Corrugated Heat Transfer Tubes for Dairy Evaporation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current falling film evaporators in dairy applications face inefficiencies in heat transfer from the heating media to the dairy product, leading to suboptimal energy utilization and increased energy requirements.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of vertically arranged heat transfer tubes with corrugations on their inner surfaces, which enhance heat transfer efficiency by allowing a helical or sinusoidal pattern of corrugations with specific pitch and height ranges, facilitating the flow of dairy products and heating media.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If conventional smooth heat transfer tubes are used, then the device structure is simple, but heat transfer efficiency is insufficient leading to suboptimal energy utilization
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies corrugations with curved surfaces to the heat transfer tubes, transforming the conventional smooth cylindrical surface into a corrugated surface with alternating convex and concave regions. This curvature modification increases the surface area and creates turbulence in the fluid flow, thereby enhancing heat transfer efficiency and energy utilization without fundamentally changing the basic tube structure
Solution Approach 2:
The corrugated surface structure creates a micro-structured geometry that resembles porous or textured surfaces, increasing the effective heat transfer area and promoting better fluid contact with the tube surface. The corrugations create multiple flow paths and increase the residence time of the dairy product in contact with heated surfaces
2Productivity
If heating media is used to evaporate water from dairy product, then concentration is achieved, but heat transfer efficiency is insufficient requiring increased energy input
Solution Approach 1:
The corrugated tube surfaces create turbulence in both the heating media flow (outside tubes) and the dairy product flow (inside tubes). This turbulence enhances convective heat transfer coefficients, increasing the evaporation rate and productivity while reducing the total energy input required compared to smooth tube configurations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent modifies the geometric parameters of the heat transfer surface by introducing corrugations with specific pitch, amplitude, and wavelength. These parameter changes optimize the heat transfer surface area and flow characteristics, enabling more efficient evaporation and better energy utilization in the concentration process
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration significantly improves heat transfer efficiency, reducing the liquid content of dairy products by optimizing the interaction between the dairy product and heating media, thereby enhancing energy utilization and product concentration.
Implementation Method 1
Heat from the steam is then transferred through the tubes and to the dairy product
Implementation Method 2
water in dairy product enters the gaseous phase in form of vapor inside the vertical tubes
Implementation Method 3
The corrugations are advantageous, e.g. in that they provide efficient transfer of heat from the heating media to the dairy product
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~4
AI summary
A falling film evaporator (1) for reducing a liquid content of a dairy product (DP), the evaporator (1) comprising a housing (2) having an inlet (3) and an outlet (4) for passing a heating media (H) through the housing (2), a number of heat transfer tubes (10) that are vertically arranged inside the housing (1) such that the heating media (H) can flow over outer surfaces (15) of the heat transfer tubes (10), each heat transfer tube (14) of the heat transfer tubes (10) comprising an upper inlet (17) and a lower outlet (18) for passing the dairy product over an inner surface (16) of the heat transfer tube (14). Each heat transfer tube (14) comprises corrugations (20) that extend along the length of the heat transfer tube (14).