The study presented here offers an analysis of the heat flow through the wall of the Yankee cylinder when regarded as a thin-walled vessel. The effect of the selected design and process parameters (i.e. cylinder diameter and steam pressure) on density of the heating stream has been analyzed and discussed for both cast iron and steel cylinders. Based on the work presented here, the optimal ranges for steam pressure have been derived and proposed for cylinders mounted at various locations within the drying section.

This paper presents a comparison of three surface condenser connection setups on the cooling water side. Four connections were considered, namely serial, mixed and two parallel ones. The analysis was conducted based on the calculated heat balances of proposed power unit for nominal and not nominal parameters for tested connections. Thermodynamic justification for the use of more complex configuration was verified. The exhaust steam pressure calculation was presented. Three methods of computing the heat transfer coefficient based on characteristic numbers, namely the Heat Exchange Institute (HEI) method, and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) standard, were used. Calculation results were validated with the real data. The most accurate model was indicated and used in heat balance calculations. The assumptions and simplifications for the calculations are discussed. Examples of the calculation results are presented.

In commercially available generation III and III+ PWR (pressurized water reactor) reactors, pressure of steam produced in steam generators varies in a relatively wide range from 5.7 to 7.8 MPa. Therefore, it is important to ask which value of steam pressure should be used for a specific unit, taking into account different location conditions, the size of the power system and conditions of operation with other sources of electricity generation.
The paper analyzes the effect of steam pressure at the outlet of a steam generator on the performance of a PWR nuclear power plant by presenting changes in gross and net power and efficiency of the unit for steam pressures in the range of 6.8 to 7.8 MPa. In order to determine losses in the thermal system of the PWR power plant, in particular those caused by flow resistance and live steam throttling between the steam generator and the turbine inlet, results concerning entropy generation in the thermal system of the power plant have been presented.
A model of a nuclear power plant was developed using the Ebsilon software and validated based on data concerning the Olkiluoto Unit 3 EPR (evolutionary power reactor) power plant. The calculations in the model were done for design conditions and for a constant thermal power of the steam generator. Under nominal conditions of the Olkiluoto Unit 3 EPR power unit, steam pressure is about 7.8 MPa and the steam dryness fraction is 0.997. The analysis indicates that in the assumed range of live steam pressure the gross power output and efficiency increase by 32 MW and 0.735 percentage point, respectively, and the net power output and efficiency increase by 27.8 MW and 0.638 percentage point, respectively.
In the case of all types of commercially available PWR reactors, water pressure in the primary circuit is in the range of 15.5−16.0 MPa. For such pressure, reducing the live steam pressure leads to a reduction in the efficiency of the unit. Although a higher steam pressure increases the efficiency of the system, it is necessary to take into account the limitations resulting from technical and economic criteria as well as operating conditions of the primary circuit, including the necessary DNBR (departure from nucleate boiling ratio) margin. For the above reasons, increasing the live steam pressure above 7.8 MPa (the value used in EPR units that have already been completed) is unjustified, as it is associated with higher costs of the steam generator and the high-pressure part of the turbine.