⚗️ Chemical & Petrochemical
Reactor feed heating, viscous fluid conditioning, pipeline steam tracing and tank heating.
Chemical & Petrochemical — DSI Applications
High-capacity process fluid heating, reactor conditioning and tank farm temperature management
Reactor Feed Preheating
Many exothermic and endothermic chemical reactions require feed streams to enter the reactor at a minimum temperature for catalyst activation and conversion efficiency. DSI heaters are installed on feed pipelines to raise the stream temperature quickly from ambient or tank storage temperature to the required inlet temperature — often 60–120°C. The high thermal efficiency of direct steam contact minimises steam consumption compared to shell-and-tube preheaters, which are prone to fouling with reactive or viscous feed stocks.
Brine & Caustic Solution Heating
Chlor-alkali plants use brine (saturated sodium chloride solution) as the primary electrolyte. Brine temperature must be controlled precisely before the electrolytic cells to optimise current efficiency and membrane life. Primetech DSI heaters in titanium or Hastelloy construction are used for brine service, where the highly corrosive medium rules out carbon steel or standard stainless. A Primetech system at Shree Ambika Sugars demonstrates this capability — heating 10% brine at 27 m³/hour from 20°C to 80°C using 1.3 Bar saturated steam.
Tank Farm & Storage Tank Heating
Heavy chemicals, fuel oils and viscous process fluids held in storage tanks must be maintained above their pour point or minimum process temperature to allow pumping. DSI spargers or inline heaters are installed on tank recirculation lines, circulating and heating the fluid continuously. Compared to internal coil heaters, DSI systems avoid hot-wall effects that accelerate degradation of temperature-sensitive chemicals, and are far easier to clean and maintain.