Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

The deposition of any undesired material on heat transfer surfaces is called fouling. Fouling may significantly impact the thermal and mechanical performance of heat exchangers. Fouling is a dynamic phenomenon which changes with time. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton RougeLouisana

Fouling increases the overall thermal resistance and lowers the overall heat transfer coefficient of heat exchangers. Fouling also impedes fluid flow, accelerates corrosion and increases the pressure drop across heat exchangers. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

Different types of fouling mechanisms have been identified. They can occur individually but often occur simultaneously. Descriptions of the most common fouling mechanisms are provided below:

Scaling/Crystallization Fouling:

Scaling is the most common type of fouling and is commonly associated with inverse solubility salts such as calcium carbonate (CaCO3) found in water. Reverse solubility salts become less solute as the temperature increases and thus deposit on the heat exchanger surface. The scale is difficult to remove mechanically and chemical cleaning may be required. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

Particulate/Sedimentation Fouling:

Sedimentation occurs when particles (e.g. dirt, sand or rust) in the solution settle and deposit on the heat transfer surface. Like the scale, these deposits may be difficult to remove mechanically depending on their nature. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

Corrosion Fouling:

Results from a chemical reaction which involves the heat exchanger surface material. Many metals such as copper and aluminum form adherent oxide coatings which serve to passivate the surface and prevent further corrosion. Metal oxides which are corrosion products exhibit quite a low thermal conductivity and even relatively thin coatings of oxides may significantly affect heat exchnger performance. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

Chemical Fouling:

Fouling from chemical reactions in the fluid stream which result in the deposition of material on the heat exchanger surface. This type of fouling is common for chemically sensitive materials when the fluid is heated to temperatures near its decomposition (degradation) temperature. Coking of hydrocarbon material on the heat transfer surface is also a common chemical fouling problem. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

Freezing Fouling:

Occurs when a portion of the hot stream is cooled to near the freezing point of one of its components. An example in refineries is when paraffin solidifies from a cooled petroleum product. Another example is freezing of polymer products on the heat. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

Biological Fouling:

Occurs when biological organisms grow on heat transfer surfaces. It is a common fouling mechanism where untreated water is used as the coolant. Problems range from algae to other microbes such as barnacles and zebra mussels. During seasons when these microbes are said to bloom, colonies several millimeters deep may grow across the surface within hours, impeding circulation near the surface wall and impacting heat transfer. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

It is important to consider fouling in the design of a heat exchanger. There are different methods to provide the added heat transfer area needed to account for the expected fouling and maximize runtime between cleaning. For shell and tube heat exchanger, the common method is to use fouling factors. For other types of heat exchangers, excess heat transfer area is often used. However, fouling is a self-fulfilling prophecy and the selection of fouling factors or excess area must be done carefully. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana

Fouling tendencies depend on the type of heat exchanger and the fluids. During the design stage certain considerations may help minimize fouling experienced in the field:

If possible, allocate the more fouling fluid to the tube side design for a fouling fluid velocity of 5 ft/sec on the tube side and 3 ft/sec on the shell side
Try to keep the fluid velocity constant
Allow for easy access for cleaning
In water service, ensure the tube wall temperature is not too high to create salt deposits or render treatment chemicals ineffective
Do not throttle water flows in the winter time

We constantly underpin our technological leadership with new product developments. This includes special high-performance finned tubes with optimized material and design, enabling clearly more efficient heat exchange. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana. This pays off for you in two ways. The investment cost is reduced and you save in operating costs. Both benefits can be achieved while enjoying high-level product reliability even under extreme conditions. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.

In addition, we offer you a choice you rarely find elsewhere – the choice between aluminum fins and steel fins on the finned tube systems. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana. Both variants have specific benefits. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.

Finned tube bundles with aluminum fins are considerably lighter, are insensitive to soiling and easy to clean. On the other hand, systems using galvanized steel offer a very long service life of up to 30 years, are extremely resistant to mechanical influences such as hailstorms and provide optimum corrosion protection as aluminum. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.

Air coolers are used in fundamentally different and sometimes extremely difficult ambient conditions. This refers to both production processes and climate-related conditions. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana. What is needed are designs that are up to these requirements at any time, while also taking the customers’ wishes into account. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.

From the very beginning, our experts have designed and realized the most varied units for all branches of industry. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.Multi-faceted experience combined with an eye for everything that is feasible produce solutions which integrate perfectly into your industrial production. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.

CONFIGURATIONS

We offer numerous different air cooler versions in order to meet differing requirements of the process and the place of installation. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.

Vertical configuration
Horizontal configuration
Roof-mounted configuration
In-line configuration
Regardless of the selected design, free air feeding and discharge must be ensured. Where space is at a premium, roof-mounted configurations are frequently used.

Finned tubes CW-tube / groovy fin

CW-tube

With the method of numerical flow simulation (CFD) we have e.g. investigated the effects of new turbulators on the fins. The results were validated by wind tunnel measurements. A patent was applied for the new Invention. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.

Product advantages:

Lighter, higher efficiency and more silent than conventional products
High efficiency in heat transfer and flow performance
Up to 25 % less requirement of heat exchanger tubes
Up to 30 % less electrical power consumption of the fans
Reduced investment and operating costs
Reduction of CO2- and Noise Emission

Groovy fin

Product advantages:

New patented high-performance finned tube, pioneering technology
Resists high loads, both thermally and mechanically
Extremely dimensionally stable
Hardly any maintenance is required – maximum reliability
Optimized surface, fewer fans – clearly reduced energy consumption
Less space required, less cabling – less installation effort
Economically very profitable – saves labor, material and costs

The fin strip is subject to tensile stress and inserted into a pre-shaped spiral core tube groove and firmly rolled into the groove in a rolling process using high pressure. The displaced material is then pressed on the fin side. Fouling in heat exchanger Baton Rouge Louisiana.