Industrial heat exchangers
Heat exchangers to support more fluid types, pressure ratings, and applications
Industrial heat exchangers
Heat exchangers that can handle the limits of your operations
Industrial heat exchangers play a vital role in keeping systems operational, efficient, and performing at their best. In the event of a heat exchanger failure, planned downtime, or specific seasonal conditions, you need a solution that’s easy to install and tailored to your wider system.
At Aggreko, we provide a wide range of industrial heat exchanger equipment, capable of handling a wide range of temperatures. But we also provide the specialist knowledge it takes to find the perfect fit for your wider HVAC system, process heating or cooling, whether that’s shell-and-tube, shell-and-plate, fin-and-fan, or fan-coil exchangers.
Turnkey solutions
24/7 remote monitoring
Process engineering
Safe and sustainable
Heat exchanger types
The right industrial heat exchanger for every HVAC set-up
All industrial heat exchangers transfer heat, but there are multiple types available. Finding the right one for you means understanding your heat exchanger applications, as well as your wider HVAC system including chillers and heaters.
Plate-and-frame heat exchangers
Plate-and-frame heat exchangers use metal plates to move heat, mounted in a robust frame. These are most commonly used for heat transfer from liquids, offering high levels of efficiency at a low cost and in a small footprint.
Shell-and-plate heat exchangers
Plate-type heat exchangers are frequently used to move heat from liquids, but a shell configuration allows for much higher pressures than frame alternatives.
Shell-and-tube heat exchangers
Shell-and-tube heat exchangers are widely used, particularly in the food and beverage industry. They’re able to perform under high levels of pressure and across a wide range of temperatures.
Fin fan heat exchangers
A finned-tube heat exchanger uses fans to cool fluids through air, most often to cool process fluids. Common applications include petrochemical, chemical, and refining processes.
Fan-coil heat exchangers
Also known as an air-coil heat exchanger, a fan-coil heat exchanger uses two transfer methods at once: water flowing through coils and air moved by fans. As a result, it delivers high levels of efficiency and performance.
Enabling complex and challenging industrial heat exchanger applications
- Improve continuity through planned and unplanned maintenance with fast, flexible rental heat exchanger. Whether you’re dealing with fouled, corroded heat exchangers or upgrading your equipment, we’ll rapidly deploy a right-sized heat exchanger.
- Address seasonal temperature changes by scaling your HVAC heat exchangers to match demand. We help industrial and commercial customers tackle temperature-sensitive processes like wastewater cooling.
- Conserve and recover heat to increase efficiency and reduce environmental impact. Our heat exchanger HVAC solutions can help you drive costs down by controlling and repurposing heat more effectively.
- Improve and optimize your processes with insights from Aggreko Process Services (APS). Our senior process engineers are ready to design a turnkey solution around your challenges, leveraging the wide choice of heat exchangers available across our fleet.
FAQ
A heat exchanger is a device used to transfer heat between two fluids without mixing them. It works by directing one fluid through a system of tubes or plates while another fluid flows around or through a separate section, allowing heat energy to pass between them. This process is critical for heating, cooling, condensation, and energy recovery in industrial and commercial applications.
Heat exchangers are designed to maximize heat transfer efficiency, often using materials such as stainless steel or aluminum, which have excellent thermal conductivity and resistance to corrosion. Their efficiency depends on surface area, flow rate, and temperature differential between the fluids.
There are three primary types of heat exchangers, each designed for specific applications:
- Shell and tube heat exchangers: These consist of a bundle of tubes enclosed within a cylindrical shell. One fluid flow through the tubes, while another circulates around them inside the shell. Designed for high-pressure and high-temperature industrial applications, they are commonly used in power plants, oil refineries, and other demanding industrial environments.
- Plate and frame heat exchangers: These use a series of thin metal plates stacked together to increase surface area, improving heat transfer. They are widely used in food processing, HVAC systems, and chemical production, where precise temperature control is essential.
- Air-cooled heat exchangers: These exchangers use fans to move air over finned tubes, cooling the fluid inside. They are ideal for locations with limited water supply, such as power generation plants and remote industrial sites.
Heat exchangers are used to regulate temperatures, improve efficiency, and enhance safety in a variety of industries. Common applications include:
- Cooling and heating industrial fluids in chemical processing plants and refineries.
- Energy generation, where they transfer waste heat to improve energy efficiency.
- HVAC systems, where they regulate indoor climate and air conditioning.
- Food and beverage processing, where they pasteurize and cool liquids such as milk, beer, and sauces.
- Data centers, where they prevent overheating of server equipment by transferring excess heat away from cooling loops.
Heat exchangers are essential in multiple industries, including:
- Oil and gas: used for cooling and heating crude oil, gas processing, and refinery operations.
- Chemical processing: used to support reactor cooling, solvent recovery, and safe temperature regulation for exothermic reactions.
- Food and beverage: used to ensure hygienic heat transfer for processes such as pasteurization and fermentation.
- Energy generation: plays a role in steam turbines, cooling loops, and waste heat recovery systems.
- Pharmaceutical and biotech: maintaining precise temperature control for sensitive materials.
With customizable designs and a wide range of configurations, heat exchangers support nearly every industrial sector.
Yes, we provide customized heat exchanger solutions for industries requiring strict compliance with safety and hygiene standards, including:
- Food-grade heat exchangers: designed for pasteurization, sterilization, and beverage cooling, using stainless steel materials to meet FSSAI food safety regulations.
- Petrochemical servicing: we offer high-pressure, corrosion-resistant exchangers for refineries, chemical plants, and offshore operations.
- With fast deployment, engineering support, and a diverse fleet, we ensure industry-specific solutions that maintain safety, efficiency, and compliance.
We offer rapid deployment of heat exchangers, with delivery and installation timelines based on:
- Equipment availability: our large fleet allows for immediate dispatch in most cases.
- Project scoping: our engineering teams assess site conditions to determine the best solution.
- Installation logistics: our units are pre-assembled with accessories for easy setup and connection.
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