Plate Heat Exchanger

Plate Heat Exchanger

A plate heat exchanger is a type of heat exchanger that uses metal plates to transfer heat between two fluids. This has a major advantage over a conventional heat exchanger in that the fluids are exposed to a much larger surface area because the fluids spread out over the plates. This facilitates the transfer of heat, and greatly increases the speed of the temperature change. Plate heat exchangers are now common and very small brazed versions are used in the hot-water sections of millions of combination boilers.

Plate Heat Exchangers have a high heat transfer rate compared to other types of heat exchangers due to their large surface area. They are composed of a number of thin metal plates compressed together into a ‘plate pack’ by two pressure plates. Within a plate heat exchanger, the fluid paths alternate between plates allowing the two fluids to interact, but not mix, several times in a small area. Each plate is corrugated to increase the surface area and maximize heat transfer. Plate Heat Exchangers have a number of applications in the pharmaceutical, petrochemical, chemical, power, industrial dairy, and food & beverage industry.

Types of Plate Heat Exchangers

There are four main types of plate heat exchangers : Gasketed, Brazed Plate, Welded, and Semi-Welded. API Schmidt-Bretten offers all four types. Each type is suited for a number of applications in various industrial fields.

Advantages of Plate Heat Exchangers (PHE)

  • Low investment, operation and maintenance costs.
  • Highly efficient heat transfer (K- values on average 3-5 times higher than in case of bare-tube heat exchangers).
  • Asymmetrical flow gap available for the most costeffective solution.
  • Use of smallest temperature difference
  • Up to 75% less space required.
  • Self-cleaning effect due to highly turbulent flow behaviour
  • Future additional capacity is possible by fitting extra heat transfer plates.
  • Double gasket with leak groove gives high safety with regards to media mixing.
  • Easy to open/clean.
  • Low operating weight/ low liquid content.

Heat Exchanger Frames

Frame Types: Industrial Painted Frames – Blue
  Hygienic Stainless Steel Frames
Flow Type: Most models parallel flow
Connection Types: Range of industrial and hygienic connections

Heat Exchanger Gaskets

Gasket Type: Clip and some Glue type
Gasket Material: NBR
  NBRP
  HNBR High Temperature
  EPDM
  EPDMP
  Viton (FKMG, FKMT, FKMB)
  Other material available on request

Heat Transfer Plates

Chevron Pattern: Most plate models available in two patterns – high and low theta
Plate Material: 304 Stainless Steel
  316 Stainless Steel
  Titanium
  SMO

ALFALAVAL
A-10-B A-15B Snap A-15-BW A-20-HBM A-3
A-30-HBM AK-20 AM-10-HBM AM-20-BFM AM-20-HBM
AX-30-FM Clip 10 Clip 6 Clip 8 H-10
H-7 M-10-B M-10-BW M-10-M M-15-B
M-15-F M-20-M M-3 M-30-FM M-6-F
M-6-M MA-30 P-01 P-01 Clip P-02 Clip
P-13 P-132 P-14 P-15 P-16
P-17 P-171 P-21 P-22 P-22 Clip
P-26 P-30 P-31 P-32 P-36
P-45        

APV
1020 1025 1050AS 1070-K
Evap.FFPE Evap.MKII Evap.MKIII H-12
H-17 H-17 Clip HMB HX
Junior K-55 Clip K-71 K-71 Clip
N-12 N-35 N-35 Clip N-50
R-4–405 R-5 R-5 Clip R-55
R-8GI SR-1 SR-1 Clip SR-2
SR-3 SR-3 Clip SR-6AA Clip SR-6AG Clip
SR-6GH Clip SR-6GL Clip T-4  

GEA
157 159 161 N-184 (thin and thick)
N-40 VT-10 VT-130 VT-1309
VT-20      

Tranter
GC-012 GC-016 GC-026 GC-028
GC-030 GC-051 GC-054 GC-060
GF-057 GF-097 GF-187 GL-013
GX-007 GX-012 GX-018 GX-026
GX-042 GX-026 GX-042 GX-051
GX-060 GX-064 GX-085 GX-091
GX-100 GX-118 GX-140 GX-145
GX-180 GX-205 GX-265  

Sondex
S-4 S-7 S-15 S-19
S-20 S-30 S-35 Clip S-39
S-50      

Swep
G-50 GC-30 GL-13 GM-138
GX-12 GX-26 GX-42 HX-25
HX-50 UFX-12 UFX-26H UFX-42H
UX-01 UX-16 UX-20