Case Study from HydroFLOW South Africa
Dairy condenser scale on an evaporative condenser
Dairy condenser scale had built up hard on the tubes and internal panels of Condenser No. 4 at a South African dairy. Heavy deposits covered the spray nozzles and frames, heat transfer efficiency was falling, and the site relied on continuous chemical dosing to hold it back. In May 2020 one HydroFLOW® i120 was fitted to the 100 mm vertical circulating pipe of the condenser, with the condenser kept running. New scale stopped forming, the existing deposits softened, and the spray nozzles and frames cleared. Chemical dosing was discontinued, and heat transfer recovered as the tubes cleared.
The Challenges
- Dairy condenser scale had built up hard on tubes and internal panels
- Heavy deposits covered the spray nozzles and frames
- Heat transfer efficiency was reduced
- The site relied on continuous chemical dosing
- Condenser No. 4 had to be treated without disrupting refrigeration
The Solution
- Unit installed: HydroFLOW® i120
- Installation point: vertical circulating pipe, Condenser No. 4
- Pipe size: 100 mm
- Installed: May 2020 while the condenser kept running
- Dosing stopped: continuous chemical dosing
The i120 was fitted to the vertical circulating pipe in an afternoon while the condenser kept running. The signal disrupts the conditions that bond scale to surfaces, so existing deposits soften and no new dairy condenser scale forms during operation. The spray nozzles that had been blocking were the first place the change showed, and chemical dosing was discontinued.
