Exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance

• US 6,942,027 B2
• Filed: 10/22/2002
• Issued: 09/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hanon Systems (Hahn & Co. Auto Holdings Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Visteon Global Technologies Incorporated (Visteon Corporation)
• Inventors: Klotten, Thomas, Heckt, Roman
• Primary Examiner(s): Ford, John K.
• Application Number:
  US10/277,376
• Publication Number:
  US 20030106683A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,057 Days
• Field of Search: 165/103, 165/51, 165/283, 165/158, 165/284, 603/09, 603/20
• US Class Current: 165/283
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 2260/10 for avoiding stress caused by expansions or contractions due to temperature variations
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 2260/14 for modifying or adapting flow area or back-pressure
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 2410/00 By-passing, at least partially, exhaust from inlet to outlet of apparatus, to atmosphere or to other device
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 3/005 for draining or otherwise eliminating condensates or moisture accumulating in the apparatus F01N3/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 3/043 without contact between liquid and exhaust gases
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 5/02 the devices using heat
• CPC Class Codes: F02G 5/02 Profiting from waste heat of exhaust gases
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/12 Improving ICE efficiencies

Abstract

An exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance having a heat-exchanger line and a bypass line and a heat exchanger being arranged in the region of the heat-exchanger line. At least one valve device, for the purpose of influencing the mass flow of exhaust gas, is provided in the heat-exchanger line and the bypass line. Further, at least the heat-exchanger line has a slope in the direction of flow of the exhaust gas in the installed position.

Claims

1. An exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance comprising a heat exchanger line and a bypass line installed at a position on a motor vehicle, the heat exchanger line and the bypass line connected at their upstream ends to a first exhaust-line fork and downstream at their downstream ends to a second exhaust-line fork, a heat exchanger being arranged in the region of the heat-exchanger line, an “

S”

shaped line element in the heat-exchanger line located upstream of an inlet of the second exhaust-line fork, and at least one valve device adapted to influence the mass flow of exhaust gas being provided in the heat-exchanger line and the bypass line, wherein, in the installed position the heat-exchanger line and the bypass line run parallel to one another a short distance apart in plan view, and when viewed from the side at least the heat-exchanger line has a slope in a direction of flow of the exhaust gas and the “

S”

shaped line element has a slope steeper than the slope of the heat-exchanger line to act as a barrier to return flow.

2. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein, in the installed position, the bypass line has a slope in the direction of flow of the exhaust gas.

3. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein the slope of the heat-exchanger line is less than the slope of the bypass line.

4. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein the at least one valve device is arranged in the heat-exchanger line upstream of the heat-exchanger.

5. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 4 wherein a further valve device is arranged in the by-pass line.

6. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 5 wherein the valve devices are arranged in the highest possible upstream position.

7. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein a corrugated tube is arranged between the heat-exchanger line and the first exhaust-line fork.

8. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein the downstream ends of the heat-exchanger line and the bypans line open into an exhaust-line fork.

9. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein there is a vertical difference in height Δ

h between the heat-exchanger line and the bypass line at some point before the ends, which difference is compensated for by the “

S”

shaped line element over a distance s.

10. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 9 wherein the difference in height Δ

h is between 0.2*d and 0.5*d, d being the diameter of the heat-exchanger line.

11. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 10 wherein the ratio of the distance s to the vertical difference in height Δ

h is no less than 3 and no more than 8.

12. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein the heat exchanger is a tube-bundle heat-exchanger arranged within the heat exchanger line.

13. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 1 wherein an exhaust-gas valve constructed in the manner of a throttle valve is arranged at the upstream end of the heat-exchanger, in terms of the flow of exhaust gas, and can be actuated in an infinitely variable manner via an actuating device.

14. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 13 wherein the exhaust-gas valve is arranged in an upstream position that is the position that is vertically the highest possible, depending on the installation-space conditions.

15. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 13 wherein the valve device in the heat-exchanger line is designed as a backpressure control valve.

16. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 12 wherein the tube-bundle heat exchanger is designed as a co-current or counter-current heat exchanger.

17. The exhaust-gas heat recovery appliance as claimed in claim 12 wherein a valve is arranged as far as possible upstream in the by-pass line, in terms of the flow of exhaust gas, depending on the installation-space conditions in the motor vehicle.