Smooth high alloy tubes

Use of smooth high alloy tubes in otherwise corrosive service has been common practice since the 1950s. Tube metallurgy is selected to minimize corrosion while in service. The tubes therefore maintain their smooth, shiny finish. Without sites for fouling deposits to attach or accumulate, the clean heat-transfer coefficient is maintained. This idea has been used with success in refinery catalytic cracker feed preheat service, placing slurry oil on the tube side and vacuum gas oil on the shell side. 

Caution To prevent galvanic corrosion of the tube bundle, the entire tube bundle should be constructed of the same metallurgy this would include the tube support baffles, tube sheets, and tie rods. 

We also note that while there is an obvious advantage to maintaining smooth, shiny tubes for applications in sensible heat transfer, this may not be true if it is necessary to vaporize liquid in the exchanger. Some of our clients have experienced difficulties due to film heat-transfer resistance and lack of nucleate boiling sites when attempting to use smooth tubes to vaporize relatively pure component liquids. This would be true for high alloy tubes or simply new replacement bundles for bundles of lesser metallurgy. 

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Smooth high alloy tubes Low-finned tubes Sintered metal tubes Spiral heat exchanger Tube inserts Twisted tubes Helical tube support baffles... 

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