What are Immersion Heaters?

Immersion heaters are devices designed to heat liquids or gases within a tank, vessel, or pipe. They operate by being submerged directly into the material that they are meant to heat. To explain further, immersion heaters achieve this by inducing an electric current into the heating element. Thus, the heating element warms up and disperses its heat into the materials inside the tank, vessel, or pipe.

What are the Different Types?

Flanged

Flange heaters are typically inserted horizontally into a tank or vessel for direct heating of liquids or gases allowing the fluid to quickly reach the desired temperature and ensure optimized high-performance results. They are mostly used on large industrial tanks and vessels.

Screw-In

They are constructed of a hairpin bent tubular heating element that is brazed or welded into threaded screw plugs. The heating elements are then inserted through a threaded hole or through a threaded coupling attached to the tank or vessel for direct heating of materials. They are often used in smaller industrial applications like water heaters, boilers, and process tanks.

Over-the-Side

They are constructed of multiple hairpin bent tubular heating elements that are brazed or welded into a terminal housing. The re-compacted element bends provide longer life by ensuring insulation integrity. Then, the immersion heating elements are inserted into the fluid from the top of tank or through an access port, such as a manhole, for direct heating of the material. Over-the-side heaters are used where heating is needed temporarily or where the tank’s design doesn’t allow for other heater types.

What are Relevant Applications?

Immersion heaters are commonly used to warm water, oils, chemicals, or liquids that need to reach a certain temperature. Also, they are found in a variety of different industries such as process heating, power, chemical, oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, metal processing, and food and beverage.