Investigation of thermo-hydraulic design aspects in optimization of MED plants

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to investigate the thermo-hydraulic design aspects in optimization of heat exchangers that are called “effects” in multiple-effect distillation plants. Desalination costs have been continuously declining over the years because of advances in system designs and operating experiences, and the associated reductions in specific unit sizes and power consumptions. In this article, it is shown that the concurrent investigation of process design and mechanical design significantly influences the cost of raw materials, as the heat exchanger size and energy savings usually have a paradox with each other. The cost of shell material and tubes inside the effects are the most effective factors in the costs of desalination plant construction. A software for the process design analysis of MED-TVC (multi-effect desalination with thermal vapor compression) plants is developed in order to calculate the costs of the required tubes and the shell of the system. This software can provide an effective tool for the process simulation and economical evaluation of fixed capital cost, including those of shell and required tubes. The influence of all effective parameters in this evaluation is predicted in this software under design and operating conditions.

Keywords:

• MED-TVC
• Economical evaluation
• Process design
• Thermo-hydraulic design

Acknowledgment

The authors would like to express their appreciation to the Fanniroo Company (Tehran, IRAN), for their valuable time and cooperation.