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HX- Heat
Xchanger

Essential factors on a plate heat exchanger (PHE)

  • Fluid temperatures,
  • Pressure drops,
  • Overall efficiency,
  • The type of fluids involved,
  • Flow rates, capacity,
  • The materials of construction
  • Corrosiveness of fluids

 

Plate heat exchangers (PHEs) have several components,

  • Plates, Heat plate exchanger plates are commonly made from stainless steel, titanium, or aluminum. Other materials used include tantalum, Inconel, Hastelloy, and Incaloy 825.
  • Gaskets, Plate heat exchanger gaskets are typically made from elastomeric materials like Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR), Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (EPDM), Viton (FKM), and sometimes Neoprene
  • Beams, Plate heat exchanger beams are typically made from stainless steel, most commonly grades 304 or 316, with other options including titanium,
  • Pipe connections

The plates on a plate heat exchanger may appear to have a simple design, but each plate is full of interesting engineering design features.

For example: (Ref for this paraghraph https://savree.com/en/encyclopedia/plate-heat-exchanger-phe)

  • When the plates are compressed together to form a plate stack, the gap between each of the plates is very small, which ensures good thermal contact between the two flowing mediums. The gap between the plates is also known as ‘clearance’.
  • Plates are thin and have a large contact surface area, which gives each plate a high heat transfer rate.
  • Plates are manufactured from a material with high thermal conductivity, which further increases the heat transfer rate.
  • Corrugations on the plate surfaces prevent laminar flow and promote turbulent flow, which increases the heat transfer rate whilst also reducing the likelihood of deposits accumulating upon the plate surfaces.
  • The corrugations also serve to stiffen the plate structure, which allows a thinner plate to be used compared to a plate that has no corrugations. Note that plate corrugations are sometimes referred to as having a ‘herringbone’ pattern.

For almost all brands and models, replacement spare parts are available with a short delivery time.

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