HEAT EXCHANGER

• US 20150000327A1
• Filed: 01/31/2013
• Published: 01/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Kakehashi, Nobuharu, Katoh, Yoshiki
• Application Number:
  US14/376,277
• Publication Number:
  US 20150000327A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 62/434
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/004 for vehicles having a combustion engine and electric drive means, e.g. hybrid electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/143 the heat being derived from cooling an electric component, e.g. electric motors, electric circuits, fuel cells or batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/32281 comprising a single secondary circuit, e.g. at evaporator or condenser side
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2001/003 with means for cooling the electrical propulsion units
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/34 Cabin temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/545 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: F01P 2050/24 Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 29/0443 Layout of the coolant or refrigerant circuit
• CPC Class Codes: F02M 26/28 with liquid-cooled heat exchangers
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 17/02 for circulating liquids, e.g. brine
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 2021/0031 Radiators for recooling a coolant of cooling systems
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 2021/008 for vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 2021/0084 Condensers
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 2021/0094 for recooling the engine coolant
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 9/0043 the plates having openings therein for circulation of at least one heat-exchange medium from one conduit to another
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 9/005 the plates having openings therein for both heat-exchange media
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 9/0093 Multi-circuit heat-exchangers, e.g. integrating different heat exchange sections in the same unit or heat-exchangers for more than two fluids
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 1/00 Tubular elements; Assemblies of tubular elements specially adapted for movement F28F5/00
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 27/02 for controlling the distribution of heat-exchange media between different channels static flow control means in header boxes F28F9/026; arrangements of guide plates or guide vanes F28F9/22, F28F25/12
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 9/02 Header boxes; End plates
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 9/0246 : Arrangements for connecting header boxes with flow lines
• CPC Class Codes: F28F 9/26 : Arrangements for connecting different sections of heat-exchange elements, e.g. of radiators connecting different sections in water heaters F24H9/14 , connecting headers with inlet or outlet fittings F28F9/0246
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/613 : Cooling or keeping cold
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/625 : Vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6556 : Solid parts with flow channel passages or pipes for heat exchange closed pipes H01M10/6552
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 : Energy storage using batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/12 : Improving ICE efficiencies
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 : Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

A heat exchanging portion and tank portions are formed by bonding plate members. The tank portion is provided with a refrigerant inlet allowing a refrigerant to flow into a refrigerant tank space, a refrigerant outlet allowing the refrigerant to flow from the refrigerant tank space, a heat medium inlet allowing a heat medium to flow into a heat medium tank space, and a heat medium outlet allowing the heat medium to flow from the heat medium tank space. At least one of the refrigerant inlet, the refrigerant outlet, the heat medium inlet, and the heat medium outlet is disposed between both ends of the tank portions in a tube stacking direction of refrigerant tubes and heat medium tubes.

Claims

1. A heat exchanger comprising:

a heat exchanging portion configured by stacking a plurality of refrigerant tubes through which a refrigerant in a vapor-compression refrigeration cycle flows, and a plurality of heat medium tubes through which a heat medium flows to exchange heat with the refrigerant; and

a tank portion provided with at least one of a refrigerant tank space adapted to collect or distribute the refrigerant with respect to the refrigerant tubes, and a heat medium tank space adapted to collect or distribute the heat medium with respect to the heat medium tubes, wherein

the heat exchanging portion and the tank portion are formed by bonding plate members,

the heat exchanging portion includes a first heat exchanging portion in which heat is exchanged between the heat medium and the refrigerant on a high-pressure side of the vapor-compression refrigeration cycle, and a second heat exchanging portion in which heat is exchanged between the heat medium and the refrigerant on a low-pressure side of the vapor-compression refrigeration cycle,

the tank portion is provided with a refrigerant inlet that allows the refrigerant to flow into the refrigerant tank space, a refrigerant outlet that allows the refrigerant to flow from the refrigerant tank space, a heat medium inlet that allows the heat medium to flow into the heat medium tank space, and a heat medium outlet that allows the heat medium to flow from the heat medium tank space, and

at least one of the refrigerant inlet, the refrigerant outlet, the heat medium inlet, and the heat medium outlet is disposed between both ends of the tank portion in a tube stacking direction of the refrigerant tubes and the heat medium tubes.

2. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the refrigerant inlet, the refrigerant outlet, the heat medium inlet, and the heat medium outlet is opened between both the ends in a direction perpendicular to the tube stacking direction.

3. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the refrigerant inlet, the refrigerant outlet, the heat medium inlet, and the heat medium outlet is formed by multiple members disposed between the plate members.

4. The heat exchanger according to claim 3, wherein the multiple members are disposed at a boundary between the first heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion.

5. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein the plate members are disposed opposite to each other in the tube stacking direction, with a boundary between the first heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion, as a center.

6. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein an auxiliary heat exchanging portion that exchanges heat between a first fluid and a second fluid is provided between the first heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion, wherein

the first fluid is the refrigerant or the heat medium,

the second fluid is the refrigerant or the heat medium, and

at least one of the first fluid and the second fluid is the refrigerant or the heat medium flowing from at least one of the first heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion.

7. The heat exchanger according to claim 6, wherein

the auxiliary heat exchanging portion is configured by stacking first fluid tubes adapted to allow the first fluid to flow therethrough, and second fluid tubes adapted to allow the second fluid to flow therethrough,

the first fluid tube are used as the refrigerant tubes or the heat medium tubes,

the second fluid tubes are used as the refrigerant tubes or the heat medium tubes, and

one of the first fluid tubes is sandwiched between adjacent two of the second fluid tubes.

8. The heat exchanger according to claim 6, wherein

the first fluid is the refrigerant or the heat medium flowing from the first heat exchanging portion, and

the second fluid is the refrigerant or the heat medium flowing from the second heat exchanging portion.

9. The heat exchanger according to claim 8, wherein

the tank portion is provided with a first fluid tank space adapted to allow the first fluid flowing from the first heat exchanger to enter the auxiliary heat exchanging portion, and a second fluid tank space adapted to allow the second fluid flowing from the second heat exchanging portion to enter the auxiliary heat exchanging portion,

the first fluid tank space is the refrigerant tank space or the heat medium tank space,

the second fluid tank space is the refrigerant tank space or the heat medium tank space,

a part of the first fluid tank space corresponding to the first heat exchanging portion is superimposed on a part of the first fluid tank space corresponding to the auxiliary heat exchanging portion when being viewed from the tube stacking direction, and

a part of the second fluid tank space corresponding to the second heat exchanging portion is superimposed on a part of the second fluid tank space corresponding to the auxiliary heat exchanging portion when being viewed from the tube stacking direction.

10. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the refrigerant outlet and the heat medium outlet is disposed between (i) a first boundary serving as a boundary between the first heat exchanging portion and the auxiliary heat exchanging portion, and (ii) a second boundary serving as a boundary between the auxiliary heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion.

11. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein

at least one of the refrigerant outlet and the heat medium outlet is configured by multiple members disposed between the plate members, and

the multiple members are disposed at least one of (i) between the first heat exchanging portion and the auxiliary heat exchanging portion, and (ii) between the auxiliary heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion.

12. The heat exchanger according to claim 11, wherein

the multiple members extend from one end to the other end of the plate member in a longitudinal direction of the refrigerant tubes and the heat medium tubes, and

wherein outlets formed by the multiple members among the refrigerant outlet and the heat medium outlet are disposed at both sides of one end and the other end of the refrigerant tubes and the heat medium tubes.

13. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein the plate members are disposed opposite to each other in the tube stacking direction with the multiple members centered.

14. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein

a decompression device that decompresses the refrigerant flowing from the first heat exchanger is disposed between the first heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion, and

the refrigerant decompressed by the decompression device flows into the second heat exchanging portion.

15. The heat exchanger according to claim 14, wherein the refrigerant tank space is provided with a first tank space for the refrigerant adapted to allow the refrigerant flowing from the first heat exchanging portion to enter the decompression device, and a second tank space for the refrigerant adapted to allow the refrigerant flowing from the decompression device to enter the second heat exchanging portion, and

wherein the first tank space for the refrigerant and the second tank space for the refrigerant are superimposed on each other when being viewed from the tube stacking direction.

16. The heat exchanger according to claim 15, wherein

the decompression device includes a decompression flow path decompressing the refrigerant flowing from the first heat exchanging portion and allowing the decompressed refrigerant to enter the second heat exchanging portion, and

the first tank space for the refrigerant, the decompression flow path, and the second tank space for the refrigerant are arranged side by side linearly in the tube stacking direction.

17. The heat exchanger according to claim 15, wherein

the decompression device includes a decompression flow path decompressing the refrigerant flowing from the first heat exchanging portion and allowing the decompressed refrigerant to enter the second heat exchanging portion,

an inlet and an outlet of the decompression flow path are disposed at different positions when being viewed from the tube stacking direction,

a refrigerant flow path formation member forming a refrigerant flow path through which the refrigerant flows is provided at least one of between the first tank space for the refrigerant and the inlet, and between the outlet and the second tank space for the refrigerant, and

the refrigerant flow path is non-parallel to the tube stacking direction.

18. The heat exchanger according to claim 1, wherein a cavity formation portion is provided between the first heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion to form a cavity that suppresses heat transfer between the first heat exchanging portion and the second heat exchanging portion.

19. The heat exchanger according to claim 18, wherein the cavity formation portion is formed by bonding a plurality of member parts disposed between the plate members.

20. The heat exchanger according to claim 18, wherein

the plate members are disposed opposite to each other in the first heat exchanging portion and in the second heat exchanging portion, and

the cavity formation portion is formed by bonding the two plate members which are disposed opposite to each other in the tube stacking direction.