EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF LEAKAGE IN SHELL-AND-TUBE HEAT-EXCHANGERS WITH SEGMENTAL BAFFLES

Thermal performance in shell-and-tube heat exchangers with segmental baffles has been experimentally investigated concerning five variables: stream flow direction, shell-side flow rate, tube-side flow rate, clearance between baffles and shell, and distance between baffles. The axial dispersion model has been applied to predict properly the actual thermal performance in the shell-and-tube heat exchanger. The shell-side dispersive Peclet number Pe depends only on the clearance between baffles and shell and on the distance between baffles, while the same heat transfer correlations can be used in all cases.