Ice Cube Evaporator Cavity Layout to Prevent Corrosion and Blockage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Automatic ice making machines face issues with corrosion between refrigerant conduits and evaporator plates, leading to reduced heat transfer and potential blockages due to water infiltration and freezing, which affects ice production and harvesting efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The design features a serpentine refrigerant conduit sandwiched between front and rear plates with interspersed active and passive cavities, where the refrigerant conduit extends through active cavities only, and the plates are spaced to prevent corrosion, with grooves on the conduit for enhanced heat transfer and fins to form ice columns, and notches for precise fin formation to ensure accurate assembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the refrigerant conduit is placed in direct contact with the evaporator plates to improve heat transfer, then heat transfer efficiency is improved, but corrosion occurs between the refrigerant conduit and evaporator plates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary substance (refrigerant) that flows through the conduit and indirectly transfers heat to the evaporator plates through thermal conduction via the plate material itself, eliminating direct contact between the refrigerant conduit and evaporator plates while maintaining heat transfer efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the refrigerant conduit from direct contact with the evaporator plates by routing it through cavities in the plates, separating the heat transfer function from the structural contact function to prevent corrosion
2Device complexity
If the plates are placed close together to reduce device complexity, then device complexity is reduced, but water infiltration and freezing cause blockages
Solution Approach 1:
The evaporator plates are segmented into multiple cavities (active and passive) that are interspersed and separated, creating discrete zones that prevent water infiltration from affecting the entire structure and eliminating blockage risks
Solution Approach 2:
The refrigerant conduit acts as an intermediary that flows through the active cavities, enabling heat transfer without requiring the plates to be in direct contact, thus maintaining plate separation to prevent water-related blockages
3Use of energy by moving object
If the refrigerant conduit extends through all cavities to maximize heat transfer area, then heat transfer efficiency is improved, but water infiltration and freezing block the conduit
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerant conduit is segmented to extend only through active cavities rather than all cavities, creating a selective heat transfer path that avoids areas where water infiltration could cause freezing and blockages
Solution Approach 2:
Different cavities are assigned different functions: active cavities receive refrigerant for heat transfer while passive cavities serve other purposes, creating local quality variations that optimize both heat transfer and prevent blockages
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 configuration enhances heat transfer efficiency, reduces corrosion, and ensures consistent ice production and harvesting by maintaining refrigerant flow and preventing water infiltration, thereby improving the overall performance of the ice making machine.
Implementation Method 1
The refrigerant conduit extends through each of the active cavities... The location of the active and passive cavities are interspersed and separated by respective inner flat portions so as to define a plurality of ice forming sites
Implementation Method 2
The refrigerant conduit is preferably a pipe having grooves formed along its inner surface so as to increase the inner surface area of the pipe and thereby improve the heat transfer between the refrigerant flowing through the pipe and the ice forming surfaces
Implementation Method 3
The front and rear plates have inner flat portions, each inner flat portion of the front plate facing, but being spaced from, a respective inner flat portion of the rear plate to define a respective spaced portion
Implementation Method 4
The refrigerant conduit is preferably a pipe having grooves formed along its inner surface... The refrigerant conduit extends through each of the active cavities
Data Source
AI summary
An evaporator includes a refrigerant conduit sandwiched between front and rear plates. The front plate has inner flat portions, each of which is spaced from a respective inner flat portion of the rear plate to define a respective spaced portion. The front and rear plates further include a set of first protrusions and a set of second protrusions. Each first protrusion on the front plate faces a respective first protrusion on the rear plate to define a respective active cavity. Each second protrusion on the front plate faces a respective second protrusion on the rear plate to define a respective passive cavity. The refrigerant conduit extends through each of the active cavities but does not extend through any of the passive cavities. The location of the active and passive cavities are interspersed and separated by respective inner flat portions so as to define a plurality of ice forming sites.