Ali Bani-Kananeh, Ricardo Delgado and Roy Niekerk, Kelvion, outline

the different types of reboiler available for demanding applications.

A
reboiler is a heat exchanger located at the bottom of a
distillation column, stripping column or reactor. It
provides heat (in the form of vapour) to the column.
Liquid from the bottom of the column flows over the
reboiler, taking up heat from the heating medium, such as steam,
which is flowing on the other side of the reboiler. The liquid from
the column will be partially or completely vaporised and returned
to the column. The reboiler is most often heated by steam, but
commercial heat transfer fluids or recirculated process streams are
also used.
Reboilers can be classified according to their orientation and
the type of circulation used. Which type of reboiler is best for a
particular application depends on the following factors:
n The nature of the fluid, particularly its viscosity and tendency
to foul.
n The operating pressure: vacuum or over-pressure.
n The equipment layout, particularly the headroom available.

The three most commonly used types are forced circulation,

thermosiphon and kettle reboilers.

Forced circulation reboiler

In a forced circulation system, a pump circulates the column
bottoms liquid through the reboiler (Figure 1). The big advantage of
a forced circulation reboiler is that the pressure drop calculation
through the reboiler and associated piping is not critical because of
the presence of a pump. However, the disadvantage is the
additional cost of the pump and the high operating cost.
Nevertheless, forced circulation reboilers are generally
preferred and used in services with highly viscous severe fouling
liquids or a wide boiling mixture operating at low pressure. In the
former, the heat transfer coefficient could be excessively low and in
the latter, the reduction in mean temperature difference (MTD) due
to the liquid head could be significant.

HYDROCARBON 115 March 2019

ENGINEERING
Table 1. Comparison between the main three-reboiler types
Forced circulation reboiler Thermosiphon reboiler Kettle reboiler
Layout Horizontal/vertical Horizontal/vertical Horizontal
Flow Forced Gravity Gravity
Vaporisation range 20 – 60% 20 – 45% 20 – 100%
Heat transfer rate High High Low to moderate
Fouling tendency Low Low High
Capital cost High Low Moderate
Application nn High viscosity nn Wide boiling range mixtures nn High vaporisation services
nn Fouling services nn Reduced piping nn Vacuum services
nn Higher once-through nn Lower duties nn Two-phase feeds
vaporisation nn Reduced pressure drop nn Simple hydraulics
nn Suitable for heat sensitive
fluids
Advantages nn Higher circulation nn Higher circulation nn Higher vaporisation
nn Lower fouling nn High heat transfer nn Very high heat fluxes
nn Insensitive to coefficients nn Insensitive to
hydrodynamics nn Lower fouling hydrodynamics
nn Requires no static head nn Higher MTD nn Requires practically no
nn Can overcome large pressure nn Small footprint static head
drops in the reboiler circuit nn Flexible operation
Disadvantages nn Extra pump size nn Sensitive to changes in nn Bigger footprint
nn Higher cost operating conditions nn Larger structural steel for
nn Power and maintenance nn Not suitable for vacuum support
services nn Higher cost
nn Complex return flows nn Tendency to foul
(two-phase) nn Uncertainty in the MTD
nn Difficult to size (piping
system, liquid static head)

Figure 1. Forced circulation reboiler. Figure 2. Thermosiphon reboiler.

Thermosiphon reboiler characteristic of nearly isothermal phase change heat transfer,

Thermosiphon reboilers do not require pumping of the column which makes the two-phase thermosiphon well-suited to
bottoms liquid into the reboiler (Figure 2). The density applications where the temperature gradient is limited. Some
difference between liquid in the column and the vapour/liquid fluids being reboiled may be temperature sensitive and, for
mixture in the return piping causes a natural circulation over the example, subject to polymerisation by contact with high
reboiler. Usually, approximately 5 – 45% of the tower bottoms temperature heat transfer walls. In such cases, it is best to have a
are vaporised in the thermosiphon reboiler. high liquid recirculation rate to avoid having high wall
The thermosiphon reboiler is the most common reboiler temperatures, which would cause polymerisation and fouling.
used. However, it cannot be used when the hydrostatic head The two main types of thermosiphon reboilers are vertical
above the reboiler varies, when the operating pressure is in the and horizontal. Horizontal thermosiphon reboilers are the
high vacuum range or when there is a low percentage of preferred reboiler type in refining applications. Compared to the
volatiles (e.g. less than 5%) in the feed to the reboiler. One of the vertical thermosiphon reboiler, the horizontal thermosiphon
most significant advantages of thermosiphon reboilers is the reboiler generally requires less static head but is larger, which

March 2019 116 HYDROCARBON

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Table 2. Comparison between WPHE reboiler and shell-and-tube heat exchanger (STHE) reboiler
WPHE reboiler STHE reboiler
Operating temperature Limited to about 650˚F Unlimited
Operating pressure Limited to about 500 psig Unlimited
Fouling tendency Low Moderate to high
Capital cost Low High
Advantages nn More compact nn Design flexibility (kettle, E-shell etc.)
nn Lower CAPEX and OPEX nn Ability to separate flow
nn High heat transfer coefficients nn Higher flexibility in steam operating
(2 – 4 times STHE designs) conditions (higher pressure possible)
nn Lower fouling nn Well-known, familiar technology
nn Fluid residence time is very short, less
solvent degradation
nn Short flow path, smaller height to drive
the flow
nn Closer temperature approach allows
lower pressure steam
nn Better energy efficiency
Disadvantages nn Limited operating conditions nn Higher capital and operating costs
(temperature, pressure) nn Power and maintenance
nn Sensitive to changes in operating nn Typically constructed of carbon steel,
conditions leading to corrosion
nn Not suitable for very low vacuum
services, pressure drop issue

Figure 3. Kettle reboiler. Figure 4. K°Bloc WPHE reboiler.

means that it is more expensive and has a higher fouling They are often used as vaporisers, as a separate
tendency that leads to slightly lower availability. Horizontal vapour-liquid disengagement vessel is not needed. They are
exchangers are more easily maintained than vertical. They are suitable for vacuum operation and for high rates of vaporisation
generally better suited to services with very large duties. Vertical up to 80% of the feed.
types of reboiler are very common in the chemical and
petrochemical industries. Vertical thermosiphon reboilers are WPHE thermosiphon reboiler
used almost exclusively in chemical applications, while in the A welded plate heat exchanger (WPHE) thermosiphon reboiler
petrochemical industry, approximately 70% of thermosiphon based on K°Bloc technology, which has similar thermal and
reboilers are vertical and 30% are horizontal. hydraulic performances, is more compact than a conventional
thermosiphon reboiler (Figure 4) with. This enables energy
Kettle reboiler savings and allows (for a given space) more efficient heat
Kettle reboilers, also called submerged bundle reboilers, are exchange. Furthermore, as the unit is more compact, the liquid
commonly applied when a wide range of process operations inventory can be reduced to 20% of the initial value, allowing
(high turndown capability), large heat exchange surface, or high dynamic control of the system.
vapour quality is required (Figure 3). Installations include column The main industrial benefits apply to manufacturers of
bottom reboilers, side reboilers, and vaporisers. Kettles are heat equipment and end users:
generally more costly than other reboiler types due to shell size, nn Design allows an increase of 50 – 300% in heat transfer
surge volume size, and uncertainty in the MTD. performance.

March 2019 118 HYDROCARBON

ENGINEERING
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nn High heat transfer allows a size reduction of up to 50%. The reboiler is operated in thermosiphon mode in order to
nn Lower energy source cost since K°Bloc can enable boiling bring the required level of heat duty into the de-ethaniser
at lower ΔT. column.
nn Reduced total install cost because of the higher
recirculation rate and lower static head (a 15 – 30% cost Specifications
reduction may be expected). nn 4.5 MW heat duty.
nn Higher safety as the liquid inventory is reduced. nn Quench water as heating fluid.
nn K°Bloc BT120 316L plate material.
The K°Bloc is a fully-welded plate heat exchanger that is
used extensively in the oil and gas industry, the chemical Butene plant
industry and the petrochemical sector. The frame consists of In 2014, a C4 thermosiphon reboiler (a BT120 with 500 plates)
four columns, top and bottom heads and four side panels. was installed at a butene plant in Italy, and has been running
These side panels can be detached to allow free access all the reliably since.
way around for cleaning the plate package.
The individual plates are welded alternately on the two Specifications
longitudinal sides and at the corners. The two nn 6.9 MW heat duty.
pressure-resistant channels are separated from one another nn Steam as heating fluid.
inside the unit. The plate pack is installed between four nn K°Bloc BT120 with 500 plates, 316L plate material.
columns, four bolted panels and the top/bottom head plates,
thereby forming a compact plate heat exchanger with two The 1-butene plant allows the customer to internally
circuits. In the plate pack, the medium flows in a cross flow produce the co-monomer for polyethylene via distillation of C4
direction. The entire unit consists of a counter-current flow streams used for different productions. The 1-butene produced
arrangement. Furthermore, the heat transfer plates are is used internally as well as sold externally. The residue from
corrugated to induce high turbulence and minimise fouling. distillation is hydrogenated to n-butane, which is also sold (to
The turbulent flow creates high shear stress on the walls, Polynt, for example) to produce maleic anhydride. The
which literally scrubs deposits and fouling from the heat investment for this plant is more than €40 million.
transfer surface. This is known as the ‘self-cleaning effect’.
Consequently, the lowered fouling rate minimises maintenance Sulfur recovery unit
costs, extends service intervals and increases the heat This installation took place at a refinery complex that mainly
exchanger’s availability. produces gasoline and diesel for export. It is the largest refinery
Two different plate corrugations are available. Chevron in Southeast Europe. The project comprised a 2.5 million tpy
corrugation enables effective heat transfer, while double deep conversion hydrocracking unit with ebullated bed
dimple corrugation is the first choice for highly viscous or reactors, a gas sweetening unit for sour gases (including an
solid-containing media as well as for vacuum applications. amine stripping and regeneration unit), a sour water stripping
unit and a hydrogen production unit.
Case studies The project involved the construction of two identical
sulfur recovery unit (SRU) trains, each with a capacity of
Ethylene unit revamp 150 tpd of liquid sulfur. The project also includes common tail
In October 2017, Kelvion received an order for a large K°Bloc gas treatment (TGT) integrating an incinerator, with the
(BT120) that will be installed during a minor revamp of an potential to treat 300 tpd of tail gases from the two SRU
ethylene unit at a petrochemical plant in Western Europe. trains, three 110 tpd sulfur solidification lines and a solid sulfur
Within this ethylene production unit, as part of a process storage facility with a capacity of 10 000 t.
energy integration programme, quench water was identified
as a valuable waste heat, which could be used as a potential
heating medium for the de-ethaniser reboiler. The main goal
was significant savings in steam consumption by replacing
the existing steam reboilers. Moreover, reduction of utilities
consumption (cooling water) in the quench water coolers
was also considered to quantify the value of this
investment.
Quench water is considered as a potential fouling
medium within ethylene crackers because of the presence
of coke particles and hydrocarbon traces that reduce the
performance of the quench water cooler. K°Bloc was
selected as a suitable technology to handle such fouling risk
because of its 5 mm plate gap configuration and the high
turbulence into the channel that allows for effective
handling of the two potential fouling mechanisms during
quench water cooling at different operating cases (start of Figure 5. Gas sweetening process with K°Bloc WPHE.
run, end of run, design and turndown conditions).

March 2019 120 HYDROCARBON

ENGINEERING
In the gas sweetening process (Figure 5), there are three Kelvion delivered several heat exchangers for the new SRU
main heat exchanger positions where compact plate heat which was built at the same time as the hydrocracker process
exchangers are currently used and can have advantages over unit. The amine reboiler to the stripper is a thermosiphon BT75
traditional shell-and-tube solutions: with 200 plates.
nn The lean/rich amine interchanger (also called the
lean/rich intercooler or exchanger). This position is key to Specifications
minimising heat input to the gas sweetening unit by nn 7.04 MW heat duty.
granting a high degree of heat recovery from the nn Low-pressure steam as heating fluid.
regenerated amine into the rich amine, maintaining as nn K°Bloc BT75 with 200 plates, 316L plate material.
close an approach temperature as possible. Energy-saving
benefits come from reducing the heat input to the The SRU-4 started operation in December 2014, and was
regeneration column through the stripper reboiler, as well also operated at turndown of 50%. The E-305 amine
as helping to reduce cooling water consumption into the thermosiphon reboiler works without problems. The
lean amine cooler. measured temperature profile is stable.
nn The lean amine cooler, which enables sour gas absorption
into the scrubber. Conclusion
nn Stripper reboiler – this is the energy consumer from the Thermal designers and process engineers need to pay special
absorption and stripping unit. attention to thermosiphon reboiler designs, taking into
consideration plant layout and process specifics as well as
It is common to all these industries that there is a thermodynamic and hydraulic aspects. As such, Kelvion designs
contaminant in the feed gas (e.g. H2S, CO2, SO2, etc.) that these reboilers in close collaboration with process engineers.
needs to be absorbed and stripped out, which requires heat The company’s K°Bloc WPHE thermosiphon reboiler is
input through the reboiler. The contaminant could be more compact than shell-and-tube thermosiphon reboilers
cross-exchanged between the lean amine leaving the stripping with similar thermal and hydraulic performances, allowing for
column and preheating the feed and the rich amine that has lower energy costs, lower CAPEX and more efficient heat
come from the absorbing column. Interchangers that have a exchange in a given space. In addition, the smaller holdup
higher efficiency or closer approaching temperature save volume of the reboilers leads to lower operating weight, lower
steam and energy and thereby provide an opportunity for cost solvent inventory and less solvent degradation due to shorter
FLO-16109_Anz Hydrocarbon Engineering.qxp_210 x 147 06.06.16 08:57 Seite 1
optimisation. residence time.

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