(201e) Reboilers with Plate-Fin Brazed Aluminum Heat Exchangers: Best Practices and Considerations for Design and Operation

Brazed Aluminum Heat Exchangers (BAHX) are used in cryogenic reboiler applications for natural gas processing and ethylene production industries. In these applications, plant operating conditions are changing constantly due to changing economic factors or inlet gas composition. This makes operation of the equipment challenging.

This presentation will outline best practices and considerations for the design and operation of BAHX reboilers that will help maximize the lifetime of the BAHX and help promote more robust plant operation. Considerations will include piping, flow stability, and heat exchanger design. A summary and references for operating guidelines will be included. Some examples of consequences from not following best practices will be shown.