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Quotes - Engineering - SalesU-Tube Heat Exchangers For
Carbon Steel Construction
U-Tube Duty
SA-516 Grade 70 plate for shells and tubesheets, with SA-179 or SA-214 tube, covers an enormous amount of industrial heat exchanger work. The material is available, weldable, well understood and inexpensive.
Corrosion allowance. Rather than resisting attack, carbon steel construction adds thickness that is expected to be consumed over the design life. An eighth of an inch is a common allowance; more where the service warrants it.
Where it does not. Untreated water with oxygen, acids, chlorides, and anything where product contamination by iron matters. Coatings extend the range on the shell side; they are not a substitute for choosing the right material.
Request a QuoteCarbon Steel Construction Applications
Mixed Construction Economics
Putting a stainless or high-alloy bundle inside a carbon steel shell is routine, and it puts the expensive material where the aggressive fluid is rather than throughout the exchanger.
Watch two details. Galvanic pairing where dissimilar metals meet in a wetted joint, and differential thermal expansion between shell and bundle. A U-tube bundle handles the second by design, which is one more reason the geometry suits mixed construction.
Selection Data We Need
Flow rate and identity of both fluids, inlet and required outlet temperatures, operating and design pressures, allowable pressure drop on each side, and any code, alloy or hygienic requirement. Fouling history, turndown range and cleaning method matter as much as the design point.
