Experimental analysis of diesel engine exhaust gas coupled with water desalination for improved potable water production

Exhaust gas temperature of diesel engine is higher compared with a petrol engine and also creates higher pollution in the environment. Exhaust gas recirculation system and many other systems have used for reuse of exhaust gas to improve the performance of diesel engine, but the use of diesel engine for production of potable water production is still unattended by the researchers. The main aim of this research work is to use the waste heat of exhaust gas for potable water production from the low-capacity desalination system integrated with a evaporator and condenser unit. In this work, single pass evaporator and water-cooled condenser used for evaporation and condensation of saline water were designed and fabricated by locally available materials. The experiments were performed on a 10?HP diesel engine with varying the load to get potable water. It has found that 4.2?L/hr of potable water is obtained from the exhaust gas without varying the performance of the engine. Also, it has found that, temperature of saline water is heated more than 70°C in the condenser unit.     

Development and experimental validation of a high-temperature heat pump for heat recovery and building heating

The performance of a high-temperature heat pump unit using geothermal water for heat recovery in buildings is experimentally evaluated. The unit consists of a twin-screw refrigeration compressor, a condenser, an evaporator and an oil cooling system. The effect of the cooled oil temperature on the performance of the heat pump unit is experimentally investigated. Results show that the unit stably produces outlet hot water at a constant temperature of 85 °C and performs well in a wide range of high-temperature conditions with a high energy efficiency ratio. The results also indicate that the key to improving the performance of a high-temperature heat pump unit often depend on the selection of proper cooled oil temperature. The optimum cooled oil temperature is 50-65 °C when the condensing temperature is above 70 °C. At these temperatures, the oil cooling system can increase the energy efficiency ratio of the heat pump by 6.3%.     

Advanced control of condensing temperature for enhancing the operating efficiency of air-cooled chillers

Air-cooled chillers are commonly used to provide cooling energy in commercial buildings in the subtropical climate. These chillers have long been considered inefficient because they operate under head pressure control where the condensing temperature is kept high in the refrigeration cycle. This paper considers a novel method to strategically lower the condensing temperature to enhance chiller efficiency at any outdoor temperature. An experiment is carried out on an air-cooled reciprocating chiller to confirm that an electronic expansion valve enables refrigerant to be adequately fed into the evaporator in all operating conditions, even when the condensing temperature falls to around 20 °C. By enhancing the heat rejection airflow of the condenser, both the condensing temperature and chiller power can decrease considerably with less fluctuation. According to the algorithm of staging condenser fans, this enhancement corresponds to resetting the set point of the condensing temperature based on any outdoor temperature. The potential and benefits of implementing this reset strategy are discussed.     

Performance analysis of a transcritical N2O refrigeration cycle with vortex tube

In the present study, vortex tube is used in transcritical vapour compression cycle as expansion device to improve the coefficient of performance (COP). The thermodynamic analysis has been performed using nitrous oxide in transcritical cycle with vortex tube (TCVT) and its results are compared with those of a transcritical cycle with expansion valve (TCEV). The evaporator and the gas cooler temperatures have been varied between ?55°C and 5°C and between 35°C and 60°C, respectively, for the analysis. The COP of the TCVT improves by 1.72–27.01% compared to TCEV. A decrease in evaporator temperature and an increase in gas cooler exit temperature result in a decrease in COP. The increase in cold mass fraction brings a negligible increase in maximum COP. The performance comparison of N₂O and CO₂ in TCVT shows that maximum cooling COP for N₂O is higher than for CO₂, but the optimum pressure required for N₂O is lower than for CO₂.     

Experimental study on adsorption capacity of an activated carbon-based adsorption water chiller

The objective of this study was to evaluate the adsorption capacity of a working pair for an adsorption water chiller. Activated carbon fibre–methanol, activated carbon fibre–ethanol and activated carbon pallet–ethanol were used as an adsorbent–adsorbate pair in this study. The experiment was conducted using a stainless steel adsorber, 110?mm diameter by 150?mm height, filled with adsorbent and transparent plastic evaporator, 100?ml capacity, filled with adsorbate. The experiment was performed by isobaric adsorption in the temperature range of 10–100°C at the evaporator temperature of 20°C (water chiller). An experimental investigation showed that the activated carbon fibre–methanol pair has the highest adsorption capacity (0.44?kg/kg) compared to the activated carbon fibre–ethanol and activated carbon pallet–ethanol pairs. The finding revealed that uniform structure and large surface area of adsorbent as well as low boiling point and large latent heat of adsorbate had highly significant effects on adsorption capacity. The effect of time and adsorber temperature on adsorption capacity is also discussed in this study.     

双级循环高温热泵换热面积仿真优化设计方法

以COP为优化目标,以制热量、冷凝器和蒸发器(简称两器)水侧流速和压降、压缩机排气温度为约束条件,提出了双级循环离心压缩高温热泵系统换热器换热面积仿真优化设计方法。该方法包括两器总换热面积优化、两器面积比优化、回热器与两器面积配比优化3个过程。建立了双级循环高温热泵数值仿真设计系统,并进行了换热器换热面积优化设计。结果表明,换热器换热面积优化设计是解决热泵系统单一部件结构参数不匹配的有效途径;优化设计后,在保证热泵制热性能不变的前提下,两器总面积约降低了8.6%,蒸发换热管总管数减少了35.5%,优化效果显著。     

Engineered geothermal power systems for Singapore

Singapore has a high geothermal gradient (～35°C/km) as evidenced by hot springs (70°C) and high heat flow (estimated to be about 130 mW/m²). In this study, ground water models are presented based on AUTOUGH–2 computer modelling. The models show a freshwater lens up to 4.8 km depth under Singapore's land area, whose temperature increases with depth up to 192°C. Three geothermal prospects are identified: an engineered geothermal system (EGS) in hot, wet granite on the main island; an EGS in hot, wet volcanics or granite on Pulau Tekong and hot sedimentary aquifers (HSAs) in the Jurong Formation, both on and off-shore. Geothermal water at 150°C could be used for electricity generation, industrial process heating and desalination. A cost estimate exercise for a district cooling system (DCS) powered by 90°C geothermal water shows that there are significant economic advantages. A feasibility study is required.     

Reduction of heat accumulated in a thermosyphon paddy bulk storage

The objective of this research work was to develop a thermosyphon paddy bulk storage for reducing heat accumulated due to paddy respiration. A prototype of thermosyphon paddy bulk storage and a mathematical model with lumped analysis for predicting the paddy bed temperature were conducted. The storage was a double-wall steel cylinder with 636 mm outside diameter and 1500 mm length. The evaporator section consisted of a set of 70 copper tubes with 3.0 m² surface area. The condenser section is the upper body of the storage tank and was ventilated with controlled air. In this study, the paddy bed, the ambient air, and methanol were used as the heat source, heat sink and working fluid in the thermosyphon, respectively.

The paddy bulk of 115 kg with 12.5% wet basis was placed in the evaporator section of the thermosyphon. From the experiment it was found that the paddy bed temperature could be reduced from 31–32 to 26–27°C within 15–20 hours. Moreover the actual overall heat transfer coefficient between the bed and the working fluid was evaluated to be about 4.3 W/m²°C. The paddy bed temperature could be maintained at about 26–27°C for eight weeks and the paddy qualities, whiteness and head yield, were in very good condition. In addition, the mathematical model developed could be used to predict the paddy bed temperature accurately.     

Experimental study on productivity enhancement of an improvised inclined solar still

Experimental studies are carried out on the inclined solar still with baffle plates for enhancing its performance. The baffles placed in the inclined solar still act as a solar collector which helps in increasing the contact time with solar radiation thereby raising the saline water temperature. Experiments are carried out during winter and early summer climate of Chennai, India. Experimental parameters, such as ambient temperature, solar radiation, glass temperature, water temperature and distillate output are recorded. Hourly productivity is found to be higher during sunny days. The estimated production of fresh water through analytical study is 3.50?kg/m² per day for a minimum mass flow rate of 0.0833?kg/min. The actual experimental yield is 2.793?kg/m² per day. Also, the inlet saline water temperature affects the yield and the latter is found to be highest at 48.5°C.     

Experiments on rockburst proneness of pre-heated granite at different temperatures: Insights from energy storage,dissipation and surplus

Many underground engineering projects show that rockburst can occur in rocks at great depth and high temperature, and temperature is a critical factor affecting the intensity of rockburst. In general, temperature can affect the energy storage, dissipation, and surplus in rock. To explore the influence of temperature on the energy storage and dissipation characteristics and rockburst proneness, the present study has carried out a range of the uniaxial compression (UC) and single-cyclic loading–unloading uniaxial compression (SCLUC) tests on pre-heated granite specimens at 20 °C–700 °C. The results demonstrate that the rockburst proneness of pre-heated granite initially increases and subsequently decreases with the increase of temperature. The temperature of 300 °C has been found to be the threshold for rockburst proneness. Meanwhile, it is found that the elastic strain energy density increases linearly with the total input strain energy density for the pre-heated granites, confirming that the linear energy property of granite has not been altered by temperature. According to this inherent property, the peak elastic strain energy of pre-heated granites can be calculated accurately. On this basis, utilising the residual elastic energy index, the rockburst proneness of pre-heated granite can be determined quantitatively. The obtained results from high to low are: 317.9 kJ/m³ (300 °C), 264.1 kJ/m³ (100 °C), 260.6 kJ/m³ (20 °C), 235.5 kJ/m³ (500 °C), 158.9 kJ/m³ (700 °C), which are consistent with the intensity of actual rockburst for specimens. In addition, the relationship between temperature and energy storage capacity (ESC) of granite was discussed, revealing that high temperature impairs ESC of rocks, which is essential for reducing the rockburst proneness. This study provides some new insights into the rockburst proneness evaluation in high-temperature rock engineering.     

Performance characteristics of a two-stage transcritical N2O refrigeration cycle with vortex tube

ABSTRACT

The thermodynamic analysis has been presented in this article using nitrous oxide as the refrigerant in a two-stage transcritical cycle with the vortex tube (TSTCVT) instead of the expansion valve and its results are compared with the two-stage transcritical cycle with the expansion valve (TSTCEV). The evaporator and the gas cooler temperature ranges in both the cycles have been considered between ?55°C to 5°C and 35°C to 60°C for the analysis. Gas cooler and intercooler pressures are simultaneously optimised to obtain the maximum cooling coefficient of performance (COP). The COP of the TSTCVT improves by 1.97–27.19% in comparison to TSTCEV. A decrease in evaporator temperature and an increase in gas cooler exit temperature reduce the COP of TSTCVT. The comparison of refrigerants N₂O and CO₂ in TSTCVT shows that N₂O exhibits higher cooling COP, higher second law of efficiency and lower optimum gas cooler pressure under the considered operating conditions.     

Modelling and simulation of a heat pump for simultaneous heating and cooling

The heat pump for simultaneous heating and cooling (HPS) carries out space heating, space cooling and hot water production for small office and residential buildings. It works under heating, cooling and simultaneous modes to produce hot and chilled water according to the thermal demand of the building. A subcooler connected to a water tank is placed after the condenser to recover some energy by subcooling of the refrigerant during a heating mode. The water loop at a higher temperature than ambient air is used subsequently as a source for a water evaporator. Average winter performance is improved compared to a standard reversible heat pump (HP). The air evaporator is defrosted by a two-phase thermosiphon without stopping the heat production. The operation of the HPS is modelled using TRNSYS software. The model is validated using results of an experimental study carried out on a HPS prototype working with R407C. Annual simulations of the HPS coupled to a hotel are run in order to evaluate annual performance and energy consumption of the system. The results are compared to the ones of a standard reversible HP. Depending on the scenario, savings in electric energy consumption and annual performance improvement can reach respectively 55% and 19%.     

Effects of temperature elevation and entrainment on heterotrophic uptake of [U-C]glutamic acid

The effect of temperature elevation and station passage on the heterotrophic uptake of glutamate in condenser cooling water was investigated at three Ontario Hydro generating stations. Glutamate uptake increased approx. 1.9 times with a 10°C rise in lakewater temperature providing the total (discharge) temperature did not exceed 30°C. Above 30°C inhibition of bacterioplankton activity was observed. Mechanical stress encountered during station passage resulted in a reduction of heterotrophic activity of approx. 57%. Temperature elevation and mechanical stress experienced during the once-through cooling process could be expected to result in a net increase in heterotrophic productivity, largely in peripheral areas of the effluent thermal plume and contiguous waters.     

污水源热泵制热工况的实际运行特性分析

通过对天津市一污水源热泵系统的监测,得到了冬季污水温度的变化范围、热泵系统的实际能效比与蒸发器和冷凝器的进出口水温.通过与热泵机组样本数据的比较,分析了普通水源热泵用作污水源热泵时的性能差异.指出了污水源热泵应用中存在的一些问题并给出了改进建议.     

Temperature and concentration dependence of ammonium migration in bentonite-clay mixtures: A case study in Hanoi,Vietnam

Groundwater in southern Hanoi, Vietnam has been recently detected to possess high concentration of ammonium ion (NH₄⁺). Otherwise, one of the abundant sources of NH₄⁺ comes from municipal solid waste landfills. Bentonite-clay mixtures (BCMs) widely utilized as landfill bottom barriers in various countries, but limited in Vietnam should perform well to isolate NH₄⁺ from groundwater. This study is to evaluate combined effects of temperature and initial ammonium concentration on adsorption, diffusion, and permeability through mixtures of indigenous clay with 0 %, 5 %, 10 %, 15 % bentonite. The results indicated more effective NH₄⁺ adsorption capacity for low initial concentration than high initial concentration in all temperatures (20, 35, and 50 °C). The temperature dependency showed an increase in adsorption coefficient from 20 °C to 35 °C and a decrease in the range of 35 °C and 50 °C. Whereas diffusion coefficient and hydraulic conductivity for all cases keep increasing gradually in both temperature ranges. The reasonable mass of bentonite content of 15 % should be added into local clay for landfill bottom liners in such conditions of elevated temperature at 50 °C and interaction of ammonium solution 1000 mg/L. The micro-structures via SEM images of these materials provided the proofs of both improvement of hydraulic barrier properties for indigenous clay owing to bentonite presence and NH₄⁺ effects on their micro-structures.     

空调用蒸发式冷凝器能耗实验研究

当室外气温较高时,风冷热泵系统冷凝器存在换热效果下降的问题,而蒸发式冷凝器可以改善此问题,蒸发式冷凝器因此逐步得到广泛重视。为研究采用蒸发式冷凝器制冷系统的能耗情况,通过正交实验的方法,对比研究了蒸发式冷凝器与风冷式冷凝器在相同工况下压缩机能耗情况,并对影响其性能的因素进行了分析。研究表明,各因素对压缩机耗功量的影响能力依次为:冷凝器进口空气温度、速度及冷凝器喷水量。压缩机耗功量随进口空气温度的升高、进风空气速度降低而增大,随喷水量增加存在先减小后保持不变的现象。     

Year-round numerical simulation of a parabolic solar collector under Lebanese conditions: Beirut case study

A detailed thermal and optical numerical model is developed to simulate the performance of a small-scale parabolic collector having an evacuated receiver line with selective coating, taking into account different energy balances and interactions with the surrounding. An analytical model is developed to estimate the direct, diffuse and global solar radiation intensities on inclined surfaces. The collector performance model was validated using published experimental data. A year-round dynamic simulation for the collector performance under Beirut climatic conditions was carried out with an economic and environmental analysis. The outlet water temperature could reach a maximum of 114°C in July and 52°C in December by employing a collector of about 6 m² aperture area with 0.01 kg/s water flow rate. The maximum daily thermal energy production is attained in July with 22.267 kWh while January exhibits the lowest thermal energy production with 6.704 kWh per day with a maximum thermal efficiency of 72%.     

Computer modelling and thermodynamic assessment of an aqua-ammonia absorption cycle solar heat pump

An assessment based on steady state thermodynamic analysis of an aqua-ammonia absorption cycle solar heat pump for space heating is presented. The system consists of a solar heated generator, rectifier, condenser, evaporator, absorber liquid heat exchanger and a subcooler. During heat pump operation, the evaporator absorbs heat at low temperature from the outside atmospheric air, while the heat rejected by the absorber, condenser and rectifier is used to warm the interior air of the space to be heated. A numerical computer modelling based on the solution of simultaneous heat and mass balance equations for various components of the system has been carried out. The influences of component temperatures and heat exchanger effectiveness on the heating coefficients of performance and heat transfer rates have been investigated to obtain optimum operating conditions for the proposed heat pump system. Further, the absorption cycles are compared with an ideal reversible cycle operating over the same range of temperatures. It has been found that the performance of the absorption cycle does not continue to improve as the input temperature increases and that additional components will be required to allow the machine to take advantage of the higher temperatures available from modern collectors.     

CI engine performance during cold weather condition using preheated air and engine by waste energy

ABSTRACT

The aim of the current research is to experimentally investigate the performance, combustion and emission parameters of a compression ignition engine in the discharging and air preheating mode during the cold weather condition. For preheating the engine, a thermal energy storage device using phase-change material (PCM) and for preheating the inlet air an air preheater is used. From the results, it is observed that the engine temperature increases with time from 15°C to 27°C in 840?s. PCM temperature rises from 15°C to 60°C in 3000?s. during charging and while in discharging it decreases from 45°C to 30°C within the same time period. Brake thermal efficiency increases and brake-specific fuel consumption decreases with increase in load. Air-preheated diesel gives maximum cylinder pressure as compared to normal diesel. Carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon emissions are reduced during discharging and air preheating as compared to cold weather emission.     

Thermodynamic modeling of a novel air dehumidification system

A novel air dehumidification system is proposed. The proposed system incorporates a membrane-based total heat exchanger into a mechanical air dehumidification system, where the fresh air flows through the enthalpy exchanger, the evaporator and the condenser subsequently. Thermodynamic model for the performance estimation of the combined system is investigated. Processes of the fresh air and the refrigerant are studied. Two additional specific programs are devised to calculate the psychrometrics and the thermodynamic properties of the refrigerant R134a. Annual energy requirement is 4.15 × 10⁶ kJ per person, or 33% saving from a system without energy saving measures.