Our Evaporators
At Conmetal, we develop and manufacture custom industrial evaporators, designed for processes requiring efficient water removal from a wide variety of liquid products. Our experience allows us to offer reliable, efficient solutions tailored to each client’s specific requirements.
We offer two main lines of evaporators: Falling Film and Forced Circulation. Each provides specific configurations and applications depending on the nature of the fluid and the required concentration level.
Features
Thanks to optimized design and multi-effect use.
With custom solutions for product type, concentration level, and energy availability.
Facilitating cleaning, inspection, and maintenance.
With materials selected according to thermal and chemical conditions.
With condensers, preheaters, and energy recovery systems.
Custom-made
Conmetal SpA designs each evaporator according to client requirements, integrating efficiency, reliability, and after-sales support from engineering to commissioning. Additionally, Conmetal SpA can repair various types of evaporators, covering engineering, boiler making, mechanical-structural repair, and automation and control. For more information, please contact us.
Applications Across Different Industries
Wine
Chemical
Pulp & Paper
Mining
Steel
Energy
Designed primarily for the fishing industry. The CONMETAL Cooker is a unit for continuous operation with indirect heating, with capacities ranging from 10 t/hr to 60 t/hr of raw material.
Both the cylinder and the rotor are heated with boiler steam.
The unit is manufactured as a horizontal cylinder through which the raw material is conveyed by a rotor configured as a screw conveyor. The screw flights are stamped and have been specially designed to achieve cooking with a shorter residence time and therefore better preservation of the product’s protein qualities.
The CONMETAL Cooker is also designed for easy chemical cleaning. We also have reconditioned units available, subject to stock verification at our plant.
Evaporators
Our falling film evaporators are constructed from 304 stainless steel, with a shell thickness of 3 to 4 mm.
The tubes are also made of 304 stainless steel and have a diameter of 38.2 to 40 mm, depending on the heat transfer area of the equipment.
- The tailwater is fed by a pump to the third effect of the evaporator. The tailwater is controlled by a level control system.
- The pump in this effect drives the liquid to the top, where it is distributed through the tubes by spraying via a nozzle, allowing the liquid to descend along the tubes in a very thin film.
- Gravity and the vapor generated by the evaporation process carry the liquid to the bottom of the tubes.
- The liquid falls to the bottom of the effect where there is a level control.
- The liquid partially evaporates as it passes through the tubes due to the heat produced by the condensation of vapors passing over the outer surface of the tubes.
- The liquid and vapors separate in the cyclone; the liquid drains to the collector vessel towards the recirculation pump, and the vapors pass to the condenser.
- The partially concentrated liquid passes to the next effect, and in a process similar to evaporation, the vapors produced pass to the next effect as the process’s energy source.
- The concentrated tailwater is discharged from the first effect by means of a pump.
- Evaporation in the first effect is produced by the heat transfer from the dryer vapors.
We have currently improved our design by introducing spray nozzles to replace distribution plates, which increase operational efficiency by improving the evaporated water capacity by 5 to 10% depending on the evaporator brand and model, for the same transfer area.
Mist falling film evaporators are an improved version of falling film evaporators, ideal for products with low to medium viscosity and low solids content. Their design allows the fluid to be atomized in a nozzle, achieving a fine film along the internal surface of the tubes, optimizing thermal contact and reducing product degradation.
Variants:
• WHE – Waste Heat Evaporators
They utilize residual vapors with high water vapor content as a thermal source. They allow for the reuse of process energy, reducing fresh steam consumption. Ideal for plants with a strong focus on energy efficiency.
• Direct Steam
They operate with live steam as a heat source. They offer greater thermal control and high heat transfer efficiency. Recommended when usable vapors are not available.
Designed for high-viscosity or high-solids products where Falling Film evaporators are no longer efficient. They incorporate a pump that drives the fluid at high speed through the tube bundle, generating turbulence to prevent fouling and improve thermal transfer.
It is advisable to use them with live steam to ensure high heat exchange capacity and reduce fouling. They can be configured in one or more effects, depending on process requirements and desired energy efficiency.
Evaporators are primarily used in:
- Production of protein meals
- Concentration of extracts
- Fishing industry
- Recycling of process water with solids recovery
- Food industry