 |
The main advantages of longitudinally finned tubes are as follows:
- By increasing heat transfer surface, the size of the heat exchanger, mainly its diameter, can be reduced. This is particularly of interest in high pressure services since weight and thus price are reduced.
- 1 meter of finned tube 1 inch outside diameter with 16 fins 1/2 high, provides a surface equivalent to 8 meters of bare tube.
- By increasing the surface, fouling and coking are reduced since wall temperature is lower, for an equivalent heat transfer.
- For instance, with 200°C steam tube side and a 25°C hydrocarbon shell side, skin temperature of the tube described before would be 185°C with bare tube and only 125°C with finned tubes.
|
