heat exchange efficiency. It also allows for controllable temperature regulation of the fluid inside the heat exchange tubes by adjusting the grille size. Otherwise, hot air would rise and heat the upper heat exchange tubes, making it impossible to achieve balanced temperature control within the heat exchange tubes even when adjusting the grille size.

[0038] As an improvement, the hot air inlets formed between the grilles are inclined downwards, blowing hot air. From bottom to top, the downward inclination angle of the hot air inlets between the grilles in each hot air channel gradually increases. This design further improves the heat exchange effect and also allows for controllable fluid temperature inside the heat exchange tubes by adjusting the grille size.

[0039] As an improvement, the thermal conductivity of the plate heat exchanger tubes gradually increases from bottom to top, and the fluid flow rate inside the plate heat exchanger tubes also increases. This improvement is implemented in conjunction with the aforementioned control. Because of the upward flow of the hot air in the upper part, a portion of the hot air heats the upper heat exchanger tubes. Through this adjustment, the fluid in the upper and lower parts quickly reaches temperature equilibrium, thereby rapidly achieving balanced temperature control within the heat exchanger tubes.

[0040] As an improvement, the thermal conductivity of the plate heat exchanger tubes gradually increases from bottom to top, and the fluid flow rate inside the plate heat exchanger tubes also gradually increases. This design further enhances the heat exchange effect and also allows for controllable fluid temperature inside the heat exchanger tubes by adjusting the size of the grid.

[0041] In one method of operating the heat exchanger described above, hot air enters the cavity from the front of the shell, then enters the hot air channel between the plate heat exchange tubes from the hot air inlet, and finally flows out from the lower outlet of the shell. The upper wall, lower wall, side wall and rear of the heat exchange box are all separated from the heat exchange box, so that the heat exchange box is immersed in the hot air.

[0042] As an improvement, the gap between the upper wall and the upper part of the shell is smaller than the gap between the lower wall and the lower part of the shell. Because the hot air flows upward, the upper part normally receives more hot air. By setting the gap size, the lower space is made larger, so that the hot air is distributed downward as much as possible, thus achieving a more balanced distribution of hot air from top to bottom.

[0043] While the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments, it is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can make various modifications and alterations without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention; therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be determined by the scope defined in the claims.

Claims

1. A heat exchanger for intelligent control of hot air flow distribution, the heat exchanger comprising a shell, a heat exchange chamber disposed inside the shell, a gap for hot air flow between the shell and the heat exchange chamber, the heat exchange chamber comprising multiple plate-shaped heat exchange tubes, wherein the upper and lower walls of the heat exchange chamber are composed of horizontally arranged plate-shaped heat exchange tubes, multiple parallel plate-shaped heat exchange tubes are arranged between the upper and lower walls, the side walls comprise multiple vertically arranged plate-shaped heat exchange tubes and a hot air inlet, wherein the hot air inlet pipe is located at the front of the shell, the front wall of the heat exchange chamber facing the hot air inlet is configured with plate-shaped heat exchange tubes, the rear wall of the heat exchange chamber is configured with a hot air inlet, wherein the hot air inlet is provided with a grille, the channels between adjacent plate-shaped heat exchange tubes form hot air channels, wherein the grilles between adjacent plate-shaped heat exchange tubes can be independently adjusted, thereby independently adjusting the amount of hot air entering each hot air channel; A temperature sensor is installed inside the plate heat exchange tube to detect the fluid temperature inside the plate heat exchange tube. The controller controls the opening size of the grille based on the comparison between the internal fluid temperature and the average temperature, thereby independently adjusting the hot air flow rate into the hot air channel. The average temperature is the weighted average of the measured fluid temperatures in multiple plate heat exchange tubes. If the detected fluid temperature inside the plate heat exchanger tube is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the grille is increased to increase the hot air flow rate into the corresponding hot air channel. If the detected fluid temperature inside the plate heat exchanger tube is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the grille is decreased to reduce the hot air flow rate into the corresponding hot air channel. An upper grille is provided between the upper wall and the upper part of the shell, and a lower grille is provided between the lower wall and the lower part of the shell. The upper and lower grilles can be adjusted independently, thereby independently adjusting the amount of hot air entering each upper and lower flow channel. If the detected fluid temperature inside the upper wall is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the upper grille is increased to increase the incoming hot air flow rate; if the detected fluid temperature inside the upper wall is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the upper grille is decreased to decrease the corresponding incoming hot air flow rate. If the detected fluid temperature inside the lower wall is lower than the average temperature, the opening size of the lower grille is increased to increase the incoming hot air flow rate. If the detected fluid temperature inside the lower wall is higher than the average temperature, the opening size of the lower grille is decreased to decrease the corresponding incoming hot air flow rate.

2. The heat exchanger as described in claim 1, characterized in that, From bottom to top, the thermal conductivity of the plate heat exchanger tubes gradually increases, and the fluid flow rate inside the plate heat exchanger tubes also increases.

3. The heat exchanger as described in claim 2, characterized in that, From bottom to top, the thermal conductivity of the plate heat exchanger tubes gradually increases, and the fluid flow rate inside the plate heat exchanger tubes also increases.

4. The heat exchanger as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The gap between the upper wall and the upper part of the shell is smaller than the gap between the lower wall and the lower part of the shell.

5. A heat exchange method for a heat exchanger as described in any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, Hot air enters the cavity from the front of the shell, then enters the hot air channel between the plate heat exchange tubes from the hot air inlet, and finally flows out from the lower outlet of the shell. The upper wall, lower wall, side wall and rear wall of the heat exchange box are all separated from the shell, so that the heat exchange box is immersed in hot air.

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