Document and Entity Information Document - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Feb. 19, 2018	Jun. 30, 2017
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2017
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2017
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	CHART INDUSTRIES INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000892553
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		30,921,691
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Public Float			$ 1,052,067,547