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Mathematical Modeling of Cross-Flow Tube Heat

Exchangers With a Complex Flow Arrangement
a b b
Dawid Taler , Marcin Trojan & Jan M. Taler
a
Faculty of Environmental Engineering, Institute of Thermal Engineering and Air Protection ,
Cracow University of Technology , Cracow , Poland
b
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering , Institute of Power Plant Technology, Cracow University
of Technology , Cracow , Poland
Accepted author version posted online: 31 Dec 2013.Published online: 04 Mar 2014.

To cite this article: Dawid Taler , Marcin Trojan & Jan M. Taler (2014) Mathematical Modeling of Cross-Flow
Tube Heat Exchangers With a Complex Flow Arrangement, Heat Transfer Engineering, 35:14-15, 1334-1343, DOI:
10.1080/01457632.2013.876874

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01457632.2013.876874

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 Heat Transfer Engineering, 35(14–15):1334–1343, 2014
Copyright 
C Taylor and Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: 0145-7632 print / 1521-0537 online
DOI: 10.1080/01457632.2013.876874

Mathematical Modeling of Cross-Flow

Tube Heat Exchangers With
a Complex Flow Arrangement

DAWID TALER,1 MARCIN TROJAN,2 and JAN M. TALER2

1
Faculty of Environmental Engineering, Institute of Thermal Engineering and Air Protection, Cracow University
Downloaded by [University Of Maryland] at 13:27 19 October 2014

of Technology, Cracow, Poland

2
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Institute of Power Plant Technology, Cracow University of Technology, Cracow, Poland

The general principles of mathematical modeling of heat transfer in cross-flow tube heat exchangers with complex flow
arrangements that allow the simulation of multipass heat exchangers with many tube rows are presented. The finite-volume
method is used to solve the system of differential equations for temperature of the both fluids and the tube wall with
appropriate boundary conditions. A numerical model of a multipass steam superheater with 12 passes is presented. The
convection and radiation heat transfer on the flue gas side are accounted for. In addition, the deposit layer is assumed to
cover the outer surface of the tubes. Comparing the computed and measured steam temperature increase over the entire
superheater allows for determining the thermal resistance of the deposits layer on the outer surface of the superheater. The
developed modeling technique can especially be used for modeling tube heat exchangers when detailed information on the
tube wall temperature distribution is needed.

INTRODUCTION
Cross-flow tube heat exchangers find many applications in
practice. An example of such an exchanger is a steam super-
heater, where the steam flows inside the tubes while heating flue
gas flows across the tube bundles. The mathematical derivation
of an expression for the mean temperature difference becomes
quite complex for multipass cross-flow heat exchangers with
many tube rows and complex flow arrangement (Hewitt et al.
[1], Kröger [2], Rayaprolu [3], Stultz an Kitto [4], Taler [5]).
When calculating the heat transfer rate, the usual procedure is to
modify the simple counter-flow logarithmic mean temperature
difference (LMTD) method by a correction FT determined for
a particular arrangement. The heat flow rate Q̇ transferred from
the hot to cool fluid is the product of the overall heat trans-
fer coefficient UA , heat transfer area A, correction factor FT ,
and logarithmic mean temperature difference Tlm . The heat
transfer equation then takes the form:
Q̇ = U A AFT Tlm
Address correspondence to Professor Jan M. Taler, Faculty of Me-
chanical Engineering, Institute of Power Plant Technology, Cracow Univer-
sity of Technology, Al. Jana Pawla II 37, 31-864 Cracow, Poland. E-mail:
taler@mech.pk.edu.pl
However, to calculate the steam, flue gas, and wall tempera-
ture distributions, a numerical model of the superheater is in-
dispensable. Superheaters are the tube bundles that attain the
highest temperatures in a boiler and consequently require the
greatest care in the design and operation (Rayaprolu [3]). The
complex superheater tube arrangements permit the economic
trade-off between material unit costs and surface area required
to obtain the prescribed steam outlet temperature. Very often,
various alloy steels are used for each pass in modern boilers.
High-temperature heat exchangers like steam superheaters are
difficult to model since the tubes receive energy from the flue
gas by two heat transfer modes: convection and radiation. The
division of superheaters into two types, convection and radi-
ant superheaters, is based on the mode of heat transfer that is
predominant. In convection superheaters, the portion of heat
transfer by radiation from the flue gas is small. A radiant super-
heater absorbs heat primarily by thermal radiation from the flue
gas with little convective heat flow rate. The share of convection
in the total heat exchange of platen superheaters located directly
(1)
over the combustion chamber amounts to only 10 to 15%. In
convective superheaters, the share of radiation heat exchange is
lower but cannot be neglected.
Correct determination of the heat flux absorbed through the
boiler heating surfaces is very difficult. This results, on the one
1334
 D. TALER ET AL. 1335

hand, from the complexity of heat transfer by radiation of flue

gas with a high content of solid ash particles, and on the other
hand, from the fouling of heating surfaces by slag and ash (Taler
et al. [6]). The degree of the slag and ash deposition is hard to
assess, both at the design stage and during the boiler opera-
tion. In consequence, the proper size of superheaters is being
assumed only after boiler starting. In cases when the tempera-
ture of superheated steam at the exit from the superheater stage
under examination is higher than the design value, then the area
of the surface of this stage has to be decreased. However, if the
exit temperature of the steam is below the desired value, then
the surface area is increased.

MATHEMATICAL MODEL OF THE SUPERHEATER

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To study the impact of superheater fouling on flue gas and

steam temperatures, a numerical model of the entire superheater
has been developed. It was assumed that the outer tube surfaces
are covered with bonded ash deposits with a uniform thickness.
The temperatures of the flue gas, tube walls, and steam were
determined using the finite-volume method (FVM) (Taler [5]).
The individual stages of the superheater were modeled as cross-
parallel-flow or cross-counter-flow. As an example, the numer-
ical model of a first stage convective will be presented in detail
(Figures 1 and 2). The first stage convective superheater is a
pendant 12-pass heat exchanger. The superheater is constructed
of circular bare tubes and is situated at the back of the second
and third stages of the superheater (Figures 1 and 2). The tube Figure 1 A 50-MW coal-fired utility boiler with steam flow rate of 210 × 103
is of grade St 20 carbon steel, having a 42-mm outside diameter kg/hr: Tfe , Tgs , and Tge denote flue gas temperatures at the furnace exit, after
and 5-mm-thick wall. The superheated steam and the combus- the superheaters and after the air heater, respectively.
tion products flow at right angles to each other. The convective
superheater considered in this paper can be classified accord- row of tubes. The system of partial differential equations de-
ing to flow arrangement as a mixed-cross-flow heat exchanger scribing the space and time changes of water or steam T 1 , tube
(Figures 2 and 3). Each individual pass consists of two tubes wall T w , and air or flue gas T 2 temperatures is:
through which superheated steam flows parallel (Figure 2).
Based on the energy conservation principle, a mathematical ∂ T1 1 ∂ T1
τ1 + = −(T1 − Tw |r =rin ) (2)
model of the steam superheater with 12 tube rows and complex ∂t N1 ∂ x +
flow arrangement was developed. The radiant and convective
superheaters are located in boiler passes through which high-
temperature flue gas flows. The gas temperature drops from
about 1100◦ C at the exit of the furnace chamber to about 400◦ C
before entering the economizer. The radiant platen superheaters
are located in areas of highest flue gas temperature, and the
water heater in the lowest temperature pass. To calculate the
radiation heat transfer from the hot flue gases to the tubes, it
is necessary to solve the radiation heat transfer equation (Taler
and Taler [7]).

MATHEMATICAL MODEL OF ONE ROW TUBE

HEAT EXCHANGER

A mathematical model of the cross-flow tubular heat ex-

changer, in which air or flue gas flows transversally through a Figure 2 Arrangement of boiler heating surfaces.

heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014

 1336 D. TALER ET AL.
Downloaded by [University Of Maryland] at 13:27 19 October 2014

Figure 3 Superheater flow arrangement and division of superheater into control volumes; o, flue gas, •, water steam, , tube wall; PP1(1), . . . , PP1(N), flue gas
temperature at the nodes before the superheater, WP1(1), . . . , WP1(N+1), steam temperature at the nodes in the first superheater pass.

  thickness, defined as
∂ Tw 1 ∂ ∂ Tw
cw ρw = r kw (3)
∂t r ∂r ∂r  1
Tm2 = T2 (x + , y + , t)dy + (12)
∂ T2 1 ∂ T2 0
τ2 + = −(T2 − Tw |r =ro ) (4)
∂t N2 ∂ y +
The numbers of heat transfer units N1 and N2 are given by
The energy balance Eqs. (2)–(4) are subject to boundary and
initial conditions. The boundary conditions are as follows: h 1 Ain h 2 Ao
N1 = , N2 = (13)
+
ṁ 1 c p1 ṁ 2 c p2
T1 ( x , t ) |x + =0 = f 1 ( t ) (5)
  where
∂ Tw
kw |r =rin = h 1 (Tw |r =rin − T1 ) (6)
∂r Ain = Pin L x , Ao = Po L x
 
∂ Tw
kw |r =ro = h 2 (Tm 2 − Tw |r =ro ) (7) The time constants τ1 , τw , τ f , and τ2 are:
∂r
m 1 c p1 m w cw m 2 c p2
T2 ( y + , t ) | y + =0 = f 2 (t) (8) τ1 = , τw = , τ2 = (14)
h 1 Ain h 1 Ain + h 2 Ao h 2 Ao
The initial conditions are:
where
+ +
T1 ( x , t ) |t=0 = T1, 0 (x ) (9)  
π din
2
π do2
m1 = L x ρ1 , m 2 = s1 s2 − L x ρ2 ,
Tw (x + , r, t) |t=0 = Tw, 0 (x + , r ) (10) 4 4

m w = Pm δw L x ρw , Pm = (Pin + Po )/2
T2 ( x + , y + , t ) |t=0 = T2, 0 (x + , y + ) (11)

The symbols f 1 (t) and f 2 (t) denote functions describing the The transient fluids and wall temperature distributions in the
variation of the boundary temperatures of fluids in time. The one-row heat exchanger (Figure 4) are then determined by the
symbol T m2 stands for the mean gas temperature over the row explicit finite-difference method.
heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014
 D. TALER ET AL. 1337

n+1
Twz,i

 n 
= Twz,i
n
+ α Twm,i t

⎧
   
(T  )n +(T  )n
⎨ r Twm,i
n
+ 2h n2 · r /kw Twm,i
n 2,i
2
2,i
− Twz,i
n
− Twz,i
n
5
×
⎩ rz (r )2

⎫
r3 Twm,i − Twz,i ⎬
n n
+
rz (r )2 ⎭
(18)

Solving Eq. (4) using the explicit Euler method gives the tem-
perature of the fluid 2 at the exit of the finite volume (Figure 4):
  t


(T2, i )n+1 = (T2, i )n + n n (T2, i )n − (T2, i )n
N2, i τ2, i 
Downloaded by [University Of Maryland] at 13:27 19 October 2014

 
 n
t (T2, i ) + (T2, i )n (19)
Figure 4 Control volume for one-row cross-flow tube heat exchanger. + n Twz, i −
n
,
τ2, i 2
i = 1, . . . , N , n = 0, 1, . . .
Transient Numerical Model of One-Row Tube
Heat Exchanger The initial temperature distributions for the fluid 1 wall and fluid
2 are given by Eqs. (9–11), which can be written as:
Transient distributions of fluid and tube wall temperatures
were determined using an explicit finite-difference method.
0
T1,i = T1,0 (xi+ ), i = 1, . . . , N + 1
The tube wall was divided into three control volumes 0
Tww,i = Tww,0 (xi+ , rin ), Twm,i
0
= Twm,0 (xi+ , rm ) (20)
(Figure 4). The finite-volume mesh is shown in Figure 4. 0
Twz,i = Twz,0 (xi+ , ro ), 0
T2,i = T2,0 (xi+ , yi+ ), i = 1, . . . , N
Approximating of Eq. (2) using the explicit finite-difference
method gives: 0 0 0
where the symbols Tww, i , Twm, i , and Twz, i denote the wall
n
− T1,i
n temperatures at the nodes.
t T1,i+1 t
n+1
T1,i+1 = T1,i+1
n
− − n The boundary conditions for fluids are given by Eqs. (5) and
N1,n iτ1, i
n
 x+ τ1, i (8). The presented finite-difference method is accurate and easy
  to program. In order to assure the stability of the calculations,
T1,n i + T1,n i+1 the Courant conditions for both fluids and the stability condition
× − Tww,
n
i ,
2 for the Fourier equation defining transient heat conduction in the
tube wall should be satisfied.
i = 1, . . . , N , n = 0, 1, . .(15)
.
The finite-volume method (Taler [5]) was used to solve Eq. Steady-State Numerical Model of One-Row Tube
(3). The ordinary differential equations for wall temperatures at Heat Exchanger
nodes were solved using the explicit Euler method to obtain:
n+1
Tww, i Under steady-state conditions, the time derivatives in Eqs.
⎧ (2)–(4) are equal to zero and finite-difference approximations
⎨r
 n  i − Tww, i
n n
2 Twm, r0 of these equations have the following form:
= Tww,
n
i + α Twm, i  t +
⎩ rw ( r )2 rw  
1 T1,i+1 − T1,i T1,i + T1,i+1

    
+ − Tww,i =0
 n +T n
T1, ⎫ N1  x+ 2
n
Twm, i − 2 h n1 ·  r /kw Twm,
n
i
n
Tww, i −
i
2
1, i+1
− Tww,
n
i
⎬
×
( r )2 ⎭ i = 1, . . . , N (21)
 n  (16)  
i = Twm, i + α Twm, i  t
n+1 n
Twm, 1+ r2
Twm,i + Bi 1,i (T1,i + T1,i+1 )
r0
Tww,i = (22)
  1+ r2
+ 2 Bi 1,i
i − Twm, i i − Twm, i
n n n n
2 r3 Twz, 2 r2 Tww, r0
× · +
r2 + r3 ( r )2 r2 + r3 ( r )2
Tww,i + r3
T
r2 wz,i
Twm,i = (23)
(17) 1 + r2
r3

heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014

 1338 D. TALER ET AL.
 
 
1+ r3
r5
Twm,i + Bi 2,i (T2,i + T2,i )
Twz,i = (24)
1+ r3
r5
+ 2 Bi 2,i

     
1 T2,i − T2,i T2,i + T2,i
+
+ − Twz,i =0
N2  y 2

i = 1, . . . , N (25)
where
h 1 Ain h 2 Ao h1 r
N1 = , N1 = , Bi 1,i =  ,
ṁ 1 c p1 ṁ 2 c p2 kw Twm,i

h2 r Lx 1 1
Bi 2,i =  , x + = = , y + = 1
kw Twm,i N Lx N
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The radii are defined as follows:

r0 = rin −  r/2, r1 = rin , r2 = r1 +  r/2,
r3 = r2 + r, r4 = r3 +  r/2 = ro , r5 = r4 +  r/2,
 r = (ro − rin ) /2.
The system of Eqs. (21)–(25) is solved using the Gauss–Seidel
method in order to obtain T1,i+1 , Tww,i , Twm,i , Twz,i , T2,i for
i = 1, . . . , N .
The division of the one-row superheater into control volumes
is depicted in Figure 5.
The mean air temperature after the first tube row T2m,a is:
 L x  N 
 0 T2 d x i=1 T2,i
T2m,a = = (26) Figure 5 Division of one-row superheater into control volumes; o, flue gas,
Lx N •, water steam, •, tube wall; P1(1), . . .,P1(N), flue gas temperature at the nodes
before the superheater, P2(1), . . .,P2(N), flue gas temperature at the nodes
after the superheater, W1(1), . . .,W1(N+1), steam temperature at the nodes in
Steady-State Analytical Model of One-Row Tube the first superheater pass, R1(1), . . .,R1(N), wall temperature at the inner tube
surface, R2(1), . . .,R2(N), temperature at the wall center, R3(1), . . .,R3(N), wall
Heat Exchanger
temperature at the outer tube surface.

The equation set (2)–(4) can be replaced by two equations The solution of the equation set (27)–(28) with the boundary
only: conditions (5) and (8) is as follows:
1 dT1 T1 (x + ) = f 2 + ( f 1 − f 2 )
= −[T1 (x + ) − Tm2 (x + )] (27)
N1,o d x +  
N1,o +
× exp − [1 − exp(−N2,o )]x (32)
1 ∂ T2 (x + , y + ) N2,o
= [T1 (x + ) − T2 (x + , y + )] (28)
N2,o ∂ y+
T2 (x + , y + ) = T1 (x + ) − [T1 (x + ) − f 2 ] exp(−N2,o y + ) (33)
where the symbol Tm2 (x + ) denotes the mean temperature of
fluid 2 over the tube row, which is given by Eq. (12). Substituting expression (33) into Eq. (12) gives:
The numbers of heat transfer units are defined as
1
Uo A o Tm2 (x + ) = T1 (x + ) − [T1 (x + ) − f 2 ] · [1 − exp(−N2,o )]
N1,o = (29) N2,o
ṁ 1 c p1 (34)
Substituting y + = 1 into Eq. (32), the temperature of fluid 2
Uo A o after the tube row can be calculated:
N2,o = (30)
ṁ 2 c p2 
T2 (x + ) = T2 (x + , y + ) y + =1 = f 2 + ( f 1 − f 2 )
where the overall heat transfer coefficient Uo is given by
   
1 1 ro ro ro 1 N1,o
= + ln + . (31) × exp − [1 − exp(−N2,o )]x + [1 − exp(−N2,o )] (35)
Uo ho kw rin rin h in N2,o
heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014
 D. TALER ET AL. 1339

The average flue gas temperature after the tube row can be
calculated as follows:
 1  1
T̄2 = T2 (x + ) d x + = { T2 + (T1 − T2 )
0 0

 
N1,o +
× exp − (1 − exp(−N2,o ))x
N2,o

(1 − exp(−N2,o )) } d x + (36)

N2,o 
T̄2 = T2 + (T − T2 ) (1 − exp (−B)) (37)
N1,o 1

N1,o
B= (1 − exp(−N2,o )). (38) Figure 6 Finite volume for energy balance on the steam and gas sides (a) and
N2,o
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in-line array of superheater tubes (b).

Taking into account that the heat flux at the outer tube surface rearranging (Figures 6a and 7):
qo (x + ) is given by  
1 1
Ts,i+1 = 1 − Ns,i+ 2 Ts,i
qo (x + ) = Uo [T1 (x + ) − Tm2 (x + )]
1
(39) 1 + 2 Ns,i+ 12
1 2

the tube temperature at the inner surface Tww (x + ), in the middle 

of the wall Twm (x + ), and at the outer surface Twz (x + ) can be +Ns,i+ 12 Tw1,i , i = 1, . . . , N (43)
calculated from the following formulas:
where the mesh number of transfer units for the steam is given
+ + qo (x + )ro by
Tww (x ) = T1 (x ) + (40)
rin h in h s Ain 2 h s Ain
Ns,i+ 12 = = (44)
  ṁ s c̄ ps,i ṁ s [c ps (Ts,i ) + c ps (Ts,i+1 )]
qo (x + )ro qo (x + )ro rm
Twm (x + ) = T1 (x + ) + + ln (41)
rin h in kw (Twm ) rin

qo (x + )
Twz (x + ) = Tm2 (x + ) − (42)
ho

where the mean radius is defined as rm = (ro + rin )/2.

MATHEMATICAL MODEL OF CONVECTIVE

SUPERHEATER

The flow arrangement and division of the first-stage con-

vective superheater into finite volumes are depicted in Figure 3.
The superheated steam and the combustion products flow at right
angles to each other. The first-stage convective superheater can
be classified according to flow arrangement as a mixed-cross-
flow heat exchanger. The superheater tubes are arranged in line
(Figure 6b). Each individual pass consists of two tubes through
which superheated steam flows parallel. The tube outer surface
is covered with a layer of ash deposits. In the following, finite-
volume heat balance equations (finite-difference equations) are
formulated for the steam, tube wall, and flue gas. A steam-side
energy balance equation (21) for the ith finite volume gives after Figure 7 Tube wall with a layer of deposits at the outer tube surface.

heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014

 1340 D. TALER ET AL.

• Node 2:
kw (Tw1, i ) + kw (Tw2, i ) Tw1, i − Tw2, i
2 δw

Tw3, i − Tw2, i
π dc + k z π ds = 0 (50)
δz

where ds = do + δz = 2ro + δz .
• Node 3:
Tw2, i − Tw3, i
h g (T̄g, i − Tw3, i ) π (do + 2δz ) + k z π ds = 0
δz
(51)

Algebraic Eqs. (49)–(51) can be rewritten in a form that is

suitable for solving equation sets by using the Gauss–Seidel
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method:
Figure 8 Division of the tube wall and deposit layer into three control volumes.
1
Tw1, i = kw (Tw1, i )+kw (Tw2, i ) dc
The mesh tube inner surface is: h s din + 2 δw

Ain = π din x  
(45) kw (Tw1, i ) + kw (Tw2, i ) dc
× h s T̄s, i din + Tw2 (52)
where x = L x /N is the mesh size and Lx the tube length. 2 δw
The energy conservation principle for the flue gas applied
for the finite control volume (Figures 6 and 7) gives the same 1
Tw2, i = kw (Tw1, i )+kw (Tw2, i ) dc kz
equation as the finite difference equation (25). After rearranging 2 δw
+ d
δz s
Eq. (25), we obtain:
   
1 1 kw (Tw1, i ) + kw (Tw2, i ) dc ds

Tg,i = 1 − N g,i+ 12 Tg,i  × Tw1, i +k z Tw3, i (53)
1 + 12 N g,i+ 1 2 2 δw δz
2

 1
Tw3, i =

+ N g,i+ 12 Tw3,i , i = 1, . . . , N (46) h g (do + 2δz ) + k z dδzs

where the mesh number of transfer units for the gas is  

ds
h g A z 2 h g A z
× h g (do + 2δz ) T̄g , i + k z Tw2, i (54)
N g,i+ 1 = = (47) δz
 
2 ṁ g c̄ pg,i ṁ g [c pg (Tg,i ) + c pg (Tg,i )]
Equations (43), (46), and (52)–(54) can be used for building
The mesh outer surface of deposits is (Figure 7) mathematical models of heat exchangers of complex flow ar-
A z = π (2 ro + 2 δz ) x (48) rangement. To solve Eqs. (43), (46), and (52)–(54) two bound-
ary conditions are prescribed: inlet steam temperature Ts,inlet
Subsequently, energy conservation equations for the tube wall and flue gas temperature Tg,inlet before the superheater:
(Figure 7) will be written. The tube wall and the deposit layer
are divided into three finite volumes (Figure 8). WP1(1) = Ts,inlet and PP1(I ) = Tg,inlet , I = 1, . . . , N . (55)
Energy conservation equations may be written as:
The Gauss–Seidel method was used for iterative solving the
• Node 1: nonlinear set of algebraic equations: (43), (46), and (52)–(54)
kw (Tw1, i ) + kw (Tw2, i ) with the boundary conditions (55). The convective heat transfer
h s (T̄s, i − Tw1, i ) π din + coefficient at the tube inner surface h s and the heat transfer on
2
the flue gas side h cg were calculated using correlations given in
Tw2, i − Tw1, i Kuznetsov et al. [8]. The effect of radiation on the heat transfer
π dc = 0 (49) coefficient h g is accounted for by adding the radiation heat
δw
transfer coefficient h rg (Taler and Taler [7], Kuznetsov et al.
Ts, i +Ts, i+1
where dc = (din + do )/2 = rin + ro , T̄s, i = 2
. [8]) to the convective heat transfer, that is, h g = h cg + h rg .

heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014

 D. TALER ET AL. 1341

Table 1 Comparison of temperature values for steam and flue gas obtained using exact analytical and numerical solutions

Steam temperature, ◦ C Flue gas temperature, ◦ C

Coordinate x+ Analytical Numerical Coordinate x+ Analytical Numerical

0.00 340.0000 340.0000 0.0025 782.1396 782.1381

0.20 342.7422 342.7494 0.2250 782.2461 782.2449
0.40 345.4680 345.4825 0.4250 782.3519 782.3510
0.60 348.1776 348.1991 0.6250 782.4571 782.4565
0.80 350.8710 350.8996 0.8250 782.5617 782.5613
1.00 353.5483 353.5839 0.9750 782.6397 782.6396

EXAMPLES OF HEAT EXCHANGER CALCULATIONS are: T̄2 = 782.3908◦ C and T2m,a


= 782.3900◦ C. The analysis
of the exact analytical and numerical results indicates that the
The effectiveness of the developed methods is next demon- accuracy of the numerical method presented in the paper is very
strated by solving two problems. In the first a one-row super- satisfactory.
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heater and in the second a 12-row convective superheater with

complex flow arrangement are analyzed. First-Stage Convective Superheater

Next, the first-stage convective superheater is considered.

Comparison of the Numerical and Analytical Model
Temperature distributions of the steam and flue gas are calcu-
lated using the developed method and compared with the exact
analytical solution. The superheater tubes are made of carbon
steel with temperature-dependent conductivity:
kw (T ) = 50.712235 − 4.8983957 · 10−5 · T 2
where kw is in W/(m·K) and T in ◦ C. The pressure at the inlet
and the average steam temperature over the entire superheater
are p1 = 9.6 MPa, T̄1 = 350◦ C.
The following data are taken into consideration: L x =
5.14 m, ro = 0.021 m, rin = 0.016 m, s1 = 0.104 m, w1 = 9.8
m/sec, w2 = 4 m/sec, f 1 = 340◦ C, f 2 = 800◦ C, h in = 2350
W/(m2·K), h o = 60 W/(m2·K), N = 20. To compare the numer-
ical and analytical results the constant thermophysical proper-
ties are assumed: ρ1 = 42.2 kg/m3, c p1 = 3853 J/(kg·K), ρ2 =
0.3735 kg/m3, c p2 = 1234.6 J/(kg·K), W/(m·K). The mas flow
rates of the steam ṁ 1 = ṁ s and flue gas ṁ 2 = ṁ g are calculated
from the following expressions: ṁ s = π rin 2
w1 ρ1 = 0.3326
kg/sec, ṁ g = s1 L x w2 ρ2 = 0.5347 kg/sec. The comparisons
of the calculated steam, flue gas, and tube wall temperatures are
shown in Tables 1 and 2. The mean flue gas temperature after
the tube row calculated analytically, T̄2 , and numerically, T2m,a

, crease is Ts =400.9–337.7 = 63.2 K. The mathematical model
The calculations are based on the following data: tube outside
diameter, do = 0.042 m, tube inside diameter, din = 0.032
m, inlet flue gas temperature, Tg,inlet = 632.6◦ C, inlet steam
temperature,Ts,inlet = 337.7◦ C, steam mass flow rate ṁ s = 46.2
kg/sec, mean flue gas velocity in the narrowest cross section,
wg = 7.19 m/sec. The thermal conductivity of the ash layer is:
k z = 0.07 W/(m·K).
(56) The thermal conductivity of the tube material is given by the
following expression:
k w = 35.54 + 0.004084 T − 2.0891 · 10−5 T 2 (57)
where the thermal conductivity kw is in W/(m·K) and tempera-
ture T in ◦ C.
The ash deposition thickness, δz = 0.002 m, was adjusted
so that the computed and measured steam temperature differ-
ence over the whole superheater are equal. Figures 9 and 10
illustrate the predictions of the mathematical model. The tem-
perature of the deposits layer on the flue gas side is very high
(Figure 10) because of the low thermal conductivity of the ash
deposits.
The calculated steam temperature and mean flue gas tem-
perature behind the superheater are 400.9◦ C and 558.6◦ C, re-
spectively. The computed and measured steam temperature in-

Table 2 Comparison of tube wall temperature obtained from exact analytical and numerical solutions

Tube inner surface, ◦ C Tube wall center, ◦ C Tube outer surface, ◦ C

Coordinate x+ Analytical Numerical Analytical Numerical Analytical Numerical

0.0025 354.8459 354.8852 356.6616 356.6915 358.2468 358.2691

0.2250 357.4995 357.5457 359.3044 359.3412 360.8802 360.9094
0.4250 360.1374 360.1903 361.9315 361.9750 363.4979 363.5338
0.6250 362.7595 362.8190 364.5429 364.5931 366.1000 366.1426
0.8250 365.3660 365.4321 367.1388 367.1956 368.6866 368.7358
0.9750 367.3107 367.3816 369.0755 369.1372 370.6164 370.6705

heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014

 1342
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Figure 9 Steam temperature distribution in selected passes; a, b, c, d, e, symbol
of the pass (Figure 3).
of the superheater developed in the paper enables the deter-
mination of the wall and ash deposits temperature. The tube
temperatures at the inner and outer surfaces, at the inlet of
the superheater, are Tw1,1 = 341.0◦ C and Tw2,1 = 341.89◦ C.
The temperature rises significantly over the ash deposit layer
Figure 10 Flue gas, steam, and deposits temperatures in the middle of su-
perheater in direction of flue gas flow (from the left to the right side of the
superheater).
heat transfer engineering
D. TALER ET AL.
since the temperature at the outer surface of the deposit layer
is Tw3,1 = 522.28◦ C. Similar results are obtained at the outlet
of the superheater: Tw1,N +1 = 403.61◦ C, Tw2,N +1 = 404.45◦ C,
and Tw3,N +1 = 573.63◦ C (Figure 8). It can be seen from inspec-
tion of the results that the ash layer has a great influence on the
temperature of ash deposit layer. With an increasing ash deposit
layer the heat flow rate from the flue gas to the steam decreases
since the temperature difference between the flue gas and ash
deposit surface drops.
CONCLUSIONS
The general principles of mathematical modeling of steady-
state and unsteady heat transfer in cross-flow tube heat exchang-
ers with complex flow arrangements that enable the simulation
of multipass heat exchangers with many tube rows were pre-
sented. Two methods for modeling of heat exchangers were
discussed: the finite-difference method and the finite-volume
method. Numerical models of one-pass and multipass steam
superheater with 12 passes were developed. The convection
and radiation heat transfer on the flue gas side was accounted
for. In addition, the deposit layer was assumed to cover the
outer surface of the tubes. The calculation results were com-
pared with the exact analytical solution and experimental data.
Comparing the computed and measured steam temperature in-
crease over the entire superheater allows for determining the
thermal resistance of the deposits layer on the outer surface
of the superheater. The developed modeling technique can es-
pecially be used for modeling tube heat exchangers when de-
tailed information on the tube wall temperature distribution is
needed.
NOMENCLATURE
A area, m2
Ain , Ao inside and outside surface area of the tube, m2
c specific heat, J/(kg·K)
c̄ mean specific heat, J/(kg·K)
cp specific heat at constant pressure, J/(kg·K)
FT correction factor for a particular flow arrangement
h heat transfer coefficient, W/(m2·K)
k thermal conductivity, W/(m·K)
Lx tube length in the heat exchanger, m
m mass, kg
ṁ mass flow rate, kg/sec
P perimeter, m
Pin , Po inner and outer perimeter of the tube, respectively,
m
Q̇ heat flow rate, W
s1 pitch of tubes in plane perpendicular to flow, m
s2 pitch of tubes in direction of flow, m
r radius, m
vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014
 D. TALER ET AL. 1343

T temperature, ◦ C [4] Stultz, S. C., and Kitto, J. B., eds., Steam: Its Generation
T2 , T2 gas temperature before and after tube row, ◦ C and Use, 40th ed., Babcock & Wilcox Company, Barber-
UA overall heat transfer coefficient, W/(m2·K) ton, OH, 1992.
w fluid velocity, m/sec [5] Taler, D., Dynamics of Tube Heat Exchangers, Univer-
x, y, z Cartesian coordinates sity of Science Publishing House (UNWD AGH), Cracow,
x + = x/L x dimensionless coordinate Poland, 2009 (in Polish).
y + = y/s2 dimensionless coordinate [6] Taler, J., Trojan, M., and Taler, D., Computer System for
Fouling Assessment in Coal-Fired Utility Boilers, Archives
of Thermodynamics, vol. 30, no. 2, pp. 59–76, 2009.
Greek Symbols [7] Taler, D., and Taler, J., Simplified Analysis of Radiation
Heat Exchange in Boiler Superheaters, Heat Transfer En-
α = k/(c ρ) thermal diffusivity, m2/sec gineering, vol. 30, no. 8, pp. 661–669, 2009.
 ṁ g flue gas mass flow rate through the control vol- [8] Kuznetsov, N. V., Mitor, V. V., Dubovskij, I. E., and
ume, kg/sec Karasina, E. S., eds., Standard Methods of Thermal De-
T temperature difference, K sign for Power Boilers, Central Boiler and Turbine Insti-
 x,  y control volume size in x and y direction, m tute, Energija, Moscow, Russia, 1973 (in Russian).
Downloaded by [University Of Maryland] at 13:27 19 October 2014

 x + = 1/N dimensionless control volume size

δ thickness, m
ρ density, kg/m3 Dawid Taler is an associate professor at the Cra-
τ time constant, sec cow University of Technology, Institute of Thermal
Engineering and Air Protection, Faculty of Environ-
mental Engineering, Cracow, Poland. He is the author
Subscripts of four books and many chapters and articles on heat
exchangers and thermal measurements.

g flue gas
lm logarithmic mean
m mean
Marcin Trojan graduated from Cracow University of
r tube Technology. He is a specialist in power plant technol-
s steam ogy. In his dissertation he studied the ash deposition
w wall problems in large steam boilers. He is co-author of
in inner a computer-based boiler performance system, which
o outer has been developed to provide a direct and quanti-
tative assessment of furnace and convective surface
1 fluid flowing inside the tube cleanliness. He is a co-author of the book Monitoring
2 fluid flowing in direction perpendicular to tubes of Ash Fouling and Internal Scale Deposits in Pul-
verized Fired Boilers. He has published many book
chapters and articles on heat exchanger modeling.
REFERENCES
Jan M. Taler is a professor of mechanical engineer-
[1] Hewitt, G. F., Shires, G. L., and Bott, T. R., Process Heat ing at Cracow University of Technology in Poland.
Transfer, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 1994. Since joining the university in 1974 he has written
[2] Kröger, D. G., Air-Cooled Heat Exchangers and Cooling more than 300 papers and three books in heat trans-
fer. His research interests are heat transfer, inverse
Towers, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Univer- heat transfer problems, dynamics of large steam boil-
sity of Stellenbosch, Matieland, South Africa, 1998. ers, and thermal stresses.
[3] Rayaprolu, K., Boilers for Power and Process, CRC Press,
Boca Raton, FL, 2009.

heat transfer engineering vol. 35 nos. 14–15 2014