Mineral fouling control by underwater plasma discharge in a heat exchanger

Abstract

The excessive mineral contents in water circulation systems could cause severe fouling in heat transfer equipment. The present study investigated the effect of underwater pulsed spark discharges on the mitigation of mineral fouling in a concentric counterflow heat exchanger. Artificial hard water with calcium carbonate hardness of 250 mg/L was used with velocity ranging from 0.1 m/s to 0.5 m/s and zero blowdown. Fouling resistances decreased by 50-72% for the plasma treated cases compared with the values for no-treatment cases, indicating that the pulsed spark discharge could significantly mitigate the mineral fouling on the heat exchanger surface. © 2011 American Society of Mechanical Engineers.