In petrochemical units, the use of threaded tubes as the heat exchange tubes outside the top circulation heat exchanger for vacuum and atmospheric distillation crude oil results in poor performance
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The figure below shows that the use of spiral tubes in the top circulation heat exchanger bundle for vacuum and atmospheric distillation of petrochemical crude oil does not yield good results. Outside the shell is crude oil at a temperature of around 180 degrees; after nearly a year of use, the heat exchange tubes have become covered with oil scale, rendering them ineffective for heat exchange.
It is necessary to consider regular cleaning of the coiled tube heat exchanger, as well as periodic inspection and removal of oil deposits within the pipes to maintain efficient heat exchange. At the same time, it is possible to assess whether more efficient heat exchange technologies or material improvements are needed to enhance system performance, such as using heat exchange tube materials with higher resistance to fouling, or improving the hydrodynamic design to reduce oil deposit accumulation. .