This paper presents studies carried out in a pilot-scale plant for recovery of waste heat from a flue gas which has been built in a lignite-fired power plant. The purpose of the studies was to check the operation of the heat recovery system in a pilot scale, while the purpose of the plant was recovery of waste heat from the flue gas in the form of hot water with a temperature of approx. 90 °C. The main part of the test rig was a condensing heat exchanger designed and built on the basis of laboratory tests conducted by the authors of this paper. Tests conducted on the pilot-scale plant concerned the thermal and flow parameters of the condensing heat exchanger as well as the impact of the volumetric flow rate of the flue gas and the cooling water on the heat flux recovered. Results show that the system with a condensing heat exchanger for recovery of low-temperature waste heat from the flue gas enables the recovery of much higher heat flux as compared with conventional systems without a condensing heat exchanger.
The pressure of wet water vapor inside a condenser has a great impact on the efficiency of thermal cycle. The value of this pressure depends on the mass share of inert gases (air). The knowledge of the spots where the air accumulates allows its effective extraction from the condenser, thus improving the conditions of condensation. The condensation of water vapor with the share of inert gas in a model tube bank of a condenser has been analyzed in this paper. The models include a static pressure loss of the water vapor/air mixture and the resultant changes in the water vapor parameters. The mass share of air in water vapor was calculated using the Dalton’s law. The model includes changes of flow and thermodynamic parameters based on the partial pressure of water vapor utilizing programmed water vapor tables. In the description of the conditions of condensation the Nusselts theory was applied. The model allows for a deterioration of the heat flow conditions resulting from the presence of air. The paper contains calculations of the water vapor flow with the initial mass share of air in the range 0.2 to 1%. The results of calculations clearly show a great impact of the share of air on the flow conditions and the deterioration of the conditions of condensation. The data obtained through the model for a given air/water vapor mixture velocity upstream of the tube bank allow for identification of the spots where the air accumulates.