Pumps, valves and heat exchangers manufacturer Bell & Gosset (B&G) released its BPX 2" double-wall brazed plate heat exchanger during the Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Exposition in the US, in January.

The patented double-wall design offers the highest level of leak protection, safety and thermal efficiency for commercial building and water heating applications.

The product launch expands B&G’s capacity offering from its current 1" BPX heat exchanger to deliver a maximum flow rate of 230 gallons a minute.

The BPX 2" meets evolving plumbing code requirements for domestic water heating and is a low-cost alternative to more costly competitive products.

It provides four dedicated leak detection ports and complete double-wall plate design, providing unique air vent leak paths that better detect leaks and ensuring premium leak protection.

System control is ensured through its dedicated air gap leak detection facilities. The stainless steel plates are vacuum brazed together to form a durable, integral piece that can withstand high pressure and temperatures. Further, its complete peripheral braze provides additional mechanical strength and durability.

In addition to heat exchangers, B&G also focus on Bladder storage tanks. These are used in constant-speed pressure-booster systems for three purposes: energy savings, prevention of short cycling and providing a minimum pressure required in the building when the pump is off, notes the company.

B&G director of engineering Gil Carlson said, “No pump uses less energy than a pump that is off. This means the more water that can be stored and used in the bladder tank, the more energy can be saved. In order to do so, the booster is required to be off for 15 min to 30 min or more in a constant-speed system.”

Prevention of short cycling is important as damage can be caused by starting and stopping a motor too frequently. The industry determined that the standard was to keep the motor starts to under six starts every hour, or once every 10 minutes. Now the goal is to store enough usable water in the tank at low flow periods to keep the booster off for 10 minutes.

Another purpose of the tank is to maintain the minimum pressure in a system when the booster system is off. If the tank is located at the pressure booster discharge, the tank fill pressure should be at minimum pressure. This is the pressure needed to lift the water and provide the minimum pressure needed at a fixture without safety factors. The maximum pressure is the booster discharge pressure, in a constant speed system.

B&G is a brand of global water technology company Xylem that has operations in more than 150 countries. Xylem comprises five growth centres – transport, treatment, dewatering, analytics and applied water systems. These businesses are interconnected, anticipating and reflecting evolving needs and sharing their applications expertise to cover every stage of the water cycle.