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Characteristics of Diffusion-Bonded Heat Exchangers

 

Heatric’s Printed Circuit Heat Exchangers (PCHEs) are highly robust, compact plate-type heat exchangers. Due to the high pressure capabilities and high thermal effectiveness of PCHEs they are capable of operating outside the usual limitations of other plate type exchangers.

The unique construction processes involved in the manufacture of PCHEs means that they are ideally suited to high pressure, high temperature applications. These applications are traditionally serviced by shell and tube heat exchangers but Heatric’s PCHEs provide a much more compact unit with higher integrity.

Characteristics

The table below illustrates the typical characteristics and capabilities of diffusion-bonding. However, the design of every exchanger is bespoke, extremely versatile and dependant on customer specifications. As such, these figures are intended as a guide only.

Unit weight range1 kg to 60 tonnes as a single unit.
Although larger modular assemblies are possible.
Maximum design pressureCurrent maximum design pressure is over 900bar (13,000 psi).
Design temperature rangeCurrently from 76K to 1255K (-320°F to 1,800°F), potentially as low as 2K (-450°F).
Maximum nozzle size1,200 mm NB (48 in NB)
Maximum surface area10,000 m 2  (108,000 ft 2 ) per PCHE
Typical area/unit volume1,300 m 2 /m 3  at 100 bar (400 ft 2 /ft 3  at 1450 psi)
650 m2/m3 at 500 bar (200 ft2/ft3 at 7250 psi)
Minimum temperature approach1°C (typically 3 – 5°C) 2°F (typically 5 – 10°F)
Heat exchanger effectivenessup to 99%
Typical overall heat transfer coefficientsLP gas cooler 500 – 1,000 W/m 2 K (90 – 180 Btu/hrft 2 °F)
HP gas cooler 1,000 – 4,000 W/m2K (180 – 700 Btu/hrft2°F)
Water/water 7,000 – 10,000 W/m2K (1230 – 1750 Btu/hrft2°F)
Plate thickness0.5 mm (1)  to 5.0 mm
Passage width0.5 mm to 5.0 mm (2)
Typical Reynolds number rangeGases: 1,000 – 100,000
Liquids: 10 – 5,000

(1) 0.2 mm for special cases
(2) >10 mm for non-semicircular passages

Small Heatric PCHE

For more information on the characteristics of Heatric’s PCHEs, and to find out how they can help you achieve your project goals, send a message through the enquiry page or contact Heatric directly on:

+44 (0) 1202 627 000

About Heatric

Headquartered in the United Kingdom, Heatric, a division of Meggitt (UK) Limited, design and manufacture bespoke heat transfer solutions for selected energy markets. A world leader in heat exchanger technology, Heatric have produced over 2500 PCHEs for operation in extreme environments across the globe, for both existing and emerging energy markets.

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