Plate heat exchanger: A state-of-the-art review

The growing demand for sustainable energy reflects the critical role of heat exchangers (HEs) in enhancing energy efficiency and reducing emissions. Plate heat exchangers (PHEs) are particularly favoured for their high thermal performance and compact design. This article provides a thorough review of the fundamental aspects of PHEs and systematically summarizes state-of-the-art knowledge. It presents an in-depth overview of experimental investigations, numerical studies, and heat transfer enhancement techniques across various PHE types. In addition, the review integrates findings on single-phase flow, two-phase flows, different design approaches, and identifies the principal limitations revealed through the literature analysis. This paper concludes that studies introducing new passive techniques and multi-pass PHE configurations remain limited compared to parametric and 1-1 pass designs. Advanced numerical models of PHEs are feasible and can accelerate design optimization while accounting for geometric effects on heat transfer and pressure drop. Overall, several significant findings and future research orientations have emerged from the present literature.