High temperature range recuperator. Phase II. Prototype demonstration and material and analytical studies. Final report

Technical Report · Tue Apr 01 04:00:00 EST 1980

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/7072539· OSTI ID:7072539

A summary of the work performed to fully evaluate the commercial potential of a unique ceramic recuperator for use in recovering waste heat from high temperature furnace exhaust gases is presented. The recuperator concept being developed consists of a vertical cylindrical heat exchange column formed from modular sections. Within the column, the gasketed modules form two helical flow passages - one for high temperature exhaust gases and one for pre-heating combustion air. The column is operated in a counterflow mode, with the exhaust gas entering at the bottom and the combustion air entering at the top of the column. Activities included design and procurement of prototype recuperator modules, construction and testing of two prototype recuperator assemblies, exposure and mechanical properties testing of candidate materials, structural analysis of the modules, and assessment of the economic viability of the concept. The results of the project indicated that the proposed recuperator concept was feasible from a technical standpoint. Economic analysis based upon recuperator performance characteristics and module manufacturing costs defined during the program indicated that 3 to 10 years (depending upon pre-heat temperature) would be required to recover the capital cost of the system in combustion air preheat applications. At this stage in the development of the recuperator, many factors in the analysis had to be assumed. Significant changes in some of the assumptions could dramatically affect the economics. For example, utilizing $2.85 per mcf for the natural gas price (as opposed to $2.00 per mcf) could reduce the payback period by more than half in certain cases. In addition, future commercial application will depend upon ceramic component manufacturing technique advances and cost reduction.

• Research Organization: Terra Tek, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC07-77CS40012
• OSTI ID: 7072539
• Report Number(s): DOE/CS/40012-2
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320304* -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Industrial & Agricultural Processes-- Waste Heat Recovery & Utilization
42 ENGINEERING
421000 -- Engineering-- Combustion Systems
AIR
CERAMICS
COMPUTER CODES
CONSTRUCTION
DESIGN
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
ECONOMICS
ENERGY RECOVERY
ENERGY TRANSFER
EQUIPMENT
EXHAUST GASES
FLUIDS
FURNACES
GASEOUS WASTES
GASES
GLASS INDUSTRY
HEAT RECOVERY
HEAT RECOVERY EQUIPMENT
HEAT TRANSFER
HEAT TREATMENTS
HIGH TEMPERATURE
INDUSTRY
MATERIALS TESTING
PAYBACK PERIOD
PERFORMANCE TESTING
RECOVERY
SIMULATION
SPECIFICATIONS
STRESS ANALYSIS
STRUCTURAL MODELS
TEMPERATURE DISTRIBUTION
TESTING
WASTES