Superheater is for generating superheated steam from the saturated steam from the evaporator outlet. In the case of pulverized coal fired boiler, a relatively small amount of ash causes problems with ash fouling on the heating surfaces, including the superheaters. In the convection pass of the boiler, the flue gas temperature is lower and ash deposits can be loose or sintered. Ash fouling not only reduces heat transfer from the flue gas to the steam, but also is the cause of a higher pressure drop on the flue gas flow path. In the case the pressure drop is greater than the power consumed by the fan increases. If the superheater surfaces are covered with ash than the steam temperature at the outlet of the superheater stages falls, and the flow rates of the water injected into attemperator should be reduced. There is also an increase in flue gas temperature after the different stages of the superheater. Consequently, this leads to a reduction in boiler efficiency. The paper presents the results of computational fluid dynamics simulations of the first stage superheater of both the boiler OP-210M using the commercial software. The temperature distributions of the steam and flue gas along the way they flow together with temperature of the tube walls and temperature of the ash deposits will be determined. The calculated steam temperature is compared with measurement results. Knowledge of these temperatures is of great practical importance because it allows to choose the grade of steel for a given superheater stage. Using the developed model of the superheater to determine its degree of ash fouling in the on-line mode one can control the activation frequency of steam sootblowers.

A mathematical model of the steam superheater exchanger with distributed parameters has been developed. Scale deposits were assumed to be present on the internal tube surfaces. It was assumed that the inner tube surfaces are covered by a thin layer of scale deposits. The finite volume method was used to solve partial differential equations describing flue gas, tube wall and steam temperature. The developed modeling technique can especially be used for modeling tube heat exchangers when detail information on the tube wall temperature distribution is needed. The numerical model of the superheater developed in the paper can be used for modeling of the superheaters with complex flow arrangement accounting scales on the internal tube surfaces. Using the model proposed the detailed steam, wall and flue gas temperature distribution over the entire superheater can be determined. The steam pressure distribution along its path flow and the total heat transfer rate can also be obtained. The calculations showed that the presence of scale on the internal surfaces of the tubes cause the steam temperature decrease and the heat flow rate transferred from the flue gas to the steam. Scale deposits on the inner surfaces of the tubes cause the tube wall temperature growth and can lead to premature wear of tubes due to overheating.

General principles of mathematical modelling of transient heat transfer in cross-flow tube heat exchangers with complex flow arrangements which allow a simulation of multipass heat exchangers with many tube rows are presented. First, a system of differential equations for the transient temperature of both fluids and the tube wall with appropriate boundary and initial conditions is formulated. Two methods for modelling heat exchangers are developed using the finite difference method and finite volume method. A numerical model of multipass steam superheater with twelve passes is presented. The calculation results are compared with the experimental data.

Calculations were performed of the thermal system of a power plant with installed water pressure tanks. The maximum rise in the block electric power resulting from the shut-off of low-pressure regenerative heaters is determined. At that time, the boiler is fed with hot water from water pressure tanks acting as heat accumulators. Accumulation of hot water in water tanks is also proposed in the periods of the power unit small load. In order to lower the plant electric power in the off-peak night hours, water heated in low-pressure regenerative heaters and feed water tank to the nominal temperature is directed to water pressure tanks. The water accumulated during the night is used to feed the boiler during the period of peak demand for electricity. Drops in the power block electric power were determined for different capacities of the tanks and periods when they are charged. A financial and economic profitability analysis (of costs and benefits) is made of the use of tanks for a 200 MW power unit. Operating in the automatic system of frequency and power control, the tanks may also be used to ensure a sudden increase in the electric power of the unit. The results of the performed calculations and analyses indicate that installation of water pressure tanks is well justified. The investment is profitable. Water pressure tanks may not only be used to reduce the power unit power during the off-peak night hours and raise it in the periods of peak demand, but also to increase the power capacity fast at any time. They may also be used to fill the boiler evaporator with hot water during the power unit start-up from the cold state.