Numerical Simulation of Steam Flow Inside the Superheater Section of An Industrial Boiler Using a Real Gas Model

Abstract

Flow mal-distribution inside manifolds hampers the overall efficiency of processes in industries. In supercritical boilers, improper flow of steam inside the superheater (SH) section is a common cause of thermal accidents. However, carrying out a numerical simulation of supercritical fluids flowing inside manifolds is challenging as the ideal gas law does not describe the behavior of these fluids properly. In the present work, numerical simulation of the flow of supercritical steam inside the superheater section of an industrial boiler has been performed using a real gas model. The proposed real gas model is first validated with experimental data associated with the steam properties. Subsequently, the effect of different inlet and outlet arrangements on the flow mal-distribution of steam in the superheater section of the boiler is investigated numerically using the real gas model. A modified inlet and outlet arrangement of the superheater header is proposed which reduces the maximum value of flow mal-distribution in the header by 19.7% and total pressure drop in the domain by 17%. The effect of the Reynolds number on flow mal-distribution in the header arrangement is found to be negligible. The absolute value of the heat absorption by the superheater tubes increases with an increase in the value of the Reynolds number.