available heat exchanger types

[swm2]

I have an application where I would like to split a hydrocarbon gas stream which is at say 50 barg and 70°C and cool the two resultant streams to different temperatures say 60°C and 30°C in order to meet end user requirements. My utility stream will probably be oxygenated seawater.

Are there any commercially available exchangers that can handle multiple process streams such that I could achieve the above in a single unit? Could the forum members advise on any pros/cons of such units?

Thanks in advance for your help

 

[DickRussell]

If the fluid being cooled is on the shell side, you could withdraw the partially cooled stream from a nozzle part way along the shell, under flow control, and let the rest go through. If you need temperature control, things are a bit different. Assuming you need flow also controlled, you could run some-to-most of the fluid through the exchanger and cool it to whatever the coolant will give you, then split the flow and blend back into whichever stream needs control some of the uncooled fluid, thus bypassing the exchanger for one or both streams. Keep in mind that fluid velocities need to be maintained to some minimum to avoid fouling. Also, depending on scale of the operation, there may be specialized equipment better suited than a simple shell and tube exchanger, or perhaps separate exchangers would be simpler or conceivably advisable for fluid velocity reasons. If you can give us more detail on flows, we can be more specific in our suggestions.

Dick Russell

 

[gkarthik]

I hope the following solution can satisfy your query:

Let the streams be S1 and S2.
S1 to be cooled to 60C; S2 to be cooled to 30C;


1) Pass both S1 and S2 into a heat exchanger. Let the S1 and S2 cooled to 60C. Collect S1 and S2. Recycle S2 to the same heat exchanger. By this way you can perform cooling opeartion of both the streams in a single heat exchanger.

Solution(1)is applicable if the operation is carried out in batch.

2) Use shell and tube heat exchanger. The whole shell is divided into two compartments. The compartments are separated by an insulator so that heat transfer between the compartments are avoided.

Let the two compartments be C1 and C2.
C1 cools S1 to 60C; C2 cools S2 to 30C;

The thickness of insulator should be minimum most so that Number of tubes accomodated in the given shell diameter is not compromised to accomodate the tubes.

Feel free to seek any type of assistance in altering in design of the heat exchanger