<p>Supercritical carbon dioxide power cycles are very attractive option for future energy conversion technologies due to their, besides other advantages, compactness, improved efficiencies and extremely low or zero emissions. The improved efficiency of the supercritical carbon dioxide power cycles is attributed to the properties of the working fluid that are similar to liquid properties. &nbsp;In this study, energy and exergy analyses of proposed supercritical carbon dioxide power cycle layouts integrated with concentrated solar power (CSP) system and Oxy combustor are performed. The studied cycle configurations are referred to as S1, S2, and S3. Cycle S1 is a direct oxy-combustor &nbsp;power cycle without CSP system and cycle S2 is a CSP &nbsp;power cycle without oxy-combustor. These two cycles are used for comparison purposes with a third cycle, S3, that is a &nbsp;power cycle integrated with both CSP and oxy-combustor. A comprehensive literature review on supercritical carbon dioxide power cycles that integrate solar energy sources is conducted, analyzed and categorized, which revealed the research gaps related to integrating both CSP and oxy combustion. The thermodynamic model in this study is developed based on mass and energy conservation principles with considerations for the rapid change of the working fluids’ properties through each component of the cycles. These components include air separation units (ASU), turbines, compressors, different types of heat exchangers, oxy-combusters, pumps, CSP, etc. &nbsp;The thermodynamic model is then coded, verified, validated and solved. The results of SI and S2 cycle configurations are compared to similar cycles available in literature for validation purposes. The simulation results show that the thermal efficiency of S3 is about 6.5 points higher than S1 for a cycle high-pressure range of 200 to 300 bar and S3 thermal efficiency is about 2.5 to 5 points higher than S2 for a cycle high-pressure range of 220 to 300 bar, respectively. The exergy efficiency of S3 reached impressive levels of 3 to 5 points higher than both S1 and S2 for a cycle high-pressure range of 200 to 300 bar, respectively. The effect of the other important parameters on the studied cycles’ thermal and exergy efficiencies are analyzed and discussed in terms of best- and worst-case scenarios. These parameters include the cycles’ low-pressure, low-temperature, intermediate pressure, nd solar irradiance levels in Watt per meter square. The effect of solar irradiance levels on the thermal and exergy efficiencies show superior performance of S3 compared to S3, however at higher receiver temperatures. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Power Cycle Integrated With Solar Power Tower and Oxy-Combustor

Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/IMECE/IMECE2021/volume/85543

ASME 2021 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE2021)

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