Plate Heat Exchanger
Plate heat exchangers (PHEs) are compact, efficient heat transfer devices used extensively in the chemical industry, as well as other sectors such as food, pharmaceuticals, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC). They work by directing hot and cold fluids through alternating channels formed by stacked corrugated metal plates, which create a large surface area and turbulence that maximizes heat transfer efficiency without mixing the fluids. PHEs come in a variety of types—gasketed, brazed, and welded—each suited to different pressures, temperatures, and fluid characteristics. Their main advantages include excellent thermal efficiency, easy maintenance, space-saving design, modularity, and cost-effectiveness, especially in applications that require precise temperature control, heat recovery, or handling corrosive or medium-viscosity fluids. Compared to shell and tube heat exchangers, PHEs perform better at low and medium pressures, but they may not be as suitable for very high pressures or applications with high particle counts.
| Equipment type | Classification method | Features | Application scenario |
| Stainless steel plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate material | Stainless steel has good corrosion resistance, high strength and good processing performance. It is the most widely used plate material. It is suitable for most chemical media such as acids, alkalis, and salts. | Widely used in food, pharmaceutical, chemical and other industries, such as heating or cooling in milk pasteurization and pharmaceutical processes. |
| Titanium alloy plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate material | Titanium alloy has excellent corrosion resistance, especially in highly corrosive environments such as seawater and chlorides. But the cost is relatively high. | Commonly used in seawater desalination and chemical industries to treat highly corrosive media. |
| Nickel-based alloy plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate material | Nickel-based alloys (such as Inconel) have extremely high corrosion resistance and high temperature performance, and are suitable for extreme working conditions. | Used in the heat exchange process of high temperature, high pressure and highly corrosive media. |
| Aluminum alloy plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate material | Aluminum alloy is light in weight and has good thermal conductivity, but has poor corrosion resistance and usually requires surface treatment. | Suitable for occasions with high weight requirements, such as the aerospace field. |
| Plastic plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate material | Plastic plates have good corrosion resistance and low cost, but low strength and limited temperature resistance range. | Suitable for heat exchange of weak acids, weak alkalis and other media at room temperature or low temperature. |
| Corrugated plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate structure | The plate surface has a corrugated shape, which can be herringbone, straight, spherical, etc. Corrugated plates can increase the turbulence of the fluid and improve heat transfer efficiency. | It is suitable for most heat exchange occasions and is the most common type of plate heat exchanger. |
| Flat plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate structure | The plate surface is flat and the structure is simple, but the heat transfer efficiency is relatively low. | Suitable for occasions where the heat transfer efficiency is not high. |
| Porous plate heat exchanger | Classification by plate structure | There are multiple small holes on the plate surface, which can increase the mixing degree of the fluid and improve the heat transfer efficiency. | Applicable to occasions requiring high heat transfer efficiency, such as heat exchange of high viscosity fluids. |
| Rubber gasket sealed plate heat exchanger | Classification by sealing method | Using rubber gaskets as sealing elements has low cost and is easy to replace. However, the temperature resistance, pressure resistance and corrosion resistance are limited. | Applicable to occasions with normal temperature or medium temperature and pressure, such as heat exchange in the food and pharmaceutical industries. |
| Welded sealed plate heat exchanger | Classified by sealing method | The plates are sealed by welding, with good sealing performance, high temperature and pressure resistance, but difficult to repair and replace. | Suitable for heat exchange processes with high temperature, high pressure and highly corrosive media. |
| Semi-welded plate heat exchanger | Classified by sealing method | Part of the plates are sealed by welding, and some of the plates are sealed with gaskets. It combines the advantages of welding sealing and gasket sealing. | Applicable to occasions that require both high temperature resistance, high pressure and maintenance convenience. |
| Single-flow plate heat exchanger | Classified by fluid flow mode | The cold and hot fluids only pass through one channel in the heat exchanger, with a simple structure and high heat transfer efficiency. | Applicable to most heat exchange occasions. |
| Multi-pass plate heat exchanger | Classified by fluid flow mode | The hot and cold fluids pass through the channels in the heat exchanger many times, and the fluids are divided into multiple flows by the partitions, which can further improve the heat transfer efficiency. | Applicable to occasions that require higher heat transfer efficiency, such as heat exchange of high-viscosity fluids. |
| References | Authors | Abstract | DOI |
| Numerical simulation of plate heat exchanger performance | Xu Zhiming, Wang Yueming, Zhang Zhongbin | A calculation model for fluid flow and heat transfer in the hot and cold double flow channels of a herringbone plate heat exchanger was established. The flow and heat transfer of the fluid in the heat exchanger under five different speed conditions were numerically simulated using computational fluid dynamics software, and the velocity field, temperature field and pressure field in the heat exchanger flow channel were analyzed. The results show that the errors between the inlet and outlet temperature difference and pressure drop of the plate heat exchanger obtained by numerical simulation and the experimental measurement values are within 6%; there is obvious non-uniformity in the flow and heat transfer of the fluid in the heat exchanger, and an obvious heat transfer "dead zone" appears on the other side of the inlet and outlet; the total heat transfer coefficient and flow channel resistance of the heat exchanger increase with the increase of fluid flow rate. | CNKI:SUN:DONG.0.2011-03-008 |
| Experimental study on heat transfer and resistance characteristics of plate heat exchanger | Xu Zhiming, Guo Jinsheng, Guo Junsheng, Huang Xing, Zhang Zhongbin | Using the constructed liquid-liquid plate heat exchanger test platform, according to the test data, the qualitative Reynolds number method was used to fit the heat transfer correlation Nu, and the general relationship between Nu and the friction factor f was found, which provided a basis for the design and calculation of the plate heat exchanger. The ratio of heat transfer to power consumption was used to evaluate the performance of the plate heat exchanger, and the main factors affecting its performance were found, which further clarified that it is not economical to improve the heat transfer performance simply by increasing the flow rate. | 10.3969/j.issn.1671-8097.2010.01.003 |
| Experimental study and thermodynamic analysis of plate heat exchanger performance under low Re | Ma Xuehu, Lin Le, Lan Zhong, Yu Qingjie, Yu Chunjian, Bai Tao, Lin Ying | Based on the experimental data, the influence of plate corrugation on the heat transfer and resistance of plate heat exchanger is theoretically analyzed from three aspects: plate corrugation inclination angle, corrugation spacing and corrugation height. Under low Re, from the perspective of the influence on heat transfer effect, the corrugation spacing should be greater than the inclination angle and corrugation height; from the perspective of the influence on pressure drop, the corrugation spacing should be less than the inclination angle and corrugation height. Based on the test data, the empirical correlation between the heat transfer coefficient and the resistance coefficient of the corresponding plate was regressed, and the calculated value was consistent with the test value. The plate heat exchanger was also thermodynamically analyzed, providing a theoretical basis for plate design and process design for the industrial application of plate heat exchangers under low flow and low flow resistance conditions. | JournalArticle/5aea429fc095d713d8a68ca4 |
| A Comprehensive Review of Thermal Performance Enhancement of Plate Heat Exchangers | S Kumar, SK Singh, D Sharma | Heat exchangers play a vital role in the operation of chemical, dairy and food processing and thermal power plants. The improvement of heat exchangers is mainly aimed at minimizing energy consumption. Efficient heat exchangers can provide high heat transfer rate and minimum pumping power at a low cost, thus achieving energy saving. Plate heat exchangers are widely used in various engineering fields due to their simplicity, flexibility and easy maintenance. This paper reviews passive surface enhancement methods for single-phase and two-phase flows and the application of nanofluids in different types of plate heat exchangers. In addition, the effects of geometric parameters on the hydro-thermodynamic performance and fouling deposit formation of plate heat exchangers are discussed. The study found that the herringbone angle is the most important geometric parameter that changes the flow characteristics. HTC, Nu and ΔP increase with increasing β, γ and ϕ. For two-phase flow, ΔP increases with increasing steam dryness and mass flow rate and decreases with increasing saturation pressure. The optimal geometric parameters for achieving maximum heat transfer are β: 30°-60°, γ: 0.075-0.6 and φ: 1.18-1.3. Most of the literature recommends the use of nanofluids under laminar flow conditions. | 10.1007/s10765-022-03036-7 |
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