Plate Heat Exchanger NORDIC Tec Ba-32-90 1" 500kW

The Ba-32-90 heat exchangers - what heat pump capacities are they able to handle?

Selecting a plate heat exchanger for connecting a heat pump to a heating and domestic hot water system is closely related to the surface area of the heat exchanger plates . The Ba-32-90 model has almost 3 square meters of surface area. In this case the maximum heat pump capacities supported by this heat exchanger can be around 22-24 kW for high-temperature systems --> with a relatively high parameter in this specific case considered to be 50 to 55 degrees Celsius. Heat pumps rarely operate constantly at higher temperatures.

However, the situation changes significantly when it comes to low-temperature systems, and the heat pump is supplying a building without radiators - where the heat is directed directly to underfloor heating manifolds (a building heated only by underfloor heating). These systems are powered by temperatures ranging from only 30 to 35 degrees Celsius, and to transfer the appropriate power in kW, the calculation looks different. In this case - a relatively large 90-plate heat exchanger is able to handle heat pumps with a maximum capacity of up to 12 kW.

Many professionals and practitioners consider our calculations to be too conservative - and indeed, heat pumps often do not require such cautious selection of heat exchangers. However, they have an overview of the system's operation over 2-3 or 5 years - especially during the warranty period. The purpose of selecting a heat exchanger is its uninterrupted operation for many years, even 12 or 15 years. Therefore, one should take into account the natural aging process of the devices and their linear decrease in efficiency over the years. Then we will get an answer as to why it is worth selecting heat exchangers with a certain margin.