MIXING CHAMBER

Mixing chambers are open-type thermodynamic (heat-exchanging) systems that are used to mix more than one stream of fluids. There are many names for the mixing chamber, and these names usually refer to the specific functions that they perform, such as an open feedwater heater. An open feedwater heater is a mixing chamber that mixes at least two streams of water at different temperatures, for example, in a power plant to increase the quality of energy of one of the streams that enter the mixing chamber. Mixing chambers are direct-contact heat exchangers where, instead of just exchanging thermal energy in the heat exchanger, they are mixed together. A schematic diagram of a mixing chamber mixing two fluids (1 and 2) to produce a mixture of these two fluids. Note that a mixing chamber can even mix more than two fluid streams. Analysing and measuring the performance of such systems is done through the application of the first and second laws of thermodynamics; this is presented in the next example.