Performance Evaluation of Multi-Stage Shell and Tube Transport Membrane Condenser Heat Exchangers for Low Grade Waste Heat and Water Recovery

In this work for the first time the performance of multi-stage shell and tube Transport Membrane Condenser (TMC) based heat exchangers are evaluated numerically. The present heat exchanger is design to work under high pressure and temperature condition for both heat and water recovery in Oxy-Combustion processes. TMC heat exchangers use the nano-porous and ceramic membrane technology to extract the water vapor and latent heat of condensation from the flue-gas. The most important application of TMC heat exchangers is in the power plants which the water vapor in the presence of other non-condensable gases (i.e. CO2, O2 and N2) exist. Effect of the different arrangement of the multi-stage shell and tube TMC heat exchangers, number of branches and number of heat exchangers in each branch on the heat transfer and water recovery have been studied numerically. A single phase multi-component model is used to assess the capability of single stage TMC heat exchangers in terms of waste heat and water recovery at various inlet conditions. Numerical simulation has been performed using ANSYS-FLUENT software and the condensation rate model has been implemented applying User Define Function. Finally, an optimum configuration for the TMC heat exchanger unit has been proposed and the results of numerical simulations are depicted in terms of temperature and water vapor mass fraction contours.