Abstract
In a SOFC/GT (solid oxide fuel cell/gas turbine) hybrid power generation system, the recuperator is an indispensible component to enhance system performance. Since the expansion ratio to the recuperator core is very large, generally, the effective header design to distribute the flow uniformly before entering the core is crucial to guarantee the required performance. In the present study, we focus on the design of a diffuser type recuperator header with a 90 degree turn inlet port. To reduce the flow separation and recirculation flows, multiple horizontal vanes are used. The number of horizontal vanes is varied from 0 to 24. The air flow velocity is measured at 40 points just behind the core outlet by using a hot wire anemometer. Then, the flow non-uniformity is evaluated from the measured flow velocity. The experimental results showed that inlet air velocity did not effect on relative flow non-uniformity. According to increasing the number of horizontal vanes, flow non-uniformity reduced about $40{\sim}50%$ than without using horizontal vanes.
