The impact of fouling on performance evaluation of multi-zone feedwater heaters

A numerical method for analyzing closed system feedwater heaters is presented. A general approach to determine area allocations among the desuperheating, condensing and subcooling zones under a known set of operating conditions is presented for a feedwater heater in a steam power plant. A significant amount of heat duty is handled by the condensing zone, whereas the subcooling zone handles a least amount of heat duty which essentially vanishes at low steam pressures. Fluids mass flow rates and accordingly the overall heat transfer coefficients have significant effects on the areas needed for desuperheating, condensing and subcooling in a feedwater heater. Two fouling models are considered to examine their effect on the heat exchanger performance. Insignificant changes were noticed when comparing the heat transfer rate and outlet temperature results of both the models. It is found that heat duty of the heat exchanger decreases by 2.7% in 3 years when we use the recommended fouling resistance, while the outlet shell-side fluid temperature increased by 6.3%.     

The investigation of the effect of thermal barrier coating on the performance of Stirling engine

The shuttle heat transfer is one of the reasons reducing the performance of Stirling engines. This study is concerned with the reduction in shuttle heat transfer by coating the displacer. The displacer of a gamma type Stirling engine was coated with a layer of yttria‐stabilized zirconia (YSZ), and the effect of the coating on the engine performance was evaluated by comparing speed‐power and speed‐torque characteristics of the engine with coated and uncoated displacers. Characteristics were obtained for 700, 800 and 900°C heater temperatures. At each stage of the heater temperature, the charge pressure ranged from 1 to 3.5 bars with 0.5 bar increments. At 900°C heater temperature and 3 bars charge pressure, the shaft power before coating was 34.9 W, after coating the power increased to 43.8 W, which corresponds to a 25% increment. The temperature applied to the engine did not cause any damage on the coating layer. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

斯特林发动机管式加热器内振荡流动的换热特性实验研究

模拟管式加热器在斯特林发动机中的工作状态,研究加热器管内工作气体振荡流动的换热特性,得到气体压力、振荡频率等对换热的影响规律,进一步得到工作气体与管壁间的平均换热系数,并将结果转化为无量纲参数,比较稳定流动换热关联式计算结果与实验结果的偏差。实验结果可对斯特林发动机管式加热器设计、优化和换热性能预测提供参考。     

Use of C-factor for monitoring of fouling in a shell and tube heat exchanger

Heat exchangers operating in process industries are fouled during operations and results in decrease in the thermal efficiency of a heat exchanger. Once the thermal efficiency decreases to a minimum acceptable level, cleaning of the equipment becomes necessary to restore the performance. This paper uses C-factor as a tool for investigation of the performance of a heat exchanger due to fouling which consequently gives information regarding the extent of fouling developed on the heat transfer surfaces. The fouling parameters are predicted by measurements of flow rate and pressure drop. In contrast to most conventional methods, the extent of fouling can be detected considering the flow rate and pressure drop when the heat exchanger operates in transient states. The C-Factor is first calculated through out cleaning period and then compared with the clean and the design value. The results show that the proposed tool is very effective in detecting the fouling developed and the corresponding degradation in heat transfer efficiency of a heat exchanger. Hence the results of this work can find applications in predicting the reduction in heat transfer efficiency due to fouling in heat exchangers that are in operation and assist the exchanger operators to plan cleaning schedules.     

适用于小型热气机性能试验的电加热器的研制

介绍了一种针对小型家用热气机性能试验开发的电加热器系统.该电加热器可以模拟性能试验时外燃系统对热头的加热情况,精确控制输入的热量.针对不同材料不同形式的加热器进行理论试验研究,确定并制造了应用于试验的电加热器系统.试验验证了其可行性,可满足家用小型热气机性能试验的要求.     

Efficiency bound of a solar-driven stirling heat engine system

A solar-driven Stirling engine is modelled as a combined system which consists of a solar collector and a Stirling engine. The performance of the system is investigated, based on the linearized heat loss model of the solar collector and the irreverisible cycle model of the Stirling engine affected by finite-rate heat transfer and regenerative losses. The maximum efficiency of the system and the optimal operating temperature of the solar collector are determined. Moreover, it is pointed out that the investigation method in the present paper is valid for other heat loss models of the solar collector as well, and the results obtained are also valid for a solar-driven Ericsson engine system using an ideal gas as its engine work substance. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical prediction of the instantaneous regenerator and in-cylinder heat transfer of a stirling engine

The paper is concerned with the study of the effects of the in-cylinder and regenerator heat transfer characteristics of a single-acting opposed-piston Stirling engine, with heater and cooler both omitted, for which a simulation model has been developed. The engine thermodynamic cycle is divided into a number of time-steps, and a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations, which describe the energy balances over the three basic control volumes (hot and cold cylinders and regenerator), is solved numerically. Empirical correlations are used to determine the instantaneous heat transfer coefficients in the regenerator (flow across a porous medium) and inside the cylinder space (gas confined in a cylindrical volume with a moving boundary). Numerical results from the model are presented.     

不同优化准则下斯特林发动机的性能分析

应用有限时间热力学原理.建立了一个考虑热阻、热漏和回热损失等不可逆因素的斯特林发动机模型;推导了最大输出功率、最大效率和生态学优化准则下,斯特林发动机性能的表达式;比较了三种优化准则下,热漏系数和回热器有效性对斯特林发动机性能的影响.研究表明:对热漏损失和回热损失较大的斯特林发动机,宜选用生态学优化准则.为斯特林发动机...     

考虑污垢时换热器热力学性能的评价

在分析污垢对换热器传热性能影响的基础上,在考虑污垢时采用Ｙｏｎｇ损率这一指标对换热器的热力学性能进行了评价,讨论了传热数和冷热流体热容量率比对其性能的影响,并把结果与不考虑污垢时的情况进行了比较,得到了一些有益的结论。     

The effect of the overall heat transfer coefficient variation on the optimal distribution of the heat transfer surface conductance or area in a Stirling engine

This study aims to assess for a Stirling engine the influence of the overall heat transfer coefficient variation on the optimum state and on the optimum distribution of the heat transfer surface conductance or area among the machine heat exchangers. The analysis is based on a Stirling machine optimization method, previously elaborated, which is now applied to a cycle with total heat regeneration. The method was conceived for an irreversible cycle with heat transfer across temperature differences at the source and the sink, and heat losses between the hot-end and the cold-end of the engine. Source and sink of finite thermal capacity as well as thermostats are considered. The new approach considers a linear variation of the overall heat transfer coefficient of the machine heat exchangers with respect to the local temperature difference. A comparison of the optimum state and the optimum distribution of the heat transfer surface conductance or area among the heater and the cooler is made for several cases.     

新型回热器结构设计及换热特性研究

回热器作为斯特林热机的关键部件,对于太阳能斯特林热机整机性能有着重要影响。为克服传统金属丝网回热器结构存在的填料单一,制造成本较高,工艺复杂问题,采用实用等温分析法,以回热器的长径比、通流面积、填料种类以及孔隙率各项回热器参数为基础,设计了一种新型斯特林热机回热器,该回热器具有轴向压降小,换热性能高,结构稳定,加工制造简单的特点。开展了新型回热器和传统金属丝网回热器的换热性能对比研究,采用振荡条件下的局部热平衡方法研究回热器的传热过程,对比传统金属丝网回热器和新型回热器的温度变化,速度变化以及压力变化。结果表明:在整体孔隙率相同的条件下,新型回热器和传统金属丝网回热器相比,整体启动速率相似,但新型回热器压降减少0.04 MPa,速度出现分段式变化,有利于回热器的换热和结构稳定。因此,新型回热器不但在结构上优于传统金属丝网回热器,在换热特性上也优于传统金属丝网回热器。     

Theoretical limits on the performance of stirling engines

This paper describes a mathematical model of engines operating with an ideal Stirling cycle and subject to limited heat transfer, internal thermal losses, and mechanical friction losses. The goal of the paper is to describe the fundamental effects of these imperfections on the performance of an otherwise ideal Stirling engine. These are defects suffered by all real Stirling engines, but the intent here is not to predict the actual performance of specific engines. Rather, the aim is to obtain some mathematical insight into the nature of the theoretical dependence of engine performance upon these imperfections. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Performance improvement of a 70 kWe natural gas combined heat and power (CHP) system

Combined heat and power is the simultaneous production of electricity and heat. CHP plants produce energy in an efficient way. A natural gas CHP system based on an internal combustion engine (ICE) is described, which has been set up at the Building Energy Research Center in Beijing, China. The system is composed of an ICE, a flue gas heat exchanger, a jacket water heat exchanger and other assistant facilities. The ICE generates power on-site, and the exhaust of the ICE is recovered by the flue gas heat exchanger, and the heat of the engine jacket is recovered by the jacket water heat exchanger to district heating system. In order to improve the performance of the system, an absorption heat pump (AHP) is adopted. The exhaust of the ICE drives the AHP to recover the sensible and latent heat step by step, and the temperature of the exhaust could be lowered to below 30 °C. In this paper, the performance of the new system were tested and compared with conventional cogeneration systems. The results show that the new CHP system could increase the heat utilization efficiency 10% compared to conventional systems in winter. All the results could be valuable references for the improvement of the CHP system.     

Experimental investigation of the performance of an elbow-bend type heat exchanger with a water tube bank used as a heater or cooler in alpha-type Stirling machines

In this work the effect of the elbow-bend geometry and the effect of the tube arrangement on the performance of air-to-water heat exchanger is studied experimentally. In elbow-bend heat exchanger, the direction of the working fluid is bended at 90 degrees to its inlet direction. The heating or cooling fluid flows inside straight tubes while the working fluid flows past the tubes along an elbow pass. Three different types of the geometry of the elbow with three different tube bank arrangements were studied. The results were plotted and analyzed to clarify the effects of the elbow-bend geometry, the tube bank arrangements and the dead volume in the heat exchanger on the heat transfer and pressure drop. Two empirical correlations were deduced for each design, one to predict the relation between Nusselt and Reynolds numbers, while the other relation is between the friction factor and Reynolds number. This work was done to select the more suitable design to be used as a heater or a cooler in Stirling machines.     

一种监测换热器污垢的新方法

在考虑污垢对换热器传热性能影响的基础上,提出换热器当量总污垢热阻和污垢函数的概念,并给出换热器当量总污垢热阻的监测方法,讨论了换热流型、传热有效度ε和冷热流体热容量率比R对换热器当量总污垢热阻的影响。     

Fouling Reduction Characteristics of a No-Distributor-Fluidized-Bed Heat Exchanger for Flue Gas Heat Recovery

Heat exchangers and heat exchanger networks are extensively used for the purpose of recovering energy. In conventional flue gas heat recovery systems, the fouling by fly ashes and the related problems such as corrosion and cleaning are known to be major drawbacks. To overcome these problems, a single-riser no-distributor-fluidized-bed heat exchanger is devised and studied. Fouling and cleaning tests are performed for a uniquely designed fluidized bed-type heat exchanger to demonstrate the effect of particles on the fouling reduction and heat transfer enhancement. The tested heat exchanger model (1 m high and 54 mm internal diameter) is a gas-to-water type and composed of a main vertical tube and four auxiliary tubes through which particles circulate and transfer heat. Through the present study, the fouling on the heat transfer surface could successfully be simulated by controlling air-to-fuel ratios rather than introducing particles through an external feeder, which produced soft deposit layers with 1 to 1.5 mm thickness on the inside pipe wall. Flue gas temperature at the inlet of heat exchanger was maintained at 450°C at the gas volume rate of 0.738 to 0.768 CMM (0.0123 to 0.0128 m³/sec). From the analyses of the measured data, heat transfer performances of the heat exchanger before and after fouling and with and without particles were evaluated. Results showed that soft deposits were easily removed by introducing glass bead particles, and also heat transfer performance increased two times by the particle circulation. In addition, it was found that this type of heat exchanger had high potential to recover heat of waste gases from furnaces, boilers, and incinerators effectively and to reduce fouling related problems.     

Thermodynamic analysis of a Stirling engine including dead volumes of hot space, cold space and regenerator

This paper provides a theoretical investigation on the thermodynamic analysis of a Stirling engine. An isothermal model is developed for an imperfect regeneration Stirling engine with dead volumes of hot space, cold space and regenerator that the regenerator effective temperature is an arithmetic mean of the heater and cooler temperature. Numerical simulation is performed and the effects of the regenerator effectiveness and dead volumes are studied. Results from this study indicate that the engine net work is affected by only the dead volumes while the heat input and engine efficiency are affected by both the regenerator effectiveness and dead volumes. The engine net work decreases with increasing dead volume. The heat input increases with increasing dead volume and decreasing regenerator effectiveness. The engine efficiency decreases with increasing dead volume and decreasing regenerator effectiveness.     

Modeling and Prediction of Shell-Side Fouling in Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers

Fouling is a challenging, longstanding, and costly problem affecting a variety of heat transfer applications in industry. Mathematical models that aim at capturing and predicting fouling trends in shell-and-tube heat exchangers typically focus on fouling inside the tubes, while fouling on the shell side has generally been neglected. However, fouling deposition on the shell side may be significant in practice, impairing heat transfer, increasing pressure drops, and modifying flow paths. In this paper, a new model formulation is presented that enables capturing fouling on the shell side of shell-and-tube heat exchangers including the effect of occlusion of the shell-side clearances. It is demonstrated by means of an industrial case study in a crude oil refinery application. The model, implemented in an advanced simulation environment, is fitted to plant data. It is shown to capture the complex thermal and hydraulic interactions between fouling growth inside and outside of the tubes, the effect of fouling on the occlusion of the shell-side construction clearances, and to unveil the impact on shell-side flow patterns, heat transfer coefficient, pressure drops, and overall exchanger performance. The model is shown to predict the fouling behavior in a seamless dynamic simulation of both deposition and cleaning operations, with excellent results.     

A unified model of combined energy systems with different cycle modes and its optimum performance characteristics

A unified model is presented for a class of combined energy systems, in which the systems mainly consist of a heat engine, a combustor and a counter-flow heat exchanger and the heat engine in the systems may have different thermodynamic cycle modes such as the Brayton cycle, Carnot cycle, Stirling cycle, Ericsson cycle, and so on. Not only the irreversibilities of the heat leak and finite-rate heat transfer but also the different cycle modes of the heat engine are considered in the model. On the basis of Newton’s law, expressions for the overall efficiency and power output of the combined energy system with an irreversible Brayton cycle are derived. The maximum overall efficiency and power output and other relevant parameters are calculated. The general characteristic curves of the system are presented for some given parameters. Several interesting cases are discussed in detail. The results obtained here are very general and significant and can be used to discuss the optimal performance characteristics of a class of combined energy systems with different cycle modes. Moreover, it is significant to point out that not only the important conclusions obtained in Bejan’s first combustor model and Peterson’s general combustion driven model but also the optimal performance of a class of solar-driven heat engine systems can be directly derived from the present paper under some limit conditions.     

Integration of a free-piston Stirling engine and a moving grate incinerator

The feasibility of recovering the waste heat from a small-scale incinerator (designed by Industrial Technology Research Institute) and generating electric power by a linear free-piston Stirling engine is investigated in this study. A heat-transfer model is used to simulate the integration system of the Stirling engine and the incinerator. In this model, the external irreversibility is modeled by the finite temperature difference and by the actual heat transfer area, while the internal irreversibility is considered by an internal heat leakage. At a fixed source temperature and a fixed sink temperature, the optimal engine performance can be obtained by the method of Lagrange multipliers.From the energy and mass balances for the interesting incinerator with the feeding rate at 16 t/d, there is enough otherwise wasted energy for powering the Stirling engine and generate more than 50 kW of electricity.