A heat exchanger and an air-conditioning apparatus that exhibit high performance, and also provide reliability in strength and corrosion resistance. The heat exchanger includes a plurality of fins each including a fin collar formed in a short cylindrical shape by perforating a flat base plate, the plurality of fins being stacked by serially connecting fin collars of the respective fins, the serially connected fin collars being bonded to form a conduit line and a fin core, the conduit line including a resin layer formed on an inner surface thereof. The heat exchanger also includes a reinforcing member having a length corresponding to a length of the conduit line from one end to the other end thereof, to improve rigidity of the conduit line.

An air fin for a heat exchanger has air channels defined by corrugations, the corrugations having generally planar flanks joined by alternating crests and troughs. Perforations extend through portions of at least some of the flanks and are aligned within two spaced apart planes. A rectangular aperture extends through at least two consecutive ones of the corrugations, and is bounded by the two planes. A method of making the air fin includes forming perforations into a continuous strip of metal sheet at regular intervals, corrugating the strip to form crests and troughs between the perforations, and punching out a portion of the strip at regular intervals. The punching out includes shearing webs between the perforations, and results in the formation of the rectangular aperture.

A heat exchanger with a pressurised shell and a tube bundle with exchanging tubes between flexible tubesheets has the flexible tubesheets reciprocally interconnected by tie rods in a central zone of the tubesheets which is devoid of exchanging tubes and the exchanging tubes in the tube bundle are arranged around such tie rods. The exchanger may further comprise conveying diaphragms arranged along the bundle shaped, alternately, as discs and rings.

Methods and devices heat or cool viscous materials, such as meat emulsions useful for producing food and other products. The devices have a heat exchanger including a first plate, a second plate attached to the first plate, and a first spacer and a second spacer arranged between the first plate and the second plate. The first plate, the second plate, the first spacer, and the second spacer define at least one temperature controlled passage for a product to pass through the heat exchanger.

A plate heat exchanger gasket is configured to be positioned between adjacent heat transfer plates in a plate heat exchanger and includes a continuous seal part integrated with spaced-apart wedge parts. The media pressure produced by the fluids flowing in the plate interspaces act on the continuous seal part and applies a force tending to push the continuous seal part outwardly. The wedge parts are sized to contact and act against portions of the heat transfer plates so that movement of the wedge parts is prevented. Because the wedge parts are integrated with the continuous seal part, the wedge parts thus prevent the continuous seal part (plate heat exchanger gasket) from being pushed outwardly and so blow-outs are not so likely to occur.

Methods and devices heat or cool viscous materials, such as meat emulsions useful for producing food and other products. The devices have a heat exchanger including a first plate, a second plate attached to the first plate, and a first spacer and a second spacer arranged between the first plate and the second plate. The first plate, the second plate, the first spacer, and the second spacer define at least one temperature controlled passage for a product to pass through the heat exchanger.

A frame for a plate heat exchanger includes a head and a follower, a plurality of rib assemblies, and a plurality of tie bar assemblies. Each of the head and the follower includes a plurality of interlocking rib cutouts. Each rib assembly includes a pair of ribs. Each rib includes a first grip disposed at a first end of the rib, a second grip disposed at a second end of the rib, a first cradle disposed at the first end of the rib, and a second cradle disposed at the second end of the rib. Both the first cradle and the second cradle include a cradle bearing surface. Each tie bar assembly includes a tie bar, a nut, and a tie bar bearing surface to bear upon the cradle bearing surface.

A method may involve positioning a fixture over a portion of a tube portion of a gasket, where the gasket includes a first lip portion joined to a second lip portion by a weld of the gasket and the first lip portion joined to the second lip portion defines the tube portion, where the fixture comprises a housing and an injection port; positioning an ultrasonic probe in the housing; filling, by the injection port, coupling fluid between the ultrasonic probe and the tube portion of the gasket; and scanning at least a portion of the weld with the ultrasonic probe, where scanning the at least a portion of the weld may involve transmitting, by the ultrasonic probe, a plurality of ultrasonic waves through the coupling fluid into the tube portion, and translating the fixture in a longitudinal direction along the tube portion of the gasket.

A method may involve positioning a fixture over a portion of a tube portion of a gasket, where the gasket includes a first lip portion joined to a second lip portion by a weld of the gasket and the first lip portion joined to the second lip portion defines the tube portion, where the fixture comprises a housing and an injection port; positioning an ultrasonic probe in the housing; filling, by the injection port, coupling fluid between the ultrasonic probe and the tube portion of the gasket; and scanning at least a portion of the weld with the ultrasonic probe, where scanning the at least a portion of the weld may involve transmitting, by the ultrasonic probe, a plurality of ultrasonic waves through the coupling fluid into the tube portion, and translating the fixture in a longitudinal direction along the tube portion of the gasket.

Shell and tube heat exchangers that include a baffle arrangement that improves the temperature profile and flow pattern throughout the exchanger and/or that are integral with a reaction vessel are disclosed. Methods for using the exchangers including methods that involve use of the exchanger and a reaction vessel to produce a reaction product gas containing trichlorosilane are also disclosed.