Heat exchanger

Abstract

The heat exchanger is for cooling air by using water, particularly for use as an intercooler in an internal combustion engine. The heat exchanger has an elongate core assembly housed within a shell. The core assembly has a plurality of spaced apart tubes extending between an air inlet and an air outlet; a plurality of flow conduits disposed between and in thermal contact with the tubes, the flow conduits passing water across the core assembly generally at right angles to the air flow to transfer heat between the tubes and the water; and baffles disposed so that water enters the core assembly by a water inlet and propagates through the core assembly generally in the direction of the air flow axis along a tortuous path, along which the water absorbs heat from the tubes to cool the air, and exits through a water outlet.

1 . A heat exchanger for cooling a first fluid by a second fluid, said heat exchanger comprising an elongate core assembly extending along a first axis and housed within a shell, said core assembly having: 
 a plurality of spaced apart tubes in a closed path aligned generally with said first axis and extending between a first inlet, for introducing said first fluid into the tubes, and a first outlet, for exit of said first fluid from the tubes;    a plurality of flow means disposed between and in thermal contact with said tubes, said flow means adapted to pass said second fluid across said core assembly about at right angles to said first axis and to allow heat transfer between the tubes and the second fluid; and    baffle means engaged with the exterior of said tubes,    the arrangement being such that said second fluid enters the core assembly by a second inlet, propagates through the core assembly generally in the direction of the first axis, and exits the core assembly through a second outlet, wherein the baffle means cause the second fluid to move along said first axis in a tortuous path, along which the second fluid is allowed to absorb heat from the flow means and the tubes so as to cool the first fluid.    
   
   
       2 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , wherein: 
 said shell is of a cylindrical shape and the baffle means comprise a plurality of baffles alternatingly disposed along opposite sides of the core assembly, the baffles being of generally semicircular shape and configured to sealingly engage with said shell so as to define a plurality of adjacent longitudinal sections along the length of the core assembly arranged so that the second fluid is able to move between respective adjacent longitudinal sections only on the side of the core assembly opposite to a respective baffle;    the arrangement being such that, in use, a pressurized second fluid is introduced in the exchanger via the second inlet at one side of the core assembly, the introduced second fluid being confined within a first of said longitudinal sections of the core assembly, by a respective baffle, and directed into the flow means in a first direction through the cross section of this longitudinal section, once reaching the opposite side of the core assembly, the second fluid being able to move to a second of said longitudinal sections, adjacent to the first longitudinal section, and second fluid being directed by the flow means through the cross section of the second longitudinal section in a direction opposite to the first direction, thus the second fluid consecutively traversing the cross sections of adjacent sections along the length of the core assembly in alternating directions, until reaching the second outlet and exiting the heat exchanger.    
   
   
       3 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , wherein each said plurality of flow means comprises a corrugated sheet made of a heat-conducting material.  
   
   
       4 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 3 , wherein each corrugated sheet is inserted between, and is abuttingly engaged with, at least a pair of adjacent tubes.  
   
   
       5 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 2 , wherein the core assembly further includes a pair of baffles extending along the first axis on two mutually opposing sides of the core assembly to prevent the second fluid from moving around the periphery of the core assembly.  
   
   
       6 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , wherein at least some of the tubes are flat tubes.  
   
   
       7 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 6 , wherein at least one tube has a cross section with at least one dimension that is different from the respective dimension of at least one other tube.  
   
   
       8 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , wherein the core assembly and the heat exchanger have substantially cylindrical shape.  
   
   
       9 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , wherein the tubes include internal fins extending inside the tubes to improve the heat exchange between the tubes and the first fluid.  
   
   
       10 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , wherein the first fluid is air and the second fluid is water.  
   
   
       11 . A heat exchanger according to  claim 1 , that functions as an air-cooler in a motor vehicle internal combustion engine.  
   
   
       12 . The heat exchanger according to  claim 11 , that functions as an intercooler in a supercharged and/or turbocharged motor vehicle internal combustion engine.