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Quotes - Engineering - SalesCopper Brazed Plate
The Standard Braze Material
In a copper brazed unit, 316 stainless plates are stacked with copper foil between them and taken through a vacuum furnace. The copper melts and wicks into every plate contact point, forming a brazed joint at each one. The result is a monolithic block where every contact point is also a structural bond, which is where the pressure capability comes from.
Where it is used. HVAC heating and cooling coils, hydraulic and lube oil cooling, domestic hot water generation, halocarbon refrigerant evaporators and condensers, and small heat recovery duties throughout industry.
What rules it out. Ammonia attacks copper, so ammonia refrigeration systems require nickel brazing. Certain amines and some water chemistries also argue against copper. Where there is any doubt about the fluid, that is the conversation to have before ordering.
Sizing. Plate count sets capacity within a model family, and connection size and type are selected to suit the pipework. Because the units are compact and frequently stocked, lead times are usually short.
Typical Specification
- Plates: Type 316 stainless
- Braze material: Copper
- Construction: Vacuum brazed monolithic block
- Gaskets: None
- Typical duty: HVAC, oil cooling, domestic hot water, halocarbon refrigerant
- Not suitable for: Ammonia and fluids that attack copper
- Pressure: High; model dependent
- Connections: Threaded, soldered or flanged to suit
- Cleaning: Chemical circulation only
- Availability: Many sizes stocked for rapid shipment
| PRODUCT | CONSTRUCTION | MATERIALS | SUPPLY |
| Copper Brazed Plate | Mueller factory built | 304 / 316 stainless | Authorized representative |
Copper Brazed Plate
Fouling Is the Design Question
A copper brazed unit is entirely reliable on clean duty and unforgiving on dirty duty, because it cannot be opened. Water quality on an open cooling loop is therefore the thing to establish before selecting one.
Where water quality is questionable, a strainer ahead of the unit and a chemical cleaning regime will extend life considerably. Where it is genuinely poor, a gasketed Accu-Therm is the better long-term purchase.
Common FAQs
Ammonia attacks copper, and a copper brazed unit in ammonia service will fail. Ammonia systems require nickel brazing, which is why the two braze materials exist as distinct options.
By circulating a cleaning solution through it, with the chemistry chosen to suit the deposit and to be compatible with copper and stainless. There is no mechanical option, since the unit cannot be opened.
Threaded, soldered and flanged arrangements depending on the model and size. Tell us the pipework you are connecting to and the connection type is selected with the unit.
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