CB-307

Design of Heat Exchangers

by
Dr. Anoop Kumar Gupta

Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering

Indian Institute of Technology Patna
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 Log-mean temperature difference (LMTD)

Natural log of the ratio of the

temperature differences at the two ends
of the heat exchanger.

To  TL GTD  LTD

LMTD  
 To   GTD 
ln   ln  

 L
T  LTD 
GTD = greatest temperature difference
LTD = least temperature difference
Both for co-current and counter-current
flows. No change in specific heats, constant
overall heat transfer coefficient, no heat
losses.

Q  UA ( LMTD )
Q = heat requirement /duty
U = overall heat transfer coefficient
A = surface area 2
Correction factor approach (multi-pass, cross flow)

For heat exchangers other than double-pipe type:

Q  UAF ( LMTD ) Tm  F  ( LMTD)

where F = correction factor (0 < F < 1). For economic exchanger design, F >
0.75
F is a function of two parameters (R, P) and number of shell and tube passes. ,

P = measure of temperature efficiency of a HX

t t T T
P 2 1 , R 1 2 R = shell-side fluid flow rate times shell-side
T1  t1 t2  t1
fluid specific heat; divided by the tube-side
fluid flow rate times the tube-side fluid specific
t = cold fluid temperature
heat
T = hot fluid temperature

Note: For phase change heat exchangers (condensers, reboilers), F = 1

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Correction factor approach

For 1:2 exchanger (Kern, 1950):

 (1  P) 
R 2  1 ln 
 (1  RP)  (For R ≠ 1)
F
 (2  P( R  1  R 2  1)) 
( R  1) ln  
 (2  P( R  1  R  1)) 
2

 2P 
 
 (1  P ) 
F (For R = 1)
 (2  P(2  2)) 
ln  
 (2  P (2  2)) 

• This approach is valid for temperature approach but not for high
temperature cross situations (outer temp. of cold fluid > outer temp. of hot
fluid).

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 Correction factor approach

(one-shell-pass, two-tube-pass heat exchanger)

Taken from (Bowman et al., 1940)

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Correction factor approach

(two-shell-pass, four-tube-pass heat exchanger)

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 Example 1

Hot exhaust gases are used in a finned-tube crossflow heat exchanger

to heat 2.5 kg/s of water (c = 4.18 KJ/kgoC) from 35oC to 85oC. The
gases (c = 1.09 KJ/kgoC) enter at 200oC and leave at 93oC. The overall
heat transfer coefficient is 180 W/m2 oC. Calculate the area of heat
exchanger using LMTD approach.

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Example 1 (contd.)

(single-pass, cross flow heat exchanger with both fluids unmixed)

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Example 2

Water at the rate of 4 kg/s is heated from 40oC to 55oC in tube-side of a

shell-and-tube heat exchanger. On the shell side, one-pass is used with
water as the heating fluid (mass flow rate = 2 kg/s), entering the
exchanger at 95oC. The overall heat transfer coefficient is 1500 W/m2 oC
and the average water velocity in 2-cm-diameter tubes is 0.5 m/s.
Because of space limitations, the tube length must not exceed 3 m.
Calculate the number of tube passes, the no. of tubes per pass, and the
length of the tubes, keeping in mind the design constraints.

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 Overall heat transfer coefficient

Inside (tube-side) film Outside (shell-side) film

Inside (tube-side) dr
fouling Outside (shell-side)
fouling
r

Tube wall

di
do
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Overall heat transfer coefficient

1) Shell-side film coefficient: Due to resistance created by fluid on the

shell-side (outside of tubes)
Q  hS Ao TS

2) Shell-side fouling coefficient: Due to surface deposition of low thermal

conductivity material, it depends on time,
Q  hSF Ao TSF fluid velocity, temperature, etc.
3) Tube wall coefficient: Resistance to heat transfer due to tube wall
2 kL thickness
Q TW
d 
ln  o 
 di 
4) Tube-side fouling coefficient: Resistance to heat transfer due to inside
(tube-side) fouling
Q  hTF Ai TTF
5) Tube-side film coefficient: Thermal resistance due to tube-side
(inside) film
Q  hT Ai TT
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Overall heat transfer coefficient (U)
If ∆T is temperature difference between the bulk fluid temperature of
inside and outside of the tube.
T  TS  TSF  TW  TTF  TT

On comparing with, Q  UAo T

1 1 1 do  do  do 1 do 1
   ln      
U hS hSF 2k  di  di hTF di hT

Overall heat transfer coefficient

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Laminar flow in a concentric annulus (one surface
isothermal and other insulated/adiabatic (Incropera
and Dewitt, 1998)

Di/Do Nu
0.05 17.46
0.1 11.56
0.25 7.37
0.5 5.74
1 4.86

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Calculation of inner and outer heat transfer coefficients

• Laminar pipe-flow (ReD < 2300)

NuD  3.66 (constant wall temperature)

NuD  4.36 (constant heat flux/insulated)

• Turbulent pipe flow (ReD > 10,000):

1. Dittus-Boelter equation:
NuD  0.023Re 4/5
D Pr
n
where n = 0.4 (heating), = 0.3 (cooling)

2. Sieder-Tate equation:
0.14
1/3  b 
NuD  0.023Re 4/5 Pr   (used when difference b/w surface
D

 w  and fluid temp. is large, accounts for
change in viscosity with temperature)

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 Example 3 (counter flow, concentric-tube HX)

Find the length and overall heat transfer coefficient (based on inner dia) for a
counter-flow, concentric tube heat exchanger to use water (inner tube) for
cooling hot engine oil (annulus) from an industrial power station. The mass
flow rate of the oil is 0.2 kg/s, and its inlet temperature is 90oC. Water is
available at 20oC, but is temperature rise is restricted to 12.5oC because of
environmental concerns. The outer tube diameter must be less than 5 cm,
and the inner tube diameter must be greater than 1.5 cm due to constraints
arising from space and piping considerations. The engine oil must be cooled
to a temperature below 50oC. Obtain an acceptable design, if the length of
HX must not exceed 200 m. For oil: cp = 2100 J/kgK, µ = 0.03 kg/sm, k = 0.15
W/mK; for water: cp = 4179 J/kgK, µ = 8.55x10-4 kg/sm, k = 0.613 W/mK.
Assume the thickness of inner tube (high conductivity material) to be small.
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