TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments described herein relate generally to heat exchangers, and more particularly to transfer tubes for heat exchangers.

BACKGROUND

Heat exchangers, boilers, combustion chambers, water heaters, and other similar devices (generally called heat exchangers or vessels herein) control or alter thermal properties of one or more fluids. In some cases, tubes (also called heat exchanger tubes or HX tubes) disposed within these devices are used to transfer a fluid through a volume of space, thereby altering the thermal properties of the fluid. The temperature of the fluid can increase or decrease, depending on how the heat exchanger is configured.

SUMMARY

In general, in one aspect, the disclosure relates to a transfer tube for a thermal transfer device. The transfer tube can include at least one wall having an inner surface and an outer surface, where the inner surface forms a cavity, where the at least one wall further has a first end and a second end. The first end can be configured to couple to a terminus of a heat exchanger of the thermal transfer device. The second end can be configured to couple to a collector box of the thermal transfer device. At least a portion of the at least one wall can be disposed in a vestibule of the thermal transfer device. The cavity can be configured to receive a first fluid that flows from the first end to the second end. The cavity can further be configured to receive a second fluid that flows from the second end to the first end. At least one wall can be configured to receive the first fluid and the second fluid simultaneously.

In another aspect, the disclosure can generally relate to a thermal transfer device that includes a main chamber and a vestibule disposed adjacent to the main chamber. The main chamber can include a plurality of heat exchanger tubes through which a first fluid flows, where each heat exchanger tube comprises an entrance and an exit. The main chamber can also include a blower assembly that blows a second fluid across the plurality of heat exchanger tubes. The vestibule can include an inducer and a burner assembly coupled to the entrance of the plurality of heat exchanger tubes. The vestibule can also include a collector box that receives the first fluid and removes condensation from the first fluid. The vestibule can further include a first transfer tube having at least one first wall having a first inner surface and a first outer surface, where the first inner surface forms a first cavity, where the at least one first wall further has a first end and a second end. The first end of the first transfer tube can be coupled to the exit of at least one of the plurality of heat exchanger tubes positioned in the main chamber. The second end of the first transfer tube can be coupled to the collector box in the vestibule. The transfer tube can provide the first fluid to the collector box. The transfer tube can transport the condensation from the collector box to a drain proximate to the exit of the at least one of the plurality of heat exchanger tubes.

These and other aspects, objects, features, and embodiments will be apparent from the following description and the appended claims.

