Should the water in the water cooler flow through the tube side or the shell side?

(1) Fluids that are dirty or prone to scaling should flow in the tube side, as cleaning inside the tubes is easier. (2) Toxic fluids should also flow in the tube side, thereby reducing the risk of leaks. (3) Fluids with high pressure should be routed through the tube side, so as to avoid stress being applied to the shell as well. (4) Corrosive fluids ought to flow in the tube side, to prevent both the tube bundle and the shell from being corroded, and to facilitate cleaning and maintenance. (5) The fluid that needs to be cooled should flow in the shell side, as this aids heat dissipation and improves the cooling effect. (6) If there is a large temperature difference between the two fluids, the fluid with a higher α value should be sent to the shell side, in order to reduce the temperature difference between the tube walls and the shell walls. (7) Fluids with low flow rates or high viscosity should flow in the shell side; the baffle plates can help achieve turbulence at low Reynolds numbers (Re>100), or multiple tube passes can also be used inside the tubes. (8) Saturated steam should flow in the shell side, as this facilitates the removal of condensate and non-condensable gases, and the steam remains clean and does not cause contamination. In practical applications, it is often not possible to take all of the above principles into account simultaneously, as they may conflict with each other. In such cases, it is necessary to consider the actual situation and focus on the most important factors as the basis for making a decision.

What I’ve seen is that in some cases, the circulating water flows through the tube side, while in other cases it flows through the shell side; it’s quite confusing. The choice is made based on practical considerations. However, when different designers focus on different aspects, the same system might have the circulating water flowing through either the tube side or the shell side. Yet an experienced engineer I met once said that the difference in cooling efficiency between having the water flow through the tube side or the shell side isn’t that significant; it’s better to consider the properties of the material as a whole

In our factory’s water coolers, water flows through the tube side; the shell side has a large heat exchange area. Additionally, water has a high specific heat capacity, which results in a small temperature rise and thus helps to cool the substance being cooled. I read what was on floor 2 and learned a lot more.

It is determined by the properties of the medium that requires heat exchange as to which side the fluid will flow in. For media with high viscosity, corrosive properties, toxicity, or volatility, it is generally the case that the medium flows in the tube side while water flows in the shell side.

Who belongs to the management layer and who belongs to the shell layer depends on the specific properties of the material. What was said on the second floor is very comprehensive; generally, if the material being cooled doesn’t have any special properties, it tends to be placed in the shell layer, as this yields a better cooling effect

In a water cooler, water generally flows through the tube side; however, if the material to be cooled tends to crystallize or solidify easily, or if there are many scaling impurities present, water can flow through the shell side. It depends.

Water generally flows through the tube side, but in some cases it flows through the shell side depending on the actual conditions. For example, the fluid to be cooled should flow through the shell side, as this facilitates heat dissipation and improves the cooling effect. Additionally, when there is a large temperature difference between the two fluids, it is advisable to let the fluid with a higher α value flow through the shell side, thereby reducing the temperature difference between the tube walls and the shell walls

This really isn’t very clear; what’s mentioned above also makes sense

What I usually see is people following the pipe-based approach; I don’t know why. Now I’m learning it with everyone else