Basic Thermodynamics
and
Steam Power Cycles
Saurabh K. Mehta
Need of Topic
The need of this discussion is to understand :
• Basic Thermodynamics
• Components of Steam Cycles
• Significance/Importance
• To get better understanding of change in properties of
working fluid
• Efficiency calculations
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Basic Thermodynamics
• A Thermodynamic system is defined as quantity of matter or
a region in space upon which attention is concentrated in the
analysis of a problem.
• Everything external to System is Surroundings
• System is separated from surroundings by the system
boundary
• System and Surroundings together comprise a Universe
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Basic Thermodynamics Contd..
Types of Systems
Open
Closed
Isolated
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Basic Thermodynamics Contd..
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Different types of processes
Adiabatic process - It occurs without transfer of heat or matter
between a thermodynamic system and its surroundings. In
an adiabatic process, energy is transferred only as work.
Reversible - A process whose direction can be "reversed" by
inducing infinitesimal changes to some property of the system
via its surroundings, while not increasing entropy.
Throughout the entire reversible process, the system is in
thermodynamic equilibrium with its surroundings.
Isentropic – Reversible adiabatic. Entropy is constant
Isothermal – Temperature is constant
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First Law of Thermodynamics
• Law of Conservation of Energy – it states that Energy can
neither be created nor be destroyed but can be transformed
from one form to another.
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Second Law of Thermodynamics
TERH = Thermal energy reservoir at
High temperature
MER = Mechanical energy reservoir
TERL = Thermal energy reservoir at
Low temperature
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Second Law of Thermodynamics
Now, Wnet < Q1 since heat transferred to a system can’t be completely
converted to Work in a cycle. So, a Heat Engine can never be 100% efficient.
As there will always be heat rejection or heat loss. Q2>0 always.
So, to produce work a heat engine has to exchange heat with two
reservoirs, source and sink.
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Second Law of Thermodynamics Contd..
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Third law of Thermodynamics
• The entropy of a perfect crystal at absolute zero is exactly equal to
zero
• In simple terms, the third law states that the entropy of a perfect
crystal of a pure substance approaches zero as the temperature
approaches zero. The alignment of a perfect crystal leaves no
ambiguity as to the location and orientation of each part of the crystal.
As the energy of the crystal is reduced, the vibrations of the individual
atoms are reduced to nothing, and the crystal becomes the same
everywhere.
• The crystal must be perfect, or else there will be some inherent
disorder. It also must be at 0 K; otherwise there will be thermal motion
within the crystal, which leads to disorder.
• The third law of thermodynamics is also referred to as Nernst law.
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Various stages of Heat Addition
• Sensible Heat - Heat that causes a change in temperature in fluid
is called sensible heat
• Latent Heat – Heat required for Phase change
• Super Heat – Heat required to raise temp. above steam saturation
temp. at constant pressure
Phase Diagram – Water/Steam
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Saturation dome for water
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Constant Quality Lines
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Dryness Fraction
Dryness Fraction = Mv/(Mv+Ml)
Where
Mv = Mass of Vapour
Ml = Mass of Liquid
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STEAM CYCLE - Components
Four Components of Steam Cycle
• Feed Water supply by Feed pump(s)
• Steam Generation in boiler
• Expansion in Turbine
• Condensation in Condenser
STEAM CYCLE
How steam is generated?
• Boiling & consequent steam generation is quite familiar
process.
• In brief, as we begin to heat water, it goes on absorbing heat
at constant pressure and is evident by rise in the
temperature.
• A stage reaches when water begins to boil & there is no rise
in temperature, at this stage steam is formed, which
continues to be so at the same temperature unless and until
pressure changes.
STEAM CYCLE
• The first stage of heat has been absorbed as heat of water
(known as sensible heat) & the second stage of heat
expenditure is due to the latent heat.
• Thus, thermodynamically speaking, boiling may be considered
a special case of adding heat to the working substance in a
constant-pressure, constant temperature process.
STEAM CYCLE
• As the pressure rises, latent heat decreases and a stage is
reached at (221.06 bars), when the latent heat becomes zero,
this pressure being termed as critical pressure.
• Further, once the steam is formed & does not have any traces
of water i.e. dry & saturated, we keep the pressure constant
while heat is being added, the temperature of steam will begin
to rise, the heat expended being known as superheat.
STEAM CYCLE – Steam generation
• Super heater
– saturated steam does not contain enough
thermal energy to make the turbines operate
efficiently
– uses heat from the burner section of the
boiler to increase the temperature of the steam
– superheated steam is also dryer which helps
prevent erosion of the turbine blades
STEAM CYCLE - Expansion
• High pressure/high temperature steam goes from the
superheater outlet to the high pressure turbine of the
main engine
– this is where expansion begins
– superheated steam expands in the turbine and is
converted to mechanical energy to turn the rotor
STEAM CYCLE – Fluid undergoing
change of phase
Carnot Vapour Power Cycle
• Hypothetical/ Theoretical Cycle
• Comprises of two Isentropic processes and two Reversible
isothermal processes
• It provides an upper limit on the efficiency that any classical
thermodynamic engine can achieve during the conversion of
heat into work
• The Carnot cycle is known for setting the highest efficiency bench
mark that any cycle or engine can achieve.
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Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot
(1 June 1796 – 24 August 1832)
• He was a French military engineer and physicist often described as the
"father of Thermodynamics". In his only publication, the 1824
monograph ”Reflections on the motive power of fire”, Carnot gave the
first successful theory of the maximum efficiency of Heat Engines.
Carnot's work attracted little attention during his lifetime, but it was later
used by Clausius and Kelvin to formalize the second law and define the
concept of entropy
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Carnot Cycle
Date | Title of Presentation Page 26
Carnot Vapour Power Cycle Contd..
Process 1-2: Reversible adiabatic compression process from P1 to P2.
Process 2-3: Reversible isothermal heat addition process at constant temperature TH.
Process 3-4: Reversible adiabatic expansion process from P3 to P4.
Process 4-1: Reversible isothermal heat rejection process at constant temperature TL.
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Carnot Cycle - Limitations
• The Carnot Vapor Cycle requires that the boiler should operate
isothermally .This prohibits boiler from producing superheated
vapor.
• In last stage of turbine we get steam with high moisture content
causes turbine blade damage
• Feed Pumps can’t handle Liquid + Vapor mixture
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William Rankine
Trained as a civil engineer, William Rankine (1820-
1872)was appointed to the chairman of civil engineering
and mechanics at Glasgow in 1855. He worked on heat,
and attempted to derive Sadi Carnot's law from his own
hypothesis. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society
in 1853. Among his most important works are Manual of
Applied Mechanics (1858), Manual of the Steam Engine
and Other Prime Movers (1859) .
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Rankine Cycle
• The Rankine Cycle is a way to avoid associated problems in
Carnot Cycle.
• Rankine Cycle is a known mechanical cycle which is being
commonly used in the power plantsfor converting the pressure
energy of steam into mechanical energy using steam turbines.
• Major components of it are boiler feed pump, boiler, rotating
steam turbine and stationary condenser .
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Ideal Rankine Cycle on TS diagram
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Ideal Rankine Cycle on PV, TS and HS
diagram
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Reheat Cycle Components
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Reheat Rankine Cycle
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Advantages of Re-heating
• Low moisture / high dryness fraction in the last stages
• Theoretically if we increase the number of reheating stages
then the number of expansion in the turbine can also be
increased in order to get the more turbine output and thus
higher cycle efficiency.
• Increase in cycle efficiency by 4-5%
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What Is Practical Limit of Re-Heating ????
• More than two stages of reheat is not practical.
• It has been seen that double reheat cycle are having a more super-
heated exhaust loss in the condenser so double-reheat cycles are
avoided with sub-critical parameters.
• From third reheat cycle onwards the gain of cycle efficiency starts
diminishing, so not justifiable to incurred additional cost and
complexity.
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Regenerative Rankine Cycle
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Effects of Regenaration
Rankine Cycle Regenerative
Rankine Cycle
Thermal Efficiency 36.2 38.4
% increase in - 6.1
Power Generation
Mean Temp of heat 226 251
addition (deg C)
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Rankine Cycle with Superheat, Reheat
and Regeneration
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Rankine Cycle with Superheat, Reheat
and Regeneration Contd..
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Comparison – Carnot and Rankine
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Rankine Cycle – Effect of increase in
Superheat
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Rankine Cycle – Effect of increase in
Pressure
Increase in Wnet = Decrease in Wnet.
So no effect on Work output but Net heat rejection decreases due to
shifting of 4 to 4’ so thermal efficiency increases marginally.
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Effect of lowering the Condenser
Pressure
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Supercritical power cycle
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Cycle Losses
Irreversibility is caused by Pressure drop due to
friction and heat losses to surroundings
• Piping losses
• Turbine Losses
• Pump Losses
• Condenser Losses -Sub-cooling of condensate
Other losses
• Losses associated with bearings
• Steam leakages
• Condenser air-leaks
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Actual Rankine Cycle
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Rankine Cycle Efficiency
1. Cycle Efficiency = (Wt-Wp)/Qin
Where
Wt = Work done by Turbine
Wp = Work done by Pump
Qin = Heat addition
2. Cycle Efficiency = (Q1 – Q2)/Q1 = 1- Q2/Q1 = 1- T2/T1
Where
Q1 = Heat added at T1
Q2 = Heat rejected at T2
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