21 good years with Alfa Laval's Compabloc - and counting
At BASF’s acetylene and naphthalene plant in Ludwigshafen, Germany, a steadily growing number of Alfa Laval Compabloc heat exchangers have been delivering safety, reliability – and lower costs since 1993. The first installation was followed by 25 more over the last 21 years – with the most recent commissioning in 2013.
DATE 2023-11-28Three of the Compablocs installed at BASF's plant.The plant in Ludwigshafen, which is part of a large production complex, purchased its first Alfa Laval Compabloc to solve a serious problem with leaking gaskets, posing a safety risk and causing frequent production stops.
The second challenge was to replace carbon steel shell-and-tube heat exchangers suffering from erosion.The solution to both challenges was the Alfa Laval Compabloc welded plate heat exchanger, which is suitable for operation in chemically aggressive environment.Three of the many Alfa Laval Compabloc heat exchangers installed at BASF's acetylene and naphthalene plants and for handling high-temperature fluids. It’s fully accessible. And with no gaskets between the corrugated heat transfer plates, maintenance is straightforward and efficient.
Three of the Compablocs installed at BASF's plant
Talk to Canadian Experts
Heat Transfer 
Jamie Hodd
+1 416 297 6349
Email Jamie
Talk to Service & Parts
Derek Gluschenko
+1 604 734 2225
Email Derek
Joshua Kowalchuk
+1 587 643 5505
Email Joshua
Notre expert municipal
Au Quebec
Pierre Gosselin, Directeur des ventes techniques
+1 450 466 1120
Écrire à Pierre
The compact, fully welded Compabloc heat exchanger is designed to operate with a wide range of aggressive media and at high temperatures and pressures.
Benefits
- Safer working conditions
- Savings of between EUR 300,000 and 400,000 yearly due to much less maintenance and downtime
- Reliability – no more production stops due to leaking gaskets
- Maintenance costs and time practically eliminated
- Investment costs 25% lower than for alternative solutions
- Compact design cuts floor space, foundations, piping and installation work
Customer's voice
The Compablocs were around 25% lower in cost compared to re-tubing the existing shell-and-tube heat exchangers. On top of that, a lot of space was freed up, which resulted in a safer plant for the operators.
Frank Steiglich, BASF Project Operation Manager Acetylene