THERMAL FLUID HEATERS
Heatec specializes in thermal fluid heaters, especially those with helical coils heated by fired burners. They are extremely versatile and used in a wide variety of industries. They are also known as hot oil heaters. Oil and gas producers know them as HMO (Heat Medium Oil) heaters.
In any case the burner heats the thermal fluid that circulates through the heater coil and through heating coils in other equipment. A single heater can heat multiple pieces of equipment connected in one or more thermal fluid circuits. Moreover, heating of each piece of equipment can be controlled independently by valves that modulate the flow of the hot oil through the equipment.
Heaters with two-pass helical coils are the most popular. They burn a variety of fuels and have high thermal efficiencies that conserve fuel. Heaters are also available with three-pass helical coils and with serpentine coils. Outputs of the ones we can build range up to about 75 million Btu/hour.
We make our own thermal fluid coils. So we can configure the coils for your heater to provide a flow rate that closely matches your required flow rate without compromise.
The heaters can be either vertical or horizontal. A significant advantage of vertical heaters is their small footprint so they can fit into small ground areas.
Helical Coil Re-boiler
Helical coil reboiler. It is a fired heat exchanger that can be used in systems that process natural gas for pipeline distribution. It heats materials directly as they are pumped through its helical coil.
Two of these heaters may be used by a gas processor. One heats glycol to remove water it contains after it has been used to remove moisture from gas.
The other heats amine to remove hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide it contains after it has been used to remove these contaminants from the gas.
Direct Contact Water Heaters
Heatec manufactures three basic types of water heaters for a wide variety of industrial uses. They have burners that are gas fired. Special versions are available with burners that operate on diesel fuel.
Firestorm® is the brand name of our most popular water heater. It is a direct contact water heater that heats water on demand and provides a continuous supply of instant hot water at a constant temperature. It has an extremely high thermal efficiency.
Special versions of the Firestorm heater are available with NSF certification for food processors.
We also offer a helical coil heater for heating water. It is virtually the same as a thermal fluid heater, except it heats water as it is pumped through its helical coil to an external storage tank or reservoir. The water does not normally recirculate through the heater.
THERMAL FLUID STEAM BOILER
Heatec steam generators eliminate the need for a boiler. They produce steam by heating water with hot thermal fluid from a thermal fluid heater. The hot thermal fluid circulates through tubes of the steam generator, heating water surrounding the tubes and converting it into steam.
Unlike a boiler, tubes in the steam generator never get hotter than the thermal fluid flowing through them. This minimizes explosion hazards associated with boilers. It also eliminates the need for a boiler tender, who must be present when a boiler is in operation.
Steam is used for temporary heating hookups where use of hot oil is not practical. For example, steam is used at asphalt terminals to heat tank cars filled with asphalt so they can be unloaded.
WATER BATH HEATERS
They are designed to heat gas or oil circulating through them. They are gas fired heaters.
These heaters are used mostly to heat gas and liquids, such as crude oil, on offshore platforms, at refineries and at gas suppliers.
Heating gas before its pressure is reduced keeps ice crystals and hydrates from forming in lines when the pressure is reduced.
Heating crude oil reduces its viscosity so it can be easily pumped.
This illustration shows components inside the AQUATEC™ heater. Its burner fires directly into a U-tube inside the heater shell. The shell also contains serpentine tubes and is filled with water that surrounds both the serpentine tubes and U-tube. The water transfers heat from the U-tube to the serpentine tubes, heating them indirectly without exposure to high temperature gases.
Another version of our water bath heater for heating natural gas. It has a natural draft burner.
VAPORIZERS
This type of heater is used in a variety of industries, including the food, chemical, petrochemical and petroleum industries. It can be used either for liquid or vapor-phase heating. Vapor-phase heating is used where the product requires precise, uniform temperature control. Heater outputs range from 1 to 75 million Btu/hr.