I am trying to condense water vapor in a device. Vapors are condensing before they reach to the condenser unit. A bit skeptical about whether the performance would be better in which one of the cases?
1) Vapor Condensing at the condenser unit
or
2) Vapor Condensing before they reach to the condenser.
The device is heat pipe.
Condensation is the process by which water vapor in the air is changed into liquid water. Condensation is crucial to the water cycle because it is responsible for the formation of clouds.
Warm the tube that leads to the device.
(it might help to know what the condensate is: water? a long-chain alkane? glycine? etc.)
Condensation is only happening because the tubes are cool enough for the vapour pressure above the solid to be lower than the partial pressure of the gas.
James Garry thank you for answering the question. In a simple way, I would ask how condenser efficiency gets affected? if it just working as a heat transfer device not condensing device because vapors are not reaching the condenser. So condenser taking heat from the water and transferring back the water to the evaporator and in between the path way the vapors are getting condensed.
Ashwani,
A condenser is a heat exchanger. It removes heat from humid air, and (inevitably) the water vapour will condense.
You then have a stream of cooler, but perfectly humidified air, and a stream of water.
What is the goal of this device?
Hi James Garry, Yeah condenser is a heat exchanger.
I am sorry my question is coming in a complicated way as to keep the privacy on the design too.
Eventually, you answered my question and I understood my doubt based on your answer. Thank you!
I would like to connect with you if you can share your email?
If I understand your question correctly, you are trying to condense (pure?) water vapor in a condenser (the condenser section of a heat pipe?). If the vapor condenses before reaching the condenser section, it is not pure, but must contain a non-condensable gas, such as air. Non-condensables inevitably reduces the heat transfer significantly, since the vapor must diffuse through the inert gas in order to reach the surface. If this is inside a heat pipe, my guess is that you have inert gas present, and that axial conduction in the heat pipe wall lowers the temperature sufficiently upstream the condenser in order to facilitate condensation. (It is extremely difficult to avoid some presence of inert gases in a heat pipe, so you should design the unit to allow for a 'cushion' of non-condensables above the condenser section.
Hi Erling Næss thanks for sharing your answer. I understood the problem and working on it.
Hi,
You will have condensation wherever the temperature is at or below the dewpoint temperature (which is a unique function of the actual water vapor pressure).
If you want to condense water just at the condenser (likely...), you should keep everything else above the dewpoint temperature of the vapour.
Calculation of dewpoint temperature is easy, when you know the actual vapour pressure or air temperature and relative humidity.
Best, Andrea
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