Heat Exchanger Report

Prepared by: Mahmoud Mohamed

ID: 141761
ABSTRACT

In this report it is required to run a heat exchanger in a parallel flow and counter flows of cold
water and hot water. The data of the of temperature and flow measurement readings are recorded
for both flows in order to calculate the quantities of heat transfer from hot to cold fluid and heat
losses. The data of the parallel and counter flows are set to be compared followed by representation
of the temperature distribution for both types of flow. The results showed that the parallel flow
was more efficient than the counter flow as heat lost during the counter flow was more than the
heat lost during the parallel flow.
CONTENTS
1 Introduction ...........................................................................................................................................................4
1.1 Theory of heat exchangers ...........................................................................................................................4
1.2 The Heat Exchanger Design Equation .........................................................................................................4
1.3 Log Mean Temperature Difference ..............................................................................................................5
1.4 Types of flow ...............................................................................................................................................5
1.4.1 The Counter flow Heat Exchanger ..........................................................................................................5
1.4.2 Parallel flow in Heat exchanger ...............................................................................................................6
1.5 Types of heat exchangers .............................................................................................................................6
1.5.1 Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger ...............................................................................................................6
1.5.2 Plate Heat Exchanger ...............................................................................................................................7
1.5.3 Regenerative Heat Exchanger ..................................................................................................................7
1.5.4 Adiabatic Wheel Heat Exchanger ............................................................................................................7
2 Procedures.............................................................................................................................................................8
3 Results...................................................................................................................................................................9
3.1 Counter flow calculations ............................................................................................................................9
3.2 Parallel Flow Calculations .........................................................................................................................10
4 Discussion ...........................................................................................................................................................12
4.1 Comparison Table ......................................................................................................................................12
4.2 Comments ..................................................................................................................................................12
4.3 Temperature distribution graphs ................................................................................................................13
5 Conclusion ..........................................................................................................................................................14
6 Sources of error ...................................................................................................................................................15
7 Bibliography .......................................................................................................................................................16
1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 THEORY OF HEAT EXCHANGERS

Heat exchanger theory leads to the heat exchanger design equation that relates the overall heat
transfer coefficient, heat transfer surface area, and log mean temperature difference to the rate of
heat transfer. This heat exchanger design equation is used to find the area needed for heat
exchangers. The heat exchanger design equation can be used to calculate the required heat transfer
surface area for a variety of specified fluids, inlet and outlet temperatures and types and
configurations of heat exchangers, including counter low or parallel flow. A value is needed for
the overall heat transfer coefficient for the given heat exchanger, fluids, and temperatures. Heat
exchanger calculations could be made for the required heat transfer area, or the rate of heat transfer
for a heat exchanger of given area. (What is a Heat Exchanger?, n.d.)

1.2 THE HEAT EXCHANGER DESIGN EQUATION

Heat exchanger theory leads to the basic heat exchanger design equation: Q = U A ΔTlm, where Q
is the rate of heat transfer between the two fluids in the heat exchanger in But/hr,

U is the overall heat transfer coefficient in Btu/hr-ft2-oF,

A is the heat transfer surface area in ft2,
ΔTlm is the log mean temperature difference in oF, calculated from the inlet and outlet
temperatures of both fluids.
For design of heat exchangers, the basic heat exchanger design equation can be used to calculate
the required heat exchanger area for known or estimated values of the other three parameters, Q,
U, and ΔTlm.
1.3 LOG MEAN TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE

The driving force for any heat transfer process

is a temperature difference. For heat
exchangers, there are two fluids involved, with
the temperatures of both changing as they pass
through the heat exchanger, so some type of
average temperature difference is needed. Many heat transfer textbooks
have a derivation showing that the log mean temperature difference is the right average
temperature to use for heat exchanger calculations. That log mean temperature is defined in terms
of the temperature differences as shown in the equation at the right. THin and THout are the inlet and
outlet temperatures of the hot fluid and TCin and TCout are the inlet and outlet temperatures of the
cold fluid. Those four temperatures are shown in the diagram at the left for a straight tube, two
pass shell and tube heat exchanger with the cold fluid as the shell side fluid and the hot fluid as the
tube side fluid.
1.4 TYPES OF FLOW
1.4.1 THE COUNTER FLOW HEAT EXCHANGER
A counter flow heat exchanger has the hot fluid entering at one end of the heat
exchanger flow path and the cold fluid entering at the other end of the flow
path. Counter flow is the most common type of liquid-liquid heat exchanger,
because it is the most efficient. A double pipe heat exchanger is usually
operated as a counter flow heat exchanger, as shown in the diagram at the left.
A picture of a double pipe heat exchanger is shown at the right. The flow
pattern in a shell and tube heat exchanger with a single tube pass will be
approximately counter flow if it is long in comparison with its diameter. Because
of the baffles and the need to distribute the flow of the shell side fluid over the
cross-section of the shell, the flow is not as close to counter flow in a shell and
tube heat exchanger as it is in a double pipe heat exchanger. The bottom diagram
on the left shows approximately counter flow in a straight tube, one tube pass shell,
and tube heat exchanger. (Brogan, 2011)
1.4.2 PARALLEL FLOW IN HEAT EXCHANGER

A double pipe heat exchanger can be operated in parallel flow mode as

shown in the diagram at the left. Similarly a shell and tube heat exchanger
can be operated in approximately parallel flow by having both fluids
enter at one end and exit at the other end. With parallel flow the
temperature difference between the two fluids is large at the entrance
end, but it becomes small at the exit end as the two fluid temperatures
approach each other. The overall measure of heat transfer driving force, the log mean temperature
difference is greater for counter flow, so the heat exchanger surface area requirement will be larger
than for a counter flow heat exchanger with the same inlet and outlet temperatures for the hot and
the cold fluid. (Brogan, 2011)

1.5 TYPES OF HEAT EXCHANGERS

1.5.1 SHELL AND TUBE HEAT EXCHANGER

Shell and tube heat exchangers are comprised of

multiple tubes through which liquid flows. The tubes are
divided into two sets: the first set contains the liquid to
be heated or cooled. The second set contains the liquid
responsible for triggering the heat exchange, and either
removes heat from the first set of tubes by absorbing and
transmitting heat away in essence, cooling the liquid or warms the set by transmitting its own heat
to the liquid inside. When designing this type of exchanger, care must be taken in determining the
correct tube wall thickness as well as tube diameter, to allow optimum heat exchange. In terms of
flow, shell and tube heat exchangers can assume one of the three path patterns. (Types of Heat
Exchangers, n.d.)
1.5.2 PLATE HEAT EXCHANGER

Plate heat exchangers consist of thin plates joined

together, with a small amount of space between each
plate, typically maintained by a small rubber gasket. The
surface area is large, and the corners of each rectangular
plate feature an opening through which fluid can flow
between plates, extracting heat from the plates as it
flows. The fluid channels themselves alternate hot and
cold fluids, meaning that heat exchangers can effectively
cool as well as heat fluid—they are often used in refrigeration applications. Because plate heat
exchangers have such a large surface area, they are more effective than shell and tube heat
exchangers. (Types of Heat Exchangers, n.d.)

1.5.3 REGENERATIVE HEAT EXCHANGER

In a regenerative heat exchanger, the same fluid is passed along both sides of the exchanger, which
can be either a plate heat exchanger or a shell and tube heat exchanger. Because the fluid can get
very hot, the exiting fluid is used to warm the incoming fluid, maintaining a near constant
temperature. A large amount of energy is saved in a regenerative heat exchanger because the
process is cyclical, with almost all relative heat being transferred from the exiting fluid to the
incoming fluid. To maintain a constant temperature, only a little extra energy is need to raise and
lower the overall fluid temperature. (Types of Heat Exchangers, n.d.)

1.5.4 ADIABATIC WHEEL HEAT EXCHANGER

In this type of heat exchanger, an intermediate fluid is used to store heat, which is then transferred
to the opposite side of the exchanger unit. An adiabatic wheel consists of a large wheel with threads
that rotate through the fluids—both hot and cold—to extract or transfer heat. (Types of Heat
Exchangers, n.d.)
2 PROCEDURES

1- Verify that valves are opened and that we have set counter-current flow configuration.
2- Check that the heating tank is full of water, over the level switch.
3- Switch on the pump and the resistance (equipment power supply).
4- Set the temperature of the tank at 60 ºC (ST16).
5- Set the hot water flow at about 3 l/min (SC1) and set cold water flow to reach stationary
operation conditions, keeping the temperature set in the tank constant.
6- Write down temperature and flows measurements on the experimental sheet.
7- Set the valves in the correct position to invert the direction of the cold water flow getting a
parallel flow disposition.
8- Make sure that the temperature is kept constant at 60ºC in the tank and cold and hot water
flows and input temperatures have the same or very similar values to those obtained
counter-current flow.
9- Once the system is stabilized, write down temperature and flow measurements on the
experimental sheet.
10- Calculate the heat transferred by the hot fluid, the heat gained by the cold fluid and heat
losses. You may determine the logarithmic difference of average temperatures and the heat
transfer global coefficient and represent the temperature distribution
3 RESULTS

Counter-current flow Parallel flow

ST16 (°C) 60 60
ST1 (°C) 53.2 52.2
ST2 (°C) 47.3 47.1
ST3 (°C) 45.1 44.8
ST4 (°C) 27.3 24.0
ST5 (°C) 25.6 26.8
ST6 (°C) 23.7 28.6
SC1 (L/min) 3 3
SC2 (L/min) 2.1276 2.1898

3.1 COUNTER FLOW CALCULATIONS

Heat transferred by hot water (qh) = mh.CPh.(Thi−Tho)

mh=𝑝 × 𝑣 = 1000 × 0.00005 = 0.05𝐾𝑔/𝑠 at flow rate 3L/min.

Cph= 4.18𝐾𝐽/𝐾𝑔. °C

Thi−Tho=53.2−45.1=8.1°C

qh=0.05×4.18×8.1= 1.6929KW

Heat absorbed by cold water (qc) = mhoCPh.(Tci−Tco)

mh=𝑝 × 𝑣 = 1000 × 0.000035 = 0.035𝐾𝑔/𝑠 at flow rate 2.1276L/min

Cph= 4.18𝐾𝐽/𝐾𝑔. °C

Tco−Tci=27.3−23.7=3.6°C

qh=0.035×4.18× 3.6 = 0.52668KW

Heat losses (qL) = qh−qc = 1.6929− 0.52668=1.16622 KW

𝛥𝑇1 − 𝛥𝑇2
𝛥𝑇𝑙𝑚 =
𝛥𝑇
𝑙𝑛 𝛥𝑇1
1

𝛥𝑇1 = 𝑇ℎ𝑖 − 𝑇𝑐𝑜 = 53.2 − 27.3 = 25.9°C

𝛥𝑇2 = 𝑇ℎ𝑜 − 𝑇𝑐𝑖 = 45.1 − 23.7 = 21.4°C

𝛥𝑇𝑙𝑚 =23.58°C

𝑞
𝑈. 𝐴 = 𝛥𝑇ℎ
𝑙𝑚

Ai=0.0000503m2

Ui=1427 W/ m2.°C

Ao= 0.0000565 m2

Uo=1270 KW/ m2.°C

A=0.0019m2

Uoverall=37.45 KW/ m2.°C

3.2 PARALLEL FLOW CALCULATIONS

Heat transferred by hot water (qh) = mh.CPh.(Thi−Tho)

mh=𝑝 × 𝑣 = 1000 × 0.00005 = 0.05𝐾𝑔/𝑠 at flow rate 3L/min

Cph= 4.18𝐾𝐽/𝐾𝑔. °C

Thi−Tho=52.2−44.8=7.1°C

qh=0.05×4.18×7.4= 1.5466KW
Heat absorbed by cold water (qc) = mhoCPh.(Tci−Tco)

mh=𝑝 × 𝑣 = 1000 × 0.000036 = 0.036𝐾𝑔/𝑠 at flow rate 2.1898L/min

Cph= 4.18𝐾𝐽/𝐾𝑔. °C

TCo−Tci=28.6−24.0=4.6°C

qh=0.036×4.18× 4.6 = 0.6922KW

Heat losses (qL) = qh−qc = 1.5466− 0.6922=0.8544 KW

𝛥𝑇1 − 𝛥𝑇2
𝛥𝑇𝑙𝑚 =
𝛥𝑇
𝑙𝑛 𝛥𝑇1
1

𝛥𝑇1 = 𝑇ℎ𝑖 − 𝑇𝑐𝑖 = 52.2 − 24.0 = 28.2°C

𝛥𝑇2 = 𝑇ℎ𝑜 − 𝑇𝑐𝑖 = 44.8 − 28.6 = 16.2°C

𝛥𝑇𝑙𝑚 =21.65°C

𝑞
𝑈. 𝐴 = 𝛥𝑇ℎ
𝑙𝑚

Ai=0.0000503m2

Ui=1420KW/ m2.°C

Ao= 0.0000565 m2

Uo=1264KW/ m2.°C

A=0.0019m2 Uoverall=37.6 KW/ m2.°C

4 DISCUSSION

4.1 COMPARISON TABLE

Counter Parallel
Qh 1.6929 1.5466
Qc 0.5266 0.6922
Thi 53.2 52.2
Tho 45.1 44.8
Tci 23.7 24.0
Tco 27.3 28.6
Vh 3 3
Vc 2.1276 2.1898
𝛥𝑇𝑙𝑚 23.58 37.6
Uoverall 37.45 37.6
QL 1.1662 0.8544

4.2 COMMENTS

The results showed that the parallel flow is more efficient in the heat transfer process
than the counter flow as the heat lost during the counter current flow was higher than
the heat lost in the parallel flow. It was supposed that the counter flow to be more
efficient than parallel flow with less heat loss, however, the sources of error in this
experiment was responsible for these illogical results. Also the overall heat transfer
coefficient for the parallel was more than that of the counter. Moreover, the flow
rates of hot and cold water should have been the same as the fluid is the same
substance with the same characteristics except the temperature.
4.3 TEMPERATURE DISTRIBUTION GRAPHS

Counter Flow Temperature Distribution

60
53.2

50 45.1

40

27.3
30 23.7

20

10

0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1

Hot Water Cold Water

Parallel Flow Temprature Distribution

60
52.2

50
44.8

40

28.6
30
24

20

10

0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1

Hot water Cold water

5 CONCLUSION

It was required to investigate the type of flow of the fluid in the heat transfer process which occur
inside a heat exchanger. The experiment was carried out on counter current flow of hot water and
cold water and the data of temperature were obtained then the flow was reversed to be parallel
flow. By calculations of the heat transferred form the hot water and the heat absorbed by the cold
water, amount of heat loss in both types of flow were then calculated to show that the counter flow
experiences more amount of heat loss than the parallel flow. The data should have shown that
counter current flow is more efficient in the heat transfer process than the parallel flow. The
counter flow arrangement allows the largest change in temperature in both fluids so it is considered
as the most efficient flow type.
6 SOURCES OF ERROR

- Flow rate of hot water was more than the cold water which indicates that there is less time
of contact between the two fluids, therefore, less heat transfer and more heat loss
- The pipes were not well-insulated, so more heat loss
- There may be some scales, corrosion in the pipes which could affect the heat transfer
process.
- The water container were not covered, so heat lost before even entering the heat exchanger.
- Sensors’ readings may be not accurate.
- Water could be contaminated by impurities.
7 BIBLIOGRAPHY
Brogan, R. (2011, 2 2). HEAT EXCHANGERS. Retrieved from Thermopedia :
http://www.thermopedia.com/content/832/

Types of Heat Exchangers. (n.d.). Retrieved from Thomas: https://www.thomasnet.com/articles/process-

equipment/heat-exchanger-types

What is a Heat Exchanger? (n.d.). Retrieved from Thermex Heat Exchangers:

http://www.thermex.co.uk/news/blog/160-what-is-a-heat-exchanger