Combustion Heater Segmented Heating Plate Thermal Fatigue

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional combustion heaters face reduced heat efficiency due to unrecycled exhaust heat and thermal fatigue caused by repeated heating and cooling, which affects the radiating surface area and surrounding environment.

Innovation Solution

A combustion heater design with a sealed structure that preheats fuel gas using exhaust gas heat, featuring a combustion chamber along the outer circumferential wall, inflow and outflow passages, and a partition plate for efficient heat transfer, along with clipping parts or grooves to manage thermal expansion and reduce stress.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of energy

If a sealed structure is used to recover exhaust heat and preheat fuel gas, then heat efficiency is improved, but thermal expansion stress causes thermal fatigue at joined portions

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveexhaust heat recoveryVSAvoidthermal fatigue resistance
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of energyVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The heating plate is divided into multiple segments with expansion gaps between them, allowing each segment to expand independently without generating excessive stress at joined portions, thus preventing thermal fatigue while maintaining the sealed structure for exhaust heat recovery

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The heating plate uses a thin plate structure that can flexibly expand and contract with temperature changes, reducing thermal stress accumulation and preventing thermal fatigue in the sealed combustion heater structure

Inventive Principle:
Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

2Illumination intensity

If the radiating surface area is increased to improve radiant intensity, then heating performance is improved, but the sealed structure becomes more complex and prone to thermal fatigue

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveradiant intensityVSAvoidsealed structure complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Illumination intensityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The large radiating surface is divided into multiple smaller heating plate segments that can be independently manufactured and assembled, reducing the complexity of the sealed structure while maintaining total radiating area and intensity through proper arrangement of segments

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

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 design enhances heat efficiency by recovering exhaust heat, reduces thermal fatigue, and maintains high radiant intensity while ensuring the surrounding environment is not compromised.

Implementation Method 1

preheat the fuel gas using heat of the exhaust gas via the partition plate

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectThermal conduction: Conduction (thermal)

Implementation Method 2

heat an industrial material or food with radiant heat from a radiating surface of the radiating body

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectThermal radiation: Thermal Radiation

Implementation Method 3

combustion heat generated by combustion of fuel gas

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectCombustion: Combustion

Data Source

PatentEP3106749B1Combustion heater
Publication Date: 2019.10.16 IHI CORP
  • EP3106749B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3106749B1 patent drawingFigure 2A~3
  • EP3106749B1 patent drawingFigure 4A~4B

AI summary

Provided is a combustion heater (100), which includes a heating plate (118), a layout plate (120) disposed opposite to the heating plate, an annular outer circumferential wall (122) interposed between the heating plate and the layout plate, a partition plate (124) disposed between the heating plate and the layout plate, a combustion chamber (126) disposed inside the outer circumferential wall along the outer circumferential wall, an inflow passage (128) configured to flow fuel gas into the combustion chamber using the layout plate and the partition plate as a lateral wall thereof, and an outflow passage (130) configured to discharge exhaust gas from the combustion chamber to an outside using the heating plate and the partition plate as a lateral wall thereof, and to preheat the fuel gas using heat of the exhaust gas via the partition plate. One of the heating plate (118) and the layout plate (120) is configured so that concave grooves (350a, 350b) are formed in a thickness direction of the heating plate and the layout plate so as to be equal in the distance from the outer circumferential wall According to the combustion heater, thermal fatigue caused by repetition of heating and cooling can be suppressed.