Babcock Wanson has produced a bespoke TPC SW 1MW gas-fired Supercritical Water Heater, which operates at 275 bar pressure and reaches a temperature of 490°, for Promethean Particles as part of its nanoparticle production process.
Promethean Particles has built the continuous multi-material nanoparticle manufacturing plant, based in Nottingham, producing in excess of 1000 tons per year. Its unique reactor design allows for continuous production and flexibility, enabling it to produce a huge variety of materials to customer’s specifications.
For this bespoke heater, Babcock Wanson designed and manufactured a specially wound continuous coil assembly to form the main heating surface using ASI 321 9mm thick stainless steel. This material and thickness were chosen to meet the pressure and temperature demands of the process to be able to produce supercritical water at up to 250 bar and 450°C.
The resulting heater is now an integral part of the process, which includes return fluid heat recovery to limit the final temperature rise of the fluid to 90°C. This brings it up to 360°C water at 270 bar to take it to the temperature required for the supercritical condition.
