Plate And Frame Heat Exchanger Cleaning

Fairtex Group provides plate and frame heat exchanger cleaning services, and it has grown in popularity over the last couple of decades relative to shell and tube heat exchangers. Generally, plate and frame heat exchangers are more efficient and take up less space than shell and tube heat exchangers. These factors have helped drive interest in plate and frame heat exchangers as an alternative to shell and tube exchangers.

There are two methods for cleaning plate and frame heat exchangers: cleaning in place, which is done by circulating chemicals through the channels of the plate and frame heat exchanger, or disassembling the plates from the frame and cleaning the plates individually, either with pressurized water, chemicals, or a mechanical method.

We use chemical cleaning, which involves circulating a specialized descaler through the cooling water side of the plate and frame exchanger. The descaler is typically an acid that would be matched to the deposit composition prior to the job. The acid is inhibited, which means that it will dissolve the deposit on the metal, but it will not damage the actual metal. These descalers are safe for all common types of material, including titanium, copper-nickel, stainless steel, etc.

The Fairtex Group process works by connecting a pump to the bottom port of the plate and frame heat exchanger. The pump injects a descaler and water solution into the heat exchanger. The exit point is the top port of the exchanger. Once the solution is in the exchanger, it is typically circulated for about 8 hours. While the solution is circulating, it dissolves the debris between the plates of the exchanger. The last step of the process is a water flush, and then the unit will be clean enough to return to service.

Disassembling and Cleaning Each Plate

When we clean a PHE manually, the first step is to dismantle the heat exchanger according to the manufacturer's instructions. Each piece is carefully disassembled and moved to a central location with ample space for a thorough cleaning.

Next, we manually apply a cleaning agent to each plate to remove any debris that may have accumulated during the operation of the heat exchanger. This is followed by a deep rinse of the agent with a combination of soft bristle brushes and a high-pressure washer. After the plates are completely rinsed, we reassemble the exchanger and put it back into service.