A finite element method is applied to investigate the characteristics of the fluid flow and heat transfer performance in a channel in terms of the various effects of baffle cuts, baffle angles, and leakages. The results show that the decrease of a baffle cut gives a good heat transfer enhancement. However, it also increases pressure drop. In the case of an inclined baffle, the result shows that the pressure drop decreases with a reasonable heat transfer performance. But a steeply inclined baffle gives adverse effects on the performance of the channel. The clearances between baffle-to-shell and tube-to-baffle affect the overall performance. The effects of these parameters are discussed in details.