SWEP F120T

Yes, in place, by circulating a cleaning solution through the fouled side. A brazed pack has no gaskets and no frame to open, so there is no mechanical cleaning; the chemistry does the work. Circulate against the normal flow direction so debris is lifted back out of the channel entries, then flush thoroughly and neutralize.

The solution has to be safe for both 316/316L stainless and copper braze - a cleaner chosen for stainless alone can attack the braze. Clean when the pressure drop or the approach starts to drift, not after the channels have blocked. A unit that has scaled solid or frozen is past cleaning. Cleaning in Place has the procedure.

One that stops anything larger than the published maximum particle size of 1 mm. That figure is the largest particle the channels will pass; anything bigger lodges at the channel entries and stays there, because a brazed unit cannot be opened to pull it out.

Fit the strainer immediately upstream on the water side, with isolation valves so the basket can be cleaned without draining the loop. On an evaporator a blinded strainer is more than a nuisance: reduced water flow is the usual route to a freeze-up. Pipe scale and weld slag from a new installation are the common culprits, so check the basket in the first days of running and again after any work on the loop.

It is the most the ports will carry - 27.4 m3/h - not a recommended operating point. Practical design flows sit well under it, because pressure drop climbs steeply as the ports approach their limit.

The F120T can be built up to 250 plates, and plates lower the channel pressure drop, but the port loss stays. When the water flow needed is near the ceiling, or the available pump head is small, step up to a frame with larger ports.

The pass arrangement is written after the slash in the designation: 1P is single pass, where each fluid crosses the plate pack once and all connections can sit on the front cover. SWEP's example designation for this model, F120TH/D-SC-M, carries a D in that position rather than 1P, so read your own nameplate rather than assuming.

Multi-pass builds turn a fluid back through the pack to lengthen its path, which helps when the temperature change is large against a small flow. The price is higher pressure drop and connections on both covers, so the piping reaches the back of the unit. A single-pass unit cannot stand in for a multi-pass one without re-piping. The Model Number Guide breaks the designation down.

Upright, plates vertical. As an evaporator or economizer it handles two-phase refrigerant, which needs gravity working with it: liquid in at the bottom, vapor out at the top. The water runs counter-current to the refrigerant for the closest approach.

This is a large unit - a high plate count F120T weighs over 100 kg - so it sits on a bracket or stand, never on its connections. Give the pipework its own supports close to the unit and allow for thermal movement in long runs. Keep it away from sources of pulsation and water hammer, which fatigue the braze joints.

These models are catalogued alongside the F120T. Each has its own page with its dimensions, materials and part numbers.

SWEP B120T - The widely stocked mid-large frame, to 250 plates.

SWEP P120T - A copper-brazed 316/316L evaporator on the 120T frame with six catalogued connection types.

SWEP V120T - Evaporator on the B120T frame, 525 x 243 mm, up to 250 plates, 120.64 GPM max flow.