Bellows Compensator B:T Ratio for Hygienic Heat Exchangers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Tubular heat exchangers face challenges in achieving hygienic cleaning due to dead spaces and high local stresses in bellows, which hinder effective product flow and thermal expansion compensation, especially in the food industry where product contact occurs.
Innovation Solution
Designing bellows with a B:T ratio of about 1 or greater on the product-contactable surface, featuring moderate changes in direction and weakly curved surfaces, and using a hybrid design with both concave and convex sections to enhance cleaning efficiency and compensation effect, while minimizing dead spaces and local stresses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If bellows with small B:T ratio are used to achieve strong compensation effect, then thermal expansion compensation is improved, but hygienic cleaning becomes impossible due to product deposits
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different B:T ratios to different sections of the bellows: the product-contactable surface has folds with B:T ratio of about 1 or greater for easy cleaning, while the non-contactable sections can have different characteristics. This local differentiation allows the bellows to maintain both hygienic properties and compensation functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The bellows is segmented into different functional zones: a product-contactable surface with specific fold characteristics for hygiene, and an inner surface with different characteristics for compensation. This segmentation allows each zone to be optimized for its specific function without compromising the other.
2Ease of manufacture
If bellows with large B:T ratio are used to facilitate cleaning, then hygienic conditions are improved, but compensation effect is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different B:T ratios to different sections of the bellows: the product-contactable surface has folds with B:T ratio of about 1 or greater for easy cleaning, while the non-contactable sections can have different characteristics. This local differentiation allows the bellows to maintain both hygienic properties and compensation functionality.
3Ease of manufacture
If narrow V-shaped folds are provided to reduce dead spaces, then cleaning is improved, but compensation effect is reduced due to high local stresses
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different B:T ratios to different sections of the bellows: the product-contactable surface has folds with B:T ratio of about 1 or greater for easy cleaning, while the non-contactable sections can have different characteristics. This local differentiation allows the bellows to maintain both hygienic properties and compensation functionality.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for hygienic cleaning of product-contactable surfaces, reduces residue sticking, and ensures efficient removal of residues, while maintaining sufficient thermal expansion compensation, thus achieving hygienically perfect conditions and favorable flow conditions in tubular heat exchangers.
Implementation Method 1
The inner and outer tubes have congruent bellows... which compensate for the different thermal expansions of the inner and outer tubes
Implementation Method 2
the bellows are designed with a B:T ratio of about 1 or greater... the compensation effect occurs predominantly in the turning points
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The heat exchanger (W) has an inner tube (3) for treating fluid food products. A thermal expansion compensation device (K) is provided for a casing tube (1) and/or the inner tube, and has a surface (12) contactable by the product to be treated. The surface is provided at a bellows (C) that is integrated into the casing- and/or inner tubes and has folds (F) rotating around a tube axis. Each of the folds at the surface is formed with a radial depth and an axial breadth with ratio of 1 or grater than 1.