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When Is An Expansion Bellows Required in A Heat Exchanger

An expansion bellows is a thin, flexible, corrugated element used in heat exchangers to absorb dimensional variations and differential thermal expansion between the shell and tubes. Bellows are delicate and expensive, so should be avoided if possible. They are required in fixed tubesheet and floating head heat exchangers to absorb relative axial movement between the shell and tubes due to differences in materials and temperatures, in order to prevent overstressing or buckling of components. Bellows help reduce stresses in the shell and tubes and the load on tube-to-tubesheet joints.

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342 views3 pages

When Is An Expansion Bellows Required in A Heat Exchanger

An expansion bellows is a thin, flexible, corrugated element used in heat exchangers to absorb dimensional variations and differential thermal expansion between the shell and tubes. Bellows are delicate and expensive, so should be avoided if possible. They are required in fixed tubesheet and floating head heat exchangers to absorb relative axial movement between the shell and tubes due to differences in materials and temperatures, in order to prevent overstressing or buckling of components. Bellows help reduce stresses in the shell and tubes and the load on tube-to-tubesheet joints.

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TiHoR
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WHEN IS AN EXPANSION BELLOWS REQUIRED IN A

HEAT EXCHANGER?
What is an Expansion Bellows?

It is a thin wall Flexible element with Corrugated members (convolutions) that absorbs
dimensional variations in a Heat Exchanger while containing the pressure and medium
flowing through it.

Bellows are the most delicate and expensive component in the heat exchanger. Hence, it is

preferred to avoid constructions and situations that need an expansion bellows.

Expansion Bellows are required in Fixed and Floating Tubesheet Heat Exchangers to:
1. Absorb the relative axial movement (extension or compression) between shell and tubes on

account of DIFFERENTIAL THERMAL EXPANSION arising due to difference in MOC &

MMT. In absence of bellows, tube, shell or tubesheet may get overstressed and buckle/

deform.

2. Reduce longitudinal stresses in Shell & Tubes.

3. Reduce the load on tube-to-tubesheet joints.

A. Fixed tubesheet heat exchanger


• Fixed type tubesheet designs are most vulnerable to differential thermal expansion since

there is no inherent provision to absorb the thermal stresses.

• When the magnitude of differential thermal expansion between shell and the tubes is high,

to overcome these stresses, fixed tubesheet heat exchangers are sometimes equipped with

an expansion bellows.

• External bellows are subject to internal pressure only.

• On the fixed tubesheet exchanger, the expansion joint can be either thick flanged and flued

type or thin EJMA bellows depending on the magnitude of differential thermal expansion

and required cycle-life.

• When containment of fluid is important design criteria, thin external bellows are avoided.

B. Tubeside single-pass floating head exchanger

• This is a special version of floating head exchanger in which expansion bellows are required

by configuration of this heat exchanger. (See sketch above)

• Internal bellows are subjected to both internal and external pressure.

• Generally, these are thin expansion bellows (EJMA/ ASME Sec VIII Div-1, Appendix 26)

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