Summary

The formation of undesirable layer of deposits on the heat-transfer surface is defined as fouling. These deposits present a major problem in the operation and maintenance of heat exchangers, particularly in cooling-water systems. It has been generally observed that the deposits in such systems consist mainly of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), which has inverse solubility characteristics. An experimental study was carried out to determine the effect of tube surface temperature, Reynolds number, tube diameter and salt concentration on the growth of CaCO3 scale. In this paper, effects of some of these parameters on fouling growth are discussed. The effect of CaCO3 concentration on the scale growth is compared with the ionic diffusion model presented by Hasson. The variation of the fouling thickness along the length of the heat exchanger is also illustrated. Furthermore, dimensionless parameters are introduced to present the fouling resistance data collected during the experimental study