School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, NUST

ME-332 Heat Transfer & HVAC Lab (Spring 2023)

Huzaifa Zain
348419
ME-12(A)

Exp. 9: Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger:

Objectives:
1. To determine the effectiveness of shell and tube heat exchanger in case
of counter flow configuration Learning outcomes:
To calculate the heat rejected by the hot water, heat absorbed by the cold water and heat
loss during the heat transfer process
To calculate the maximum possible heat transfer
To determine the heat exchanger effectiveness
To determine the Log mean temperature difference
To calculate the heat transfer co-efficient of the heat exchanger
Procedure:
Set the valve in counter flow configuration
Check that the heating tank is full of water above the level switch.
Switch on the pump and the heating element.
Set the temperature of hot water tank [ Look for ST-16 temperature sensor display on
control unit, Press ‘MODE’ ,set the required temperature by pressing ∆ and ∇]
Set the flow rate of hot water and cold water
Wait until the steady states conditions are reached. One indication that can be used is that
the temperature of hot water at the inlet of heat exchanger (T1) becomes constant.
Write down temperature and flow measurements on data recording sheet and perform
required calculations.
Repeat the process for other power inputs or temperature of the tank

NOTE: MAKE SURE TO TURN OFF THE HEATER SUPPLY AND PUMP BEFORE
CLOSING THE MAIN POWER SWITCH AFTER PERFORMING THE EXPERIMENT.

Data Recording: (Counter Flow) Reading 1:

Volume flow rate of cold water = 2 LPM = 3.3 x 10-5 m3/s
Volume flow rate of hot water = 1.9 LPM = 3.167 x 10-5 m3/s
Hot Tank Set Temperature = ST-16 = 55 0C
Identifiers Temperature in Celsius
Hot water inlet ST-1 49
Hot water outlet ST-2 40
Cold water inlet ST-3 28
Cold water outlet ST-7 38
 School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, NUST

ME-332 Heat Transfer & HVAC Lab (Spring 2023)

Huzaifa Zain
348419
ME-12(A)

C.W. temperature in 1st ST-4

section (parallel to flow) 33

C.W. temperature in 2nd ST-5

section (parallel to flow) 34

C.W. temperature in 3rd ST-6

section (parallel to flow) 36

Q no 1: Calculate the heat transferred by the cold fluid and heat absorbed by the cold
fluid using formula𝑄̇ = 𝑚̇ 𝑐∆𝑇. The specific heat of the water can be taken 4.186 kJ/kg.
zAs we know that,
Volume flow rate of cold water = 𝑉𝐶 =2 LPM = 3.3 x 10-5 m3/s
Volume flow rate of hot water = 𝑉𝐻 =1.9 LPM = 3.167 x 10-5 m3/s
As,
𝑄̇ = 𝑚̇𝑐𝑝 𝛥𝑇

Where,
𝑚̇ = 𝜌𝑉
For hot water, 𝛥𝑇 = 8°𝐶
For cold water, 𝛥𝑇 = 7°𝐶
So,
𝑄̇𝐻 = 𝑚̇𝑐𝑝 𝛥𝑇 = 1.1905 𝑘𝑊
𝑄̇𝐶 = 𝑚̇𝑐𝑝 𝛥𝑇 = 1.3939 𝑘𝑊

Q no 2: Using values of heat transfer in Q no 1, calculate the heat loss.

𝑄̇𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 = 𝑄̇𝐻 − 𝑄̇𝐶 = −0.2034 𝑘𝑊

Q no 3: Calculate the maximum possible heat transfer in the heat exchanger using
formulae 𝑄̇ = 𝐶𝑚̇𝑖𝑛(𝑇ℎ𝑜𝑡 𝑖𝑛 − 𝑇𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝑖𝑛) where Cmin is the smaller heat capacity rate in heat
exchanger.
𝐶𝐻 = 𝑚̇𝐻 × 𝑐 = 0.1323 𝑘𝐽/𝐾𝑠
𝐶𝐶 = 𝑚̇𝐶 × 𝑐 = 0.1394 𝑘𝐽/𝐾𝑠
Maximum heat transfer rate will be,
𝐶𝑚𝑖𝑛 = 0.1323 𝑘𝐽/𝐾𝑠
𝑄̇𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝐶𝑚𝑖𝑛 (𝑇𝐻𝑖 − 𝑇𝐶𝑜 ) = 2.7783 𝑘𝑊
 School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, NUST

ME-332 Heat Transfer & HVAC Lab (Spring 2023)

Huzaifa Zain
348419
ME-12(A)

Q no 4: Calculate the heat exchanger effectiveness using values in Q no 1 and Q no 3

where
𝑨𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒇𝒆𝒓 𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆( 𝒉𝒐𝒕 𝒇𝒍𝒖𝒊𝒅)𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒎𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒉𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒓
𝜺 =
𝒎𝒂𝒙𝒊𝒎𝒖𝒎 𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒇𝒆𝒓

The actual rate of heat transfer is the lower of the two rates calculated in question 01. This is
because heat losses are negligible in an isolated heat exchanger.
So,
𝑄̇𝑐
1.1905
𝜀= = = 0.4285 = 42.85%
𝑄̇max 2.7783
Q no 5: Calculate the log mean temperature difference of the heat exchanger.
The log mean temperature difference (LMDT) can be calculated using the following equation,
𝛥𝑇𝑖 − 𝛥𝑇𝑜
𝐿𝑀𝑇𝐷 =
𝛥𝑇
ln (𝛥𝑇𝑖 )
𝑜
Where,
𝛥𝑇𝑖 = 11°𝐶
𝛥𝑇𝑜 = 12°𝐶
𝐿𝑀𝐷𝑇 = 11.493°𝐶
Q no 6: The specifications of the heat exchanger are as follows:
No. of stainless steel tubes 21
Exchange length of external tube 500 mm
and other internal stainless tubes

Internal dia of each tube 8 mm

External dia of each tube 10 mm
Thickness of the tube 1 mm
Shell outer diameter 160 mm
Shell internal diameter 148 mm
Shell Thickness 6 mm
Electric heater power 3000 W

Using values calculated in Q no 1, 5 and the specifications, calculate the inner and
outer heat transfer co-efficient of the heat exchanger.
The overall heat transfer coefficient is given as,
𝑄̇
𝑈=
𝐴𝑠 𝐿𝑀𝐷𝑇
 School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, NUST

ME-332 Heat Transfer & HVAC Lab (Spring 2023)

Huzaifa Zain
348419
ME-12(A)

𝑄̇
𝑈𝑜 = = 6.5944 𝑊/𝑚̇2 𝐾
𝐴𝑠𝑜 𝐿𝑀𝐷𝑇
𝑄̇
𝑈𝑖 = = 9.6514 𝑊/𝑚̇2 𝐾
𝐴𝑠𝑖 𝐿𝑀𝐷𝑇

Q no 6: Draw graph showing how temperature varies along the flow direction for cold
and hot water.

Temperature vs Flow Direction

Cold Water Hot Water

60

50
Temperature (C)

40

30

20

10

0
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6
Flow Direction (m)

Q no 7: Compare and contrast your results with those obtained from a parallel flow
configuration and provide a discussion of your findings.

In a parallel flow heat exchanger, the two fluids move in the same direction, resulting in a
smaller temperature difference between them at any point along the length of the heat
exchanger compared to a counterflow heat exchanger where the fluids flow in opposite
directions. This smaller temperature difference in a parallel flow heat exchanger leads to a
lower overall heat transfer coefficient than in a counterflow heat exchanger, indicating that
a parallel flow heat exchanger is less effective in transferring heat from one fluid to the
other. The maximum temperature difference in a parallel flow heat exchanger is at the inlet
and decreases as the fluids pass through the heat exchanger, whereas the temperature
difference in a counterflow heat exchanger remains relatively constant throughout its
length. These calculations provide conclusive evidence of the efficiency gap between
parallel flow and counterflow heat exchangers.
 School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, NUST

ME-332 Heat Transfer & HVAC Lab (Spring 2023)

Huzaifa Zain
348419
ME-12(A)

Discussion:
The purpose of the lab experiment was to gain insight into the operation of shell and tube heat
exchangers. The primary objective was to assess the effectiveness of a counterflow heat
exchanger and measure various parameters, such as heat loss, heat absorbed by cold water, heat
rejected by hot water, overall heat transfer coefficient U for both inner and outer surfaces of
tubes, and heat exchanger effectiveness.

In an ideal scenario, an insulated heat exchanger would not lose any heat to the environment.
However, in this experiment, as evidenced by the calculations in task 02, a negative value
indicating a heat gain was observed. This may be due to the high temperature values recorded or
unstable experimental conditions.
In conclusion, the lab experiment successfully provided an understanding of the workings of shell
and tube heat exchangers. Nonetheless, further inquiry is necessary to establish the cause of the
heat gain observed during the experiment.