WRITE-UP FOR BITUMEN COOLER

A. Type of heat exchanger

The bitumen cooler is designed as a forced draft air cooler heat exchanger. Hot bitumen enters the tube bundle from the top and is cooled by ambient air flowing up from the bottom of the tube bundle. Cold bitumen leaves from the bottom of the air cooler. Direction of air flow is from bottom to top and the hot air is left to the atmosphere. Rectangular header boxes on either sides of the tube bundle are provided to take care of the bitumen flow across the various tube passes. Removable plugs are provided to ensure that individual tubes are accessible for cleaning purpose. The tubes are provided with aluminium fins to increase the heat transfer effectiveness. Tube support arrangements are made to avoid sagging of tubes. A forced draft fan below the tube bundle pushes ambient air through the bundle to remove heat from the hot bitumen. The fan is driven by a toothed belt drive connected to an electric motor. A plenum chamber is provided to ensure proper distribution of air across the face of the tube bundle. The tube bundle, plenum chamber, fan and motor assembly are all mounted on a steel structure to ensure that the fan has enough ground clearance for proper air flow. Fan and motor are sized based on the air quantity required for effective heat transfer and the air pressure drop through the bundle. Design of these air cooled heat exchangers is done as per ASME Sec. VIII Div. 1 and API 661 standards. The rectangular headers are designed as per Appendix 13 of ASME Sec. VIII Div.1. Refer to the figures on following pages for a clear understanding of the arrangement.

B.

Special provisions in bitumen cooler Due to the very high viscosity of bitumen, tube inserts are considered. These tube inserts increase the turbulence while bitumen flows inside the tubes. This increased turbulence leads to an increase in the heat transfer rates and thus reduces the size and cost of the installation. On the flip side, the increased turbulence leads to an increase in the pressure drop due to bitumen flow inside the tubes with tube inserts. In the absence of tube inserts, the unit size becomes very big and also the bitumen flow velocities are very less, further reducing the heat transfer effectiveness.

C.

Details of the design proposed for bitumen cooler The proposed tube bundle configuration of bitumen cooler is as given below. Tube size Number of tubes Type of fin Fin height Fin density Number of tube rows Tube layout Number of passes : : : : : : : : 25 mm OD x 2.5 mm thick x 3000 mm long 300 Embedded (G-fin), Aluminium fins 12.5 mm 433 fins per meter 6 Staggered 2
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D.

Other enhancements that can be considered for better control The following additional features may be considered (based on actual process control requirements) to have better control on the air cooler performance. 1. Provision of louvers above the tube bundle to control performance to a limited extent. 2. Provision of steam coil below the tube bundle to facilitate smooth start-up when bitumen inside the tube bundle is at ambient temperature. This will ensure easy flowability of bitumen under these conditions. 3. Slope all tubes towards the outlet direction to ensure complete drainability of bitumen from the cooler. 4. Provision of VFD to drive the fan motor. This will give fine control on the air flow rate and the heat transfer performance of the unit.

E.

Typical tube bundle assembly

Finned tubes

Side frames

Rectangular header box

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F.

Typical air cooled heat exchanger assembly with two fans

Tube bundle assembly

Plenum

Fan ring Support structure

Typically, to conserve space at grade level, air coolers are installed on top of pipe racks.

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