Types of Condenser in Thermal Power Plants (With PDF)

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Today, this blog post will elaborate on the various types of condenser in thermal power plants with various subtopics down the road.

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Here is a suggested article, You should read before proceeding further to know the basics-

Let’s Begin…

Let me tell you that The condenser types used in thermal power plants are known as Surface condensers or steam condensers.

 Types of Condenser in Thermal Power Plants

Types of condensers used in thermal power plants-

There are four types of surface condensers used in thermal power plants and they are-

  1. Downflow condenser
  2. Central flow condenser
  3. Evaporative condenser
  4. Regenerative condenser

1. Downflow Condensers-

This condenser is used in various power plants to condensate the used steam coming from the power plant’s turbines.

Due to the entering of steam from upward and flowing downward, That’s why this condenser is known as a downward condenser, and on the other hand due to the water and steam flowing perpendicularly to each other, this condenser is also known as a cross-flow condenser.

Let’s look at the working of this downflow condenser-

Working of DownFlow Condenser-

The cooled liquid water enters the cooling water inlet and goes into the multiple tubes connected via the water inlet.

Now, steam drops to the surface of the tube from the exhaust steam inlet, and thus due to cooled water steam gets condensate or cooled and turned into liquid and further goes to the condensate outlet.

Again this condensate water goes to the turbine From the condensate outlet to reuse.

2. Central flow Condensers-

The central flow condenser is a closed vessel container containing multiple thin tubes with a central air extraction pump in the middle of the container to create vacuum in the container, called a central flow condenser.

Working of Central flow condenser-

The air extraction pump creates vacuum in the center of the condenser which helps to flow the coming steam from upward to the center of the condenser.

Now, the multiple thin tubes are occupied with cold water from inside which condensate the steam in liquid water and further this condensate liquid water gets collected in the hotwell.

At last, condensate water is further sent to the turbine with the help of a feed water pump.

3. Evaporative Condensers-

The evaporative condenser uses cooled water to spray on the finned tubes containing steam, when cooled water touches the steam tube, it gets evaporated, that’s why this condenser is known as an evaporative condenser.

Working of the Evaporative Condenser-

The cooled water is supplied from the tank to the header through the water circulating pump via a pipe.

Now, the Header consists of sprinkles that spray the cooled water on the finned tubes containing steam inside.

When cooled water is sprayed on the steam tube, steam gets condensates and further turns into liquid water.

And, Further cooled water gets evaporated due to heat exchange.

This is how this condenser works.

4. Regenerative Condensers-

This condenser is something different from the other conventional condensers in thermal power plants.

This condenser does not cool the steam or condensate the steam besides it supplies more heat to the steam and is further used for the boiler‘s feed water.

 

Wrapping Up-

This is all to Types of Condenser in Thermal Power Plants for now. I hope you got some insight into this query.

Before you go, here are some suggested articles, you must read-

Condenser and Vacuum Efficiencies: Everything You Need To Know

What’s the Difference between condenser and Evaporator?

 

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