Answers

a) Energy Balance:

ΔE = Ein - Eout =0 and Q - W= ΔE

Therefore, the energy balance equation becomes

Q̇in + Ẇin + Σṁinh = Q̇out + Ẇout + Σṁouth

Entropy Balance

Ṡgen + Σ (Q̇sys/Tsys) + ΣṁinSin - ΣṁoutSout = 0

Assumptions

1. Steady operating conditions exist.

2. Air and combustion gases are ideal gases.

3. Kinetic and potential energies are negligible.

4. Complete combustion occurs

b) The exergy destruction rate is plotted as following:

c) The theoretical combustion equation of C2H6 is:

where ath is the stoichiometric coefficient and is determined from the O2 balance, ath = +2 1.5 =
3.5

Then the actual combustion equation can be written as

Calculating Qout with the following equation:

and taking the values from the the table:

Qout comes out to be:

d) If we look at the experimental graph of exergy destruction of ehtane, it can be seen that the
value is lower than what we found in (c). So calculating exergetic efficiency,

η = (1.0 x 106/1.201x106) x 100 = 83.3%

Evaluation of efficiency value: Since the graph of exergy destruction assumes that no energy is
lost to surroundings, the actual value would be much lower. Therefore, the value of exergetic
efficiency is lower than 83.3% in actual. The research suggests that the typical value of a
combustor reactor's exergetic efficiency is about 51%.

e) Incomplete combustion would decrease the exergetic efficiency because other hydrocarbons
would be formed in the reaction which hold some of the energy on their own and decrease the
overall efficiency of the process.