Changing the Product Temperature - Heating up with Steam

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of a substance can be expressed as: Q = m cp dT where Q = quantity of energy or heat (kJ) m = mass of the substance (kg) cp = specific heat capacity of the substance (kJ/kg C ) - Material Properties and Heat Capacities for several materials dT = temperature rise of the substance ( C) Preferring Imperial Units - Use the Units Converter! This equation can be used to determine a total amount of heat energy for the whole process, but it does not take into account therate of heat transfer which is:
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(1)

amount of heat energy per unit time

In non-flow type applications a fixed mass or a single batch of product is heated. In flow type applications the product or fluid is heated when it constantly flows over a heat transfer surface.

Non-flow or Batch Heating

In non-flow type applications the process fluid is kept as a single batch within a tank or vessel. A steam coil or a steam jacket heats the fluid from a low to a high temperature. The mean rate of heat transfer for such applications can be expressed as: q = m cp dT / t where q = mean heat transfer rate (kW (kJ/s)) m = mass of the product (kg) cp = specific heat capacity of the product (kJ/kg. C) - Material Properties and Heat Capacities for several materials dT = Change in temperature of the fluid ( C) t = total time over which the heating process occurs (seconds)
Example - Time required to Heat up Water with Steam
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(2)

The time required to heat 75 kg of water (cp = 4.2 kJ/kg C) from temperature 20 C to 75 C with steam produced from a boiler with capacity 200 kW (kJ/s) can be calculated by transforming eq. 2 to t = m cp dT / q

= 75 (kg) 4.2 (kJ/kg C) (75 ( C) - 20 ( C)) / 200 (kJ/s) = 86 s

Flow or Continuous Heating Processes

In heat exchangers the product or fluid flow is continuously heated. The mean heat transfer can be expressed as q = cp dT m / t where q = mean heat transfer rate (kW (kJ/s)) m / t = mass flow rate of the product (kg/s) cp = specific heat capacity of the product (kJ/kg. C) - Material Properties and Heat Capacities for several materials dT = change in temperature of the fluid ( C)
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(3)

Calculating the Amount of Steam

If we know the heat transfer rate - the amount of steam can be calculated: ms = q / he where ms = mass of steam (kg/s) q = calculated heat transfer (kW) he = evaporation energy of the steam (kJ/kg) The evaporation energy at different steam pressures can be found in the SteamTable with SI Units or in the Steam Table with Imperial Units. (4)

Example - Batch Heating by Steam

A quantity of water is heated with steam of 5 bar (6 bar abs) from a temperature of 35 C to 100 C over a period of 20 o minutes (1200 seconds). The mass of water is 50 kg and the specific heat capacity of water is 4.19 kJ/kg. C. Heat transfer rate: q = (50 kg) (4.19 kJ/kg C) (100 C - 35 C) / (1200 s) = 11.35 kW Amount of steam: ms = (11.35 kW) / (2085 kJ/kg)
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= 0.0055 kg/s = 19.6 kg/h

Example - Continuously Heating by Steam

Water flowing at a constant rate of 3 l/s is heated from 10 C to 60 C with steam at 8 bar (9 bar abs). The heat flow rate can be expressed as: q = (4.19 kJ/kg. C) (60 C - 10 C) (3 l/s) (1 kg/l) = 628.5 kW The steam flow rate can be expressed as: ms = (628.5 kW) / (2030 kJ/kg) = 0.31 kg/s = 1115 kg/h
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