DESIGN OF A HEAT EXCHANGER

FOR A 50 MW POWER STATION

ME 4429 Thermofluid Applications and Design

Submitted by:
Jeffrey Brathwaite
Matthew Lepine

Submitted to:
Prof. Seluk Geri
Milad Farzad

February 23, 2017

Table of Contents
PROBLEM STATEMENT....................................................................3
ASSUMPTIONS...............................................................................4
PHYSICS........................................................................................5
TURBINE CALCULATIONS..................................................................................... 5
HEAT EXCHANGER CALCULATIONS SETUP...............................................................6
ECONOMIZER CALCULATIONS............................................................................... 7
Thermodynamic Calculations....................................................................7
LMTD Method............................................................................................ 7
NTU Method.............................................................................................. 8
BOILER CALCULATIONS....................................................................................... 9
Thermodynamic Calculations....................................................................9
LMTD Method............................................................................................ 9
SUPERHEATER CALCULATIONS............................................................................ 10
Thermodynamic Calculations..................................................................10
LMTD Method.......................................................................................... 11
NTU Method............................................................................................ 12
SIZE CALCULATIONS......................................................................................... 12
CONCLUSION...............................................................................13
APPENDIX: CALCULATED VARIABLES..............................................14
GIVEN VARIABLES............................................................................................ 14
DESIGN (ASSIGNED) VARIABLES.........................................................................14
ECONOMIZER CALCULATIONS............................................................................. 15
BOILER CALCULATIONS..................................................................................... 15
SUPERHEATER CALCULATIONS............................................................................ 16
SIZE CALCULATIONS......................................................................................... 16

2
Problem Statement
The task is to design a single-pass, cross-flow shell-and-tube
heat exchanger for use in a 50 MW solar thermal plant. In the tubes is
DowTherm-A heat transfer fluid (from now on referred to simply as
DowTherm), which comes from the solar parabolic collectors at a
temperature of 350C. In the shell is water and/or steam. The
objectives are to determine the number of tubes needed, as well as
their diameter and length, which is to be shown in a roughly-to-scale
sketch.

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Assumptions
There were several assumptions made throughout the design
process. When explaining the steps taken, some of these assumptions
will be restated. This is the full list of these assumptions.
There is no pressure loss between the pump and the turbine for
the steam/water (remains at 7.5 MPa)
No heat loss between processes (condenser to heat exchanger,
heat exchanger to turbine)
Pressurizing the water with the pump does not change the
temperature of the water
Heat exchanger is adiabatic
DowTherm should exit the heat exchanger at about 275C
Overall heat transfer coefficient values can be approximated to
be 900 W/m2-K for the economizer, 1200 W/m2-K for the boiler,
and 700 W/m2-K for the superheater
For the specific heat values used in the heat transfer
calculations, the average specific heat capacity between the
inlet and outlet temperatures was used
DowTherm remains as a saturated liquid throughout the process

4
Physics
This section contains all of the calculations for the project, with
an explanation of the design process. The values from the calculations
can be found in the appendices, at the end of the report.

Turbine Calculations
To begin, we had to calculate the mass flow rate of the steam.
The power output for the turbine was defined as 50 MW. The turbines
outlet pressure was given to be 1.0 atm. The turbines maximum inlet
conditions were also given; the steam must be less than or equal to
560C at no more than 160 atm.
Using this information, we assigned some values that we wanted
to design the system around. The first was the turbine inlet
temperature of the steam (the outlet temperature from the heat
exchanger), which had to be less than the 350C DowTherm. We
decided that this value should be 330C. We also decided that the
turbines inlet pressure should be 7.5 MPa, since that would
superheat the steam enough above its saturation temperature
(290.535C) that there would be no concerns about the steam
condensing while in the turbine. Next, we assigned the turbines
outlet temperature to be 100C, as saturated vapor (quality of 1.0).
Using this information, we then calculated the mass flow rate of
the steam, using the required power output, as well as the enthalpy of
the steam, using enthalpy values derived from the defined inlet and
outlet conditions. The equation can be found below.

Mass Flow Rate of the Steam:

W
m=

hiho
m=
Mass Flow Rate of the Steam

5
 = Turbine Power Output
W
hi= Enthalpy of Steam (Inlet)
ho = Enthalpy of Steam (Outlet)

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Heat Exchanger Calculations Setup
There needed to be an understanding of the temperatures of the
steam and DowTherm between each stage before the heat transfer
values could be calculated.
The inlet pressure for the steam was to come from the pump at
7.5 MPa, and is assumed to not change between the pump and the
turbine. The water inlet temperature was assigned to come from the
condenser at 90C. In the economizer, the water will be heated to the
boiling point, which at this pressure is 290.535C. In the boiler, the
temperature will not change, but the fully saturated water will be
heated to fully saturated vapor. Finally, in the superheater, the steam
will heat from 290.535C to 330C, which will then go to the turbine,
with no assumed heat loss. The mass flow rate was calculated from
the equation in the Turbine Calculations section; its value is 102.99
kg/s.
The DowTherm is assumed to remain at its saturation point
(liquid) throughout its entire process, since there were no property
values given for compressed liquid. If values for compressed liquid
were available, the DowTherm would ideally be pressurized, to ensure
that it would not evaporate into a vaporized form, since liquids are
much better at conducting heat than gases are. The in-between
temperatures for DowTherm are unknown. However, the inlet
temperature into the superheater was given to be 350C, and we
assumed that the outlet temperature should be approximately 275C.
DowTherms mass flow rate was at first assumed, then adjusted to
correspond with the estimated heat exchanger outlet temperature; its
value is 1500 kg/s (total), or 1.5 kg/s per tube.
We assumed the overall heat transfer coefficient values for each
of the three sections. For the economizer, we assumed the overall heat
transfer coefficient to be 900 W/m2-K. For the boiler, we assumed the

7
overall heat transfer coefficient to be 1200 W/m 2-K. For the
superheater, we assumed the overall heat transfer coefficient to be
700 W/m2-K.

8
Economizer Calculations
In the following section, we will outline the steps taken to
calculate the heat transfer values, as well as the required area for the
heat transfer to take place, for the economizer section of the heat
exchanger.

Thermodynamic Calculations
Using the following equation, the rate of heat transfer and the
outlet DowTherm temperature were calculated for the economizer
section of the heat exchanger. The inlet DowTherm temperature was
calculated from the boiler and superheater sections.

Rate of Heat Transfer:

m
Q= w c p ,w ( T oT i )w =m
DT c p , DT ( T iT o ) DT

Q= Rate of Heat Transfer
m
w = Mass Flow Rate of the Water
c p ,w = Specific Heat Capacity for the Water

( T o ,T i )w = Outlet and Inlet Temperatures for the Water

m
DT = Mass Flow Rate of the DowTherm
c p , DT = Specific Heat Capacity for the DowTherm
( T o ,T i )DT = Outlet and Inlet Temperatures for the DowTherm

LMTD Method
Next, we needed to use this rate of heat transfer value to
determine the amount of area needed for the heat exchanger. The first
method we used was the LMTD method. The equations for this
method can be found on the following page.

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 LMTD Equations:

Q=UA T LM
T 2 T 1
T LM =
T 2
ln
T 1
T 1=T h ,iT c ,o
T 2=T h ,oT c ,i

Q= Rate of Heat Transfer
U= Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient
A= Heat Transfer Area
T LM = Log-Mean Temperature Difference
T h, i= Inlet Temperature of the Hot Fluid
T h, o= Outlet Temperature of the Hot Fluid
T c, i= Inlet Temperature of the Cold Fluid
T c, o= Outlet Temperature of the Cold Fluid

NTU Method
Next, we used the NTU method to confirm the area we
calculated using the LMTD method. The values from the LMTD
method and the NTU method were exactly the same. The equations
for this method can be found below.

NTU Method:
C c =( m
cp )c
C h =( m
c p )h
C h ( T h ,iT h , o ) C c ( T c ,oT c ,i )
= =
C min ( T h ,iT c ,i ) C min ( T h ,iT c ,i )
Cmin
Cr =
Cmax
1 1 UA
NTU = ln =
C r 1 C r1 C min

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11
Boiler Calculations
In the following section, we will outline the steps taken to
calculate the heat transfer values, as well as the required area for the
heat transfer to take place, for the boiler section of the heat
exchanger.

Thermodynamic Calculations
Using the following equation, the rate of heat transfer and the
outlet DowTherm temperature were calculated for the boiler section
of the heat exchanger. The inlet DowTherm temperature was
calculated from the superheater section.

Rate of Heat Transfer:

m
Q= w / s h fg=m
DT c p , DT ( T iT o ) DT

Q= Rate of Heat Transfer
m
w/ s= Mass Flow Rate of the Water/Steam
h fg = Enthalpy of Vaporization for Water
m
DT = Mass Flow Rate of the DowTherm
c p , DT = Specific Heat Capacity for the DowTherm
( T o ,T i )DT = Outlet and Inlet Temperatures for the DowTherm

LMTD Method
Next, we needed to use this rate of heat transfer value to
determine the amount of area needed for the heat exchanger. We used
was the LMTD method. The equations for this method can be found on
the following page.

12
 LMTD Equations:

Q=UA T LM
T 2 T 1
T LM =
T 2
ln
T 1
T 1=T h ,iT c ,o
T 2=T h ,oT c ,i

Q= Rate of Heat Transfer
U= Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient
A= Heat Transfer Area
T LM = Log-Mean Temperature Difference
T h, i= Inlet Temperature of the Hot Fluid
T h, o= Outlet Temperature of the Hot Fluid
T c, i= Inlet Temperature of the Cold Fluid
T c, o= Outlet Temperature of the Cold Fluid

Superheater Calculations
In the following section, we will outline the steps taken to
calculate the heat transfer values, as well as the required area for the
heat transfer to take place, for the superheater section of the heat
exchanger.

Thermodynamic Calculations
Using the following equation, the rate of heat transfer and the
outlet DowTherm temperature were calculated for the superheater
section of the heat exchanger.

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 Rate of Heat Transfer:
m
Q= s c p , s ( T o T i ) s=m
DT c p , DT ( T iT o ) DT

Q= Rate of Heat Transfer
m
s= Mass Flow Rate of the Steam
c p , s= Specific Heat Capacity for the Steam

( T o ,T i )s= Outlet and Inlet Temperatures for the Steam

m
DT = Mass Flow Rate of the DowTherm
c p , DT = Specific Heat Capacity for the DowTherm
( T o ,T i )DT = Outlet and Inlet Temperatures for the DowTherm

LMTD Method
Next, we needed to use this rate of heat transfer value to
determine the amount of area needed for the heat exchanger. The first
method we used was the LMTD method. The equations for this
method can be found below.

LMTD Equations:

Q=UA T LM
T 2 T 1
T LM =
T 2
ln
T 1
T 1=T h ,iT c ,o
T 2=T h ,oT c ,i

Q= Rate of Heat Transfer
U= Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient
A= Heat Transfer Area
T LM = Log-Mean Temperature Difference
T h, i= Inlet Temperature of the Hot Fluid
T h, o= Outlet Temperature of the Hot Fluid
T c, i= Inlet Temperature of the Cold Fluid

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 T c, o= Outlet Temperature of the Cold Fluid

NTU Method
Next, we used the NTU method to confirm the area we
calculated using the LMTD method. However, since we used an
average specific heat capacity for the steam, the values came out
slightly different. The equations for this method can be found below.

NTU Method:
C c =( m
cp )c
C h =( m
c p )h
C h ( T h ,iT h , o ) C c ( T c ,oT c ,i )
= =
C min ( T h ,iT c ,i ) C min ( T h ,iT c ,i )
Cmin
Cr =
Cmax
1 1 UA
NTU = ln =
C r 1 C r1 C min

Size Calculations
Now that the surface area was calculated for each of the
sections, we could calculate how long each tube would have to be.
Using an average of the inside and outside diameters of the pipe, we
calculated the total length of piping needed for each section. Then, we
divided that number by the number of pipes to get the length per pipe
per section. We decided on the number of pipes by seeing how long
each would have to be, then deciding on a reasonable length for each
of the pipes. Even with our 1,000-pipe setup, the heat exchanger is
quite large.

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Conclusion
The design of a heat exchanger has many intricacies, especially
since there are three sections (economizer, boiler, and superheater) of
the heat exchanger that each does a separate function. There was a
good amount of assigning design variables in this design, since there
were many unknowns. After determining the inlet and outlet
pressures of the steam/water for each of the three sections and the
overall inlet and outlet temperatures for the DowTherm, as well as
other variables such as the steam/water mass flow rate, we were able
to calculate the rate of heat transfer for each section. Next, we used
the LMTD and NTU methods to calculate the heat transfer area for
each section. From this, we calculated the length for each pipe to
finish the design.

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Appendix: Calculated Variables

Given Variables
Oil Input Temperature 350 C
Minimum Outlet Pressure 50 MW
Minimum Outlet Temperature 1.0 atm

Design (Assigned) Variables

Turbine Inlet Temperature 330 C
Turbine Outlet Temperature 100 C
Quality of Steam at Turbine Outlet Saturated Steam
Turbine Inlet Pressure 7.5 MPa
Tube Outside Diameter 0.026670 m
Tube Thickness 0.001651 m
Tube Inside Diameter 0.025019 m
Number of Tubes 1000
Water Heat Exchanger Input
90 C
Temperature
Water Heat Exchanger Input Quality Compressed Water
Total DowTherm Mass Flow Rate 1500 kg/s
Economizer Overall Heat Transfer
900 W/m2-K
Coefficient
Boiler Overall Heat Transfer
1200 W/m2-K
Coefficient
Superheater Overall Heat Transfer
700 W/m2-K
Coefficient

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Economizer Calculations
Water Inlet Temperature 90 C
Water Outlet Temperature 290.535 C
Water Outlet Quality Compressed Water
Water Mass Flow Rate 102.99 kg/s
Water Average Specific Heat
4850 J/kg-K
Capacity
Rate of Heat Transfer 100164238 W
DowTherm Mass Flow Rate 1500 kg/s
DowTherm Average Specific Heat
2323.5 J/kg-K
Capacity
DowTherm Inlet Temperature 303.67 C
DowTherm Outlet Temperature 274.93 C
Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient 900 W/m2-K
LMTD Method
T1 13.13 C
T2 184.93 C
TLM 64.96 C
U*A 1542040 W/K
Area 1713.38 m2
NTU Method
Cc 499485 W/K
Ch 3485250 W/K
Cmin 499485 W/K
Cmax 3485250 W/K
Cr 0.143
Effectiveness 0.939
NTU 3.087
U*A 1542040 W/K
Area 1713.38 m2

Boiler Calculations
Enthalpy of Vaporization 1473000 J/kg
Water/Steam Mass Flow Rate 102.99 kg/s
Rate of Heat Transfer 151699279 W
DowTherm Mass Flow Rate 1500 kg/s
DowTherm Average Specific Heat
2426.5 J/kg-K
Capacity
DowTherm Inlet Temperature 345.35 C
DowTherm Outlet Temperature 303.67 C
Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient 1200 W/m2-K
LMTD Method

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 T1 54.81 C
T2 13.13 C
TLM 29.17 C
U*A 5200282 W/K
Area 4333.57 m2

Superheater Calculations
Steam Inlet Temperature 290.535 C
Steam Outlet Temperature 330 C
Steam Mass Flow Rate 102.99 kg/s
Steam Inlet Enthalpy 2765900 J/kg
Steam Outlet Enthalpy 2935500 J/kg
Rate of Heat Transfer 17466529 W
DowTherm Mass Flow Rate 1500 kg/s
DowTherm Average Specific Heat
2502.5 J/kg-K
Capacity
DowTherm Inlet Temperature 350 C
DowTherm Outlet Temperature 345.35 C
Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient 700 W/m2-K
LMTD Method
T1 20.00 C
T2 54.81 C
TLM 34.53 C
U*A 505842 W/K
Area 687.92 m2
NTU Method
Cc 472194 W/K
Ch 3753750 W/K
Cmin 472194 W/K
Cmax 3753750 W/K
Cr 0.126
Effectiveness 0.622
NTU 1.020
U*A 481541 W/K
Area 687.92 m2

Size Calculations
Economizer Total Length of Tubes 10551.28 m
Economizer Total Length per Tube 10.55 m
Boiler Total Length of Tubes 26686.87 m
Boiler Total Length per Tube 26.67 m
Superheater Total Length of Tubes 4450.09 m
Superheater Total Length per Tube 4.45 m

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Total Length of Tubes 41688.24 m
Total Length per Tube 41.69 m

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