Exergy analysis of two cryogenic air separation processes

Two process designs of a cryogenic ASU (air separation unit) have been evaluated using exergy analysis. The ASU is part of an IGCC (integrated gasification combined cycle); it is supplying oxygen and nitrogen to the gasifier and nitrogen to the gas turbine. The two process designs separate the same feed into products with the same specifications. They differ in the number of distillation columns that are used; either two or three. Addition of the third column reduced the exergy destruction in the distillation section with 31%. Overall, the three-column design destroyed 12% less exergy than the two-column design. The rational exergy efficiency is defined as the desired exergy change divided by the total exergy change; it is 38% for the three-column design and 35% for the two-column design. Almost half of the exergy destruction is located in compressor after-coolers. Using this heat of compression elsewhere in the IGCC can be an important way to increase the IGCC efficiency. It is proposed to use it for the pre-heating of ASU products or for the production of steam, which can be used as part of the steam turbine cycle.     

Exergy analysis of a cryogenic hydrogen fuel power plant

An advanced cycle for the thermodynamic conversion of energy, which is particularly relevant in applications involving the use of cryogenic fuels and oxidants, is analysed by an exergy balance approach. This allows a check on which components are responsible for the largest irreversibilities and opens the way to further plant optimisation.     

A real column design exergy optimization of a cryogenic air separation unit

Distillation columns are one of the main methods used for separating air components. Their inconvenient is their high energy consumption. The distillation process is simulated in three types of columns and the exergy losses in the different parts calculated. A sensitivity analysis is realized in order to optimize the geometric and the operational parameters of each type of column. A comparative exergy analysis between the distillation columns considered for cryogenic air separation shows that the exergy efficiency of a double diabatic column, with heat transfer all through the length of the column, is 23% higher than that of the conventional adiabatic double columns.     

Exergy analysis of Joule–Thomson cryogenic refrigeration cycle with an ejector

In this paper, exergy method is applied to analyze the ejector expansion Joule–Thomson (EJT) cryogenic refrigeration cycle. The exergy destruction rate in each component of the EJT cycle is evaluated in detail. The effect of some main parameters on the exergy destruction and exergetic efficiency of the cycle is also investigated. The most significant exergy destruction rates in the cycle are in the compressor and ejector. The ejector pressure ratio and compressor isothermal efficiency have a significant effect on the exergetic efficiency of the EJT cycle. The exergy analysis results show the EJT cycle has an obvious increase in the exergetic efficiency compared to the basic Joule–Thomson refrigeration cycle. A significant advantage from the use of the ejector is that the total exergy destruction of the EJT cycle can be reduced due to much more decreasing of the exergy destruction rates in the compressor and expansion valve. The exergy analysis also reconfirms that applying an ejector is a very important approach to improve the performance of the Joule–Thomson cryogenic refrigeration cycle.     

Hybrid membrane/cryogenic separation of oxygen from air for use in the oxy-fuel process

The process of oxy-fuel combustion requires the separation of oxygen from air on a large scale for use in the combustion chamber. This separation is currently done through energy intensive cryogenic distillation. To reduce the overall energy requirements for air separation it is examined whether a hybrid membrane and cryogenic process be utilized instead. The examined process uses an O₂/N₂ permeable membrane to create oxygen enriched air. This enriched air is then turned into high purity oxygen using cryogenic distillation. Several arrangements of such a system are investigated and compared on a practical and thermodynamic level to the current cryogenic process in use. It is found that using a vacuum pump arrangement to draw air through the membrane has potential to reduce energy requirements from the current standard. It is also found that the hybrid system is more productive in small to medium scale applications than in large scale applications because of the increased irreversibilities in the cryogenic process at smaller scales.     

Exergy analysis on the irreversibility of rotary air preheater in thermal power plant

Energy recovery devices can have a substantial impact on process efficiency and their relevance to the problem of conservation of energy resources is generally recognized to be beyond dispute. One type of such a device, which is commonly used in thermal power plants and air conditioning systems, is the rotary air preheater. A major disadvantage of the rotary air preheater is that there is an unavoidable leakage due to carry over and pressure difference. There are gas streams involved in the heat transfer and mixing processes. There are also irreversibilities, or exergy destruction, due to mixing, pressure losses and temperature gradients. Therefore, the purpose of this research paper is based from the second law of thermodynamics, which is to build up the relationship between the efficiency of the thermal power plant and the total process of irreversibility in the rotary air preheater using exergy analysis. For this, the effects of the variation of the principal design parameters on the rotary air preheater efficiency, the exergy efficiency, and the efficiency of the thermal power plant are examined by changing a number of parameters of rotary air preheater. Furthermore, some conclusions are reached and recommendations are made so as to give insight on designing some optimal parameters.     

Exergy based analysis of solar air heater having discrete V-down rib roughness on absorber plate

The artificially rib roughened solar air heaters perform thermally better than the conventional flat-plate solar air heater under same operating conditions. However, the artificial rib roughness leads to higher friction factor thereby increasing pumping power. The second law based exergy analysis is suitable for design of rib roughened solar air heaters as it incorporates quality of useful energy output and pumping power. The exergetic efficiency of a solar air heater having discrete V-down rib roughness is studied analytically and the results obtained are compared with that of a conventional flat-plate solar air heater. Flow Reynolds number and rib-roughness parameters, viz., relative roughness pitch, relative gap position, relative gap width, angle of attack and relative roughness height have combined effect on heat transfer as well as fluid friction. The exergy based criterion suggests use of the discrete V-down rib roughened solar air heater for the Reynolds number range normally used in solar air heaters. It was found that there exist optimum roughness parameters of the discrete V-down rib for a given Reynolds number (or temperature rise parameter) at which the exergetic efficiency is highest. Curves of optimum rib-roughness parameters are also plotted.     

Exergy analysis of waste emissions

Recently, significant attention has been directed towards the use of exergy analysis in the assessment of thermal and other industrial processes and their environmental impacts since exergy analysis is an effective tool both for achieving efficient energy utilization with minimum (or zero) environmental impact and for understanding environmental issues. In this study, the concepts of exergy analysis and the linkages between exergy and environmental impact are discussed, and several issues regarding the exergies of waste emissions are addressed. Exergy is a measure of the degree of disequilibrium between a substance and its environment. The relations between several measures of environmental impact potential and exergy are investigated by comparing current methods used to assess the environmental impact potential of waste emissions and the exergy associated with those emissions. A case study is presented, to highlight the information revealed using exergy, in which the measures of environmental impact potential considered are the Ontario Ministry of Environment's schedule of industrial air emission limits, and two methods of assessing the environmental costs for air emissions resulting from the combustion of three common fossil fuels: coal, oil and natural gas. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical analysis of shock induced separation delay by air humidity

In this paper numerical calculations of the dry and humid air flows in the nozzle are presented. The dry air flow (adiabatic flow) and the humid air flow (flow with homogeneous condensation, diabatic flow) are modeled with the use of Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations. The comparison of these two types of flow is carried out. The influence of the air humidity on the shock wave location and its interaction with the boundary layer is examined. Obtained numerical results present a first numerical approach of the condensation and evaporation process in transonic flow of humid air. The phenomena considered here are very complex and complicated and need further in-depth numerical analysis.     

Exergy analysis of single‐flow solar air collectors with different configurations of absorber plates

In the current study, an experimental analysis of exergy performance for different absorber plates is done. Three types of absorber plates are supplied with different fin arrangements with a variable air mass flow rate. The exergy analysis to evaluate the exergy performance of the solar air heaters uses experimental data for conventional and finned solar air collectors with different arrangements of fins. The main aim of the current study is to compare the exergy performance of the conventional solar air collector with those equipped with fins. The introducing of the fins in different arrangements enhances the absorber surface area, which leads to increased heat transfer. Also, fins induce air turbulence in the flow field, which improves the exergy performance of solar air collector. It is found that the exergy reduces and exergy efficiency enhances with increasing the airflow rate. The traditional flat absorber plate has undesirable exergy loss and exergy efficiency for all ranges of airflow rates. Thus, the flat plate collector presents the most substantial irreversibility, for which the exergy efficiency is the least. However, the results show that the exergy efficiency of inclined staggered turbulators is higher than that of in‐line and staggered turbulators. The optimal value of exergy efficiency is recorded at nearly 77% for the solar air collectors equipped with inclined staggered turbulators compared with other types of configurations.     

立窑分析浅析

利用炯分析的方法对立窑系统进行了分析,得出了效率、变质系数,找出了立窑系统能量利用的薄弱环节,提出了节能挖潜措施.     

Exergy analysis of chemical-looping combustion systems

A power plant based on chemical-looping combustion offers both a possibility of high net power efficiency and separation of the greenhouse gas CO₂. This is due to the way the oxidation of the fuel takes place. Instead of oxidizing the fuel with oxygen from the combustion air, the fuel is oxidized by an oxygen carrier, i.e., an oxygen-containing compound. The oxygen carriers that have been suggested in previous studies are metal oxides like NiO, Fe₂O₃ and Mn₃O₄. The reduced oxygen carrier is in the next step reoxidized by air in a second reactor and then recirculated to the first reactor. In this way, fuel and air are never mixed and the fuel oxidation products CO₂ and water leave the system undiluted by air. All that is needed to get an almost pure CO₂ product is to condense the water vapour and remove the liquid water.Chemical-looping combustion (CLC) is also claimed to reduce the fuel exergy destruction in the overall reaction of combustion of the fuel. This gives a possibility to increase the net power efficiency.This paper gives an introduction to chemical-looping combustion. Results from simulations and a detailed exergy analysis of two different CLC gas turbine (GT) systems are also presented. The first system utilizes methane as a fuel and NiO as oxygen carrier. The second system utilizes a fuel gas mixture consisting mainly of CO and H₂, simulating a fuel gas from for instance coal gasification. Results for this system are given for simulations with both NiO and Fe₂O₃ as oxygen carrier. The two systems are compared to comparable simulated systems with conventional combustion of the same fuel. The exergy analysis shows that the irreversibilities generated upon combustion of the fuel are reduced. The net power efficiency of the CLC–GT systems is similar or higher than for the corresponding GT systems with conventional combustion. The net power efficiency of CLC systems could be even further increased if the exergy remaining in the exhaust could be utilized in an efficient way.     

Exergy analysis of renewable energy sources

Oil crises in the past years made more obvious the dependency of economies on fossil fuels. As a consequence, the need for new energy sources became more urgent. Renewable energy sources could provide a solution to the problem, as they are inexhaustible and have less adverse impacts on the environment than fossil fuels. Yet, renewable energy sources technology has not reached a high standard at which it can be considered competitive to fossil fuels. The present study deals with the exergy analysis of solar energy, wind power and geothermal energy. That is, the actual use of energy from the existing available energy is discussed. In addition, renewable energy sources are compared with the non-renewable energy sources on the basis of efficiency.     

Exergy analysis of sugarcane bagasse gasification

The gasification technology has been object of study of many researchers, especially those involved in promoting large-scale electricity generation in sugarcane mills. This paper presents a simplified model for the gasification process based on chemical equilibrium considerations. The model consists in the minimization of the Gibbs free energy of the produced gas, constrained by mass and energy balances for the system. Despite the simplicity of the model, its results are reliable in identifying the tendencies of the working parameters of the system. A parametric study has been carried aiming the verification of the influence of many variables inherent to the model, such as: gasification temperature, moisture content, and air temperature, among others. The results were compared with those found in literature and real systems. Following this parametric study, an exergy analysis has been performed in order to evaluate irreversibilities associated to the process, and the influence of temperature, moisture, charcoal production, and thermal losses on them. Finally, a first attempt to integrate a gasifier into a sugarcane mill was performed, which showed the potential benefits regarding the use of such technology.     

Exergy analysis of industrial ammonia synthesis

Exergy consumption of ammonia production plants depends strongly on the ammonia synthesis loop design. Due to the thermodynamically limited low degree of conversion of hydrogen–nitrogen mixture to ammonia, industrial ammonia synthesis is implemented as recycle process (so-called “ammonia synthesis loop”). Significant quantities of reactants are recycled back to reactor, after the removal of ammonia at low temperatures. Modern ammonia synthesis plants use well-developed heat- and cold recovery to improve the reaction heat utilisation and to reduce the refrigeration costs. In this work, the exergy method is applied to estimate the effect of the most important process parameters on the exergy efficiency of industrial ammonia synthesis. A specific approach, including suitable definitions of the system boundaries and process parameters, is proposed. Exergy efficiency indexes are discussed in order to make the results applicable to ammonia synthesis loops of various designs. The dependence of the exergy losses on properly selected independent process parameters is studied. Some results from detailed exergy analysis of the most commonly used ammonia synthesis loop design configurations at a wide range of selected parameters values are shown.     

Exergy analysis of solar energy applications

Solar energy is a clean, abundant and easily available renewable energy. Usage of solar energy in different kinds of systems provides scope for several studies on exergy analysis. In the present work, a comprehensive literature review has been carried out on exergy analysis of various solar energy systems. The systems considered under study are solar photovoltaic, solar heating devices, solar water desalination system, solar air conditioning and refrigerators, solar drying process and solar power generation. The summary of exergy analysis and exergetic efficiencies is presented along with the exergy destruction sources.     

Exergy analysis for a Braysson cycle

An exergy analysis has been carried out for an irreversible Braysson cycle. The analytical formulae of power output and exergy efficiency are derived. The influences of various parameters on the exergy performance are analyzed by numerical calculation, and the results obtained have been compared with those of Brayton cycle under the same conditions. It is shown that the exergy loss in the combustion is the largest in the Braysson cycle, and both specific work and exergy efficiency of the cycle are larger than those of Brayton cycle.     

Exergy analysis of a MSF distillation plant

In this paper, a large MSF distillation plant in the gulf area is analyzed thermodynamically using actual plant operation data. Exergy flow rates are evaluated throughout the plant, and the exergy flow diagram is prepared. The rates of exergy destruction and their percentages are indicated on the diagram so that the locations of highest exergy destruction can easily be identified. The highest exergy destruction (77.7%) occurs within the MSF unit, as expected, and this can be reduced by increasing the number of flashing stages. The exergy destruction in the pumps and motors account for 5.3% of the total, and this also can be reduced by using high efficiency motors and pumps. The plant is determined to have a second law efficiency of just 4.2%, which is very low. This indicates that there are major opportunities in the plant to reduce exergy destruction and, thus, the amount of electric and thermal energy supplied, making the operation of the plant more cost effective.     

Exergy transfer analysis of convection heat transfer

In this paper, based on the fundamentals of thermodynamics and heat transfer, an analysis is made of the exergy transfer of convection heat transfer. Some exergy transfer differential equations are derived under constant thermophysical property and uncompressible laminar flow in the convection heat transfer process. Taking one‐ and two‐dimensional convection heat transfer as examples, respectively, the exergy functions are solved and calculated. Their results agree well with those results from thermodynamic analysis. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res, 36(2): 66–73, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience. wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/htj.20146