Analysis on the heat exchange efficiency of kraft recovery boiler by nose arch structure using cfd

A kraft recovery boiler produces steam for power generation by the combustion of black liquor from the kraft pulping process. Since saturated steam became superheated in a superheater above the furnace, it is important to increase the heat exchange efficiency for the superheated steam production and power generation. A nose arch at the bottom of the superheater is important for blocking radiation from the furnace which causes corrosion of the superheater. But the nose arch is the main reason for creating a recirculation region and then decreasing the heat exchange efficiency by holding cold flue gas after the heat transfer to saturated steam. In this study, the size of recirculation region and the temperature of flue gas at the outlet were analyzed by the nose arch structure using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). As a result, when the nose arch angle changed from 106.5° (case 1) to 150° (case4), the recirculation region of flue gas decreased and the heat exchange efficiency between the flue gas and the steam increased by 10.3%.