(134d) Enhanced Heat Transfer for Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers in the Process Industry – the New Standard

Enhanced heat transfer technologies for shell and tube heat exchangers (STHX) are well established for decades and bring value in many industries such as the air conditioning, refrigeration and heating as well as the hydrocarbon processing and power industry.

The technologies referred to are the well-known low-fin type tube with a varying fin density on the tube outside as well as dual enhanced tubes. The low-fin tube technology is thereby responding and complying with the need to optimize the limited shellside heat transfer for a whole variety of heat transfer functions such as 1-phase liquid and gas as well as boiling and condensing, however restricted to optimize the heat transfer on the shellside only.

This limitation and need for the optimization of the overall heat transfer is addressed by a new generation of dual enhanced tubes with the combination of a low-fin resp. dedicated boiling and condensing structures on the outside and an enhancement structure on the inside of the tube.

In the last two to three decades a large variety of these heat transfer technologies has been established as “new standard” both for brown and greenfield applications together with a fully established industry reference basis. Key features are the application of industry relevant tube materials, compliance with code and industry requirements, establishment of solutions for manufacturing and operational aspects as well as a fully qualified and proven supply chain.

In a few selected EPC projects, the benefits in using superior heat transfer technology for improved CAPEX and OPEX and along plot space reduction, energy saving and CO2 footprint reduction as well as production improvements are shown.