School of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering University of Western Australia Thermofluids 3 MECH3401 Past exam questions Gas Mixtures.

. 6 An air-cycle low-temperature refrigeration system is being designed to use highpressure air as the working fluid. Heat is absorbed and rejected by two heat exchangers, the air entering them at 80 bar and 100oC, and 150 bar and 45oC respectively. Initial calculations of specific volume treating the air as an ideal gas have proved to be inaccurate. Oxygen Nitrogen Molar mass, kg/kmol 32 28 Critical Temperature, K 154.6 126.2 Critical Pressure, MPa 5.08 3.40 (a) Treating the air as a gas mixture (molar ratios of 21% oxygen and 79% nitrogen), use Kays rule to calculate the specific volume of the air at the heat absorber inlet and at the heat rejecter inlet. (10 marks) (b) From the compressibility factors, deduce the specific volumes that were originally calculated, and the percentage error in the original calculations. (4 marks) (c) Suggest an even more accurate method of establishing the specific volumes, and explain briefly how this would be done. (6 marks) 1. (a) Explain what is meant by the term "partial pressure" in your own words. (4 marks) (b) A pressure vessel containing 20kg of butane (C4H10) and 25kg of propane (C3H8) is at a pressure of 50 bar at 124oC. Calculate the volume of the pressure vessel using Kay's Rule. (8 marks) (c) Calculate the volume of air (at atmospheric pressure, 25oC) that will be required to mix with the contents of the pressure vessel to ensure complete combustion. (8 marks) Propane 44 96.8 42 Butane 58 152 37.5

Molar Mass kg/kmol Critical Temperature oC Critical Pressure, bar

3. (a) "By present-day standards, Dalton's law must be regarded as an inaccurate conjecture based upon an unwarranted faith in the ultimate simplicity of nature." J.A Goff, 1949. Write a short paragraph stating whether or not you agree with Goff, and explain why. (5 marks) (b) Diesel fuel (dodecane, C12H26) is burnt with 20% excess air in a large marine diesel engine. The exhaust gases are vented to atmosphere. Calculate the air fuel ratio (by

mass) and the dew point of the exhaust gases, assuming complete combustion. (10 marks) (c) If the air used for combustion in part (b) above were initially at 101 kPa, 25oC and 70% relative humidity, calculate the new dew point of the exhaust gases. (Assume that the water vapour does not react during the combustion process.) (5 marks) (d) Treating the combustion products from (b) above as a mixture of perfect gases, calculate a value of R for the mixture using the following information, and hence calculate the density of the exhaust gases at 1 atmosphere, 350K. (5 marks)

Gas Oxygen Nitrogen Carbon dioxide Water vapour

relative molecular mass 32 28 44 18

Specific gas constant, R (kJ/kgK) 0.2598 0.2968 0.1889 0.4615

3. An industrial engine uses a mix of propane (C3H8) and butane (C4H10) as fuel properties are shown in the table below. The fuel is drawn from a heated pressure vessel, containing 20 kg of propane and 25 kg of butane at a temperature of 187oC. The volume of the vessel is 0.5 m3. (a) (b) Calculate the pressure inside the vessel, stating any assumptions made. (12 marks) The fuel is burnt at an air-fuel ratio of 20:1. Calculate the theoretical air-fuel ratio and hence the percentage excess air. (8 marks) The air consumed by the engine during the combustion process enters at 24oC with a relative humidity of 60%. What is the dew point of the exhaust gas? (10 marks) Molar mass (kg/kmol) Critical temperature (oC) Critical pressure (MPa) Propane 44 96.8 4.2 Butane 58 152 3.75

(c)