When preparing to design a heat exchanger, do you ever wonder where to start?

You've done
it before, but you hate that feeling of getting half way through the design and realizing that
you forgot to consider one important element. The thought
process involved is
just as important as
the calculations involved. Let's try to map out a
heat exchanger design strategy. We'll do so with a
series of questions followed by information to
help you answer the questions.
1. Is there a phase change involved in my
system?
A quick look at the boiling points compared
with the entrance and exit temperatures will help
you answer this question.
2. How many "zones" are involved in my
system?
"Zones" can best be defined as regimes of
phase changes where the overall heat transfer
coefficient (Uo) will vary. Using T-Q
(Temperature-Heat) diagrams are the best way to
pinpoint zones. The system is defined as cocurrent or countercurrent and the diagram is
constructed. The diagram on the left illustrates
the use of T-Q diagrams. These diagrams should
accompany your basic (input-output) diagram of
the heat exchanger. Chemical #1 enters the shell
at 200 0C as a superheated vapor. In Zone 1, it
releases heat to the tubeside chemical (Chemical
#2). Zone 1 ends just a Chemical #1 begins to
condense. The tubeside (Chemical #2) enters as a
liquid or gas and does not change phase
throughout the exchanger. Chemical #1 leaves
Zone 1 and enters Zone 2 at its boiling
temperature, Tb1. T* marks the temperature of
Chemical #2 when Chemical #1 begins to
condense. In Zone 2, Chemical #1 condenses to
completion while Chemical #2 continues to
increase in temperature. The temperature of
Chemical #2 when Chemical #1 is fully
condensed is denoted at T**. Finally, in Zone 3,
both chemicals are liquids. Chemical #1 is
simply liberating heat to Chemical #2 as it
becomes a subcooled liquid and exits the shell at
100 0C.
Defining zones is one of the most important
aspects of heat exchanger design. It is also
important to remember that if your process

simulator does not support zoned analysis (such as Chemcad III), you should model each zone
with a separate heat exchanger. Thus, the previous illustration would require 3 heat
exchangers in the simulation. BUT, do not draw 3 exchangers on your PFD (Process Flow
Diagram). This is all happening in one exchanger.
3. What are the flowrates and operating pressures involved in my system?
This information is critical in establishing the mass and energy balance around the
exchanger. Operating pressures are particularly important for gases as their physical
properties vary greatly with pressure.
4. What are the physical properties of the streams involved?
If you're using a process simulator, obtaining the physical properties of your streams should
be just a click of the mouse away. However, if performing the calculation by hand, you may
have to do some estimating as the streams may not be of pure substances. Also, you should
get the physical properties for each zone separately to ensure accuracy, but in some cases it is
acceptable to use an average value. This would be true of Chemical #2 in the tubes since it is
not changing phase or undergoing a truly significant temperature change (over 1000C).
Physical properties that you will want to collect for each phase of each stream will include:
heat capacity, viscosity, thermal conductivity, density, and latent heat (for phase changes).
These are in addition to the boiling points of the streams at their respective pressures.
5. What are the allowable pressure drops and velocities in the exchanger?
Pressure drops are very important in exchanger design (especially for gases). As the
pressure drops, so does viscosity and the fluids ability to transfer heat. Therefore, the
pressure drop and velocities must be limited. The velocity is directly proportional to the heat
transfer coefficient which is motivation to keep it high, while erosion and material limits are
motivation to keep the velocity low. Typical liquid velocities are 1-3 m/s (3-10 ft/s). Typical
gas velocities are 15-30 m/s (50-100 ft/s). Typical pressure drops are 30-60 kPa (5-8 psi) on
the tubeside and 20-30 kPa (3-5 psi) on the shellside.
6. What is the heat duty of the system?
This can be answered by a simple energy balance from one of the streams.
7. What is the estimated area of the exchanger?
Unfortunately, this is where the real fun begins in heat exchanger design! You'll need to
find estimates for the heat transfer coefficients that you'll be dealing with. These can be found
in most textbooks dedicated to the subject or in Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook. Once
you've estimated the overall heat transfer coefficient, use the equation Q=UoADTlm to get
your preliminary area estimate. Remember to use the above equation to get an area for each
zone, then add them together.
8. What geometric configuration is right for my exchanger?
Now that you have an area estimate, it's time to find a geometry that meets your needs.
Once you've selected a shell diameter, tubesheet layout, baffle and tube spacing, etc., it's time
to check your velocity and pressure drop requirements to see if they're being met.
Experienced designers will usually combine these steps and actually obtain a tube size that
meets the velocity and pressure drop requirements and then proceed. Some guidelines may be
as follows: 3/4 in. and 1.0 in. diameter tubes are the most popular and smaller sizes should
only be used for exchangers needing less than 30 m2 of area. If your pressure drop
requirements are low, avoid using four or more tube passes as this will drastically increase

your pressure drop. Once you have a geometry selected that meets all of your needs, it's on to
step #9.
9. Now that I have a geometry in mind, what is the actual overall heat transfer coefficient?
This is where you'll spend much of your time in designing a heat exchanger. Although
many textbooks show Nu=0.027(NRE)0.8(NPR)0.33 as the "fundamental equation for turbulent
flow heat transfer", what they sometimes fail to tell you is that the exponents can vary widely
for different situations. For example, condensation in the shell has different exponents than
condensation in the tubes. Use this fundamental equation if you must, but you should consult
a good resource for accurate equations. I highly recommend the following: Handbook of
Chemical Engineering Calculations, 2nd Ed., by Nicholas P. Chopey from McGraw-Hill
publishers (ISBN 0070110212). Also, don't forget to include the transfer coefficient across
the tube wall and the fouling coefficient. These can be very significant!
10. What is the actual area of the exchanger using the 'actual' heat transfer coefficient?
If you recall, you used estimated heat transfer coefficients to get an initial area. Now it's
time to recalculate the area.

THE LOOP
Now you're on your way, pick a new geometry corresponding to your new ("actual") area,
check the velocity and pressure drop, calculate the overall heat transfer coefficient again.
How does it compare with the previously calculated value? If it is not within 5-10%,
recalculate the process over and over (using your new value for Uo) until it does! Sounds like
alot of work. Add in the fact that some of the individual heat transfer coefficients require
iterative solutions and it's not hard to see why people usually use a complex spreadsheet or a
program to do this. You can save some time by using estimates that you've undoubtedly seen,
however you must realize that each time you estimate, you're losing accuracy.
Remember two main items:
1. ZONED ANALYSIS
2. ACCURACY OF INITIAL OVERALL HEAT TRANSFER COEFFICIENT
The zoned analysis is the key to starting the process correctly. The accuracy of the initial
overall heat transfer coefficient will in part determine how many time you will be going
through the calculation.

Other Considerations:

Materials of Construction
Ease of Maintenance

Cost of Exchanger

Overall Heat Integration