HOW TO CALCULATE THE HEAT DUTY FOR HEAT EXCHANGERS?

Lets first define the term �Heat duty� to understand what understand what exactly
we are calculating. The Heat duty can be defined as the amount of heat needed to
transfer from a hot side to the cold side over a unit of time.

The calculation is very important to all engineers and it�s one of the common ones
that you need to know in your career if you are a process engineer. The equation to
calculate the heat duty is normally written in two ways.

One that can be used for sensible heat transferred, this means that the fluid
undergoes no phase change.
HEAT DUTY (SENSIBLE HEAT � NO PHASE CHANGE)
Q = M * CP * ?T
Where;

Q � is the heat duty or the total heat transferred. Btu/hr or W

M � is the Mass flow rate for the fluid undergoing the temperature change. lb/hr
or kg/s

Cp � is the heat capacity of the fluid undergoing the temperature change. Btu/lb.�F
or J/kg.�K

?T � is the temperature change in fluid normally calculated as the difference

between outlet and inlet temperatures. �F or �C

I have put two different measurement units for each of the variables above, the
first being in English / US Units and the second is in SI Units. There is many
other variations but the above are common and I use all the time. The most
important thing is to make sure your units of measurement is correct and consistent
with the calculations.
HEAT DUTY (LATENT HEAT � PHASE CHANGE)
Q = M * ?
Where;

Q � is the heat duty or the total heat transferred. Btu/hr or kW

M � is the Mass flow rate for the fluid undergoing the temperature change. lb/hr
or kg/s

? � is the latent heat. Btu/lb or kJ/kg

For the hot side this is the Latent heat of Condensation of the vapor that is
changing phase.

For the cold side this is the Latent heat of Vaporization of the liquid that is
changing phase.