Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F28—HEAT EXCHANGE IN GENERAL
  • F28F—DETAILS OF HEAT-EXCHANGE AND HEAT-TRANSFER APPARATUS, OF GENERAL APPLICATION
  • F28F19/00—Preventing the formation of deposits or corrosion, e.g. by using filters or scrapers
  • F28F19/01—Preventing the formation of deposits or corrosion, e.g. by using filters or scrapers by using means for separating solid materials from heat-exchange fluids, e.g. filters
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F28—HEAT EXCHANGE IN GENERAL
  • F28D—HEAT-EXCHANGE APPARATUS, NOT PROVIDED FOR IN ANOTHER SUBCLASS, IN WHICH THE HEAT-EXCHANGE MEDIA DO NOT COME INTO DIRECT CONTACT
  • F28D7/00—Heat-exchange apparatus having stationary tubular conduit assemblies for both heat-exchange media, the media being in contact with different sides of a conduit wall
  • F28D7/16—Heat-exchange apparatus having stationary tubular conduit assemblies for both heat-exchange media, the media being in contact with different sides of a conduit wall the conduits being arranged in parallel spaced relation

Definitions

• the invention relates to a heat exchanger, in particular a tube heat exchanger.
• the exchangers of the present invention are particularly suitable for use in industrial units, including refineries.
• Tubular heat exchangers frequently become clogged as a result of the packing of solid elements entrained by the fluids to be cooled. These solid elements may result from corrosion of the materials of the exchanger or fluid supply lines or may be tartar or objects forgotten during maintenance.
• clogging occurs in an exchanger of an industrial unit, its maintenance often requires the complete shutdown of the unit and the opening of the exchanger for cleaning.
• this cleaning requires the use of gear during the opening of the exchanger and is relatively long.
• the subject of the invention relates to a heat exchanger comprising an envelope containing an assembly of tube-shaped heat exchange elements defining at least two independent fluid circulation circuits, the envelope comprising in in addition to at least one filter element associated with a fluid circuit and disposed inside the casing between an inlet opening of the casing and an inlet face of the fluid in a fluid circuit.
• the filter element is plane and the heat exchanger further comprises at least one support element now a face of the filter element at a predetermined distance from said inlet face, substantially parallel or parallel thereto. The support element is in abutment against said face of the filtering element or against said inlet face, optionally without securing between the support element and said face, in particular without the filtering element being attached to the envelope, assembly or other element of the heat exchanger.
• the filter element is supported, in other words supported, by the support means, preferably without securing, which allows to set it up and extract it easily and quickly.
• the support between the filter element and the support element or between the support element and the inlet face thus preferably results only from the Earth's gravity.
• the filter element may nevertheless be secured to the casing and held in position by a fixing device, in particular a temporary device, for example of the bayonet type.
• the invention is particularly suitable for heat exchangers between liquid fluids.
• the filter element is shaped to retain solid particles present in a fluid, and in particular to separate solid particles present in a liquid.
• Solidarization means a fixation, definitive or temporary, which does not allow movement, such as fixing by rivets, screw-nut systems or by welding or gluing.
• the support elements according to the invention are not screws or rivets and the heat exchanger according to the invention is preferably devoid of fixing elements of the filter element and.
• said at least one support element may be chosen from a support element secured to the casing, a support element secured to the inlet face, a bearing element integral with the filter element.
• the support element is preferably in abutment against the inlet face of the fluid in the circuit.
• the heat exchanger may include one or more of each of these support members to support the filter element.
• support elements may be arranged on either side of the filter element.
• at least one support element may be disposed at a distance from a peripheral edge of the filter element. This can promote the maintenance of the filter element and limit its deformation.
• Other support elements may advantageously be arranged near the peripheral edge of the filter element.
• said at least one support element is in the form of a rod or rib.
• Such supports have the advantage of limiting the disturbances of the circulating fluid. They can advantageously be arranged substantially parallel to the direction of flow of the fluid, generally substantially perpendicular to the input face of the fluid circuit.
• At least one support element may be a rib integral with the casing and on which the filter element rests on at least a part of its periphery.
• a rib extending substantially parallel or parallel to the input face of the fluid circuit and receiving the filter element bearing on a face parallel to the input face
• a rib extending substantially perpendicularly or perpendicularly to the input face of the fluid circuit, an end of the rib remote from the input face abuts the filter element.
• At least one support member may be a support leg whose one end is integral with the filter element, or the input face, and the other end bears against the inlet face, or receives the filter element in support, respectively.
• a support leg may extend substantially perpendicularly or perpendicularly to the inlet face and may have an end integral with the filter element, or the inlet face, and another end bearing against the face of the inlet, or receiving the filter element in support, respectively.
• a single foot can be in the form of a sleeve.
• at least two support legs preferably at least three, may be provided, the feet being in the form of rods or plates, preferably in the form of rods.
• the support or support feet may be in abutment against the envelope, in particular against its internal face. This can promote the maintenance of the filter element, especially when it is in a substantially vertical position, one or more supporting feet resting on the casing preventing the tilting of the filter element.
• the support feet may then advantageously have a shape complementary to the envelope, in particular of its internal face.
• At least one of said at least one support element and the filter element can be movable between an active position in which said at least one support element bears against the filter element or against the face input and an inactive position in which said at least one support element is not in abutment against the filter element or against the input face.
• the transition from one position to another can be obtained by a rotation, a translation, or a combination of these movements.
• Such an arrangement may allow cooperation by supporting the support element and the filter element or the support element and the input face in a particular position of the support element or the support element. filter element corresponding to the active position. This can prevent a tilting of a substantially vertical filter element.
• This arrangement has the advantage of being simple to implement, inexpensive and allow rapid coupling of the filter element to the envelope.
• the filter element of the exchanger according to the invention may also be in several parts associated by removable fastening means or in several articulated parts. This can make it easier to clean the filter element and can make it possible to easily extract the filter element, in particular by opening the envelope, without having to open the envelope.
• the heat exchange elements of the exchanger according to the invention are tubes.
• the inlet face of one of the fluid circuits extends substantially perpendicular to the axes of the tubes.
• the inlet face can then be defined as a flat surface containing the openings of the tubes and whose contour matches the internal shape of the envelope.
• the filter element is preferably kept at a distance from this inlet face, the fluid flowing inside the tubes.
• the filter element advantageously has an upper open area, especially at least 50%, to the sum of the passing surfaces of the tubes.
• open surface means the passing surface of the filter element, in other words the surface through which a fluid can flow through the filter element.
• the filtering element may have a plurality of meshes or perforations, each mesh or perforation having an open area (SI) smaller than an open area (S2) of a heat exchange element, the internal dimension the more of a mesh or perforation being smaller than the largest internal dimension of a heat exchange element.
• SI open area
• S2 open area
• the filtering element positioned parallel to the inlet face, inside the envelope, may be of the same shape and dimensions as a surface or a section of the inlet face.
• the filtering element comprises a peripheral edge in contact with an inner face of the envelope, possibly with a sufficiently small clearance to prevent the passage of fluid or particles between the inner face of the envelope and the peripheral edge.
• the invention also relates to an industrial unit comprising at least one heat exchanger according to the invention.
• This industrial unit is advantageously a refinery unit.
• the invention finally relates to a heat exchange process between two fluids, in which the fluids are circulated in a heat exchanger according to the invention, one of the fluids being selected from water and hydrocarbons, the another fluid being selected from water, air and hydrocarbons.
• FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a heat exchanger according to one embodiment of the invention.
• - Figure 2 is a partial front view of a filter element
• - Figures 3 and 4 are perspective representations of filter elements provided with support elements according to different embodiments
• - Figures 5, 6a and 7 are views in longitudinal section of a heat exchanger of the type of Figure 1 having a filter element maintained by bearing elements according to other embodiments;
• FIG. 6b is a front view of the filter element and the casing shown in FIG. 6a;
• FIG. 8 is a front view of a filter element according to another embodiment.
• substantially horizontal, longitudinal or vertical means a direction / plane forming an angle of not more than ⁇ 20 °, or not more than 10 ° or not more than 5 ° with a direction / a horizontal, longitudinal or vertical.
• substantially parallel, perpendicular or at right angle is meant a direction / an angle deviating by not more than ⁇ 20 °, or not more than 10 ° or not more than 5 ° from a parallel, perpendicular or from a right angle.
• FIG. 1 represents a heat exchanger 10 comprising a casing 12 which contains an assembly 14 of heat exchange elements 16.
• these heat exchange elements 16 are tubes arranged parallel to one another. These tubes are arranged to allow a circulation of a first fluid Fl in their interior and a circulation of a second fluid F2 between the tubes.
• the assembly 14 of heat exchange elements 16 thus defines a first circulation circuit for a fluid F1 inside the heat exchange elements 16 and a second circulation circuit for the fluid F2.
• Fl fluid enters the first fluid circuit by an inlet face 18.
• This inlet face 18 extends substantially perpendicular to the axes of the tubes 16 and can be defined as a flat surface containing the openings of the tubes and the outline marries the inner shape of the envelope.
• the heat exchanger 10 further comprises a filter element 20 which is disposed inside the casing 12 between the inlet face 18 and an inlet 22 formed in the casing 12 for the fluid inlet Fl.
• This filter element 20 comprises a peripheral edge 20a whose outline matches the inner face 13 of the envelope. There may be a clearance between this peripheral edge 20a and the inner face 13, clearance sufficiently low to prevent the passage of particles between the peripheral edge 20a and the inner face 13 of the envelope.
• the filter element 20 is maintained at a predetermined distance from the inlet face 18 of the first fluid circuit by at least one support element 30.
• the filter element 20 is retained by the filter element 20 and does not penetrate inside the tubular heat exchange elements 16 of the assembly 14. This prevents their clogging.
• the fluid may continue to pass beyond the filter element 20 and may enter all the heat exchange elements 16 so that the heat exchanges with the fluid F2 are not disturbed.
• the latter can be cleaned or extracted easily from the envelope.
• the fact that the filter element is not fixed rigidly to the casing but only supported by one or more support elements 30 makes it easier to mount / dismount the filter and to reduce the assembly / disassembly time.
• the distance between the filter element 20 and the inlet face 18 may be chosen according to the dimensions of the heat exchanger and possibly depending on the nature of the fluids. For a filter element of about 2 meters in diameter, this distance can be of the order of 5 to 10 cm. More generally, the distance can be of the order of 2 to 4 times the diameter of the tubes 16.
• the filter element 20 is plane and may be in the form of a mesh or grid, as can be seen in FIG. 2, or in the form of a perforated flat plate.
• the filter element has a shape and dimensions substantially identical to a section of the envelope 12, which allows to position it inside the envelope, substantially parallel to the inlet face 18.
• the filter element 20 is of the same shape and dimensions as the surface of the face 18.
• the total open area of the filter element 20, which corresponds to the area of passage of a fluid through the filter element is greater than the total opening surface of the elements of the filter element.
• tubular heat exchange 16 that is to say the sum of the inner sections of the tubes 16.
• the open surface of the filter element 20 is preferably sufficiently high to limit the pressure losses.
• the surface SI represents the open surface of a mesh or perforation of the filter element 20 while the surface S2 represents the open surface of a tube 16 of the assembly 14.
• Each mesh or perforation has preferably an open area SI smaller than the open area S2 of a tube 16.
• the largest internal dimension of a mesh or perforation of the filter element 20 is preferably smaller than the internal diameter of the tubes, for example by 10% (approximately).
• the bearing element or elements 30 for supporting the filter element 20 at a distance from the inlet face 18, parallel or substantially parallel thereto, may have various and varied shapes, some of which are described below. with reference to the figures.
• a plurality of support elements 30 are provided, each support element being in the form of feet 301, one end of which is integral with the filter element 20 and the other end of which is bearing against the inlet face 18.
• a filter element 20 of this type is shown in FIG. 3.
• Some of the feet 301 are integral with the periphery of the filter element 20, so that they bear against the face internal 13 of the casing 12 when the filter element 20 is placed inside the casing, as shown in FIG. 1. This arrangement makes it possible to prevent the filter element 20 from tilting, particularly when the latter is in a substantially vertical position.
• Another foot 301 is disposed substantially in the center of the filter element 20.
• the number of feet 301 and their shape can be chosen indifferently provided that they support the filter element 20 away from the face 18, substantially parallel to it.
• one or more feet may be integral with the filter element 20 at a point remote from the peripheral edge 20a, to prevent deformation of the filter element.
• these feet 301 could be integral with the input face 18. Similarly, they are preferably fixed near or along the inner face 13 of the casing 12 but could also be arranged at a distance of it for a better maintenance of the filter element.
• a single sleeve-like bearing element 302 extends over the entire periphery of the filter element 20, forming a support element integrated in the filter element 20.
• this support element 302 could be of smaller dimensions.
• a bearing element 302 of this type could be integral with the inlet face 18, and not with the filter element 20.
• the support elements 30 comprise two ribs 303 integral with the inner face 13 of the envelope 12. These ribs 303 extend substantially parallel to the entry face 18, so as to receiving on one of their face the filter element 20. Two or more ribs 303 may be distributed on the inner face 13 of the casing 12. In a variant not shown, a single rib 303 may extend over the entire periphery of the envelope 12.
• other ribs 304 are provided on the inner face 13 of the casing 12, integral therewith. These ribs 304 are arranged so as to support a face of the filter element 20 opposite the face bearing against the ribs or ribs 303. These ribs 304 may be in the form of tabs, cooperating with corresponding notches 21 of the filter element 20, as shown in Figure 6a (in this figure, the distance between the casing 12 and the periphery of the filter element 20 has been exaggerated for clarity). This makes it possible to translate the filter element 20 into the envelope until it bears against the ribs 303, the filter element 20 being positioned so that the ribs 304 coincide with the ribs 303. notches 21.
• ribs 304 are not limited by a particular number of ribs 304, only one rib may be provided or more than two if necessary.
• ribs 305 are integral with the inner face 13 of the envelope 12 but extend substantially perpendicularly to the inlet face 18, so that their end 306 remote from the inlet face 18 receives bearing the filter element 20.
• the many of these ribs 305 may be variable for example two, preferably three or more.
• the invention is not limited by the number and shape of the support elements 30. It can also be provided that one or more support elements are movable in rotation or in translation.
• the support element 301 shown in FIG. 3 can be articulated to the filter element 20 or be secured thereto by temporary fixing means, which can facilitate the handling of the filter element.
• Ribs secured to the casing may also be connected to the casing so as to be movable between an active position, bearing against the filter element and an inactive position, allowing for example the passage of the filter element. These ribs may for example be connected to the casing by a hinge, a pivot or other, or be mounted movable in translation.
• the different bearing elements described above and with reference to FIGS. 3 to 7 can be combined and can indifferently receive bearing one of the faces of the filtering element 20.
• the filter element 20 may also be made of several parts A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, as shown in FIG. This makes it possible to facilitate its extraction from the envelope 12.
• These different parts AJ can be associated by removable or temporary fixing means, such as for example clipping systems, interlocking systems, screws or the like, or can to be articulated to each other to be folded over each other and facilitate the movement of the filter element.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Thermal Sciences (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Heat-Exchange Devices With Radiators And Conduit Assemblies (AREA)
• Filtering Of Dispersed Particles In Gases (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

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ID=56684046

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

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Family Cites Families (4)

• 2016
  • 2016-05-23 FR FR1654589A patent/FR3051550B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2017
  • 2017-05-23 EP EP17725941.3A patent/EP3465065B1/de active Active
  • 2017-05-23 WO PCT/EP2017/062366 patent/WO2017202821A1/fr unknown

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