HIGH THERMAL TRANSFER FLOW-THROUGH HEAT EXCHANGER

摘要

A flow-through heater for heating a fluid comprises: a high thermal conductivity conduit-defining body shaped to provide, within the conduit-defining body, a helical-shaped or spiral-shaped conduit that extends between an inlet port and an outlet port; and one or more heating elements operatively connected to an exterior of the conduit-defining body for providing heat to the conduit-defining body and to any fluid flowing through the conduit. Because of the high thermal conductivity of the conduit-defining body, all of the surfaces of the conduit-defining body that actually define the conduit contribute significantly to heating the fluid in the conduit. Each conduit-defining surface may contribute to heating the fluid in approximately equal proportion to its conduit-defining surface area.

主权项

1. A flow-through heater for heating a fluid, the flow-through heater comprising:
a high thermal conductivity conduit-defining body shaped to provide, within the conduit-defining body, a conduit that extends between an inlet port and an outlet port; and one or more heating elements connected to the conduit-defining body by corresponding heat-conducting connections for providing heat to the conduit-defining body, thereby permitting the conduit defining-body to provide heat to fluid flowing through the conduit; wherein the conduit comprises a central section comprising over 80% of the length of the conduit at locations away from the inlet port and the outlet port and wherein the conduit-defining body is shaped such that for any given cross-section of the conduit in the central section, heat flows evenly from the heating elements into the conduit with a heat flux variation of less than 20% over a perimeter of the cross-section.