Can You Explain Pressure Differential Between Heat Exchanger Sides?

[charlie95]

Pressure ?

If you have a heat exchanger. On the Shell side you have nitrogen gas at 35 bar, and on the tube side you have water at 5 bar.
Is it possible to get water into the nitrogen side?

I know the answer is yes, but I do not understand why. Is there someone who have a simple explanaton for this?

 

[mfb]

If you bring some nitrogen to the other side at the same time or use some power supply, it is fine. I don't see the relation to a heat exchanger: Where is a temperature difference?

 

[charlie95]

temperature do not matter in this case. I only wanted to know if you have gas at high pressure on one side of heatexchanger/cooler/heater and water at low pressure one the other side if there is possible to get Liquid into the gas phase? temperature do not matter in this case.

 

[mfb]

See above:

If you bring some nitrogen to the other side at the same time or use some power supply, it is fine.

 

[CWatters]

Water is (reasonably) incompressible so it would it take much nitrogen leaking into the water side to equalise the pressure?

 

[mfb]

Probably not, but if you want to let water out (to go the the nitrogen-side), you have to fill the volume with nitrogen or reduce the volume with external* power.

*can be gained by an expansion of the nitrogen-side.