Performance of a Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchanger with Spiral Baffle Plates

Abstract

School of Mechanical and Industrial System Engineering, Dong-Eui University, Busan 614-714, Korea In a conventional shell-and-tube heat exchanger, fluid contacts with tubes flowing up and down in a shell, therefore there is a defect in the heat transfer with tubes due to the stagnation portions. Fins are attached to the tubes in order to increase heat transfer efficiency, but there exists a limit. Therefore, it is necessary to improve heat exchanger performance by changing the fluid flow in the shell. In this study, a highly efficient shell-and-tube heat exchanger with spiral baffle plates is simulated three-dimensionally using a commercial thermal-fluid analysis code, CFX4.2. In this type of heat exchanger, fluid contacts with tubes flowing rotationally in the shell. It could improve heat exchanger performance considerably because stagnation portions in the shell could be removed. It is proved that the shell-and-tube heat exchanger with spiral baffle plates is superior to the conventional heat exchanger in terms of heat transfer.