Header Plate Tabs Guide Heat Exchanger Tubes
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for connecting heat exchange tubes with a header plate in heat exchangers often result in damage during assembly due to misalignment and stress concentrations, leading to potential failure at the braze joint.
Innovation Solution
A header plate design featuring inverted slots with extended lips and strategically placed tabs on the sides to guide the tubes into position, minimizing misalignment and stress concentrations, along with a manufacturing method that includes coining and pressing to create slots with consistent lip heights and tabs that act as leads for the tubes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional connection methods are used to connect heat exchange tubes with header plate, then assembly process is simple, but damage and failure occur during assembly due to misalignment and stress concentrations
Solution Approach 1:
The tabs are pre-formed on the header plate before tube insertion, creating a preliminary alignment structure that guides the tubes into correct positioning and prevents misalignment damage during assembly
Solution Approach 2:
The tabs act as an intermediary element between the header plate and heat exchange tubes, facilitating proper alignment and reducing stress concentrations at the connection interface
2Manufacturing precision
If tabs are added to guide tubes into position, then misalignment and damage are reduced, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tabs are formed during the header plate manufacturing process itself, integrating the alignment feature into the base manufacturing workflow rather than requiring separate assembly steps
Solution Approach 2:
The manufacturing process parameters are optimized to form tabs with specific geometries and positions that achieve precise tube alignment while maintaining compatibility with existing manufacturing capabilities
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
The design enhances the durability of the heat exchanger components by reducing the likelihood of damage and failure during assembly, while the manufacturing method ensures even material distribution and reduced stress concentrations, leading to a more robust assembly process.
Implementation Method 1
pressing the floor of the groove between two tool parts such that the floor of the groove cracks. The method further comprises pushing a tool through the floor of the groove to form a slot with a drawn lip therearound
Data Source
AI summary
A header plate includes slots to receive heat exchange tubes of a heat exchanger. Each slot includes a lip extending in a direction of the tubes. Each slot has straight sides and corners. At least two tabs extend from each lip. One tab is on one side of each lip, and another tab is on an opposite side of each lip. Tabs are absent from the corners of the lip. Each tab is turned out from the lip so that the tabs on the lip act as a lead in for a tube entering the slot. Each slot has two long sides opposite one another. At least one tab is on each long side of the lip.