High-performance heat exchanger with calibrated bypass

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11525638-B2
Application number	US-202017073910-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 19, 2020
Priority date	Oct 19, 2020
Publication date	Dec 13, 2022
Grant date	Dec 13, 2022

Abstract

A heat exchanger assembly includes a cooling plate with at least one outer heat transfer surface adapted for thermal contact with one or more heat-generating substrates. A fluid flow path extends from an inlet port to an outlet port, with a plurality of cooling zones spaced apart along the fluid flow path, each cooling zone including a heat transfer element such as a corrugated fin sheet in contact with the inner surface of the first plate wall. Manifold spaces are defined proximate to the inlet and outlet ports, and between adjacent cooling zones. One or more bypass flow passages are provided between upstream and downstream ends of at least one cooling zone, to divert a portion of the heat transfer fluid from flowing through the cooling zone. The volume of fluid flow bypassing one or more cooling zones is calibrated to improve temperature uniformity of the heat-generating substrates.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A heat exchanger assembly comprising a cooling plate with an outer heat transfer surface adapted for thermal contact with one or more heat-generating substrates, the outer heat transfer surface having an area defined in a first plane, the cooling plate having a thickness defined in a second plane which is perpendicular to the first plane;
the cooling plate comprising:
a first plate wall and a second plate wall spaced apart in the second plane, the first and second plate walls each having an inner surface and an outer surface, wherein the inner surfaces of the first and second plate walls face each other, and wherein the outer heat transfer surface is defined by the outer surface of the first plate wall;
a hollow interior defined between the first and second plate walls;
a fluid flow space defined in the hollow interior;
an inlet port and an outlet port spaced apart in the first plane and in fluid communication with the fluid flow space, wherein a fluid flow path is defined in the fluid flow space from the inlet to the outlet;
a plurality of cooling zones defined along the fluid flow path, wherein the cooling zones are spaced apart from one another along the fluid flow path, each cooling zone having an upstream end for receiving a heat transfer fluid flowing along the fluid flow path and a downstream end for discharging the heat transfer fluid along the fluid flow path, wherein each said cooling zone comprises one or more heat transfer elements which are in contact with the inner surface of the first plate wall;
a plurality of manifold spaces in the hollow interior, including an inlet manifold space proximate to the inlet, an outlet manifold space proximate to the outlet, and at least one intermediate manifold space, each said intermediate manifold space comprising a gap between the downstream end of one said cooling zone and the upstream end of an adjacent said cooling zone;
a bypass flow passage extending between the upstream and downstream ends of one of said cooling zones and adapted to divert a portion of the heat transfer fluid from flowing through the cooling zone, the bypass flow passage including at least one inlet opening at the upstream end of the cooling zone and at least one outlet opening at the downstream end of the cooling zone;
wherein the cooling plate includes a plurality of said bypass flow passages;
wherein the cooling plate further comprises a diverter plate which is closely received within the fluid flow space, between the heat transfer elements and the inner surface of the second plate wall; and
wherein the diverter plate comprises a plurality of transverse ribs, each having a raised upper surface in sealed engagement with the inner surface of the second plate wall, wherein the locations of ribs correspond to the locations of the manifold spaces in the fluid flow space;
wherein the diverter plate further comprises reduced-height plate areas between the transverse ribs, and separated from one another by the transverse ribs;
wherein the reduced-height plate areas are in contact with the heat transfer elements and wherein each of the reduced-height plate areas is spaced from the inner surface of the second plate wall by a spacing gap; and
wherein at least one of the spacing gaps defines one of the bypass flow passages.

2. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein the at least one outlet opening of at least one said bypass flow passage is in fluid communication with one said manifold space at the downstream end of the cooling zone.

3. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein the at least one inlet opening of at least one said bypass flow passage is in fluid communication with one said manifold space at the upstream end of the cooling zone, and the at least one outlet opening of the at least one said bypass flow passage is in fluid communication with another said manifold space at the downstream end of the cooling zone.

4. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein a volume of bypass flow for a first said cooling zone is calibrated to be different from a volume of bypass flow for a second said cooling zone, depending on the amount of cooling required in the first and second cooling zones;
wherein said volume of bypass flow is calibrated by varying the area and/or number of the inlet openings and/or outlet openings of the bypass flow passages for the first and second cooling zones.

5. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least one said bypass flow passage is provided for each of the cooling zones except for the cooling zone closest to the outlet opening, such that substantially all the heat transfer fluid flows through the cooling zone closest to the outlet opening.

6. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least one of said cooling zones is provided with a plurality of said bypass flow passages.

7. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein each of said heat transfer elements comprises a corrugated fin sheet comprising a plurality of spaced sidewalls extending along the fluid flow path, and comprising top and bottom walls which join adjacent sidewalls together;
wherein the top walls are in direct contact with the inner surface of the first plate wall, and the bottom walls are spaced from the inner surface of the second plate wall; and
wherein at least one said bypass flow passage is defined within a space between the bottom wall of a corrugated fin sheet and the inner surface of the second plate wall.

8. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the bypass flow passages includes a plurality of said inlet openings;
wherein each of the plurality of inlet openings comprises an aperture in the diverter plate, providing flow communication between the spacing gap and one of the manifold spaces; and
wherein the plurality of said inlet openings of at least one of the bypass flow passages is formed in an upstream-facing sidewall of one of the transverse ribs.

9. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 8 , wherein the diverter plate has downturned longitudinal edges which are adapted to seal against a peripheral longitudinal sidewall of the cooling plate to minimize bypass flow between the peripheral sidewall and longitudinal outer edges of the heat transfer elements.

10. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the bypass flow passages includes a plurality of said outlet openings; and
wherein each of the plurality of outlet openings comprises a groove extending along the fluid flow path across the top surface of one of the transverse ribs;
wherein each of the grooves provides fluid communication between a pair of said spacing gaps which are separated by the transverse rib in which the groove is provided.

11. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the bypass flow passages includes a plurality of said outlet openings; and
wherein each of the plurality of outlet openings comprises an aperture in the diverter plate, providing flow communication between the spacing gap and one of the manifold spaces.

12. The heat exchanger assembly of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of said outlet openings of at least one of the bypass flow passages is formed in a downstream-facing sidewall of one of the transverse ribs.

Assignees

• Dana Canada Corp

Inventors

• Vanderwees Doug
• Abels Kenneth M A

Classifications

• H01M10/6556

  Solid parts with flow channel passages or pipes for heat exchange (closed pipes H01M10/6552) · CPC title

• F28D2021/0029

  Heat sinks · CPC title

• F28F13/06

  by affecting the pattern of flow of the heat-exchange media {(F28F13/003 takes precedence; static flow control means in header boxes F28F9/026)} · CPC title

• F28F3/12 Primary

  Elements constructed in the shape of a hollow panel, e.g. with channels {(F28D1/02, F28D1/03 take precedence)} · CPC title

• H01M10/613

  Cooling or keeping cold · CPC title