ABSTRACT
Dr. Richard Seligman, the founder of APV International, introduced the rst commercially successful gasketed plate heat exchanger design in 1923. A plate heat exchanger essentially consists of a number of corrugated metal plates provided with gaskets and corner ports to achieve the desired ow arrangement. Each uid passes through alternate channels. The plates are clamped together in a frame that includes connections for the uids. Since each plate is generally provided with peripheral gaskets to provide sealing arrangements, the plate heat exchangers are called gasketed plate heat exchangers. Extensive information on the plate heat exchanger is provided by Focke [1], Cooper et al. [2], Raju et al. [3,4], and Shah et al. [5], and in the website of leading manufacturers like Alpha Laval, Pune, India, APV Co., Tonawanda, NY, Paul-Muller Company, Springeld, MO, GEA PHE Systems, Sarstedt, Germany, Tranter, Inc., Wichita Falls, TX, HRS Heat Exchangers Ltd, Herts, United Kingdom, ITT STANDARD, Cheektowaga, NY, Polaris Plate Heat Exchangers, Tinton, Falls, NJ.
