Analysis of Flow Characteristics of a Debris Filter in a Condenser Tube Cleaning System

Abstract

In a power plant that uses seawater as a coolant, a debris filter (DF) is required to remove foreign substances from the seawater, and differential pressure leads to a decrease in the coolant flow rate, leading to a decrease in the power generation efficiency. In this study, an analysis was performed for the cases wherein the initial flow velocity conditions of the DF used in the condenser tube cleaning system (CTCS) were 1.5 m/s, 2.0 m/s, and 2.5 m/s using Ansys Fluent 2021, and the flow characteristics were identified. The flow and differential pressure characteristics of a CTCS with an installed DF were considered in a comparative analysis of the velocity, pressure, and turbulence kinetic energy (TKE) distributions. The results confirmed that a vortex was generated in the pipe with the DF, apparently due to the collision of the flow with the bracket of the DF. As the flow rate increased, the range of the vortex increased, causing a loss in flow.