ABSTRACT

We have successfully conducted our experiment of Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger. A heat
exchanger is a device that allows heat from a fluid (a liquid or a gas) to pass to a second fluid
(another liquid or gas) without the two fluids having to mix or come into direct contact. In
this experiment, cold water enters the shell at room temperature while hot water enters the
tubes in the opposite direction. We then vary the hot water and cold-water flow rates and
record the inlet and outlet temperatures of both the hot water and cold-water streams at steady
state. The flow of hot and cold water is counter-current flow. The purpose of this experiment
was to analyse and research the performance of a shell and tube heat exchanger, as well as the
total heat transfer coefficient, LMTD. A heat exchanger is a device that is designed to
efficiently transfer or exchange heat from one substance to another. A shell and tube heat
exchanger is one of the most common forms of heat exchangers used in industrial
applications. The fluids in this device flow in a counter-current pattern, with two fluids
flowing against each other to maintain a maximum temperature difference between the hot
and cold streams, allowing for maximal heat transfer. The flow rate of hot fluid was kept
constant at 3L/min in the first experiment; the flow rate of the cold fluid was increased from
one to 1.5 litres per minute. The flow rates of the hot and cold fluids were held constant at
2L/Min and 1L/Min, respectively, in the second experiment, while the temperature of the
controller was adjusted by 10°C from 50°C to 80°C.

1
 INTRODUCTION
Heat exchangers are devices that facilitate the exchange of heat between two fluid that are
different temperatures while keeping them from mixing with each other. There are many
types of heat exchangers which apply different types of hardware and configuration of heat
transfer equipment. There are shell and tube, plate and shell, adiabatic wheel, plate fin, pillow
plate and other. It also has two types of flow arrangement which are parallel and counter
flow.
Heat exchangers are commonly used in practice in a wide range of applications, from heating
and air-conditioning systems in a household, to chemical processing and power production in
large plants. Heat exchangers differ from mixing chambers in that they do not allow the two
fluids involved to mix. Heat transfer in a heat exchanger usually involves convection in each
fluid and conduction through the wall separating the two fluids. In the analysis of heat
exchangers, it is convenient to work with an overall heat transfer coefficient U that accounts
for the contribution of all these effects on heat transfer. The rate of heat transfer between the
two fluids at a location in a heat exchanger depends on the magnitude of the temperature
difference at that location, which varies along the heat exchanger.
For this experiment, the Armfield Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger has been designed
specifically to demonstrate the working principles of industrial heat exchangers. The
apparatus and materials requires only a cold water supply, single phase electrical outlet and a
bench top to enable a series of simple measurements to be made by students. Experiments can
be readily conducted in a short period of time, to accurately show the practical importance of
the temperature profiles, co-current and counter-current flow, energy balances, log mean
temperature difference and heat transfer coefficients. The equipment consists of a concentric
tube exchanger in the form of a 'U' mounted on a support frame. The external surface of the
exchanger is insulated. Three temperature measuring devices are installed in the inside and
outside tubes to measure the fluid temperatures accurately. To minimize losses in the system,
the hot water is fed through the inner pipe, with the cooling water in the outer annulus.
Control valves are incorporated in each of the two streams to regulate the flow. The flow
rates are measured using independent flow meters installed in each line.
The hot water system is totally self-contained. A hot storage tank is equipped with an
immersion type heater and an adjustable temperature controller which can maintain a
temperature to within approximately ± 1°C. Circulation to the heat exchanger is provided by
a pump and hot water returns to the storage tank to be reheated. The cold water required for

2
the exchanger is taken from the laboratory mains supply. A readily identifiable valve
arrangement allows simple changeover between co- and counter-current configurations.
Shell and tube heat exchanger is a device that consists of a shell and a bundle of tubes
mounted inside it. One fluid runs through the tubes, and another fluid flows over the tubes
(through the shell) to transfer heat between the two fluids. These two integral pathways are
usually built out of thermally conductive metals that allow easy heat transfer (steel,
aluminium alloys, etc.). The tubes carry a fluid from their inlet to their outlet (the “tube-side”
flow), while the shell passes a separate fluid over these tubes (the “shell-side” flow). The
number of tubes, known as the tube bundle will dictate how much surface area is exposed to
the shell-side flow, and therefore determines how much heat is transferred. Shell and tube
heat exchangers are a common site throughout the engineering world and are one of the two
most common types of heat exchanger; the other common type being the plate heat
exchanger.

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 THEORY

Shell and tube heat exchangers have a simple design, robust characteristics and relatively low
purchase and maintenance costs. They also have a very high heat transfer rate although they
require more space than a plate heat exchanger of similar thermal exchange capacity. They
are widely distributed in industry, being useful for condensers, turbine coolers, evaporators,
feed water preheating, and much more.
The shell and tube heat exchanger is made up of four major parts:

Front Header—this is where the fluid enters the tube side of the exchanger. It is sometimes
referred to as the Stationary Header.

Rear Header—this is where the tube side fluid leaves the exchanger or where it is returned to
the front header in exchangers with multiple tube side passes.

Tube bundle—this comprises of the tubes, tube sheets, baffles and tie rods etc. to hold the
bundle together.

Shell—this contains the tube bundle. It is a pressure vessel designed to match the fluid
pressure that is flowing through it.

Figure 1: Schematic of a shell and tube heat exchanger

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TYPES OF HEAT EXCHANGER

There are various kinds of heat exchangers, some of which are listed below:

 Shell and tube heat exchanger

 Plate heat exchangers
 Plate and shell heat exchanger
 Adiabatic wheel heat exchanger
 Plate fin heat exchanger
 Pillow plate heat exchanger
 Fluid heat exchangers
 Dynamic scraped surface heat exchanger
 Phase-change heat exchangers
 Direct contact heat exchangers
 Microchannel heat exchangers

SHELL AND TUBE HEAT EXCHANGER

Shell and tube heat exchangers consist of a series of tubes which contain fluid that must
be either heated or cooled. A second fluid runs over the tubes that are being heated or cooled
so that it can either provide the heat or absorb the heat required. A set of tubes is called the
tube bundle and can be made up of several types of tubes: plain, longitudinally finned, etc.
Shell and tube heat exchangers are typically used for high-pressure applications (with
pressures greater than 30 bar and temperatures greater than 260 °C). This is because the shell
and tube heat exchangers are robust due to their shape.
Several thermal design features must be considered when designing the tubes in the shell and
tube heat exchangers: There can be many variations on the shell and tube design. Typically,
the ends of each tube are connected to plenums (sometimes called water boxes) through holes
in tube sheets. The tubes may be straight or bent in the shape of a U, called U-tubes.

5
 Tube diameter: Using a small tube diameter makes the heat exchanger both economical
and compact. However, it is more likely for the heat exchanger to foul up faster and the
small size makes mechanical cleaning of the fouling difficult. To prevail over the fouling
and cleaning problems, larger tube diameters can be used. Thus to determine the tube
diameter, the available space, cost and fouling nature of the fluids must be considered.
 Tube thickness: The thickness of the wall of the tubes is usually determined to ensure:
o There is enough room for corrosion
o That flow-induced vibration has resistance
o Axial strength
o Availability of spare parts
o Hoop strength (to withstand internal tube pressure)
o Buckling strength (to withstand overpressure in the shell)
 Tube length: heat exchangers are usually cheaper when they have a smaller shell
diameter and a long tube length. Thus, typically there is an aim to make the heat
exchanger as long as physically possible whilst not exceeding production capabilities.
However, there are many limitations for this, including space available at the
installation site and the need to ensure tubes are available in lengths that are twice the
required length (so they can be withdrawn and replaced). Also, long, thin tubes are
difficult to take out and replace.
 Tube pitch: when designing the tubes, it is practical to ensure that the tube pitch (i.e.,
the centre-centre distance of adjoining tubes) is not less than 1.25 times the tubes'
outside diameter. A larger tube pitch leads to a larger overall shell diameter, which
leads to a more expensive heat exchanger.
 Tube corrugation: this type of tubes, mainly used for the inner tubes, increases the
turbulence of the fluids and the effect is very important in the heat transfer giving a
better performance.
 Tube Layout: refers to how tubes are positioned within the shell. There are four main
types of tube layout, which are, triangular (30°), rotated triangular (60°), square (90°)
and rotated square (45°). The triangular patterns are employed to give greater heat
transfer as they force the fluid to flow in a more turbulent fashion around the piping.
Square patterns are employed where high fouling is experienced and cleaning is more
regular.

6
  Baffle Design: baffles are used in shell and tube heat exchangers to direct fluid across
the tube bundle. They run perpendicularly to the shell and hold the bundle, preventing
the tubes from sagging over a long length. They can also prevent the tubes from
vibrating. The most common type of baffle is the segmental baffle. The semi-circular
segmental baffles are oriented at 180 degrees to the adjacent baffles forcing the fluid
to flow upward and downwards between the tube bundle. Baffle spacing is of large
thermodynamic concern when designing shell and tube heat exchangers. Baffles must
be spaced with consideration for the conversion of pressure drop and heat transfer.
For thermo economic optimization it is suggested that the baffles be spaced no closer
than 20% of the shell's inner diameter. Having baffles spaced too closely causes a
greater pressure drop because of flow redirection. Consequently, having the baffles
spaced too far apart means that there may be cooler spots in the corners between
baffles. It is also important to ensure the baffles are spaced close enough that the tubes
do not sag. The other main type of baffle is the disc and doughnut baffle, which
consists of two concentric baffles. An outer, wider baffle looks like a doughnut, whilst
the inner baffle is shaped like a disk. This type of baffle forces the fluid to pass
around each side of the disk then through the doughnut baffle generating a different
type of fluid flow.

U tube exchangers
The tube bundle is made of continuous tubes that bend into a “U” shape, and are secured to
the shell using one tubeplate (shown above). The coolant flows from the top half of the
header, through the u-tubes, and then out the bottom half of the header, creating an inherent
multi-pass design. The bend allows for thermal expansion to occur without implementing any
kind of expansion joints, as the bend side is free-floating in the shell and has room to
expand/contract. They are excellent when using high-temperature differences where
expansion is expected, and the only major downside of these exchangers are that their bends
are difficult to clean.

Fixed tube sheet exchanger

The fixed tube sheet exchanger uses two stationary tube sheets (labeled above) that are
welded directly to the shell. They are the most cost-effective version of the shell and tube
design, as they are the easiest to manufacture. However, since the tubes are rigidly attached to

7
the shell via the tube sheets, expansion must be prevented. If there is a high-temperature
difference between the tube-side and shell-side flows, operators risk expansion and damage,
so the temperature difference must be kept small. Another disadvantage of fixed tube sheet
models is that the outside of their tubes cannot be accessed for cleaning. The shell-side fluid
being used must not foul the outside of the tubes, or the heat exchanger’s efficiency will
decrease.

Floating head exchanger

The floating head exchanger combines the best aspects of both the previous designs. One end
of the tubes is held stationary to the housing with a fixed tubesheet, but the other side is free
to expand using a component known as a floating tubesheet. This part allows the tubes to
expand with increased temperatures, without needing to bend the pipes. Operators can access
the tubes for easy cleaning, while also being able to create a high-temperature difference
without fear of breaking the device. The floating head exchanger is, therefore, the best heat
exchanger in terms of efficiency and maintenance, but naturally comes at a higher cost.
The heat exchanger design equation

Heat exchanger theory leads to the basic heat exchanger design equation: 

Q = dq/dA = U * A * ΔTL,                                            (1)

Where
Q is the rate of heat transfer between the two fluids in the heat exchanger, 
U is the overall heat transfer coefficient in Wm-2K-1, 
A is the heat transfer surface area in m2, 
ΔTL is the logarithmic mean temperature difference in kelvin (K) 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 ΔTL.
Overall heat transfer coefficient, U

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The overall heat transfer coefficient U is a measure of the overall ability of a series of
conductive and convective barriers to transfer heat. The quantity U also is defined by (1) as a
proportionality factor between dq/dA and ∆TL. To complete the definition of U in a given
case, it is necessary to specify the area. If A is taken as the outside tube area Ao, U becomes a
coefficient based on that area and is written Uo. Likewise, if the inside area Ai is chosen, the
coefficient is also based on that area and is denoted by Ui. Since ∆T and dq are independent
of the choice of area, it follows that

Uo/Ui=  dAi/dAo=  Di/Do                                                        (2)

 Where
Di and Do are the inside and outside tube diameters respectively.
  

Logarithmic mean temperature difference, ∆TL

      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.
The log mean temperature difference is an average temperature used for heat exchanger
calculations and is defined by:

∆TL=((THa-TCb)-(THb-TCa))/(In ((THa-TCb))/((THb-TCa)))                                       (3)

      THa and THb are the inlet and outlet temperatures of the hot fluid and TCa and TCb are
the inlet and outlet temperatures of the cold fluid. 

TYPES OF FLOW
The Counter flow 
      In counter flow or countercurrent flow, the two fluids enter at different ends of the
exchanger and pass in opposite directions through the unit.

9
 Figure 2: Temperatures in counter current flow
      The temperature-length curves for this case are shown in the diagram above.
Temperature of entering hot fluid, Tha
Temperature of leaving hot fluid, Thb
Temperature of entering cold fluid, Tca
Temperature of leaving cold fluid, Tcb
       The heat exchanger approach temperature is the difference between required outlet
temperature of the process fluid and the temperature at which utility is available is defined
by 
              ∆T1 = Thb - Tca and ∆T2 = Tha – Tcb                               (4)
which are the warm fluid and cold fluid ranges respectively.

The Parallel flow

           In parallel flow, the two fluids enter at the same end of the exchanger and flow in the
same direction to the other end. The temperature length curves for parallel flow are shown in
the diagram below.

10
 Figure 3: Temperatures in parallel flow

The approaches are

 ∆T1 = Tha – Tca and   ∆ T2 = Thb - Tcb                                              (5)

Enthalpy balances in heat exchangers

            In heat exchangers, there is no shaft work, and mechanical, potential, and kinetic
energies are small in comparison with the other terms in the energy-balance equation. Thus,
for one stream through the exchanger
ṁ(Hb – Ha) = q                                                (6)

Where
ṁ = flow rate of stream
           q = Q/t = rate of heat transfer into stream
           Ha, Hb = enthalpies per unit mass of stream at entrance and exit, respectively
       Equation (6) above can be written for each stream flowing through the exchanger.
           Heat transfer between ambient air and a fluid stream outside the tubes is usually not
desired in practice and is customarily neglected in comparison with the heat transfer through
the walls of the tubes from the warm fluid to the cold fluid, and q is interpreted accordingly. 
          With the above assumptions, Eqn (6) can be written for the warm fluid as 
ṁh(Hhb – Hha) = qh                                                       (7)
and for the cold fluid as     
ṁc(Hcb – Hca) = qc                                                       (8)

Where

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ṁc, ṁh = mass flow rates of cold fluid and warm fluid, respectively
Hca, Hha = enthalpy per unit of entering cold fluid and entering warm fluid, respectively
Hcb, Hhb = enthalpy per unit of leaving cold fluid and leaving warm fluid, respectively
qc, qh = rates of heat addition to cold fluid and warm fluid, respectively

          The sign of qc is positive, but that of qh is negative because the warm fluid loses,
rather than gains, heat. The heat lost by the warm fluid is gained by the cold fluid, and
qc = -qh
Therefore, from equations (7) and (8),
ṁh(Hha – Hhb) = ṁc(Hcb – Hca) = q                                 (9) 

Equation (9) is called the Overall enthalpy balance.

          If only sensible heat is transferred and constant specific heats are assumed, the overall
enthalpy balance for a heat exchanger becomes
      ṁhcph(Tha – Thb) = ṁccpc(Tcb – Tca) = q                           (10)

Where
cpc = specific heat of cold fluid
cph = specific heat of warm fluid

APPLICATION OF HEAT EXCHANGERS

Heat transfer is one of the most important industrial processes. Throughout any industrial
facility, heat must be efficiently added, removed or moved from one process stream to
another. In massive organizations human comfort is the big thing to tackle with in order to
obtain maximum output from their employees. For employee’s comfort all industries no
matter whether it’s small or big, install HVACR (Heat- Ventilation- Air Conditioning-
Refrigeration). Some typical applications are:

 Community heating
 District heating
 Geothermal heating
 Solar heating
 Steam heating

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 Swimming pool heating
 Tap water heating
 Condenser protection
 District cooling
 Free cooling
 Glycol saving
 Pressure breaker
 Thermal storage

 POWER INDUSTRY

As we already mentioned Heat transfer is one of the most important industrial

processes so be it power generation from coal power plant, oil power plant or gas
power plant. In power industry we burn the fuel- coal, oil or gas in order to generate
heat and then that heat is used to run the turbine and power our houses. During the
whole process a lot of heat losses occur. To minimize that heat loss & in other way to
optimize great yield output, heat exchangers plays major role at various stages of
energy conversion process. In fact, Boilers are one kind of heat exchanger. Apart from
Boilers many more type of heat exchangers 2is used in Power Industry.

 FOOD & AGRICULTURE

Heat exchangers are extensively used for drying process involved in Food &
Agriculture. Achieving the desired taste, a stable shelf life and commercial sterility of
food products is reliant upon tight control of process timing and temperatures as well
as careful and correct raw ingredients and materials.

Typical Applications are:

 Wide ranges of gums are used throughout the food industry. These can consist of
hydrocolloids, biopolymers and pectins. Heat exchangers work hard to tackle the
tough challenges of processing gums.

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 The overall economy of sugar production is heavily reliant upon the cost of energy.
Plate heat exchanger and plate evaporator help sugar producers to maximize product
quality and minimize operating and energy costs.
 Purpose-built plate or tubular heat exchangers decrease energy consumption in dairy
processing. And whether it’s processing of milk, long-life products, cultured products,
ice cream, cheese or whey products the proven design of plate heat exchangers offer
superior hygienic reliability and simple cleaning-in-place (CIP) routines.

 CHEMICAL / PETROCHEMICAL
Plate heat exchangers have been successfully employed for decades in the
chemical industry in the most diverse sectors, such as the cooling and heating of base,
intermediate and final products, heat recovery or also the tempering of containers,
reactors and autoclaves.

Typical Applications are:

 Cooling and heating of acids and caustic solutions

 Cooling of highly-viscous products (e.g. latex)
 Tempering and condensation of solvents (e.g. toluene)
 Cooling of water circuits
 Condensation of exhaust vapors, steam and multiple-material mixtures
 Secondary circuits with high levels of temperature similarity (∆t <2°C)
 Safety circuits to avoid contamination

 PULP & PAPER

Certain industries benefit more than others from specific industrial products or

machines. Heat exchangers are pretty popular across the board, but are absolute

14
 essentials for the paper industry. Without heat exchangers, paper mills would have
exceedingly high energy costs, which is bad for the environment as well as the purse
size of the paper companies. There are a couple ways that the paper and pulp
industry utilize heat exchangers, both of which are financial boosts, eco-friendly,
efficient and effective methods.

In essence, the paper process, beginning with wood pulp processing and refining and
then going into the bleaching and cleaning before the paper formation, is all done with
heat exchanger help. Specifically, plate heat exchangers are used to heat the liquids
used to create pulp from wood, a process involving chemical compounds that pull
apart the wood structure, leaving a goopy like substance that can be formed into paper
after more processing. Secondary processes involve bleaching or dying the pulp,
which is a process also heated by plate or spiral heat exchangers. After the desired
colour is achieved, the pulp becomes paper by way of a paper machine, which knits
the pulp into thin webs that form sheets. During which all the moisture is removed
and some type of blower is utilized to dry it out completely.

 MARINE

When conditions are tough, crew and equipment are really put to the test. The main
engine oil cooler and central fresh water cooler simply have to work. There is no
room for compromise when the sea is rough and the harbour far away.

For many decades plate heat exchangers have proved to be the perfect solution for
various closed-circuit cooling systems at sea. They are also frequently found in other
applications on board, such as tap-water production systems and HVAC systems.

A plate heat exchanger offers many advantages compared with conventional

shell-and-tube exchangers

 Up to 50% more efficient

 Up to 90% more compact

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 3-5 times higher k-values
 Unique turbulent flow design
 Closer temperature approach – as low as 1K
 Far less material – less use of exotic alloys or titanium

DESCRIPTION OF APPARATUS

Fig 4: ARMFIELD Heat Exchanger

16
 Fig 5: Schematic diagram of the shell
and tube heat exchanger 

This bench top service unit enables the operation of the Armfield range of small-scale heat
exchanger systems. It provides controlled cold water flow, bi-directional hot water flow and
the instrumentation required to do a series of in-depth investigations into heat exchanger
performance. The individual heat exchangers can be quickly changed over, to enable
comparisons between different types of heat exchangers to be made.

The service unit provides two fluid streams to the heat exchanger, a hot water stream and a
cold water stream. The hot water stream is heated in a vessel fitted with an electric heater.
The heater is switched on and off by a solid state relay (SSR) which is under software
control. A thermostat limits the maximum water temperature to 85°C for operator safety. A
gear pump circulates water from the vessel, through the heat exchanger and back into the
heater vessel. Both the pump speed and direction are under software control, allowing for co-
current and counter-current investigations over a wide range of flow rates.

The cold water stream is generated from a mains water supply. The flow through the heat
exchanger is adjusted by a variable flow valve, again under software control. A manually
adjustable pressure regulator is used to minimize the effect of mains pressure fluctuations.
Conditioning circuits for up to 10 K-type thermocouples are included, (the thermocouples
themselves are supplied with the heat exchangers). The instrumentation also includes flow
meters to measure the flow rates of the two fluid streams.

PROCEDURE
1. A quick inspection was performed to ensure the equipment was in proper working
condition.
2. All valves were initially closed, except V1 and V2.
3. Hot tank was filled via a water supply hose connected to valve V2. Once the tank was
full, the valve was closed.
4. The cold water tank was filled up by opening valve V1 and the valve was left open for
continuous water supply.
5. A drain hose was connected to the cold water drain point.
6. The equipment was now ready to be run.

17
 EXPERIMENT WITH VARYING FLOW RATE
1. Main power was switched on. The heater for the hot water tank was switched on and
the temperature controller was set to 71°C which was gotten by adding 45℃ to the
recorded room temperature, 26℃ .
2. The water temperature in the hot water tank was allowed to heat to 73°C and left to
drop back to the set point, 71°C.
3. The flow rates of the hot and cold fluids were set at 3L/min and 1L/min respectively
4. Valves V3 and V4 were adjusted and opened to obtain the desired flow rates for hot
and cold water streams respectively.
5. The system was allowed a few minutes to reach steady state.
6. T1, T2, T3 and T4 were recorded.
7. The process was repeated with an adjusted flow rate of 3L/min and 1.5L/min for hot
and cold fluids respectively.
EXPERIMENT WITH VARYING TEMPERATURE
1. The system was allowed to cool to get it to the required room temperature for
optimum results.
2. The flow rate was set at a constant value of 2L/min and 1L/min for the hot and cold
respectively.
3. The temperature was then adjusted to a set temperature of 40°C.
4. When the required temperature was reached, readings were taken.
5. This was done repeatedly with a 10°C temperature increase till 70°C was reached,
then values of T1, T2, T3 and T4 were taken for all temperatures.
6. The pumps and main power are switched off, all water in the process lines are drained
off.

RESULTS
EXPERIMENT 1: Effect of variation of flow rate
Table 1: Results from variation of flow rate
Cold Hot
Fluid Fluid Hot fluid Hot fluid Cold fluid Cold fluid
Flow Flow inlet outlet inlet outlet
S/N
rate rate temperature temperature temperature temperature
FC, FH, T1 (°C) T2 (°C) T3 (°C) T4 (°C)
(L/Min) (L/Min)
1. 0.7 3.0 74.0 64.8 28.1 36.4
2. 1.5 3.0 74.2 65.2 28.2 37.0

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 EXPERIMENT 2: Effect of variation of temperature

Cold Hot
Temperatu Hot fluid Hot fluid Cold fluid Cold fluid
Fluid Fluid
re inlet outlet inlet outlet
Flow Flow
S/N Controller temperatur temperatur temperatur temperatur
rate rate
Display e e e e
Fc, Fc,
T (°C) T1 (°C) T2 (°C) T3 (°C) T4 (°C)
(L/Min) (L/Min)

1 50 1.0 2.0 50.5 44.0 28.1 32.5

2. 60 1.0 2.0 60.5 52.6 28.2 34.7

3. 70 1.0 2.0 70.2 60.8 28.3 37.0

4. 80 1.0 2.0 80.1 68.9 28.4 39.8

Table 2: Results from variation of temperature

 Calculations for mean temperature efficiency:

ηm = (ηhot + ηcold)
2
Where:
ηm = Mean temperature efficiency
ηhot = Temperature efficiency of hot fluid
ηcold = Temperature efficiency of hot fluid

For experiment 1: Using the same formula

1. Where ηhot = 19.6428% ηcold = 20.0436%
ηm = (20.0436+ 19.6428) = 19.8432%
2

2. Whereηhot = 19.1304% ηcold = 19.2037 %

ηm = (19.2037 + 19.1304) = 19.16705%
2

For experiment 2: Using the same formula above;

19
 1. Where ηhot = 19.6428% ηcold = 29.1480%

ηm = (29.1480+ 19.6428) = 24.3954%

2
2. Where ηhot = 20.4334% ηcold = 24.4582%

ηm = (24.4582+ 20.4334) = 22.4463%

2
3. Where ηhot = 22.4344% ηcold = 20.7637%

ηm = (22.4344+ 20.7637) = 21.5991%

2
4. Where ηhot = 21.6634% ηcold = 22.0503%

ηm = (21.6634+ 22.0503) = 21.8569%

2

DISCUSSION
The HT30X Heat Exchanger Service Unit apparatus, which serves as cooling devices, is
employed in this experiment. This experiment's goals include demonstrating indirect heating
or cooling by transferring heat from one stream to another when separated by a solid wall,
performing an energy balance across a shell and tube heat exchanger to calculate overall
efficiency at various fluid flow rates, determining the difference between parallel and counter
current flow, and determining the overall heat transfer efficiency and overall heat transfer
coefficient.
During the study, it was discovered that the hot fluid had a lower temperature at the outlet
than at the inlet, indicating that heat was lost, and the cold fluid had a higher temperature at

20
the exit than at the inlet, indicating that heat was gained. The counter current shell and tube
heat exchanger's working principle is satisfied in this way. The flow rate of the hot fluid was
held constant at 3L/Min in the first experiment, whereas the flow rate of the cold fluid was
adjusted from 0.7 to 1.5L/Min. The heat transfer of a hot fluid was greater than that of a cold
fluid, and these temperature differences grew as the flow rate increased. The flow rates of the
hot and cold fluids were held constant at 2L/Min and 1L/Min, respectively, in the second
experiment, and the temperature of the controller was adjusted by 10°C from 50°C to 80°C,
with comparable results as in experiment 1. Here you can see the linear relationship between
temperature difference and flow rate. With a flow rate of 2L/min for hot and 1L/min for cold
fluids and a temperature of 80°C, the highest heating efficiency is 29.1480 percent, and the
overall heat transfer coefficient is 0.4548 W/m2k, LMTD = 40.3999°C.
It was discovered that the computed values of QH and QC did not fully satisfy the theory, as
the ratio of QC/QH is purportedly unity, implying that the optimum situation is for the value
of QC to be near to the value of QH. However, certain discrepancies in the value are
discovered in the computed results, which is normal because an ideal system is hard to
achieve in real life.

CONCLUSION
The highest heating efficiency is 29.1480 percent, and the total heat transfer coefficient is
0.4548 W/m2k, LMTD = 40.3999°C, with a flow rate of 2L/min for hot and 1L/min for cold
fluids and an ambient temperature of 80°C.
The estimated values of QH and QC were revealed to not entirely satisfy the theory, as the
ratio of QC/QH is reportedly unity, meaning that the ideal circumstance is for the value of
QC to be close to the value of QH. However, significant inconsistencies in the value are
revealed in the computed results, which is to be expected given how difficult it is to build an
ideal system in real life.

21
 RECOMMENDATION
 Take the final set of temperature observations when all of the temps are generally
consistent.
 During the experiment, no air bubbles should be found in the tube to ensure reliable
data collection.
 To limit heat loss to the environment, the heat exchanger should be adequately
insulated.
 In order to obtain consistent results, the equipment must be in good working order.

REFERENCES

1. McCabe W. L. Smith.J. C. and Harriot P. (2001): Unit Operations of Chemical

engineering 6th Edition, McGraw Hill Chemical Engineering Series, New York.
2. Coulson .1.M, Richardson J.F. with Backhurst J.R. and Harker. J.H. (2004): Chemical
Engineering, Volume 1: Sixth Edition, Butterwort-Heinennaun.
3. Armfield Limited: Heat Transfer and Thermodynamics, Heat exchanger service
module-HT30X
https://www.rawledu.com/assets/PDFs/Armfield/HT30XC%20Heat%20Transfer
%20%20Thermodynamics_012213.pdf
4. Salam Albaradie: Lab report of Heat Exchanger(scribd.com)
https://www.scribd.com/document/185704545/Lab-Report-of-Heat-Exchanger

22
 5. Applications of heat exchanger
http://www.heatexchanger.guide/applications/
6. Wikepedia: Heat Exchanger
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_exchanger
7. Unit Operations Lab: Heat Exchanger
http://ww2.che.ufl.edu/unit-ops-lab/experiments/HE/HE-theory.pdf

APPENDIX
Table 3: Conversion of flow rate

S/N F (L/Min) Qv (m3/s)

1. 1 1.667X10-5
2. 1.5 2.5005X10-5
3. 2 3.334X10-5
4. 3 5.001X10-5

23
Table 4: Density of fluid (water) at different temperature.
(From Perry’s Handbook).
Density of fluid
S/N T (°C) ρ
(Kg/m3)
1. 50 988.037
2. 60 983.200
3. 67.0 979.459
4. 69.9 977.828
5. 70 977.771
6. 80 971.799

NOTE:
Inner tube inside diameter di = 0.00515 (m)

Inner tube outside diameter do = 0.00635 (m)

Heat transmission Length L = 1.008 (total) (m)

Hot fluid volume flow rate qvhot (m3/s)

Hot fluid inlet temperature T1 (°C)

Hot fluid outlet temperature T2 (°C)

Cold fluid volume flow rate qvcold (m3/s)

Cold fluid inlet temperature T3 (°C)

Cold fluid outlet temperature T4 (°C)

NOTE:

Hot fluid volume flow rate, qvhot (m3/s) = Fhot (Litre/Minute) X (1.667X10-5)

Cold fluid volume flow rate, qvcold (m3/s) = Fcold (Litre/Minute) X (1.667X10-5)

Standard values of Specific heat capacity of hot and cold fluid from literature

Specific Heat Capacity of hot fluid, Cp(h) = 4.175 (KJ/KgK)

Specific Heat Capacity of cold fluid, Cp(c) = 4.175 (KJ/KgK)

24
CALCULATIONS:   
 Calculations for heating efficiency of heat exchanger:
Heat efficiency = Temperature efficiency of the heated fluid

Theoretically;
ξ= Qactual = ṁhCph (Tc2-Tc1) = (Tc2-Tc1)
Qfinal ṁhCph (Th1-Tc2) (Th1-Tc2)
ξ= (T4-T3)
(T1-T4)
For experiment 1: Using the formula above

1. When Fc = 1.0 L/min and Fh = 3 L/min

ξ = (36.4 - 28.1)/(74.0 – 36.4) = 0.2207 = 22.07%

2. When Fc = 1.5 L/min and Fh = 3 L/min

ξ = (37.0 – 28.2)/(74.2 – 37.0) = 0.2366 = 23.66%

For experiment 2: Using the same formula

1. When T = 50°C
ξ = (32.5 – 28.1)/(50.5 – 32.5) = 0.244 = 24.44%

2. When T = 60°C
ξ = (34.7 – 28.2)/(60.5 – 34.7) = 0.2519 = 25.19%

3. When T = 70°C
ξ = (37.0 – 28.3)/(70.2 – 37.0) = 0.2620 = 26.20%

4. When T = 80°C
ξ = (39.8 – 28.4)/(80.1 – 39.8) = 0.2828 = 28.28%

 Calculations for mass flow rate (Hot fluid):

Mass flow rate of hot fluid (ṁh) = Qv x ρ
Where:
Qv = Flow rate
ρ = Density of the fluid

For experiment 1: Using the formula above

25
 1. When Qv = 5.001X10-5(m3/s) and ρ (67.0°C) = 979.459 (Kg/m3)
ṁh = (5.001X10-5) x (979.45) = 0.0409 Kg/s

2. When Qv = 5.001X10-5(m3/s) and ρ (69.9°C) = 977.828 (Kg/m3)

ṁh = (5.001X10-5) x (977.828) = 0.0489 Kg/s

For experiment 2: Using the same formula

1. ρ (50.0°C) = 988.037 (Kg/m3) and Qv (hot) = 3.334X10-5(m3/s)
ṁh = (3.334X10-5) x (988.037) = 0.0329 Kg/s

2. ρ (60.0°C) = 983.200 (Kg/m3) and Qv (hot) = 3.334X10-5(m3/s)

ṁh = (3.334X10-5) x (983.200) = 0.0328 Kg/s

3. ρ (70.0°C) = 977.771 (Kg/m3) and Qv (hot) = 3.334X10-5(m3/s)

ṁh = (3.334X10-5) x (977.771) = 0.0326 Kg/s

4. ρ (80.0°C) = 971.799 (Kg/m3) and Qv (hot) = 3.334X10-5(m3/s)

ṁh = (3.334X10-5) x (971.799) = 0.0324 Kg/s

 Calculations for heat power emitted from hot fluid:

Qh = ṁhCp(hot) (th1 – th2)
Qh = ṁhCp(hot) (T1 – T2)

For experiment 1: Using the same formula

1. Qh = 0.0490 X 4.175 X (74.0 – 64.8) = 1.8821 kw

2. Qh = 0.0489 X 4.175 X (74.2 – 65.2) = 1.8412 kw

For experiment 2: Using the same formula above;
1. Qh = 0.0329 X 4.183 X (50.5 – 44.0) = 0.8945 kw
2. Qh = 0.0328 X 4.183 X (60.5 – 52.6) = 1.0872 kw
3. Qh = 0.0326 X 4.183 X (70.2 – 60.8) = 1.2936 kw
4. Qh = 0.0324 X 4.183 X (80.1 – 68.9) = 1.5414 kw

 Calculations for Logarithmic Mean Temperature Difference (LMTD):

θm = θ2 – θ1

In(θ2/ θ1)
Where:
θ1 = Th1-Tc2
26
 θ2 = Th2-Tc1
Temperature of hot fluid inlet (th1) = T1
Temperature of hot fluid outlet (th2) = T2
Temperature of cold fluid inlet (tc1) = T3
Temperature of cold fluid outlet (tc2) = T4
Therefore, θm = (T2 – T3) – (T1 – T4)

In(T2– T3/ T1 – T4)

For experiment 1: Using the same formula

1. Where T1 = 74.0 T2 = 64.8
T3 = 28.1 T4 = 36.4
θm = (64.8 – 28.1) – (74.0 – 36.4) = 37.1481°C

In((64.8 – 28.1)/ (74.0 – 36.4))

2. Where T1 = 74.2 T2 = 65.2

T3 = 28.2 T4 = 37.0
θm = (65.2 – 28.2) – (74.2 – 37.0) = 37.0999°C

In((65.2 – 28.2)/( 74.2 – 37.0))

For experiment 2: Using the same formula above;

1. Where T1 = 50.5 T2 = 44.0
T3 = 28.1 T4 = 32.5
θm = (44.0 – 28.1) – (50.5 – 32.5) = 16.9283°C

In((44.0 – 28.1)/( 50.5 – 32.5))

2. Where T1 = 60.5 T2 = 52.6
T3 = 28.1 T4 = 34.7
θm = (52.6 – 28.1) – (60.5 – 34.7) = 25.1443°C
In((52.6 – 28.1) /( 60.5 – 34.7))
3. Where T1 = 70.2 T2 = 60.8
T3 = 28.3 T4 = 37.0
θm = (60.8 – 28.3) – (70.2 – 37.0) = 32.8488°C
In((60.8 – 28.3)/( 70.2 – 37.0))
27
 4. Where T1 = 80.1 T2 = 68.9
T3 = 28.4 T4 = 39.8
θm = (68.9 – 28.4) – (80.1 – 39.8) = 40.3999°C
In((68.9 – 28.4) / (80.1 – 39.8))
 Calculations for overall heat transfer coefficient:
U = q/A˳θm

Where:
U = Overall heat transfer coefficient
A˳ = Area with respect to outer base diameter (A˳ = 4πd˳L)
(A˳ = 4π x 0.00635 x 1.008 = 0.0804 m2)
θm = Logarithmic mean temperature difference
q = Total heat transfer
For experiment 1: Using the same formula
1. Where q = 1.125 kw A˳= 0.0804 m2 θm = 37.1481°C
U = (1.125)/(0.0804 x 37.1481) = 0.3767 W/m2k

2. Where q = 1.6741 kw A˳= 0.0804 m2 θm = 37.0999°C

U = (1.6741)/(0.0804 x 37.0999) = 0.5612 W/m2k

For experiment 2: Using the same formula above;

1. Where q = 0.8808 kw A˳= 0.0804 m2 θm = 16.9283°C
U = (0.8808)/(0.0804 x 16.9283)= 0.6471 W/m2k

2. Where q = 1.2210 kw A˳= 0.0804 m2 θm = 25.1443°C

U = (1.2210)/(0.0804 x 25.1443)= 0.6040 W/m2k

3. Where q = 1.2818 kw A˳= 0.0804 m2 θm = 32.8488°C

U = (1.2818)/(0.0804 x 32.8488)= 0.4853 W/m2k

4. Where q = 1.4773 kw A˳= 0.0804 m2 θm = 40.3999°C

U = (1.4773)/(0.0804 x 40.3999)= 0.4548 W/m2k

28
 Calculations for temperature efficiency of hot fluid:
ηh = (th1 – th2)/( th1 – tc1) x 100
ηh = (T1 – T2)/( T1 – T3) x 100

Where:
Temperature of hot fluid inlet (th1) = T1
Temperature of hot fluid outlet (th2) = T2
Temperature of cold fluid inlet (tc1) = T3
For experiment 1: Using the same formula
1. Where T1 = 74.0 T2 = 64.8 T3 = 28.1
ηh = (74.0 – 64.8)/(74.0 – 28.1) x 100 = 20.0436%

2. Where T1 = 74.2 T2 = 65.2 T3 = 28.2

ηh = (74.2 – 65.2)/(74.2 – 28.2) x 100 = 19.5652%

For experiment 2: Using the same formula above;

1. Where T1 = 50.5 T2 = 44.0 T3 = 28.2

ηh = (50.5 - 44.0)/(50.5 – 28.2) x 100 = 29.1480%

2. Where T1 = 60.5 T2 = 52.6 T3 = 28.2

ηh = (60.5 – 52.6)/(60.5 – 28.2) x 100 = 24.4582%

3. Where T1 = 70.2 T2 = 60.8 T3 = 28.3

ηh = (70.2 – 60.8)/(70.2 – 28.3) x 100 = 22.4344%

4. Where T1 = 80.1 T2 = 68.9 T3 = 28.4

ηh = (80.1 – 68.9)/(80.1 – 28.4) x 100 = 21.6634%

 Calculations for temperature efficiency of cold fluid:

ηh = (tc2 – tc1)/( th1 – tc1) x 100
ηh = (T4 – T3)/( T1 – T3) x 100
Where:

Temperature of hot fluid inlet (th1) = T1

29
 Temperature of cold fluid outlet (tc2) = T4
Temperature of cold fluid inlet (tc1) = T3

For experiment 1: Using the same formula

1. Where T1 = 74.0 T3 = 28.1 T4 = 36.4
ηh = (36.4 – 28.1)/(74.0 – 28.1) x 100 = 18.0827%

2. Where T1 = 74.2 T3 = 28.2 T4 = 37.0

ηh = (37.0 – 28.2)/(74.2 – 28.2) x 100 = 19.1304%

For experiment 2: Using the same formula above;

1. Where T1 = 50.5 T3 = 28.1 T4 = 32.5

ηh = (32.5 - 28.1)/(50.5 – 28.1) x 100 = 19.6428%

2. Where T1 = 60.5 T3 = 28.2 T4 = 34.8

ηh = (34.8 – 28.2)/(60.5 – 28.2) x 100 = 20.4334%

3. Where T1 = 70.2 T3 = 28.3 T4 = 37.0

ηh = (37.0 – 28.3)/(70.2 – 28.3) x 100 = 20.7637%

4. Where T1 = 80.1 T3 = 28.4 T4 = 39.8

ηh = (39.8 – 28.4)/(80.1 – 28.4) x 100 = 22.0503%

30