How Heat Exchangers Work

Heat exchangers are an integral tool in thermodynamic systems. A heat exchanger allows a fluid (gas or liquid) to pass through another fluid using tubes. The contact of both fluids against the tube allows heat transfer to take place. As the temperature of the cool fluid increases, the temperature of the warm fluid decreases by a proportionally similar degree.

There are various types of heat exchangers categorized by the type of tubing used to separate the fluids.