A numerical study on the superheater tubes bundle of a 660 MW coal-fired supercritical boiler

Abstract

Coal-fired thermal power plants are currently converting their technology to supercritical and ultra-supercritical in order to meet the world’s energy demands. An important component in this technology is the superheater of the boiler, which operates at higher temperatures and above the critical pressures. For the design and reliable operation of a superheater tube bundle, thermal and structural analyses are crucial. This study focuses on the superheater tubes bundle of a 660[Formula: see text]MW coal-fired supercritical boiler. The superheater model is simulated to investigate the thermal characteristics such as temperature distribution, total heat flux and directional heat flux and structural parameters such as von Mises stresses, equivalent strains and total deformations. Different materials such as martensitic steel, austenitic steel and nickel–titanium are compared based on thermal and structural analysis. It is claimed that thermal performances of martensitic steel are more impressive as compared to superheater materials. The lower strain appeared for austenitic steel as compared to martensitic steel.