Linde-Hampson Liquefaction Cycle

Schematic diagram of the process is as shown below:

1- Air at atmospheric conditions enters a compressor where it gets compressed to a pressure

of the order of 200 bar
2- As a result of compression the temperature rises, hence the compressed air is passed
through a cooler to lower its temperature

Pressure should be sufficiently high to ensure that the corresponding line in the T-S
diagram should pass through the dome shaped curve. That means, on cooling the
gas should eventually pass through the state of a saturated vapour, vapour liquid
mixture and then reach the saturated liquid state.

3- Compressed air , brought back to the atmospheric temperature is then passed through a
heat exchanger counter-currently (opposite direction) to a stream saturated vapour (portion
of the air expanded through the throttle valve (4) which does not get liquefied)

Hence its temperature is further reduced considerably.

This is necessary because if temperature is above inversion temperature, the JouleThomson coefficient of the gas (in this case air) will be negative and the gas will
not get cooled on expansion at constant enthalpy (throttling)
4- In the throttling valve, air expands to atmospheric pressure at constant enthalpy

(As the expansion is so fast that heat transfer can be neglected dQ=0,as there is no
shaft work dWs=0, kinetic and potential energy changes are negligible d(u2/2)=0
and dZ=0
Thus the energy balance equaton
.
.
u2
dQ dWs = d + gdZ + dH
2

reduces to the form

dH = 0

i.e, expansion takes place at constant enthalpy)

As the Joule Thomson coefficient is positive and air is at a very low temperature, the
expansion results in a temperature below the saturation point of air and a portion of it gets
liquefied.
5- The liquefied air is separated from the saturated vapour. (Liquefied air is further separated
into liquid nitrogen, oxygen etc by subjecting it to cryogenic fractional distillation).

The saturated unliquefied air, is now recycled and it passes counter-currently

to the compressed air in the heat exchanger (4).
Further it is fed to the compressor (1) along with fresh makeup air
(compensating the amount of air liquefied and removed) and the cycle goes on.

Claude Liquefaction Cycle

Schematic diagram of the process is as shown below:

1- Air at atmospheric conditions enters a compressor where it gets compressed

2- As result of compression the temperature rises, hence the compressed air is passed through
a cooler to lower its temperature
3- Compressed air is passed through a heat exchanger counter-currently to a stream of
saturated vapour (unliquefied portion of the air)
4- A portion of the cooled air now passes through a second heat exchanger where its
temperature is further reduced
5- The remaining portion is taken as a side stream and it is expanded through a turbine. The
process can be considered adiabatic as the expansion is very fast and during expansion
certain amount of shaft work can be drawn from the turbine. This isentropic expansion

results in a larger reduction of gas temperature than the isenthalpic expansion. The
temperature of air coming out of the turbine will be slightly above saturation temperature
(liquid formation inside the turbine will lead to decreased efficiency and life of the turbine).
This air combines with the unliquified air passing through the second heat exchanger
thereby maintaining a much lower temperature to the air stream entering the expansion
valve(6).
6- In the throttling valve, air expands at constant enthalpy.As the Joule Thomson coefficient is
positive and air is at a very low temperature, the expansion results in a temperature below
the saturation point of air and a portion of it gets liquefied.
7- The liquefied air is separated from the saturated vapour. (Liquefied air is further separated
into liquid nitrogen, oxygen etc by subjecting it to cryogenic fractional distillation.)

The saturated unliquefied air, is now recycled and it gets mixed with the
saturated air from the turbine (5) and passes counter-currently to the compressed
air in the heat exchangers (3&4).
Further it is fed to the compressor (1) along with fresh makeup air
(compensating the amount of air liquefied and removed) and the cycle goes on.

Claude process is more efficient compared to Linde- Hampson

process as the output stream from turbine helps reducing the
temperature of the inlet to the expansion valve to a much lower
value. Also the work extracted from the turbine compensates a
fraction of the work requirement of the compressor.