Flow pattern transitions in and hysteresis effects of falling film flow over horizontal tubes related to LNG heat exchangers

Abstract

Spiral wound heat exchangers with horizontal tube configurations are used extensively in the chemical, refrigeration, petroleum and food industry, and are core components in many natural gas liquefaction plants. For improved understanding of these heat exchangers, it is of vital importance to predict the liquid flow characteristics between the pipes. In this work, the flow between horizontal tube configurations with different dimensions relevant for LNG heat exchangers was experimentally characterized. N-pentane and methanol were used as test liquids in the experiments. N-pentane has similar properties to LNG and typical mixed refrigerants of LNG processes. The new experimental results were compared with existing models and other literature data.