Effect of Tube Material on the Fouling Resistance in the Heat Exchanger

In this study, the heat resistance and thermal performance of the shell and tube heat exchanger were estimated using 0.1M of sodium chloride solution as hot fluid. Experiments were conducted on three material types of pipes (copper, aluminum, and 304-SS) under same operating conditions for 175 hours, The hot water flows through tubes with flow rate 4 liters per minute and temperature of 61°C. The cold water flows in the shell side with flow rate and temperature of 1 liter per minute and 23°C, respectively. The results indicate that 304-SS is the best case for this working condition, It has less fouling resistance as well as a minimum reduction in the thermal units number and effectiveness compared to the copper case by (32.45% and 34.6 %) and to an aluminum case by (16.32% and 20.2 %) respectively.