Angled Parting Sheets for Additive Heat Exchangers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional additive manufacturing of heat exchangers faces challenges in building vertical fins due to difficulties with overhung features, resulting in rough surfaces and potential defects, especially when parting sheets are oriented horizontally, which hinders optimal performance and build quality.
Innovation Solution
The approach involves angling parting sheets at a non-right angle relative to the build direction during additive manufacturing, allowing for vertically built fins and curved parting sheets that minimize overhung features, enabling the creation of thin, flat, or wavy fins with improved surface finish and reduced pressure drop, using a combination of flow circuits such as perpendicular, counter, or cross-flow configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If parting sheets are oriented horizontally to build vertical fins, then fin thickness is minimized, but surface roughness increases and defects form
Solution Approach 1:
The patent angles the parting sheets relative to the build direction, transitioning from a horizontal orientation to an inclined orientation. This dimensional change in the parting sheet arrangement allows vertical fins to be built while avoiding the problematic horizontal overhung orientation, thereby reducing surface roughness and defects while maintaining thin fin thickness.
2Shape
If parting sheets are oriented horizontally to build vertical fins, then fin orientation is optimized, but buildability deteriorates due to overhung features
Solution Approach 1:
By angling the parting sheets instead of orienting them horizontally, the patent creates a build configuration that eliminates overhung features. The inclined parting sheets provide adequate support during the additive manufacturing process, significantly improving buildability while maintaining the desired vertical fin orientation.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional horizontal parting sheets are used, then manufacturing process is simplified, but pressure drop increases
Solution Approach 1:
The angled parting sheet configuration creates smoother internal flow paths compared to horizontal parting sheets. This dimensional change in the parting sheet orientation reduces flow resistance and pressure drop, improving energy efficiency while the additive manufacturing process maintains reasonable manufacturing complexity.
Data Source
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AI summary
An additively manufactured heat exchanger can include a plurality of vertically built fins (101,301), and a plurality of non-horizontally built parting sheets (103,303). The plurality of vertically built fins can extend between and connect to the plurality of parting sheets. The heat exchanger can include a plurality of layers of fins and parting sheets. The heat exchanger can include first and second flow circuits (109,309;111,311) for allowing separate fluid flows to flow through the heat exchanger to exchange heat therebetween.