Improved heat exchanger headering arrangement

Claim 1

In a heat exchanger including an array of flattened tube-like heat exchange channel elements, wherein each channel element is bounded by thermally conductive pressure withholding walls, with an entrance opening at one end, an exit opening at the opposite end, and wherein adjacent channel elements in said array are disposed in spaced apart relationship, an improved headering arrangement for the array of heat exchange channel elements comprising: (a) two substantially planar comb-shaped members each having teeth extending from an outer plate segment into the array of heat exchange channel elements from opposite sides at an end section thereof such that the channel elements are in register with corresponding gaps between adjacent teeth of the comb-shaped members and the oppositely extending teeth of respective comb-shaped members are contiguously aligned to form a leak-tight seal to said channel elements; and (b) a header leak-tightly secured to the outer plate segments of the comb-shaped members such that said header and the comb-shaped members together form a tank enclosure for fluid introduced to or withdrawn from the channel elements of said heat exchanger.