Advantages And Limitations Of Heat Exchangers

By Author: Salvatore Andrea
Total Articles: 6261
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There are various types of heat exchangers available in the market. Here, discussed, are the various types of heat exchangers, their benefits and limitations.

The heat exchangers that are built by making use of AEM and BEM come in non-removable bundle and in fixed tube sheets. They are less expensive as compared to the removable bundle heat exchanger. They provide the maximum heat transfer surface per given tube size and shell. It also provides multi-tube-pass arrangements. It also has certain limitations, such as, its shell can only be cleansed by chemical use. No provision can be provided for the differential thermal expansion taking place between the tubes and shell.

The next exchanger is built by making use of packed floating tube sheet and removable bundle. This type has floating ends which gives them permission for differential thermal expansion between the tubes and the shells. The shell side can be cleaned mechanically or by making use of steam. Its bundle can easily be replaced or repaired. It is less expensive ...
... as compared to the floating head type construction. It also has certain limitations, like, its shell side fluids are restricted to non-toxic fluids such as hydraulic oils or tube oils. Its tube side arrangement is restricted to one or two passes and it expand as a group and not individually. Its packing limits its temperature and design pressure.

The next exchanger is made by making use of internal floating head cover and removable bundle. It has various advantages as it allows for differential thermal expansion between the tubes and shell just like the above. The bundle can be easily removed from the shell for repairing or cleaning purposes and there is no need to remove the floating head cover. It also provides the multi-tube-pass provision and it is considered to be excellent for handling flammable or toxic fluids. It does offer various advantages but you need to pay a price for it, it is a bit expensive as compared to the others.