15. What’s the best heat exchanger type for cooling marine electric propulsion?
Although electric propulsion for marine vessels is still relatively new, it is experiencing significant growth and development as the industry seeks to reduce marine CO² emissions.
Currently, many system manufacturers are choosing shell and tube heat exchangers for their electric propulsion systems for the following reasons:
Coolant Flow
In many electric and hybrid marine applications, the coolant flow around the electrical components is usually much lower than the seawater cooling flow. Shell and tube heat exchangers are much better at handling the imbalance of coolant velocities than other types of heat exchanger, such as plate types.
Easier integration
The compact design of Bowman shell and tube heat exchangers, combined with the lighter weight of their titanium units, makes them easy to integrate into the system design.
Reliability
With rising pollution levels, Bowman shell and tube heat exchangers are less affected by blockages from sea borne debris, compared to plate types.
Bowman manufacture a comprehensive marine heat exchanger range for electric and hybrid applications and are already specified by some of the leading manufacturers and system integrators. For more information on Bowman Electric & Hybrid Marine heat exchangers