Heat Exchanger Safety Device for Rapid Pressure Relief
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional heat exchangers, particularly salt bath coolers, face challenges in rapid and reliable pressure relief during pipe ruptures, leading to potential damage and safety hazards due to the buildup of high pressure from evaporating water under high temperatures and poor feed water quality causing stress and corrosion.
Innovation Solution
A heat exchanger design featuring a safety device located near the base, which acts as an emergency release to alleviate pressure by allowing the vapor to expand into a smaller column, and a collecting device to manage the displaced heat transfer medium, ensuring quick pressure reduction and containment of the medium.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional emergency relief devices (bursting disc, overflow nozzle) are used at the top of the heat exchanger, then pressure relief is provided, but the steam must pass through or displace the entire heat transfer medium column, causing difficulty in pressure relief and potential housing rupture
Solution Approach 1:
The heat exchanger is divided into multiple sections with intermediate relief openings distributed along the tube bundle. This segmentation allows steam to escape at multiple locations rather than having to traverse the entire height of the heat transfer medium column, significantly reducing the displacement burden and enabling reliable pressure relief.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of providing relief only at the top (single point), the invention distributes relief openings along the vertical dimension of the heat exchanger. This multi-level arrangement creates multiple escape paths for steam, transforming the pressure relief mechanism from a single-point discharge to a distributed system that reduces the workload on each individual relief device.
2Reliability
If the heat exchanger housing is designed to withstand high pressures from steam displacement, then safety is improved, but the housing design becomes more complex and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The intermediate relief openings act as preemptive pressure release points that prevent excessive pressure buildup before it can reach the housing. By providing multiple early escape routes for steam, the system cushions against potential pressure surges, allowing the housing to be designed for normal operating pressures rather than extreme pressure scenarios.
3Ease of operation
If the heat exchanger height is reduced to 4-8m as in conventional designs, then installation is easier, but pipe ruptures in the lower area are more difficult to detect and pressure relief is less effective
Solution Approach 1:
Different sections of the heat exchanger are equipped with relief openings tailored to local conditions. The distribution of relief openings along the tube bundle ensures that each section has appropriate pressure relief capability, with intermediate openings specifically addressing the vulnerability of lower-area pipes while maintaining overall system compactness.
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
The solution enables rapid and safe pressure relief without subjecting the heat exchanger housing to excessive pressures, reducing the risk of damage and ensuring safety by containing the heat transfer medium, thus eliminating the need for additional pressure-resistant design features beyond 5 bar.
Implementation Method 1
a liquid heat carrier (7) which is discharged from a reactor (27) to be cooled, the liquid heat carrier (7) serving to absorb heat in a convective manner
Implementation Method 2
the water suddenly evaporates, so that high pressure builds up spontaneously
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
The invention relates to a heat exchanger (1) which comprises a bundle of at least two heat exchanger tubes (3), wherein the bundle of heat exchanger tubes (3) is aligned vertically and terminated downward by a heat exchanger tube floor (31), a heat exchanger housing (5) enclosing the bundle of heat exchanger tubes (3), wherein a liquid heat transfer medium (7) circulates in the bundle of heat exchanger tubes (3) in the heat exchanger housing (5), a heat exchanger hood (9) terminating the heat exchanger housing (5) upward, a heat exchanger floor (11) terminating the heat exchanger housing (5) downward, an inlet (13) into the heat exchanger (1) on the heat exchanger housing (5) for the heat transfer medium (7), an outlet (15) out of the heat exchanger (1) on the heat exchanger housing (5) for the heat transfer medium (7), and an emergency relief connection (17) which is arranged near the heat exchanger hood (9). The heat exchanger (1) is characterized in that the heat exchanger (1) has a safety device (19) which is arranged near the heat exchanger floor (11). The invention furthermore relates to a reactor arrangement (101) which comprises a reactor (27), a heat exchanger (1) connected to the reactor (27) according to the present invention and a pump (29) connected to the reactor (27) and/or the heat exchanger (1) for circulating at least one part of the liquid heat transfer medium (7). Finally, the invention relates to a method for temperature control of a reactor (27) and the use of the heat exchanger (1) according to the invention.