Efficient in-line fluid heater
First Claim
1. An in-line heater for heating fluid comprising:
- a vessel for carrying a fluid to be heated wherein the vessel is substantially transparent to radiant energy;
a chamber surrounding the vessel having a reflective interior surface wherein the reflective interior surface is formed of gold;
one or more radiant energy sources mounted within the chamber; and
a sensor electrically coupled to the radiant energy source for detecting whether the radiant energy source has failed.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A highly efficient in-line fluid heater is suitable for heating ultra-pure fluids. Preferably, the heater can be used for heating various fluids, including water, as part of a "wet bench" system used in a wafer processing fabrication facility for the semi-conductor industry. Many other uses for this in-line heater can be envisioned; e.g., water industry, gas processing, and any other use requiring an ultra-clean, highly efficient, non-contact method of raising the temperature of various liquids and gases. The preferred in-line heater utilizes one or more elongated lamps that generate IR radiation as the heating elements. A vessel is provided through which the fluid to be heated is passed. Typically, the vessel is a tube. The tube is preferably a straight single diameter tube, but can be formed in any convenient shape. For ultra-pure fluids, the vessel is formed of an inert or non-reactive material such as quartz. Preferably, the vessel is transparent to the IR radiation generated by the lamps. A chamber surrounds the lamps and the vessel. The interior surface of the chamber is made of a highly efficient reflecting material, preferably gold. The chamber is configured to have an integrally formed elongated parabolic reflector, one for each lamp to reflect radiation from the lamp toward the vessel. Each lamp is located at the focal point of its respective parabolic reflector. For systems having more than one lamp, the lamps are proportionally located around the inside periphery of the chamber. Preferably, the parabolic reflectors are sufficiently deep that radiation from one lamp cannot impinge directly onto any other lamp, thereby avoiding heating the lamps.
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Citations
15 Claims
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1. An in-line heater for heating fluid comprising:
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a vessel for carrying a fluid to be heated wherein the vessel is substantially transparent to radiant energy; a chamber surrounding the vessel having a reflective interior surface wherein the reflective interior surface is formed of gold; one or more radiant energy sources mounted within the chamber; and a sensor electrically coupled to the radiant energy source for detecting whether the radiant energy source has failed. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. An in-line heater for heating fluid comprising:
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a vessel for carrying a fluid to be heated wherein the vessel is substantially transparent to radiant energy; a chamber surrounding the vessel having a reflective interior surface including a plurality of parabolic reflectors; a plurality of radiant energy sources each mounted within the chamber at a focal point of each of the parabolic reflectors for focusing radiant energy onto the fluid and for preventing radiant energy from a first radiant energy source from directly impinging onto a second radiant energy source; and a controller electrically coupled to the plurality of radiant energy sources for detecting and deactivating a failed one of the plurality of radiant energy sources. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An in-line heater for heating an ultra-pure fluid, the in-line heater comprising:
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a vessel for carrying the ultra-pure fluid therethrough, wherein the vessel is substantially transparent to radiant energy, further wherein the vessel is chemically inert to the ultra-pure fluid; a chamber surrounding the vessel, the chamber having a reflective interior surface, wherein the reflective interior surface includes a plurality of parabolic reflectors; a plurality of radiant energy sources each mounted within the chamber at a focal point of one of the parabolic reflectors for preventing radiant energy emitted by the radiant energy sources from impinging directly onto each other and for reflecting the radiant energy onto the ultra-pure fluid; and a control circuit electrically coupled to the plurality of radiant energy sources for detecting and deactivating a failed one of the plurality of the radiant energy sources and for selectively activating an inactive one of the plurality of radiant energy sources in replacement therefor, such that a heating capacity of the in-line heater remains substantially constant. - View Dependent Claims (15)
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Specification