Fluid Mechanics

for Power Generation

P M V Subbarao
Associate Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
IIT Delhi

An Essential Science for All Thermal Processes !!!!!

As early as 400,000 BC, fire was kindled in the caves of Peking man.

The Aelopile : Generation of Mechanical Motion

In 130BC. Hero, a Greek mathematician
and scientist is credited with inventing
the first practical application of steam
power, the aelopile.
Simply a cauldron with a lid, the aelopile
had two pipes that channeled steam into
a hollow sphere.
The sphere, which pivoted on the steam
pipes, had two nozzles situated on
opposite sides of its axis.
Thus, the cauldron was fired, the water
in it boiled, the steam was channeled
into the sphere, and as the steam
escaped through the nozzles, the
sphere would spin.
It was a thought the device and a
novelty.

Truths of Modern Life

Using the steam/Gas to make the Electric Power !
Rotating the shaft(Rotor) is the ultimate goal of any
power plant !!!
How do you get mechanical power from Live-steam or
Gas?
How to get super energized (Live) steam/Gas ?
How do u generate life in live-steam ?
A science of Fluid Power is basis for all current and future power
generation technologies.

Philosophy of Fluid Power

Present and future power generation technologies are based on:

Conversion of any natural power into fluid power.
Transfer fluid power to shaft power.
Conversion of shaft power into Electric power.
Basic laws of Fluid power based power generation.
Impulse principle
Reaction principle
Impulse-reaction principle
Aerofoil theory.
Every Power Engineer should study FLUID MECHANICS.

Further Applications of Fluid Mechanics

Transportation of Fuel.
Internal supply of fuel and air through the fuel handling equipment.
Internal circulation of flue gas and steam through steam generator &
Condenser.
Operation of all journal bearings.
Operation of all the pumps, fans & compressors.
Operation of Many control systems.

Fluid Mechanics

P M V SUBBARAO
Associate Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
IIT Delhi

A Science, which devalued the importance of time !!!!

Time : A Pseudo Scientific Firm Concept

A powerful pseudo concept.

Became an utmost important in engineering and science after
Newton.
Changes with respect to time, in a body is the core of
Engineering.
But Past and Present are more known than the future.
Past and future are not two distinct entities like Delhi and
Mumbai.
..

Present day Engineering and Science is strongly centered

around Time base.
Fluid Mechanics reduces the weight of time in Engineering.

Energy and Power

The scalar product of force and displacement is Work.

Capability to execute a work is energy.
Rate of doing work or rate of change in energy is Power.
Finally Generation of Power is a temporal act.

Newtons Second Law for Flow Device

m
m
V2

V1

V1

m
V1

V2

V2

Newtons Second Law for Flow Device

Newtons Force:

Active Force : F m V2 V1
Re active Force : R m V1 V2
All quantities are invariant in time.
Vary in spacial direction only.
Still it is possible to accomplish Power Generation.
More Advanced systems are more invariant with time.

Stage of A Turbine

Sequence of Energy Transactions

Steam
Thermal
Power

Steam
kinetic
Power
Nozzle Losses

Isentropic efficiency of
Nozzle

Blade
kinetic
Power

Stage Losses
Moving Blade
Losses

Blade Friction Factor

Fluid Dynamics of Coal Preparation & Supply

BY

P M V Subbarao
Associate Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
I I T Delhi

Aerodynamics a means of Transportation

Major Components of Coal Fired Steam

Generator

Schematic of typical coal pulverized system

A Inlet Duct;
B Bowl Orifice;
C Grinding Mill;
D Transfer Duct to Exhauster;
E Fan Exit Duct.

Velocity through various regions of the mill during

steady operation

Cyclone-type classifier.

Axial and
radial gas
velocity
components

Centrifugal Classifiers

The same principles that govern the

design of gas-solid separators, e.g.
cyclones, apply to the design of
classifiers.
Solid separator types have been used
preferentially as classifiers in mill circuits:
centrifugal cyclone-type and gas path
deflection, or
louver-type classifiers.
The distributions of the radial and axial
gas velocity in an experimental cyclone
precipitator are shown in Figures.
The flow pattern is further characterized
by theoretical distributions of the
tangential velocity and pressure, the
paths of elements of fluid per unit time,
and by the streamlines in the exit tube of
the cyclone.

Particle Size Distribution--Pulverized-Coal

Classifiers

The pulverized-coal classifier has

the task of making a clean cut in
the pulverized-coal size
distribution:
returning the oversize particles to
the mill for further grinding
but allowing the "ready to burn"
pulverized coal to be transported
to the burner.
The mill's performance, its safety
and also the efficiency of
combustion depend on a
sufficiently selective operation of
the mill classifier.

Mill Pressure Drop

The pressure loss coefficients for the pulverized-coal system
elements are not well established.
The load performance is very sensitive to small variations in
pressure loss coefficient.

Correlation of pressure
loss coefficient with
Reynolds number
through the mill section
of an exhauster-type
mill.

Fundamentals of Fluid
Mechanics

Introduction

Fluid mechanics is the science of fluids

either at rest (fluid statics) or in motion
(fluid dynamics) and their effects on
boundaries such as solid surfaces or
interfaces with other fluids.
Definition of a fluid: a substance that
deforms continuously when subjected to
a shear stress.
Consider a fluid between two parallel
plates, which is subjected to a shear
stress due to the impulsive motion of
the upper plate
No slip condition: no relative motion
between fluid and boundary, i.e., fluid
in contact with lower plate is stationary,
whereas fluid in contact with upper
plate moves at speed U.

Fluid deforms, i.e., undergoes strain due to shear stress