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The plate type heat exchangers can be easily formed into various shapes as per the
requirement. Thus in the household refrigerators and the deep freezers, where they are
used most commonly, they can be converted into the box shape to form the closed
enclosure, where various food can be kept in the frozen state. The plates can also be
welded together forming the bank of the plate type of evaporators that can be used the
larger evaporators of higher capacities.
Plate types of evaporators provide excellent shelves in the freezers and similar
applications. They can be used as the as the partitions in the freezers, frozen food
display cases, ice cream cabinets, soda fountains and others. Due to various
advantages and flexibility offered by the plate type of evaporators, they are used
extensively.
The shell and tube types of evaporators are used in the large refrigeration and
central air conditioning systems. The evaporators in these systems are commonly
known as the chillers. Depending on the direction of the flow of the refrigerant in the
shell and tube type of chillers, they are classified into two types: dry expansion type and
flooded type of chillers. In dry expansion chillers the refrigerant flows along the tube
side and the fluid to be chilled flows along the shell side. The flow of the refrigerant to
these chillers is controlled by the expansion valve.
3) Finned Evaporators
The finned evaporators are the bare tube type of evaporators covered with the fins.
When the fluid (air or water) to be chilled flows over the bare tube evaporator lots of
cooling effect from the refrigerant goes wasted since there is less surface for the
transfer of heat from the fluid to the refrigerant. The fluid tends to move between the
open spaces of the tubing and does not come in contact with the surface of the coil,
thus the bare tube evaporators are less effective. The fins on the external surface of the
bare tube evaporators increases the contact surface of the of the metallic tubing with
the fluid and increase the heat transfer rate, thus the finned evaporators are more
effective than the bare tube evaporators.
The fins are the external protrusions from the surface of the coil and they extend into
the open space. They help removing the heat from the fluid that otherwise would not
have come in contact with the coil.
For the fins to be effective it is very important that there is very good contact between
the coil and the fins. In some cases the fins are soldered directly to the surface of the
coil and in other cases the fins are just slipped over the surface of the fins and then they
are expanded thus ensuring a close thermal contact between the two. Tough the fins
help increase the heat transfer, rate, adding them beyond certain numbers wont
produce any additional benefits, hence only certain number of fins should be applied on
the external surface of the tube.
The finned evaporators are most commonly used in the air conditioners of almost all
types like window, split, packaged and the central air conditioning systems. In these
systems the finned evaporator is popularly known as the cooling coil. The hot room air
flows over the finned evaporator or the cooling coil, gets chilled and enters the room to
produce the cooling effect. In window a/c the finned evaporators is located behind the
beautifully looking grill. In the wall mounted split unit it located behind the front grill of
the indoor unit.
To further increase the effectiveness of heat transfer from the evaporators, the tubing
are also given internal fins. These fins are made by forming different internal cross
section shapes at the time of the manufacture of the tubing. Some methods of internal
and external fins are shown in the figure below.
Finned Evaporators
In the picture on the left side it is shown how the heat e.g. by means of condensation, is
transfered through the wall to the process liquid to be evapoarated.
No addition of chemicals
by the blower. The air and wastewater are thoroughly mixed in the mixing tube and
passes to the evaporator tank, before getting out through the Mist eliminator and humid
air outlet. Electrical controls limits the operation of feed pump, circulation pump and
blower depends on the levels in the evaporator tank and wastewater tank. Control
system with automatic ON/OFF, safety shut off and switch gears with control panel are
provided with the system.
Applications
Machine Coolants
Rinse waters
Photographic solutions
RO / UF Concentrates
Phosphatizing compounds
Working Principle
The major advantage of MVR is the energy economy. Typical MVR energy requirement
is 0.05 to 0.15 kwh per kg of water evaporated. Water evaporation for a Triple Effect
Evaporator to 120 kcal for a six effect evaporator. As the operating cost of MVR is low,
large flow system favors its application in all sectors of industry and also desalination of
sea and brackish water.
Types of Evaporators
This is intended to provide a brief synopsis of the primary types of evaporators which
are implemented in various industries today. Every evaporator design will have a means
of transferring heat energy through a heat transfer surface as well as a means to
effectively separate the vapors from the residual liquid or solid. Differences in how these
are achieved distinguishes one type of evaporator from another.
Natural Circulation Evaporators (Calendria type)
As their name depicts, these evaporators depend on natural physical forces in lieu of
pumps for their operation. There must be a balance between the two-phase friction and
acceleration losses in the flow loop, and the static head developed by the liquid in the
main body of the evaporator. The heating surface can be horizontal or vertical, and can
be totally immersed or partially submerged, or outside of the evaporator body. Natural
circulation systems offer a moderate range of operation (2:1 turn down) and are not
recommended for services where wide load fluctuations are expected.
Single Pass service passes the feed liquor through the tubes only once, and the twophase mixture is released into the main evaporator body where vapor and liquor are
separated. Since all evaporation is accomplished in a single pass, these units are
especially useful in handling heat-sensitive materials, due to their short residence times.
Recirculating units maintain a pool of liquid within the evaporator. The feed liquor
mixes with the liquid in the pool and passes over the heat-transfer surface. The twophase mixture returning to the evaporator is separated into vapor and liquid. This liquid
mixes with the liquid in the pool. The product is withdrawn from this pool so that all
liquor in it is at maximum concentration.
Since the liquid in the evaporator is recirculated and, thus, repeatedly contacts the heattransfer surface, natural-circulation evaporators are unsuitable for heat-sensitive
materials. Moreover, since the liquor entering the heat-transfer surface is at a higher
concentration than the feed, its density, viscosity and boiling point are high. Accordingly,
heat-transfer coefficients tend to be low. The advantages are that these evaporators can
operate over a wide range of concentrations and loads and are well suited for singleeffect evaporation.
Several types of natural-circulation evaporators:
1. Short-tube vertical evaporators These are often referred to as calandria or
standard evaporators, the latter because of earlier popularity with users. Units
consist of short tubes, 4-6 ft long, and 2-4 in. dia., set between two horizontal
tubesheets that span the evaporator-body diameter. The tube bundle contains a
large circular downcomer that returns concentrated liquor above the top
tubesheet to below the bottom tubesheet for product withdrawal. The driving
force for flow of liquid through the tubes is the difference in density between the
liquid in the downcomer and two-phase mixture in the tubes.
Advantages: these evaporators can be used with scaling liquids, since evaporation
takes place inside the tubes, which are accessible for cleaning. Fairly high heat-transfer
coefficients are obtained with thin liquors (i.e., water or dilute solutions of 1-5 cP). Units
are relatively inexpensive, provided that they are made of carbon steel or cast iron.
Disadvantages: a large area is required since the units are squat. Heat-transfer
coefficients are sensitive to the temperature difference and liquor viscosity, and, due to
large liquid holdup, these evaporators cannot be used with heat-sensitive materials.
Turndown and flexibility are low turndown being <2:1.
Also, such evaporators are unsuitable for crystalline products, unless a propeller is used
to produce forced circulation.
Industrial applications: these short-tube vertical evaporators are suitable for
noncorrosive (e.g., cane sugar), clear and noncrystallizing liquors.
2. Basket-type evaporators These are similar to calandria-type units except
that the tube bundle is removable and the liquor downtake occurs between the
bundle and the shell, instead of in a central downcomer.
Advantages: The heating surface is removable, allowing easy cleaning and
maintenance. Also, due to the construction, differential thermal expansion is not a
problem.
Disadvantages: These are the same as for short-tube evaporators.
Industrial applications: These are the same as for short-tube evaporators. Basket
types can also be used when the liquor may result in scale.
3. Long-tube vertical evaporators The three types of long-tube vertical
evaporators are the most popular evaporators used today. More evaporation is
accomplished in these units than in all other types combined. While they are
natural-circulation evaporators, they are also categorized individually as risingfilm, falling-film, and rising/falling-film types.
Basically, these units consist of a single-pass vertical shell-and-tube heat exchanger
discharging into a relatively small vapor head. Units may be once-through or
recirculating, depending upon the application; the heating surface may be internal or
external to the main body of the evaporator.
Advantages: This is the most economical design, since a large heat-transfer surface
can be packed into a given body; these evaporators occupy little floor space. Heattransfer coefficients are high, and the units are ideal for substantial evaporation duties.
Highly versatile, they are used in various industries. they are especially suited for
foaming or frothing liquors, as the foam is broken due to the liquid/vapor mixture striking
an impingement baffle.
Disadvantages: these vertical units require high headroom. Generally, they are
unsuitable for scaling or salting liquors, and are sensitive to changes in operating
conditions.
Industrial applications: the once-through type is used in pulp-and-paper plants for
concentrating black liquor. Other versions of this evaporator are discussed later.
4. Forced-circulation evaporators
These are made in a variety of arrangements for services where the feed and/or product
liquor has a tendency to salt or scale, and where the viscosities of the solutions are so
high that natural circulation is not feasible. Thermal and flow characteristics of the
process liquor are so poor that use of forced circulation is necessary.
Forced circulation is achieved by various means, such as locating pumps outside of the
evaporator. Forced circulation leads to high tubeside velocities (6-18 ft/s), and hence
higher heat-transfer coefficients and smaller heating surfaces. Positive circulation
renders this unit relatively insensitive to variations in physical properties or lards,
making it suitable for crystallizing solutions or slurries.
Forced-circulation evaporators enjoy the widest variety of applications. The heating
surface may be inside or outside of the evaporator; this is also true for the device that
creates the forced circulation. The tubes can be horizontal or vertical. Boiling can take
place, or be suppressed due to the hydrostatic head maintained above the top
tubesheet. In the latter case, the liquor is superheated and flashes into a liquid-vapor
mixture. The type of vapor head used, ranging from a simple centrifugal separator to a
crystallizing chamber, is selected on the basis of product characteristics.
Advantages: Forced-circulation evaporators are the most versatile of all evaporators.
This is because they do not depend on a natural thermosyphon effect that limits the
heat-transfer coefficient. High heat-transfer coefficients can be achieved for problem
liquors, and hence required surface area is kept to a minimum. The economics are
especially favorable for applications that require the more expensive alloys such as
stainless steels, high-nickel alloys, etc. Also since material is pumped around the unit,
fouling can be controlled well. Operation is not limited by the liquid/vapor ratio, and
turndown can be as low as 5% of capacity.
Forced-circulation evaporators offer the highest operational flexibility, since heat
transfer, vapor-liquid separation and crystallization can take place in separate
components by locating pumps outside of the evaporator or by using propellers as in
propeller calandria units. Forced circulation leads to high tubeside velocities (6-18 ft/ s),
and hence higher heat-transfer coefficients and smaller heating surfaces. Positive
circulation renders this unit relatively insensitive to variations in physical properties or
loads, making it suitable for crystallizing solutions or slurries.
These devices are ideal for crystallizing, and for concentrating thermally degradable
materials and viscous solutions.
Disadvantages: These evaporators are usually less economical than other types, due
to operating and maintenance costs for the pumps. Corrosion-erosion can occur, due to
high circulation velocities. Also, plugging of tubes where liquor enters can be a problem
in salting services where the salt deposits detach and accumulate at the bottom.
Industrial applications: These units are used in producing common salt, caustic soda
and other crystalline products.
5. Rising-film evaporators
The rising-film evaporator is the original version of the long-tube vertical evaporator.
Steam condenses on the outside surfaces of vertical tubes. The liquid inside the tubes
is brought to a boil, with the vapor generated occupying the core of the tube. As the fluid
moves up the tube, more vapor is formed, resulting in a higher central-core velocity that
forces the remaining liquid to the tube wall. This leads to a thinner and more rapidly
moving liquid film. As the film moves more rapidly, heat-transfer coefficients increase
and residence times drop.
Since the vapor and liquid both flow in the same direction, the thinning of the liquid film
is not as pronounced as in a falling-film type of evaporator, and the possibility of tube
dryout is less. This makes the rising-film evaporator particularly suited to services
having mild scaling tendencies.
Advantages: Since feed enters at the bottom, the feed liquor is distributed evenly to all
tubes. Other advantages are those of the long-tube vertical unit, described before.
Disadvantages: Heat transfer is difficult to predict; pressure drop is higher than for
falling-film types. Performance is extremely sensitive to the temperature driving force.
Heat transfer falls off at low temperature differences (less than 25F) or at low
temperatures (about 250F).
The hydrostatic head may create a problem with heat-sensitive products. There is a
tendency to scale. Also, the units are sensitive to changes in loads and feed conditions,
and turndown is limited to 2:1.
Industrial applications: Major uses of rising-film evaporators include concentrating
black liquors in pulp-and-paper mills, and concentrating nitrates, spin-bath liquors,
electrolytic tinning liquors, etc.
6. Falling-film evaporators
Falling-film evaporators evolved as a means to solve the problems associated with the
rising-film types. Specifically, the hydrostatic head necessary for the operation of risingfilm units leads to problems with some heat-sensitive products.
In falling-film evaporators, the feed liquor is introduced at the top tubesheet, and flows
down the tubewall as a thin film. Since the film is moving in the direction of gravity rather
than against it, a thinner and faster-moving film results, yielding higher heat-transfer
coefficients and reduced contact times. There is no static head to affect the temperature
driving force. This allows use of a lower tem-perature difference for units to operate in
the film regime, and hence yields superior performance in handling heat-sensitive
materials.
Flow of vapor and liquid may be either co-current, in which case vapor-liquid separation
takes place at the bottom, or countercurrent (the liquid is withdrawn from the bottom and
the vapor from the top). For co-current flow, the vapor shear-forces thin the liquid film,
and yield higher heat-transfer coefficients. Moreover, since the vapor is in contact with
the hottest liquid at the point of withdrawal, stripping is more efficient.
In countercurrent flow, shear forces increase the liquid-film thickness, and reduce the
heat-transfer coefficient. If the vapor flow rate is high enough, it may lead to flooding of
the tubes, with liquid carried upward beyond the point of injection, resulting in
decreased performance and unstable operation. Countercurrent operation is used
where it is necessary to evaporate a liquid at a low temperature under vacuum
conditions, or where an inert gas (e.g., nitrogen or air) is injected into the tubes at the
bottom of the unit to reduce the partial vapor pressure, and hence boiling point, of the
liquid.
Another phenomenon common to falling-film evaporators is dry-patch formation, which
reduces thermal performance. The dry patches may be caused by a liquid flowrate
insufficient to maintain a continuous liquid film or by the evaporator's not being exactly
vertical.
The major problem with falling-film evaporators is non-uniform distribution of the feed
liquor as a film inside the tubes. The importance of uniform feed distribution cannot be
overemphasized. To maintain a continuous liquid film, the feed liquor must be uniformly
distributed around the periphery of each tube, and the flow to each tube must be
uniform. A variety of devices such as perforated plates, spider distributors with radial
arms, spray nozzles, and weir-type distributors have been developed for feed
distribution. For selecting a distributor, information on merits and limitations of the
various types is scanty.
Advantages: Falling-film evaporators offer all advantages of rising-film units, plus
higher heat-transfer coefficients satisfactory operation at low temperature driving forces
(10-1 25F), and concentration of heat-sensitive and viscous chemical products.
Disadvantages: These are the same as for rising-film types, except that, in addition,
feed distribution is a major problem. However, temperature driving force is not limiting
and a broader range of applications is possible.
Industrial applications: In the fertilizer industry, these evaporators are used to
concentrate urea, phosphoric acid ammonium nitrate, etc. Falling-film evaporators are
also employed for processing food and dairy products, and for desalting seawater.
7. Rising/falling-film evaporators
These evaporators combine the advantage of the ease of feed distribution of the risingfilm with the usual advantages of a falling-film unit. Vapor-liquid separation takes place
at the bottom of the unit; the flow of liquid and vapor is always co-current.
8. Agitated thin-film evaporators
These are essentially large-diameter jacketed tubes, in which the product is vigorously
agitated and continuously removed from the tube wall by scraper blades (or wipers)
mounted on a shaft inside the tube. Thus, the material to be processed is continuously
spread as a thin film on the tubewall by a mechanical agitator. This permits processing
of extremely viscous and heat-sensitive materials, as well as of crystallizing and fouling
products.
Units may be horizontal, vertical or inclined. The heat-transfer tube ranges from 3 to 48
in., with lengths from 2 to 75 ft. The heating medium may be steam, suitable hot oil,
molten salt, or tempered water on the jacket side. The geometry of the unit limits heattransfer surface area available to about 300 ft2 per effect, and process and economic
considerations limit operation to a single effect. However, due to short contact times,
very high temperature driving forces can be used effectively without product
degradation.
Advantages: These devices can process extremely viscous (to 100,000 or even 1
million cP), heat-sensitive or crystallizing liquids, as well as slurries. In some
applications, agitated thin-film evaporators are, in fact, the only evaporators that will
work. Continuous scraping of the tube wall allows processing of severely scaling or
fouling liquids. Applications include services in which liquid loads are so small as to
cause dry-patch formation in falling-film units.
Disadvantages: Agitated thin-film evaporators are the most expensive of all
evaporators. Also, due to the moving parts, operating and maintenance costs can be
higher than for some of the other types. The heat-transfer surface area is limiting, which
may require use of a high-temperature heating medium to achieve higher capacities.
Heat-transfer coefficients are usually low, due to the inherent characteristics of the
materials being processed, and the thicker tube walls (1A-Vz in.) necessary to meet
structural and mechanical requirements.
Industrial applications: Agitated thin-film evaporators are used for concentrating,
fractionating, deodorizing and stripping in a broad variety of industrial applications,
including processing of food and meat, dairy products, pharmaceuticals, polymers (such
as various types of latex resins), and organic and inorganic chemicals.
9. Plate-type evaporators
Employed with foods. Examples: concentration of fruit juices, milk, soup stocks, tea and
coffee extracts, corn syrup, dextrose, etc.
Advantages: Plate-type evaporators have low installation costs. Thus, they are
economical for the more costly materials (e.g., stainless steels, high-nickel alloys,
titanium, etc.). Large Heat-transfer areas can be packed into a smaller volume, and
heat-transfer coefficients are usually higher than for tubular evaporators. Capacity can
be changed by simple addition or removal of plates. Fouling and scaling are less, since
the fluid motion imparts a scouring action on the corrugated plate surface. Headroom is
low.
These evaporators are especially suited to the dairy, brewery and food-processing
industries since there are no dead zones in which undesired bacterial growth could
occur, and frequent and efficient cleaning can be done to meet stringent hygiene
requirements. Maximum protection is provided for product flavor and quality since liquid
holding-volume is low, and exposure to high temperature is short.
Disadvantages: Maximum design conditions are only about 150 psig and 400F, due to
limitations of gasketing materials, which are usually elastomers such as styrenebutadiene rubber, etc. Multiple gaskets make maintenance time-con-suming. The
probability of fluid leakage is higher than for tubular types. However, in food, dairy and
brewery plants, this may not be a factor since spills are usually not hazardous. Gaps
between the plates limit particulates to 0.25-3 mm.
10. Vapor-compression evaporators
Also known as mechanical vapor recompression, thermal recompression or vapor
recompression evaporators, these units have gained widespread acceptance in a
variety of applications including foods, drugs, dairy products, and pulp and paper as well
as for desalting brackish water or seawater. The high cost of energy spurred
development initially and with the continuing increase in the cost of energy, the
economics of using vapor recompression evaporators has become increasingly
favorable, compared with multiple-effect devices.
Such evaporators differ from tubular evaporators mainly in the shape and form of the
heating surface, which consists of an assembly or assemblies of corrugated plates.
These evaporators are available in four configurations: rising/falling-film, falling-film,
forced-circulation with suppressed boiling, and agitated thin-film. For the last type, film
thinning is achieved by a combination of fluid hydrodynamics and plate geometry, rather
than by a mechanical device. The heating surface consists of similar or different types of
plates. The corrugations on the plates and the gaps between them are based on the
particular application. Special proprietary designs such as spiral plates have been
developed for handling slurries and very large evaporative capacities.
In their most elementary and popular form, these units consist of a single-effect
evaporator in which process vapors are compressed to a higher pressure (to increase
the saturation temperature) and are used as a heating medium in the same effect. In
more elaborate arrangements, the unit may consist of multiple effects, with vapor
recompression applied to the first one. The evaporator condensate and intereffect
vapors are used for feed preheating to conserve energy. Typically, a single-effect
evaporator with vapor recompression provides a steam economy of 1.7 (1.7 Ib of vapor
produced/lb of steam used), or approximately that of a double-effect unit.
Vapor recompression is accomplished by mechanical compressors or steam-jet
ejectors, depending on the volume and quality of vapors to be handled, and the
pressure level required in the steam chest. Inherently, water vapor has a high specific
volume of 26.8 ft/lb at 14.7 psia. Thus, the main difficulty in selecting a compressor is
the large volume of vapor to be handled. Compressors generally are quite large and
expensive, and the choice is limited to centrifugal or axial flow machines. This further
sets the requirements for process vapors to be: (a) free of entrained solids as solids
carryover may build up on the rotor blades, leading to compressor malfunction or failure;
and (b) free of impurities that may cause corrosion or otherwise adversely affect the
materials of construction.
Moreover, the inherent limitations of the centrifugal or axial flow machines have to be
reckoned with. The compression ratio must be small. Most large capacity single state
machines handle up to 300,000 actual ft3/min of vapors, with a compression ratio
ranging from 1.2 to 1.5.
Higher discharge pressures can be achieved by resorting to multistage centrifugal or
axial machines. However, multistage compressors in this capacity range tend to be
quite complex and expensive, since special consideration must be given to machine
design, and sealing and lubricating between stages. Maintenance requirements are
more demanding, and total installed costs, as well as operating/ maintenance costs,
may make installation uneconomical.
Compared with centrifugal or axial compressors, thermal recompression using steam-jet
ejectors offers many advantages. These ejectors are simple in construction and have no
moving parts. This allows fabrication from any corrosion-resistant material, and, since
there are no moving parts, units give long service life, without maintenance
requirements. Steam-jet ejectors can handle large volumes of vapor load at low
operating pressures.
The major disadvantage of such ejectors is that they generally operate at maximum
efficiency under only one condition; they do not function well at off-design conditions.
Application is limited to where wide fluctuations in plant loads and/or operating variables
(e.g., temperature, pres. sure and fouling) are not expected. Another drawback is that
steam is needed for operation; it may not be readily available.