Analytical Study of Flow Regimes for Direct Contact Condensation Based on Parametrical Investigation

Abstract

Various industrial devices exist where direct contact condensation (DCC) of steam in water takes place. Typical examples are the nuclear reactor coolant systems, steam driven jet pumps, and condensers. The modeling of steam condensation is crucial to obtain an appropriate design of such devices. Present models designed for DCC have shown limited agreement with experimental data. Computation of the flow regimes is performed with limited accuracy, due to initial model settings and empirical correlations, which form a main drawback in the computation of DCC related problems. This study, which is a part of a PhD study, presents an investigation of the steam-water interface for various conditions of steam and water, using the computation of balance equations and jump conditions. A simple mathematical model to predict the location of the condensation interface for four different shapes of steam plume at different heat transfer coefficients is presented which will be further developed into an advanced computational model for DCC.