Lead Performer: Oak Ridge National Laboratory – Oak Ridge, TN
Partners:
-- Eck Industries Inc. – Manitowoc, WI
-- University of Maryland – College Park, Maryland
DOE Total Funding: $1,386,000
Project Term: October 1, 2018 – September 30, 2021
Funding Type: Lab Call
Project Objective
Manufacturing conventional aluminum (Al) microchannel heat exchangers (<2 mm) is expensive because the sizes of the channels and the manufacturing Al parts require slow, costly, energy-intensive multistage heat treatments.
An aluminum-cerium alloy (Al-Ce) invented at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) under DOE’s Critical Materials Institute can have a large impact on the production of Al microchannel heat exchangers. The advantages of the Al-Ce alloy are many:
- Exceptional castability, making it ideal for microchannel components and high-throughput manufacturing
- High-temperature stability (up to 500°C)
- High ductility compatible with cold forming and cold working
- Casting with the alloy can be accomplished using standard aluminum foundry practices and without a protective atmosphere.
- Corrosion resistance
- Low cost, with no requirement for additional post-casting thermal processing as with conventional Al alloys (potential reduction of 30–60% in casting cost compared with conventional)
ORNL has shown structures smaller than 1 mm can be cast from this alloy, making it a perfect candidate for advanced microchannel heat exchangers. This project will leverage this opportunity to develop advance Al-Ce cast heat exchanger. Large-scale production cost of Al-Ce alloy heat exchangers is expected to be $1.50–$1.80/lb.
Project Impact
The state-of-the-art technology is microchannel heat exchangers manufactured from Al via injection molding. This project will develop cast Al-Ce microchannel heat exchanger that enables:
- Reduced microchannel heat exchanger manufacturing cost by eliminating post-thermal treatments and allowing the whole heat exchanger to be cast (including manifolds), thus eliminating joints and minimizing long-term leaks
- Increased operating temperature
- Increased corrosion resistance
- Minimized risk for refrigerant leak by eliminating the joints
Microchannel heat exchangers have the potential to save 0.31 Quad/yr. Additionally, the technology can reduce the microchannel manufacturing cost by 50%.
Contacts
DOE Technology Manager: Antonio Bouza
Lead Performer: Ayyoub Momen, Oak Ridge National Laboratory