Air-cooled condenser

Abstract

An air-cooled condenser for the condensation of steam by means of air is described, said air-cooled condenser comprising a steam supply line, at least one upwardly directed pipe bundle, to which the steam to be condensed can be supplied, a condensate drain for the drainage of condensed steam and a fan for the air transport to the pipe bundle. The pipe bundle is arranged below the fan in a sidewall of the air-cooled condenser. Several pipe bundles are thereby arranged in such a way that they form a jacket in the form of a polygon extending in the plumb line, wherein said jacket is closed such that it forms an enclosure on all sides.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims priority to German Patent Application No. DE 202005005302.3, filed Apr. 4, 2005, all of the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates to an air-cooled condenser for the condensation of steam by means of air. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] It is known that air-cooled condensers comprise pipe elements arranged parallel to one another—the so-called pipe bundles to which the steam to be condensed is supplied. In doing so, every two rows of such pipe bundles are usually arranged in such a way that they are inclined against one another at an acute angle in a gabled form. In the lateral view they form a triangular contour, at the base of which a fan is provided for the supply of air to the pipe bundles. The fan transports air, which is cool in comparison to the steam, to the pipe bundles in such a way that a heat exchange take...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005] Therefore the object underlying the invention is to create an air-cooled condenser, using which a large cooling capacity is economically feasible with a small space requirement and cost-effective design and with a uniform distribution of the steam into the pipe bundles.

[0007] The lateral arrangement of the pipe bundles in the sidewalls firstly distinctly reduces the installation height of the air-cooled condenser. Secondly, the pipe bundle weights are no longer arranged at a large installation height, instead at a relatively low installation height, consequently enabling a lighter support structure of the entire air-cooled condenser, which is advantageous economically. In addition, the arrangement of the pipe bundles in the sidewalls of the air-cooled condenser ensures a larger available area for the pipe bundles than in case of a triangular arrangement, in which only the sides of the triangle can be covered with pipe bundles. It is thus possible to achieve a larger cooling capacity of the air-cooled condenser with a low space requirement.

[0009] According to another preferred embodiment, the pipe bundle in a sidewall is inclined towards the plumb line in an angle range of ±30°. Should the inclination have a negative value, for example −30°, the result is a funnel-shaped design of the air-cooled condenser, wherein the cross-sectional area at the lower end (bottom) is smaller than that at the upper end (top). This permits the installation of a fan, which has a larger diameter than the base of the air-cooled condenser. Thus a fan of the largest size possible can be provided in case of a base of a minimum size, consequently achieving the maximum cooling capacity of the air-cooled condenser. The required provisions for a stable design of the associated frame structure are still relatively few within this angle range of ±30°, thus making it possible to implement a frame structure still more cost-effectively.

[0014] According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the fan is provided with a diffuser. This enables an increase in the degree of efficiency of the fan.

Problems solved by technology

However, it has been seen that air-cooled condensers of such a triangular design and large cooling capacity have a large space requirement and also require a large installation height, which call for an expensive substructure.

In addition, the difficulty in air-cooled condensers is to achieve a uniform distribution of the steam into every pipe bundle.

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