Gasketed Plate Heat Exchanger
Compact plate-and-frame design for liquid-to-liquid duties. Plate count, material and gasket matched to your medium, temperature and pressure.
- District heating
- Dairy and food processing
- HVAC and chilled water
- Industrial cooling water
- · Plate / tube material
- · Design pressure & temperature
- · Connection type and size
- · Code and certification
Overview
A Gasketed Plate Heat Exchanger (GPHE) is a compact, high-efficiency heat transfer device built from a stack of pressed metal plates clamped between a fixed and a movable frame. Each plate carries a peripheral elastomer gasket that defines two independent flow channels — hot side and cold side — and the two media flow countercurrent through alternating channels, exchanging heat across the thin plate wall.
Because heat transfer occurs across a corrugated, turbulence-inducing surface and the plate metal is typically only 0.4–0.6 mm thick, a GPHE delivers an overall heat transfer coefficient (U-value) several times higher than a comparable shell-and-tube exchanger, in roughly one-third of the footprint and one-fifth of the hold-up volume. The plate pack is fully detachable for inspection, mechanical cleaning, and capacity expansion by adding or removing plates.
Shanghai Jiangxing supplies gasketed plate heat exchangers from small district-heating substations up to large industrial duties, with plate materials, gasket compounds, port sizes and frame ratings selected for each specific service.
Operating Conditions
| Design pressure | Up to 2.5 MPa (25 bar), standard frames; higher on request |
| Design temperature | −25 °C to +180 °C, gasket-limited |
| Heat transfer area | 0.1 – 2,500 m² per unit |
| Single-unit flow rate | Up to ~3,600 m³/h water-equivalent |
| Plate thickness | 0.4 – 0.8 mm, chevron / herringbone corrugation |
| Connection sizes | DN25 – DN500, flanged or threaded |
| Typical approach temperature | As low as 1 °C between streams |
Materials of Construction
| Plate materials | AISI 304, 316L, 254 SMO, titanium Gr.1/Gr.2, Hastelloy C276, nickel 200, SAF 2205 duplex |
| Gasket compounds | NBR (≤110 °C), EPDM (≤150 °C), EPDM-HT (≤180 °C), FKM/Viton (chemical), HNBR, food-grade FDA-compliant variants |
| Frame & tie bolts | Carbon steel painted, optional stainless cladding or 316 fully wetted |
| Connection liners | Stainless, rubber-lined, or titanium for seawater duties |
Selection Parameters
Information our engineering team uses to size and quote this unit.
- Hot-side and cold-side medium (chemical composition, contaminants)
- Flow rate on both sides (m³/h or kg/h) and allowable pressure drop
- Inlet and outlet temperatures on both sides
- Design pressure and design temperature for each side
- Required heat duty (kW) or LMTD target
- Fouling factors / cleanliness expectations
- Connection orientation, footprint envelope, and any code requirements (PED, ASME, GB)
RFQ Data Checklist
Send the items below with your inquiry for the fastest accurate quotation.
- Application / process description
- Medium on each side (and concentration if applicable)
- Flow rate, inlet and outlet temperatures on each side
- Design pressure and design temperature on each side
- Required heat duty (kW) or required outlet temperature
- Allowable pressure drop on each side
- Preferred plate material and gasket compound (if known)
- Code requirements: PED, ASME U-stamp, GB, classification society, etc.
Industry Cases
Heating water 95/70 °C against secondary loop 60/80 °C, 6 MW duty, 316L plates with EPDM-HT gaskets — typical municipal heat exchanger station.
Three-section unit (regeneration / heating / cooling) with FDA-compliant gaskets, 316L plates and clamp-style sanitary connections.
Free-cooling interface between cooling-tower loop and chilled-water loop, allowing chillers to be bypassed for 30–40 % of the year in temperate climates.
Acidic process stream cooled with plant cooling water, titanium Gr.1 plates with FKM gaskets for chloride resistance.
Gasketed Plate vs Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchanger
Both technologies cover the same broad range of liquid/liquid duties, but a gasketed plate exchanger is dramatically more compact and efficient where the media are clean. Shell-and-tube wins where pressure, temperature, fouling or phase change exceed plate limits.
| Gasketed Plate (GPHE) | Shell-and-Tube (STHE) | |
|---|---|---|
| Heat transfer coefficient (U) | 3,000 – 7,000 W/m²·K typical | 300 – 1,500 W/m²·K typical |
| Footprint for same duty | ≈ 1/3 the floor area | Baseline — significantly larger |
| Hold-up volume | ≈ 1/5 the fluid volume | Large shell-side volume |
| Closest approach temperature | As low as 1 °C | Practically 5 – 10 °C |
| Max design pressure | Up to 25 bar standard | Up to 200+ bar, custom designs higher |
| Max design temperature | ≈ 180 °C (gasket-limited) | Up to 600 °C+ |
| Phase change duties | Limited — partial vaporization only | Excellent — condensers, reboilers, vaporizers |
| Tolerance to fouling / solids | Sensitive — narrow channels | Tolerant — large tubes, mechanical cleaning |
| Maintenance | Open frame, clean every plate, replace gaskets | Pull tube bundle, mechanical or chemical cleaning |
| Best-fit duties | District heating, HVAC, dairy/food, process cooling with clean media | High pressure/temperature, dirty service, vaporizers, condensers, large refineries |
Gasketed Plate vs Brazed Plate Heat Exchanger
Same plate geometry, different sealing strategy. Brazed units win on compactness and high pressure; gasketed units win on serviceability, large areas and aggressive media.
| Gasketed Plate (GPHE) | Brazed Plate (BPHE) | |
|---|---|---|
| Construction | Plate pack with peripheral gaskets, clamped between frame plates | Vacuum-brazed plate pack — sealed, no gaskets or bolts |
| Max design pressure | Typically up to 25 bar | Up to 45 bar standard; 140 bar for CO₂ versions |
| Max design temperature | ≈ +180 °C, limited by gasket compound | +225 °C (copper-brazed); +400 °C (nickel-brazed, short-term) |
| Heat transfer area range | 0.1 – 2,500 m² per unit | 0.01 – 60 m² per unit |
| Field serviceability | Fully openable — inspect every plate, replace gaskets, add/remove plates | Not openable — CIP cleaning only |
| Best-fit duties | District heating, dairy/food, central HVAC, process cooling, large industrial duties | Refrigeration evaporators/condensers, heat pumps, oil cooling, DHW modules, OEM chillers |
Frequently Asked Questions
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