The correct order for heat-exchanger selection is to first determine the type from the media, duty and industry scenario, then compute area and efficiency for that type. The wrong type makes even a precise area calculation unusable. Select the fluid combination first:
Perform thermal sizing using the selected type's heat-transfer coefficient and effectiveness range.
First principle of selection: check cross-contamination, temperature, dust/corrosion and layout limits before comparing effectiveness and pressure drop.
| Type | Max temp | Typical eff. | Cross-contamination | Humidity recovery | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plate sensible-heat recovery | ≤300℃ | 55~75% | Fully isolated | None | Pharma / hospital / dryer exhaust / data center |
| Plate total-heat (membrane) | ≤60℃ | 50~72% | Trace permeation | Yes | Comfort fresh air, office/commercial |
| Rotary wheel recovery | ≤80℃ | 70~85% | Carry-over/leakage | Yes | Large-volume comfort fresh air |
| Heat-pipe recovery | ≤350℃ | 45~65% | Fully isolated | None | Mine, heavy dust, high-temp exhaust |
| U-tube dehumidification heat pipe | ≤60℃ | Dehumidify+reheat | Fully isolated | Dehumidify | Deep HVAC dehumidification, dryer dehumidification |
| Polymer air-air exchanger | ≤80℃ | 55~75% | Trace permeation | Yes | Dyeing/paper, corrosive humid exhaust |
| Stainless high-temp air-air | ≤650℃ | 50~70% | Fully isolated | None | Coating/RTO/kiln high-temp exhaust |
| Liquid-loop recovery | ≤200℃ | 40~60% | Physical separation | None | Airstreams far apart, must not mix |
| Rotary/tubular air preheater | ≤420℃ | 50~78% | Leakage/isolated | None | Boiler/kiln combustion-air preheat |
| Plate (liquid-liquid) | ≤350℃ / ≤3 MPa | U 3000~3800 | — | — | Water-water, oil-water, process |
| Shell-and-tube (liquid-liquid) | ≤450℃ / ≤10 MPa | U 950~1100 | — | — | High temp/pressure, particulate, steam |
| Liquid-cold plate / microchannel | ≤120 / 150℃ | q ≤50 / 300 W/cm² | — | — | IGBT, CPU/GPU, storage battery |