Subsystem Governing Equation: Heating Subsystem

Firstly, based on the datum, the feed flowrate are determined to produce targeted ethylene volume.
All the typical data for furnace inlet and outlet are obtained from cracking furnace research paper
[1]. The data for the radiant furnace and data for mixtures input and output percentage are tabulated
into following tables:

Table 1: Cracking furnace data

Plant Capacity 850 kTon ethylene per year

Running Time 24 hours/day, 330 days/year
Inlet Naphtha Flowrate (Kg/s) 103 Kg/s
Outlet Mixture Flowrate (Kg/s) 103 Kg/s
Inlet Temperature, T1 (°C) 650°C
Outlet Temperature, T2 (°C) 892°C
Inlet Pressure (bar) 3bar
Outlet Pressure (bar) 1.5bar

Table 2: Mass composition for inlet and outlet mixture

From the above data, for the design of heating furnace for cracking furnace, the convection section
is not considered, assuming that the convection section are ideal to produce a feed for furnace with
650°C and 3bar pressure.
 1. Total heat transfer per unit time

From the equation of thermodynamics, the below equation are considered to calculate the overall
heat transfers in the furnace.

𝑄
= ṁ ∗ C𝑝 ∗ (𝑇𝑜𝑢𝑡 − 𝑇𝑖𝑛 ) (1)
𝑡

Based on the tabulation of data previously, we know that the mass flowrate, ṁ is 103 kg/s, and
inlet temperature, Tin = 650°C and outlet temperature, Tout = 892°C. The Cp which is the specific
heat capacity of the mixture fluid will be determine based on the following mixture specific heat
capacity equation:

𝑛1 𝐶𝑝1 +𝑛2 𝐶𝑝2

𝐶𝑃 = (𝑛1 +𝑛2 )
(2)

The feed contains three (3) main mixture that are ethane, propane, and water. Therefore, this three
specific heat capacity will be calculated into mixture specific heat capacity by using above
equation. Therefore with below specific heat capacity for each component, the Cp for mixture is
calculated:

Table 3: The physical properties of feedstock

Propane
Mass composition 0.749
Specific Heat Capacity (kJ/(kg K)) 1.67
Ethane
Mass composition 0.026
Specific Heat Capacity (kJ/(kg K)) 3.846
Water
Mass composition 0.225
Specific Heat Capacity (kJ/(kg K)) 4.187

1.67kJ 3.846kJ 4.187kJ

(0.749) ( ) + (0.026) ( kg K ) + (0.225)( kg K )
kg K
𝐶𝑃 =
(0.749 + 0.026 + 0.225)
 Cp = 2.293 kJ / (kg K)
Therefore, the total heat transfer per unit time for cracking furnace is:

Q Kg kJ
= 103 ∗ 2.293 ∗ ((892 + 273)K − (650 + 273))
t s Kg. K

𝑸
= 57.16 MW
𝒕

2. The total of heat energy required (Input Heat Energy) in the furnace
To calculate the input heat energy, the data needed is heat transfer inlet which is the heat transfer
from the furnace heating coils. Based on the research paper on the steam cracking furnace, the
design data for the specific heating coils which are suitable for this plant are determine. The
following set of data are acquired [1]:
Table 4: The coils parameters and heat transfer capacity
Parameters Values
Coils length (m) 70m
Internal Diameter (m) 0.108m
Wall thickness (m) 0.008m
Heat transfer capacity (MW) 3.28 MW/ m2

The heat transfer capacity is given by Megawatt per square meters. Therefore, it is necessary to
calculate the total reaction area from the given coils parameters. The total reaction area can be
given determine by using the equation for surface area of cylinder:

A = 2*π*r*h + 2*π*r2 (3)

2
0.108m 0.108m
𝐴 =2∗π∗( ) ∗ 70m + 2 ∗ π ∗ ( )
2 2
A = 23.77 m2

From the reaction area, we then can calculate the total heat transfer capacity for the coil.

Qin = Reaction Area * Heat Transfer Capacity per meter square

Qin = (23.77 m2) * (3.28 MW/m2)

Qin = 77.97 MW

3. The efficiency if the cracking furnace

To calculate the efficiency, the following equation is used:

(4)

From previous calculation, we know that:

Wnet = 57.16 MW

Qin = 77.97 MW

Therefore,

57.16 𝑀𝑊
𝜂𝑡ℎ = ∗ 100%
77.97 𝑀𝑊

𝛈𝐭𝐡 = 𝟕𝟑. 𝟑𝟏%