L&M Mesabi® Copper Tube Radiators are the Best for Heavy Duty Equipment
Mesabi® heat exchangers by L&M Radiator have driven success for the mining and oil and gas industries across the world for 65 years. To this day, they are the industry standard. Many have tried to imitate Mesabi radiators but none have come close to their reliability, durability and ease of maintenance.
But now with so many other materials available, how do you decide which is the best fit for your application? To provide the clarity you need, L&M Radiator engineers explain why, where, and when to employ copper tubes for your heavy-duty machine’s radiator.
Known across the globe as the provider of the industry’s best heat exchangers for mining and oil and gas applications, the L&M Radiator legacy all started with one powerhouse of a heat exchanger: the original copper tube radiator. Designed to withstand the most extreme conditions on Planet Earth, you’ll find Mesabi® copper tube radiators and coolers on every large mining site across the world.
“Our copper tube radiators have been the go-to choice for L&M Radiator customers since day one,” said Chris Domogalla, Design and Application Engineer at L&M Radiator. “Copper has proven to be a very successful material in the harsh environments of the mining and oil and gas industries.”
Sixty-five years later, Mesabi® copper tube radiators are still setting the standard that other companies seek to imitate. Though the Research and Development department at L&M Radiator has made multigenerational improvements on the radiator to continually optimize performance and reduce costs, Mesabi copper tube radiators – combined with innovative engineering and high-quality manufacturing — are nothing short of timeless. If properly maintained, these radiators will outlast multiple engine lives of the heavy-duty equipment on which they’ve been installed.
“Anyone that has our copper tube radiators or has bought it in the aftermarket can attest to its durability,” said Kerry Hecimovich, Design and Application Engineering Manager at L&M Radiator. “It is truly unmatched by any of our competitors.”
7 Reasons Why Copper is Best for Heavy-Duty Radiators
Here are seven reasons why and when to consider copper tube radiators from L&M Radiator:
- Goldilocks Material — Known as the ‘Goldilocks’ of materials for heavy-duty radiators, copper is “just right” — one of the most application-diverse materials out there. A good rule of thumb is that if you don’t know what you need, copper will usually do the trick. (But if you really don’t know what you need, contact an L&M service representative to get those questions cleared up for you, here.)
- Outperforms — That being said, while no material truly outshines another, copper does have strengths in certain areas that better position it for use in certain applications. For example, while aluminum is less expensive and offers weight savings, copper is stronger and will generally perform better than aluminum in a direct side-by-side comparison.
- Better for Higher Pressure Applications — L&M Radiator engineers suggest copper tubes for use in pressure ranges from 15 PSI to 150 PSI applications. “Any application with large impact or high G-loads, I recommend copper immediately,” said Domogalla.
- Superior Thermal Transfer — Another factor to consider is that copper is one of the top mediums for thermal transfer from a metal. So, if thermal conductivity is a top priority for your application, copper is the perfect material to use.
- Compatibility with Coolants — Similarly, copper is compatible with most diesel-engine coolants, whereas other materials might not be.
- Lower Maintenance Demands — “A huge advantage of copper is that coolant maintenance isn’t as critical,” said Hecimovich. “Our copper tubes can handle a larger variance in coolant PH levels. So, if an operation (mine or oil and gas site) is not maintaining the correct PH levels in the coolant, aluminum can be affected more dramatically than copper.”
- Ease of Recycling — When an operation is finally done with a copper tube radiator by L&M Radiator, copper is one of the most recyclable materials around. In other words, it won’t be going back to a landfill – it will be going back to work in another form.
So, when should you not use copper? While copper as a material is incredibly durable, L&M Radiator engineers would not recommend copper tubes for applications where weight is a high priority. Similarly, for especially corrosive environments, such as saltwater environments, L&M Radiator engineers would recommend using brass tubes over copper.
Mesabi Copper Tubes Set the Standard
While copper as a material is stellar, the true ingenuity of Mesabi copper tube radiators lies in the way that L&M Radiator engineers have manipulated the material to bring out the very best in it.
“I would say it boils down to the engineering of the tube and the process of how we make copper tube radiators at L&M Radiator that makes it so durable,” said Hecimovich.
“Our copper tubes are more robust than conventional coolers, which are typically made of much thinner material, and our solder joints are high quality,” said Joshua Mitchell, Application Engineer at L&M Radiator. “We hear a lot about copycats or competitors that are experiencing numerous failures in the field. It is unfortunate because so much time and money is wasted when using a copycat or counterfeit radiator. If they had just come to us in the first place, they would be money ahead – every time.”
Copper tubes can be used on any style of Mesabi cooler – from V-Tube, M-Tube, L-Tube, and heavy-wall coolers, to air-to-air, air-to-oil, and air-to-water exchangers; there is no limit to this application diverse material.
“Every style of tube has its purpose,” said Hecimovich. “The different shapes and patterns have proven to be successful over the years to best fit specific applications — and they can all be made using copper.”
To top it all off, Mesabi heat exchangers are expertly crafted so that the tubes are easily replaceable in the field and easy to clean with high-pressure air or water. These qualities have saved L&M Radiator customers all over the world unquantifiable amounts of time and money in downtime savings due to a broken down machine or ineffective cleaning.
It all boils down to this: Mesabi copper tube radiators have been the gold standard for the mining and oil and gas industries since they were first introduced 65 years ago. If durability is what you seek, look no further than www.Mesabi.com to find it. When you use Mesabi copper tube radiators, it truly is money in the bank.
Explore the Durable Power of Mesabi® Copper Tube Radiators
To learn more about Mesabi-made copper tube coolers, click here.
For more stories similar to this one, check out The Mesabi Exchange at www.Mesabi.com.