Contherm Max
Contherm® Max is a double-wall scraped surface heat exchanger designed to provide high-capacity production of low to medium-viscosity and crystalline products and those with large particles. Thanks to Alfa Laval’s advanced double-wall design, the Contherm® Max double-wall scraped surface helps boost yield while simultaneously ensuring efficient thermal performance and low total costs.
- Add capacity: double-wall heat exchanger unit with a large surface area offers triple the production capacity of conventional single-wall designs.
- Preserve quality: Gentle treatment is ideal for shear-sensitive products with particulates up to 25 mm in size.
- Increase efficiency: Single drive motor reduces energy consumption by more than 30%.
- Easy service: Low rotational speeds reduce lifetime maintenance demands and service costs.
- Save space: The vertical design offers a compact footprint with a fully assembled unit for a plug-and-play set-up.
One double-wall Contherm® Max provides robust, efficient thermal performance equal to three traditional, single-wall scraped surface heat exchangers. With low rotational speeds and reduced internal pressure drop, Contherm® Max double-wall scraped surface heat exchanger units also provide the gentlest possible treatment for the best guarantee of preserving product quality. All of this is on top of significant energy and maintenance savings that help ensure the lowest possible total cost of ownership.
Choose the Contherm® Max double-wall heat exchanger
Discover how the Contherm® Max heat exchanger enhances production capacity, product quality, and energy efficiency.
As the only double-wall scraped surface heat exchanger of its kind, it sets a new standard for performance and reliability.
How the double-wall scraped surface heat exchanger works
In a Contherm® Max double-wall scraped surface heat exchanger, product enters through a bottom tangential inlet and exits from the top. Meanwhile, a heating or cooling medium—such as steam or liquid—flows counter-currently at high velocity for optimal heat transfer.
A rotating scraping assembly with specialized blades continuously removes fouling material from the inner and outer walls, preventing buildup and maintaining consistent thermal performance. The scraping speed can be adjusted based on product type to ensure the best heat transfer efficiency and product quality.
At the end of production, the unit supports easy product recovery and minimal waste. It can also be cleaned using Alfa Laval’s Cleaning-in-Place (CIP) guidelines, ensuring hygienic operation and reduced downtime.
Key products
Service
Contherm Service Offering
Partnering with Alfa Laval for the service of your Contherm scraped surface heat exchanger will ensure your heat exchanger is always working at top performance.
- Easy commission and installation
- Safe start-up
- No unexpected downtime
- Reduce total costs of ownership
- Upgrade your scraped surface heat exchanger to achieve more
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More possibilities with Contherm heat exchangers
The Alfa Laval Contherm® range offers both single and double-wall scraped surface heat exchanger solutions, making it the most versatile option on the market.
We understand that no two customers’ needs are identical, therefor is each unit is fully customized to meet specific application requirements, ensuring higher efficiency, greater capacity, and maximized profitability because we understand the customers' needs.
In fact, today Alfa Laval is the supplier on the market that can offer robust heat transfer with both single and double-wall scraped surface heat exchanger solutions.
Processing viscous products with Contherm Max
The Contherm Max heat exchanger is designed for continuous processing of low to medium-viscosity products, but for high capacity. Whether handling thick, gel-like substances or pumpable fluids, it ensures consistent heat transfer and gentle product handling.
Example applications:
Food: Ketchup, mayonnaise, hummus, chocolate spreads, fruit pie fillings, gravies, sauces, peanut butter, pizza sauces, puddings, dressings, and more.
Cosmetics & Pharmaceuticals: Skin lotions, shampoos, mascaras, toothpaste, and more.
Heat-Sensitive products for preventing burn-on and fouling
Heat-sensitive products often cause fouling in traditional Scraped-surface heat exchangers, leading to inefficiency and waste. Alfa Laval’s double-wall heat exchanger design minimizes this issue, ensuring consistent heat transfer and product integrity.
Example applications:
Dairy & protein: Cream cheese, whey proteins, scrambled eggs.
Food processing: Meat emulsions, fruit preparations, purées, and more.
Crystallizing products and applications with phase change challenges
Preserving taste, color and/or texture is a particular challenge for manufacturers of products that can undergo crystallization. We work with your business to find the optimal Contherm® solution to fit your production.
Example applications include: coffee/tea extracts, icings and frostings, sugar concentrates, margarines, shortening, spreads, gelatine broth, lard, fondant, biscuit creams, solvents, fatty acids, petroleum jelly, beer and wine, and more.
Optimized performance for particulate-heavy products
Contherm® heat exchangers are always built to the specifications of the target duty. Whether processing large, small, or mixed particles, the Contherm Max heat exchanger can be tailored to handle diverse product textures. The design ensures even heat distribution and consistent product quality.
Example applications:
Food: hummus, pet food, fruit preserves, rice pudding, vegetable purees, soups, and sauces
Dairy & desserts: Yogurt with fruit, jam, and more.
Reliable processing of sticky and high-adhesion products
Sticky, high-adhesion products can be difficult to process in conventional heat exchangers, leading to clogging and inefficiency. The Contherm Max double-wall heat exchanger prevents buildup while ensuring optimal heat transfer. The complete Contherm® family of scraped surface heat exchangers can support a range of mildly to extremely sticky products, from foods to beauty products.
Example applications:
Food & confectionery: Caramel, processed cheese, lecithin, starch-based products.
Cosmetics & pharmaceuticals: Gums, gelatine, mascara, toothpaste.
