INTRODUCTION TO

HEAT EXCHANGER

S K VERMA
CIPM-GR
CONTENTS

• Introduction
• Classification of HEXs
• Design
• Fluid allocation selection
• Exchanger cleaning and Maintenance aspects
• Best Practices
• Commissioning / Decommissioning
• Inspection
 What is a Heat Exchanger?
• Heat exchanger (unfired) is a device
in which two fluids flow against the opposite sides of a solid boundary
wall which separates them (without intermixing the fluids) while
permitting heat to pass from the hot to the cold fluid.
Use of heat exchangers in refinery
• Preheat Train Exchanger
• Cooler
• Condenser
• Reboiler
• Inter Cooler
• After Cooler
• Waste Heat Steam Generator
• BFW Heater
• Fin Fan Air Cooler
WHAT ARE HEAT EXCHNGERS ?

• Heat exchanging equipment is used for heating or cooling a fluid. Individual heat
transfer equipment is named as per its function.

• Cooler: A cooler cools the process fluid, using water or air, with no change of
phase.

• Chiller: A chiller uses a refrigerant to cool process fluid to a temperature below

that obtainable with water.

• Condenser: A condenser condenses a vapour or mixture of vapours using water

or air.
WHAT ARE HEAT EXCHNGERS ?

• Exchanger: An exchanger performs two functions in that it heats a cold process

fluid by recovering heat from a hot fluid, which it cools. None of the transferred
heat is lost.

• Steam Heater: A steam heater uses steam to heat either water or process fluid.

• Steam Generator/ Waste Heat Boiler: A steam generator produces steam from
water using hot process fluid (that requires cooling) or hot gases produced in
chemical reaction.

• Re-Boiler: A re-boiler uses steam or any hot fluid to heat process fluid
(hydrocarbon) for distillation column.
Heat Exchangers - Standards

1. ASME Section VIII – Pressure Vessels

- Shell thickness, Welding & Testing requirements

2. API 660 Shell & Tube Exchangers for General Refinery Services &
TEMA Standard
(Tubular Exchanger Manufacturer Association)
Class-C General service
Class-B Chemical Process service
Class-R Refinery Service (Rigorous requirements)

- Corrosion Allowances, Pitch, Tube Sheet thickness, Tie Rod diameter

- Exchangers Type, Fabrication Tolerances, operation & maintenance instructions,
Materials specification, Thermal standards, Properties of fluids etc
Heat Exchangers - TEMA
• Performance Guarantee - 12 months after shipping
• Tube cleaning by Steam not permitted
• Gaskets to replace whenever dismantled
• Corrosion allowance – 3mm (1/8”) except tubes
• Standard Tube length – 8,10,12,16 & 20 ft
• Standard Tube dia/thickness –¾, 1, 1¼,1½”, 14,16,18BWG
BWG – Birmingham Wire gauge
• Tube side velocity (max) - 10 ft/sec
• Minimum shell thickness (for shell dia 40-60” – ½”)
• Gaskets – Metal jacketed / Solid metal for floating head
• Tube hole grooving – 1/8” wide, 1/64” depth, 2 Nos.
• Baffle hole - 1/32” (1.25mm) over Tube OD
• Pressure test for 30 minutes Slide 8 of 57
Heat Exchangers - API 660
• To conform requirements of TEMA & ASME Sec VIII
• Gaskets - Double jacketed fibre filled material for
Hydrocarbon
- Spiral wound – Austenitic windings
- provision to prevent over compression

• Pressure Test - 1 Hour

- Austenitic Stainless steel water
shall be potable with chloride
content less than 50 ppm

• Tube wall thickness - For ¾” – 14BWG

(Carbon steel & Low alloy steel)
 Heat Exchanger Tubes

Tube Size : 1. 3/4” x 14 BWG x 20 ft mm (Refinery-1)

(19.05mm OD x 2.11 mm x 6096 mm)
2. 25mm OD x 2.5mm Thick x 6000m
- Smaller Dia. tubes are compact and least expensive
- Given shell Dia. ¾” tube will have 15% more area than 1” tube

Tube Material :
1. Carbon Steel - ASTM A179 upto 250oC
2. Alloy Steel - ASTM A 199 T5 above 250oC
3. Stainless Steel - ASTM A268 Tp 405/410
(above 250oC & Corrosive) A213 Tp 316, 321, 347
4. Brass Tubes - ASTM B111 Water Service
Types of Heat Exchanger:

• Double Pipe type

• Shell and tube type
• Floating head
• Fixed tube sheets
• U-tube
• Breech lock
• Helical
• Air fin coolers
• Plate types
• Spiral exchangers
 Types of Heat Exchanger:
• Removable tube bundle
• Permits thermal expansion
• Tube cleaning possible inside
and outside
• High cost
 Types of Heat Exchanger:

1. Simple construction,
low cost
2. Differential expansion
not possible
3. Outside of tubes
cannot be cleaned
4. Low possibility of
In fixed tube sheets differential thermal expansion to shell to tube fluid
limited extent is taken care by providing bellows. intermixing
 FIXED TUBE SHEET
• A fixed-tubesheet heat exchanger has straight tubes that are secured at both
ends to tube sheets welded to the shell.
• The construction may have removable channel covers (e.g., AEL), bonnet-type
channel covers (e.g., BEM), or integral tube sheets (e.g., NEN).
• The principal advantage of the fixed tube sheet construction is its low cost
because of its simple construction.
• Leakage of the shell side fluid is minimized since there are no flanged joints.
• Disadvantage : Outsides of the tubes cannot be cleaned mechanically. Thus,
its application is limited to clean services on the shell side.