Shell and tube heat exchanger

Shell and tube heat exchanger is a general process equipment for heat exchange operation, which is widely used in chemical industry, petroleum, petrochemical industry, electric power, light industry, metallurgy, atomic energy, shipbuilding, aviation, heating and other industries. It plays an extremely important role especially in petroleum refining and chemical processing.
Shell and tube heat exchanger is the most widely used heat transfer equipment. Its main advantages are large heat transfer area per unit volume, good heat transfer effect and long service life. In addition, because of its simple structure, wide range of materials and large operating flexibility, shell and tube heat exchanger is often used in high-pressure and large-scale equipment.

Classification of shell and tube heat exchanger:

According to the material, it can be divided into carbon steel tube and shell heat exchanger, stainless steel tube and shell heat exchanger and carbon steel & stainless steel mixed tube and shell heat exchanger. According to the form, it can be divided into fixed tubesheet type, floating head type, U-tube type, etc.. According to the structure, it can be divided into single tube pass, double tube pass and multi tube pass. The heat transfer area range is 1~3500m2, which can be customized according to the requirement of users.

Construction principle and characteristics of shell and tube heat exchanger.

Fixed tubesheet heat exchanger.

The so-called fixed tubesheet means that the tubesheets at both ends are connected with the shell, so it has the advantages of simple structure and low cost. However, since the shell side is not easy to repair and clean, the shell side fluid should be relatively clean and not easy to scale. When the temperature difference between the two fluids is large, thermal compensation should be considered.

Structure principle and characteristics of floating head heat exchanger.

The tubesheet at one end of the floating head heat exchanger is fixed with the shell, while the tubesheet at the other end can float freely in the shell. The shell and tube bundle are free for thermal expansion, so when the temperature difference between the two media is large, there will be no thermal stress between the tube bundle and the shell. The floating head end is designed as a detachable structure, so that the tube bundle can be easily inserted or extracted, which provides convenience for maintenance and cleaning. This type of heat exchanger is especially suitable for the case with large temperature difference stress between the shell and the heat exchange tube, and both shell side and tube side are required to be cleaned. This structure of the heat exchanger is more complex, the metal consumption is more, and the cost is higher.

U-tube heat exchanger.

The heat exchange tube of the U-tube heat exchanger is bent into a U-shape, and the two ends of the heat exchange tube are fixed on the same tubesheet, so each heat exchange tube can freely expand and contract, which has nothing to do with other heat exchange tubes and shells. This type of heat exchanger is also simple in structure, light in weight and suitable for high temperature and high pressure applications.

We can choose the most suitable structure of heat exchanger according to the actual engineering requirement of customers.