MCL241

ENERGY SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGIES

Krishnakant Agrawal (Assistant PROFESSOR)

Dept. of MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

Lecture 16
Rankine cycle-based power plant

Wout

Qin Qout

Win
Specific work (w) = Net cycle work output/mass of working fluid
Steam Condenser
Specific volume reduction
due to steam condensation Vacuum ejector design
+ low pressure maintained
due to ejector

Velocity at throat
increases due to
area decrease

https://image2.slideserve.com/5340720/surface-
condensers-l.jpg

Cross-flow heat exchanger

Natural convection Cooling tower
Modern Coal Fired Steam Plant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=nL-J5tT1E1k
Pulverized Coal Steam Generator
Air preheater (Rotary matrix type)

Original invention by Ljungstrom, Stockholm, 1920

Supercritical steam generation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVPp8wml9iU
Lecture 10: High Pressure Boilers (Part-1) – YouTube, by Prof. Ravi Kumar IIT Roorkee

Water critical point : 647 K

(374 °C or 705 °F) and 22.064
MPa (3200 psia or 218 atm )

Main benefit: Lowering specific steam consumption → compact power plants

Mollier charts
𝜕ℎ
𝑇= ቤ
𝜕𝑠 𝑝=constant
Specific Volume vs Temperature

@15MPa

@35MPa

Size of equipment reduced at higher pressures due to lower specific volume of steam
Water-tube forced circulation for supercritical steam
Natural circulation driving force: specific
gravity difference between water and
steam → Reduces at high pressures

Supercritical boilers: Entire water converting to steam without boiling → All

impurities in water deposited in the tubes itself → Need extremely clean water
 Moving to higher boiler pressures

Forced circulation Subcritical boiler Once through Supercritical boiler

No separator drum needed

Evolution of A Boiler into A Steam
Generator

Fire tube boiler, max

pressure ~ 10 bar Forced circulation,
supercritical boiler
designs:
• Benson
• LaMont
Water tube natural
• Loeffler
circulation max
• Velox
pressure ~ 165 bar
• Schmidt Hartman
• Ramsin

Different
Water tube forced
arrangement of
circulation max pr.
tubes, drums,
above critical
allowance of
pressure (218 atm),
impurities in water
typically ~ 240 atm
Progress in Steam Rankine Cycle

Year 1907 1919 1938 1950 1958 1959 1966 1973 1975

MW 5 20 30 60 120 200 500 660 1300

p,MPa 1.3 1.4 4.1 6.2 10.3 16.2 15.9 15.9 24.1

Th o C 260 316 454 482 538 566 566 565 538

Tr oC -- -- -- -- 538 538 566 565 538

FWH -- 2 3 4 6 6 7 8 8

Pc,kPa 13.5 5.1 4.5 3.4 3.7 3.7 4.4 5.4 5.1

h,% -- ~17 27.6 30.5 35.6 37.5 39.8 39.5 40