[TR] Water pumps.

[Michael Marr]

The fouling of the radiator tubes does indeed act as an insulator. When selecting condensers for steam turbines or large chiller condensers, we apply a "fouling factor" to ensure that the condenser operates at its rated capacity, even after the inevitable fouling has occurred. It is inevitable because the cooling water in these systems usually comes from a cooling tower, which is open to the atmosphere, or from a lake or river.  In either case, the water is filtered, but minute particles get through the filters and ultimately deposit on the condenser tubes, resulting in reduced heat transfer capability. 

Mike

Michael Marr
Albion Technical Services
Mobile:  630-202-0065

Sent from my iPad

On May 11, 2017, at 22:26, Randall <TR3driver at ca.rr.com> wrote:

>> .
> 
> Second time around, it appeared the problem was that the inside of the tubes
> were coated with a muddy substance, likely a mixture of rust particles and
> stop-leak.  The radiator shop swore it "flowed fine", but when I finally
> insisted that they rod it out, they couldn't get the rods through the tubes!
> Once again, having it recored made a world of difference.  I can't prove it,
> but IMO the problem was not lack of flow, but rather that the "mud" was
> acting as an insulator.  The water coming out was almost as hot as the water
> going in, which is the opposite of what I would expect if the flow were not
> high enough.
> 
>