Engineering Principles

Heat Transfer

Conducted by: Tariq Saeed Minhas

 Contents
Part--I
Heat Transfer
Mechanism of Heat Transfer
Part--II
Heat Transfer Equipments
Major Heat Transfer Equipments of Fertilizer Industry
Part--III
Heat Exchanger
Construction Details
Heat Exchanger Types
Part--IV
Problems of Heat Exchangers.
 Heat Transfer
The transfer of heat to & from process fluids is an
essential part of chemical industries.
Heat transfer is the science which deals with the rates
of exchange of heat b/w hot & cold bodies called the
source & the receiver.
The science of heat transfer explains not only how heat
energy may be transferred but also predict the rate at
which the exchange will take place under certain
specified conditions.
 Mechanism of Heat Transfer
There are three ways in
which heat may pass from a Hot face Cold
source to a receiver. face
Conduction:
Conduction is the transfer of
dt
heat through fixed material by Temp. of hot dx
body
the transference of the Direction of
momentum of individual atoms heat flow Temp of cold
or molecules without mixing body

Stationary brick wall of the

surface or the metal shell of
boiler. Distanc
e
 The flow of heat per hour is proportional to the change
in temperature through the wall & area of the wall. The
quantity of heat is given by equation.
dt
dQ KA BTU/hr. (1)
dx
dt
the term is called temp. gradient
dx
K is proportionality constt & is peculiar to conductive
heat transfer and is called thermal conductivity. It is
evaluated experimentally.
 Thermal Conductivity of Various Materials at C

Thermal conductivity Liquids:
Material W/m C k Btu/h ft F
Mercury 8.21 4.74
Metals:
Silver (pure) 410 237 Water 0.556 0.327
Copper (pure) 385 223
Aluminum (pure) 202 117 Ammonia 0.540 0.312
Nickel (pure) 93 54
Lubricating oil, SAE 50 0.147 0.085
Iron (pure) 73 42
Carbon steel, 1% C 43 25 Freon 12, CCl2F2 0.073 0.042
Lead (pure) 35 20.3

Chrome-nickel steel (18% Cr, 8% 16.3 9.4 Gases:
Ni)

Nonmetallic Solids: Hydrogen 0.175 0.101
Quarts, parallel to axis 41.6 24
Magnesite 4.15 2.4 Helium 0.141 0.081
Marble 2.08- 1.2-1.7
2.94 Air 0.024 0.0139
Sandstone 1.83 1.06
Glass, window 0.78 0.45 Water vapor (saturated) 0.0206 0.0119
Maple or oak 0.17 0.096
Sawdust 0.059 0.034 Carbon dioxide 0.0146 0.00844
Glass wool 0.038 0.022
 Thermal Conductivity
Thermal conductivity depends upon the material of which
the body is made & upon its temp.
The annex indicates thermal conductivity of various
materials at 0C.
In general, the thermal conductivities of liquids & gases are
very small as compared to solids.
Convection
When heat flows by actual mixing of hot fluid with cold
fluid, the mechanism is called convection.
Suppose a can of liquid is placed over a hot flame. The liquid
at the bottom of the can becomes heated & less dense and
thus rises and transfer its heat by mixing.
 Natural Convection
The transfer of heat from the hot liquid at the bottom of the
can to the remainder is natural or free convection.
Forced convection
If any other agitation occurs produced by stirr, it is called
forced convection.
To express the overall effect of convection, the equation used
is;
Q = hA T

where h = heat transfer coefficient and this equation is called

Newtons Law of cooling.
 Radiation:
Radiation involves the transfer of radiant energy from a source to a
receiver by electromagnetic waves.
When radiation issues from a source to a receiver, part of energy is
absorbed by the receiver and part reflected by it.
Boltzmann established that the rate at which a source gives off heat is
Q = A(T14 T24)
This is known as fourth power law.
is dimensional constant
is called emissivity, like thermal conductivity k or heat transfer coefficient
h. It must be determined experimentally.
Emissivity:
The ratio of actual emissive power to the black body emissive power under
identical conditions is called emissivity.
Part-II
 Heat Transfer Equipments
The most commonly used heat transfer equipment is
Shell & Tube heat exchanger.
Heaters
Heaters are used primarily to heat process fluids and
steam is usually employed for the purpose.
Coolers
Coolers are used to cool process fluids, cooling water is
used as heat sink.
Condensers:
Condensers are coolers whose primary purpose is the
removal of latent instead of sensible heat.
 Furnace:
The purpose of the furnace is to transfer heat from
burners to the tubes. The furnace consists of two
main sections ;
Convection section
In convection section heat is transferred from
burners to the tubes by convection current .
Radiant section
In Radiant Section of the furnace the tubes
are heated by the absorption of heat waves.
 Additional Equipments
Jacketed Vessels
Coils
Atmospheric Cooler
Falling Film Exchanger
Double Pipe Exchanger
Plate & Frame Exchangers
 Jacketed Vessels
Jacketing is often used for vessels needing frequent
cleaning and for glass-lined vessels which are
difficult to equip with internal coils.
The jacket eliminates the need for the coil yet gives
a better overall coefficient than external coils.
However, only a limited heat-transfer area is
available.
The conventional jacket is of simple construction
and is frequently used.
 Coils
Tube coils afford one of the cheapest means of obtaining
heat-transfer surface.
Coils are usually made by rolling lengths of copper, steel, or
alloy tubing into helixes or double helical coils in which the
inlet and exit are conveniently located side by side.
Helical coils of either type are frequently installed in vertical
cylindrical vessels with or without an agitator.
Free space is provided between the coil and the vessel wall
for circulation.
 Atmospheric Cooler
Atmospheric coolers are located in cooling towers beneath
the fill.
Also known as spray coolers, bare-tube coolers, and open or
atmospheric coolers and provide tubular heat-transfer surface
One-third the cost of conventional shell-and-tube equipment.
A typical arrangement in an induced-draft cooling tower is
shown in fig.
Broadest use of atmospheric coolers lies in the cooling of the
jacket water of internal-combustion engines e.g. car radiators
Fig: Atmospheric cooler showing an arrangement for jacket water

cooling.
 Falling Film Exchanger
The falling-film exchanger is usually a conventional 1-1
exchanger

Designed to operate vertically as shown in fig.

Liquid enters the channel at the top at such a rate that the
tubes do not flow full of liquid, but instead, liquid descends
by gravity along the inner walls of the tubes as a thin film.

This produces a much greater linear velocity for a given

weight flow than could be obtained if the tube flowed full.

The vertical tubes could be made to flow full if desired by

feeding the liquid upward or through the use of a loop seal.
Example
Urea Stripper
MP Condenser
LP Condenser

Figure:
 Double Pipe Exchanger
The principal parts are two sets of concentric pipes, two
connecting Tees, and a return head and a return bend.
The inner pipe is supported within the outer pipe by packing
glands, and the fluid enters the inner pipe through a threaded
connection located outside the exchanger section proper.
The Tees have nozzles or screwed connections attached to
them to permit the entry and exit of the annulus fluid which
crosses from one leg to the other through the return head.
The two lengths of inner pipe are connected by a return bend
which is usually exposed and does not provide effective
heat-transfer surface.
 When arranged in two legs as in fig, the unit is a hairpin.

The double pipe exchanger is extremely useful because it can be

assembled in any pipe-fitting shop from standard parts.

It provides inexpensive heat-transfer surface.

 Plate & Frame Exchangers
A series of corrugated alloy material channel plates, bounded by
elastomeric gaskets

Guided by longitudinal carrying bars, then compressed by large-diameter

tightening bolts between two pressure retaining frame plates (cover
plates).

The frame and channel plates have portholes which allow the process
fluids to enter alternating flow passages (the space between two
adjacent-channel plates).

Gaskets around the periphery of the channel plate prevent leakage and
also prevent process fluids from coming in contact with the frame plates.

No inter-fluid leakage is possible in the port area due to a dual-gasket

seal.
 Major Heat Transfer Equipments of Fertilizer Industry
Heat Exchangers
Furnaces / Boilers
Evaporators / Re-boilers
Heat Exchanger
Heat exchanger is an equipment in which heat is exchanged between hot
& cold fluids.
Both fluids undergo temperature variation irrespective flow of stream is
either counter current or co-current or if one or both streams are
isothermal.
The correct MTD is the logarithmic mean temp. difference defined as

LMTD T1m
t1
'

t2" t2' t1"
t1' t2"
In ' "
t2 t1
 LMTD Tm
t 1
'

t1" t2' t2"
t1' t1"
In ' "
t2 t2
Counter Co-current
If the flow pattern is
' Current
not completely t 1 '
t '
counter or co- " t ' 1
t
current, apply a
t 2 2
2

correction factor FT
Temp. Temp.
t 2"
"
by which the LMTD t1 t1"
is multiplied to
obtain appropriate Length of Length of
Exchanger Exchanger
MTD.
 Main Parts of Heat Exchangers
Heat exchangers are manufactured as per TEMA
standards.
Tubes:
Tubes are available in variety of metals including steel,
copper, brass etc.
Tubes are of different wall thick nesses defined by
Birmingham wire gage (BWG).
The sizes of tubes, which are generally available, are
shown in table.
 Tube Pitch
The tube pitch PT is the shortest center-to-center distance
between adjacent tubes. Tubes are laid out on either square
or triangular patterns as shown (a), (b), (c) & (d).

The advantage of square pitch is that the tubes are accessible

for external cleaning & cause lower pressure drop.
 Tube Sheets (plates)
The joint between the tubes and tube sheet is normally made by expanding
the tube by rolling with special tools, as shown in figure.
Tube rolling is a skilled task; the tube must be expanded sufficiently to
ensure a sound leaf-proof joint, but not over thinned, weakening the tube.
The tube holes are normally grooved, Figure (a), to lock the tubes more
firmly in position and to prevent the joint from being loosened by the
differential expansion of the shell and tubes.
To guarantee a leak-proof joint the tubes can be welded to the sheet, Figure
(b). This will add to the cost of the exchanger; not only due to the cost of
welding, but also because a wider tube spacing will be needed.
The tube sheet forms the barrier between the shell and tube fluids.
To prevent any possibility of intermixing due to leakage at the tube sheet
joint, double tube-sheets are used, the space between the sheets is vented;
figure (c).
 Shells

Shells are fabricated from steel pipe with nominal IPS

diameters up to 12 in. The standard wall thickness for shells
is 3/8 in., which is satisfactory for shell-side operating
pressures up to 300 psi.

Greater wall thickness may be obtained for greater pressures.

Shells above 24 in. in diameter are fabricated by rolling steel

plate.
 Shell Types (passes)
The principal shell arrangements are shown in figure. The
letters E, F, G, H, J are those used in the TEMA standards to
designate the various types. The E shell is the most
commonly used arrangement.
Two shell passes (F Shell) are occasionally used where the
shell and tube side temperature differences will be unsuitable
for a single pass.
It is difficult to obtain a satisfactory seal with a shell-side
baffle
The same flow arrangement can be achieved by using two
shells in series.
The divided flow and split-flow arrangements (G and J
shells) are used to reduce the shell-side pressure drop.
Shell side selection depends on the controlling factor in
design either. pressure drop, or heat transfer.
(a) One-pass
shell (E-
shell)

(b) Split flow

(G shell)

(c) Divided flow

(J shell)

(d) Two-pass
shell with
longitudinal
baffle (F
shell)

(e) Double split

 Baffles
The center-to-center distance between baffles is called the baffle pitch or
baffle spacing. The baffle spacing is usually not greater than a distance
equal to the inside diameter of the shell or closer than a distance equal to
one-fifth the inside diameter of the shell. The baffles are held securely by
means of baffle spacers (6) as shown in figure.
Higher heat-transfer coefficients result when a liquid is maintained in a
state of turbulence.
To induce turbulence outside the tubes it is customary to employ baffles.
Baffles cause the liquid to flow considerable turbulence even when a small
quantity of liquid flows through the shell.
Types of Baffles
There are several types of baffles which are employed in heat exchangers,
but by far the most common are segmental baffles as shown in Figure.
Segmental baffles are drilled plates with heights which are generally 75
percent of the inside diameter of the shell. These are known as 25 percent
cut baffles.
Overall Heat-Transfer Coefficient

The general equation for heat transfer across a surface is:

Q = UA Tm

Where

Q = heat transferred per unit time, W,

U = the overall heat transfer coefficient, W/m2 C,

A = heat transfer area, m2,

T m = the mean temperature difference, the temperature driving

force, C.
 The prime objective in the design of an
exchanger is to determine the surface area
required for the specified duty (rate of heat
transfer) using the temperature differences
available.

The overall coefficient is the reciprocal of the

overall resistance to heat transfer, which is
the sum of several individual resistances.

The relationship between the overall

coefficient and the individual coefficients,
which are the reciprocals of the individual
resistances, is given by:
 do
d o In
1 1 1 di do 1 do 1

U o ho hod 2k w d i hid d i hi

where
Uo = the overall coefficient based on the outside area of the tube, W/m 2
C.
ho = outside fluid film coefficient, W/m 2 C,
hi = inside fluid film coefficient, W/m 2 C,
hod = outside dirt coefficient (fouling factor), W/m 2 C,
hid = inside dirt coefficient, W/m2 C,
kw = thermal conductivity of the tube wall material, W/m 2 C,
di = tube inside diameter, m,
do = tube outside diameter, m.
 The magnitude of the individual coefficients will
depend on the nature of the heat transfer process
(conduction, convection, condensation, boiling or
radiation).
On the physical properties of the fluids.
On the fluid flow-rates, and on the physical
arrangement of the heat-transfer surface.
Physical layout of the exchanger cannot be
determined until the area is known.
The design of an exchanger is of necessity a trial
and error procedure.
Typical values of the overall heat-transfer
coefficient for various types of heat exchanger are
given in Table.
 Typical Overall Coefficients
Shell and tube exchangers
Hot fluid Cold fluid U(W/m2 C)
Heat Exchangers
Water Water 800-1500
Organic Solvents Organic Solvents 100-300
Light oils Light oils 100-400
Heavy oils Heavy oils 50-300
Gases Gases 10-50

Coolers
Organic solvents Water 250-750
Light oils Water 350-900
Heavy oils Water 60-300
Gases Water 20-300
Organic solvents Brine 150-500
Water Brine 600-1200
Gases Brine 15-250
 Fouling Factors (Dirt Factors)
Process and service fluids will foul the heat-transfer surfaces
in an exchanger to a greater or lesser extent.
The deposited material will normally have a relatively low
thermal conductivity
It will reduce the overall coefficient.
It is necessary to oversize an exchanger to allow for the
reduction in performance during operation.
The effect of fouling is allowed for in design.
Fouling factors are usually quoted as heat-transfer
resistances, rather than coefficients.
FF are difficult to predict and are usually based on past
experience.
Typical values for the fouling coefficients of common
process and service fluids are given in Table.
 Construction Details
The shell and tube exchanger is most commonly used type of
heat-transfer equipment used in the process industries. The
advantages of this type are;
The configuration gives a large surface area in a small volume.
Good mechanical layout: a good shape for pressure operation.
Use well-established fabrication techniques.
Can be constructed from a wide range of materials.
Easily cleaned.
Well-established design procedures.
A shell and tube exchanger consists of a bundle of tubes
enclosed in a cylindrical shell. The ends of the tubes are
fitted into tube sheets, which separate the shell-side and
tube-side fluids. Baffles are provided in the shell to direct the
fluid flow and support the tubes. The assembly of baffles and
tubes is held together by support rods and spacers, Figure.
 Exchanger types
The standard nomenclature used for shell and tube exchangers is given
below.
The numbers refer to the features shown in figures.
1. Shell 15. Floating head support
2. Shell cover 16. Weir
3. Floating-head cover 17. Split ring
4. Floating-tube plate 18. Tube
5. Clamp ring 19. Tube bundle
6. Fixed-tube sheet (tube plate) 20. Pass partition
7. Channel (End-box or header) 21. Floating-head gland (packed
8. Channel cover gland)
22. Floating-head gland ring.
9. Branch (nozzle) 23. Vent connection
10. Tie rod and spacer 24. Drain connection.
11. Gross baffle or tube-support plate 25. Test connection.
12. Impingement baffle 26. Expansion bellows
13. Longitudinal baffle 27. Lifting ring
14. Support bracket
 The simplest and cheapest type of shell and tube exchanger is the
fixed tube sheet design shown in Figure.

The main disadvantages of this type are that the tube bundle cannot
be removed for cleaning and there is no provision for differential
expansion of the shell and tubes.

Shell and tubes will be at different temperatures, and may be of

different materials.

The differential expansion can be considerable and the use of this

type is limited to temperature differences up to about 80C.

Expansion is made by including an expansion loop in the shell.

Only one end of the tubes is fixed and the bundle can expand
freely.
 The U-tube (U-
bundle) type
shown in
Figure requires
only one tube
sheet and is
cheaper than
the floating-
head types; but
is limited in use
to relatively
clean fluids as
the tubes and
bundle are
difficult to
clean. It is also
more difficult
to replace a
tube in this
type.
 Exchangers with an internal
floating head, are more versatile
than fixed head and U-tube
exchangers.
They are suitable for high-
temperature differentials and, as the
tubes can be rodded from end to end
and the bundle removed, are easier to
clean and can be used for fouling
liquids.
Disadvantage of the pull-through
design, Figure, is that the clearance
between the outermost tubes in the
bundle and the shell must be made
greater than in the fixed and U-tube
designs to accommodate the floating-
head flange, allowing fluid to bypass
the tubes. The clamp ring (split flange
design), figure, is used to reduce the
clearance needed. There will always
be a danger of leakage occurring from
the internal flanges in these floating
head designs.
In the external floating head designs,
Figure, the floating-head joint is
located outside the shell, and the shell
 Furnaces:
The most important commercial applications of radiant heat transfer are
steam generating boilers & furnaces.
Steam Generating Boilers:
Boiler is a closed pressure vessel in which a fluid (water) is heated to
produce steam by direct application of heat resulting from the combustion
of fuel (solid, liquid or gas).
There are tow general types of boilers:
Fire Tube Boilers:
The fire tube boiler has its tube ends exposed to the products of
combustion, so these tubes are rolled and headed over or rolled & welded
to prevent the tube ends from being burnt off by the hot gases going into
the tubes.
Fire tube boilers are used for low capacity services upto 15,000 to 20,000
lb/hr of steam production for domestic industrial and small scale power
generation plants. Fuels employed may be coal, oil or gas.
 Water Tube Boilers:

Water tube boilers as their name implies have water within

their tubes. Combustion of fuel provides radiation to the
boiler tubes & further heat transfer is accomplished by
arranging the flow of hot gases over the tubes to provide
convection nest transfer.

FFC-2 has water tube boiler having capacity of 120 T/hr.

sketch is shown.
 Furnaces:
In Fertilizer
industry every
ammonia plant Flue gases

reforming section
Convection
includes a furnace Section
Nine Heat
Recovery
called primary Coils

reformer.
Primary reformer is
Gaseous fuel Gaseous fuel
gas fired furnace N.G.
Fire Box (side view)
N.G.

which is shown as
 Primary Reformer Furnace comprises of two fire
boxes each having one row of 84 catalyst filled
tubes and 384 side wall burners. Catalyst tubes
are heated with uniform firing in all the side
wall burners arranged in 6 vertical rows on all
four sides of both fire boxes.
Each row of burners contain 16 burners. Side
wall burners heat up the refractory of fire boxes
and in turn heat is radiated to catalyst tubes.
This section is called radiant zone.
Convection section has nine heat recovery coils.
Flue gases of both fire boxes are directed to
convection section and heat recovery is made.
 Evaporators / Re-boilers:
In fertilizer industry at urea plant vacuum evaporators are used to
concentrate urea.
Vacuum in evaporators is created by the use of steam ejectors connected
to condensers, the scheme is shown in figure.
Water under vacuum evaporates at low temperature due to low boiling
temperature thus less energy is required for evaporation.
Re-boilers:
In kettle type re-boilers, boiling takes place on tubes immersed in a pool
of liquid / condensate and there is no circulation of liquid through the
exchanger.
Typical examples of fertilizer industry are low pressure steam re-boilers
at ammonia / urea units.
Kettle type re-boilers have lower heat transfer coefficients than other
types as there is no liquid circulation.
These are not suitable for fouling materials & have high residence time.
 Fouling
The accumulation of unwanted deposits on the
surfaces of heat exchangers is referred as fouling.
The deposits represent a resistance to heat transfer
and therefore reduces the efficiency of the heat
exchanger.
The foulant may be dirt, biological material, corrosion
products or particulate matter.
Fouling can occur as a result of the fluids being
handled.
In industry the common foulants with fluids are ;
Fluids Foulants
CW Mud, dirt, bacterial growth
Air Dust / Sound
Flue gases Refractory dirt.
 Despite the best efforts to reduce / eliminate fouling,
the growth of deposits still occur.
Periodic cleaning of exchangers is done to restore
efficiency.
If deposits are different to remove by mechanical
means, chemical cleaning is done.
Fouling has following demerits ;
Less heat transfer / poor performance
Increased energy consumption
Increased pressure drop
Flow restriction
Less end of run.
 Scaling:
Salts such as calcium sulfate & sodium carbonate have
inverted solubility curves.
Solubility of these substances decreases with increase in
temp. When such a solution is heated or concentrated in an
evaporator, the solubility of solute is at a minimum at tube
wall, where temperature is maximum.
This forms a hard, dense & strongly adhering scale.
Various methods of removing scale are available.
Scale is removed by H.P Jetting machines.
Increasing the velocity of liquid greatly decrease the rate of
scale formation.
 Tube Leakages
One of the common problem of heat exchanger is the tube leakage.
This causes not only bad heat transfer but also intermixing of fluids.
This is rectified by tube plugging.
Tube leakage normally occurs due to pitting / corrosion or incompatible
material used.
Undersize Problem
This means heat exchanger is not fulfilling its duty i.e. not meeting the
process requirements.
This problem is catered interimly by external showering of water & at
later stage by replacement of exchangers.
Bypassing Problem:
This occurs due to separation sheet failure / damage.
In this situation fluid bypassing is experienced
Exchanger does not perform as per process needs.
This problem demands shutdown & repair.