CHAPTER (2)

CONDENSATION AND COOLING TOWERS

2.1-CONDENSATION
2.1.1- INTRODUCTION
The change from liquid phase to vapor phase is called vaporization and the reverse phase transfer is
condensation. The change from liquid to vapor or vapor to liquid occurs at one temperature (called
saturation or equilibrium temperature) for a pure fluid compound at a given pressure. The industrial
practice of vaporization and condensation occurs at almost constant pressure; therefore the phase
change occurs isothermally.
Condensation occurs by two different physical mechanisms i.e. drop-wise condensation and film
condensation. The nature of the condensation depends upon whether the condensate (liquid formed
from vapor) wets or does not wet the solid surface. If the condensate wets the surface and flows on the
surface in the form of a film, it is called film condensation. When the condensate does not wet the solid
surface and the condensate is accumulated in the form of droplets, is drop-wise condensation. Heat
transfer coefficient is about 4 to 8 times higher for drop wise condensation. The condensate forms a
liquid film on the bare surface in case of film condensation. The heat transfer coefficient is lower for film
condensation due to the resistance of this liquid film.
Drop wise condensation occurs usually on new, clean and polished surfaces. The heat exchanger used for
condensation is called condenser. In industrial condensers, film condensation normally occurs. In the
power industry the term surface condenser is reserved for tubular equipment which condenses steam
from the exhaust of turbines and engines. Since a turbine is primarily designed to obtain mechanical
work from heat, the maximum conversion is obtained in the turbine by maintaining a low turbine-
discharge temperature. If the turbine were to discharge to the atmosphere, the lowest attainable steam
temperature would be 100oC, but if the steam were to discharge into a condenser under vacuum, it
would be possible to operate at discharge temperatures of 24 oC and lower and to convert the enthalpy
difference from 100oC to 24oC into useful work.
2.1.2- TYPES OF CONDENSERS
I. HORIZONTAL CONDENSER:
The condensation may occur inside or outside the horizontal tubes (Figure 1). Condensation in the tube-
side is common in air-cooled condensers. The main disadvantage of this type of condenser is that the
liquid tends to build up in the tubes. Therefore the effective heat transfer co-efficient is reduced
significantly.
The presence of even small amounts of non-condensable gases drastically reduces heat transfer. It has
been suggested that only 1-2% air in steam can reduce heat transfer by 75%. Since the condensing
vapor in such systems must diffuse through a non-condensable gas to reach the cooling surface, full
consideration requires modeling of both heat and mass transfer. Vents are sometimes installed to bleed
non-condensable from the system. The design of condenser is similar to a typical shell and tube
exchangers. A condenser must have a vent for removal of non-condensable gas. The non-condensable
gas decreases the heat transfer rate. Condenser usually uses a wider baffle spacing of B =Ds (ID of shell)
as the allowable pressure drop in shell side vapor is usually less.
II. VERTICAL CONDENSER
- Down- flow vertical condenser: The vapor enters at the top of condenser and flows down inside tubes.
The condensate drains from the tubes by gravity and vapor induced shear (Figure 2).
- Up- flow vertical condenser: In case of up-flow condenser, the vapor enters at the bottom and flows
upwards inside the tubes. The condensate drains down the tubes by gravity only. In condensation on a
vertical surface a film of condensate is formed and further condensation and heat transfer to the surface
occurs by conduction through the film which is assumed to be in laminar flow down ward. The thickness
of this film greatly influences the rate of condensation, since the heat accompanying. The thickness of
the film is a function of the velocity of drainage which varies with the deviation of the surface from a
vertical position. For a vertical surface the thickness of the film cumulatively increases from top to
bottom. Most industrial applications are based on film mechanisms, since it is tricky and expensive to
build non-wetting surfaces. After condensation, the liquid flows down the tube surface under the
influence of gravity (unless vapor rates are high enough to produce vapor shear). The flow may be
laminar or turbulent, depending on the fluid, rate of condensation, tube size, etc. The film tends to
thicken as it flows to the bottom of the tube, and the weight of the fluid may cause ripples to form. These
will cause deviations from pure laminar flow. Vertical cut-segmental baffles are generally used in
condensers for side-to-side vapor flow and not for top to bottom. An opening at the bottom of the baffles
is provided to allow draining of condensate.

Figure 1. Horizontal condenser with condensation outside horizontal tubes

Figure 2. Down-flow vertical condenser with condensation inside tube

2.1.3- DROP-WISE AND FILM-WISE CONDENSATION.
When a saturated pure vapor comes into contact with a cold surface such as a tube, it condenses and
may form liquid droplets on the surface of the tube. These droplets may not exhibit an affinity for the
surface and instead of coating the tube fall from it, leaving bare metal on which successive droplets of
condensate may form. When condensation occurs by this mechanism, it is called drop-wise
condensation. Usually, however, a distinct film may appear as the vapor condenses and coats the tube.
Additional vapor is then required to condense into the liquid film rather than form directly on the bare
surface. This is film or film- wise condensation; the two mechanisms are distinct and independent of the
quantity of vapor condensing per square meter of surface. Film-wise condensation is therefore not a
transition from drop-wise condensation because of the rapidity at which condensate forms on the tube.
Due to the resistance of the condensate film to the heat passing through it the heat-transfer coefficients
for drop-wise condensation are four to eight times those for film-wise condensation.
FILM VS. DROPWISE
• In film condensation, the surface is blanketed by a liquid film of increasing thickness, and this “liquid
wall” between solid surface and the vapor serves as a resistance to heat transfer.
• In drop-wise condensation, however the droplets slide down when they reach a certain size, clearing
the surface and exposing it to vapor. There is no liquid film in this case to resist heat transfer.
• As a result, heat transfer rates are more than 10 times larger in drop-wise condensation.
MEAN TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE
The condensation occurs almost at a fixed temperature (isothermally) at constant pressure for a pure
saturated vapor compound. The logarithmic mean temperature difference can be used for condenser
design. No correction factor for multiple pass condensers is required.

CONDENSING Tsat , Ch ∞
FLUID

Cmin=Cc
COLD FLUID

The logarithmic mean temperature difference

LMTD= (ΔT1-ΔT2)/ln (ΔT1/ ΔT2 )

ΔT1=Tsat – Tci Tsat = Saturation vapor temperature

Tci = Coolant inlet temperature
ΔT2=Tsat – Tco Tco = Coolant outlet temperature

CONDENSATE LOADING ( Г )
The condensate loading on a tube is the mass flow of condensate per unit length that must be traversed
by the draining fluid. = m• / p ,(kg/m.s)
The length dimension is perpendicular to the direction the condensate flows;
• The perimeter for vertical tubes.
 • The length for horizontal tubes.
Г = mass flow of condensate /perimeter = m•/p
Г= mcond / πdo for vertical tube (do=tube outer diameter)
Г = mcond /Lt for horizontal tube (Lt = tube length)
General values of condensate rating for horizontal tube 0.01 to 0.1 kg/m.s
FILM REYNOLDS NUMBER, (ReΓ)
ReΓ =ρ.Dh .v/μ
Dh=hydraulic diameter= 4Ac /p
Wet perimeter Wet surface area Hydraulic diameter
P Ac Dh =4Ac /p
Vertical Plate L δ*L 4δ
vertical tube πdo δ* πdo 4δ
horizontal tube 2L δ*2L 4δ

Condensation on tube surfaces

ReΓ = 4(ρ .Ac. v)/(p.μ)= 4 (m•/(p)/μ )= (4 Г/μ)

Thus, the film will become turbulent on the tube bundle at R eΓ equal to 1600.The flow is nearly always
laminar on single vertical tube because of the short cooling length around the perimeter .Flow is
considered laminar if this Reynolds number is less than 1600.
THE DRIVING FORCE FOR CONDENSATION, (ΔTdr)
The driving force for condensation is the temperature difference between the cold wall surface (Tw) and
the bulk temperature of the saturated vapour(Ts)
ΔTdr =Ts –Tw
THE FILM TEMPERATURE,(Tfilm)
The viscosity and most other properties used in the condensing correlations are evaluated at the film
temperature, a weighted mean of the cold surface (wall) temperature and the (hot) vapour saturation
temperature.
Tfilm = Tss - 3 ΔTdr /4
WALL TEMPERATURES, (Tw )
Tw= Ts - [(1/UA)/ (1/hoAo)][Ts - Tcoo ]
Tcoo =coolant temperature.
Use the wall temperature to calculate a film temperature.

2.1.4- CONDENSATION,VERTICAL SURFACES

For a vertical surface, the thickness of the film cumulatively increases from top to bottom. For this
reason the condensing coefficient for a vapor condensing on a vertical surface decreases from top to
bottom.
The rate at which heat passes from the vapor through the liquid condensate film and into the cooling
surface per unit area is given by
Qx /Ax=hfgm. m•x=k(Ts –Tw)/δx =hx(Ts–Tw ), w/m2
Where
hfgm = The modified latent heat of vaporization
hfgm = hfg +0.68Cp (Ts – Tw ) (1)
m•x =condensate rate (kg/m2.s) at the distance x from the origin
hx= The heat-transfer coefficient per unit area at the distance x from the origin
The rate at which the vapor condenses is
m•x = k(Ts –Tw )/(hfgm.δx)
δx = the thickness of the condensate film
δx = [4μk.x.ΔT/(g.ρ2.hfgm]1/4
hx =k / δx =[ k3.g.ρ2.hfgm / (4μ.x. ΔT)]1/4
The average heat-transfer coefficient between the two points(x=L) is
𝐿
h͞ =∫0 ℎ(𝑥 ) . 𝑑𝑥=4/3 hx=L
h͞ =0.943[ k3.g.ρ2.hfgm / (μ.L. ΔT)]1/4 (2)
Where :- k, ρ, and μ are evaluated at the film temperature T f , where :-
Tf =(Ts +Tw )/2 (3)
ΔT=Ts –Tw (4)
Q =h͞ .A.ΔT = m•. hfgm
2.1.5 -HORIZONTAL TUBULAR SURFACES.
The average heat-transfer coefficient
h͞ =0.729[ k3.g.ρ2.hfgm / (μ.Do. ΔT)]1/4 (5)
Where k, ρ, and μ are evaluated at the film temperature T f
A comparison of the heat transfer coefficient relations for a vertical tube of height L and a horizontal
tube of diameter D yields
hvert / hhoriz = 1.29 (D/L) 1/4 (6)
• Setting hvertical = hhorizontal
L = (1.29)4 D = 2.77D
Which implies that for a tube whose length is 2.77 times its diameter, the average heat transfer
coefficient for laminar film condensation will be the same whether the tube is positioned horizontally or
vertically
•For L > 2.77D, the heat transfer coefficient will be higher in the horizontal position
• That is the reason why the tubes are placed horizontally in a condenser
HORIZONTAL TUBE BANKS
The average heat transfer coefficient for a vertical tier of N horizontal tubes is related to the one for a
single horizontal tube is determined to be
hhoriz, N tubes =0.729[ k3.g.ρ2.hfgm / (μ.N.Do. ΔT)]1/4 = (1/N1/4) hhoriz, 1 tube (7)

2.1.6 FILM CONDENSATION INSIDE HORIZONTAL TUBES

• Most condensation processes encountered in refrigeration and air conditioning applications, however,
involve condensation on the inner surfaces of horizontal or vertical tubes.
•Condensation in horizontal tubes may involve partial or total condensation of the vapor.
• Depending on the application, the inlet vapor may be superheated, equal to 1.0 or below 1.0.
• Hence, the condensation process path may first begin with a dry wall de-superheating zone, followed
by a wet wall de-superheating zone, then a saturated condensing zone and finally a liquid sub-cooling
zone.
• The condensing heat transfer coefficient is a strong function of local vapor quality, decreasing as the
vapor quality decreases.
• The condensing heat transfer coefficient is also a strong function of mass velocity, increasing as the
mass velocity increases.
• Opposed to external condensation, in tube condensation is independent of the wall temperature
difference (Ts -Tw ) for most operating conditions, i.e. except at low mass flow rates in stratified types of
flows.
The average heat-transfer coefficient
hinternal =0.555[ k3.g.ρ2.hfgm / (μ.Di.ΔT)]1/4 (8)
hfgm = The modified latent heat of vaporization
hfgm = hfg +(3/8)Cp(Ts- Tw ) (9)
 EXERCISES (2-A)
1) What is condensation? How does it occur?
2) What is the difference between film and drop-wise condensation? Which is a more effective
mechanism of heat transfer?
3) In condensate flow, how is the wetted perimeter defined? How does wetted perimeter differ
from ordinary perimeter?
4) What is the modified latent heat of vaporization? For what is it used? How does it differ from
the ordinary latent heat of vaporization?
5) Consider film condensation on a vertical plate. Will the heat flux be higher at the top or at the
bottom of the plate? Why?
6) Consider film condensation on the outer surfaces of a tube whose length is 10 times its
diameter. For which orientation of the tube will the heat transfer rate be the highest:
horizontal or vertical? Explain. Disregard the base and top surfaces of the tube.
7) Consider film condensation on the outer surfaces of four long tubes. For which orientation of
the tubes will the condensation heat transfer coefficient be the highest:
a) vertical,
b) horizontal side by side
c) horizontal but in a vertical tier(directly on top of each other
d) A horizontal stack of two tubes high and two tubes wide?
8) How does the presence of a non-condensable gas in a vapor influence the condensation heat
transfer?
9) Consider film condensation on the outer surfaces of N horizontal tubes arranged in a vertical
tier. For what value of N will the average heat transfer coefficient for the entire stack of tubes
be equal to half of what it is for a single horizontal tube?
10) Chose the correct
1- The heat transfer co-efficient in film type condensation is __________ that for drop-wise condensation
a) is same as
b) greater than
c) half
d) lower than
2- ________ Condensation is much desirable because of its higher heat transfer rates
a) Film wise b) Drop wise c) Direct contact
3- Drop wise condensation is converted into film wise condensation by means of
a) Viscosity b) Gravity c) Density
4- The actual vacuum in a condenser is equal to
a. barometric pressure + actual pressure
b. barometric pressure - actual pressure
c. gauge pressure + atmospheric pressure
d. gauge pressure - atmospheric pressure
5- A condenser maintains a low pressure (below atmospheric) so as to obtain the maximum possible
energy from steam and thus to secure a high efficiency.
a) Agree b) Disagree
6- In a steam condenser, the partial pressure of steam and air are 0.06 bar and 0.007 bar respectively.
The condenser pressure is
a)0.007 bar b)0.053 bar c)0.06 bar d)0.067 bar
7- The average heat transfer coefficient for laminar film condensation will be the same whether the
tube is positioned horizontally or vertically, when L/d=
a) 2.0 b) 1.77 c) 2.77
8- Presence of a non-condensation gas in a condensing vapour
a) Increase the rate of condensation
b) Decrease the thermal resistance
c) Increase film coefficient
d) Non of these
 Solution (2-A)
1- Condensation is a vapor-to-liquid phase change process. It occurs when the temperature of a
vapor is reduced below its saturation temperature Tsat. This is usually done by bringing the
vapor into contact with a solid surface whose temperature T s is below the saturation
temperature Tsat of the vapor.
2- In film condensation, the condensate wets the surface and forms a liquid film on the surface
which slides down under the influence of gravity. The thickness of the liquid film increases in
the flow direction as more vapour condenses on the film. This is how condensation normally
occurs in practice. In drop-wise condensation, the condensed vapor forms droplets on the
surface instead of a continuous film, and the surface is covered by countless droplets of varying
diameters. Drop-wise condensation is a much more effective mechanism of heat transfer.
3- In condensate flow, the wetted perimeter is defined as the length of the surface-condensate
interface at a cross-section of condensate flow. It differs from the ordinary perimeter in that the
latter refers to the entire circumference of the condensate at some cross-section.
4- The modified latent heat of vaporization, hfgm is the amount of heat released as a unit mass of
vapor condenses at a specified temperature, plus the amount of heat released as the condensate
is cooled further to some average temperature between Tsat and Ts. It is defined as where hfgm =
= hfg +0.68Cp (Ts – Tw ) (where Cp is the specific heat of the liquid at the average film
temperature).
5- During film condensation on a vertical plate, heat flux at the top will be higher since the
thickness of the film at the top, and thus its thermal resistance, is lower.
6- Setting the heat transfer coefficient relations for a vertical tube of height L and a horizontal
tube of diameter D equal to each other yields LD=27.,which implies that for a tube whose length
is 2.7 times its diameter, the average heat transfer coefficient for laminar film condensation
will be the same whether the tube is positioned horizontally or vertically. For L = 10D, the heat
transfer coefficient and thus the heat transfer rate will be higher in the horizontal position
since L > 2.77D in that case.
7- The condensation heat transfer coefficient for the tubes will be the highest for the case of
horizontal side by side (case b) since (1) for long tubes, the horizontal position gives the highest
heat transfer coefficients, and (2) for tubes in a vertical tier, the average thickness of the liquid
film at the lower tubes is much larger as a result of condensate falling on top of them from the
tubes directly above, and thus the average heat transfer coefficient at the lower tubes in such
arrangements is smaller.
8- The presence of non-condensable gases in the vapor has a detrimental effect on condensation
heat transfer. Even small amounts of a non-condensable gas in the vapor cause significant
drops in heat transfer coefficient during condensation.
9- Assumptions Steady operating conditions exist. Analysis The relation between the heat transfer
coefficients for the two cases is given to be
h horiz, N tubes =1/2 h horiz, 1 tube then 1/2= 1/N1/4 , N=16
 CONDENSATION
EXERCISES (2-B)

1- A large heat exchanger has several columns of tubes, with 20 tubes in each column. The outer
diameter of the tubes is 1.5 cm. Saturated steam at 50°C condenses on the outer surfaces of the tubes,
which are maintained at 20°C. Determine:-
(a)The average heat transfer coefficient
(b)The rate of condensation of steam per m length of a column.
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2- The condenser of a steam power plant operates at a pressure of 4.25 kP a. The condenser consists of
100 horizontal tubes arranged in a 10 x 10 square array. The tubes are 8 m long and have an outer
diameter of 3 cm. If the tube surfaces are at 20°C, determine
(a) The rate of heat transfer from the steam to the cooling water.
(b) The rate of condensation of steam in the condenser.
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3- Saturated steam at 55°C is to be condensed at a rate of 10 kg/h on the outside of a 3-cm-outer-
diameter vertical tube whose surface is maintained at 45°C by the cooling water. Determine the tube
length required.
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4- Repeat Problem 3 for a horizontal tube.
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5- The condenser of a steam power plant operates at a pressure of 7.38 kPa.Steam at this pressure
condenses on the outer surfaces of horizontal pipes through which cooling water circulates. The outer
diameter of the pipes is 3 cm, and the outer surfaces of the pipes are maintained at 30°C. Determine
(a) The rate of heat transfer to the cooling water circulating in the pipes
(b) The rate of condensation of steam per unit length of a horizontal pipe.
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6- Repeat Problem (5) for the case of 12 horizontal tubes arranged in a rectangular array of 3 tubes
high and 4 tubes wide
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7- Saturated steam at 30°C condenses on the outside of a 4-cm-outer-diameter, 2-m-long vertical tube.
The temperature of the tube is maintained at 20°C by the cooling water. Determine
(a) The rate of heat transfer from the steam to the cooling water
(b) The rate of condensation of steam
(c) The approximate thickness of the liquid film at the bottom of the tube.
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8- Saturated water vapor at a pressure of 12.5 kPa condenses on an array of 100 horizontal tubes. The
outer diameter of the pipes is 8mm and the outer surfaces of the pipes are maintained at 30°C.
Determine the condensation rates for
(a) A rectangular array of 5 tubes high and 20 tubes wide.
(b) A square array of 10 tubes high and 10 tubes wide.