Stacked-plate heat exchanger made of identical corrugated plates

Claim 1

A heat exchanger device formed of a plurality of plates made of relatively thin metallic material, each of said plates being annular and including a central aperture, said plates being stacked so as to provide heat transfer through said plates to and from a series of alternating primary and secondary fluid flow passages formed between alternate stacked plates, said plates being of identical configuration and size, with pairs of said plates being stacked in back-to-back relationship such that one plate is rotated 180° about a diametrical axis relative to other plate, said pairs of plates being secured together to form a construction pair for formation of said stack, said pairs of plates having spaced openings therein aligned when stacked to form inlet and outlet to and from one of said series of flow passages in a direction longitudinal of said stacked plates, each said plate formed with an alternating arrangement about the circumference thereof of patterns of (1) radial corrugations extending between said spaced openings intermediate the radially inner and outer edges of the plate to define complementing channel-forming, generally parallel wave formations on both surfaces of said plate; and (2) waffle-shaped patterns extending between said spaced openings and providing complementing channel-forming, generally parallel wave formations extending both radially and circumferentially of said plate on both surfaces of said plate, with each said plate further including an array of alignment embossments radially disposed adjacent the inner radial edge thereof.