Plate heat exchanger cleaning
The Buchen Group has been operating a modern service centre for cleaning and servicing plate heat exchangers (PHE) at the Merseburg location since 2009. Long before the service centre was opened, the customer was greatly interested in the proper cleaning of plate heat exchangers.
Plate heat exchangers are used in all kinds of industrial fields and sectors; for instance in the food and beverage industry, in power plants, the cosmetics or automotive industry as well as in district heating and air-conditioning technology. It is impossible to imagine modern production processes without them.
Compared to the tube bundle heat exchangers that are also very common in the industry, plate heat exchangers (PHE) are substantially smaller and thus save space. They also require a lower investment and have higher performance.
Ensuring optimal heat transfer urgently requires flawless cleaning of the plate heat exchangers. The narrow distance between individual plates obstructs or even blocks the flow of the media involved in the heat transfer very slightly through pollution. The manufacturer-side servicing costs for gasketed plate heat exchangers are disproportionate high as compared to the purchase though.
In the PHE service centre of the Buchen Group, plate heat exchangers of all makes are reconditioned. That means they are cleaned in a chemical immersion bath, tested and equipped with new seals. The plates are tested in accordance with DIN EN ISO 3452.
Professionally trained personnel and state-of-the-art technology additionally allow the Buchen Group to offer customers plate heat exchanger cleaning in place, which is also known as CIP.The complete service also comprises the cleaning, professional dismantling and reassembly of the plate heat exchangers as well as replacement of seals with initial fitting-out quality.
This service is naturally also offered in explosion-proof zones. As a specialist in this field, the Buchen Group helps its customers reduce the costs for regular service to an economically agreeable load, improve processes in the long run, and reduce downtimes.
The Buchen Group is now recognised nationwide for its high-quality service. Today, the company delivers to numerous major customers in the energy and food industries. Customers benefit from short response times through the nationwide presence of Buchen, high flexibility and the resulting fast reestablishment of plate heat exchanger performance.
A plate heat exchanger (PHE) is a special version of a heat exchanger. It consists of wavy embossed plates that are connected in such a way so that the media to be heated and the media to radiate heat each flow in the successive spaces. The embossing of the plates creates a highly turbulent flow. This enables very effective heat transfer even with low volume flow rates.
The plate package is sealed to the outside and between the media and can be held together with tensioning screws, for instance. Their special design makes (gasketed) plate heat exchangers very easily expandable and very flexible regarding the design of the flow guide, which is determined by the position of the seals.