Pinch
Pinch
Pinch
In this paper, the simulation of a 325 MW steam power plant was performed in a Cycle-Tempo 5.0
simulator and operational parameters of the Rankine cycle were optimized using the Exergy concept
combined with a Pinch-based approach. The Combined Pinch and Exergy Analysis (CPEA) first
considers the representation of the hot and cold Composite Curves of the Rankine cycle and defines
the energy and Exergy requirements. The basic assumption of the minimum approach temperature
difference (∆∆Tmin) required for the Pinch Analysis is represented as a distinct Exergy loss that increases
the fuel requirement for power generation. The exergy composite curves put the focus on the
opportunities for fuel conservation in the cycle. The application results of CPEA in the power plant
showed that its fuel consumption could be reduced by 5.3% and the thermal cycle performance could
be increased from 39.4 to 41.9%. In addition, the production drop problem in current power plants, due
to the inefficiency of the cooling system, especially in warm seasons, could be eliminated, thanks to an
18.77 MW reduction in the cooling load of the condenser.
Key words: Rankine cycle, composite curves, exergy loss, fuel conservation, cooling system, condenser.
INTRODUCTION
Steam Power Plants (SPPs) are based on the Rankine varying cycle parameters such as the turbine inlet
cycle. However, after a century of research and develop- pressure, inlet temperature, reheat pressure, reheat
ment, current SPPs have become more complex than temperature, extraction pressure, and condenser
ideal Rankine cycles, in order to achieve thermal pressure, with respect to their optimum values (Azhdari et
efficiencies above 40%, based on the Low Heating Value al., 2009).
(LHV) of the fuel (Ataei, 2009). The SPP is known to Process integration, especially Pinch Analysis (PA) and
feature high flexibility, a long lifetime, high reliability Exergy Analysis (EA), are powerful analytical methods for
without complexity, and commercial applicability; SPPs identifying and selecting concrete technical solutions for
have become quite popular, in particular, in countries improving efficiencies and providing optimum manu-
where natural gas is sufficiently available for electricity facturing solutions (Ataei et al., 2009; Linnhoff, 1993).
generation. The recent increase in fuel prices, the The first step in the energy integration analysis is the
necessity for better environmental performance, and the calculation of the minimum heating and cooling require-
curbing of air pollution and greenhouse gases have ments for the heat exchanger network (HEN). A heat
stimulated the search for further improvements. The exchanger (HEX), exchanges heat between a hot and a
efficiency of the Rankine cycle can be improved by cold process stream; the hot stream needs to be cooled
and the cold stream needs to be heated (Linnhoff and
Flower, 1978).
Thermodynamic approaches in the form of PA were
*Corresponding author. E-mail: abtinataei@gmail.com. Tel: first introduced in the late 1970s, with the idea of setting
+82-31-201-2124. Fax: +82-31-204-8114. targets prior to design and were originally developed at
Ataei and Yoo 1111
Leeds University. PA reports significant changes in given pressure Po and temperature To, and with given amounts of
energy savings and has established a track record of chemical elements. The purpose of an EA is generally to identify
the location, source, and magnitude of true thermodynamic ineffi-
numerous successful applications in the chemical pro- ciencies in process plants such as power plants (Chao and Yan,
cess industries (Linnhoff and Flower, 1978; Smith, 2005). 2006). Disregarding kinetic and potential energy changes, the
During the last decades, PA has been developed in other specific flow Exergy of a fluid at any cycle state is given by
area of process industries, including power plants, and Equation 1:
has shown satisfactory results, with respect to energy
saving. Linnhoff and Alanis have done much research e = (h − ho ) − To ( s − so ) (1)
work on using PA in various power plants. Their research
model simulated the modification of an existing site. EA, The reversible work as a fluid goes from an inlet state to an exit
another useful method for process integration, predicts state is given by the Exergy change between these two states, as
the thermodynamic performance of an energy system follows (Kotas, 1995; Kwak, 2003):
and the efficiency of the system components by
accurately quantifying the entropy-generation of the eout − ein = (hout − hin ) − To ( s out − sin ) (2)
components (Kotas, 1995).
In steam power plants, it can be observed from cycle A simple Rankine cycle and the T-S diagram for it are shown in
thermodynamics that synthesis of an optimal HEN with Figure 1. As seen in the Figure 1, the SPP consists of two major
components: one is the heat transfer system and the other is the
minimization of utilities may reduce Exergy losses and turbine system. The chemical energy in the fuel provides the total
improve the cycle efficiency (Kwak, 2003; Rosen and Exergy for the plant, which is the original exergy source (Rosen and
Dincer, 2003; Sanjay, 2007). Therefore, a Combined Dincer, 2003). Part of the exergy from the fuel is lost in the heat
Pinch and Exergy Analysis (CPEA) can better make use transfer system, including the boiler, the bleeds heat exchangers,
of the Exergy concept instead of pure thermal analysis, the economizer and the condenser. The rest of the exergy goes into
the turbine system as the exergy input for generating power. Some
with the aid of PA’s design and targeting capabilities.
of the exergy input is lost in running the turbines and pumps. The
CPEA may represent a whole system, including individual amounts of these losses are defined by their machine efficiency.
units on one diagram, which helps to screen the pro- Also, a certain amount of the exergy is lost with the exhausted gas.
mising modifications quickly for improving a base-case The remaining exergy gives the shaft work, which is received by the
design. Therefore, the design of relating HEN for electrical generators, which become the final exergy sink (Sanjay et
minimum Exergy loss and optimum efficiency is one of al., 2007).
According to Figure 1, the exergy loss and exergy efficiency for
the main aims of applying CPEA in a power plant each of the Rankine cycle components can be calculated as
optimization project (Feng and Zhu, 1997). follows:
In this paper, we propose a method of improving
certain operational parameters, such as the pressure and
mass discharge of steam extractions, by using pinch and Boiler
exergy analyses. Also reported is a cycle performance
The Exergy loss in the boiler can be calculated as follows (Kotas,
increase that was calculated after a correction of opera- 1995):
tional parameters following this method. It is noteworthy
that the main problem of a power plant, that is, a
production drop due to inefficiency of the cooling system
elBoiler = Ein − Eout = ( me) in − (me) out (3)
The total exergy loss in the Rankine cycle is simply the sum of
Wout
ε Turbine = (5) exergy losses in the boiler, steam turbines, heat exchangers, and
(me) in − ( me) out pump. The overall exergetic efficiency of the cycle can be
calculated as follows (Kwak, 2003):
Win is the actual power consumed in the pump, as shown in Combined pinch and exergy analysis (CPEA)
Figure 1. The Exergetic efficiency of the pump can be defined as By allowing the comparison of the quality of the different forms of
the ratio of the minimum work input to the actual work input, using energy, exergy is a rigorous way of analyzing energy conversion
the following equation: systems such as SPPs. In the context of process integration
analysis, the exergy concept is combined with pinch analysis for
( me) out − ( me) in reducing the fuel requirement and optimizing the Rankine cycle in
ε Pump = (9) SPPs. The Exergy Composite Curve (ECC) and Exergy Grand
Win Composite Curve (EGCC) concepts have been introduced by Feng
Ataei and Yoo 1113
and Zhu (1997) for this purpose. For each linear segment in the areas in Figure 3 indicate the Exergy loss associated with the heat
CC, the heat Exergy delivered (e) by a stream delivering a heat transfer process.
load (Q) from the inlet temperature (Tin) to the outlet temperature The graphical representation of process units involving energy in
(Tout) is computed by Equation 12 (Feng and Zhu, 1997): terms of heat and power has been made possible with the
introduction of a variable referred to as energy level ( ) defined as
To follows (Feng and Zhu, 1997):
e = Q(1 − ) (12)
Tlm Exergy
Ω= (15)
Where, Tlm is the logarithmic mean of temperatures computed by
Energy
Equation 13 (Polley et al., 1990):
Thus, for the work, Ω is equal to 1 but for the heat can be
T −T calculated as follows (Feng and Zhu, 1997):
Tlm = in out (13)
T To
Ln( in ) Ω = 1− (16)
Tout T
When considering the hot CC, the heat delivered is represented by In the case of steady-state flow system, the is expressed as
the T-H diagram; the exergy delivered is computed by replacing the follows (Feng and Zhu, 1997):
temperature axis by the Carnot factor, as expressed in Equation 14.
It then corresponds to the area between the CC and the enthalpy
∆E
axis (Feng and Zhu, 1997). The same procedure is followed for the Ω= (17)
cold streams, to define the Exergy required by the cold streams
(Kotas, 1995).
∆H
In addition, all economic limitations and power generation process
T constraints can be considered in retrofit study of SPPs using CPEA
ηc = 1 − o (14) (Feng and Zhu, 1997). To achieve this aim, ECC and EGCC as two
T basic tools of this combined analysis should be calculated. Data
required for those plots can be extracted by simulation of the SPP
Figure 3 shows how the CC (T-H diagram) for a heat transfer using Cycle Tempo 5 (2006), which is powerful power plant
system can be converted into the ECC and the EGCC. The shaded simulation software.
1114 Int. J. Phys. Sci.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION load of the boiler, the minimum approach temperature
difference (∆Tmin) in the current CC and ECC should be
Plant description 5.8°C.
Table 2. Important results from analyzing gas fuel and combustion calculations.
In this step, the pressure (or saturated temperature) and Accurate economical information is important. Indeed, if
extraction mass flows were determined so that the the information is inaccurate, the estimated and fore-
minimal amount of fuel necessary to generate 325 MW of casted return on investment cannot be met. For example,
electricity were consumed. considering an energy cost that is higher than the actual
It was found that the minimum temperature difference value results in a targeted investment that is higher than
was ∆Tmin = 5.6 o C . Table 4 lists different extraction the maximal value. Thus, although more energy is saved,
amounts, the optimal saturated temperatures, and the the value for the return on the investment will be higher.
amount of consumed fuel. On the other hand, lower energy costs will not promote
1116 Int. J. Phys. Sci.
Figure 4. The process flow diagram of the sample power plant; before modification.
energy savings, as it will be hard to convince managers The operation costs of heating in the boiler and cooling
to fund new energy-saving, network-heating areas in in the condenser were assumed to be 12 and 3.17
process units. In sum, energy costs must be precisely $/kWyr, respectively. In addition, the hours of operation
determined (Ataei et al., 2009). per year (h/yr) were assumed to be 8000 h/y. The results
Ataei and Yoo 1117
Table 3. Stream data for the HEN in the sample power plant; before modification.
Table 4. Stream data for the HEN in the sample power plant; after modification.
of targeting and economic calculations at the selected Design Method (PDM) (Polley and Panjeshahi, 1991;
working point ( ∆Tmin = 5.6o C ) for the power plant are Polley et al., 1990). In this study, the HEN of feed-water
heaters was modified and simulated using the cycle
given in Table 5.
tempo software and systemic parameters were obtained.
Figure 10 displays the process flow diagram of the cycle
Retrofit of HEN after modification. As indicated by Figure 10, new heat
transfer areas have to be placed in the network in order
After targeting, the HEN can be modified using the Pinch to maintain an allowable feed-water pressure drop in the
Ataei and Yoo 1121
Figure 10. The process flow diagram of the sample power plant; after modification.
preheating network. More specifically, one heater must heater 5, one in series with heater 6, and one in series
be placed in parallel with heater 8, one in parallel with with heater 3.
1122 Int. J. Phys. Sci.
Simulation of the corrected design with the afore- exergy rate from fuel (kW); SPP, steam power plant; EA,
mentioned software showed that, by changing the steam exergy analysis; T, temperature (°K); ECC, exergy
extraction levels as described above and installing the composite curves; To, ambient temperature (°K); EGCC,
aforementioned new heaters, the performance of the exergy grand composite curves; Tlm, logarithmic mean of
studied power plant can be increased by exactly 5.3% for temperatures (°K); el Boiler , rate of exergy loss in the
the chosen energy target. Thus, without modifying the
electricity that is generated in the power plant, the natural boiler (kW); W, Work (kJ); el FWH , rate of exergy loss in
gas (fuel) consumption and load on the cold side of the the feed-water heater (kW); Win , rate of inlet work (kW);
3
power plant can be reduced by 4240 m /h and 18.77 MW,
respectively. These results indicate that the main problem elPump , rate of exergy loss in the pump (kW); Wnet , rate of
of the power plant, that is, an insufficient efficiency of the
cold side of the plant (at around 11 MW) can be solved. net work (kW), elTurbine , rate of exergy loss in the turbine
If the aforementioned modifications were applied in the
Rankine cycle of the sample power plant, a 33.92 million (kW), Wout , rate of outlet work (kW); FWH, feed-water
cubic meters yearly reduction in the fuel demand of the heater; GCC, grand composite curve.
power plant would be achieved. Applying RETscreen
software showed that 63226 tons of greenhouse gas
(GHG) emissions-reduction per year would be obtained Greek letters
by this method. According to the RETscreen software,
that amount of reduction in GHG emissions is equivalent ∆Ε, Exergy changes (kW); GHG, greenhouse gases; ∆H,
to that of not using 11580 cars and light trucks. Heat load (kW); ho, enthalpy at ambient condition (kJ);
Tmin, minimum temperature approach on composite
curves (°C); h, enthalpy (kJ); ε Cycle , cycle overall
Conclusion
Exergetic efficiency; H, enthalpy rate (kW); ε HEX , heat
The Pinch analysis and Exergy analysis concepts were exchanger exergetic efficiency; HEN, Heat exchanger
used to design a power plant installation. The addition of network; ε Turbine , turbine exergetic efficiency; HEX, heat
four heaters, as shown in the modified process flow
exchanger; , energy level; HHV, high heating value
diagram, resulted in a 5.3% reduction in fuel consumption
(mJ/Nm ); η c , carnot factor; LHV; low heating value
3
in the Rankine cycle of the sample SPP. It was found that
3 3
the fuel consumption could be reduced by 4240 m /h. (mJ/Nm ).
This reduction leads to considerable savings in the power
plant running costs. In addition to a 2.5% increase in
cycle performance, a condenser-cooling load reduction of Subscripts
18.77 MW in the modified cycle of the power plant was
determined. This result indicates that the main cooling m , Mass flow rate (kg/s) cold streams, streams need to
tower is more efficient and no longer limits production be heated; MER, maximum energy recovery (kW) Hot
during warm seasons. streams, streams need to be cooled; Po, ambient
Applying the proposed modification to power plants pressure (atm); in, Inlet; P1, supply pressure (atm); out,
may result in a yearly reduction of GHG emissions of Outlet; P2, Target pressure (atm); PA, pinch analysis.
about 63226 tons, which is equivalent to not using 11580
cars and light trucks.
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