In: Chemistry
A manufacturing facility requires saturated steam at 120°C at a rate of 1.2 kg/min. Design an electric steam boiler for this purpose under these constraints: • The boiler will be in cylindrical shape with a height-to diameter ratio of 1.5. The boiler can be horizontal or vertical. • A commercially available plug-in type electrical heating element made of mechanically polished stainless steel will be used. The diameter of the heater can be between 0.5 cm and 3 cm. Also, the heat flux at the surface of the heater cannot exceed 150 kW/m2. • Half of the volume of the boiler should be occupied by steam, and the boiler should be large enough to hold enough water for a 2-h supply of steam. Also, the boiler will be well-insulated. You are to specify these: (1) The height and inner diameter of the tank; (2) the length, diameter, power rating, and surface temperature of the electric heating element; and (3) the maximum rate of steam production during short periods (less than 30 min) of overload conditions, and how it can be accomplished