Methods to Define Failure Probability for Power Plant Heat Exchangers

Author(s):  
Carolyn J. John ◽  
Consuelo E. Guzman-Leong ◽  
Thomas C. Esselman ◽  
Sam L. Harvey

In response to the technical challenges faced by aging plant systems and components at nuclear power plants (NPP), the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) has a product entitled Integrated Life Cycle Management (ILCM). The ILCM software is a quantitative tool that supports capital asset and component replacement decision-making at NPPs. ILCM is comprised of models that predict the probability of failure (PoF) over time for various high-value components such as steam generators, turbines, generators, etc. The PoF models allow the user to schedule replacements at the optimum time, thereby reducing unplanned equipment shutdowns and costs. This paper describes a mathematical model that was developed for critical heat exchangers in a power plant. The heat exchanger model calculates the probability of the tubes, shell, or internals failing individually, and then accumulates the failures across the heat exchanger sub-components. The dominant degradation mechanisms addressed by the model include stress corrosion cracking, wear, microbiologically influenced corrosion, flow accelerated corrosion, and particle-induced erosion. The heat exchanger model combines physics-based algorithms and operating experience distributions to predict the cumulative PoF over time. The model is applicable to shell and tube heat exchangers and air-to-water heat exchangers. Many different types of fluids including open cycle fresh water, closed cycle fresh water, sea water, brackish water, air, closed cooling water, steam, oil, primary water, and condensate are included. Examples of PoF over time plots are also provided for different fluid types and operating conditions.

Author(s):  
Edward Levy ◽  
Harun Bilirgen ◽  
Joshua Charles ◽  
Mark Ness

Heat exchangers, which cool boiler flue gas to temperatures below the water vapor dew point, can be used to capture moisture from flue gas and reduce external water consumption for power plant operations. At the same time, thermal energy removed from the flue gas can be used to improve unit heat rate. Recent data also show that emissions of air toxics from flue gas would be reduced by use of condensing heat exchangers. This paper describes results from a slip stream test of a water cooled condensing heat exchanger system at a power plant with a lignite-fired boiler. The flue gas which flowed through the heat exchangers had been extracted from a duct downstream of the electrostatic precipitator. Measurements were made of flue gas and cooling water temperatures, flue gas water vapor concentrations, and concentrations of elemental and oxidized Hg at the inlet and exit of the heat exchanger system. Condensed water was also collected and analyzed for concentrations of H2SO4 and HCl. Results on the effects of the condensing heat exchanger operating conditions on oxidation and capture of Hg and on the capture of sulfuric and hydrochloric acids are described.


Author(s):  
Thomas J. Muldoon

The most conservatively designed power plant heat exchangers are designed to meet a maximum heat load with minimum fluid temperature differences. When the input temperatures are less than design maximums, the cooler will usually be in a position of over performance. This relationship is especially true when the heat exchanger is a closed Component Cooling Water (CCW) heat exchanger with inlet fluid at ambient conditions. Maintaining a consistent cooling temperature is an important concern in the operation of a power plant. It is important that the cooling needs of the equipment such as the hydrogen coolers are maintained at a set temperature. Overcooling may not be of benefit to the equipment. The component which cools the service water with the local cooling water is a component cooling water heat exchanger (CCW). The two primary methods of controlling the heat rejection performance on these vessels is to throttling the tubeside flow to get a consistent shell outlet temperature with control valves or leave the tubeside flow constant and by-pass a portion of the shellside flow. Estimating the performance of the heat exchanger with given set of inlet conditions and a fixed design point can be accomplished using a the Number Transfer Units (NTU) method. Opening and closing the control valve is based on the estimated performance. This analysis can be used by power plant personnel to gauge the operation of these vessels over varying operating conditions. The analysis can also include the effect of different values of cleanliness and the extent of throttling. As a unit experiences fouling, additional flow is required to meet the thermal requirements. Depending upon the extent of fouling, the inlet valve will be either opened or closed. Plant personnel may observe the cooling water inlet temperature and the extent to which the inlet valve is open, and use that information to determine possible fouling and setup a maintenance schedule. The following analytical approach for evaluating low, critical, or off load conditions is important in the design and operation of these types of power plant heat exchangers, piping and control valve systems.


Author(s):  
Adrian S. Sabau ◽  
Ali H. Nejad ◽  
James W. Klett ◽  
Adrian Bejan ◽  
Kivanc Ekici

In this paper, a novel geometry is proposed for evaporators that are used in Organic Rankine Cycles. The proposed geometry consists of employing successive plenums at several length-scale levels, creating a multi-scale heat exchanger. The channels at the lowest length-scale levels were considered to have their length given by the thermal entrance-length. Numerical simulations based on turbulent flow correlations for supercritical R134a and water were used to obtain performance indicators for new heat exchangers and baseline heat exchangers. The relationship between the size of the channels at one level, k, with respect to the size of the channels at the next level, k + 1, is based on generalization of the “Murray’s law.” In order to account for the variation of the temperature and heat transfer coefficient in the entrance region, a heat transfer model was developed. The variation of the brine and refrigerant temperatures along each pipe was considered. Using the data on pumping power and weight of metal structures, including that of all the plenums and piping, the total present cost was evaluated using a cost model for shell-and-tube heat exchangers. In addition to the total present cost, the data on overall thermal resistance is also used in identifying optimal heat exchanger configurations. The main design variables include: tube arrangement, number of channels fed from plenum, and number of rows in the tube bank seen by the outside fluid. In order to assess the potential improvement of the new evaporator designs, baseline evaporators were designed. The baseline evaporator designs include long tubes of the same diameter as those of the lowest length-scale levels, placed between one inlet and one outlet. The baseline evaporator designs were created from the new evaporator designs by simply removing most of the internal plenums employing tubes much longer than their entrance length, as they would currently be used. Consistent with geothermal applications, the performance of new heat exchanger designs was compared to that of baseline heat exchanger designs at the same flow rates. For some operating conditions it was found that the new heat exchangers outperform their corresponding baseline heat exchangers.


Author(s):  
S. R. Gosselin ◽  
F. A. Simonen ◽  
S. E. Cumblidge ◽  
G. A. Tinsley ◽  
B. Lydell ◽  
...  

Inservice inspection requirements for pressure retaining welds in the regenerative, letdown, and residual heat removal heat exchangers are prescribed in Section XI Articles IWB and IWC of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. Accordingly, volumetric and/or surface examinations are performed on heat exchanger shell, head, nozzle-to-head, and nozzle-to-shell welds. Inspection difficulties associated with the implementation of these Code-required examinations have forced operating nuclear power plants to seek relief from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The nature of these relief requests are generally concerned with metallurgical factors, geometry, accessibility, and radiation burden. Over 60% of licensee requests to the NRC identify significant radiation exposure burden as the principal reason for relief from the ASME Code examinations on regenerative heat exchangers. For the residual heat removal heat exchangers, 90% of the relief requests are associated with geometry and accessibility concerns. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory was funded by the NRC Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research to review current practice with regard to volumetric and/or surface examinations of shell welds of letdown heat exchangers, regenerative heat exchangers, and residual (decay) heat removal heat exchangers. Design, operating, common preventative maintenance practices, and potential degradation mechanisms were reviewed. A detailed survey of domestic and international PWR-specific operating experience was performed to identify pressure boundary failures (or lack of failures) in each heat exchanger type and NSSS design. The service data survey was based on the PIPExp® database and covers PWR plants worldwide for the period 1970–2004. Finally a risk assessment of the current ASME Code inspection requirements for residual heat removal, letdown, and regenerative heat exchangers was performed. The results were then reviewed to discuss the examinations relative to plant safety and occupational radiation exposures.


Author(s):  
L. Ike Ezekoye ◽  
Colin Arnold

Heat Exchange Institute (HEI) Standards for Power Plant Heat Exchangers, 4th Edition provides guidance on how to estimate the nozzle loads of cylindrical shells. The procedure covered in one of the appendices of the document relies on WRC Bulletin 107 methodology which uses internal pressure, physical geometry and material properties to estimate external forces and moments. The forces and moments are the limiting loads when the heat exchanger material is taken to yield. The material yield defines the range of possible load combinations that will meet the design criteria. However, for operability, the design criteria sometimes may differ from the yield but usually is based on heat exchanger supplier experience. This paper provides a way to estimate heat exchanger nozzle loads that more closely reflect operating conditions that take into account supplier experience. In this paper, generalized load formulae are developed for the nozzles. The formulae are iteratively solved to meet the stress criteria based on supplier experience. The resultant loads are evaluated using WRC Bulletin 107 to ensure that the loads are bounded by the acceptance criteria. Unbounded loads are rejected and reiterated until the loads are acceptable.


Author(s):  
Silvio Cafaro ◽  
Alberto Traverso ◽  
Aristide F. Massardo

Monitoring of all components of large size combined cycle power plants (gas turbine, HRSG, steam turbine, auxiliaries) plays a determinant role in improving plant availability, profitability and maintenance scheduling. This paper presents a research project carried out by TPG (Thermochemical Power Group) of University of Genoa in collaboration with Ansaldo Energia S.p.A. to improve existing monitoring and diagnostics procedures and to develop innovative software tools for software-aided maintenance and customer support: the first part of research is concerned with the monitoring of a three pressure level HRSG (Heat Recovery Steam Generator), which is presented in this paper. A procedure for estimating HRSG performance in large size combined cycle power plants is presented. The work consists of the development of an original Matlab code which calculates heat exchangers’ performance, at different power plant operating conditions. The Matlab code uses some parameters (areas of heat exchangers, heat transfer coefficient, heat loss, pressure drop) coming from a detailed on-design model necessary to set some parameters for the calculation. The original Matlab code was developed with a twofold objective: to calculate the actual gas path inside the HRSG starting from the available measurements, thus obtaining the current effectiveness of all the heat exchangers in the HRSG; to estimate the expected performance of each heat exchanger to be compared with the actual ones. Once the actual effectiveness and the expected effectiveness of the heat exchanger are defined, non-dimensional performance parameters suitable for degradation assessment can be defined. Such parameters will be used to monitor plant degradation, to support plant maintenance, and to assist on-line troubleshooting. As a result of the sensitivity analysis, each performance parameter is coupled with an accuracy factor. The accuracy of each performance parameter is estimated through the sensitivity analysis, which allows to determine the best parameters to be monitored and to define the related tolerance due to measurement errors. The methodology developed has been successfully applied to historical logged data (2 years) of an existing large size (400 MW) combined cycle, showing the capabilities in estimating the degradation of the HRSG throughout plant life.


2021 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
pp. 42-64
Author(s):  
Boris Basok ◽  
Ihor Bozhko ◽  
Maryna Novitska ◽  
Aleksandr Nedbailo ◽  
Myroslav Tkachenko

This article is devoted to the analysis of the heat engineering characteristics of the operation of an Earth-to-Air Heat Exchanger, EAHE, with a circular cross-sectional shape, which is a component of the geothermal ventilation system. The authors analyzed literature sources devoted to the research of heat exchangers of the soil-air type of various designs and for working conditions in various soils. Much attention is paid to the issues of modeling the operation of such heat exchangers and the distinctive features of each of these models. Also important are the results of experimental studies carried out on our own experimental bench and with the help of which the numerical model was validated. The results of these studies are the basis for the development of a method for determining the optimal diameter of an EAHE under operating conditions for soil in Kyiv, Ukraine.


Author(s):  
G. Hariharan ◽  
B. Kosanovic

The ability of modern power plant data acquisition systems to provide a continuous real-time data feed can be exploited to carry out interesting research studies. In the first part of this study, real-time data from a power plant is used to carry out a comprehensive heat balance calculation. The calculation involves application of the first law of thermodynamics to each powerhouse component. Stoichiometric combustion principles are applied to calculate emissions from fossil fuel consuming components. Exergy analysis is carried out for all components by the combined application of the first and second laws of thermodynamics. In the second part of this study, techniques from the field of System Identification and Linear Programming are brought together in finding thermoeconomically optimum plant operating conditions one step ahead in time. This is done by first using autoregressive models to make short-term predictions of plant inputs and outputs. Then, parameter estimation using recursive least squares is used to determine the relations between the predicted inputs and outputs. The estimated parameters are used in setting up a linear programming problem which is solved using the simplex method. The end result is knowledge of thermoeconomically optimum plant inputs and outputs one step ahead in time.


2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 1225-1235
Author(s):  
Ajay K. Gupta ◽  
Manoj Kumar ◽  
Ranjit K. Sahoo ◽  
Sunil K. Sarangi

Plate-fin heat exchangers provide a broad range of applications in many cryogenic industries for liquefaction and separation of gasses because of their excellent technical advantages such as high effectiveness, compact size, etc. Correlations are available for the design of a plate-fin heat exchanger, but experimental investigations are few at cryogenic temperature. In the present study, a cryogenic heat exchanger test setup has been designed and fabricated to investigate the performance of plate-fin heat exchanger at cryogenic temperature. Major parameters (Colburn factor, Friction factor, etc.) that affect the performance of plate-fin heat exchangers are provided concisely. The effect of mass flow rate and inlet temperature on the effectiveness and pressure drop of the heat exchanger are investigated. It is observed that with an increase in mass flow rate effectiveness and pressure drop increases. The present setup emphasis the systematic procedure to perform the experiment based on cryogenic operating conditions and represent its uncertainties level.


Author(s):  
Suneel Nagar ◽  
Ajay Singh ◽  
Deepak Patel

The objective of this study is to provide modern analytical and empirical tools for evaluation of the thermal-flow performance or design of air-cooled heat exchangers (ACHE) and cooling towers. This review consist various factors which effect the performance of ACHE. We introduced systematically to the literature, theory, and practice relevant to the performance evaluation and design of industrial cooling. Its provide better understanding of the performance characteristics of a heat exchanger, effectiveness can be improved in different operating conditions .The total cost of cycle can be reduced by increasing the effectiveness of heat exchanger.


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