Scope of HRSGs to be discussed.

The Heat Recovery Steam Generator, or HRSG, comes in numerous shapes, designs, configurations, arrangements, etc. To simplify our discussion herein, we will first state that the type of HRSG we are reviewing is what may be referred to as a water tube(as opposed to a fire tube) type heat recovery unit. This refers to the process fluid, i.e., the steam or water being on the inside of the tube with the products of combustion being on the outside of the tube. The products of combustion are normally at or close to atmospheric pressure, therefore, the shell side is generally not considered to be a pressure vessel.

Definition of concepts and terminology used in discussions. In the design of an HRSG, the first step normally is to perform a theoretical heat balance which will give us the relationship between the tube side and shell side process. Before we can compute this heat balance, we must decide the tube side components which will make up our HRSG unit. Even though these components may include other heat exchange services, at this time we will only consider the three primary coil types that may be present, i.e., Evaporator, Superheater, Economizer. When we refer to an Evaporator Section, this includes all the evaporator coils making up the total evaporator for a Pressure System. A pressure system includes all the components included in the various streams associated with that pressure level. Evaporator Section

The most important component would, of course, be the Evaporator Section, since without this coil(or coils), the unit would not be an HRSG. Throughout our discussion, we will refer to a main heat transfer component as a "section". When the section is broken into more than one segment, i.e., such as for a change in tube size, material, extended surface, location, etc., we will refer to the segments as coils. So an evaporator section may consist of one or more coils. In these coils, the effluent(water), passing through the tubes is heated to the saturation point for the pressure it is flowing. Superheater Section The Superheater Section of the HRSG is used to dry the saturated vapor being separated in the steam drum. In some units it may only be heated to little above the saturation point where in other units it may be superheated to a significant temperature for additional energy storage. The Superheater Section is normally located in the hotter gas stream, in front of the evaporator. Economizer Section The Economizer Section, sometimes called a preheater or preheat coil, is used to preheat the feedwater being introduced to the system to replace the steam(vapor) being removed from the system via the superheater or steam outlet and the water loss through blowdown. It is normally located in the colder gas downstream of the evaporator. Since the evaporator inlet and outlet temperatures are both close to the saturation temperature for the system pressure, the amount of heat that may be removed from the flue gas is limited due to the approach to the evaporator, known as the pinch which is discussed later, whereas the economizer inlet temperature is low, allowing the flue gas temperature to be taken lower.

Preparing a flow schematic for the HRSG

After deciding on the evaporator type to be used for the unit, the next important step in the design of an HRSG unit is to decide the arrangement of the various coils in the unit. Of course, if only an evaporator is present, this may consist of a very simple schematic, but if, as in most cases, there are more than one coil, then consideration needs to be given as to their position in the gas stream. Arrangement of coils. Obviously, the best place to put the highest temperature coil, the superheater, would be in the hottest part of the gas stream. Since, this is where it would take the least amount of surface to exchange the heat, and would allow a stepped heat recovery for maximum heat exchange. The curve below shows this relationship between the heat given up and the three primary coils found in an HRSG.

In viewing this generalized sketch showing the relationship between the heat absorbed and the heat given up, it is easy to see the area referred to as the "pinch" at the evaporator outlet. By laying a straight edge on the heat given up line and rotating it while holding it at the pinch, it is also, easy to see that, at a very high inlet temperature, there may be a critical approach temperature occur at the economizer inlet, and going the other way, at a lower inlet temperature, this may occur at the superheater outlet.

Of course, modern HRSG units are not always this simple. The components can and are placed in many configurations to achieve desired results. The range of arrangements that the coils may be placed, is only limited by the users imagination and the constraints of the temperature approaches. Shown below are just a few examples of various arrangements. Typical single pressure arrangements.

Typical dual pressure arrangements.

Typical triple pressure arrangements.

Preparing the schematic. Now that we have a general idea of how to arrange the coils, we prepare the flow schematic. This flow schematic gives us a preliminary picture of how the HRSG will look. Also, we can use the sketch to perform the preliminary heat balance which we will review in Section 4. For our example flow schematic, we will assume a single pressure HRSG with a superheater and economizer section.

It is not important that you necessarily use this style schematic, but it is important to be consistent in the style you use. If you always present an evaporator in the same way, and a superheater always looks like "your" superheater, the flow schematics become very recognizable to anyone needing to refer to them. Remember, the flow schematic does not need to represent the actual mechanical design of the HRSG, neither in looks, or direction of flow, hot to cold, etc. Now, using a similar approach to above, let's construct a flow schematic to represent a triple pressure unit with an integral deaerator.

Heat Balance
Evaporator Pinch Design: The evaporator pinch, or approach temperature, is what limits the amount of heat that can be recovered in most HRSG designs. As was discussed in the previous section, Schematics, the limiting effect of this approach is important. For many general purpose HRSG's such as those found in refineries and chemical plants, a pinch of 50 F provides an economical design with a realistic payout. But in the more competetive markets of combined cycle or cogeneration plants, it is not uncommon to see pinch points below 30 F. And as a practice, a 30 F pinch design for these HRSG's should be considered. It should, however, be remembered that the closer the pinch, or approach, the less reliable the results will be. In other words, it would be easy to calculate the steam generated in a unit at a 5 F pinch, but the probability of achieving this result with the actual equipment would be almost nil. If you look at the added amount of surface required to go from a 10 F to a 5 F pinch versus the change in surface to go from 50 F to 45 F, you will quickly see the why this is true. Other process approach temperatures: Other process appoach temperatures are similar to the special case of the "pinch" discussed above. But, they do not, except in some situations, control the overall design of the HRSG. A 50 F approach is a good minimum to consider for coils such as hot oil, superheaters, economizers, etc. Of course, the same is true with these coils, the higher the approach temperature, the less surface it will take to exchange the heat. This is why most of the flow in these coils are counter current to the gas flow, which provides a higher approach temperature. Economizer water approach: The economizer water approach temperature to the evaporator satuaration temperature is very important and should be selected with care. If too close an approach is used in the design, vaporization may occur in the coil during off design cases which may cause severe upsets in the unit. It should be noted, however, that just because the economizer does vaporize at some operating condition, it does not necessarily mean a problem, since the design can be such that it can handle this condition. But, for most designs, it is better to avoid this condition. A normal design approach temperature is 20 F. This approach gives

significant safety factor for load swings. But, again, you should rate HRSG at all expected operating conditions. Superheated Steam Desuperheating: Superheat desuperheating is the best way to control the outlet temperature of the HRSG superheater. It is not, though, the only way. Steam bypassing around all or part of the superheating coil and then remixing it to control the temperature is done with great success. If a spray desuperheater is used, it can be placed at the outlet, or at an itermediate point in the superheater coil. Placing it at an intermediate point gives the added protection of preventing accidental water slugs which may damage downstream equipment. Blowdown requirements: The boiler blowdown requirement is set by the condition of the feedwater. Primarily it is used to control solids build up in the steam separation drum. If nothing is known of the feedwater at time HRSG is being designed, an allowance should be used in design. For normal modern facilities, a 2% allowance should be sufficient. For others, a 5% allowance should be provided for in the design. But, you should keep in mind that somewhere along the route from design to production, this must be revisited to assure proper operating conditions in the HRSG. Developing the Heat Balance for an HRSG: We begin with the first sample schematic that we prepared in Section 3, a single pressure HRSG with a superheater, evaporator, and economizer.

For our process conditions, we will assume the following: Gas Side : 800,000 lbs/hr of Gas Turbine Exhaust at 980 F Setting Loss To Atmosphere, 2% of Heat Absorbed Maximum Back Pressure at Gas Turbine Exhaust Flange, 8" H2O
Gas Properties : Volume % Nitrogen, N2 72.55 Oxygen, O2 12.34 Carbon Dioxide, CO2 3.72 Water, H2O 10.52 Argon, Ar 0.87 Sulphur Dioxide, SO2 0.0 Carbon Monoxide, CO 0.0

Tube Side : Steam at outlet, Maximum Flow at 600 psig and 750 F Feedwater at 227 F and pressure required at inlet. For our example, we will make the following assumtions :
Pinch At Evaporator, F Economizer Water Approach, F Blowdown, % of Steam Out Pressure Drop In Superheater, psi Pressure Drop In Economizer, psi 50.0 20.0 2.0 15.0 10.0

Now, we have set all of our conditions, so we can proceed with a heat balance. For these calculations, we will need a calculator to provide us with the

properties of the flue gas, water, and steam. We can start these in separate windows so we can keep them available as we work out our solution.

We can now populate our schematic with all known values.

Now we can calculate the missing data. Heat Available To Evaporator And Superheater: Havail = Wg (hin - hpinch = 800000 (244.735 - 124.836) = 95,919,200 Btu/hr Resulting in a net heat available of Hnet = Havail / (1 + SL/100) = 95919200 / (1 + 2/100) = 94,038,431 Btu/hr Heat Required By Steam Flow (To Pinch Point): Hreqd = Ws (hs - hl) + (Ws + Ws * Bldwn/100) ( hl - hecon) But, since Hnet is equal to Hreqd, we can restate the equation as, Ws = Hnet / [ (hs - hl) + (1 + Bldwn/100) ( hl - hecon)] = 94038431 / [(1379.598-477.876) + (1 + 2/100) (477.876 - 454.662)] = 101,619 lb/hr Now that we have the steam flow at the Superheater, 101,619 lb/hr, we can calculate the Superheater heat required, QSH

QSH = Ws (hs - hv) = 101619 (1379.598 - 1203.188) = 17,926,608 Btu/hr And the gas enthalpy at the outlet of the superheater coil, hg2 hg2 = hg1 - QSH * (1 + SL/100) / Wg = 244.735 - (17926608*1.02/800000) = 221.878 Btu/lb Which results in a gas temperature leaving the superheater of 898.134 F. The evaporator duty, QEvap, is equal to, QEvap = Ws * (hv - hl) + Ws (1 + Bldwn/100) (hl - hecon) = 101619 (1203.188 - 477.876) + 101619 (1.02) (477.876 - 454.662) = 76,111,643 Btu/hr and the steam generated in the evaporator coil, Wevap, is equal to, Wevap = QEvap / (hv - hl) = 76111643 / (1203.188 - 477.876) = 104,936 lbs/hr Now, we can calculate the Economizer duty, QEcon, as equal to, QEcon = Ws (1 + Bldwn/100) (hecon - hbfw) = 101619 (1.02) (454.662 - 196.644) = 26,743,922 Btu/hr And the gas enthalpy at the outlet of the economizer coil, hg4 hg4 = hg3 - QEcon * (1 + SL/100) / Wg = 124.836 - (26743922*1.02/800000) = 90.737 Btu/lb Which results in a stack gas temperature leaving the economizer of 412.522 F. We can now complete our schematic with all known values.

Selecting the tube material and size to use in a HRSG design is really a matter of experience. As you work with different HRSG's for different services, you develop a knowledge of what fit before in a similar design, so you know where to start with a new design. But a few general rules can be used to start the selection. For the typical, general purpose HRSG, using standard tubing sizes, the 2" tube size will normally work out to be the most economical tube size. The cost will generally go up with a smaller or larger tube size. Most HRSG units recover heat from a relatively low temperature gas, i.e., less than 1,000 F. Of course, many of the modern HRSG's are supplementary fired to achieve even greater efficiencies. But, with the exception of the superheater, you can normally assume that carbon steel tubes will work for the evaporator and the economizer. If the superheater outlet temperatures are low, such as 600 F and below, you

should be able to assume carbon steel tubes to start. If higher than 600 F, you may want to start with T11 tubes. In a similar manner, you can make some preliminary estimates to determine what the design metal temperature for the HRSG tubes need to be. With this temperature, you would select the least material that is good for the temperature. Eventual analysis may show that a higher alloy and a thinner wall may be more economical, so running calculations with several materials is always wise. Typical generic, pipe and tube specifications used for HRSG tubes:
Generic Specification Carbon Steel 1 Cr Mo 2 Cr 1 Mo 5 Cr Mo 9 Cr 1 Mo 18 Cr 8 Ni 16 Cr 12 Ni 2 Mo 18 Cr 10 Ni Ti 18 Cr 10 Ni Ti Pipe Specification Tube Specification SA 106 Gr B SA 178 A SA 335 Gr P11 SA 213 T11 SA 335 Gr P22 SA 213 T22 SA 335 Gr P5 SA 213 T5 SA 335 Gr P9 SA 213 T9 SA 312 TP 304 SA 213 TP 304 SA 312 TP 316 SA 213 TP 316 SA 312 TP 321 SA 213 TP 321 SA 312 TP 321H SA 213 TP 321H

And other, more exotic materials for special services are used as may be needed. The wall thickness required, for the heat absorbing tubes, is calculated by using the ASME Section 1. For heat absorbing tubes, there are two formulas that may apply, so it is normal practice to check the required thickness and maximum allowed working pressure, MAWP, using both formulas, then using the more appropriate. Tube Wall Thickness: Using ASME, Section 1, PG 27.2.1 t = (P * D) / (2 * S1 + P) + 0.005 * D + e And using ASME, Section 1, PG 27.2.1 t = (P * D) / (2 * S2 *E + 2*y*P) + C Where,
t = Minimum required thickness, in P = Maximum allowable working pressure, psia D = Outside diameter of cylinder, in S1 = Maximum allowable stress value (PG-23), psi S2 = Maximum allowable stress value (PG-23), psi

e = Thickness factor for expanded tube ends y = Temperature coefficient E = efficiency C = Minumum allowance for threading and structural stability, in

Using the above stress values and formulas, we can now calculate the minimum wall thickness for a tube.
Tube Outside Diameter, in:

Wall Thickness, in: Design Wall Temperature, F:

Design Pressure, psia:

Corrosion Allowance, in: Tube Material:

Calculated Values PG 27.2.1 Min. Wall Thickness + Corrosion Allowance, in: MAWP, psia: Stress Value, S1/S2, psi: Thickness Factor, e: Temperature Coefficient, y: Efficiency, E: Min. Structural Allowance, C: Notes:

PG 27.2.2

In the above tube wall thickness calculator, only the "Tube Specifications", such as SA-178 Gr. A, are being used for stress values, so this calculator is not valid if using a "Pipe Specification", such as SA-106 Gr. B, since the stress values are different. A little bit of confusion over why a pipe is called a tube, when it is in a HRSG, might be expected. But usage dictates that the heat transfer tubes be referred to as tubes regardless of whether they are manufactured from materials specified as tubes or as pipes. If the use is as a downcomer or riser, etc., it is called a "pipe". When using tubes with the OD of a standard pipe size or using piping specifications and the HRSG uses returns, you would normally select a standard return bend to return the flow to the next tube. These returns bends are

normally manufactured in two turning radii, called "short radius" and "long radius". The short radius return refers to a 180 return bend using a radius of one nominal diameter, ie, a 4" pipe size return has a radius of 4", and a 6" has a radius of 6", etc. The "long" radius bend has a radius equal to 1.5 nominal diameters so a 4" return has a radius of 6" and a 6" has a radius of 9". These standard returns are manufactured in most of the pipe schedules and are also available in "minimum wall" specifications. Typical generic and pipe specifications used for return bends:
Generic Specification Carbon Steel 1 Cr Mo 2 Cr 1 Mo 5 Cr Mo 9 Cr 1 Mo 18 Cr 8 Ni 16 Cr 12 Ni 2 Mo 18 Cr 10 Ni Ti 18 Cr 10 Ni Ti Pipe Specification SA 234 WPB SA 234 WP11 SA 234 WP22 SA 234 WP5 SA 234 WP9 SA 403 WP304 SA 403 WP316 SA 403 WP321 SA 403 WP321H

If using standard pipe fittings manufactured to standard pipe schedules, you would assume 80% of the standard wall thickness. If you are bending tubes or pipe for the application, you would need to calculate the thinning in the bend. The following calculator estimates the ratio of that thinning. Pipe-Wall Thinning In Bends:
Average Bend Radius, in = Tube Outside Diameter, in = Tube Wall Thickness, in =

Thinning Ratio: Wall Thickness After Bending, in:

Tube Length Selection Now that we have selected a tube diameter, material, wall thickness, and tube spacing, we need to decide what length the tubes should be. Pipe and tubes are manufactured in random lengths, ie, since the billet size varies, the actual length of the tube that is extruded, from a billet, varies from one tube to the next. For lower cost materials, it is usually cheaper to scrap pieces of tube, then

it is to make center welds to try and use all the material. But another high cost factor involved with the length is the supports and guides for the tube in the HRSG. For vertical tubes, usually the overall HRSG shape and size dictate the best tube length. It is necessary to consider the maximaum shipping width and length in setting the tube length. The support and guide requirement varies depending on whether the tubes are supported from the top(hung) or bottom of the tubes. In the horizontal tube HRSG's, the overall shape and size also figure into the equation. But, within these constraints, the span between supports must be considered. If the user has not specified a maximum span, then generally you would not want to exceed 35 tube OD's. This has been a general industry "not to exceed" rule of thumb used for many HRSG designs. But care should be taken to consider the service and wall temperature of the tubes. Once you have determined the span between supports, the tube length would be selected to use the minimum number of supports, while avoiding unnecessary centerwelds, if centerwelds are allowed by user. All of this must be balanced with the fact that the pressure loss in the tubes is increased dramatically in the returns, so generally you want the longest straight tube possible. The pressure loss in the returns is reviewed in the "Process" section , under "Intube Pressure Drop". Now, using the single pressure HRSG that we demonstrated in developing the heat balance in Section 4, we can select the heat transfer tubes necessary to proceed with the thermal design. We are going to select an HRSG unit using 2.000" od tubes, so the following selections will be based on this tube od.

For the superheater, we can assume that the tube wall temperature will be above 750 F and less than 850 F, so we will use the 850F for the design temperature. We will select for our HRSG design, the O-Frame evaporator. So for the superheater we could use a Vertical Tube or an I-Frame type. We will choose the I-Frame.

This design can use either bent tubes, i.e., three rows per bundle, or two straight tubes in a bundle. For this sample, we decide we want three rows per bundle using an 8" pipe header, then we we will decide that the bend radius of the bend in the first and third rows is 6". Using a design pressure of 700 psia, we can check to see if a standard 0.120" minimum wall thickness will be sufficient for this design. Using our bend thinning calculator, we see that the wall thickness after bending will be 0.1013". Then using the tube wall thickness calculator, we see that using the PG 27.2.1 method, that with our 1/32" corrosion allowance, the tube thickness is okay.

Now, we look at our evaporator, the O-Frame design that we selected above.

Okay, here again we have bent tubes. We will assume that the bend radius of these tubes is 12", so the wall thickness using 0.120" to start with, will be 0.1091" after bending. Using SA 178 Gr A tubes, we check the required wall thickness and find that this tube will be fine. Note that setting the design temperature below 700 F really doesn't have any affect on the PG 27.3.1 calculation, since this formula requires a minimum of 700 F for the stress value selection. When we check the required wall, we get 0.1102 if we use a 1/32" corrosion allowance. but since no corrosion allowance was indicated, we will use this tube.

For our economizer, we will use the I-Frame design, but use two tubes per bundle with 6" pipe headers, so we will once again need bent tubes, using a 6" bend radius. This results in a 0.1013" wall thickness at the bends. For this economizer, the 0.120' wall thickness will be okay without corrosion allowance. Extended surface material and selection The heat transfer sections of the HRSG frequently use extended surface to improve the overall heat exchange between the hot gases and the steam or water in the tubes. These extended surfaces are usually either a thin plate fin wraped helically around the tube or round or eliptical shaped studs. Following is a description of the more popular extended surfaces. Segmented Fins: These are usually one of the two types shown below.
High Frequency Continuously Welded Standard Frequency Spot Welded

The standard frequency, spot welded, design is not used as often since this design is normally selected when using very thin, high density finning such as in a large heat recovery boiler. Most HRSG designs use fins less than 0.049 inch thick. The standard frequency, spot welded fin also has a foot which presents a place where corrosion can occur if flue gases are corrosive or moisture is present. Solid Fins: These are the most popular fins for modern HRSG's.
High Frequency Continuously Welded

Stud Fins: These are used generally when the fuel is No. 6 or higher.
Resistance Welded

Thermal rating procedures for all these extended surface types are presented in the following pages. Both segmented fin types are rated using the same formulas. For our sample boiler, that we have been developing throughout this material, we will choose to use 0.049" thick fins with a density of 6 fins per inch. We will use an 11% chrome alloy material for the superheater, A-176 TP409. For the evaporator and the economizer, we will use carbon steel, A 366, which should be good for all the temperatures in these sections. We will recheck our selections after doing the thermal calculations to confirm they are okay. It is important to note, that since the source of our gas is a gas turbine, it is a very clean service and we could have used a thinner fin at a higher density.

Indirect, non-luminous, radiation In-direct, non-luminous radiation in an HRSG design is only significant to consider when the flue gases are above 1,000 F. This normally would occur only following supplementary firing of the flue gas. It should be noted that there may also be some direct radiation occur in an HRSG if the duct burners are located directly in front of the HRSG heat transfer sections. For most designs, however, simply considering the radiation using the following method will suffice. If the HRSG is designed with an evaporator shield section, i. e.,

there is an evaporator coil placed between the burner and a superheater coil, there usually is no problem with tube wall temperature due to indirect, nonluminous, radiation. But if there is no shield coil, the superheater coil needs to be checked carefully to make sure that maximum tube wall temperature is not exceeded.
In an HRSG similar to this one, the superheater tubes are directly exposed to the hot gases and flame in the combustion chamber. They are also exposed to the heat radiated off the refractory lined combustion chamber in front of the tubes. To calculate the heat transfered to these tubes by radiation, we will use the methods described below.

qn = AcpF(Tg4 - Tw4)

Where,
qn = Non-luminous radiant heat transfer to the tubes, Btu/hr = Stefan-Boltzman constant, 0.173E-8 Btu/ft2-hr-R4 = Relative effectiveness factor of the tube bank Acp = Cold plane area of the tube bank, ft2 F = Exchange factor Tg = Effective gas temperature in firebox, R Tw = Average tube wall temperature, R Relative Effectiveness Factor, :

For a single row in front of a refractory wall, use Total One Row. For two rows in front of a refractory wall, use Total Two Rows. For double sided firing, use Direct One Row.

Since all the radiant heat directed toward this bank of tubes is absorbed by the tubes in the convection, the relative absorption effectiveness factor, , for the tubes can be taken to be equal to one.
Cold Plane Area, Acp :

The cold plane area for the tube section is equal to the cold plane area of the first row of tubes. Acp = Ntube*Stube*Ltube Where, Ntube = Number of tubes wide Stube = Tube spacing, ft Ltube = Tube length, ft
Exchange Factor, F :

Because the flue gas in the firebox is a poor radiator, the equation must be corrected using an exchange factor which is dependent on the emissivity of the gas and the ratio of refractory area to cold plane area. Since the tubes themselves are not perfect absorbers, the curves are based on a tube-surface absorptivity of 0.9. This is a value considered typical for oxidized metal surfaces. The overall radiant exchange factor, F, can be taken from the curve below as presented by Mekler & Fairall in Petroleum Refiner, June 1952.

Where,
Aw/ Acp :

The equivalent cold plane area, Acp, is the product of the effectiveness factor and the cold plane area as described above. The Aw can be described as follows,
Aw = Ar - Acp and, Aw = Effective refractory area, ft2 Ar = Total refractory area, ft2 Acp = Equivalent cold plane area, ft2

The Ar factor is the inside area of the plenum in front of (or below, in some designs) the tubes. The openings where the flue gas enters are normally ignored, since the ducting connecting them perform the same reflective purpose.
Flue Gas Emissivity :

The gas emissivity can be described by the curve presented by Lobo and Evans, at AICHE, 32nd Annual Meeting, November 1939. The tube wall temperature has only a minor effect. Therefore, the emissivity can be correlated as a function of PL product and the gas temperature, Tg. Variations in tube wall temperatures between 600 and 1200F cause less than 1% deviation from these curves.

And,
PL = Product of the Partial Pressure of the carbon dioxide and water times the Beam Length, in atm-ft.

Where,
Partial Pressure Of CO2 & H2O :

The only constituents normally in the flue gas that contribute significantly to the radiant emission are the carbon dioxide and the water, the sum of these are all that are considered. The Partial pressure of a gas component in atm's is the mole volume fraction percent of that component.
Mean Beam Length :

In computing the mean beam length, placement of the tubes must be taken into account. If the firebox is a rectangular shape with the tubes down the center, the beam length would be based on half the box. Beam lengths for other configurations, such as a cylindrical heater with an octagonal tube or cross tube layout, must be calculated with consideration for those cavities. The mean beam length for heaters can be accounted for according to Wimpress in Hydrocarbon Processing, October 1963, as follows:
For Box Type Heaters Dimension Ratio Mean Beam Length 1-1-1 to 1-1-3 2/3(Furnace Volume)1/3 1-2-1 to 1-2-4 1-1-4 to 1-1-inf 1 x Smallest Dimension 1-2-5 to 1-2-inf 1.3 x Smallest Dimension 1-3-3 to 1-inf-inf 1.8 x Smallest Dimension With the box dimensions, length, width, and height being in any order For Vertical Cylindrical Heaters Length/Diameter < 2 (((L/D)-1)*0.33 + 0.67)*D Length/Diameter >= 2 Diameter

For most HRSG designs, the beam length can be taken as the width of the duct or superheter section. Effective gas temperature in firebox, Tg

This temperature is the calculated gas temperature entering the duct or plenum in front of the tube coil. Average tube wall temperature, Tw The tube wall temperature calculation is discussed later in this section. The radiant heat from this calculation will reduce the gas temperature used in the convection transfer calculation. Indirect, non-luminous, radiation
To demonstrate this routine, we will assume that the gas temperature after firing is 1400 F, and the tube wall temperature is 800 F. We will assume that the gas prior to firing is the gas turbine exhaust we used in our example for calculating the heat balance. Gas Side : 800,000 lbs/hr of Gas Turbine Exhaust at 980 F Gas Properties : Volume % Nitrogen, 72.55 N2 Oxygen, 12.34 O2 Carbon Dioxide, 3.72 CO2 Water, 10.52 H2O

Argon, Ar 0.87 Sulphur Dioxide, 0.0 SO2 Carbon Monoxide 0.0 , CO

To obtain the flue gas properties, we must do a combustion calculation. For this, we will assume fuel gas that is defaulted in the calculator below. The combustion process is covered in detail in Section 6, so for this exercise, we will just use a combustion calculator, such as the one below. Notice, that instead of firing with air as the source of oxygen, we use the exhaust gas for the oxygen source. For this case, we are not adding any additional air.
Gas Properties After Firing: Volume % Nitrogen, N2 71.8121 Oxygen, O2 10.1589 Carbon Dioxide, CO2 4.7397 Water, H2O 12.4283 Argon, Ar 0.861

The flue gas flow from our combustion calculation above is 805,012 lbs/hr. Now we can perform the calculations as follows, From above, we determine is equal to 1. And, Ar = 8 * 14 * 2 + 4 * 14 * 2 + 8 * 14.6 * 2 = 569.6 ft2 Acp = 23 * 16 = 368 ft2 Aw = 569.6 - 368 = 201.6 ft2 So, Aw/ Acp = 201.6 / 368 = 0.548 Partial Pressure of H2O and CO2 = 0.047397 + 0.124283 = 0.17168 atm Beam length = width = 8 ft PL = BL * PP = 8 * 0.17168 = 1.37344 For the emissivity and exchage factor, we can interpret the above curves or use the following JavaScripts.
PL: Tg:

Atm-ft F

Emissivity:

Emissivity: Aw/ Acp:

Exchange Factor, F: Emissivity from curve = 0.342 So, Exchange Factor, F = 0.421 Now, using our radiant heat equation, qr = AcpF(Tg4 - Tw4) = 0.173E-8 * 1.0 * 368 * 0.421 (18604 - 12604) = 2,523,400 Btu/hr We now need to calculate the theoretical exit temp, then using the average of the 1400 and the exit temperature, recalculate the heat given up again, so it requires a few iterations to get a valid answer. Enthalpy of flue gas after burner = 369.880 Btu/lb So, Enthalpy after radiant heat release = 369.880 - 2523400/805012 = 366.734 Btu/lb Which results in an exit temperature of 1389.448 F And the corrected temperature for the calculation is (1400 + 1389.448)/2 = 1394.724 F To do this iteration in an efficient manner, we can set up a JavaScript to let our browser do this tedious work. But before we do finalize our heat balance, we need to look at the distribution of this heat to the tubes. Since most of this radiant heat is absorbed by the first two rows of tubes, we will assume that only the first two rows are absorbing this heat. In actuality, some of the radiant heat would go to the third row, how much would depend on the tube diameter and spacing. But the amount to the third row is insignificant and can simply be added to the second row which will be more conservative. For the distribution to the first row of tubes, we can use the alpha, from the curves above, for direct to one row. We can use the following JavaScript to interpret the curve.
Tube Spacing: Tube Diameter:

in in

Alpha, :

So, for our sample calculation, the radiant heat would be distributed, 70% to the first row and 30% to the second row.

Tube Wall Temperature Calculation The temperature of the tube wall may be calculated using the following equations. This method does not take coking into account. Tw = Flux*do/di*Rfi+Flux*do/di*1/hi+Flux*do/(do-tw)*tw/(kw*12)+Tf Where,
Tw = Tube wall temperature, F Flux = Flux rate, Btu/hr-ft2 of bare tube do = Outside tube diameter, in di = Inside tube diameter, in tw = Tube wall thickness, in Rfi = Inside fouling factor, hr-ft2-F/Btu hi = Fluid film coefficient, Btu/hr-ft2-F kw = Thermal conductivity of tube wall, Btu/hr-ft-F Tf = Bulk process fluid temperature, F

We can try this calculation using the following script.

Flux rate, Btu/hr-ft2: Tube outside diameter, in: Tube inside diameter, in: Inside fouling factor, hr-ft2-F/Btu: Inside film coefficient, Btu/hr-ft2-F: Tube wall conductivity, Btu/hr-ft-F: Bulk process temperature, F:

Tube wall temperature, F:

Thermal Conductivity Of Metals

The thermal conductivity of the tube material and the extended surface is needed for calculating the heat transfer coefficients. The conductivity of some of the popular materials can be described by the following curves.

To make it easier to use when using a computer, we can fix a script to interpolate the curves for us as follows,
Temperature, F:

Material:

Thermal Conductivity, Btu/hr-ft-F :

Thermal properties of water and steam

The properties of water and steam have been described by the International Association for the Properties of Water and Steam. The latest release is the IAPWS97 document, which is available at this site under publications. This document includes formulas for the various properties which make it fairly simple to develop software for use in HRSG design and rating. The formulation suggested for industrial use is the IAPWS-IF97 which replaces the 1967 document, IFC67. It should be noted that there is no significant differences in these two sets of formulations, in the pressure and temperature ranges normally used in HRSGs. The following JavaScript calculator is based on the IFC67 formulations. This calculator has not been tested throughout the overall range of pressure and temperatures covered by these formulations, but should be sufficient for the purposes of this introduction to HRSG design.

Thermal properties of flue gas

The thermal properties for flue gas used in these procedures are curve fits of the following families of curves. The source for these curves is not currently known, as they were originally constructed some thirty years ago as we were developing some of the software proceedures presented herein. However, the reliability of these values seem to be very suitable for HRSG design.

Below is a JavaScript calculator which can interpret these curves.

Combustion, supplementary firing The supplemental combustion in HRSG systems takes place in a burner which usually is located in the flue gas stream going to the HRSG. However, some systems because of high firing requirements and low O2 in the flue gas, may require to be fired externally to the flue gas stream and may reuire additional combustion air. The types of burners and how they function are not covered in detail in this section. The amount of heat released can be easily calculated for a gas when we know the composition of the fuel and the heating values of the various components. For liquid fuels, the heating values are obtained by a calorimeter test. From these values and using the standard combustion equation, we can determine the composition of the flue gas leaving the burner. As an example, the combustion of methane could be stated : CH4 + 2O2 --- > CO2 + 2H2O Of course for fuel gases containing many more components and burning in flue gas rather than pure oxygen, the equation gets more complicated. Therefore, a

task that in itself is quite simple, becomes a burden to do by hand, but can be easily accomplished by a simple computer program. The heating values normally used in HRSG design are the LHV, lower heating values. To try some calculations, click the button below to open another window to do some fuel combustion calculations:

The following Lower Heating Values(LHV) are used in this script:

Component CH4 N-C4H10 I-C5H12 H2 C C3H6 H2O Btu/lb 21,520 19,680 19,478 51,623 14,093 19,691 0 Component C2H6 I-C4H10 C6H14 N2 S C4H8 O2 Btu/lb 20,432 19,629 19,403 0 3,983 19,496 0 Component C3H8 N-C5H12 CO CO2 C2H4 C6H6 H2S Btu/lb 19,944 19,517 4,347 0 20,295 17,480 6,545

Heat Transfer Coefficients The inside film coefficient needed for the thermal calculations may be estimated by several different methods. The API RP530, Appendix C provides the following methods, For liquid flow with Re =>10,000, hl = 0.023(k/di)Re0.8*Pr0.33( b/ w)0.14 And for vapor flow with Re =>15,000, hv = 0.021(k/di)Re0.8*Pr0.4(Tb/Tw)0.5 Where the Reynolds number is, Re = di*G/ b And the Prandtl number is, Pr = Cp* b/k Where,
hl = Heat transfer coefficient, liquid phase, Btu/hr-ft2-F

k = Thermal conductivity, Btu/hr-ft-F di = Inside diameter of tube, ft b = Absolute viscosity at bulk temperature, lb/ft-hr w = Absolute viscosity at wall temperature, lb/ft-hr hv = Heat transfer coefficient, vapor phase, Btu/hr-ft2-F Tb = Bulk temperature of vapor, R Tw = Wall Temperature of vapor, R G = Mass flow of fluid, lb/hr-ft2 Cp = Heat capacity of fluid at bulk temperature, Btu/lb-F

For two-phase flow, htp = hlWl + hvWv Where,

htp = Heat transfer coefficient, two-phase, Btu/hr-ft2-F Wl = Weight fraction of liquid Wv = Weight fraction of vapor

The following script will allow us to try these formulas out using our browser.
Tube diameter, in: Percent vapor, %: Liquid Properties Thermal cond., Btu/hr-ft-F: Visc. bulk, lb/ft-hr: Spec. Heat, Btu/lb-F: Visc. @ wall, lb/ft-hr:

Mass flow, lb/hr-ft2: Bulk Temp., F: Vapor Properties Thermal cond., Btu/hr-ft-F: Visc. bulk, lb/ft-hr: Spec. Heat, Btu/lb-F: Temp. @ wall, F:

hl Coefficient, Btu/hr-ft2-F: hv Coefficient, Btu/hr-ft2-F: htp Coefficient, Btu/hr-ft2-F:

Reynolds number:Liquid Vapor It should be stressed at this time, that there are many ways to calculate the inside heat transfer coefficient, and a lot of care should be taken in the procedure selected for use in HRSG design. Other methods, such as HTRI, Maxwell, Dittus-Boelzer, or others may be more appropriate for a particular HRSG design. You will notice that we have not offered a method for film boiling coefficient. The reason for this ommision is that in the evaporator, when the hi is high, which it is for the boiling case, it does not have any significant effect on the calcuations. We would recommend that a value of 1,500 to 2,000 Btu/hr-ft2-F be used for these cases.

Intube Pressure Drop The intube pressure drop may be calculated by any number of methods available today, but the following procedures should give sufficient results for HRSG design. The pressure loss in HRSG tubes and fittings is normally calculated by first converting the fittings to an equivalent length of pipe. Then the average properties for a segment of piping and fittings can be used to calculate a pressure drop per foot to apply to the overall equivalent length. This pressure drop per foot value can be improved by correcting it for inlet and outlet specific volumes. Friction Loss: Where,
p

= 0.00517/di*G2*Vlm*F*Lequiv

p = Pressure drop, psi di = Inside diameter of tube, in G = Mass velocity of fluid, lb/sec-ft2 Vlm = Log mean specific volume correction F = Fanning friction factor Lequiv = Equivalent length of pipe run, ft

And, Vlm = (V2-V1)/ln(V2/V1) For single phase flow,

V1 = Specific volume at start of run, ft3/lb V2 = Specific volume at end of run, ft3/lb

For mixed phase flow, Vi = 10.73*(Tf/(Pv*MWv)*Vfrac+(1-Vfrac)/ Where,

Vi = Specific volume at point, ft3/lb Tf = Fluid temperature, R Pv = Press. of fluid at point, psia MWv = Molecular weight of vapor Vfrac = Weight fraction of vapor %/100 l = Density of liquid, lb/ft3

Fanning Friction Factor: The Moody friction factor, for a non-laminar flow, may be calculated by using

the Colebrook equation relating the friction factor to the Reynolds number and relative roughness. And the Fanning friction factor is 1/4 the Moody factor. For a clean pipe or tube, the relative roughness value for an inside diameter given in inches is normally 0.0018 inch. With this, we can calculate the factor,
Reynolds number = Inside Diameter, inches =

Friction factor, F: Equivalent Length Of Return Bends: The equivalent length of a return bend may be obtained from the following curves based on Maxwell table and can be corrected using the Reynolds number correction factor. Lequiv = FactNre*Lrb Where,
FactNre = Reynolds number correction Lrb = Equivalent length of return bend, ft

Return Bend Equivalent Length:

Reynolds Correction:

Where,
G = Mass velocity, lb/sec-ft2 Di = Inside tube diameter, in Visc = Viscosity, cp

Now that we have all the details described, we can calculate the pressure drop for some typical heater coils.
Coil Data Tube inside dia., in: Bend radius, in: Mass vel., lb/sec-ft2: Spec. vol. at start, ft3/lb:

Pipe straight length, ft: Number of returns: Process Data Viscosity, cp: Spec. vol. at end, ft3/lb:

Pressure Drop, psi:

Gas Side Pressure Drop Across Tubes

The gas side pressure drop may be calculated by any number of methods available today, but the following procedures should give sufficient results for heater design.
Bare Tube Pressure Loss Fin Tube Pressure Loss Stud Tube Pressure Loss

Bare Tube Pressure Loss: For bare tubes we can use the method presented by Winpress(Hydrocarbon Processing, 1963), Where,
p

= Pv /2 * Nr

p = Pressure drop, inH2O Pv = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Nr = Number of tube rows

And the velocity head can be described as, Pv = 0.0002307 * (Gn /1000)2 / Where,
Gn = Mass velocity of gas, lb/hr-ft2 g = Density of gas, lb/ft3

The Mass velocity is described as, G n = Wg / A n Where,

Wg = Mas gas flow, lb/hr An = Net free area, ft2

And, An = Ad - do/12 * Lt * Nt For staggered tubes without corbels, Ad = ((Nt +0.5) * Pt/12) * Le For staggered tubes with corbels or inlune tubes, Ad = (Nt * Pt/12) * Le Where,
Ad = Convection box area, ft2 do = Outside tube diameter, in Le = Tube length, ft Pt = Transverse pitch of tubes, in Nt = Number of tubes per row

We can now use the following script to try some calculations,

Coil Data Tube outside dia., in: Number of tubes wide: Transverse pitch of tubes, in: Mass flow, lb/hr:

Tube length, ft: Number of rows: Corbels: Process Data Density of gas, lb/ft3:

Pressure Drop, inH<sub2< sub="">O: </sub2<> Fin Tube Pressure Loss: For the fin tube pressure drop, we will use the Escoa method. p = ((f+a)*Gn2*Nr)/( b*1.083E+109) And, For staggered layouts, f = C2 * C4 * C6 * (df/do)0.5 For inline layouts, f = C2 * C4 * C6 * (df/do)1.0 And, a = ((1+ 2)/(4*Nr))* b*((1/ out)-(1/ in)) Where,
p = Pressure drop, inH2O b = Density of bulk gas, lb/ft3 out = Density of outlet gas, lb/ft3 in = Density of inlet gas, lb/ft3 Gn = Mass gas flow, lb/hr-ft2 Nr = Number of tube rows do = Outside tube diameter, in df = Outside fin diameter, in

And, = An / Ad For staggered tubes without corbels, Ad = ((Nt +0.5) * Pt/12) * Le For staggered tubes with corbels or inlune tubes, Ad = (Nt * Pt/12) * Le Net Free Area, An: An = Ad - Ac * Le * Nt

Where,
Ad = Cross sectional area of box, ft2 Ac = Fin tube cross sectional area/ft, ft2/ft Le = Effective tube length, ft Nt = Number tubes wide And, Ac = (do + 2 * lf * tf * nf) / 12 tf = fin thickness, in nf = number of fins, fins/in

Reynolds correction factor, C2: C2 = 0.07 + 8 * Re-0.45 And, Re = Gn * do/(12* b) Where,

b = Gas dynamic viscosity, lb/fthr

Geometry correction, C4: For segmented fin tubes arranged in, a staggered pattern, C4 = 0.11*(0.0 5*Pt/do)(-0.7*(lf/sf)^0.23) an inline pattern, C4 = 0.08*(0. 15*Pt/do)(-1.1*(lf/sf)^0.20) For solid fin tubes arranged in, a staggered pattern, C4 = 0.11*(0.0 5*Pt/do)(-0.7*(lf/sf)^0.20) an inline pattern, C4 = 0.08*(0. 15*Pt/do)(-1.1*(lf/sf)^0.15) Where,
lf = Fin height, in sf = Fin spacing, in

Non-equilateral & row correction, C6: For fin tubes arranged in,

a staggered pattern, C6 = 1.1+(1.8-2.1*e(-0.15*Nr^2))*e(-2.0*Pl/Pt) - (0.7*e(-0.15*Nr^2))*e(-0.6*Pl/Pt) an inline pattern, C6 = 1.6+(0.75-1.5*e(-0.70*Nr))*e(-2.0*(Pl/Pt)^2) Where,

Nr = Number of tube rows Pl = Longitudinal tube pitch, in Pt = Transverse tube pitch, in

We can now use the following script to try some calculations,

Coil Data Tube outside dia., in: Number of tubes wide: Trans. pitch of tubes, in: Fin height, in: Fins density, fins/in: Tube layout:

Tube length, ft: Number of rows: Long. pitch of tubes, in: Fin thickness, in: Fin type:

Corbels: Process Data

Mass flow, lb/hr: Inlet density of gas, lb/ft3: Bulk viscosity of gas, lb/hr-ft:

Bulk density of gas, lb/ft3: Outlet density of gas, lb/ft3:

Pressure Drop, inH2O: Stud Tube Pressure Loss: For the stud tube pressure loss we will use the Muhlenforth method, The general equation for staggered or inline tubes, p = Nr*0.0514*ns((Cmin-d0-0.8*ls)/((ns*(Cmin-do1.2*ls)2)0.555))1.8*G2*((Tg+460)/1460) Where,
p = Pressure drop across tubes, inH2O

Nr = Number of tube rows Cmin = Min. tube space, diagonal or transverse, in do = Outside tube diameter, in ls = Length of stud, in G = Mass gass velocity, lb/sec-ft2 Tg = Average gas Temperature, F

Correction for inline tubes, And,

p

= p*((do/Cmin)0.333)2

G = Wg/(An*3600) An = Le*Nt*(Pt-do-(ls*ts*rs)/12)/12 Where,

Wg = Mass flow of gas, lb/hr An = Net free area of tubes, ft2 Le = Length of tubes, ft Nt = Number of tubes wide Pt = Transverse tube pitch, in ls = Length of stud, in ts = Diameter of stud, in rs = Rows of studs per foot

We can now use the following script to try some calculations,

Coil Data Tube outside dia., in: Number of tubes wide: Trans. pitch of tubes, in: Stud height, in: Stud rows per foot: Mass flow, lb/hr:

Tube length, ft: Number of rows: Long. pitch of tubes, in: Stud diameter, in: Tube layout: Process Data

Average gas temperature, F:

Pressure Drop, inH2O:

Ducting Pressure Losses HRSG designers utilize ducting for many purposes in a system design. They are used for connecting flue gas plenums to stacks, distributing combustion air to burners, transfering flue gas to the HRSG or for bypassing the HRSG. The pressure losses through ducting pieces may be individually analyzed or the may be analyzed as a system. We will first explore ducting losses by looking at the individual pieces. The following formulas and coefficients are from the American Petroleum Institute Practice API RP533. Straight duct run friction loss: p = (0.002989 * Fr * Where, * Vg2)*Le/De

p = Pressure drop, inH2O Fr = Moody friction factor g = Average gas density, lb/ft3 Vg = Velocity of gas, ft/sec Le = Equivalent length of piece, ft De = Equivalent diameter of piece, ft

And for round duct, De = Diameter And for rectangular duct, De = (2 * Width * Height)/(Width + Height) Moody friction factor, Fr We can use the Colebrook equation to solve for the friction factor, with the roughness factor selected from the following:
Duct surface Very rough Medium rough Smooth Roughness 0.01 0.003 0.0005

Reynolds number:

Roughness: Friction factor:

90 Round section elbow loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Radius/Diameter(R/D) Coefficient(Cl) 0.5 0.90 1.0 0.33 1.5 0.24 2.0 0.19

90 Rectangular section elbow loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Height/Width(H/W) Radius/Width(R/W) Coefficient(Cl) 0.25 0.5 1.25 1.0 0.37 1.5 0.19 0.50 0.5 1.10 1.0 0.28 1.5 0.13 1.00 0.5 1.00 1.0 0.22 1.5 0.09 4.0 0.5 0.96 1.0 0.19 1.5 0.07

Elbow of any degree turn loss: This may be used for a rectangular or round duct elbow of N turn.

= Vh * C90 * N/90

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O C90 = Loss coefficient from above for 90 turn N = Number of degrees of turn

Sudden contraction loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Area2/Area1(A2/A1) Coefficient(Cl) < 0.2 0.34 0.2 0.32 0.4 0.25 0.6 0.16 0.8 0.06

Gradual contraction loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Included Angle(N) Coefficient(Cl) 30 0.02 45 0.04 60 0.07

No contraction change of axis loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Included Angle(N) Coefficient(Cl) <=14 0.15

Sudden enlargement loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Area1/Area2(A1/A2) Coefficient(Cl) 0.1 0.81 0.3 0.49 0.6 0.16 0.9 0.01

Gradual enlargement loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Included Angle(N) Coefficient(Cl) 5 0.17 10 0.28 20 0.45 30 0.59 40 0.73

Sudden exit loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Area1/Area2(A1/A2) Coefficient(Cl) 0 1.0

90 Round miter elbow loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Curve

90 Rectangular miter elbow loss:

= Vh * Cl

Where, Vh = Velocity head of gas, inH2O Cl = Loss Coefficient From Table Height/Width(H/W) Coefficient(Cl) 0.25 1.25 0.5 1.47 1.0 1.50 4.0 1.35

Pressure loss across stack damper: This pressure loss is normally accounted for by rule of thumb. This may be 0.5 or 0.25 velocity head. We will use 0.25. Where,
p

= 0.25 * Vh

p = Pressure drop, inH2O Vh = Average velocity head of stack, inH2O

Draft gain or loss: The draft gain or loss will be taken based on the height of the upward or downward flow of the flue gas. If the flow is upward, the pressure loss is negative. Where,
p

= (

- g)/5.2 * A

p = Draft gain or loss, inH2O g = Density of flue gas, lb/ft3 a = Density of ambient air, lb/ft3 A = Height of gas path, ft

Velocity head of gas: Vh = Vg2 * Where,

/ 2 / 32.2 / 144 * 27.67783

Vg = Velocity of flue gas, ft/sec g = Density of flue gas, lb/ft3

Now we can try some of these piece calculations,

Duct Piece Type:

Shape:

Inlet Diameter, ft: Inlet Width, ft: Outlet Width, ft: Radius Of Turn, ft: Roughness Factor: No. Of Miter Pieces: Gas Flow, lb/hr: Density Of Flue Gas, lb/ft3:

Outlet Diameter, ft:

Inlet Height, ft: Outlet Height, ft:

Incl'd Or Turn Angle, Deg:

Hght Of Col Or Lgth Of Run, ft:

Viscosity Of Gas, cp:

Density Of Ambient Air, lb/ft3:

Velocity, ft/sec: Coefficient:

Velocity Head, inH2O: Pressure Drop, inH2O:

Now that we have some procedures for calculating the pressure loss for the various components that we might find in a duct system, how do we use them? The easiest way to analyze a ducting system and keep the pressure points straight, is to organize the system starting from the outlet and proceeding to the inlet. This may seem backwards at first, but when you examine the pressure at a given point in the system, you find that the pressure is always dependent on the downstream pressure. So, it makes sense to always work from outlet to inlet, then you always know the pressure of the outlet of the point you are at. To try this out, we will run the calculations for the simple example shown below.

For this example, we will assume we are picking up the flow at some point in a system, so we will calculate from the outlet(assumed to be to atmosphere) to the inlet without considering any condition at the inlet. We will assume the process conditions are those in above table.

So assuming, D1 = 4 ft dia. D2 = 3 ft dia. L1 = 10 ft L2 = 7 ft L3 = 3 ft L4 = 7 ft L5 = 3 ft Desctription DeltaP, inH2O Static, inH2O Dynamic, inH2O Total, inH2O Outlet Condition 0 0 0 0 Sudden Exit 1.1242 0 1.1242 1.1242 Straight Duct Run, 2 ft 0.0136 0.0136 1.1242 1.1378 Miter Elbow, 2 Pc 1.4614 1.4750 1.1242 2.5992 Straight Duct Run, 3 ft 0.0204 1.4954 1.1242 2.6196 Gradual Contraction, 45 0.0450 2.3089 0.3557 2.6646 Miter Elbow, 2 Pc 0.4624 2.7713 0.3557 3.1270 Straight Duct Run, 5 ft 0.0082 2.7795 0.3557 3.1352

Acid Dew Point Of Flue Gas To improve the thermal efficiency of combustion equipment it is necessary to cool the flue gas to a low outlet temperature, to recover as much heat as possible. But the temperature must not be so low as to allow sulphur from the fuel to condense as sulphuric acid, resulting in a very corrosive flue gas. The two graphs below indicate the maximum flue gas dew point versus sulphur content in typical fuels. Maximum flue gas dew point versus percent sulphur in typical oil fuels:

Maximum flue gas dew point versus percent H2S in typical gas fuels:

Acid Dew Point Of Flue Gas Calculator : This calculator uses the method described by A. G. Okkes in Hydrocarbon Processing, dated July 1987, pp 53-55. The SO3 conversion from SO2, if calculated, is assumed to be set by equilibrium at 1000 C. The flue gas is assumed to be at atmospheric pressure. A deviation of 200mm H2O will result in a 0.4 C error in the predicted dew point. Flue Gas Composition, mole %
Nitrogen =

Oxygen = Carbon Dioxide = Water = Argon = Sulphur Dioxide = Sulphur Trioxide(Input C to calculate) =

NOx and other considerations

Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSGs), do not form nitrogen oxides or other contaminants. However, the supplementary burners associated with this equipment, or the source of the flue gasses, such Gas Turbines or FCC Units, do create the conditions for the formation of these undesirable pollutants. Even though, NOx is not the product of combustion such as CO, CO2, and SO2, they are a side effect. When the fuel and air are mixed, as they are in the combustion process, the nitrogen, which is normally very stable, can react with other substances to form Nox. This reaction at higher temperatures causes the nitrogen to react with oxygen to form NO, and N2O referred to as NOx. Even with the available control methods such as steam/water injection in Gas Turbines and staged burner combustion in other equipment, there is sometimes the need to further reduce the NOx in the gas stream to the HRSG. Because of the low temperatures normally involved, this is normally accomplished with a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) technology.

SCR is the most effective and proven technology to reduce NOx emissions. With guaranteed reductions greater than 90%, SCR is adaptable to a wide range of temperature and service conditions. The SCR systems reduce NOx by optimally distributing ammonia over the catalyst bed, reducing NOx to harmless nitrogen and water. SCR, however, is not without its problems. The first is that the excess ammonia from the process is exhausted into the air. Both NOx and ammonia are acutely toxic, both contribute to fine particle formation, acidifying deposition, eutrophication and enrichment of terrestrial soils; and both may be converted to nitrous oxide (N20). Anhydrous ammonia (NH3) is the most economical reagent to use, however, the growing trend by end-users and operators is the use of aqueous ammonia (NH4OH). Aqueous ammonia is a safer reagent to transport, handle and store than anhydrous ammonia. Vaporization of the aqueous ammonia solution is required to reach the base ammonia yield needed for the reaction. Typically, this vaporization is accomplished by using a hot air source. Exhaust gas can be withdrawn from the, or ambient air can be heated.

Circulation
Forced circulation Thermosyphon circulation Sizing the riser circuits Sizing the downcomer circuits Sizing the headers and drum Steam generation in boiler tubes is based on nucleate boiling. This means that a multiple of small steam bubbles are generated on the inside wall of the tube which remains "wet". If steam generation in any portion of the tube becomes excessive, film boiling results, which increases resistance to heat transfer and elevates the tube temperature. Steam blanketing can occur at low heat fluxes, in the region of nucleate boiling, if the steam bubbles formed are not continuously removed. At heat flues of 400,000 Btu/hr/ft2 and above, nucleate boiling changes to film boiling. At this point, even the most vigorous circulation cannot prevent the formation of an insulating steam film on the heating surface. To provide a reasonable factor of safety, HRSG's should be designed for a maximum heat flux of 100,000 Btu/hr/ft2.

The operating pressure of the evaporator also has a direct relation to the required circulation to achieve nucleate boiling. Since at a low pressure, the specific volume of the vapor is greater than at higher pressures, the circulation ratio must be greater at the lower pressure than at the higher. So, where a 10 : ratio may be satisfactory for a system operating at 600 psia, you may need a 25 : 1 ratio for a 100 psia system. For more specific information on circulation ratios and design of different configurations, see the Forced Circulation and Thermosyphon Circulation sections.

Forced Circulation
A forced circulation system uses a pump to maintain circulation in all the tubes of the evaporator tube bundle. A typical forced circulation system is shown at the right. The water is distributed within an inlet header to the various parallel circuits and the steam and water mixture is collected in an outlet header. The mixture is returned to a drum for separation of the steam and water. The tubes may have any orientation but are generally horizontal with an upward water flow to improve stability between the parallel channels. The forced circulation evaporator will generally have more

flow resistance than a natural circulation evaporator. In low pressure drop tube bundles, inlet orifices may be required to provide for better distribution to the parallel circuits.

When designing the circultion rate for these HRSG's these factors must be weighed agaist the cost of the pump and the pumping energy. Experience in steam boilers has shown that the "danger" zone in which film boiling can be expected to occur is between 20 and 25 percent steam generation by weight. This has led to the rule of thumb for a 5 : 1 circulation ratio. Unfortunately, this is in fact borderline and does not allow sufficient conservatism for unusual or extreme cases. For instance, an HRSG with a very long horizontal tube length(some units hav been manufactured with tubes as long as a hundred feet). Also, the relation of the drum to the evaporator coil needs to be considered. As an example a steam coil in a fired heater may have the steam separation drum located a hundred feet away and at the geround, where the coil may be fifty feet up on top of the heater. In this case, the water pressure in the evaporator may be such that instead of total vaporization occuring in the coil, the temperature rises instead, and the major vaporization occurs at the inlet separators in the steam drum. In these cases, a 3 : 1 circulation ratio may be sufficient.

Thermosyphon(Natural) Circulation
Conventional, vertical tube boilers are generally designed for natural, "thermosyphon", circulation. This means the water and steam/water circuits are arranged so that the two phase mixture in the steam generating tubes rises to the steam drum by thermal lift of differential density and is replaced by water from the drum by gravity flow. However, it should be noted that many horizontal tube natural circulation boilers have been sucessfully used for years. Although the nature of a thermosyphon circulation boiler is quite simple, the calculation procedure to check the design to see what the circulation ratio is, can become very complicated. Most designs are such that each row of tubes have a different circulation than all the other rows, but some actually have a

different circultion ratio for every tube in the evaporator, which would be difficult to determine, and probably not worth while. That is, of course, that an over all conservative check can be made that is reliable. To take a look at the details of a thermo syphon evaporator, we will use the ever popular O-Frame design.
We will assume that our evaporator has the following design : Mechanical : SA178 Gr. A, 2.0" OD tubes with 0.120" wall, 28'-0" effective length, 28 tubes per row. 12 rows of finned tubes with 0.049" thick x 0.75" high x 6 fins per in. 2 bare downcomer rows located in the middle of the 12 finned rows. All tubes set on a triangular pitch. 48" ID steam drum and 24" ID mud drum located 33'-0" centerline to centerline. Process Conditions : Gas Side : 800,000 lbs/hr of Gas Turbine Exhaust at 898 F Gas Properties : Volume % Nitrogen, N2 72.55 Oxygen, O2 12.34 Carbon 3.72 Water, H2O 10.52 Dioxide, CO2 Sulphur Argon, Ar 0.87 0.0 Dioxide, SO2 Carbon 0.0 Monoxide, CO Tube Side : Steam is saturated at 630 psia.

So what we want to do first is select a single circuit in the system to review. We can do that with the sketch shown to the right. The 28 riser tubes would all be the same on this row. The 28 downcomer tubes would likewise be the same. The downcomers , both rows, 56 tubes, feed all the 336 of the riser tubes, so the circuit cannot be isolated from the rest of the circuits. If the heat absorbed by the downcomer tubes is so little that it will not cause a significant difference in the water density of that column, then we will be able to ignore the heat absorbed, for the purposes of checking the circulation. If this is true, then we would have one loss from the drum water down and through the mud drum up to the start of the heating zone of the riser. Another loss could be associated with the heating zone and a third loss covering from the end of the heating zone, up and through the primary separator.

The next step will be to determine the flux rate for each row of tubes through the unit so we can first see if the downcomer is going to be a significant heating tube. Also, we will need the flux rate on a row by row bases to determine the individual tube steam generation.
Row No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Flux Rate, Btu/hr/ft2 3,232 2,619 2,127 1,730 1,411 1,152 1,781 1,730 889 728 597 490 403 331 Tube Surf., ft2 176.9 176.9 176.9 176.9 176.9 176.9 14.7 14.7 176.9 176.9 176.9 176.9 176.9 176.9 Vapor Flow, lbs/hr 788 639 519 422 344 281 N/A N/A 217 178 146 120 98 81

The total absorbed duty for the evaporator is 79,268,244 Btu/hr, or 109,288 lbs/hr of steam generated. If we assume, for now, that the circulation ratio is 10:1, then the water flow through the downcomer tubes will be about 1,092,880 lbs/hr, or 19,516 lbs/hr/tube. The pressure losses in the downcomers are, the sudden entry loss, the friction loss, and the sudden exit loss. This results in a pressure loss of 0.225 + 0.927 + 0.113 = 1.265 psi. But, since the head of water in the system is 11.322 psi, no vaporization will occur in the downcomers because the water in the mud drum is well above saturation for the system. The head of water/vapor in the riser leg will be less than that in the downcomer which will cause the water to circulate, thus, a thermosyphon system. How much circulation is what we need to determine. We can break down the downcomer portion of the circuit as follows:
Sudden entry into downcomer tube : 0.5 velocity heads Friction loss in downcomer tube : friction loss for 30'-0" of tube Sudden exit into mud drum : 1.0 velocity heads

These losses are the same for all 56 downcomer tubes. For the riser tube, up to the start of the heating zone:
Sudden entry into riser tube : 0.5 velocity heads Friction loss in riser tube : friction loss for varing lengths of tube Bend loss in riser tube : bend loss for varing angle of bend

These losses would be the same for each tube in a row, but different between each row. For the riser tube heating zone:
Friction loss in riser tube : friction loss for 28'-0" of tube

These losses would be the same for each tube in a row, but different between each row. For the riser tube, from end of the heating zone to steam drum:
Friction loss in riser tube : Bend loss in riser tube : Sudden exit into steam drum baffle : Primary separator loss : friction loss for varing lengths of tube bend loss for varing angle of bend 1.0 velocity heads See Centrifugal Pressure Drop below

These losses would be the same for each tube in a row, but different between each row. As you can see, we have a major problem in calculating the pressure loss for the primary separators since we do not have an actual design. So we will establish a proceedure to estimate the number of centrifugal separators that we need for this sample. Then we will establish a formula for the pressure loss if we know the number of centrifugals. Of course, if you are checking an existing design, you would know the number of centrifugal separators it has. It should also be noted that many steam drums don't use centrifugal separators, but rather a system of baffles, especially in low pressure systems. Number of centrifugal separators required : Ncent = {Ws(Vv + Vl[Cratio-1])}/(1080[(Vv-Vl)/Vl]0.5) Pressure Drop through centrifugal separators, psi : p = {2.28E-9(Vv + Vl[Cratio-1])/Cratio}{(Ws*Cratio)/Ncent)}2 Where,
Ncent Ws Vv Vl Cratio = Number of centrifugals = Steam Make, lbs/hr = Specific volume of vapor, ft3/lb = Specific volume of liquid, ft3/lb = Design Circulation ratio

So for our sample HRSG design, the number of centrifugals required would be, Ncent = {Ws(Vv + Vl[Cratio-1])}/(1080[(Vv-Vl)/Vl]0.5) = {109288(0.73206 + 0.02024[10-1])}/(1080[(0.73206-0.02024)/0.02024]0.5) = 15.59 = 16 centrifugals So now, assuming our actual circulation turns out to be 10:1, then the p would be, p = {2.28E-9(Vv + Vl[Cratio-1])/Cratio}{(Ws*Cratio)/Ncent)}2 = {2.28E-9(0.73206 + 0.02024[10 - 1])/10}{(109288*10)/16)}2 = 0.9725 psi If you are wondering why we didn't just say up front that, normally, these separators are sized at approximately 1.0 psi drop at design load, the answer is, we needed to get these complicated looking formulas established for our circulation calculations.

The method we have outlined above will give us a conservative answer since we will assume vaporization begins at the start of the heating zone, where it actually starts up the tube aways, and the final vaporization doesn't occur until separation in the centrifugals since it is only here that it is fully back to saturation temperature and pressure. Since the flux rate on the first row of tubes is greatest, it will have the least circulation ratio, and the last row, where the flux is the least, will have the greatest circulation ratio. With our assumtion of a 10:1 circulation ratio, we will determine what the available loss for the rest of the circuit is, Head in downcomer = l * hhead= 49.407 * 33 = 1630.43 lb/ft2 * 1/144 = 11.322 psi Head in riser up to heating zone = l * hhead = 49.407 * 2 / 144 = 0.686 psi Head in riser heating zone = m * hhead = 1/{[(0.02024 * 9.5) + (0.73206 * 0.5)]/10} * 28 / 144 = 3.483 psi Head in riser from heating zone = m * hhead = 1/{[(0.02024 * 9.0) + (0.73206 * 1.0)]/10} * 3 / 144 = 0.228 psi Head in riser total = 0.686 + 3.483 + 0.228 = 4.397 psi Left for riser losses = 11.322 - 4.397 - pdc= 11.322 - 4.397 - 1.265 = 5.660 psi The problem with trying to analyze the circulation as we are here, is that the riser circulation is not 10:1, it is actually different for each of the 12 different sets of risers, and the downcomer data is not corrected for the combination of the 12 risers sets feeding the 2 downcomer sets. It is easy to see then, that any analysis must compute all 12 riser sets and the 2 downcomer sets at the same time, or the analysis is incorrect. Having said this, we will now set up a JavaScript which will balance one riser set against one downcomer set, to provide us with practice in balancing these circuits.

You will notice that when we run the whole evaporator as a single unit, we get a circulation ratio of 18.31:1, which we know from above is not correct. But, we can use our calculator and perform other checks as we would do if we were checking the circulation by hand. If you change the number of riser rows to 1, the lower straight length to 3', the upper to 2', the angle of the upper turn to 45 , and the lower to 90. Now for the downcomers, if we divide the number of downcomers by the number of riser rows, we get 6 downcomers to feed each

row of risers. So change the downcomers to 1 row with 6 tubes wide. Then change the flux to the first row flux, 3,232 Btu/hr-ft2 We now calculate 10.58:1 circulation ratio for first row. Now change the flux rate to the last row, 331 Btu/hr-ft2 and we get a rate of 56.93:1. These checks, at least give us an approximation of the actual circulations that we would get with a program that can balance all the rows at the same time.

Sizing the riser circuits

The risers which we will be dicussing on this page are those that are generally external to the heat transfer sections. Since when the riser and the heat transfer are the same, the selection and sizing are based on the heat transfer requirement, i.e., the steam rate, and the circulation design. The circulation for the HRSG is discussed in previous pages. The risers which we are now concerned with would be those found on I-Frame evaporators, horizontal tube evaporators, etc. This type riser is normally constructed of standard pipe and is connected to a header at the evaporator outlet with the other end connected to the steam drum. Minimum riser flow area should be based on the following: Amin = 0.0401(Wg / (Volv+Voll(CR-1)(1500(Volv+Voll(CR-1))/CR)0.5) Where,
Amin Wg Volv Voll A<sub.min< sub=""></sub.min<> = Riser area, in = Gross water/steam flow, lb/hr = Vapor specific volume, ft3 = Liquid specific volume, ft3 = Circulation ratio of evaporator coil

The target velocity in an individual riser pipe should be less than 12 ft/sec. The minimum number of riser pipes per header should be two. If the header is more than six feet and less than twelve feet in length, the preferred number of risers is three. For longer lengths, a similar number should be provided to prevent distribution problems in the header or manifold.

Sizing the downcomer circuits

The downcomers which we will be dicussing on this page are those that are generally external to the heat transfer sections. The circulation for the HRSG is discussed in previous pages. The downcomers which we are now concerned with would be those found on IFrame evaporators, horizontal tube evaporators, O-Frame, A-Frame and DFrame evaporators with external downcomers. This type downcomer is normally constructed of standard pipe and is connected to upper drum with the other end connected to the lower drum or header. Minimum downcomer flow area should be based on the following: Amin = 0.007996 * Wg * Voll * CR Where,
Amin Wg Voll A<sub.min< sub=""></sub.min<> = Downcomer area, in = Gross water flow, lb/hr = Liquid specific volume, ft3 = Circulation ratio of evaporator coil

The target velocity in an individual downcomer pipe should be less than 6 ft/sec. The minimum number of downcomer pipes per header is one. If the header is more than six feet and less than twelve feet in length, the preferred number of downcomers is two. For longer lengths, a similar number should be provided to prevent distribution problems in the header or manifold.