Heat Exchanger Design
NeoTherm Consulting supports you throughout the various phases of your heat exchanger project with the following offers :
Pre-sizing and Sizing
- Checking and analyzing the specifications
- Proposal of suitable technological solutions (tubular, plate, etc.)
- Thermal sizing of heat exchangers / Creation of rough drawings
- Simulation under different conditions and sensitivity study
- Technical and economic feasibility study, with cost estimatation
- Identify manufacturers and put them in touch with industrial partners
Simulation and Performance Analysis
- Verification of existing sizing in the event of a change of operation
- Comparison of performance results
- Adjustment of calculation models (model/testing/CFD recalibration)
- Simulation of new operating conditions (overload, partial load, retrofit)
- Performance analysis for various operating scenarios
- Techno-economic study of optimization or replacement solutions
Technologies covered
NeoTherm Consulting can design any type of heat exchanger, whatever the technology used :
- Tubular : shell and tube heat exchangers (STHE, all TEMA types), corrugated tubes, circular finned tubes, finned coils, coiled (CWHE), mini and micro channels
- Plates : plates and gaskets (PGHE), brazed plates (BPHE), welded plates (WPHE), plates and fins (PFHE), plates and shell (PSHE), pillow plates, spiral heat exchangers (SPHE)
Types of fluids studied
We work with a wide variety of fluids, including :
- Fluids Newtonians and non-Newtonian
- Gas, fumes, steam, refrigerants (including natural refrigerants type CO₂, NH₃)
- Fluids of high viscosities, food products, complex effluents
« Our aim: to optimize your thermal performance while respecting technical, economic and environmental constraints. »
Heat Exchanger Expertise
NeoTherm Consulting offers expertise in diagnosing and characterizing your installations using non-intrusive analysis and measurement devices :
Failure and drop in performance
NeoTherm Consulting intervenes in cases of performance degradation, functional failure, or suspected abnormal fatigue. Our approach allows us to target the source of the problem while limiting downtime and intervention costs.
- Analysis of operating data, operating history, field measurements
- On-site diagnostics: thermal audit, hydraulic analysis, temperature, pressure, and flow measurements
- Use of non-intrusive diagnostics: infrared thermography, pressure drop measurements, comparison with nominal behavior
- Characterization of actual performance and identification of deviations
- Detection of probable causes: partial fouling, control drift, mechanical failure, material aging, corrosion
- Proposal of corrective solutions or retrofits: cleaning, adjustment of settings, partial replacement, modification of the exchanger/installation
« Our goal: to quickly identify the cause of a decline in performance and propose technically and economically viable corrective actions. »
Fouling
Fouling is one of the main causes of thermal efficiency loss in heat exchangers. We help you detect it, quantify its impact, and prevent it.
- Identification of fouling through thermal and hydraulic analysis (field readings or monitoring)
- Assessment of performance loss: approach deviation, efficiency drop, energy overconsumption
- Analysis of causes: nature of fluids, temperature, flow regimes, operating cycles
- Development of fouling prediction models using artificial intelligence (AI), based on your historical data
- Recommendation of optimal cleaning frequency
- Support for predictive maintenance strategy, possible integration into existing supervision systems
« Our goal: to anticipate, quantify, and control fouling in order to maintain your performance, optimize your maintenance operations, and reduce operating costs »
Examples of achievements :
Improvement of a steel coil cooling process using water jets
- IR diagnosis and ultrasonic flow measurement to characterize the initial performance of the system,
- Sensitivity study of the action lever parameters on the cooling performances via IR camera (residence time, flow, orientation of the jets),
- Advanced analysis of the measurement data in order to :
Propose improvement solutions
Provide the customer with the optimum operating conditions to aim for the whole of its product range
 |
 |
Detection of a two-phase distribution defect on a brazed plate heat exchanger
- IR diagnosis,
- Proposal of improvement devices,
- Sensitivity study, via IR camera, on the performances of the various proposed devices.
 |
 |
Diagnosis of a decline in performance
- Analysis of processes and performance data,
- On-site inspection and observation of heavy fouling,
- Analysis after cleaning and proposal for technical improvements.
 |
 |
R&D & Advanced Studies Services
NeoTherm Consulting offers customized R&D support for industrialists, manufacturers, and thermal innovation stakeholders seeking to develop new products or optimize existing technologies.
Areas of expertise
- Development of new heat exchange solutions, proof-of-concept: innovative geometries, alternative materials, integration into complex systems (ORC cycle, heat pumps, heat recovery), additive manufacturing
- Multi-criteria thermal optimization: heat exchange, pressure drops, compactness, costs, maintenance
- Parametric sensitivity studies: temperature, flow rate, viscosity, salinity, extreme conditions
- Modélisation numérique / analytique : développement de modèles personnalisés (1D, semi-empiriques), calculs avancés sous Excel, Python ou outils internes
- Numerical/analytical modeling: development of customized models (1D, semi-empirical), advanced calculations using Excel, Python, or internal tools
- Support for industrialization: adaptation of the concept to manufacturing constraints, standards, maintenance
Tools and Methodologies
- Internal and commercial simulation software (Excel, Python, EES, etc.)
- Development of specific technical databases (geometries, coefficients, suppliers)
- Multi-objective optimization methods (grids, genetic algorithms, etc.)
- Performance analysis under industrial constraints (capex, OPEX, LCA life cycles)
Project approach
- Definition of a technical roadmap with clear milestones : study, simulation, prototyping, and testing phases.
- Structuring by maturity level (TRL)
- Integration of a testing/validation process: definition of test plans, test monitoring, analysis of results, and model adjustment
Testing, prototyping, and validation
- Functional test specifications : definition of test plans, test benches, instrumentation
- Analysis of experimental results, model calibration, adjustment of assumptions
- Recommendations for industrialization : adaptation to manufacturing processes, applicable
Waste heat recovery
- Identification of thermal sources and needs : analysis of waste heat sources, assessment of recovery potential
- Process integration study : design of recovery loops, adaptation to existing facility operations
- Technological choices : exchangers, heat pumps, ORCs, storage, thermal vectors
- Sizing and simulation : thermal calculations, technical economic optimization
- Supplier search and networking : support in consulting and choosing industrial solutions