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These evaporators serve a large complex where natural gas is unavailable. The complex needed fuel for boilers for heating and domestic hot water so these evaporators were installed too along with two very large LP tanks to handle the heating needs of the complex. As liquid propane (LP) has a specific weight of .504 (where water is 1) and propane vapor has a specific gravity of 1.5 (where the air is 1) making propane vapor 1.5 times heavier than air.
Liquid to Vapor Propane Evaporators | HVAC Heating
It is important to note that propane vapor is heavier than air as propane can build up in low spaces and create a hazardous condition. One gallon of LP will expand 270 times when it becomes a vapor and at atmospheric pressure, propane liquid will boil and become a vapor at -44 degrees Fahrenheit. For each gallon of LP 36.6 cubic feet of fuel can be realized after evaporation making it an ideal fuel for remote locations where other fuels are either not available or too costly.
Liquid to Vapor Propane Evaporators - Common Uses
These evaporators are not commonly used except in large commercial and industrial areas where a lot of gas is needed to serve a large number of heating systems and applications. Expanding LP through evaporators offers an ideal large capacity propane source for heating systems. Many residential systems strictly used vapor propane for their heating needs and do not need evaporators or an evaporator. Propane heating systems are extremely popular in rural and remote areas where natural gas is unavailable and oil is not desired to be used for a heat source. Evaporators offer a controlled way of changing LP to vapor propane for large capacity systems.
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Liquid to Vapor Propane Evaporators
Technical Resource: Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Technology