Flat plate fuel cell cooler
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A heat pipe assembly, comprising:
- a base plate;
a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
further comprising at least one strip of material between an adjacent pair of tubes from among the plurality of tubes.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A heat pipe assembly includes a base plate and a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes between the base plate and the corrugated lid. Each of the plurality of tubes forms an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly. The heat pipe assembly may be included in a fuel cell stack.
24 Citations
31 Claims
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1. A heat pipe assembly, comprising:
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a base plate;
a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
further comprising at least one strip of material between an adjacent pair of tubes from among the plurality of tubes.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A heat pipe assembly, comprising:
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a base plate;
a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
wherein the base plate and corrugated lid are both formed of copper.
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9. A heat pipe assembly, comprising:
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a base plate;
a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
wherein each of the plurality of tubes is sealed to act as an independent heat pipe with no communication of fluid between heat pipes.
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10. A heat pipe assembly, comprising:
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a base plate;
a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
wherein all of the plurality of tubes are connected at one end or at both ends, allowing communication of fluid between heat pipes. - View Dependent Claims (11)
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12. A fuel cell stack, comprising:
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at least one fuel cell; and
a heat pipe assembly conductively coupled to the fuel cell, the heat pipe assembly comprising;
a base plate, and a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
further comprising at least one strip of material between an adjacent pair of tubes from among the plurality of tubes.- View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
a second heat pipe assembly, the fuel cell being positioned between an evaporator section of the first heat pipe assembly and an evaporator section of the second heat pipe assembly;
a fin stack between a condenser section of the first heat pipe assembly and a condenser section of the second heat pipe assembly; and
an electrical insulator between the fin stack and the condenser section of the second heat pipe assembly.
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17. The fuel cell stack of claim 16, wherein the electrical insulator contacts the corrugated lid of the second heat pipe assembly.
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18. The fuel cell stack of claim 12, further comprising:
a second fuel cell, wherein a side surface of each of the plurality of tubes is flattened between the first fuel cell and the second fuel cell.
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19. The fuel cell stack of claim 18, further comprising at least one strip of material positioned between an adjacent pair of tubes in the heat pipe assembly, the strip of material acting as a stop to limit flattening of the plurality of tubes.
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20. A method of forming a heat pipe assembly, comprising the steps of:
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providing a base plate;
joining a corrugated lid to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
further comprising inserting at least one strip of material between an adjacent pair of tubes from among the plurality of tubes. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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29. A method of forming a heat pipe assembly, comprising the steps of:
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providing a base plate;
joining a corrugated lid to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
further comprising forming the base plate and corrugated lid of copper before the joining step.
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30. A method of forming a heat pipe assembly, comprising the steps of:
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providing a base plate;
joining a corrugated lid to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly; and
further comprising stamping a sheet of metal to form the corrugated lid before the joining step.
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31. A fuel cell stack, comprising:
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at least one fuel cell; and
a heat pipe assembly conductively coupled to the fuel cell, the heat pipe assembly comprising;
a base plate and a corrugated lid joined to the base plate to form a plurality of tubes therebetween, each of the plurality of tubes forming an envelope of a respective heat pipe within the heat pipe assembly and further comprising at least one strip of material between an adjacent pair of tubes from among the plurality of tubes, wherein said heat pipe assembly has an evaporator section conductively coupled to said fuel cell, and a condenser section extending beyond the fuel cell wherein a portion of said condenser section includes a chamber filled with a noncondensible gas so as to form a variable conductance heat pipe.
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Specification