Infrastructure, Networks & Equipment
Water-Side Heat Exchanger Companies
Plate, shell-and-tube, and specialty heat-exchanger suppliers for cooling, heating, and energy-recovery duties.
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Heat Exchanger Selection for Water Duty: Plate, Shell-and-Tube, and Corrugated Tube Types
Heat exchangers in water treatment and cooling duty are selected based on fluid characteristics, temperature range, and fouling propensity. Plate heat exchangers (PHE) offer overall heat transfer coefficients (U) of 3,000 to 7,000 W per m2 per K for clean water-to-water duty, compactness (area per unit volume 200 to 700 m2 per m3), and ease of cleaning by disassembly. Gasketed PHE are limited to 200 degrees C and 25 bar; brazed PHE to 225 degrees C and 30 bar for refrigerant duty. Shell-and-tube exchangers (TEMA types B, C, R) are preferred for fouling liquids, two-phase flow, and pressures above 30 bar, with U values of 500 to 2,500 W per m2 per K for water-to-water service.
Fouling factors (TEMA standards) are critical for lifecycle cost: cooling water fouling factor typically 0.0001 to 0.0002 m2 K per W, adding 10 to 30 percent to required heat transfer area. Scale control by chemical dosing (anti-scalant, blowdown control to maintain LSI below 0) or electrochemical treatment reduces fouling. Corrugated tube exchangers (Vicarb, HRS types) achieve self-cleaning turbulence in the annular space at Reynolds numbers above 10,000, suitable for scaling and viscous media. Titanium tubes or plates are specified for seawater duty (chloride above 500 mg per L) or aggressive process streams; AISI 316L is suitable for fresh and low-chloride cooling water.
Sizing parameters for a cooling water application: duty Q (kW), log mean temperature difference LMTD (degrees C), and overall U value determine required area A = Q divided by (U times LMTD). For a 500 kW duty with LMTD of 10 degrees C and U of 4,000 W per m2 per K: A = 500,000 divided by 40,000 = 12.5 m2, achieved by 80 to 100 standard plates. Pressure drop through PHE is typically 30 to 100 kPa; ensure available pump head exceeds exchanger drop plus circuit losses. Capital cost for a 500 kW gasketed PHE: $5,000 to $15,000; shell-and-tube equivalent: $15,000 to $40,000. PHE gasket replacement (every 5 to 10 years): $1,000 to $5,000 per unit.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I use a plate heat exchanger versus shell-and-tube?
Choose plate heat exchanger (PHE) when: fluids are clean or easily cleanable (water, brines, glycol solutions), operating pressure is below 25 bar, temperature cross is required (PHE can achieve 1 to 2 degrees C approach temperature vs 5 to 10 degrees C for shell-and-tube), and compactness or weight saving is a priority. Choose shell-and-tube when: one fluid is fouling (sludge, slurries, fibrous liquids), operating pressure exceeds 25 bar, high-temperature steam (above 200 degrees C) is the heating medium, or when ASME Section VIII certified pressure vessel design is required. Shell-and-tube is also preferred in ATEX hazardous areas where gasket materials are restricted.
What causes heat exchanger fouling and how do I prevent it?
Fouling types and control: (1) Scale (calcium carbonate, calcium sulphate, silica) - control by maintaining Langelier Saturation Index below 0, pH below 8.5, and adding anti-scalant (threshold inhibitor) at 2 to 10 mg per L. (2) Biological fouling (biofilm) - control by maintaining free chlorine at 0.5 to 1.0 mg per L continuously or by biocide slug dosing every 2 to 4 weeks (400 to 600 mg per L chlorine for 4 to 8 hours). (3) Particulate fouling - control by upstream filtration to below 100 microns for PHE. (4) Corrosion fouling - control by material selection (titanium for seawater, 316L for freshwater). Tube-side velocities should be maintained above 1.5 m per s in shell-and-tube to prevent sedimentation.
What materials are heat exchangers made from for water service?
Carbon steel (SA-516 Grade 70) is the least expensive option but corrodes in all but alkaline-controlled cooling water systems and requires coating or cathodic protection for raw water service. 316L stainless steel is standard for potable water and clean process water service (chloride below 200 mg per L); above 200 mg per L chloride, pitting corrosion risk increases. Titanium Grade 2 is specified for seawater, high-chloride brines, and hypochlorite service - corrosion-resistant to all chloride concentrations and hypochlorite up to 10 mg per L free chlorine. Duplex stainless steel (2205) offers intermediate corrosion resistance at lower cost than titanium. Copper alloys (admiralty brass, cupronickel 90-10 or 70-30) are traditional for seawater condensers but banned from potable water systems due to toxicity.
How often do heat exchangers need cleaning?
Cleaning frequency depends on fouling rate, which varies by water chemistry and operating conditions. In controlled cooling tower circuits with good water treatment, PHE cleaning every 12 to 24 months is typical. In hard water areas without anti-scalant dosing, scale can build to significant thickness in 3 to 6 months, requiring more frequent cleaning. Shell-and-tube exchangers with tube-side fouling are cleaned chemically (acidic or alkaline CIP at 2 to 5 percent concentration) or mechanically (tube brushing, hydro-jetting at 200 to 500 bar). PHE are disassembled and plates cleaned manually or by high-pressure water jet. Chemical CIP requires complete flushing afterwards to prevent acid/alkali contamination of the water circuit. Maintain cleaning log records to track fouling trend and optimise chemical dosing programme.
A large food processing plant in the East Midlands operated a once-through cooling system drawing from a chalk borehole with hardness of 450 mg/L as CaCO3. Three shell-and-tube heat exchangers (1.2 MW duty each) were being chemically cleaned every 3 months due to calcium carbonate scaling, at a cost of 18,000 GBP per clean including downtime. The site also had a HSE ACOP L8 Legionella audit outstanding for the cooling system.
Replaced the shell-and-tube units with gasketed plate heat exchangers (316L plates, EPDM gaskets) and installed a water softening system (duplex softener, 200 L/h capacity) upstream of the PHE circuit. Closed-circuit cooling was introduced by adding a cooling tower and dosing system (scale inhibitor at 5 mg/L, biocide at 600 mg/L fortnightly, blowdown control to LSI -0.2). An ACOP L8-compliant water treatment contract was established with monthly Legionella monitoring.
Cleaning frequency reduced from quarterly to every 18 months. Annual cleaning cost reduced from 72,000 GBP to 18,000 GBP (net saving 54,000 GBP per year). PHE compactness freed 4 m2 of plant room space. ACOP L8 Legionella compliance achieved: no positive Legionella results in 2 years of monthly monitoring. Energy consumption of the cooling system reduced by 12 percent through optimised approach temperature.
Questions to Ask Shortlisted Providers
- 1
What are the predicted overall heat transfer coefficient (U) and fouling allowance (Rf) for our specific cooling water chemistry and temperature, and how have these been derived?
Actual U and Rf values depend on your water's hardness, suspended solids, biological activity, and flow velocity through the exchanger. Generic TEMA fouling factors may over or underestimate the actual fouling rate for your water. Requesting a site-specific fouling factor derivation (based on water analysis and comparable reference installations) ensures the exchanger is correctly sized for the actual cleaning interval you plan to achieve.
- 2
What gasket or seal material do you propose, and is it compatible with our water treatment chemicals at maximum dosing concentrations?
PHE gaskets (EPDM, NBR, Viton) fail from chemical attack, thermal degradation, or compression set. Chlorine-based biocides above 1 mg/L continuous attack EPDM and NBR; Viton is required for higher concentrations. Confirm gasket material compatibility with every chemical in your water treatment programme (biocide, scale inhibitor, anti-corrosion) at maximum slug-dosing concentrations, not just continuous dose.
- 3
What is the maximum allowable pressure drop through the exchanger at design flow, and have you modelled the impact on our pump sizing?
PHE pressure drop (typically 30 to 100 kPa at design flow) must be provided to the pump manufacturer for correct selection. Exchangers designed with insufficient plate pass count achieve higher thermal performance but at higher pressure drop, requiring more powerful pumps. Confirm that the pump head available from the existing system (or new pump specification) exceeds the exchanger pressure drop plus all circuit losses with 10 percent margin.
- 4
Do you offer a performance guarantee for fouling rate and thermal performance over a specified service period, and will you provide CIP procedure and cleaning chemical compatibility confirmation?
A guarantee on thermal performance after 12 months of operation (e.g., U-value not below 80 percent of clean condition) aligned to your planned water treatment programme provides assurance that the exchanger is correctly sized and that the water treatment chemistry is compatible. The CIP procedure must specify acid concentration, temperature, contact time, and neutralisation before confirming it is compatible with the exchanger plate and gasket materials.
- 5
What is your ACOP L8 compliance approach for this heat exchanger installation, and do you offer a Legionella risk assessment update as part of the project scope?
Any modification to a cooling water system in a commercial or industrial building requires an update to the Legionella risk assessment under HSE ACOP L8. The heat exchanger supplier who also understands L8 compliance (dead-leg elimination, flow velocity above 0.3 m/s in all passages, temperature monitoring, chemical treatment compatibility) can integrate design and compliance in a single scope, reducing the risk of an L8 non-conformance at the post-installation audit.
What Drives Cost in This Category
For a 500 kW clean-water-to-water duty, gasketed PHE costs 5,000 to 15,000 GBP versus shell-and-tube at 15,000 to 40,000 GBP. PHE's 5 to 10 times higher U value reduces required area by 70 to 80 percent, dramatically reducing material and footprint cost. Shell-and-tube remains cost-competitive at pressures above 25 bar or for two-phase, fouling, or viscous fluids where PHE cannot operate.
Stainless 304 plates are 20 to 30 percent cheaper than 316L but inadequate above 200 mg/L chloride. Titanium plates are 3 to 5 times the cost of 316L and reserved for seawater or chloride above 500 mg/L. Over-specifying titanium for standard cooling tower circuits adds 40,000 to 100,000 GBP per exchanger without performance benefit. Match material grade to actual chloride content and free chlorine concentration.
Gasketed PHE gaskets (EPDM, 500 to 2,000 GBP per set) should be replaced every 5 to 10 years or whenever the exchanger is disassembled for cleaning. Brazed PHE (no gaskets) costs 30 to 50 percent more upfront but eliminates gasket replacement cost. For systems with high-frequency cleaning (quarterly or more), brazed or fully welded PHE is more economical over a 10-year lifecycle.
Installing water softening or anti-scalant dosing upstream of heat exchangers in hard water areas (hardness above 250 mg/L CaCO3) reduces cleaning frequency from quarterly to 12 to 24 months. Water softening plant costs 8,000 to 30,000 GBP installed, with 2 to 5 year payback against cleaning cost savings alone. The secondary benefit (extended gasket and plate life, reduced energy loss through scale insulation) typically brings payback below 2 years.
Key Regulations & Standards
Any heat exchanger forming part of a water system where water is stored or recirculated at 20 to 45 degrees C and where aerosols could be inhaled (cooling towers, evaporative condensers, process cooling circuits) must be included in the building's Legionella risk assessment under ACOP L8. The risk assessment must be conducted by a competent person, reviewed when the system is modified, and reviewed at a minimum every 2 years. Control measures include temperature management, biocide treatment, and inspection schedules.
HSE guidance HSG274 Part 1 provides detailed guidance on the control of Legionella in evaporative cooling systems (cooling towers, evaporative condensers). It specifies: minimum blowdown rates to control TDS and biological load, biocide programmes (oxidising and non-oxidising), monthly Legionella monitoring by culture (7-day ISO 11731 method), and notification to the local authority of new or recommissioned cooling towers under the Notification of Cooling Towers and Evaporative Condensers Regulations 1992.
Shell-and-tube heat exchangers above the PSSR 2000 pressure-volume threshold require a Written Scheme of Examination (WSE) and periodic statutory inspection by a competent person. The WSE specifies the inspection frequency (typically 14 to 26 months for water-service shell-and-tube exchangers) and the inspection methodology. Failure to maintain a WSE and inspection programme is a criminal offence under PSSR 2000. Gasketed PHE at typical water system pressures (below 10 bar) are frequently below the PSSR threshold but must be assessed against it.
Cooling tower blowdown water (high TDS, biocides, corrosion inhibitors) must not be discharged to a watercourse without a Discharge Consent under the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2016. Discharge to foul sewer requires Trade Effluent Consent under the Water Industry Act 1991. Biocide concentrations (quaternary ammonium compounds, isothiazolinone) in blowdown may require dilution or treatment before discharge. Confirm the approved disposal route for blowdown before the water treatment chemistry is selected.
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