The tower and the reboiler at its base are vertical; the equipment flanges are connected directly to each other without any pipes. Is this a good approach?
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As the title suggests, it’s a vertical tower with a reboiler at its base; the equipment flanges are connected directly to each other, without any pipes in between. Is this a good approach? Are there any standards that address this issue?
This works fine; it’s best to add an expansion joint in the middle to avoid the effects of installation size errors.
It depends on how long the tubes built into the reboiler are; it would be best if the original poster could send a picture for reference.
It is recommended to have isolation valves; in the event of a failure in the reboiler that requires maintenance, it can be isolated. Otherwise, if there is a leak inside the reboiler, maintenance would require removing all the material from the entire tower and performing a complete replacement, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive.
I’ve seen it in previous projects; now that it’s my turn to make decisions, I’m too scared to do it. The design temperature is 135°; it seems that both heat exchangers are stacked on top of each other, and there should be no problem with the nozzle-to-nozzle connection
It can be done this way. However, there are specific requirements regarding the lugs of the reboiler: they should have oblong holes, and PTFE gaskets should be used. Most importantly, the height is critical – it is necessary to find the right setting so that the reboiler and the tower outlet have the same degree of thermal expansion. If this point can be found, this can be done. It won’t work if it can’t be found. This requires your company’s pipeline stress specialists to carry out the calculations; only after those calculations can it be determined whether it is feasible or not.
The most important thing is to pay attention to the height; finding the right point... What does that mean? How should we understand this?
In other words, the height of the supports on the reboiler needs to be calculated based on the temperatures in the tube side and shell side of both the tower and the reboiler. Find the appropriate lugs height to minimize stress on the pipe opening.
Is the calculation for this position done by the stress engineering team?
Yes, the stress values are determined through calculations