How Tube Ice is formed?
Tube ice is formed on the inner surface of vertical tubes and is produced in the form of small hollow cylinders of about 50 x 50 mm with a wall thickness of 10 to 12 mm. The tube ice plant arrangement is similar to a shell and tube condenser with the water on the inside of the tubes and the refrigerant (Ammonia) filling the space between the tubes. The machine is operated automatically on a time cycle and the tubes of ice are released by a hot gas defrost process. As the ice drops from the tubes a cutter chops the ice into suitable lengths, nominally 50 mm, but this is adjustable. Transport of the ice to the storage area is usually automatic, thus, as in the flake ice plant, the harvesting and storage operations require no manual effort or operator attendance. The discharge system from the plant incorporates an ice crusher which can be adjusted to give an ice particle size to suit the customer’s requirement. The usual operating temperature of this type of plant is -8°C to -10°C. The ic
