Cleaning the exterior of tubes of a shell side of a core of a shell and tube heat exchanger

摘要

A method of cleaning the exterior of tubes 12 of a shell side of a core of a shell and tube heat exchanger comprises passing a lance 54 through a bored hole 50 in a plate 14 at one end of the heat exchanger and is transverse to the tubes 12, and emitting a high pressure jet of water from the lance 54 to dislodge deposits adhered to the exterior of the tubes 12. Lance 54 is advanced parallel to the tubes 12 to further transverse plates 24, 26 having axially aligned bored holes with the previous bored hole, so that the lance 54 may pass through each plate 24, 26 to clean a further exterior section of the tubes 12. A radially expandable guide 60 may be inserted through the bore hole(s) 50 and contacts cleaned surfaces of adjacent tubes 12 and serves to align a boring tool 52 on each further transverse plate 24, 26 equidistant from the adjacent tubes 12. After cleaning, lance 54 is removed and the holes 50 in the outermost end plate 14 may be plugged. Holes in intermediate transverse plates 24, 26 may be blocked off by inserting a rod into axially aligned holes and sealed with the end plate 14. Plates 14, 24, 26 may have preformed plugged holes 50 that may be unplugged to permit insertion of the lance 54. Holes 50 may be drilled, laser cut or cut with water containing abrasive particles.