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Custom Products Heat Exchangers Sludge Heat Exchanger

Heat Exchangers for Sludge

(Klean-Wall ™️ Heat Exchanger)

The sludge heat exchanger, or Komax Klean-Wall® Heat Exchanger, is mainly utilized for heating municipal sludge, FOG (Fats/Oils/Grease), or manure for aerobic/anaerobic digestion purposes. It is typically installed in a recirculation loop with a digester. Our custom sludge heat exchanger can specifically be used to heat sludge using hot water OR to reclaim heat from hot outgoing digested sludge to heat the cold incoming sludge, enhancing biogas production and assisting in producing Class A biosolids.

Heating sludge to harness energy by capturing the biogas is a green practice utilized around the world in sustainable farming to capture methane gases. The biogas can be used to recover energy and generate power using a generator, and this energy can be used to power the other plant operations.

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Industries

Typical Applications

  • Municipal Sludge Mixing
  • FOG
  • Reclaiming heat from outgoing sludge/deliver to cold incoming sludge
  • Heat sludge to deliver re-circulation of anaerobic digestion
image heat exchangers
image heat exchangers

Product Benefits

Sludge Heat Exchanger Product Benefits

The Komax Hi-pass mixing technology of the heat exchanger eliminates the boundary layer, increasing the heat transfer efficiency. The turbulence created by the patented non-clogging Hi-pass mixing elements, set in a dual series of angles with a larger opening than the standard triple action static mixer, allows for sludge and debris to pass through the tube side and shell side piping, scavenges the pipe walls, resulting in low to no maintenance or production downtime. This technology keeps the pipe walls clean, by eliminating fouling or caking of sludge on the pipe wall, resulting in more consistent heating performance over time. This makes the sludge heat exchanger more thermally efficient than a standard shell and tube heat exchanger. Due to the heat transfer improvement, Komax shell and tube heat exchangers can be up to 50% smaller than a standard ‘tube in tube’ heat exchanger for the same heating application.

Non-Clogging Mixing Elements (Hi-Pass)

Set of mixing elements placed on opposite side to allow wall-to-wall radial transfer of sludge and debris with no clogging or build up as it offers a wider opening in the center of the static mixer, allowing bigger particles to pass through. The jacketed heat exchanger transfers heat from one media to another by utilizing hot water or hot sludge. The internal hi-pass non-clogging mixing elements create high turbulence at the pipe wall, removing the internal film coefficient that prevents high efficiency heat transfer.

Technical Specifications and Available Options for Sludge Heat Exchangers

End Connections & Available Custom Options

  • Flanged Ends: Flanged end connections allow for easy mounting of the static mixer into the process pipeline. As a general standard, metal static mixers have raised face flanges per ASME B16.5 or ASME B16.47 (for sizes larger than 24”) standards. Komax can also fabricate mixers to contain DIN (metric) flanges as well.
  • Victaulic style Quick Disconnect couplings: These connections help in quick assembly and disassembly of piping connections to the heat exchanger. These can also be useful to quickly put together or break down the heat exchanger into individual passes for cleaning or maintenance.

Available Materials and Sizes

  • Diameter: Customer Specifications
  • Standard Metals: Carbon Steel & Stainless Steel
  • Pipe Schedule: Schedule 10-40

Additional Product Details

    How do heat exchangers work? 
    Heat exchangers work by indirectly heating sludge/manure through conduction. While the material that needs to be heated (the sludge/manure) is housed in an inner tube a heating medium (usually hot water) is run across the surface enclosed in a shell, allowing the heat from the hot water to transfer to the material without having any direct interaction between the material and the water. 
    Are there different types of heat exchangers? 
    There are different heat exchangers such as Tube in Tube, Shell & Tube etc. At Komax Systems our heat exchangers are Tube in Tube style with Hi-pass mixing elements welded inside the tubes. The hi-pass mixing elements create turbulence along the pipe walls and reduce the boundary layer which helps to keep the same operating efficiency consistently over time. Our heat exchangers also deliver non-clogging performance decreasing operating cost by reducing operational downtime. 
    What are Komax Systems heat exchangers used for? 
    The Komax Systems Sludge heat exchangers are used to heat sludge, manure or fog in a digester, in the Anaerobic digestion (AD) process. These digesters can be usually found in Wastewater Treatment plants, Dairy plants etc. Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a process in which microorganisms break down biodegradable material (such as sludge & manure) in the absence of oxygen. In this process the sludge needs to be heated to either Mesophilic temperature (around 98F) or Thermophilic temperature (around 131F), depending on the desired process. The end result is the production of biogas which can be collected and later combusted to produce heat and electricity, or can be processed into Renewable Natural Gas (RNG). The leftover digested solids can be used as nutrient-rich fertilizer or enriched compost within the agricultural industry.
    Can Komax Systems' heat exchangers be cleaned for maintenance? 
    Yes, our heat exchangers can be cleaned out for routine maintenance. To clean the Komax Systems heat exchanger high-pressure water is used in the clean-out ports located on either end of each pass. The high-pressure water will help dislodge any buildup and clean out the heat exchanger to ensure it continues to evenly distribute heat consistently. 

    If your questions about our products are not answered here, get in touch with us for more information.

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    Our Custom Product Process

    Getting a Komax Systems product for your industrial process is simple! To get started, get in contact with us! Give us a call or submit a quote via our website to get your quote started. 

    Once we receive your request and the information associated with your process one of our sales engineers will reach out to make sure we've got all of the information needed to properly develop your quote. With all the correct information, our sales engineers can populate a unique quote specific to your custom design and your process' needs. Once the quote is finalized it is then paired with a drawing mock-up of your unit to make sure the specifications are to your liking and perfect for your system. 

    As soon as the quote and drawing are approved your unit is then off to fabrication. While your unit is being manufactured you are kept up to date on its progress and you will be notified once your new Komax Systems product is on its way to you!

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