Howmet Aerospace has been granted a patent for an apparatus, material, and method for forming a brazing sheet. The sheet material consists of an aluminum alloy core, a 4XXX aluminum alloy braze liner, and a waterside liner. This material is designed for heat exchanger components in automotive applications, providing high fatigue life and corrosion protection. GlobalData’s report on Howmet Aerospace gives a 360-degree view of the company including its patenting strategy. Buy the report here.
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According to GlobalData’s company profile on Howmet Aerospace, selective laser solidification was a key innovation area identified from patents. Howmet Aerospace's grant share as of June 2023 was 1%. Grant share is based on the ratio of number of grants to total number of patents.
High-strength, corrosion-resistant brazing sheet for heat exchangers
A recently granted patent (Publication Number: US11685973B2) describes a sheet material for use in heat exchangers. The sheet material consists of an aluminum alloy core, a 4XXX aluminum alloy braze liner, and a waterside liner. The core contains specific weight percentages of Si, Fe, Cu, Mn, Mg, Zn, Ti, Zr, Al, and impurities. The braze liner and waterside liner also have specific weight percentages of Si, Fe, Cu, Mn, Mg, Zn, Ti, and Zr.
The patent claims that the addition of Zn in the core forms second phase particles that alter the corrosion potential difference between the core matrix and the second phase particles. These particles can include Cu5Zn2Al, Cu3ZnAl3, or another Al—Cu—Zn/Al—Cu—Mg—Zn phase. The patent provides different variations of the core composition, ranging from 0.1 to 1.2 wt % Si, up to 0.6 wt % Fe, 1.53 to 2.6 wt % Cu, 0.5 to 1.8 wt % Mn, up to 0.6 wt % Mg, 0.05 to 1.0 wt % Zn, up to 0.2 wt % Ti, up to 0.2 wt % Zr, Al, and impurities.
The patent also discloses a heat exchanger comprising at least one tube and at least one fin in heat conductive contact with the tube. The tube is made of the sheet material described in the patent, while the fin is an aluminum alloy with a Zn addition. The Zn in the core of the sheet material reduces the corrosion potential difference between the tube and the fin.
The patent further includes a method for making the sheet material. The method involves casting ingots for the interliner, waterside liner, core, and braze liner, subjecting the ingots to a preheat, rolling the ingots to form stackable laminae, stacking the laminae into a composite, and rolling the composite to form the sheet material. The rolling process can be conducted at different temperatures and can involve cold rolling and annealing steps.
In summary, the granted patent describes a sheet material for heat exchangers with specific compositions for the core, braze liner, and waterside liner. The addition of Zn in the core alters the corrosion potential difference, improving the performance of the heat exchanger. The patent also discloses a heat exchanger design using the sheet material and a method for manufacturing the sheet material.
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GlobalData Patent Analytics tracks bibliographic data, legal events data, point in time patent ownerships, and backward and forward citations from global patenting offices. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
