02638762/99/$10.00+0.

00
Institution of Chemical Engineers
Trans IChemE, Vol 77, Part A, March 1999

ASSESSMENT OF CONDENSATION CURVES IN THE

DESIGN OF BINARY VAPOUR CONDENSERS
D. R. WEBB (FELLOW), A. J. DELL (GRADUATE), R. W. STEVENSON* (GRADUATE), and K. AX
Department of Chemical Engineering, UMIST, Manchester, UK
*AEA Technology, Harwell, UK
Universitat Karlsruhe (TH), Germany

espite the apparent satisfaction of industry with the commercial design methods
available to them, an outstanding question is the choice of the better cooling curve,
differential or integral, for use with the equilibrium design approach. This is
considered in the light of experimental data taken with a vapour mixture, condensing in a
horizontal shell-side condenser of semi-industrial scale, (diameter 0.336 m, and length
2.438 m). This con guration is frequently used in the petroleum industry but such condensers
may perform poorly because of separation of the condensate from the vapour ow, leading to a
fractionation effect. Thus the vapour may become richer in the more volatile components with
a fall in saturation temperature and driving force. Therefore, the area required for a given
degree of condensation might be larger compared with a condensation process following the
integral cooling curve. Temperature pro les, which are predicted by the integral and
differential cooling curves, are compared with experiment for condensation of methanol-water
mixtures of varying composition.
Keywords: condenser design; cooling curves; industrial-scale experiments

INTRODUCTION

cumulative rate of heat removed or the molar enthalpy of

the mixture.
Differential condensation occurs when the condensate is
separated from the vapour within the condenser, and there is
a departure from overall equilibrium, as described by
Ward5 . Figure 1 can also be used to derive a differential
cooling curve. Tie lines are constructed to give a number of
equilibrium separations into vapour and condensate, which
are then considered separately. Each successive separation
is applied to the remaining vapour. Figure 1 shows a process
giving 10 equal condensates with the vapour saturated. The
condensate path is given by the curve Co G, with all previous
condensates fully mixed and cooled to the vapour
temperature. The true differential curve is given in the
limit of an in nite number of such steps.
A separation can be seen in the case of the differential
curve whereby the vapour becomes enriched in the more
volatile component and gives a lower dew point temperature, Figure 1, at the same fractional condensation, and
would give a lower temperature driving force in the cooling
curve, Figure 2. Clearly, use of the differential cooling curve
will demand a greater area and thus the use of the integral
curve, which is the normal practice, may be unsafe in
design.

Industrial condensers are generally designed by the

equilibrium method with integral cooling curve, as proposed
by Silver1 and Bell and Ghaly2 . Vapour and condensate are
assumed to follow a one-dimensional path at overall local
equilibrium, but this is unsafe compared with the use of
the differential cooling curve. In assessing the equilibrium
methods, it is necessary to standardize their predictions
and this is done with the lm model, as described by
Colburn and Hougen3 and Colburn and Drew4 , for vapourgas and vapour mixtures respectively. This approach
accounts for the rate processes of heat and mass transfer
across a gas lm, and is a more realistic model of these
physical processes.
INTEGRAL AND DIFFERENTIAL CONDENSATION
Integral and differential condensation are the extremes of
the condensation process. When plotted on a temperaturecomposition diagram, Figure 1, condensation given by the
integral cooling curve follows ABCD. The vapour, which is
superheated at A, is cooled to the dew temperature at B. The
line BC shows the condensation process: At E between the
dew and bubble temperatures, the mixture separates into a
vapour of composition y and a liquid of composition x at
equilibrium. The division of the tie line gives the vapour
fraction h. At the bubble point C, the mixture is completely
condensed, and the curve CD shows a sub-cooling of the
condensate. Figure 2, the cooling curve, shows the
corresponding change of gas and coolant temperatures,
assuming countercurrent ow, as a function of the

FILM METHOD
Figure 3 shows the physical system, upon which the lm
model of condensation is built, as described by Colburn
et al.3 ,4 . The energy equation, with terms describing
conduction and convection, is integrated over the gas lm
117

118

WEBB et al.
Tg

A
B

T dew

st

Co

vapour

q E

Ts

T bub

Tw

two-phase

sf

~
yis

G
x~

To

liquid

y~

z~

qo

The diffusion equation gives the molar transfer rate across

the gas lm in Figure 3, n i , as the sum of a diffusive and a
convective ux. This is integrated across the lm with the
boundary conditions on composition to give the condensation rate,
w
n i Ji y i n T b12 w
y
y is
y ig n T
e
1 ig
12
n T
cd
where b12
2
w
sf
b12
The surface composition of the condensate depends on the
extent to which it is mixed. One of two limiting cases is
generally assumed, `mixed or `unmixed . In the `mixed
condensate case, the surface composition is assumed to be
de ned by prior condensation and is known. In the
`unmixed case, the surface composition is de ned by the
local rates of condensation, x is n i /nT . In both cases,
the corresponding vapour composition is taken as that in
equilibrium with the condensate. In horizontal shell-side
condensation the vapour continually encounters fresh
surface as condensate drops to the bottom of the shell and
the `unmixed case is assumed in this work.
B

Tg

DTg
C

Tbub
To

h in

DQ

Figure 2. Integral condensation.

QT
~

h out

qg

ag

coolant film

condensate

wall

bulk coolant

with the boundary conditions in Figure 3, to give the

sensible heat transfer ux at the interface, q s .
dT
eee
q s
n i c pfi T Ts
Tg Ts
lg
ag e
ds
e
1
Sn i c pfi n T c pf
1
e
lg /st
ag

qs

qc

ao

Figure 1. Integral and differential cooling curves.

Tdew

~
y ig

bulk gas
gas film

Figure 3. Film model of condensation.

The key to calculating the rates of combined heat and

mass transfer is the continuity of energy across the interface,
which can be written as equation (3). With an overall liquid
side heat transfer coef cient, ao , including condensate, wall
and coolant lm, this can be solved for n T ,
q o
n T

q c

q s

ao T s
n i D h vfi

n T D h vf
To / D h vf
n T D h vf

3
c pf Tg TS
1 e e
4

Equation (3) is an approximation because it does not

account for sub-cooling of the condensate, which makes the
heat ux, q o , to the coolant greater than the heat ux, q c , in
the condensate at the interface. Further, on the shell side of a
shell and tube condenser, there is the possibility of heat and
mass exchange between condensate and the vapour in
falling to the bottom of the shell, and subsequently in
owing to the condensate outlet. There is no published
information on these processes but a new treatment of subcooling has been carried out by the author and will be
published later. The modelling of these processes is not
required in the present work because arbitrary assumptions
are made about the condensate temperature in the
equilibrium models.
The lm model with `unmixed condensate predicts
behaviour that can in some cases lie outside the range shown
by differential and integral condensation. For example, at
the inlet the interfacial compositions satisfying equations
(1) to (4) are de ned by a tie line intersecting BC, such as
that through E in Figure 1. The limits of behaviour possible
are the tie lines through B and C and these are now
considered in turn. Under conditions of very low temperature driving force or when the gas lm mass transfer
coef cient is very small, the condensation rate is very small
and the diffusive ux term dominates in equation (2). The
interfacial tie line will lie close to B and the behaviour of the
lm model will approximate the differential condensation
curve with a high degree of separation produced. On the
other hand, for very high rates of condensation arising from
a large temperature driving force, the convective term
dominates equation (2), and the interfacial tie line lies near
C. The condensate will have almost the same composition as
the vapour and in the limit the condensation process will be
Trans IChemE, Vol 77, Part A, March 1999

ASSESSMENT OF CONDENSATION CURVES IN THE DESIGN OF BINARY VAPOUR CONDENSERS

119

Figure 4. Diagram of the apparatus.

isothermal with no separation. Thus in this case, the

behaviour lies outside the range of equilibrium differential
and integral cooling curves. A fuller description of the
model and methods of solution of equations (1) to (4) is
given by Webb6 in the Heat Exchanger Design Handbook
Update.
Overall design based on the lm model requires the
integration of the equations of downstream change of gas
composition and gas and coolant temperatures. These are
differential mass and energy balances, which for countercurrent ow may be written,
dTg
Tg Ts
dy ig y ig n T n i
e
ag e
dA
e
1 N g c pg
dA
N g
dTo
dA

ao Ts To
o cpo
M

The area requirement based on the equilibrium model is

calculated from the overall heat transfer coef cient, Uo , in
which the factor Z corrects for the different heat uxes
across gas and coolant lms, and can be estimated from the
ratio of gas side to total energy change, Figure 2,
N g c pg DTg
1
1
Z
Ze
6

U o ao ag
DQ
sat
Webb et al.7 showed that the relative values of Z given
implicitly by the lm method, Z f , and by equation (6) for the
equilibrium methods, Ze , is given as a function of the Lewis
Number, Le, by,
Zf

Ze

where jt

Tg Ts
y 1g y 1s
e

dTg
dy 1g

jt 2/3
Le
j

sat

;j
7
ee 1
ew 1
These equations critically affect the interpretation of
experimental data in comparing the methods. Differences
Trans IChemE, Vol 77, Part A, March 1999

can arise both from predictions of the temperature driving

force and the overall heat transfer coef cient. Equation (5)
permits the gas to depart from the saturation temperature in
the lm method but the saturated value depends on the
composition, which is determined by the relative rates of
condensation, given by equation (2). Contrast the equilibrium method where the gas is saturated and of composition
determined by the assumed equilibrium curve. Differences
in overall heat transfer coef cient are due to differences in
the values of Z as shown by equation (7). Three factors are
important: Lewis number, condensation rate through the
ratio of rate factors, jt /j, and the ratio of the two terms in
square brackets. The latter is the ratio of the slopes of the
chord, joining points of gas and interfacial composition, and
the tangent at the gas composition on the dew point line of
Figure 1 for the mixture in question. For methanol-water, in
contrast to many binary mixtures, the dew line is fairly
linear and the ratio is not too different from unity. The
Lewis number, which is less than unity, becomes the
principal factor in equation (7). In consequence Ze is greater
than Zf , and the equilibrium method is safe in design relative
to the lm method.
EXPERIMENTAL SYSTEM
The experimental equipment is composed of the test
condenser itself, an after-condenser, cooling water circuits
associated with each condenser, a boiler to generate the
vapour, a vacuum pump and the plant instrumentation.
Figure 4 shows a simpli ed owsheet. The test condenser is
of internal diameter 0.356 m, with tube length 2.460 m. The
shell-side is divided into eight compartments by seven
vertically cut segmental baf es, with a 37% cut. The central
baf e spacings are 268 mm and at either end the spacings
are 426 mm. The presence of two pairs of sealing strips
reduces leakage around the tube bundle. The condenser was

120

WEBB et al.
Table 1. Range of experimental conditions
99 mole % methanol
16 Runs
Min
Max

Inlet methanol mole fraction

Heat load, kW
Vapour owrate, mol/s
Inlet pressure, bar
Pressure drop, bar
Vapour inlet temperature, C
Coolant inlet temperature, C

0.9834
268.5
10.11
0.4297
0.0064
44.81
35.95

0.9933
367.1
13.13
1.0242
0.0136
65.74
57.80

designed in accordance with TEMA8 and ASME VIII

design codes, and can operate in four shell-side regimes:
E shell co- or counter-current ow, and J shell combining or
dividing ow. Condensation occurs on the shell-side, with
cooling water passing through the tubes in either one or two
passes. The 106 tubes are of 19.08 mm outside diameter and
are arranged on a 25.4 mm triangular pitch, with a
characteristic angle of 30. The methanol-steam vapour is
generated by a boiler, at up to 600 kW, and the condensate is
pumped back to the boiler, which operates as a thermo-siphon.
The boiler feed and condensate collection tanks, clearly shown
in Figure 4, are of large volume and contain mixtures of
composition equal to the vapour and liquid in the boiler. By
maintaining constant hold-up in the condensate tank the
system can be maintained under very steady conditions.
A liquid ring pump with a water ring, which is cooled by a
separate exchanger, maintains vacuum. The pressure and
hence the condensing temperature is xed by a controlled
leak of air to the pump suction. The cooling water to the test
condenser is pumped around a loop at the rate necessary to
maintain a tube velocity of about 1.5 ms 1 . The ow in the
cooling water feed and return lines, CWF and CWR
respectively in Figure 4, is set to achieve the desired coolant
temperature. These two features allow the vapour and coolant
temperature pro les in Figure 2 to be adjusted independently.
All the reported runs were carried out under loaded
operating conditions (i.e. full use of the available area) by
ensuring that a signi cant proportion of the total vapour
load was condensed in the after-condenser, where a heat
load of at least 50 kW was required. Vapour feed rate and
composition, coolant owrate and inlet temperature
and condenser pressure were all controlled automatically

85 mole % methanol
8 Runs
Min
Max
0.8368
328.8
10.87
0.3185
0.0079
44.73
32.19

0.8807
356.7
11.33
0.8192
0.0155
64.44
53.79

0.2336
381.5
11.12
0.4174
0.0083
69.51
50.04

0.3248
561.1
15.56
0.5254
0.0158
76.27
55.56

at the desired operating conditions. Data logging of the

temperatures was automatic, and on-line energy balances
and the display of temperature trend curves showed steady
and consistent operating conditions. The experiments
reported here were carried out with an E shell condenser
with one coolant pass in counter current ow. Details of the
experimental programme are given in Table 1.
QUALITY OF THE DATA
Calibrated thermocouples were used to measure the
coolant inlet and outlet temperatures, the vapour temperature opposite each baf e, and the condensate temperature
underneath each baf e and at the outlet. Their accuracy was
6 0.15C in the absolute temperature, and 6 0.03C when
measuring temperature difference. A multi-tube water
manometer was used to measure the shell-side pressure
pro le at the inlet, in the centre of each baf e space and at
the outlet. A precision of 6 0.5 mm H2 O was achieved by
this technique. The pressure at the outlet of the condenser
was measured by a mercury manometer to a precision of
6 0.5 mm Hg. The condensate owrate was measured by
direct collection of condensate for a known period, and the
cooling water owrate was metered by an ori ce plate.
Thirty two runs were carried out with methanol/steam
mixtures, at conditions shown in detail in Table 1. For a
composition of 25 mole % methanol, the temperature
difference between dew and bubble points is the greatest,
approximately 13C, (see Figure 1, which is accurately
plotted for methanol/water at 1 bar). Mass and energy
balances were performed for each run, with comparison being
made between the measured tubeside and shellside heat
600

80

550

75

Coolant heat gained [kW]

Predicted Temperature [ oC]

25 mole % methanol
8 Runs
Min
Max

70
65
60
55

inlet, 25% methanol

outlet, 25% methanol
inlet, 85% methanol
outlet, 85% methanol
inlet, 99% methanol
outlet, 99% methanol

50
45
40
35
35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

Measured Temperature [oC]

Figure 5. Temperature comparison.

500
450
400
350

99% methanol

300

85% methanol
250

25% methanol

200
80

200

300

400

500

600

Heat load [kW]

Figure 6. Comparison of heat load.

Trans IChemE, Vol 77, Part A, March 1999

ASSESSMENT OF CONDENSATION CURVES IN THE DESIGN OF BINARY VAPOUR CONDENSERS

121

Integral cooling curve

Differential cooling curve
Film model
Measured temperature profile

70

T.
[ C]
o

65

Cooling water (film model)

60

55

50

45
2200

2000

1800

1600

1400

1200

1000

800

600

400

200

h / [kJ/kg]
Figure 7. Prediction of temperatures by different models.

loads. The errors in the energy balance ranged from 7% to

1% with the heat load of the condensing mixture always a
little higher than that of the cooling water, Figure 6. The
range re ects dif culties in achieving reliable measurements of compositions and mixture properties and the bias is
almost certainly due to liquid carry-over from the boiler. A
further check was made of the measured temperatures at the
inlet and outlet of the condenser, by comparing them with
those predicted assuming saturation, as shown in Figure 5.
For all runs the agreement was excellent, with a mean
difference of about 0.3C at the inlet and 0.3C at the outlet,
(the temperature differences between the vapour and
coolant are usually more than 10C so that the relative
error is less than 5%). It is very probable that the vapour
mixture remained close to saturation throughout the
condensation process. On the shell side of a horizontal
shell and tube condenser, the condensate drips through the
tube bundle and contacts directly with the vapour. Heat and
mass transfer between the two will reduce the departure
from equilibrium that might arise from the independent
rates of heat and mass transfer. The lm model allowed the
temperature of the saturated vapour to be predicted at the
locations where the thermocouples were installed and the
agreement was close, see Figure 8 for a typical run.
ANALYSIS OF RESULTS
The experimental data show the gas temperature pro le
and pressure variation along the condenser length. For the
lm model analysis each baf e space was divided into two,
70
T .
[ C]
o

Experimental
Integral Cooling
Differential Cooling
Film Model

65
Area

60
55

temperature cross
for differential
cooling curve

50
45
0

10

15

A/ [m2]

20

25

Figure 8. Comparison of area.

Trans IChemE, Vol 77, Part A, March 1999

30

35

giving 16 area intervals. The lm model equations, (1) to

(5), were solved in each interval to give the local
condensation and heat transfer rates. The so-called
`unmixed condensate assumption was made where the
interfacial composition is assumed to be de ned by the local
rates of condensation. This is the most appropriate for a
horizontal condenser where the condensate separates from
the vapour by inundation. To avoid uncertainty arising from
the pressure drop, experimentally measured values were
used and interpolated to give the pressure in each interval,
due allowance being made for the velocity variation.
Standard equations were used for predicting heat and mass
transfer coef cients. The heat transfer coef cient of the
condensate was calculated using the Nusselt8 method,
modi ed for inundation by Kern1 0 and for vapour shear
by Shekriladze and Gomelauri1 1 . For the gas phase the
equations given by Taborek1 2 in the HEDH were applied,
while the Chilton Colburn1 3 analogy was used for the
corresponding mass transfer coef cient. The gas was
assumed to remain saturated while coolant temperature
and bulk gas composition were calculated from equations
(5) by stepping downstream from known inlet conditions.
The integral and differential curves were calculated using
32 stages, every four of which corresponded with a baf e
space. The stage boundaries were constrained where
appropriate to coincide with the experimental pressure and
predicted overall vapour fraction obtained by a lm model
analysis in each baf e area, and additional values were
obtained by interpolation. The lm method analysis in this
standardization was arti cial in that the overall heat transfer
coef cients predicted as described above at each location
were multiplied by a constant factor so that the experimental
and predicted condensation rates should match over the full
condenser area. Since, for the particular run chosen for
comparison purposes, the factor was less than 3% of the
overall heat transfer coef cient and the experimental energy
balance based on the change of enthalpy on the vapour and
coolant sides matched within 2%, the comparison of
methods is reasonably precise.
Figure 7 for the chosen run shows how the lm model, the
integral and the differential cooling curves predict the
variation of temperature with the change in enthalpy, and
how this compares with the data. With each curve predicted
to give the same vapour fraction at corresponding points, the
heat loads at these points differ only because of the different
temperatures and compositions of vapour and condensate at

122

WEBB et al.

a given fractional condensation. Agreement is good near the

inlet, but the outlet temperatures predicted by the equilibrium methods are markedly different from the measured
values. For the run shown in Figure 7, which is typical of all
the data at 25 mole % methanol, the integral method
overestimates Tg by about 4C at the outlet, which
corresponds with an over-prediction of the mean temperature driving force by about 15%. The use of the integral
cooling curve is thus expected to be unsafe in design to this
extent. The outlet temperature given by the differential
method is seen to be about 5C too low but also here gives a
temperature cross and an in nite area requirement if used in
design. The differential cooling curve is not a good
representation of the real behaviour observed in this work
and would lead to excessively safe designs if applied in
practice. The mean temperature driving force was underpredicted by about 3% by the lm method. This is a small
error and is on the safe side.
Attention is now turned to the prediction of area by the
equilibrium method, which is the issue of greatest interest to
the designer of heat exchangers. Figure 8 shows the required
area calculated by Silver-Bell with integral and differential
cooling curves, compared with the real area of the
condenser, for the same run as shown in Figure 7.
Superposed on this diagram are the temperatures predicted
by the lm model as given in Figure 7.
Surprisingly perhaps, the equilibrium method with the
integral cooling curve is found to be similar in its accuracy
to the lm method, despite the fact that the mean
temperature driving force is too large by 15%. This is
generally true of all 32 runs considered in the present work
where the area requirement predicted by the lm and
equilibrium methods lies within 10%, with the equilibrium
method requiring the greater area. In the equilibrium
method the overall heat transfer coef cient is obtained
using equation (7). In the discussion of equation (7) it was
argued that the effective gas lm heat transfer coef cient,
ag /Z calculated by the equilibrium method is expected to be
smaller than that obtained by the lm model. Thus the overestimate of the temperature driving force is compensated for
by this safe estimate of the gas lm heat transfer coef cient.
Webb6 , in the Heat Exchanger Design Update, presents a
fuller discussion of the discrepancy in overall heat transfer
coef cients between the lm and equilibrium methods. It is
found that with a number of binary mixtures the equilibrium
method is unsafe compared with the lm method and the
universal success of the equilibrium method cannot be
assumed.
The equilibrium method with the differential cooling
curve was not suitable for design purposes. The run
highlighted showed a temperature cross but the area
required was at least 100% greater than that needed over
all runs with a feed composition of 25 mole % methanol.
In Figures 7 and 8 the temperature pro le predicted by the
lm method is seen to be in excellent agreement with the
measured values. In this particular run the heat load is
predicted within 2% and since the main component of the
heat load is the latent heat the remaining vapour fraction is
predicted to about this precision. There is a discrepancy of
about 2C in outlet temperature. The lm method provided
an excellent prediction of all 32 runs. The overall heat loads
were predicted within 15% for all runs but with an average
discrepancy of only about 6%. Further, the predictions of

the outlet temperatures were better than either equilibrium

model and on the safe side, typically 12C, as seen in
Figure 7. The accuracy of the lm method in the prediction
of the outlet gas temperature depends on the prediction of
both the total and the relative rates of condensation of
methanol and steam and hence on the heat and mass transfer
coef cients, which are themselves uncertain. The discrepancy in prediction of the outlet temperature in Figure 7 can
be resolved by about a 3040% adjustment to the gas lm
coef cient. An error of this magnitude is probably not
unrealistic considering the method used for their estimation
in the HEDH. The discrepancy between the predicted and
measured gas temperatures is just as likely to be due to heat
and mass transfer between condensate in the bottom of the
shell and the vapour owing above it, which is not
accounted for in the model.
In summary, the lm method is better because it provides
a prediction of the individual mass transfer rates in
condensation of binaries and therefore predicts the remaining gas composition and saturation temperature more
precisely than the equilibrium method with its assumed
cooling curve. It should be used in design wherever accurate
prediction of operating conditions of temperature and
composition are important. The present work was carried
out under conditions typical of industrial operation and
involved quite large overall heat transfer coef cients,
typically 4000 W m 2 K 1 ). Under these conditions the
separation effect was not large enough to produce a dew
temperature suf ciently low to render the equilibrium
method with integral cooling curve inaccurate in design.
CONCLUSIONS
(1) The lm method gives good predictions of heat load and
gas saturation temperatures in condensation of methanolwater mixtures and is more reliable than the equilibrium
methods for design purposes. This is because the vapour
composition is better determined by the individual condensation rates than an assumption of overall equilibrium.
(2) The differential cooling curve is completely inadequate.
The predicted mean temperature driving force is far too
small and design far too conservative. Sometimes, as
reported here, it shows a temperature cross where none is
observed in practice.
(3) The Silver-Bell method based on the integral cooling
curve over-predicts the mean temperature driving force and
would appear on this basis to be unsafe in design. However,
it works well for the methanol-water system where it is not
signi cantly worse than the lm method. This is because the
heat transfer resistance of the gas lm is overestimated
compensating for the effect of the temperature difference.
However, there is reason to doubt that this will always be the
case and the equilibrium method is less reliable.
NOMENCLATURE
c
A
cp
D h v
h
J
n
N

molar concentration
heat exchange area
speci c heat capacity
molar latent heat
enthalpy
molar diffusive ux
molar ux of condensation
molar owrate

Trans IChemE, Vol 77, Part A, March 1999

ASSESSMENT OF CONDENSATION CURVES IN THE DESIGN OF BINARY VAPOUR CONDENSERS

M
q

Q
Le
sf , st
T
Uo
x, y, z
Z

mass owrate
heat ux
heat transfer rate
Lewis number
mass transfer and thermal lm thicknesses respectively
temperature
overall heat transfer coef cient
liquid, vapour and overall mole fractions respectively
ratio of gas side to total heat uxes

Greek symbols
ag
gas heat transfer coef cient
ao
overall liquid side heat transfer coef cient
b12
binary mass transfer coef cient
l
thermal conductivity
d12
binary diffusivity
e
ratio of sensible to conductive heat ux
h
molar vapour fraction
w
rate factor for binary mixture
j, jt
mass and thermal rate factors
Subscripts
i
index showing component number
e
relating to equilibrium
f
relating to lm
g
relating to gas
i
component number
s
relating to interface
o
relating to coolant
t
relating to thermal lm
T
total
Superscripts
~
molar quantity
rate

123

3. Colburn, A. P. and Hougen, O. A., 1934, Design of cooler condensers

for mixtures of vapours with non-condensing gases, Ind Eng Chem, 26:
11781182.
4. Colburn, A. P. and Drew, T. B., 1937, The condensation of mixed
vapours, Trans AIChemE, 33: 197215.
5. Ward, D. J., 1960, How to design a multiple component partial
condenser, Petrochem Eng, 32(10): C42C48.
6. Webb, D. R., 1995, Condensation of vapour mixtures, Heat Exchanger
Design Handbook Update, (Begell House Publishers, NY).
7. Webb, D. R., Fahrner, M. and Schwaab R., 1996, The relationship
between the lm and equilibrium methods of condenser design, Int J
Heat Mass Tr, 39(15): 31473156.
8. TEMA, 1978, Standards of Tubular Heat Exchanger Manufacturers
Association, NY.
9. Nusselt, W., 1916, Surface condensation of water vapour, Parts I and II,
ZVDI, 60(27): 541546, and 60(28): 569575.
10. Kern, D. Q., 1958, AIChEJ, 4(2): 157160.
11. Shekriladze, I. G. and Gomelauri, V.I., 1966, Theoretical study of
laminar lm condensation of owing vapour, Int J Mass Transfer, 9:
581591.
12. Taborek, J., (including Bell, K. J.), 1983, Shell and tube heat
exchangers, Heat Exchanger Design Handbook, Chapter 3.3,
(Hemisphere Publishing Co., Washingon DC).
13. Chilton, T. H, and Colburn, A. P., 1934, Mass transfer coef cients:
Prediction from data on heat transfer and uid friction, Ind Eng Chem.,
26: 1183.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors wish to express their thanks to B-JAC Inc. of Village Green,
Midlothian, USA, the EPSRC, and Hick Hargreaves & Co. of Bolton,
Lancashire for their nancial support of this work.

ADDRESS
REFERENCES
1. Silver, L., 1947, Gas cooling with aqueous condensation, Trans
IChemE 25: 3042.
2. Bell, K. J. and Ghaly, M. A., 1972, An approximate generalised design
method for multi-component partial condensers, AIChE Symp Ser, 69,
No 131, pp 7279.

Trans IChemE, Vol 77, Part A, March 1999

Corrrespondence concerning this paper should be addressed to

Dr D. R. Webb, Department of Chemical Engineering, UMIST, PO Box
88, Manchester M60 1QD.
The manuscript was received 2 April 1998 and accepted for publication
after revision 15 February 1999.