Heat exchangers keep pressure up at new UK paper mill
16 Feb 2012
Watford, UK – HRS Heat Exchangers Ltd has recently supplied Gas Compressors Ltd. with a multi-tube corrugated shell and tube heat exchanger for a compressor installation.
The compressor unit has been installed to maintain natural gas supply pressure to a gas turbine at the recently started Saica Paper mills in Partington, Greater Manchester.
The four-metre long heat exchanger cools the 9300nm3/hr gas supply after compression, which is required to maintain feed pressure to the turbine in periods of high local demand and so ensure uninterrupted operation 24/7.
The heat exchanger also condenses out any water vapour present in the gas composition.
HRS said its corrugated tube heat exchanger achieves the required heat transfer to reduce the gas temperature from 90°C to 45°C with a very low pressure loss. The patented design also enables the heat exchanger to be made smaller than a comparable smooth tube unit.
The combination of 32.5bar g design pressure and natural gas meant that the heat exchanger was required to meet the very demanding category IV PED (EU Pressure Equipment Directive) requirements, said the equipment supplier.
“This is a very demanding application: good heat transfer is normally only achieved by high gas velocity and a corresponding high pressure loss that reduces the efficiency of the whole installation,” said Priya Murray, technical manager at HRS. “Our corrugated tube design reduces pressure loss to deliver the efficiency required and occupies less space.”
