SWEP DB500

It condenses two separate refrigerant circuits against one water stream. That suits machines with two compressor circuits - the flexible chillers, industrial heat pumps and modular reversible chillers SWEP names for it - because one exchanger replaces two and a circuit can be shut down while the other carries on.

It is the wrong choice in three cases. On a single-circuit machine the second circuit is dead weight. As an evaporator, the DS500 is the model published for that duty on the same outline. And the copper braze rules it out for ammonia, which attacks copper, while chloride-bearing condenser water can pit 316 plates. Condensers covers the duty in general.

SWEP publishes five types for the DB500: threaded, Victaulic, solder, flange and weld. That is the range available on the model, not what a given unit has - each port is specified seperately, and a condenser will commonly have one type on the water side and another on the refrigerant side.

The connection string at the end of the nameplate lists them in port order. Read it rather than judging by eye: a solder connection marked with a U is a universal size that accepts both imperial and metric pipe, and an ampersand marks a combo connection that accepts two methods or sizes. Copy the string exactly onto the quote request and the new unit arrives ready for the pipe that is there.

The pass arrangement is the field after the slash in the designation - /1P is single-pass. The short catalogue form, such as DB500x130, does not show it, so check the nameplate.

A single-pass unit has all of its connections on one cover plate, which is why it is the normal arrangement for a packaged machine. A multi-pass build sends a fluid through the pack more than once, which raises pressure drop and puts connections on both covers. Swapping one for the other is never like-for-like, and it calls for a new rating.

SWEP gives the empty weight as 12.00 kg plus 0.93 kg per plate. A 50-plate unit is therefore about 58.5 kg (129 lb), a 220-plate unit about 217 kg (478 lb), and the 298-plate maximum about 289 kg (637 lb). Water and refrigerant add to that in service.

At those weights the unit needs its own support under or behind the plate pack - a bracket, a base or a frame. The connections are not structural and must not carry the exchanger or the pipework. At 980 mm tall the unit also has a high center of gravity, so restrain it against tipping while the piping is being made up. See Mounting and Piping.

These models are catalogued alongside the DB500. Each has its own page with its dimensions, materials and part numbers.

SWEP B400T - Asymmetric pass arrangement - two passes one side, one the other.

SWEP DB400 - True Dual brazed plate condenser for flexible chillers and climate control, 694 x 304 mm.

SWEP DP400 - True Dual brazed plate evaporator for flexible chillers and climate control, 694 x 304 mm.

SWEP DS400 - True Dual brazed plate evaporator with two refrigerant circuits, 694 x 304 mm, up to 282 plates.

SWEP DV400 - True Dual brazed plate evaporator, 694 x 304 mm, up to 282 plates, Victaulic and solder connections.

SWEP P400T - Copper-brazed 316/316L evaporator on the B400T frame, up to 280 plates, 365.44 GPM max flow.

SWEP S400T - High-capacity chiller evaporator on the B400T frame, 316/316L plates, copper brazed.

SWEP V400T - Copper-brazed 316/316L plate heat exchanger on the B400T frame for high-capacity chiller duty.

SWEP DS500 - True Dual brazed plate evaporator with two refrigerant circuits, 980 x 304 mm, up to 298 plates.