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Fabrication Services — Heat Exchanger Fabrication

Air Cooled Condensers

A-frame & V-frame, forced & induced draft steam condensing systems that condense turbine exhaust steam directly to air — eliminating water consumption for power plants, waste-to-energy facilities, and process industries.

Overview

Condensing steam without a drop of cooling water

An air cooled condenser (ACC) is a direct dry-cooling system: turbine exhaust steam is routed through a duct and riser into a distribution manifold, then condenses inside finned tube bundles as ambient air is forced or induced across the fin surface by axial flow fans. The condensate collects in a tank below the structure and returns to the boiler feed system, while a vacuum unit maintains the low back-pressure that keeps the turbine running efficiently.

Because the condensing side never touches water, an ACC lets a plant site anywhere water is scarce, expensive, or environmentally restricted — without compromising on turbine efficiency or design life.

  • A-frame & V-frame steel structures in forced or induced draft arrangement
  • Single-row aluminum brazed tubes or multi-row ERW carbon steel tubes with L/LL/KL aluminum fins
  • Suited to fossil, combined cycle, waste-to-energy, biomass, cogeneration & geothermal plants
  • Design life of 25+ years with ATEX-compliant fan & drive options
Axial draft fan — air cooled condenser fabrication
How It Works

From turbine exhaust to returned condensate

Every ACC follows the same steam-to-condensate path, engineered around the plant's specific back-pressure and site conditions.

1

Steam Duct & Riser

Turbine exhaust steam travels through a large-diameter duct and riser up to the distribution manifold at the top of the structure.

2

Manifold Distribution

The manifold splits steam evenly across parallel finned tube bundle streets mounted on the A-frame or V-frame structure.

3

Fin Tube Condensing

Steam condenses inside the finned tubes as ambient air, drawn or forced across the fins by axial fans, carries away the latent heat.

4

Vacuum & Non-Condensable Removal

A dedicated vacuum system removes air and non-condensable gases, maintaining the low back-pressure the turbine cycle depends on.

5

Condensate Collection & Return

Condensate drains by gravity into a collection tank and is pumped back to the boiler feedwater system.

Draft Configurations

Forced draft, induced draft & frame orientation

Fan position and structural orientation are chosen against site wind conditions, footprint, and maintenance access.

FD

Forced Draft

Fans sit below the finned tube bundles in cooler inlet air, pushing air upward through the fins. Easier fan and gearbox maintenance access, with no auxiliary cooling needed for motors.

ID

Induced Draft

Fans sit above the bundles in the warm outlet air stream, pulling air upward through the fins. Improved constructability, shorter erection time, and reduced sensitivity to wind effects on performance.

AV

A-Frame & V-Frame

Bundles are arranged in an angled roof-like A-frame or a shallower V-frame, maximizing fin surface area exposed to airflow within a compact ground footprint.

Tube & Fin Technology

Two tube technologies, matched to duty and budget

01

Single-Row Aluminum Brazed Tubes

Flat aluminum-clad tubes with brazed aluminum wavy fins — higher surface area and air turbulence per row, favored for compact, high-efficiency modules.

02

Multi-Row ERW Carbon Steel Tubes

Electric-resistance-welded carbon steel tubes with circular aluminum L-foot or KL-foot fins — the standard heavy-duty configuration for large utility-scale ACCs.

03

Multi-Channel & Enhanced Tubes

Multi-channel flat tube geometries increase internal surface area for demanding low-ambient-temperature performance requirements.

Core Equipment

Shop & structural capability behind every ACC

Fabrication, structural steel, and controls capability sized for full ACC packages.

01

Steam Duct & Riser Fabrication

Large-diameter duct and riser sections engineered for low pressure-drop steam conveyance from the turbine to the manifold.

02

Distribution Manifold

Manifold headers sized to distribute steam evenly across every tube bundle street on the structure.

03

Finned Tube Bundle Assembly

Single-row and multi-row bundle assembly matched to the selected tube and fin technology.

04

Axial Fan & Drive Bridge

Fan, motor, and gearbox assemblies mounted on a structural drive bridge, sized for forced or induced draft duty.

05

A-Frame / V-Frame Structural Steel

Structural steel fabrication for the load-bearing frame that elevates the bundle streets above grade for proper air intake.

06

Condensate Collection Tank

Collection tanks and piping engineered to gather condensate and return it to the boiler feedwater system.

07

Vacuum System Integration

Vacuum unit sizing and integration to maintain design turbine back-pressure and remove non-condensable gases.

08

Walkways, Ladders & Access Platforms

Structural access systems supporting safe inspection and maintenance at height.

09

Louvers & Vibration Monitoring

Louvered vents for thermal regulation in cold climates, plus vibration monitoring on fan and drive assemblies.

ACC Design Variants

Structural approaches for different capacity & site constraints

MC

Modular Factory-Assembled ACC

Factory-assembled coil bundles with integrated steam headers reduce on-site erection time and structural steel compared to conventional field-built A-frames.

CD

Compact Induced-Draft ACC

Induced-draft configurations optimized for waste-to-energy, biomass, and industrial cogeneration capacities, trading fan power for a smaller footprint and lower foundation loads.

BX

Multi-Box Modular ACC

Standardized box modules assembled into the required capacity, minimizing on-site welding for small-to-mid scale plants in the 1–30 MWe range.

Design Specifications

Capability at a glance

Frame Configuration
A-frame & V-frame
Draft Type
Forced draft & induced draft
Tube Construction
Single-row aluminum brazed; multi-row ERW carbon steel
Fin Types
Brazed aluminum wavy fin; L-foot & KL-foot circular fin
Capacity Range
Small industrial units up to multi-GW utility installations
Design Life
25+ years
Fan Drive
Axial flow fans with electric motor & gearbox, ATEX-compliant options
Applications
Fossil, combined cycle, waste-to-energy, biomass, cogeneration, geothermal
Integrated Systems
Steam ducts, distribution manifolds, vacuum units, condensate systems
Delivery Format
Engineered, fabricated & tested structure ready for site erection
Quality & Testing

Verified before it leaves the shop

WT

Weld & Joint Verification

Tube-to-header and structural welds inspected and tested to the applicable fabrication code before assembly.

LT

Leak & Pressure Testing

Finned tube bundles pressure-tested to verify condensing-side integrity ahead of dispatch.

FB

Fan & Drive Balancing

Axial fan and drive assemblies balanced and vibration-checked before installation to protect long-term reliability.

Applications

Where our air cooled condensers go to work

PW

Power Generation

Fossil fuel-fired, combined cycle, and geothermal power plants condensing turbine exhaust steam without water intake or discharge.

WE

Waste-to-Energy & Biomass

Compact, induced-draft ACCs sized for waste incineration, biomass, and industrial cogeneration plants.

PC

Petrochemical & Process Industries

Process steam condensing for refineries, petrochemical plants, steel mills, and sugar mills.

AR

Water-Scarce & Arid Regions

Dry cooling eliminates makeup water and blowdown discharge where water rights or environmental permits are the limiting factor.

UR

Urban & Space-Constrained Sites

A-frame vertical arrangement keeps the ground footprint compact for plants sited close to population centers.

SG

Solar Thermal & Co-Generation

Dry cooling for concentrated solar power and industrial co-generation plants where water use is tightly constrained.

Need an air cooled condenser engineered for your plant?

Send us your steam duty, back-pressure target, and site conditions for a fabrication proposal.

Request a Proposal