Numerical Analysis of Hot Air Recirculation Phenomenon in a Compressor Unit and Prevention of Overheating
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TECHNICAL ARTICLE—PEER-REVIEWED
Numerical Analysis of Hot Air Recirculation Phenomenon in a Compressor Unit and Prevention of Overheating A. M. Khalaf . I. Barsoum
Submitted: 8 April 2019 Ó ASM International 2019
Rate of heat generation per unit volume (W/m3) Thermal conductivity (W m1 K1) Thermal expansion coefficient (K1) Viscous dissipate rate (J/kg s) Universal gas constant = 8.314472 J/K.mol Mass flow (kg/s) Temperature (K) Change in temperature (K) Cooler fan inlet temperature (K) Cooler fan outlet temperature (K) Atmospheric ambient temperature (K) Buoyancy force (N) Hot air recirculation ratio Average hot air recirculation ratio
Abstract Managing the hot air recirculation and flow pattern in air-cooled systems is essential for satisfactory performance and reliable operation of compressor units. In this study, a numerical analysis of the exhaust air from an air-cooled compressor package located in oil and gas offshore platform is presented using computational fluid dynamics. The results of the analysis reveal that hot air recirculation can have a direct impact in air-cooled units, which is associated with the installation arrangement of the mechanical packages involving air coolers and the environmental conditions around the units. The results were able to predict flow and temperature fields in the compressor area, and provided recommendation to avoid exhaust air recirculation, which if not addressed and prevented can greatly reduce the cooling effectiveness of the air coolers leading to less reliable systems.
q_ K ß U R m_ T DT Tin Tout Ta Fz RHAR RHAR
Keywords Air-cooled Heat exchanger Compressor CFD Hot air Recirculation
Introduction
List of Symbols q Density (kg/m3) u Velocity vector (m/s) g Gravitational constant (9.81 m/s2) l Dynamic viscosity (Pa s) cp Specific heat at constant pressure (J/g K) A. M. Khalaf Central Engineering Department, CED, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC Offshore), P.O. Box 303, Abu Dhabi, UAE e-mail: [email protected] I. Barsoum (&) Department of Mechanical Engineering, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 2533, Abu Dhabi, UAE e-mail: [email protected]
Air-cooled heat exchangers (ACHE) are commonly used in industrial applications such as electrical power generation plants, petrochemical processing areas, and in data centers involving high-temperature IT equipment [1–4] due to economic and environmental considerations [5]. The thermal management of critical equipment including air-cooled condensers in power plants, power transformers, and gas compression systems is crucial, and the associated cooling systems highly contribute to the reliability and efficiency of the overall plant [6–8]. Although air-cooled systems may require less cost compared to water-cooled systems, their optimum performance will depend on several factors such as wind direction and speed, flow obstructions, environmental conditions, i.e., changes in ambient conditions, and hot air recirculation [1]. All these factors have a significant effect on the heat transfe
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