Exchanger offers hygienic cooling

Published: 2-Mar-2002


Alfa Laval has introduced a new type of compact heat exchanger for the pharmaceutical and other industries requiring high hygiene standards. Called the Pharma-X, the unit is specifically designed for cooling water for injection (WFI) at the point of use.

It uses a combination of tubes and spirals to achieve high levels of thermal efficiency, close temperature approaches and, under the right conditions, temperature cross. It consists of three tubes inserted into each other between which spirals are fixed. These not only maintain the correct tube spacing but also create turbulent flow that improves heat transfer and reduces the risk of fouling by eliminating dead spots. The three tubes are bent through 180° to create a leak-free structure.

Product flows through the central tube while the heating or cooling medium flows through the inner and outer tubes. The design is resistant to thermal fatigue induced by frequent temperature fluctuations and has a very small hold-up volume compared with conventional exchangers, making it very responsive to process changes.

The Pharma-X can be drained completely on the product side and is easy to steam in place, making it easy to prepare for new process streams.

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