Brazed Radiator Block Plate Elongations for Housing Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing heat exchanger arrangements suffer from inadequate sealing between the radiator block and the housing, leading to uncooled air bypasses and reduced heat exchange efficiency, with additional seals being costly and undesirable.
Innovation Solution
The heat exchanger arrangement features plate elongations with cutouts and bulged protuberances that are deformed to fit precisely within the housing, eliminating the need for additional seals and minimizing air bypasses through calibration in a deformation tool, utilizing additional material portions for improved sealing and dimensional accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If additional seals are inserted between the radiator block and housing, then sealing action is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The radiator block is designed to seal itself against the housing through its own structural features (plate elongations with bending edges) without requiring additional seal components. The plate elongations deform during brazing to create an interference fit that provides sealing action, making the system self-sealing and eliminating the need for separate seal elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing function is segmented from the main radiator block structure by adding separate plate elongations with bending edges. These elongations act as independent sealing elements that can deform separately during the brazing process to accommodate dimensional changes and create effective sealing contact with the housing.
2Productivity
If the brazed radiator block dimensions are not calibrated, then production is simpler, but air bypasses increase and heat exchange efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The plate elongations undergo parameter changes during the brazing process - specifically, they deform from their initial state to a calibrated state that provides the correct dimensional fit. This deformation changes the length and shape of the plate elongations to compensate for brazing-induced dimensional changes in the radiator block, ensuring proper sealing and eliminating air bypasses.
Solution Approach 2:
The plate elongations are pre-formed with bending edges and cutouts before brazing, positioning them in a state that allows them to deform during the brazing process. This preliminary configuration enables the elongations to automatically calibrate the radiator block dimensions as they deform, preventing air bypasses without requiring post-brazing adjustment operations.
3Reliability
If plate elongations are deformed to achieve precise dimensional fit, then sealing action improves, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The plate elongations incorporate curved bending edges with cutouts instead of straight edges. This curvature allows the elongations to deform more uniformly and predictably during brazing, facilitating the calibration process. The bent shape with strategic cutouts enables the material to flow and adjust during deformation while maintaining structural integrity and achieving the desired dimensional fit.
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 solution enhances the sealing action between the radiator block and the housing, significantly reducing air bypasses and maintaining heat exchange efficiency while avoiding the cost of additional seals, ensuring a precise fit and improved performance.
Implementation Method 1
a calibration of the brazed radiator block is performed in a deformation tool. The calibration results in a radiator block which fits perfectly into the housing
Implementation Method 2
The radiator block distorts during the course of the brazing process. During the brazing process, (small) movements of the plate pairs and of the fins arranged between the plate pairs take place
Data Source
AI summary
A heat exchanger arrangement, for example for an internal combustion engine, having a brazed radiator block (1) which has flow paths (10) formed from pairs of plates and has flow ducts (3) between the plate pairs (P), wherein in each case at least one plate (11) of each plate pair has a plate elongation (12), and wherein the brazed radiator block is arranged in a housing (2) and, at its circumference, is sealed off with respect to the housing. To improve the sealing action between the radiator block (1) and the housing (2), it is provided according to the invention that the plate elongations (12) are formed such that a prescribed dimension of the brazed radiator block (1) can be set by means of deformation of the plate elongations (12).