Enhancement of Heat Transfer through Improved Hydrodynamics of Hydrocarbon Coolant Flow in Tubular Apparatus

Abstract Heat exchangers play a vital role in various industrial sectors, facilitating efficient heat transfer for heating, cooling, evaporation, and condensation processes. However, conventional heat exchangers operating in laminar or transitional flow regimes often suffer from low heat transfer efficiency. This study presents an experimental investigation aimed at enhancing heat transfer in a double-tube heat exchanger by incorporating rod-shaped inserts inside the inner tube. The experimental setup consists of a horizontally mounted concentric tube heat exchanger with an inner tube of 20 mm diameter and varying rod diameters (10 mm, 12 mm, and 15 mm). A gas condensate vapor is used as the heat carrier, while crude oil and gas condensate serve as the working fluids. The objective is to assess the impact of rod diameter on the heat transfer coefficient and overall heat exchanger performance. The experiments were conducted at raw material flow rates of 2, 6, 10, and 14 kg/min, covering different flow regimes. Temperature measurements were taken at the inlet and outlet of the heat exchanger to evaluate the improvement in heat transfer performance. The results demonstrate that the insertion of rods significantly enhances the heat transfer coefficient by increasing turbulence and promoting more efficient heat exchange. A rod diameter of 15 mm yielded the highest improvement in thermal performance, achieving a substantial increase in outlet temperature compared to the standard tube. This study provides valuable insights into optimizing heat exchanger design by using tubular inserts to improve hydrodynamic flow conditions. The findings have practical applications in the oil refining, chemical, and energy industries, where efficient heat transfer is critical for operational effectiveness and energy savings.