When wet steam flows through a throttle valve and remains wet at exit ...
Throttling is a perfect example example of isenthalpic process. So,when wet steam flows through a throttle valve and remains wet at exit,then its temperature decreases,entropy increases and quality of steam(dryness fraction) increases.
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When wet steam flows through a throttle valve and remains wet at exit ...
Throttling of Wet Steam
Throttling of steam refers to the process of reducing the pressure of steam without any external work being done. This process is commonly used in steam turbines and steam engines to extract work from steam. When wet steam flows through a throttle valve, its properties change. Let's look at how the temperature and quality of wet steam change during throttling.
Effect of Throttling on Temperature and Quality of Wet Steam
- Wet steam is a mixture of water droplets and steam vapor. It has a lower temperature and lower quality than dry steam.
- When wet steam flows through a throttle valve, its pressure decreases, and its enthalpy decreases due to the decrease in kinetic and potential energy. This causes the temperature of the steam to decrease.
- However, the water droplets in the wet steam are more massive than the steam vapor. Therefore, they experience less change in enthalpy during throttling. This means that the quality of the steam increases, as the proportion of steam vapor in the mixture increases.
Therefore, the correct answer is option 'B'. The temperature of wet steam decreases during throttling, but its quality increases.
Importance of Understanding Throttling of Wet Steam
Understanding the properties of wet steam during throttling is essential for the efficient operation of steam turbines and engines. When wet steam enters a turbine, the presence of water droplets can cause erosion and damage to the blades. Therefore, it is necessary to remove as much moisture as possible before the steam enters the turbine. Throttling can be used as a method of removing moisture by reducing the pressure of the steam and causing the water droplets to condense. However, this also reduces the temperature and energy of the steam. Therefore, a balance must be struck between removing moisture and maintaining the temperature and energy of the steam.
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