Thermal Evaporator Design  465

From Equations 17.3 and 17.9:

V0 HV0 − CHC = F(H L − H F ) + V (HV − H L ) (17.10)

where V0 is steam rate (kg·h−1), HV0 is enthalpy of heated vapor (kJ·kg−1) and HC is
enthalpy of condensate heated vapor.
In this case, the heat of vaporization (∆HV0) is defined as follows:

∆HV0 = HV0 − HC (17.11)

From Equations 17.8, 17.10 and 17.11:

V0 ∆HV0 = F(H L − H F ) + V∆HV (17.12)

where the difference between the enthalpy of emitted vapor and enthalpy of concen-
trated liquid approximately equals the latent heat of vaporization for solvent or water
in the tested liquid (ΔHV).
Also, the energy balance (Equation 17.12) may be written in terms of latent heat of
vaporization and specific heat as follows:

Q = V0 ∆HV0 = FCp (θ − θ F ) + V∆HV (17.13)

where θ is the boiling temperature of the liquid in the evaporator, θF is the temperature
of the feed, Cp is the specific heat of the feed, and Q is the rate of heat transfer (kJ·h−1)
or heat exchanged. Generally, the units for Q are W (J·s−1) or kW (kJ·s−1).
Thus, the steam requirement is:

FCp (θ − θ F ) + V∆HV
V0 = (17.14)
∆HV0

Also, if the liquid feed in the evaporator is about at its boiling temperature (θ ≈ θF),
the steam flow rate approximately equals the emitted vapor flow rate. In this case,
the condensation of 1 kg of steam will evaporate 1 kg of water from the solution.

Types of Evaporator

Many types of evaporator are used for the concentration of liquid food. The choice of
evaporator may be determined according to the properties of the liquid food, such as
high viscosity or heavy solids, heat transfer property, maintenance required, past plant
experience, and energy and cost factors. Some common types used in the food industry
are described in Chen and Hernandez (1997), Saravacos and Kostaropoulos (2002),
Glover (2004), and Ali Adib (2008).
466  Handbook of Food Process Design: Volume I

Figure 17.2  A schematic diagram of a jacketed evaporator.

Double-jacketed and Coil Evaporators

The double-jacketed evaporator (Figure 17.2) was the first evaporator to use vapor for
heating. The heat can be supplied through a steam jacket or through coils. The overall
heat transfer varies between 300 and 1200 W·m−2·°C−1 depending on solution viscosity.
Such evaporators are simple and low in capital cost, but have expensive running (heat)
costs. In these two types of evaporator, the heated surface is submerged below a free
surface of liquid at its boiling temperature (referred to as pool boiling). Double-jacketed
evaporators are recommended when good mixing is required, the product is very
viscous, and ease of cleaning is important. They are not recommended for temperature-
sensitive products or products containing solids. Coil evaporators are used for small-
capacity products that are difficult to handle; the spiral flow also reduces fouling.

Horizontal Tube Evaporator

In this type of evaporator (Figure 17.3), the steam condenses at the heat-exchange
surface in the tubes. It is the only type of evaporator in which the heating medium is
inside the tubes (Glover, 2004). Where the heat-exchange surface is submerged in the
boiling liquid, it is referred to as pool boiling. An overall heat transfer coefficient of
2500 W·m−2·°C−1 is commonly found for water at atmospheric pressure when the tem-
perature difference (steam/boiling liquid) equals 25 °C (Leleu, 1992). Horizontal tube
evaporators are used for nonscaling liquids, for small-capacity evaporation, and when
headroom is limited.
 Thermal Evaporator Design  467

Emitted vapor

Feed in
Steam

Steam Concentrate out

condensate

Figure 17.3  A schematic diagram of a horizontal tube evaporator.

Emitted vapor out

Feed in

Steam in

C
Condensate out

Concentrate out

Figure 17.4  A schematic diagram of a vertical short-tube evaporator.

Vertical Short-tube Evaporator (Robert)

This evaporator consists of a vertical body with an array of tubes 2.5–3.5 m long and
33–46 mm inside diameter (Figure 17.4). Because it operates at higher temperatures
and high residence times (10–20 min), it is less suitable for heat-sensitive liquids. It is
used with products that are not sensitive to heat such as sugar solutions (Chen and
Hernandez, 1997). The liquid is fed into the lower part of the calandria where it is
heated and boils, the emitted vapor bubbles rise in the tubes, and the circulation of
liquid is spontaneous. The concentrate exits down the central well and is also returned
for subsequent effect. In this case, the optimal level of liquid should be between
468  Handbook of Food Process Design: Volume I

one-fifth and one-third the height of the tubes, because this has an important effect
on the heat transfer coefficient. These evaporators produce high heat transfer rates at
high temperature differences. Overall heat transfer coefficients range from 1000 to
1500 W·m−2·°C−1 (Chen and Hernandez, 1997) depending on liquid viscosity and tem-
perature difference (steam/boiling liquid). An overall heat transfer coefficient of
2600 W·m−2·°C−1 is usually found for water at atmospheric pressure (Leleu, 1992). The
advantages of the short-tube evaporator include high heat transfer rates at high tem-
perature differences, low headroom, suitable for liquids with moderate tendency to
scale, ease of cleaning, and low initial investment. Disadvantages include relatively
high liquid holdup and poor heat transfer rates at low temperature difference or high
viscosity; it is not suitable for temperature-sensitive materials and for crystalline
products.

Rising Film Evaporator

In these evaporators, the liquid is pumped to the bottom of the evaporator and rises
through the tubes under vacuum (forced convection) and the heated steam is con-
densed outside the tubes (Figure 17.5). Four zones may be identified. The liquid zone

Vapor out

Air purge

Steam in

Concentrate out

Condensate

Feed in

Figure 17.5  A schematic diagram of a rising film evaporator.

 Thermal Evaporator Design  469

at the bottom of the evaporator produces bubbles at the surface that grow and are
carried in the mainstream of the liquid. The volume fraction of vapor increases and
individual bubbles coalesce to form vapor “slugs” (second zone). The slug zone is fol-
lowed by an annular flow zone where the liquid forms a film. This film moves along
the inner surface, while vapor moves at greater velocity through the core of the tube,
and finally the liquid forms droplets in the vapor (mist). However, it is recommended
that this final zone is not attained in this type of evaporator; more details of two-phase
flow are provided by Incropera and Dewitt (2002). Therefore, temperature differences
and overall heat transfer coefficients can be quite dissimilar at the bottom and the top
of the evaporator. Because of static head and pressure drop, boiling points increase at
the bottom of the evaporator by 5–10 °C and holdup times vary between 2 and 3 min
(Chen and Hernandez, 1997). In this type of evaporator, the heat transfer coefficient
is still high because shear is raised along the inner tube surface, even for liquids
assumed to be very viscous. Typical evaporators have vertical stainless steel tubes 7 m
long on average and they are commonly used for the concentration of tomato and for
sugar solutions. An overall heat transfer coefficient of 3000 W·m−2·°C−1 is usually found
for water at atmospheric pressure (Leleu, 1992). This type of evaporator is one of the
most widely used tubular evaporators (Glover, 2004). The advantages of rising film
evaporators are ability to handle foamy liquids, relatively high heat transfer coeffi-
cient, and reduced floor space requirements. The disadvantages are high headroom
requirement, that the hydrostatic head at the bottom of the tubes may increase
product temperature (so not recommended for heat-sensitive materials), and that
there is a lower pressure drop through the tubes compared with the falling film
evaporator.

Vertical Tube Falling Film Evaporator

This type of evaporator is common in the food industry. The advantages of thin falling
film evaporators are the high heat transfer coefficients at low temperature differences,
minimum static head, short residence time, and relatively low cost. Thus they are
usually recommended for heat-sensitive materials such as fruit juice, whey, sugar
solutions, and milk (Yih, 1986; Glover, 2004). In contrast, these types of evaporator
are not suited for scaling or salting materials.
Figure 17.6 shows that liquid is fed into the upper portion of vertical tubes using a
special distributor (Minton, 1986; Yih, 1986). The main problem associated with
falling film units is the need to distribute the liquid evenly to all tubes. It then flows
downward as a film on the inner surface of the tubes. Normally, a distribution system
is installed above the tube sheet. A typical distributor system consists of a flat-bottom
container with holes (5–8 mm in diameter) that allows liquid to flow onto the flat tube
sheet between the evaporator tubes (Marison et al., 2006). Typically, the entire surface
of the tube is wetted. The process requires sufficient flow, expressed as mass flow rate
per unit of perimeter length (Γ, kg·s−1·m−1). The vapor emitted at the surface of the
boiling liquid is drained downward in the center of the tube and as the momentum
470  Handbook of Food Process Design: Volume I

Feed in

Liquid distributors

Steam in

Emitted vapor out

Condensate

Concentrate out

Figure 17.6  A schematic diagram of a vertical tube falling film evaporator.

of the vapor accelerates the downward movement, the liquid film becomes thinner.
Both liquid and vapor leave the tube toward the bottom of the evaporator, where phase
separation takes place. An overall heat transfer coefficient of 4000 W·m−2·°C−1 is usually
found for water at atmospheric pressure (Leleu, 1992).
Others types of evaporator may be found, such as forced circulation evaporator,
horizontal tube falling film evaporator, and plate type evaporator (Minton, 1986;
Sacadura, 2000; Incropera and Dewitt, 2002).

Heat Transfer Coefficient in Evaporators

Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient

According to the heat transfer equation, the overall heat transfer coefficient U needs
to be estimated when designing an evaporator. The heat transfer equation describing
heat transferred from the heating steam to the final product being evaporated is:

Q = V0 ∆HV = UA∆θ (17.15)