ESTEST

Group
Group

EST Group ACHE (Air Cooled Heat Exchanger)

Pop-A-Plug® Tube Plugging & Pneumatic Tube Testing
APAC Sales Meeting, April 20-21, 2015

1 | December 8, 2023 | Proprietary © 2014 Curtiss-Wright

 Technical Overview
ACHE, Air Cooled Heat Exchangers, are a common alternative to shell and tube heat
exchangers. They are also known as…
• Air Fin cooler
• Coil Cooler
• Dry Cooling Tower
• FinFan® cooler (Hudson Products Corporation
• actually Trademarked this term)

What it does (technically)…..

“An ACHE is used to reject heat from a hot process fluid to the
surrounding atmosphere by using the atmospheric air as a cooling
media”.

Fluid goes in hot, comes out cooler

2 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 ACHE – Various Configurations

Forced Draft

• Utilizes a fan to push or pull air across

the tubes to cool the tube side media
• Usually low pressure but some high
pressure units (>1000 psig / >69 Barg)

Units are elevated above ground or along the tops of pre-assembled racks and can
have horizontal or vertical placement of the tubing bundle

3 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 ACHE – Where the ACHE are used
Petroleum Refining
• Process Cooler / Condensers
• Cooling Tower Fans
• Cooling Water Coolers
• Air Cooler Fans
Power Generation
• Steam Condensers
• Seal/Lube Oil Cooler
• Closed-loop Cooling
Water Coolers
• Air Cooler Fans
4 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright
Oil/Gas Production Petrochemical
• Gas Coolers • Process Coolers
• Gas Compressor Inter / • Cooling Tower Fans
After Coolers • Steam Condensers
• Air Cooler Fans • Air Cooler Fans
Gas Processing Oil Gas Transport
• LNG Plants • Compressor Inter /
• Air Cooler Fans After Cooler
• Amine Re-boilers • Jacket Water Coolers
• Process Coolers • Air Cooler Fans
• Cooling Tower Fans
 ACHE – How Does This Compare to What We Already Do?

• Shell & Tube- Heat Exchanger • Air Cooled Heat Exchanger

• Tubes available when end cap is • Tubes available when Plugs are
removed. removed
• Tube sheet readily accessible • Tube Sheet Recessed 4”-24” behind
plug hole.

5 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 The Problem – Time & Cost to Plug ACHE Tubes
Plugging tubes in the tubesheet of an ACHE is performed through the narrow
opening of the manifold plug sheet and can be time consuming.
Activity:
Typically, conical pins are hammered in and/or
welded in place and the following warnings
are often observed:
“Do not strike too heavily to avoid
damaging the tube sheet boring”
“Expert welding is needed as no NDE
of the weld is possible”

Solution:
EST Group offers certified Pop-A-Plug®
technology with a package of extension tools
needed for working through the narrow
opening of the plug sheet “at depth”

6 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Extension Tools
Consistent installation with Header-Box in Place with Seals tubes without damage to tubesheet
Pop-A-Plug®

“At Depth”

No hammering or welding required.

7 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright
 Component and extension pieces with threaded connections
• Simple, Fast, Effective

8 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 How To Test and Plug Tubes
• Remove threaded plug from the Plug Sheet at both ends of the unit

9 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 How To Test and Plug Tubes

• Based on the tube size and the depth of the Header-box, select and use
the correct size
• G-150 Gun Set
• Seal and Washer Set
• Support Tube Extension

10 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Testing For Leaking Tubes
• Insert seals on G-150 Air Injection and Plugging Guns through the Header-box and into
the respective tube ends
• Operate G-150 guns normally, pressurize tube, watch gauge to identify tube leaks

11 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Testing for Plug Size
• Attach a threaded Go/No-Go Gauge on to the end of a extension rod
• Thread the “No/Go” end first
• Insert the gauge into the tube end and gauge as normal

12 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Gaging Process

13 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Cleaning Tube Prior to Plugging
• Thread the Tube Preparation Brush onto the end of the Extension Rod
• Introduce the brush into the tube end and brush as normal

14 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Brushing Process

15 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Gage Again to Confirm ID and Plug Size
• Re-gauge using the Go/No-Go Gauge

16 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Prepare Ram and Pull Rod Assembly
• Assemble the correct size Channel Head Pull Rod Assembly and Pop-A-Plug®
• Adjust the Stand-off Ring to set the installation depth
• Insert the Pop-A-Plug® through the plug sheet and into the tube end

17 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Plugging Leaking Tubes
• Operate the hydraulic pump until the Pop-A-Plug® “pops”
• Withdraw the Pull Rod and remove the Breakaway stub
• Repeat process for all leaking tubes

18 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Pop-A-Plug Installation Process

19 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Plug Removal Process
•Select the correct size Plug Removal Tool and extension as needed
•Insert the spear through the plug sheet and thread it into the Pop-A-Plug®

20 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Plug Removal Process
• After knocking the pin back through the ring, thread the spear into the ring
• Operate the slide hammer outward to extract the ring

21 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 How to Order EXT Product for ACHE use

GA-NNN-EXT

EXT-A-NN or EXT-B-NN; Use one for the Gauge

REM-AAA-BBB-YY-EXT; To Remove Weld Droop if present

EXT-A-NN or EXT-B-NN; Use one for the Brush

PAP-6600-SIL
BSH-NNN-HT-EXT or BSH-NNN-NY-EXT

CPA-NNN-YY; To Install Plug at Depth

V-NNNN-(Q)-EXT

PRT-NNN + PRPR-001-LL

22 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright

 Pop-A-Plug® Benefits – Summary
• Improves Plant Uptime • Eliminates Corrosion Concerns
• Reliable / Reliability • Matching tube and tube plug materials –
• Lowest Lifecycle Cost eliminates galvanic corrosion & differences in
• Readily available thermal expansion
• Large Inventory • Eliminates Thermal Concerns
• 24/7 Emergency Manufacturing • Matching tube and tube plug materials –
• Outage Jobox / Turnaround Toolbox Programs eliminates differences in thermal coefficients of
• Engineered Solution expansion
• Metal to metal seal - will not degrade like elastomer • Safe
seals
• Safe Installation – tooling, designed to
• 1000 psi / 7000 psi pressure rating – unlike HIT or
minimize operator fatigue
elastomer plugs
• TTT Plugging operation reduces / eliminates
• Helium Leak Tight
•
need to enter confined space, reduces
Controlled, repeatable installation
• Installs without damage to tube, tube joint , exposure
tubesheet of epoxy coatings • Safe Operation
• Acceptable for use in epoxy coated tubes and • Removable when its time to retube
tubesheets • Eliminate Welding
• Product Reputation • QA / Product Certifications
• Broad industry acceptance and adoption • ISO, 10 CFR 50 Ap B, NQA-1, NUPIC, TuV,
• Long term success EPRI, ASME PCC-2, Patented Technology
24 | December 8, 2023 | © Curtiss-Wright
 Want More Information?

EST Group
2701 Township Line Road
Hatfield, PA 19440 USA
T: +1.215.721.1100 • F: +1.215-721.1101
E: est-info@curtisswright.com

www.cw-estgroup.com
25 | December 8, 2023 | Proprietary © Curtiss-Wright