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@article{207581,
        author = {Akshay S. Patil and Dr. Nilesh H. Khandare},
        title = {Crystallization Fouling in Heat Exchangers : A Review},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {3},
        pages = {1726-1742},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=207581},
        abstract = {Heat exchanger fouling is a major challenge in thermal engineering, reducing heat transfer efficiency and increasing energy consumption, operating costs, and environmental impacts. This review focuses on crystallization fouling, summarizing its fundamental mechanisms, deposit formation processes, and the influence of key factors such as fluid composition, temperature, flow conditions, and surface properties. It also reviews the development of fouling models, from classical approaches to advanced computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and artificial neural network (ANN) techniques, as well as current fouling mitigation strategies, including improved heat exchanger design, online monitoring, and cleaning methods. The review identifies important research gaps, particularly in understanding the early stages of crystal formation, ageing effects, interactions between multiple fouling mechanisms, and the mechanisms underlying fouling mitigation. Addressing these challenges will impr},
        keywords = {heat exchanger; fouling; energy efficiency; crystallization; fouling modelling; fouling mitigation},
        month = {August},
        }