02-04: Anatomy of Enhanced Heat Exchanger Tubing

Conservation of mass and energy are widely accepted as fundamental laws of classic science. During the last quarter of the Twentieth Century, these same precepts became business mandates. Surface condenser manufacturers mutated traditional straight heat exchanger tubes under these mandates to enhanced species. Heat exchangers equipped with enhanced tubes are often claimed to conserve energy by 20-35%. Their work examines some typical examples of commercial enhanced tubing and discusses some of the shortcomings observed when enhanced heat exchanger tubing is removed from service.