Monoethanolamine heat exchangers modeling using the Buckingham Pi theorem

Abstract

Dimensional analysis was used on this study with the aim of stablishing a model for prediction of the monoethanolamine heat exchangers output. The passive experimentation method was applied to gather 14 400 data points, since the exchangers are installed in an online amine treating unit. After identification of those parameters having a relevant effect on heat transfer processes, the Buckingham Pi theorem and the method of repeating variables were implemented. Once the dimensionless groups were formulated, the explicit equation was found by means of a least-squares regression analysis. The simulation model was evaluated by comparing predicted results against measured rich amine exit temperatures. In this respect, 98.96 % correlation, 0.023 % mean absolute percentage error and 1.376 K maximum absolute error were achieved. Findings of this research may serve as a shortcut for quick and accurate anticipation of the equipment performance, since the plant is often operated outside design parameters. Despite the above, obtained explicit equation is only valid for the studied set of heat exchangers.