Apparatus and method to prevent splitting or rupture in fluid coils

Abstract

A fluid coil includes a tube bundle having a series of straight tubing runs and a series of return bends extending between and fluidically connecting ones of the straight tubing runs, an expansion header fluidically connected to at least some of the return bends and a polymeric material disposed in the expansion header. The polymeric material has an initial shape and is compressible to repeatedly expand and contract between a first volume in which water is present in the tube bundle and a second volume in which the water undergoes a phase change. Contraction of the polymeric material absorbs an increase in volume as the water undergoes the phase change to prevent stressing and rupture of the tube bundle and upon an opposite phase change, the polymeric material returns to its initial shape. The polymeric material can be a pressurizable bladder. A system and method to prevent the rupture of a tube bundle in a fluid coil are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A fluid coil, comprising: a tube bundle having a series of straight tubing runs and a series of return bends extending between and fluidically connecting ones of the straight tubing runs; an expansion header fluidically connected to at least some of the return bends; and a polymeric material disposed in the expansion header, the polymeric material having an initial shape being compressible to repeatedly expand and contract between a first volume in which water is present in the tube bundle and a second volume in which the water undergoes a phase change, wherein contraction of the polymeric material absorbs an increase in volume as the water undergoes phase change to prevent stressing and rupture of the tube bundle, and wherein upon an opposite phase change, the polymeric material returns to its initial shape, wherein the polymeric material is a pressurizable bladder, the pressurizable bladder being a tube, and further including caps at ends of the tube to close off the tube, and wherein one of the caps includes a fitting for introducing a compressed gas into the tube.

2. The fluid coil of claim 1, wherein the tube is formed from ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber.

3. The fluid coil of claim 1, wherein the bladder is pressurized to 120 psi to 150 psi.

4. A system to prevent the rupture of a tube bundle in a fluid coil, the fluid coil having a tube bundle having a series of straight tubing runs and a series of return bends extending between and fluidically connecting ones of the straight tubing runs, the system comprising: an expansion header fluidically connected to at least some of the return bends; and a polymeric material disposed in the expansion header, the polymeric material having an initial shape being compressible to repeatedly expand and contract between a first volume in which water is present in the tube bundle and a second volume in which the water undergoes a phase change, the polymeric material being a pressurizable bladder formed as a tube, and further including caps at ends of the tube to close off the tube, and wherein one of the caps includes a fitting for introducing a compressed gas into the tube, wherein contraction of the tube absorbs an increase in volume as the water undergoes phase change to prevent stressing and rupture of the tube bundle, and wherein upon an opposite phase change, the tube returns to its initial shape.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the expansion header is fluidically connected to each of the return bends on a side of the tube bundle.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the polymeric material is resilient and hydrophobic.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein the polymeric material has a working temperature in a range of −40° F. to 250° F.

8. The system of claim 4, wherein the polymeric material has a Shore A hardness of 50 to 90.

9. The system of claim 4, wherein the polymeric material is chemically resistant and non-reactive.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the polymeric material is chemically resistant and non-reactive to chemicals used for corrosion control and microbial control.

11. The system of claim 4, wherein the polymeric material is an elastomer, a fluorocarbon, a perfluoroelastomer, ethylene-propylene, and tetrafluoroethylene/propylene, and combinations thereof.

12. The system of claim 4, wherein the tube is formed from ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber.

13. The system of claim 4, wherein the bladder is pressurized to 120 psi to 150 psi.

14. A method to prevent the rupture of a tube bundle in a fluid coil, the fluid coil having a tube bundle having a series of straight tubing runs and a series of return bends extending between and fluidically connecting ones of the straight tubing runs, and an expansion header fluidically connected to at least some of the return bends, the method comprising: disposing in the expansion header a polymeric material having an initial shape, the polymeric material being compressible to repeatedly expand and contract between a first volume in which water is present in the tube bundle and a second volume in which the water undergoes a phase change, wherein contraction of the polymeric material absorbs an increase in volume as the water undergoes the phase change to prevent stressing and rupture of the tube bundle, and wherein upon an opposite phase change, the polymeric material returns to its initial shape, wherein the polymeric material is a pressurizable bladder formed as a tube, and further including caps at ends of the tube to close off the tube, and wherein one of the caps includes a fitting for introducing a compressed gas into the tube.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the polymeric material is resilient and hydrophobic.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the polymeric material has a working temperature in a range of −40° F. to 250° F.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the polymeric material has a Shore A hardness of 50 to 90.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the polymeric material is chemically resistant and non-reactive.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the polymeric material is chemically resistant and non-reactive to chemicals used for corrosion control and microbial control.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the polymeric material is an elastomer, a fluorocarbon, a perfluoroelastomer, ethylene-propylene, and tetrafluoroethylene/propylene, and combinations thereof.

21. The method of claim 14, wherein the tube is formed from ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber.

22. The method of claim 14, wherein the tube is pressurized to 120 psi to 150 psi.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Various embodiments of an apparatus or system and method to prevent the splitting or rupturing of fluid-carry coils are disclosed as examples and are not limited by the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references may indicate similar elements and in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is an isometric front view of an embodiment of a fluid coil having a system to prevent splitting or rupturing of the coil bundle in the event of a thermal event such as freezing, the illustrated fluid coil being a four-row fluid coil;

(3) FIG. 2 is a sideview of the fluid coil;

(4) FIG. 3 is an isometric rear view of the fluid coil;

(5) FIG. 4 is a top view of the fluid coil;

(6) FIG. 5 is a front view of the fluid coil;

(7) FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of the expansion header of FIG. 5, the expansion header shown filled with a compressible polymeric material;

(8) FIG. 7 is a rear view of the fluid coil;

(9) FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of the expansion headers of FIG. 6, the expansion headers shown filled with a compressible polymeric material;

(10) FIG. 9 illustrates another embodiment of the system to prevent splitting or rupturing of the coil bundle, showing the expansion header;

(11) FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the expansion header of FIG. 9;

(12) FIG. 11 is a partial section view of the upper portion of the expansion header of FIGS. 9 and 10; and

(13) FIG. 12 is an illustration of a feed and control system for the apparatus to prevent fluid coils from splitting or rupturing due to the thermal expansion of liquid.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(14) While the present disclosure is susceptible of embodiments in various forms, there is shown in the drawings and will hereinafter be described a presently preferred embodiment with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification and is not intended to limit the disclosure to the specific embodiment illustrated.

(15) A novel apparatus or system and method are disclosed to prevent the splitting or rupturing of fluid-carry coils in, for example, an HVAC system, due to the thermal expansion of water in freezing conditions for a fluid coil, or the phase change from steam to water (condensation) and subsequently from water to ice. The present disclosure provides an apparatus or system, and method that protect fluid coils from splitting or rupturing when such a freeze event occurs. The present system and method reliably and repeatedly protect fluid coils from splitting or rupturing due to excessive stresses and pressure caused by expansion during a phase change of water to ice inside such coils.

(16) Referring to the figures there is shown a fluid coil 10 having a tube bundle 12 and a fin pack 14 mounted and secured to support members 16 by fasteners 18. The tube bundle 12 has an inlet header 20 with an inlet piping connection 22, an outlet header 24 with an outlet piping connection 26, and expansion headers 28, as will be discussed in more detail below. The inlet header 20 and outlet header 24 are connected to the tube bundle 12 by pipe extensions 30. An air vent 32 is located on an upper side of the outlet header 24 and a water drain 34 is located on the lower side of the inlet header 20.

(17) The tube bundle 12 has a series of return bends 36 extending between and connecting straight tubing runs 38. In the illustrated fluid coil 10 there are two series of return bends 36a, 36b on one side of the bundle 12 and one series of return bends 36c on an opposite side of the bundle 12.

(18) The expansion headers 28 are connected to their respective return bends 36 in each series of return bends 36. The expansion headers 28 are connected to the return bends 36 by header connectors 40. For example, in the illustrated fluid coil 10, expansion header 28a is connected to return bends 36a by header connectors 40a, expansion header 28b is connected to return bends 36b by header connectors 40b, and expansion header 28c is connected to return bends 36c by header connectors 40c.

(19) For purposes of the present disclosure, the expansion headers 28a, 28b an 28c are referred to collectively by reference number 28, the return bends 36a, 36b and 36c are referred to collectively by the reference number 36 and the header connectors 40a, 40b and 40c are referred to collectively by reference number 40.

(20) In an embodiment, the expansion headers 28 are closed at their ends 42 by caps 44. The caps 44 can be removable to inspect, repair or replace material 46 disposed in the expansion headers 28, which material 46 is described in more detail below. In embodiments the end 44 caps are threaded onto the expansion headers 28.

(21) It is to be understood that reference to “connection” or “connected” in the present disclosure means fluidically connected so as to permit flow between and among the connected elements.

(22) Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 8, to absorb the expansion and contraction within the tube bundle 12, a high-quality, compressible material 46 is disposed in the expansion headers 28. The material 46 expands and contracts within a minimum volume and a maximum volume. The material 46, when contracted by the excessive expansion pressure caused by the phase change of water, e.g., freezing, allows the fluid (and ice) to volumetrically expand into a predetermined volume of the material 46 as the material 46 compresses, thus reducing the stresses and pressure on the tube bundle 12 to prevent splitting or rupturing of the tube bundle 12.

(23) The material 46, upon thawing of the ice, expands to regain its original volume within a predetermined space of the expansion header 28. It is anticipated that the material 46 has an appropriate hardness so that in a normal liquid state of water, the material 46 maintains its original shape within the confined space of the expansion header 28. The material 46 also has an appropriate compression set property to reliably and repeatedly protect the fluid coil 12 from splitting or rupturing when the ambient air temperature is at or below the freezing point and water in the coil freezes (or in steam coils, when steam in the coil condenses to water and subsequently freezes).

(24) The material 46 must be able to achieve the required expansion and contraction in freeze and thaw conditions and the ability to retain its original shape following repeated expansions and contractions. That is, the material 46 is sufficiently resilient to return to its original shape with minimal or no deformation.

(25) One suitable material 46 is a polymeric material that is water resistant or hydrophobic, and has a closed cell structure. To function well in the HVAC environment, the material 46 should have a working temperature in a range of about −40° F. to about 250° F. It should be resilient and be able to withstand reliably and repeatably expand and contract for long and short periods of time. And, when expanded, the material 46 should return to its original shape and volume.

(26) The material 46 should also be sufficiently hard so that it maintains its shape when in contact with water at temperatures up to at least about 250° F. and a working pressure of up to about 250 pounds per square inch (psi) beyond which it will deform. A presently contemplated, suitable hardness is a Shore A hardness of about 50 to 90.

(27) The material 46 should also be chemically resistant and/or non-reactive when, for example, used in water cooling/heating systems. Such systems may use a variety of chemicals to, for example, control corrosion, such as sulfites, orthophosphates, nitrites, molybdates, silicates, zinc, polyphosphates, phosphonates, triazoles, azoles and others. Systems may also use a variety of chemicals for microbial control, such as oxidizing biocides (e.g., chlorine, bromine, chlorine dioxide, glutaraldehyde liquid micro biocides, and ozone), and non-oxidizing biocides (e.g., isothiazolin, glutaraldehyde, dibromo-nitrilopropionamide (DBNPA), carbamate, quaternary amines, and terbuthylazine). In addition, the material 46 should be chemically compatible with such chemistry/chemicals to reduce leaching concerns. Other chemicals/chemistry for use in water cooling/heating systems will be recognized by those skilled in the art.

(28) Some suitable materials 46 include, for example, elastomers such as fluorocarbons, such as VITON® (commercially available from DuPont Performance Elastomers), FLUOREL® (commercially available from 3M Company) and TECHNOFLON® (commercially available from Solvey Solexis, USA), perfluoroelastomers such as CHEMRAZ® (commercially available from Green, Tweed & Co.), KALREZ® commercially available from DuPont Performance Elastomers, and TECHNOFLON PFR® (commercially available from Solvey Solexis, USA), ethylene-propylene such as NORDEL® (commercially available from Dow Chemical), KALTAN® (commercially available from DSM Elastomers), and ROYALENE® (commercially available from Chemtura Corporation), and tetrafluoroethylene/propylene, such as ALFAS®, (commercially available from Asahi Class Co., Ltd.), and TBR® (commercially available from DuPont Performance Elastomers). Other classes of materials 46 and materials that provide the desired operational and performance characteristics will be recognized by those skilled in the art and are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

(29) It is also anticipated that the material 46, at room temperature and pressure, will fill the expansion headers 28, although there may be some embodiments in which an air or fluid space is present in the headers 28 when the material 46 is disposed in the headers 28.

(30) It is also anticipated that in some embodiments monitoring systems are incorporated into the fluid coil 10. For example, thermistors, such as NTC thermistors or other temperature sensing devices can be mounted in, on or to the fluid coil 10 at, for example, the caps 44. Other monitoring and/or sensing devices can likewise be incorporated in the fluid coil 10.

(31) It will be appreciated that because some embodiments of the apparatus or system does not require the use of pressure relief valves, fluid is kept inside the fluid bundle 12 (and the expansion headers 28) without bleeding to the outside environment, which adds another level of protection to avoid system and surrounding area flooding.

(32) Another embodiment of a system 110 to prevent the rupture of a tube bundle 12 in a fluid coil 10 is illustrated in FIGS. 9-12. Similar to the system of FIGS. 1-8, the system 110 is used to prevent the splitting or rupturing of fluid-carry coils in, for example, HVAC systems, due to the thermal expansion of water in freezing conditions. The system 110 includes one or more expansion headers 112 that are connected to return bends in the coil 10 by header connectors 114. The headers 112 include a compressible member 116, and in an embodiment, a pressurizable, expandable bladder 118. In an embodiment the bladder 118 is a polymeric tube 120, for example an ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber tube 120. The tube 120 is formed from a material that is compatible with the fluid system in which it is used. Other materials will be recognized by those skilled in the art.

(33) The tube 120 is sealed at both ends 122. In an embodiment tube caps 124, such as copper tube caps are positioned in the tube ends 122. A clamp 126 is positioned on each tube end 122 overlying the tube 120 and the tube cap 124 to seal each end 122. The tube caps 124, sealed to the tube 120 define an interior pressurizable volume 128.

(34) In an embodiment, one end 129a of the header 112 is sealed and the other end 129b is closed by a header cap 130. In an embodiment, the header cap 130 is a steel cap, such as a galvanized cap, so as to minimize any galvanic interaction between or among the materials. The header cap 130 encloses the bladder 118, tube caps 124 and clamps 126 in the header 112.

(35) To pressurize the bladder 118, a fitting 132, such as a gas fitting, is positioned through the header cap 130 and its adjacent tube cap 124, and extends into the pressurizable volume 128. The fitting 132 can be mounted to the tube cap 124 by, for example brazing and the like. The fitting 132 can be, for example, a threaded pipe nipple. Other methods to mount the fitting 132 to the tube cap 124 will be recognized by those skilled in the art. A seal 134, such as an O-ring, can be positioned about the fitting 132, between the tube cap 124 and the header cap 130. A fitting 136, such as a push to connect fitting can be mounted to fitting 132 to which tubing 144 can be connected.

(36) It is contemplated that the bladder 118 is pressurized to a predetermined pressure to function to accommodate the expanded volume as the water freezes to ice (or, for example, in the case of steam coils as the steam condenses to water and subsequently freezes to ice). It is anticipated that the bladder 118 will be pressurized or charged to about 120 to about 150 psi. As the water in the coil 10 assembly freezes, it will expand into the expansion header 112 and compress the bladder 118 externally—that is the ice will expand into the space between the header 112 and the bladder 118. The bladder 118 compresses (thus reducing its volume) and the pressure in the bladder 118 increases to accommodate the decrease in the bladder's volume (the differential volume of ice and water) during a freezing event. As the ice thaws, the bladder 118 will return to its original volume by forcing the lower volume water back into the coil assembly 10.

(37) A system 140 to pressurize the bladder 118 is illustrated in FIG. 12. The system 140 includes a source 142 of compressed gas, such as compressed air. In the illustrated system 140, a compressor and storage tank are illustrated. It will be appreciated that other sources 142 of compressed gas can be used and are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

(38) The system 140 includes flow conduits 144, such as tubing, between the source 142 and the fitting 132. In an embodiment, a pressure regulator 146 is positioned downstream of the source 142 and feeds the compressed air to a manifold 148. In an embodiment, a one way valve 150, pressure sensor 152, preferably a wireless pressure sensor, and a pressure relief valve 154 are positioned in line from the manifold 148 to each of the header bladders 118. In this manner, pressure to each header bladder 118 is monitored and relief, for example in the event of over-pressurization, is provided. The various fittings and the like necessary to provide gas-tight connection between the pressurized air source 142 and the bladder inlet, e.g., the fitting 132, will be recognize by those skilled in the art.

(39) A method to prevent the rupture of a tube bundle 12 in a fluid coil 10, which fluid coil 10 has a tube bundle 12 having a series of straight tubing runs 38 and a series of return bends 36 extending between and fluidically connecting ones of the straight tubing runs 38, and an expansion header 28 fluidically connected to at least some of the return bends 36, includes disposing or positioning in the expansion header 28, a polymeric material 46 having an initial shape. The polymeric material 46 is compressible to repeatedly expand and contract between a first volume in which water is present in the tube bundle 12 and a second volume in which the water in the tube bundle 12 undergoes a phase change to ice.

(40) Contraction of the polymeric material 46 absorbs an increase in volume as the water undergoes the phase change to ice so as to prevent stressing and rupture of the tube bundle 12, and, upon a phase change from ice to water, the polymeric material 46 returns to its initial shape.

(41) A suitable polymeric material 46 can be resilient and hydrophobic, and can have a closed cell structure. In methods, the polymeric material 46 has a working temperature in a range of about −40° F. to about 250° F. and a Shore A hardness of about 50 to 90.

(42) In methods, the polymeric material 46 is chemically resistant and non-reactive to chemicals used for corrosion control and microbial control. Suitable polymeric materials 46 include, but are not limited to, an elastomer, a fluorocarbon, a perfluoroelastomer, ethylene-propylene, and tetrafluoroethylene/propylene, and combinations thereof.

(43) In another method, a pressurizable, expandable bladder 118 is positioned in the header 112. The bladder 118 can be a polymeric tube 120, for example an ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber tube 120. The method includes sealing the tube 120 at both ends 122. The tube 120 can be sealed by tube caps 124, such as copper tube caps that are positioned in the tube ends 122 with a clamp 126 positioned on each tube end 122 overlying the tube 120 and the tube cap 124 to seal each end 122. In the method, the tube caps 124 sealed to the tube 120 define an interior pressurizable volume 128.

(44) The method can include sealing one end 129a of the header 112 and closing the other end 129b of the header 112 by a header cap. The header cap can be, for example, a steel cap, such as a galvanized cap, so as to minimize any galvanic interaction between or among the materials. The method includes enclosing the bladder 118, tube caps 124 and clamps 126 in the header 112 with the header cap 130.

(45) The method further includes pressurizing the bladder 118 through, for example, a fitting 132, such as a gas fitting, that is positioned through the header cap 130 and its adjacent tube cap 124, and extends into the pressurizable volume 128. The method can include mounting the fitting 132 to the tube cap 124 by, for example brazing and the like. The fitting 132 can be, for example, a threaded pipe nipple. Other methods to mount the fitting 132 to the tube cap 124 will be recognized by those skilled in the art. Further, the method can include sealing the fitting 132 at, the header cap 130 using a seal 134, such as an O-ring between the tube cap 124 and the header cap 130.

(46) In a method, the bladder 118 is pressurized to a predetermined pressure so that it functions to accommodate the increased volume of ice as the liquid water freezes (or in steam coils, as the steam condenses to water and the water subsequently freezes). It is anticipated that the bladder 118 is pressurized or charged to about 120 to about 150 psi so that as the water, it expands into the expansion header 112 and pressurizes the bladder 118 externally, in the space between the header 112 and the bladder 118. In this method, the bladder 118 compresses and the pressure in the bladder 118 increases as it accommodates the increase in volume of ice during freezing, and as the ice thaws, the bladder 118 returns to its original volume and pressure by forcing the lower volume water back into the coil assembly 10.

(47) The method can include using a system 140 to pressurize the bladder 118 that includes a source of compressed gas 142 and flow conduits 144 such as tubing between the source 142 and the fitting 132. The method includes regulating the pressure to the bladder 118 downstream of the source 142. The method can further include feeding the compressed air to a manifold 148 and, feeding the compressed air from the manifold 148 to the bladder 118 through a series of valves and other components, such as a one way valve 150, a pressure sensor 152, preferably a wireless pressure sensor, and a pressure relief valve 154. In this manner, the system 140 allows for monitoring the pressure to each header bladder 118, and providing relief, for example in the event of over-pressurization. The method may include other fittings and the like necessary to provide gas-tight connection between the pressurized air source 142 and the bladder 118 inlet, e.g., fitting 132.

(48) It will be appreciated that although the presently disclosed apparatus and method to prevent fluid coils from splitting or rupturing due to the thermal expansion of liquid is described based on a water-based system, such a description is presented as an example only, and that the present apparatus and method may be used in a wide variety of fluid and gaseous systems to prevent coils from splitting or rupturing due to thermal expansion. It will be understood that such other fluid and gaseous systems are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

(49) In the present disclosure, the words “a” or “an” are to be taken to include both the singular and the plural. Conversely, any reference to plural items shall, where appropriate, include the singular. All patents and published applications referred to herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety, whether or not specifically done so within the text of this disclosure.

(50) It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any relative directional terms such as sides, upper, lower, top, bottom, rearward, forward and the like are for explanatory purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure.

(51) From the foregoing it will be observed that numerous modifications and variations can be made without departing from the true spirit and scope of the novel concepts of the present disclosure. It is to be understood that no limitation with respect to the specific embodiments illustrated is intended or should be inferred.