INTRODUCTION

A transformer is a static electrical device that transfers energy by inductive coupling

between its winding circuits. If heat in the transformer is not dissipated properly, the
temperature of the transformer will rise continually which may cause damages in paper
insulation and liquid insulation medium of transformer. So it is essential to control the
temperature within permissible limit to ensure the long life of transformer by reducing
thermal degradation of its insulation system. Transformer coolers are heat exchangers used to
cool the oil in a transformer. The cooling medium is typically air or water.
OIL FORCED WATER FORCED TRANSFORMER COOLING
Many methods are used to conduct cooling of transformer. One of the methods
adapted to cool industrial transformers is Oil Forced Water Forced Transformer Cooling
(OFWF). We know that ambient temperature of water is much less than the atmospheric air
in same weather condition. So water may be used as better heat exchanger media than air.
This type of cooling system needs a heat exchanger in which the heat of the transformer oil is
given to the cooling water. The cooling water is taken away and cooled in separate coolers.
The oil is forced through the heat exchanger. The oil pump pumps the oil from transformer to
the heat exchanger though the top pipes. Oil from the heat exchanger is pumped back to the
transformer through the bottom pipe. This type of cooling is provided for very large
transformers which have ratings of some hundreds of MVA (Generating Transformer will
have very high rating and rating equal to the rating of the generator). This type of
transformers is used in large substations and power plants.




Figure 1 Schematic Diagram of OFWF Cooling


















Figure 2 An Industrial Transformer Which Utilizes OFWF Cooling
SHELL AND TUBE HEAT EXCHANGER
Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers are one of the most popular types of exchanger used
for transformer cooling due to the flexibility the designer has to allow for a wide range of
pressures and temperatures. A shell and tube exchanger consists of a number of tubes
mounted inside a cylindrical shell. Two fluids can exchange heat, one fluid flows over the
outside of the tubes while the second fluid flows through the tubes. The fluids can be single
or two phase and can flow in a parallel or a cross/counter flow arrangement.


Figure 3 Schematic Diagram of Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger
The shell and tube exchanger consists of four major parts:
- Front Headerthis is where the fluid enters the tube side of the exchanger. It is
sometimes referred to as the Stationary Header.
- Rear Headerthis is where the tube side fluid leaves the exchanger or where it is returned
to the front header in exchangers with multiple tube side passes.
- Tube bundlethis comprises of the tubes, tube sheets, baffles and tie rods etc. to hold the
bundle together.
- Shellthis contains the tube bundle.





Figure 4 Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger with Counter-Current Flow

Shell-and-tube heat exchangers consist of a bundle of parallel tubes that provide the heat-
transfer surface separating the two fluid streams. The tube side fluid passes axially through
the inside of the tubes; the shell-side fluid passes over the outside of the tubes. Baffles
external and perpendicular to the tubes direct the flow across the tubes and provide tube
support. Tube sheets seal the ends of the tubes, ensuring separation of the two streams. The
process fluid is usually placed inside the tubes for ease of cleaning or to take advantage of the
higher pressure capability inside the tubes.











Figure 5 Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
The theory behind the operation of a shell-and-tube heat exchanger involves the
consideration of both convective and conductive heat transfer.
The determination of the overall heat transfer coefficient is one of the most important,
and often most uncertain, quantities in the analysis of heat exchangers. This coefficient
primarily accounts for all of the conductive and convective resistances (k and h, respectively)
between fluids separated by a wall (or tube), and further takes into account thermal
resistances caused by fouling on the wall by means of fouling factors on both sides. For an
unfinned, tubular heat exchanger the overall heat transfer coefficient, U
d
,

can be expressed as

Another important quantity in heat exchanger analysis is the total rate of heat transfer
between the hot and cold fluid. Several different expressions for this heat transfer rate can be
developed, relating the heat transfer rate to quantities such as the inlet and outlet fluid
temperatures and the overall heat transfer coefficient. When these expressions are developed,
care must be taken to ensure that the appropriate mean temperature expressions are used.
Several assumptions can be made to simplify these expressions. In this case, we assume:
negligible heat transfer between the system and its surroundings, negligible potential or
kinetic energy changes, constant specific heats, and that the fluids are not undergoing any
phase change. In this case, the total heat transfer rate, q, becomes
where

o i s
T T T = A (3)


( ) 1 .
1
ln
2
1 1
|
|
.
|

\
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
+ + =
i i
o
fi
i
o
i
o o
fo
o d
h d
d
R
d
d
d
d
k
d
R
h U
( ) 2 ) (
) (
side tube T Cp m
side shell T Cp m q
t t t
s s s
A =
A =

and
.
o i t
t t T = A (4)
When the total heat transfer rate is related to the overall heat transfer coefficient, another
expression develops. This time

where A is the area for heat transfer, F is the correction factor for flow, and AT
LM
is the log
mean temperature difference between the inlet and outlet temperatures. In a shell-and-tube
heat exchanger, the area for heat transfer is

. L d n A
o t
t = (6)

The correction factor, F, is needed due to the fact the theory was originally developed for the
case of pure counter flow. In a shell-and-tube heat exchanger, there is usually one shell pass
and some multiple of two tube passes. For this case, the correction factor, F, becomes

Where the equations for each of the variables in the equation are


( ) 5
LM d
T AF U q A =
( )
( )
( )
( ) 7
2
2
ln 1
1
1
ln
|
|
.
|

\
|
+

|
.
|

\
|

=
a b P
a b P
R
RP
P
a
F
( ) 8 1
2
+ = R a
( ) 9 1 + = R b
( ) 10
i o
o i
t t
T T
R

=
( ) 11 .
o i
i o
T T
t t
P

=
Finally, the log mean temperature difference is defined as the mean between the inlet and
outlet temperatures for both the shell-and-tube. The equation for the log mean temperature
difference is

Another important consideration in the development of the theory behind a heat exchanger is
the Reynolds number, a ratio between the inertial and viscous forces in flow. The value of
this dimensionless group denotes whether the flow in the heat exchanger is laminar or
turbulent. Naturally, turbulent flow is preferred, as heat transfer in turbulent flow is much
greater. The Reynolds number for flow through tubes is given by
t t
t i
tube
a
m d

= Re (13)

with a
t
, the tube flow area, given by
.
4
2
p
i t
t
N
d n
a
|
.
|

\
|
=
t
(14)

The Reynolds number for flow through the shell is quite a complicated expression due to the
number of tubes and baffles the flow encounters and the pitch of tubes. The shell Reynolds
number can be written as

where the quantity De represents the equivalent shell diameter and is given by

( )
.
2
8 4
3
4
4
2 2
in
D
D P
perimeter wetted
area free
De
s
s T
t
t
|
|
.
|

\
|

= = (16)


( ) ( )
( ) 12 .
ln
|
|
.
|

\
|

= A
o i
i o
o i i o
LM
t T
t T
t T t T
T
( ) 15 Re
s
s s
shell
DeV

=
The quantity V
s
represents the velocity of the flow and is given by

s s
s
s
a
m
V

= (17)




REFERENCES

1. TEMA Seventh Edition. (1988) Tubular Exchanger Manufacturers Association.
2. Saunders, E. A. D. (1988) Heat ExchangersSelection, Design and Construction, Longman
Scientific and Technical.
3. Hewitt, G. F, Shires, G. L., and Bott, T. R. (1994) Process Heat Transfer, CRC Press.
4. Boiler and Pressure Vessel code, ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers).
5. British Master Pressure Vessel Standard, BS 5500.