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Category Archive: Brewing Heat Exchangers

Tag Archive: Brewing Heat Exchangers

  1. Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers Used to Cool Wort in Craft Brewing

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    Making beer is a complex art, requiring precise execution of each step to ensure a high-quality final product. One crucial step in this process is wort cooling, which occurs after wort boiling and just before fermentation.

    Importance of Wort Cooling

    Cooling the wort brings the liquid down to the optimal temperature for yeast activity. Ale yeasts thrive at temps between 68 and 72°F, while lager yeasts prefer it cooler – between 45 and 57°F. This is a significant drop from the boiling temperature of wort, which is above 212°F, depending on the liquid’s specific gravity.

    Cooling the wort also slows the production of dimethyl sulfide (DMS), which can give beer an unwanted cooked corn smell. While some commercial beers intentionally retain DMS, many brewers aim to eliminate it.

    Another important reason for rapid wort cooling is to control contaminants that can affect the final taste. Bacteria thrive when wort cools below 160°F, so rapid cooling helps minimize bacterial growth.

    Additionally, rapid cooling maximizes the cold break, a process where proteins, tannins, and other materials solidify and can be removed from the wort. The quicker the wort is cooled, the more cold break forms, reducing cloudiness and improving the taste of the final product.

    Methods for Wort Cooling

    There are several ways to cool wort after boiling, though some methods are only efficient for small quantities. For example, an ice bath might work for home brewers but is impractical for craft or commercial beer production. A widely efficient method for wort cooling in these settings is using a shell and tube heat exchanger, also known as a counterflow chiller in the craft beer industry.

    The shell and tube heat exchanger cools the wort quickly, bringing it to the desired temperature in minutes. This speed is beneficial for several reasons: it allows for faster yeast addition and fermentation, minimizes DMS production, and reduces bacterial growth. Additionally, the heated water from the exchanger can be reused for the next batch, enhancing efficiency.

    When using a shell and tube heat exchanger, the cold break remains in the wort and can be seen as cloudiness. To address this, direct the wort from the exchanger to a sanitary vessel, let the cold break settle, then transfer the liquid to the fermenter and add the yeast.

    Maintaining Clean Equipment

    Keeping all brewing equipment clean is crucial for preventing contamination and ensuring a high-quality product. Fouling can ruin a batch of beer and damage a brewery’s reputation. Therefore, it’s essential to clean all equipment thoroughly after use and periodically inspect the shell and tube heat exchanger for leaks or deformities. Stainless steel exchangers are particularly easy to clean and resistant to fouling.

    For a quote on a shell and tube heat exchanger for your brewing process, contact Enerquip.

     

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  2. Heat Exchanger Material Selection Based on Common Criteria

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    With so many factors to consider in choosing a material for your shell and tube heat exchanger, you may have a lot of questions. To start, you’ll need to decide which criteria are most critical to your operation. Criteria like:

    • thermal efficiency
    • cost
    • availability
    • corrosion resistance
    • cleanability
    • durability

    You can then weigh the pros and cons of the options that best meet your priorities, since there is typically more than one good alternative. For example, the best material for heat transfer may not be sanitary enough for your application; or the most corrosion-resistant option may far exceed your budget. In most cases, there is a heat exchanger material option that can balance most of your priorities.

    Here are a few tips and suggestions for evaluating the heat exchanger material options based on these common criteria.

  3. Enerquip Testimonial: New Glarus Brewing Company

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    The brewing and beverage industry uses a lot of heat energy, making heat recovery imperative in keeping processes as efficient as possible.

    New Glarus counts on Enerquip for not only a quality product, but for expertise in choosing the best product for their brewing solutions.

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    Why New Glarus Chooses Enerquip

  4. Enerquip Attends Craft Brewer’s Conference in Philadelphia

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    Brewers Association
    Learn more about this conference [ Here ].

    Craft beer has been a fast growing trend for several years now. According to the National Brewers Association, even as overall beer sales and production dropped 0.2 percent in 2015, craft beer profits went up. Sales of craft beer spiked 12.8 percent while production increased 13 percent.

    Over the past two years alone, various types of craft beer businesses have grown immensely. In 2015, there were:

    • 19,079,780 regional craft breweries
    • 3,927,063 microbreweries
    • 1,281,991 brewpubs
    • 234,181 contract brewing companies

    This represents the addition of more than 7 million regional craft breweries, upwards of 1.5 million microbreweries, more than 300,000 brewpubs and nearly 58,000 contract brewing companies, all in just a two-year time span.

    Celebrating craft brewing

    With so many people dedicating their careers to craft beer and many more becoming enthralled with the trend, it makes sense that industry leaders and budding entrepreneurs alike should come together to discuss all things hops and barley at the upcoming Craft Brewer’s Conference.

    CBC is an annual event that brings brewpubs and packaging breweries together. This year, it will take place from May 3 to 6 in Philadelphia.

    According to Communities Digital News, many locations around the city will be celebrating the craft brewing industry. A wide variety of venues will be showing off their best brews throughout the week. From the National Museum of American Jewish History putting on the Amber Waves art exhibit highlighting the art of brewing to the International Beer Run, there is no shortage of activities for craft beer-loving adults to take part in.

    At the conference

    Despite much of Philadelphia celebrating the CBC, the actual conference’s events are off-limits to anyone not officially in the brewing industry. The first day will offer attendees information about accurately measuring wort gravity and counting yeast cells, while the three following days will give participants a wide variety of educational sessions focusing on everything from brewing operations to sustainability to marketing.

    While each of these points is important, it is crucial that craft brewers know how to produce a safe product that meets all requirements set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Errors can result in distributing a potentially dangerous product.

    When shell and tube heat exchangers are important

    There are many aspects that go into creating an enjoyable craft beer that also meets the requirements set by the FDA. According to the National Brewers Association, all craft brewers must follow Good Manufacturing Practices for Craft Brewers, which include the following guidelines:

    • Using only quality raw materials
    • Maintaining lab tests that can be trusted
    • Establishing standard operating procedures and educating staff about them
    • Recognizing and researching deviations in product quality
    • Creating a good quality management system
    • Packaging and labeling the product according to guidelines
    • Meeting sanitary and processing requirements

    Sanitary shell and tube heat exchangers are important in regards to the last GMPCB. Heat exchangers serve an important purpose in cooling the wort (the early liquid that’s later fermented into beer) to the necessary temperature to begin the actual brewing process, though if they are not properly cared for or graded to meet sanitary requirements, they aren’t worth much to a brewer.

    “All craft brewers must follow Good Manufacturing Practices for Craft Brewers.”

    It’s important that brewers are aware of the standards their equipment needs to meet. This is why conferences like the CBC are so important – they give everyone in the craft brewing industry unique opportunities to learn more about the requirements they must adhere to when brewing.

    Another way shell and tube heat exchangers are used in large-scale operations is for waste heat recovery. This can be applied to operations in a wide variety of industries, but for smaller companies, such as a burgeoning craft brewery, it’s important to keep operational costs low. Energy is expensive, but heating and cooling the product to the right temperature at the right time is crucial to producing a high-quality product.

    The energy required to create heat takes time and money, and without the right waste heat recovery method in place, it is only used once before it is released. Collecting and reusing that heat can make an operation more environmentally friendly as well as more economically sound. Shell and tube heat exchangers are great pieces of equipment to achieve this goal.

    For brewers who know their craft better than anything, but don’t know much about what makes a shell and tube heat exchanger food grade, Enerquip’s in-house engineers can be a big help. This is why Enerquip will be attending the CBC. Anyone involved in craft brewing who wants to know more about how a shell and tube heat exchanger can improve his or her operations, or about what kind of configuration will benefit their operation most, can stop by Enerquip’s table to gain some information.

  5. Microbreweries gaining ground in the beer making industry

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    Over the past 15 years, there has been explosive growth in the number of microbreweries elevating the American drinking experience. According to the U.S. Brewers Association, an impressive 13.2% of the beer market, equivalent to $28.4 billion, now proudly belongs to these innovative microbreweries.

    As the market continues to flourish and competition reaches new heights, breweries find themselves compelled to invest in cutting-edge processing equipment that promises a substantial return on investment. Among the indispensable tools shaping the brewing landscape, the shell and tube heat exchanger stands out as a workhorse in ensuring quality and precision.

    The Vital Role of Custom Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers in Elevating Microbrewery Quality

    When using a heat exchanger where two liquids are involved, the heat exchanger uses heat from one fluid in the shell of the exchanger to warm or cool the other liquid in the tubes of the exchanger. Learn how to choose a heat exchanger for your brewing process.

    In the world of brewing, the heat exchanger plays a pivotal role in the art of yeast manipulation. Yeast, a crucial ingredient in beer, harbors bacteria that needs careful handling. Enter the custom shell and tube heat exchanger, the unsung hero ensuring the elimination of harmful bacteria without compromising the essence of the product.

    Having a custom shell and tube heat exchanger allows breweries to reach proper temperatures to kill off the bacteria without damaging the state of the product. According to Serious Eats, there is such a thing as “friendly yeast,” which can be introduced to add numerous flavors while breaking down the sugar. Heating these products can kill off the appropriate yeast needed to craft beer. According to Brew Like a Pro, cleaning and sanitation is essential for the “cool side” of the beer-making process because the thermophilic bacteria can multiply and double every 20 minutes. Enter the stage of the brewing process where precision is not just a preference but a necessity. The rolling action of the boil, the heartbeat of brewing, demands a level of precision only achievable through custom heat exchanger solutions.

    Looking for a heat exchanger solution in your brewing process? Contact us today.

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    This post was last updated 1/22/24.