STEAM CONDENSERS

By
Mr. Rahul Kumar Singh
Engineer Operations
BEL Power Plant

Objective of Training
The main objective of the
training program on Steam
Condensers is to impart useful
knowledge to the trainees, which
will be helpful in enhancing there
concepts about the subject.

What is a Steam
Condenser?
The heat transfer device in which the exhaust steam of

a turbine is condensed by means of cooling water at

pressure below atmospheric, is called Steam Condenser.
In order to maximise efficiency, turbines usually exhaust
into a condenser which is held at an internal pressure
as
close to a perfect vacuum as possible.
The condenser should also designed to remove sufficient
energy from the waste steam in order to condense it
into
water but without under cooling .

Steam Condensation
If the pressure of the exhaust
steam reduced below the
atmospheric pressure and
hence its energy, partially of
fully, can not be reutilized,
than this phenomenon is
called Steam Condensation.

Necessity of
Condensation

Firstly, it maintains a very low back

pressure on the exhaust side of the

turbine. As a result, the steam expands to
a greater extent and consequently results
in an increase in available heat energy.
The shaded area shown in the P-v
diagram exhibits the increase in the work
obtained by fitting a condenser unit to a
non-condensing unit for the same
available steam properties.

Also, efficiency of the cycle increases as

it operates with the largest possible

delta-T and delta-P between the source
(boiler) and the heat sink (condenser). As
the steam condenses, the saturated
liquid continues to transfer heat to the
cooling water as it falls to the bottom of
the condenser, or hot-well. This is called
sub-cooling, which is desirable up to a
certain extent. The difference between
the saturation temperature for the
existing condenser vacuum and the
temperature of the condensate is
termed condensate depression

Elements of
Condensing Plant

CONDENSER: In which the

exhaust steam of the turbine

is condensed by circulating
cooling water.
CONDENSATE

EXTRACTIONPUMP: to
remove the condensate from
the condenser and feed it
into the hot-well. The feed
water from hot-well is further
pumped to boiler.

Elements of
Condensing Plant

AIR EXTRACTION PUMP: to

remove

air

from

the

condenser, such a pump is

called dry air pump. If air and
condensate both are removed,
it is called as wet air pump.
CIRCULATING PUMP: used to

supply feed water either from

river or from the cooling tower
pond to the condenser.

Elements of
Condensing Plant
COOLING TOWER:

1. The Ferro concrete made

device (hyperbolic shape)

in which the hot water from
the condenser is cooled by
rejecting heat to current of
air passing in the counter
direction.
2. Ring troughs are placed 8-

10m
level

above

the

ground

Classification of Steam
Condensers
STEAM CONDENSER

Types of Steam
Condensers
Jet Condensers :
The exhaust steam
and cooling water
come in direct contact
to each other and as a
result the steam is
condensed. It is also
known as Direct
Contact Condensers.

Surface

Condensers :
The cooling water flows
through a network of
tubes and the exhaust
steam passes over
these tubes. The steam
gets condensed due to
heat transfer to the
coolant by conduction
and convection.

Comparison between Jet Condenser and Surface

Condenser

Jet Condenser

Surface Condenser

Cooling Water and Steam Mix

Cooling Water and Steam are not mixed

Low Manufacturing cost

High

Lower Maintenance

Higher Maintenance

Requires Small floor space

Requires Large floor space

Condensate cannot be used as feed water

Unless coolant is free from impurities.

Condensate can be used as feed water.

Vacuum created is up to 600 mm of Hg.

Vacuum created is up to 730 mm of Hg.

Less cooling water is required

More

Simple plant

Complex

Less suitable for High capacity plants due

to lower vacuum efficiency.

Suitable for high capacity plants due to high

vacuum efficiency.

Low Level Counter Flow Jet

Condenser
The cooling water
to be lifted into the
condenser up to a
height of 5.5m.
It is having

disadvantage of
flooding the steam
turbine if the
condensate
extraction pump
fails.

Low level Parallel Flow Jet

Condenser
The mixture of

condensate, coolant
and air are extracted
with the help of wet air
pump.
Vacuum created in the

condenser limits up to
600 mm of Hg.

High Level Jet

Condenser

It is also called

Barometric jet
condenser since it is
placed above the
atmospheric pressure
equivalent to 10.33 m of
water pressure.
Condensate extraction

pump is not required

because tail pipe has
incorporated in place of
it.

Ejector Jet Condenser

The cooling water enters

the top of the condenser at

least under a head of 6m
of water pressure with the
help of centrifugal pump.
This system is simple,

reliable and cheap.

Disadvantage of mixing of

condensate with the

coolant.

Single Pass Surface

Condenser

Surface Condenser
Steam surface condensers

are the most commonly

used condensers in modern
power plants. The exhaust
steam from the turbine
flows in the shell (under
vacuum) of the condenser,
while the circulating water
flows in the tubes. The
source of the circulating
water can be a river, lake,
pond, ocean or cooling
tower It consist of air tight
cast iron cylindrical shell.
If cooling water is impure,

condenser tubes are made

up of red brass.

Energy Exchange
Calculation

Energy exchange in a condenser is analyzed by

using the following steady
state equations
Ws . h1 + Wc . h2 = (Ws + Wc) h3 .
(Direct / Jet condenser)
Ws (hi h3) = Wc (h4 h2) ..

(Surface condenser)

Exhuast Steam Enthalpy

The exhaust steam enthalpy can be found from the turbine conditions
line corrected for exhaust loss or by the energy relations as given
below:
h1 = hi W Q mh / 1- m
Where,
h1 = Exhaust-steam enthalpy, kJ/kg
hi = Prime-mover inlet steam enthalpy, kJ/kg
h2 = Inlet cooling water enthalpy, kJ/kg
h3 = Steam-condensate enthalpy, kJ/kg
h4 = Exit cooling water enthalpy, kJ/kg
Ws = Exhaust steam flow rate, kg per hrs
Wc = Cooling water flow rate, kg per hrs
W = Work output to turbine blades, kJ/kg per kg steam
Q = Radiation or other heat loss, kJ/kg per kg inlet steam
mh = Enthalpy of turbine extraction steam, kJ/kg per kg inlet steam

Terminal Temperature Difference

In a surface condenser Terminal Temperature
Difference (TTD) is given as:
TTD = (Steam temperature) (Cooling water
exit temperature)
This is usually 2K or more. A low cooling water
temperature rise helps to keep condensing steam
pressure at low.

Types of Surface
Condenser
Surface Condenser

Parallel Flow Surface

Condensers
In parallel flow condensers both hot and cold

fluid, flow in the same direction, parallel to

each other.
Both fluids enter the condenser at a common
end with high temperature difference. The
heat exchange occurs between the hottest hot
fluid i.e. steam vapour and coldest cold fluid
i.e. cooling water at the common entrance
point of the condenser. The hottest cold-fluid
temperature is always less than the coldest
hot-fluid temperature.

Counter Flow Surface

Condenser
In counter flow condenser the two fluids i.e. steam vapour

and cooling water flow in opposite direction to each other.

The flow of each fluid occurs at opposite ends of the steam
condenser. The cooling fluid i.e. cold water exits the counter
flow steam condenser at the point where hot fluid i.e. steam
enters the steam condenser. In this case, the cooling water
will meet the inlet temperature of the hot steam.
Consequently, the counter flow steam condenser can have
the hottest cold fluid temperature greater than the coldest
hot fluid temperature. This is the basic reason for the highest
efficiency of the counter flow steam condenser. In
comparison to the parallel flow steam condenser, the counter
flow condensers can have the higher hottest cold fluid
temperature than the coldest hot fluid temperature.

Cross Flow Surface

Condenser

In cross flow condensers fluids flow perpendicular to each

other. Cooling water flows through the tubes and steam flows
around these tubes at an angle of 90.
Basically a single type of steam condenser is not suitable in
most of the thermal power plants, rather a combination of two
or all the types among parallel, counter and cross flow is
preferred.
The reason for the combination of the various types is to
maximize the efficiency of the heat exchanger within the
restrictions placed on the design. That is, size, cost, weight,
required efficiency, type of fluids, operating pressures, and
temperatures.
All these factors help in determining the complexity of a
specific heat exchanger.

Down Flow Surface

Condenser

This condenser employs two

separate pumps for the

extraction of condensate and
the air.

Baffles are provided so that the

air is cooled to the minimum

temperature before it is
extracted.
The specific volume of cooled

air reduces, thereby, reduces

the pump capacity to about
50%. Therefore, it also reduces
the energy consumption fro
running the air pump.

Central Flow Surface Condenser

Air extraction

pump is located at
the centre of the
condenser tubes.
Condensate is
extracted from the
bottom of the
condenser with the
help of condensate
extraction pump.
Provides the better
contact of steam.

MERITS AND DEMERITS OF SURFACE

CONDENSERS

1.

2.
3.
4.
5.

MERITS
No mixing of cooling
water and steam, hence
the condensate directly
pumped into the boiler.
Any kind of feed water
can be used.
Develops high vacuum,
therefore
suitable
fro
large power plants.
Require less power to run
the air extraction and
water extraction pump.
System is more efficient.

DEMERITS
1. Require

large quantity of

cooling water.
2. System

costly

is
and

complicated,
requires

high

maintenance cost.
3. Require large floor space

since it is bulky.

MERITS AND DEMERITS OF JET

CONDENSERS
MERITS
1. Less
quantity

2.

3.
4.
5.

DEMERITS
of
1. The condensate is a

cooling
water
is
waste.
required to condense
2. Less suitable for high
the steam.
capacity plants.
Simple
in
construction and low 3. Large length of pipes
required, hence piping
in cost.
cost is high.
Does
not
require
cooling water pump. 4. Loss of vacuum due to
leakage of air from
Less
space
is
long pipings.
required.
Low
maintenance

Vacuum.Why?
By maintaining a vacuum in the steam
condenser, the efficiency of the steam-power
plant can be increased as the greater the vacuum
in the system, the greater will be the enthalpy
drop of steam. Therefore, more work will be
available per kg of steam condensing.
Secondly, the non-condensate (air) can be

removed from the condensate-steam circuit by

pulling and maintaining a vacuum in the steam
side. Therefore the condensate can be used as
boiler feed.

Effects of Air Leakages

It increases the back pressure on the turbine with

the effect that there is less heat drop and low

thermal efficiency of the plant.
The pressure of air in the condenser lowers the

partial pressure of steam which means steam will

condense at a lower temperature.
It reduces the rate of condensation of steam

because air having poor thermal conductivity

impairs the overall heat transfer from the steam.

Causes of Vacuum
Drop

Restriction of cooling water flowchoked filters,

damaged circulating pump etc.

Rising condensate level in condenserextraction pump
failure.
Air leakage in glands, drains etc.
Defective air ejector.

Evaporative
Condenser
The

exhaust steam is passed

through the series of gilled tubes
called condenser coils.
Thin film of cooling water trickles
over these tubes continuously
from water nozzles.
During the condensation of steam,
this thin film of water is
evaporated and the remainder
water is collected in the water
tank.
The condensate is extracted with
the help of wet air pump.
The air passing over the tubes
carries the evaporated water in
the form of vapour and it is
removed with the help of induced
draft fan installed at the top.