Patent ID: 8689443
Filing Date: 2014-04-08
Classification: F28B,Y10T

Abstract:
1. An apparatus comprising a surface steam condenser installed in a power plant, the condenser having a hotwell, the condenser having multitude of tubes for condensing steam into condensate, the multitude of tubes organized into a plurality vertically adjacent upper tube bundles and lower tube bundles, the upper and lower tube bundles having a length, the condenser having a multitude of support plates spaced at intervals for defining support plate bays along the length of the tube bundles, the tubes running through the support plates, a tray installed between support plates in at least one bay at the bottom of an upper tube bundle to catch condensate from the upper tube bundle and to drain the condensate around the lower tube bundle to the hotwell so as to improve the heat transfer coefficient of the lower tube bundle thereby producing an improvement in the overall heat transfer coefficient of the condenser and thus effecting a reduction in the backpressure of the steam turbine to increase the power and the thermal efficiency of the plant.