From AI Data Centers to District Heating — Why Plate Heat Exchangers Are Used Across Industrial Sites > Technical Resources

From AI Data Centers to District Heating - Why Plate Heat Exchangers Are Used Across Industrial Sites

 Plate Heat Exchangers (PHEs) are used across virtually all industries requiring heat exchange, including data center cooling, district heating, HVAC, food processing, chemicals, and power generation. VISER, a specialized manufacturer of plate heat exchangers, has outlined application examples and key selection criteria for each industry sector.

Write : Heesoo Lim, Vice President  ·  Date : 2026. 08.04  ·  Category : Tech Insight

The new bottleneck created by the artificial intelligence (AI) boom is not semiconductors, but heat. According to the *Energy and AI* report released by the International Energy Agency (IEA), global data center electricity consumption is projected to more than double from approximately 415 TWh in 2024 to around 945 TWh by 2030. When this is combined with research findings (Zhang et al., 2021) indicating that 30–40% of data center power consumption stems from cooling systems rather than the servers themselves, one arrives at the conclusion that we have entered an era where heat management determines a data center's profitability.

There is a piece of equipment quietly working at the forefront of this thermal management challenge: the plate heat exchanger (PHE). Its role extends far beyond data centers. From the pasteurization of the milk you drink in the morning and district heating in apartment complexes during winter to turbine cooling at power plants, plate heat exchangers are busy transferring heat across various industrial settings often without us even realizing it. Together with VISER, a company specializing in plate heat exchangers, we explore the industries where these devices are used and the reasons behind their application.

What is a plate heat exchanger?

A plate heat exchanger is a device constructed by stacking multiple thin metal heat transfer plates; it is designed to facilitate heat exchange between two fluids flowing between the plates without allowing them to mix. Its key advantages include higher heat transfer efficiency and a smaller installation footprint compared to shell-and-tube exchangers of the same capacity, as well as ease of maintenance and capacity adjustment through the addition or removal of plates.

Consequently, plate heat exchangers are in particularly high demand in environments requiring energy savings, sites with limited installation space, and industries necessitating frequent maintenance and hygienic management. The selection of the rubber gasket material—which seals the space between heat transfer plates—is a critical factor determining product quality; as a manufacturer possessing expertise in both heat exchanger design and gasket material technology, Visor proposes optimal specifications tailored to specific operating conditions and fluid characteristics.

In which industries are plate heat exchangers used?

1. Data Center Liquid Cooling

As the heat density per rack in AI servers rises sharply, data centers finding that air cooling alone has reached its limits—are shifting to liquid cooling. Plate heat exchangers serve as critical components for heat transfer while separating facility water (FWS) from IT cooling water (TCS) within the cooling circulation system; they are utilized in free cooling systems and Coolant Distribution Unit (CDU) setups.

Visor’s VX series pre-cooling plate heat exchanger achieved an LMTD (Logarithmic Mean Temperature Difference) of 0.93°C in tests witnessed by an accredited agency. A lower LMTD allows for extended pre-cooling operation even during seasons with higher ambient temperatures—directly contributing to reduced cooling power consumption (PUE) in data centers.

2. District Heating and Community Energy (District Heating)

Plate heat exchangers are the standard choice for systems that transfer medium-temperature water—produced by combined heat and power (CHP) plants or heat source facilities—to the heating and hot water supply networks of apartment complexes and buildings. Given the operational environment, which involves significant seasonal load fluctuations and the requirement for long-term continuous operation, heat exchange efficiency and gasket durability are the key factors determining the equipment's service life.

3. HVAC (HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning))

It is used in building heating and cooling, ice thermal storage systems, and ventilation system waste heat recovery. It plays a role in enhancing building energy efficiency by recovering heat between the supply and exhaust airflows.

4. Food and Beverage Industry

It is suitable for the pasteurization and cooling of dairy products, the cooling, heating, and fermentation processes for beer, and the heat treatment of products containing particulates, such as juice. In industries where hygiene is paramount, the safety of gasket materials that come into contact with fluids is crucial. Visor’s NBR and EPDM gaskets meet FDA standards (21 CFR 177.2600), ensuring safe use in food-contact applications.

5. Chemical industry

It is used in heating and cooling processes involving organic and inorganic chemicals as well as corrosive fluids. Key application areas include petroleum refining, fats and oils, pharmaceuticals, soda production, paints, and fertilizers. This field requires the precise selection of heat transfer plate and gasket materials (such as NBR, EPDM, and FKM) based on the chemical properties of the fluids.

6. Power Generation Industry

It is utilized for steam condensation, the cooling of turbine and transformer lubricants, and waste heat recovery in power plants. It also supports the safe operation of power plants by facilitating heat transfer and circulation within the reactor coolant system. Given that the reliability of pressure vessel design and manufacturing is critical in this field, holding the ASME U Stamp—an international certification for pressure vessels—serves as a key criterion for selecting a manufacturer.

7. Manufacturing, Refrigeration, and Other Industries

It is used for cooling hydraulic oil, lubricants, and cutting fluids in metalworking facilities; in evaporators, condensers, and oil coolers for refrigeration systems; and across virtually all industries involving heat exchange processes—such as pharmaceuticals, pulp and paper, shipbuilding, aquaculture, and horticulture.

Requirements Vary by Industry — The Art of Selection

Even for the same type of plate heat exchanger, requirements vary significantly across industries. Data centers prioritize low LMTD and 24/7 reliability; the food industry focuses on hygiene certification and ease of cleaning; and the chemical industry places the highest value on chemical resistance. The technical expertise involved in properly selecting heat transfer plate dimensions and quantities, as well as gasket rubber materials—based on operating temperatures, pressures, and fluid characteristics determines the product's efficiency and defect rate.

Visor possesses both heat exchanger design expertise and proprietary rubber gasket material technology (NBR, HNBR, IIR, CR, FKM, EPDM, VMQ), enabling the provision of integrated solutions tailored to the specific operating conditions of various industries. The company’s plate heat exchangers have obtained AHRI performance certification (for certified models), and its VX series has been designated as an "Innovative Product" by the Public Procurement Service. In July 2026, Visor secured the ASME U Stamp—an American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) certification for pressure vessel manufacturing—thereby gaining official recognition for meeting the design and manufacturing quality standards required by the global market, extending beyond the domestic sector.