A physical bench rig is one configuration at a time.
Swapping between double-pipe and shell-and-tube exchangers, or between co-current and counter-current flow, means retubing a real rig, one experimental run per lab session, not eight.
PiHEx-BenchBench-Top Heat Exchanger Simulator for Chemical Engineering Education and Process Control Training
PiHEx-Bench co-current-flow process diagram · double-pipe exchanger, cold and hot water circuits, flow/temperature indicators, and solenoid-valve flow rerouting
Overview
What PiHEx-Bench is
PiHEx-Bench is a real-time simulator of a bench-top heat-exchanger service unit. Built by PiControl Solutions, it reproduces both a double-pipe (tubular) exchanger and a shell-and-tube exchanger, each operable in co-current (parallel) or counter-current flow, eight distinct experimental runs (two exchangers, two flow directions, two flow rates) from a single instrument panel. A user controls the hot-water pump, the hot and cold flow valves, and the flow configuration, and watches inlet and outlet temperatures, flow rates, the log-mean temperature difference, the overall heat-transfer coefficient, and exchanger effectiveness respond at once, the feel of a real instrument panel rather than a static calculation. It is the bench-top teaching companion to the plant-scale PiHEx heat-exchanger network simulator.
A single click on PiHEx-Bench reroutes the cold-water path, switching four solenoid valves and reversing the inlet and outlet roles of the two cold-side temperature indicators, so co-current and counter-current runs are compared on the same rig instead of two separate physical setups. Specific heat and density come from temperature-dependent fits to steam-table data rather than fixed constants, so the energy balance closes the way water properties actually behave across the hot and cold streams, not the way a textbook simplifies it.
The problem: Most heat-exchanger coursework meets a bench-top service unit exactly once, if at all, one physical rig, one flow configuration at a time, and a full lab session of retubing to compare co-current against counter-current. Where a static calculation stands in for the rig, the exercise collapses to a single LMTD or effectiveness-NTU number worked once on paper. Neither format lets a class compare exchanger geometries and flow directions on demand, or watch how rerouting the cold-water path changes outlet temperatures in real time.
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Static LMTD and NTU homework hides the transient.
A steady-state heat-balance calculation gives one design point. It never shows how outlet temperatures actually respond the moment the flow configuration is switched.
Constant-property assumptions mask real energy-balance closure.
Textbook problems often treat specific heat and density as fixed constants, so the energy balance never has to close against how water properties actually vary across the hot and cold streams.
PiHEx-Bench removes the structural limits of the physical rig: eight comparable experimental runs from one instrument panel, live effectiveness-NTU and TEMA-corrected calculations that update every second, and temperature-dependent fluid properties instead of fixed constants. Engineers and students who train on PiHEx-Bench build intuition that a single static heat balance cannot provide.
Capabilities & features
PiHEx-Bench Features
PiHEx-Bench's feature set is built for one outcome: engineers and students who can operate, log, and analyze a heat exchanger like real equipment, not just calculate its design point.
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01
Real-time physics engine
Updates every second, so every instrument responds dynamically to valve and pump changes.
Why it matters
Reflects actual exchanger timing, so learners see instrument response, not a static calculation.
02
Two geometries, both flow directions, one panel
Double-pipe and shell-and-tube exchangers, each in co-current or counter-current flow, eight comparable experimental runs without leaving the application.
Why it matters
Lets a class compare exchanger types and flow directions directly, on the same rig, in one session.
03
Temperature-dependent fluid properties
Specific heat and density come from temperature-dependent fits to steam-table data, not fixed constants.
Why it matters
Closes the energy balance the way it actually behaves across the hot and cold streams, not the way a textbook simplifies it.
04
Real-time scrolling trend charts
All four temperatures and both flow rates scroll live, with zoom for transient analysis.
Why it matters
Makes the transient response of a flow-configuration switch visible, not just its steady-state result.
05
Data logging, CSV export, and INI recalibration
Every variable logs with a timestamped header recording exchanger type, flow configuration, and heat-transfer coefficient, for LMTD, U, and effectiveness analysis in Excel, MATLAB, or Python.
Why it matters
Turns every run into a ready-made dataset, and a plain-text INI file lets an instructor recalibrate flow-meter dynamics and the shell-and-tube correction factor without recompiling.
06
Runs entirely offline on Windows
No internet connection, no licence server, and no user data ever leaves the machine.
Why it matters
Works in any lab, classroom, or take-home assignment, with no infrastructure dependency.
Who uses it
How Engineers and Educators Use PiHEx-Bench
Industrial
Process Engineers and Technicians
Process engineers and technicians use PiHEx-Bench to explore heat-exchanger performance at different flow rates, geometries, and flow configurations before making changes on real plant equipment. Because the simulator reproduces both a double-pipe and a shell-and-tube exchanger in co-current or counter-current flow, engineers can compare configuration changes directly, on the same rig, before touching a live industrial process control system.
- Pre-change performance exploration across flow rate and configuration
- Side-by-side comparison of co-current vs. counter-current outcomes
- Refresher practice with LMTD, overall heat-transfer coefficient, and effectiveness calculations
- Onboarding for engineers new to shell-and-tube or double-pipe exchanger service
Academic
Students, Educators & Researchers
Chemical engineering students use PiHEx-Bench to work through double-pipe and shell-and-tube heat-exchanger theory from heat-transfer and unit-operations courses, calculating LMTD, the overall heat-transfer coefficient, and effectiveness from live readings, no physical equipment required. Educators and researchers design experiments around LMTD, energy-balance closure, NTU-effectiveness, and the TEMA correction, demonstrate live how switching flow configuration changes outlet temperatures, or validate heat-transfer correlations and generate datasets for model comparison.
- Undergraduate heat-transfer and unit-operations laboratories
- Live demonstration of co-current vs. counter-current outlet-temperature behavior
- NTU-effectiveness and TEMA-correction coursework and validation studies
- Dataset generation for model comparison and research, exported straight to PiControl's other real-time process simulators
PiHEx-Bench is part of PiControl's process control simulation suite, alongside the plant-scale PiHEx heat-exchanger network simulator.
Related products
PiHEx-Bench and Other PiControl Simulation Products
PiHEx-Bench is part of PiControl's family of real-time process simulators, each built around a different loop or unit operation.
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PiHEx - for Plant-Scale Heat-Exchanger Networks
PiHEx models a multi-unit heat-exchanger network with cross-coupling between hot and cold streams, the plant-scale counterpart to PiHEx-Bench's single bench-top rig.
PiTemp - for Single-Loop Temperature Control Practice
PiTemp is a simpler, single-loop temperature-control simulator, a natural starting point before moving on to PiHEx-Bench's dual-geometry, dual-flow-direction bench rig.
PiFlow - for Flow Control Loop Simulation
PiFlow simulates a flow control loop in real time, complementing PiHEx-Bench's exchanger-level view with a closer look at the flow dynamics feeding a heat exchanger.
Industries
PiHEx-Bench at work in education and industry
PiHEx-Bench builds heat-exchanger fundamentals that carry into every sector PiControl serves, whether the learner is a student or a working process engineer.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions About PiHEx-Bench
Experiment count, how the heat transfer is modeled, and how PiHEx-Bench compares to PiHex.
PiHEx-Bench simulates a bench-top heat-exchanger service unit in real time. It reproduces a double-pipe and a shell-and-tube exchanger, each in co-current or counter-current flow, and computes inlet and outlet temperatures, flow rates, LMTD, the overall heat-transfer coefficient, and effectiveness as the user changes the pump, valves, and configuration.
Eight distinct runs come from one rig: two exchanger geometries, two flow directions, and two flow rates. A single click reroutes the cold-water path and reverses the cold-side port roles, so co-current and counter-current results are compared directly on the same equipment.
PiHEx-Bench uses the standard effectiveness-NTU method — the classical co-current and counter-current formulas for the double-pipe exchanger and the 1-shell-pass TEMA effectiveness formula for the shell-and-tube exchanger — with specific heat and density from temperature-dependent fits to steam-table data rather than fixed constants.
PiHEx-Bench is the bench-top teaching unit that reproduces a laboratory double-pipe and shell-and-tube exchanger for coursework. PiHex is the plant-scale heat-exchanger network simulator. They are complementary, and both sit under PiControl's process-control simulation suite.
No. PiHEx-Bench installs and runs entirely on a Windows PC, with no licence server and no cloud dependency, and no user data ever leaves the local machine.
Request a free PiHEx-Bench demo and a PiControl engineer will demonstrate the simulator and discuss licensing options for your department or plant.
Get started
Request a PiHEx-Bench Demo
See PiHEx-Bench run in real time and switch between co-current and counter-current flow live. A PiControl engineer will demonstrate the simulator on the exchanger configuration relevant to your course or plant, and discuss licensing options for your department or team.