Shell & Tube Type Heat Exchanger
Shell & Tube Heat Exchangers are one of the most common and versatile type of exchangers used in heat transfer applications. They allow transfer of larger amounts of heat in a more compact construction, than is possible with conventional coil type heat exchangers. Shell and Tube type Heat exchangers find application as heaters, coolers, condensers, vaporizers, reboilers etc.
Glass Shell & Tube Heat Exchanger
They are also versatile in terms of the material of construction (MOC) used for the tubes as well as the shell. Shell & Tube HE may be designed with a wide range of corrosion resistant materials apart from borosilicate glass such as graphite, Silicon Carbide (Hexoloy), Tantalum, Steel, titanium, etc. to name a few.
Due to higher heat transfer area, easy maintenance and repair, and flexibility of design and operation, shell and tube heat exchangers have become very popular and the preferred means of heat transfer. They are also recommended for use in GMP applications.
Multiple pass shell and tube heat exchangers ( up to 4 passes) are also available on request.
Advantages:
- Large Heat Transfer Surfaces
- High Heat Transfer Co-efficients
- Both Shell and Tube Sides can be Corrosion and Diffusion Resistant
- Pressure resistance up to +6 bar G
- Suitable for Pharma GMP Applications with Ultra-Pure Products
- Available across a broad range of heat transfer areas from 0.6m2 to 50m2
- High resistance to corrosion, oxidation, and erosion across the entire operating range
Applications:
Because of the universal design, Shell & Tube Heat Exchangers find application in a lot of heat transfer processes such as:
- Condensation
- Heat Transfer
- Cooling
- Reboiler
And are designed to operate between:
- Temperature: -40oC to +150oC
- Pressure: -1 Bar g to +3.5 Bar g
Maximum allowable temperature difference between media: 70oC. Customized solutions can be offered for process parameters other than these.
Design Features & Benefits:
- Same diameter of tube used for all versions
- Same design of tube sealing fitting used across all versions
- Modular design, making maintenance simple and spare part stocking easy
- Suitable for wide range of heat transfer processes
- Only inert materials i.e. borosilicate glass 3.3, and PTFE coming in contact with product
- Extremely low pressure drop across the equipment
- Smooth internal surfaces, extending the lifecycle time of the product
- Shells and headers can be made of Borosilicate Glass 3.3, Mild steel, stainless steel, MS-PTFE lined, Glass lined, PP-FRP
- Tubes can be made of Borosilicate Glass 3.3, SiC, Graphite, Hastelloy
Performance and Design Data
The Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger can be optimally designed based on operating data from the user. However, an indicative performance data is tabulated below for several typical applications.
| Application | Fluid / Medium | k-Value Kcal/m2hrK | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glass/Glass | SiC | ||
| Liquid/Liquid | Water-Water | 275-475 | 550-1500 |
| Water - Organics | 250-400 | 400-1200 | |
| Water - Heat Transfer Oil | 175-350 | 350-700 | |
| Liquid-Gas | Water-Air | 10-75 | 10-75 |
| Liquid-Vapour | Water-Water | 450-550 | 1200-2500 |
| Water-Organics | 350-500 | 750-1800 |
Construction Details
Partial section view of (Glass/Steel) Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger
- Glass Shell Tube
- Glass Inner Tube
- Glass Spacer Rod
- PTFE Threaded Bushes for guiding spacer rod
- PTFE Baffle
- Stainless Steel Cover
- PTFE Closed Bushes
- PTFE / Viton Envelope Gasket
- PTFE Tube Plate
- PTFE Open Bushes
- PTFE / Envelope Gasket (tube side)
- Stainless Steel Intermediate flange
- PTFE / Envelope Gasket (tube side)
Types of Shell and Tube Glass Heat Exchangers
Type-I: Both Sides Corrosion Resistant
This is the universal and most common design of shell and tube heat exchangers where both shell side and tube side are resistant to corrosion. It finds usage in applications such as condensation in shell side, heat recovery, and cooling in shell or in tubes. With minor modifications, it can also be used as a falling film absorber and falling film evaporator.
The traditional MoC in this case was of Borosilicate Glass headers, Glass tubes and Glass shell. In this case, the maximum permissible pressure was limited and depended on the diameter of the glass shell and the header.
We now also offer Shell and Headers made of PTFE-Lined metal or Glass-Lined Metal, for higher pressure applications, where usage of borosilicate glass is not possible. Ablaze is one of the pioneers as manufacturer of shell and tube heat exchangers of such a large variety of MoCs in India.
This type of Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger can be installed either horizontally or vertically and is easy to maintain and service since all tubes are fitted independently.
Type-II: Shell Side Corrosion Resistant
Type-II Heat Exchangers are very similar to type-I but have metal (mild steel or stainless steel) headers instead of glass headers.
These are used in applications where there is no risk of corrosion at the service / utility side. The process side comes in contact only with the glass shell or PTFE components, and hence can be corrosive. Thus, this design is generally used for condensation and tempering of corrosive liquids.
With metal headers, we can have optional segments / partitions of the same MoC, which allows for multi-channel flow of the service / utility medium through the tubes. This design of 2 or 3 pass Shell and Tube heat exchangers provide more efficient heat transfer for a given heat transfer area.
Type-III: Tube Side Corrosion Resistant
Type-III heat exchangers are very similar to Type-I but have metal (Mild steel or Stainless Steel) shell instead of glass shell.
These are used in applications where there is no risk of corrosion at the shell side. The process side comes in contact only with the glass tubes and glass headers and hence can be corrosive. Thus, this design is generally used for cooling applications where the process fluid is in the tubes and utility is on the shell side.
Type-IV: Shell Side Corrosion Resistant, High Tube Side Pressure
A key factor due to which maximum permissible pressure is limited in Shell and tube heat exchangers is the PTFE tube sheet, which cannot withstand a high pressure since it is made of pure PTFE. In applications where corrosion is not an issue at the utility side, a reinforcing plate can be installed at the header side of the PTFE tube sheet.
This increases the maximum pressure limit up to 6 bar. It is essentially a utility side high pressure modification of Type-II and can be used in similar applications.
Type-V: Tube Side Corrosion Resistant, High Shell Side Pressure
This design of shell and tube heat exchanger again uses the reinforcing metal plate to increase maximum permissible operating pressure. However, in this type, the pressure is increased on the shell side since the plate is installed on the shell side of the PTFE tube sheet, and not the header side.
This is possible only when corrosion is not an issue for the shell side medium. Hence, the shell is also usually made of metal (mild steel or stainless steel). The utility lines are connected to the shell and can withstand a pressure of up to 6 bar.
This type of shell and tube heat exchanger finds application in rapid cooling of a corrosive media at low temperatures, or as falling film evaporator.
Other Variants
- Translucent reinforced protective coating to prevent from accidents from breakage of glass
- Multi-pass headers in mtal for more efficient heat transfer
- Vertical installation possible with minor modifications
- GMP, clean room models available in all types
- Tubes of exotic materials such as Hastelloy, etc. available on request in the same design
- Other process connection sizes can be modified as per application and user requirement
- Tubes of SiC and graphite also available offering higher thermal conductivity
Ablaze glass works | Scientific Glass Equipment Manufacturer
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+91-9820024530
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A/10, RAMESHWARI SOCIETY, NR. SARADR ESTATE, AJWA ROAD, VADODARA - 390019 GUJARAT, INDIA
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How Can We Help
If you need any helps, please feel free to contact us.
+91-9820024530
info@ablazeprocess.com
A/10, RAMESHWARI SOCIETY, NR. SARADR ESTATE, AJWA ROAD, VADODARA – 390019 GUJARAT, INDIA
Download Brochures
Please download our literatures to see specific data of the products and our company.
