March 2010
HEATEC BULLETIN
Product news from Heatec Inc., an Astec Industries Company
This power generation facility heats natural gas with a combination Heatec thermal fluid heater and heat exchanger
Choosing a heating system for fuel gas
The choice of a heating system for heating fuel gas often
narrows down to one of two systems:
1. A water bath heater or
2. A combination of a thermal fluid heater and heat
exchanger
A water bath heater typically consists of a shell that con-
tains a fire tube and serpentine heating coil. A burner is
mounted on one end of the fire tube, which doubles back
to an exhaust stack. The shell is filled with a solution of
water-glycol, which is heated by the fire tube. The heated
solution heats the serpentine coil and the product that flows
through it.
A typical thermal fluid heater consists of a shell that con-
tains a helical coil. A burner is mounted on one end of the
shell and fires through the helical coil. The burner heats
the coil directly with its hot gases, which double back to
an exhaust stack. Thermal fluid, (water-glycol) is pumped
5200 Wilson Road, Chattanooga, TN 37410 423-821-5200 800-235-5200 Heatec.com
through the coil and carries the heat to the heating tubes
inside a nearby heat exchanger.
The fuel gas flows through the shell of the heat exchanger
where it is heated by its heating tubes. The thermal fluid
circulates continuously through the heater and heat ex-
changer tubes.
Water bath heaters are usually limited in size, ranging from
about 0.5 to 9 million Btu/hour. But thermal fluid heaters
range from 0.5 million to 70 million Btu/hour. So heating
capacity could be the deciding factor. However, when both
systems offer suitable sizes, it is appropriate to look closely
at the advantages of both systems.
Initially, a water bath heater will usually cost less than
a combination thermal fluid heater and heat exchanger
of comparable heating capacity. The water bath heater is
usually a much simpler heater. It doesn’t need a pump or
a three-way control valve. And it may use either a natural
 EXPANSION CHAMBER

GAS
INLET

HEATER GAS
SHELL OUTLET
EXHAUST
STACK

SERPENTINE
COIL

BURNER WITH FIRE TUBE

BLOWER*

*NOTE: NATURAL DRAFT

BURNERS ARE NON-
MODULATING AND HAVE NO
BLOWER

AQUATEC WATER-BATH HEATER

draft burner or a forced-draft burner. But despite these

advantages a combination thermal fluid heater and heat THERMAL SHELL SIDE
exchanger may be a better choice. FLUID OUT GAS INLET SHELL SIDE
OUTLET FLOW OF GAS OUTLET
PLENUM GAS
BAFFLES
A combination thermal fluid heater and heat exchanger has
many important advantages:

• Higher thermal efficiency

• Lower emissions
• Lower liquid volume
• Faster reaction time
• Better temperature control INLET
PLENUM
TUBE
SHEET
FLOW OF
THERMAL
SHELL TUBE
BUNDLE
• Easier to maintain THERMAL FLUID
FLUID IN
• Longer heater life
HEAT EXCHANGER
• Closed system eliminates frequent refilling

The thermal efficiency of a thermal fluid heater is usu-

ally about 15 percent higher than a water bath heater. The
higher efficiency results in significantly less fuel usage.
The thermal fluid heater has lower emissions because of its
higher thermal efficiency.
The thermal fluid heater system uses less liquid and has
faster fluid velocity than a water bath heater. Consequently
reaction time is faster and provides better temperature con-
trol. And there is less liquid to maintain.
The heating bundle in the heat exchanger used with the
thermal fluid heater is much easier to replace than the coil
inside a water bath heater. It also costs less than the coil in
the water bath heater. The helical coil in the thermal fluid
heater rarely requires maintenance.
Components of the thermal fluid heater and the heat ex-
changer are subjected to somewhat lower temperatures than
the fire tube of a water bath heater. Consequently they will
last longer.
The water bath heater is an open system that is subject to
evaporation. Accordingly it requires routine additions of
water-glycol solution. The thermal fluid system is a closed
system that rarely requires additions of fluid.
We offer both types of systems in order to satisfy customer
preferences.
Actually, the heating systems discussed above are only two
of many types of heating systems that we offer. We provide
heating systems for numerous applications and industries.

© Heatec, Inc, 2010 Publication 3-10-231

H E AT E C , I N C . an Astec Industries Company

5200 WILSON RD • CHATTANOOGA, TN 37410 USA 800.235.5200 • FAX 423.821.7673 • heatec.com