Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

Faculty of Chemical & Natural Resources Engineering

Experiment 5
HEAT TRANSFER STUDY ON PLATE HEAT
EXCHANGER

Name
Matric No.
Group
Program
Section
Date

Semester II - Session 2013/2014

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

EXPERIMENT 5: HEAT TRANSFER STUDY ON PLATE HEAT EXCHANGER

OBJECTIVE(S)

1. To calculate and analyze heat transfer at steady state.

2. To determine effect of liquid flowrate on heat transfer coefficient.
3. To compare effectiveness of flow arrangement namely co-current vs counter current.

INTRODUCTION
A heat exchanger is a device built for efficient heat transfer from one fluid to another,
whether the fluids are separated by a solid wall so that they never mix, or the fluids are
directly contacted. They are widely used in petroleum refineries, chemical plants,
petrochemical plants, natural gas processing, refrigeration, power plants, air conditioning and
space heating. One common example of a heat exchanger is the radiator in a car, in which a
hot engine-cooling fluid, like antifreeze, transfers heat to air flowing through the radiator.
Heat exchangers may be classified according to their flow arrangement. In parallelflow heat exchangers, the two fluids enter the exchanger at the same end, and travel in parallel
to one another to the other side. In counter-flow heat exchangers the fluids enter the
exchanger from opposite ends. The counter current design is most efficient, in that it can
transfer the most heat. In a cross-flow heat exchanger, the fluids travel roughly perpendicular
to one another through the exchanger.
One type of heat exchanger is the plate heat exchanger. One is composed of
multiple, thin, slightly-separated plates that have very large surface areas and fluid flow
passages for heat transfer. This stacked-plate arrangement can be more effective, in a given
space, than the shell and tube heat exchanger. Advances in gasket and brazing technology
have made the plate type heat exchanger increasingly practical. In HVAC applications,
large heat exchangers of this type are called plate-and-frame; when used in open loops,
these heat exchangers are normally of the gasket type to allow periodic disassembly,
cleaning, and inspection. There are many types of permanently-bonded plate heat
exchangers such as dip-brazed and vacuum-brazed plate varieties, and they are often
specified for closed-loop applications such as refrigeration. Plate heat exchangers also differ

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

in the types of plates that are used, and the configurations of those plates. Some plates may
be stamped with "chevron" or other patterns, where others may have machined fins and/or
grooves.

EQUIPMENT/APPARATUS/MATERIAL
1. SOLTEQ Plate Heat Exchanger (Model: HE 200)

Figure 1: SOLTEQ Plate Heat Exchanger (Model: HE 200)

EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES

General Start Up Procedure

1. Fill at least of water in hot and cold water tank by opening valves HV2 and/or HV5 to
add water respectively.
2. Switch on power supply at electrical header and equipment panel.
3. The equipment is now ready to be run.

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

Table 1: Valve Arrangement for Plate Heat Exchanger

OPEN

CLOSE

Flow Arrangement
Counter Current

Co-Current

HV5, HV7,

HV2, HV3,

HV9, HV10,

HV6, HV8,

HV12

HV11

HV5, HV7,

HV2, HV3,

HV8, HV11,

HV6, HV9,

HV12

HV10

QUARTERLY

LEAVE

OPEN

ALONE

HV13, HV14

HV1, HV14

HV13, HV14

HV1, HV4

Experiment A: Counter-Current Plate Heat Exchanger

1. Set the valves to counter current process as in Table 1.
2. Switch ON the heater and set the hot tank temperature to 500C. After the temperature is
constant at 500C, switch ON the pumps (P1 and P2) and the air cooler.
3. Adjust the HV1 valve to set the flow rate for the hot water stream (please state any value)
and the HV4 valve for the flow rate cold water stream. (Range of the cold water flow rate:
5 20 LPM).
4. Allow the system to reach steady state.
5. Record all the related data.
6. Repeat steps 3 to 5 for FOUR different settings of the cold water flow rate (range of the
cold water flow rate: 5 20 LPM).
7. Switch OFF the pumps (P1 and P2).

Experiment B: Co-current Plate Heat Exchanger

1. Set the valves to co-current process as in Table 1.
2. After the temperature at hot tank is constant at 500C, switch ON pumps (P1 and P2).
3. Adjust the HV1 valve to set the flow rate for the hot water stream (please state any value)
and HV4 to set the flow rate of the cold water stream. (range of the cold water flow rate: 5
20 LPM - Ensure Flowrate 1 setting in this section must same as counter current case)
4. Allow the system to reach steady state.
5. Record all the related data.
6. Repeat steps 3 to 5 for FOUR different settings of the cold water flow rate (use the same
settings as in the counter current mode).
7. Shut down the equipment.

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

RESULT

Table: Counter-Current Plate Heat Exchanger Data Analysis

Flow Rate 1 (FI1 or FT1):
Flow Rate 2

Hot Water Inlet

Hot Water Outlet

Cold Water Outlet

Cold Water Inlet

(FI2 or FT2)

(TT1 or TI1)

(TT2 or TI2)

(TT3 or TI3)

(TT4 or TI4)

LPM

(oC)

(oC)

(oC)

(oC)

Table: Co-Current Plate Heat Exchanger Data Analysis

Flow Rate 1 (FI1 or FT1):
Flow Rate 2

Hot Water Inlet

Hot Water Outlet

Cold Water Inlet

Cold Water Outlet

(FI2 or FT2)

(TT1 or TI1)

(TT2 or TI2)

(TT3 or TI3)

(TT4 or TI4)

LPM

(oC)

(oC)

(oC)

(oC)

Heat Exchanger Layout:

Total plate area

: 0.96 m2

Plate channel

: 2.4 mm

Plate area

: 0.032 m2

No. of plates

: 30

Plate width

: 100 mm

Cross sectional area

: 0.00024 m2

Total cross section

: 3.60 x 10-3 m2

Equivalent diameter,de

: 4.69 x 10-3 m

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

DISCUSSIONS

Discuss all your results. The questions below only serve as a guideline. Your discussion
should not only limit to these questions.

1. Calculate the heat load, heat absorb, heat loss and efficiency for both co-current and
counter current processes.
2. Calculate the log mean temperature, Tlm for both co-current and counter current
processes.
3. Calculate the plate film coefficients (hot and cold film) and the overall heat transfer
coefficient for both co-current and counter current processes.
4. Plot graph overall heat transfer coefficient vs. cold water flowrate and graph efficiency vs.
cold water flowrate. Discuss about each plotted graph.