This article deals with the possibility of separating water vapour from flue gases after oxyfuel combustion using condensation processes. Those processes can generally be described as condensation of water vapour in the presence of non-condensable gases. Hence, the effect of noncondensable gas (NCG) on the condensation process has been theoretically and experimentally analysed in this study. The theoretical model was developed on the basis of the heat and mass transfer analogy with respect to the effect of the NCG, the flow mode of the condensate film, the shear stress of the flowing mixture, subcooling and superheating. Subsequently, an experimental analysis was carried out on a 1.5m long vertical pipe with an inner diameter of 23.7mm. The mixture of vapour and air flowed inside the inner tube with an air mass fraction ranging from 23% to 62%. The overall heat transfer coefficients (HTC) from the theoretical model and experimental measurement are significantly lower than the HTC obtained according to the Nusselt theory for the condensation of pure water vapour. The overall HTC decreases along the tube length as the gas concentration increases, which corresponds to a decrease in the local condensation rate. The highest values of the HTC are observed in the condenser inlet, although a strong decrease in HTC is also observed here. Meanwhile, there is a possibility for an HTC enhancement through turbulence increase of the condensing mixture in the condenser outlet. Results also showed that the heat resistance of the mixture is several times higher than the heat resistance of the condensate film. The developed theoretical model based on heat and mass transfer analogy is in good agreement with experimental results with the standard deviation within +25% and −5%. The model is more accurate for lower NCG concentrations.

This paper deals with the condensation of water vapour possessing a content of noncondensable gas in vertical tubes. The condensation of pure steam on a vertical surface is introduced by the Nusselt condensation model. However, the condensation of water vapour in a mixture with non-condensable gas differs from pure vapour condensation and is a much more complex process. The differences for the condensation of water vapour in a mixture containing a high concentration were theoretically analysed and evaluated. In order to investigate these effects, an experimental stand was built. Experiments were carried out in regards to the case of pure steam condensation and the condensation of water vapour with a non-condensable gas mixture to evaluate the influence of the variable non-condensable gas content during the process. A non-condensable gas in a mixture with steam decreases the intensity of the condensation and the condensation heat transfer coefficient. A gradual reduction of the volume and partial pressure of steam in the mixture causes a decrease in the condensation temperature of steam, and the temperature difference between steam and cooling water. The increasing non-condensable gas concentration restrains the transportation of steam towards the tube wall and this has a significant effect on the decrease in the condensation rate.