PROPERTIES OF STEAM

• Steam:
• Vapour form of water is called steam.

• Water is one of the pure substances which

can exist in three different phases namely,
• In solid phase as ice,
• In liquid phase as water,
• In gaseous phase as steam.
In all the three phases it retains the same
chemical composition.

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 Application of steam

Food processing industry.

Used as a working fluid in steam engines
and steam turbines.
Used in industries for process heating.
Washing/sterilizing in hospitals.
Health clinics / gym.

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FORMATION OF STEAM
EXPERIMENT
(Constant Pressure)

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 B C D
A

W
W
W
W
W

Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Fig. 3 Fig. 4 Fig. 5

Ts-saturation
Dry Superheat
temperature.
steam ed steam
Boiling point
of water,
increase in
volume of
water

4
 Temperature

Tsup
D

Degree of Superheat

B C
Ts

A
hf hfg Enthalpy

Sensible Latent
Heat Amount of
Heat
hg Superheat

Enthalpy-state of system, at constant pressure containing certain amount of heat.

Heat - the energy that causes those changes.
Latent heat-to convert liquid into vapour, without change of temperature 5
Consider 1 kg of water at
Cylinder
0oC taken in a cylinder
fitted with a freely moving
Pressure
frictionless piston as “P”

shown in figure.
I kg of
water at
OoC

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The initial condition of water at 0oC is represented by the
point “A” on the Temperature – Enthalpy graph

Temperature
Temperature
(ToC)

A
Enthalpy
(h)
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Definitions
• Saturation temperature(Tsat): It is defined
as the temperature at which the water
begins to boil at the stated pressure.

• Sensible heat (hf): It is the amount of

heat required to raise the temperature of 1
kg of water from 00C to the saturation
temperature Tsat0C at a given constant
pressure.

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Enthalpy of Water :
hw = m Cp (T-0) kJ/kg

Where, m = Mass of water in kg.

Cp = Specific heat of water
= 4.187 kJ/kg K
T= Temperature of feed water in ºC

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Latent heat (hfg): (Enthalpy of evaporation)
It is the amount of heat required to evaporate 1 kg of
water at the saturation temperature in to 1 kg of dry steam
at the same saturation temperature at a given constant
pressure.

Superheated temperature (Tsup):

It is the temperature of the steam above the saturation
temperature at a given constant pressure.

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Amount of superheat (AOS): (Enthalpy of superheat)
It is the amount of heat required to increase the
temperature of 1 kg of dry steam from its saturation
temperature to any desired higher temperature at the
given constant pressure.

Degree of superheat (DOS):

It is the difference between the superheated temperature
and the saturation temperature.

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 Different states of steam

The steam as it is being generated can exist in three

different states,

1. Wet steam
2. Dry steam
3. Superheated steam

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 Wet Steam:

A wet steam is defined as a two-phase

mixture of finely divided water particles and
dry steam in thermal equilibrium at the
saturation temperature corresponding to a
given stated pressure.

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 The quality of wet steam is specified by the dryness
fraction which indicates the amount of dry steam present in
the given quantity of wet steam and is denoted as “x”.

The dryness fraction of a steam is defined as the ratio of

mass of the actual dry steam present in a known quantity of
wet steam to the total mass of the wet steam.

Mass of Dry Steam present in Wet Steam

Dryness fraction, x 
Total Mass of Wet Steam

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Let,
mg = Mass of dry steam present in the sample quantity of
wet steam

mf = Mass of suspended water molecules in the sample

quantity of wet steam
mg
x
m f  mg

The dryness fraction of wet steam is always less than 1.

The dryness fraction of dry steam is equal to 1.

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 Dry Saturated Steam:
(Dry steam)

It defined as the saturated steam at the

saturation temperature corresponding to a given
pressure and having no water molecules
entrained in it.

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 Superheated Steam:

A superheated steam is defined as the steam

which is heated to temperature higher than its
saturated temperature at the given pressure.

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 Advantages of Superheated Steam

High Energy Content: Superheated steam possess

higher energy compared to dry saturated steam or wet
steam at the same pressure, hence its capacity to do the
work will be higher.

Minimising Chances of Corrosion: Superheated

steam doesn’t create any problems like rusting or corrosion
of turbine blades / engine cylinder.

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 Advantages of Superheated Steam:
Utilisation of waste energy : When superheating is
done by the exhausting combustion gases in a boiler, there
will be a saving of the energy of combustion thereby
improving the thermal efficiency of the boiler. Hence
superheating does not require extra energy

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 Disadvantages of Superheated Steam

Difficulty in Lubrication: The high temperature of

superheated steam poses problems in lubrication. The
lubricant may get burnt at that high temperature.

Additional Cost: Additional cost of Super heater

thereby increasing initial investment.

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Enthalpy equations
a) Enthalpy of Dry saturated Steam (hg):
hg = hf + hfg kJ/kg
Where hg = Enthalpy of dry steam in kJ/kg.
hf = Sensible heat in kJ/kg.
hfg = Enthalpy of evaporation or latent heat in kJ/kg.
Temperature

Tsup D

Degree of Superheat

B C
Ts

A Enthalpy
hf hfg

Sensible Latent Heat

Amount of
Heat
hg Superheat

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b) Enthalpy of Wet Steam (h):

h= hf + x .hfg kJ/kg
Where x = Dryness fraction of wet steam 0˂x˂1

Temperature

Tsup D

Degree of Superheat

B C
Tsat

Enthalpy
A
hf hfg

Sensible Latent Heat

Amount of
Heat
Superheat

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c) Enthalpy of Superheated Steam (hsup):
hsup = hf + hfg + Csup (Tsup - Tsat) kJ/kg
where hsup = Enthalpy of superheated steam in kJ/kg
Csup = Specific heat of superheated steam =2.25 kJ/kg K
Tsup = Superheated temperature in °C & Tsat = Saturation temperature in °C
Temperature

Tsup D
Degree of Superheat

B C
Tsat

A Enthalpy
hf hfg
Sensible Latent
Heat Amount of
Heat
Superheat
hg

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d) Amount of superheat (AOS): (Enthalpy of superheat)

AOS = Csup (Tsup - Tsat) kJ/kg

Temperature

Tsup D
Degree of Superheat

B C
Ts

A Enthalpy
hf hfg
Sensible Latent Heat
Amount of
Heat
Superheat

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e) Degree of superheat (DOS):

DOS = (Tsup - Tsat) 0C

Temperatur
Temperature

Tsup D
Degree of Superheat

Tsat B C

A Enthalpy
hf hfg
Sensible Latent
Heat Amount of
Heat
Superheat

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a) Enthalpy of Dry saturated Steam:
hg = hf + hfg kJ/kg

b) Enthalpy of Wet Steam:

h = hf + x .hfg kJ/kg
c) Enthalpy of Superheated Steam:
hsup = hf + hfg + Csup (Tsup - Tsat) kJ/kg
d) Degree of superheat (DOS):
DOS = (Tsup - Tsat) 0C

e) Amount of superheat (AOS):

AOS = Csup (Tsup - Tsat) kJ/kg
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 f) Boiler Efficiency

• Boiler efficiency is defined as the ratio

of heat energy utilized from the boiler
to the heat energy supplied to the
boiler.

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f) Boiler Efficiency

Qhs  hw  100

m fu  GCV
Where
Q= Quantity of steam generated per unit time(kg/hr.)

hs = Enthalpy of steam generated (kJ/kg)

hw = Enthalpy of feed water (kJ/kg)

mfu = Quantity of fuel consumed per unit time(kg/hr.)

GCV= Gross calorific value of the fuel (kJ/kg)

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NUMERICALS ON PROPERTIES OF STEAM

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1) Determine the condition and related parameter of the steam in the following
cases: (i) Pressure of 10 bar and temperature of 200ºC and (ii) Pressure of 8 bar
and enthalpy of 2500kJ/kg. (iii) Steam at 20bar and 300ºC is cooled at constant
pressure during which the heat lost is 400kJ/kg. Assume specific heat of
superheated steam as 2.25kJ/Kg K.

2) 2 Kg of water at 30ºC is heated at a constant pressure of 5 bar. The total

amount of heat added is 500 KJ. Determine the condition and related parameter
of water after heat addition. Assume specific heat of water as 4.187kJ/Kg K.

3) 10 Kg. of steam at a pressure of 1.15 MPa and temperature of 250°C loses

27578.2 kJ of heat at constant pressure. Determine the resulting temperature?
Assume specific heat of water and superheated steam as 4.187 kJ/kg K and 2.25
kJ/kg K respectively.

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4) Two boilers one with super heater and another without super heater are
delivering equal quantities of steam into a common main. The pressure in the
boiler and in the main is 20 bar. The temperature of the steam from a boiler with
a superheater is 350ºC and the temperature of steam in the main is 250ºC.
Determine the quality of steam supplied by the other boiler. Assume specific
heat of superheated steam as 2.25kJ/Kg K.

5) A dry saturated steam at a pressure of 1 MPa is generated in a boiler. Dry

saturated steam leaves the boiler to enter a super heater, where it loses heat
equal to 400 kJ/kg. In the super heater, steam is super-heated to temperature of
300ºC. If temperature of feed water is 28ºC, determine:
a) Total heat supplied to feed water in the boiler
b) Dryness fraction of steam at the entry of super heater
c)Total heat supplied in the super heater.
Assume specific heat of water as 4.187kJ/Kg K and that of superheated steam as
2.25kJ/Kg K
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6) 600 kg of 10% wet steam at a pressure of 16bar is generated in a boiler per
hour. Steam leaves the boiler to enter a super heater. Steam loses heat equal
to 300 kJ/kg before entering the super heater. In the super heater, steam is
superheated to temperature of 3750 C. If temperature of feed water is 400 C,
determine
i) Total heat supplied to feed water per hour to produce wet steam in the
boiler.
ii) Total heat absorbed per hour in the super heater.
Assume specific heat of water as 4.187kJ/Kg K and that of superheated
steam as 2.25kJ/Kg K

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7) A chemical company planning to install a coal fired boiler in its plant for
process heating is weighing different technical options due to investment
constraints. The steam generation capacity required is 5000kg per hour at a
pressure of 0.56MPa and at a temperature of 220ºC. The feed water is available
from a nearby reservoir at an average temperature 30ºC. The coal consumption
is 1500 kg/hr, having a calorific value of 24MJ/kg. Assess the improvement in
boiler efficiency if the following accessories are used.

i) Economizer which will increase the feed water temperature by 58ºC.and

reduce the coal consumption by 14%.

ii) Air Preheater which will reduce the coal consumption by 20%.

iii) Both Economizer and Air Preheater whose combined effect will reduce the
coal consumption by 30%.

Assume specific heat of water and superheated steam as 4.187kJ/kg K and

2.25kJ/kg k respectively

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8) A restaurant, daily uses 600 kg of 95% dry steam produced at a pressure of
3bar. The boiler is fitted with an economizer which increases the feed water
temperature to 94º C and is fired using wood and paddy husk in equal
proportions. The gross calorific values of wood and paddy husk
are15500kJ/kg and 12600 kJ/kg respectively. The boiler has been operating
with an average efficiency of 78%. Calculate the daily consumption of wood
and paddy husk?

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Critical Temperature &
Pressure. Temperature Pc
Pi

At a particular pressure Tc

water is directly converted P3

into dry steam without

P2
going through the phase of
evaporation. i.e., hfg = 0 . P1

This point is called critical

point.

Pc = 221.2 bar
Tc = 374.150C Enthalpy

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Critical pressure:
It is the pressure at which the water is directly converted
into dry steam without undergoing the phase of
evaporation.

Critical temperature:
It is the corresponding temperature at the critical point.

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