Energy efficiency analysis and impact evaluation of the application of thermoelectric power cycle to today’s CHP systems

High efficiency thermoelectric generators (TEG) can recover waste heat from both industrial and private sectors. Thus, the development and deployment of TEG may represent one of the main drives for technological change and fuel substitution. This paper will present an analysis of system efficiency related to the integration of TEG into thermal energy systems, especially Combined Heat and Power production (CHP). Representative implementations of installing TEG in CHP plants to utilize waste heat, wherein electricity can be generated in situ as a by-product, will be described to show advantageous configurations for combustion systems. The feasible deployment of TEG in various CHP plants will be examined in terms of heat source temperature range, influences on CHP power specification and thermal environment, as well as potential benefits. The overall conversion efficiency improvements and economic benefits, together with the environmental impact of this deployment, will then be estimated. By using the Danish thermal energy system as a paradigm, this paper will consider the TEG application to district heating systems and power plants through the EnergyPLAN model, which has been created to design suitable energy strategies for the integration of electricity production into the overall energy system.     

Low-grade heat conversion into power using organic Rankine cycles – A review of various applications

An organic Rankine cycle (ORC) machine is similar to a conventional steam cycle energy conversion system, but uses an organic fluid such as refrigerants and hydrocarbons instead of water. In recent years, research was intensified on this device as it is being progressively adopted as premier technology to convert low-temperature heat resources into power. Available heat resources are: solar energy, geothermal energy, biomass products, surface seawater, and waste heat from various thermal processes. This paper presents existing applications and analyzes their maturity. Binary geothermal and binary biomass CHP are already mature. Provided the interest to recover waste heat rejected by thermal devices and industrial processes continue to grow, and favorable legislative conditions are adopted, waste heat recovery organic Rankine cycle systems in the near future will experience a rapid growth. Solar modular power plants are being intensely investigated at smaller scale for cogeneration applications in buildings but larger plants are also expected in tropical or Sahel regions with constant and low solar radiation intensity. OTEC power plants operating mainly on offshore installations at very low temperature have been advertised as total resource systems and interest on this technology is growing in large isolated islands.     

Study on absorption/desorption characteristics of a metal hydride tank for boil-off gas from liquid hydrogen

We have been performing research on the Totalized Hydrogen Energy Utilization System (THEUS) which has applications to commercial buildings and a planned added function of supplying energy to stations for hydrogen and electric vehicles. In that case we will utilize liquid hydrogen transported from a hydrogen station and all Boil-Off Gas (BOG) will be recovered in THEUS’s metal hydride tanks. It is known that BOG is chiefly composed of para-hydrogen, which has different thermo-physical properties from normal hydrogen. It has been reported that some metal hydride alloys work as a catalyst to accelerate the para-ortho conversion and the conversion proceeds relatively fast in the case of La–Ni₅. The conversion is considered to be an endothermic reaction. A misch metal (Mm)-Ni₅ metal hydride alloy, which contained La and Ni, was used in our THEUS metal hydride tank. To examine the effect of the para-ortho conversion on the THEUS operation, we investigated the absorption/desorption characteristics of the metal hydride tank with BOG. We confirmed that the effect of the heat of conversion was very small and BOG could be treated as normal hydrogen for practical application.     

Metal hydride heat pumps

Heat pumps have been known for a long time, but, until the energy crisis of 1973, there were only a few studies covering them. Since that time, in addition to alternative energy sources, scientists and engineers have started studying heat pumps more earnestly. There are several kinds of heat pump and utilizations of them, but the most common one is the vapour-compression heat pump. In recent years researchers have started to study metal hydride heat pumps. The paper considers the metal hydride bed, its thermodynamics, and its utilization as a heat pump. It is also compared with conventional heat pumps. The results indicate that the metal hydride heat pump has several advantages, and its utilization in the industrial, commercial and residential fields is foreseen.     

Solar thermal power plants in the world: The experience of development and operation

The main areas of large-scale development of solar energy are: —conversion of solar energy into low-grade heat, and using the latest in heating systems of residential, municipal facilities, public and industrial buildings that consume energy such as temperature capacity; —conversion of solar energy into electricity through photovoltaic and thermodynamic converters. This report provides short information of the dynamics of the creation and operation of solar power plants (SPP) with the thermodynamic conversion, and the criteria for reducing cost of electricity produced from them.     

Metal hydrides

Activities in the field of metal hydride R&D and its related technologies are briefly reviewed limiting their scopes into applicational fields in the last few years. Hydride forming materials are still on the way to find much better properties such as high available hydrogen contents (AHC), flat plateau, low hysteresis as well as controls of pressure-temperature relations. Rapid hydrogen transfer through dehydriding/hydriding reactions has been applied to develop thermally-driven energy conversion systems such as temperature up-grading plants, heat pumps, cooling devices, and power generators. Recent advancements in such areas are also briefly reviewed.     

Climatic impact of alternative energy sources

Detailed evaluations have suggested that the order of magnitude of energy demand 50 yr from the present will be 25–40 TW compared with about 8 TW at the present day. Three energy supply sources could be developed on a large enough scale to satisfy a demand of this magnitude: solar and nuclear energy and fossil fuels. The potential climate impact of the large-scale deployment of solar energy conversion systems has not been evaluated in detail. Solar thermal electric conversion systems could impact climate through large-scale changes in the energy balance at the earth's surface, in the surface roughness and in the surface wetness. Photovoltaic conversions could impact climate by acting as a local heat source. Ocean thermal electric conversion systems would have their main impact through changes in ocean surface temperature, but could also interfere with major ocean currents and have an impact through release of CO₂ into the atmosphere or albedo changes, for example. The cultivation of plants for biomass conversion systems could influence climate through causing large-scale changes in the surface characteristics. The biomass conversion could also impact climate through releases of gases and particulate matter into the atmosphere. Through the use of climate models and observational studies, these impacts should be studied in more detail. In the meantime, the climate constraint should be kept in mind during the development of energy policy and the policies should be kept flexible at the present time until some of the uncertainties about the climate system have been resolved.     

Economic analysis of heat storage in energy systems

Thermal energy storage (TES) enables more efficient use of conventional energy conversion plants and enhances the exploitation of renewable energy sources. Storage primarily promotes the replacement of heating oil with less expensive fuels, for instance biomass, coal or industrial waste heat. In this paper, some applications of heat storage for large-scale and centralized residential heating systems are presented. Analysis methods to estimate the economy of storage in these energy-systems are also derived. It was estimated that the maximum market potential for short- and long-term heat storage in the present Finnish heat production system would correspond to about 1–1.3 TWh of supplied heat per annum.     

Increased use of district heating in industrial processes – Impacts on heat load duration

Current knowledge of the potential for an increased use of industrial district heating (DH) due to conversions of industrial processes to DH is limited. In this paper, a Method for Heat Load Analysis (MeHLA) for exploring industrial DH conversions has been developed. This method can be a helpful tool for analyzing the impact different industrial processes have on the local DH system, when processes that utilize electricity and other fuels, convert to utilizing DH. Heat loads for different types of industries and processes are analyzed according to characteristics such as temperature levels and time-dependency. MeHLA has been used to analyze 34 Swedish industries and the method demonstrates how conversion of industrial processes to DH can result in heat load duration curves that are less outdoor temperature-dependent and more evenly distributed over the year. An evenly distributed heat load curve can result in increased annual operating time for base load DH plants such as cogeneration plants, leading to increased electricity generation. In addition to the positive effects for the DH load duration curve, the conversions to DH can also lead to an 11% reduction in the use of electricity, a 40% reduction in the use of fossil fuels and a total energy end-use saving of 6% in the studied industries. Converting the industrial processes to DH will also lead to a potential reduction of the global carbon dioxide emissions by 112,000 tonnes per year.     

Theoretical study of a novel solar trigeneration system based on metal hydrides

In order to utilize the low grade heat energy efficiently, the preliminary scheme of a metal hydride based Combined Cooling, Heating and Power (CCHP) system driven by solar energy and industrial waste heat was proposed, in which both refrigeration and power generation are achieved. Following a step-by-step procedure recently developed by the authors, two pairs of metal hydrides were selected for the CCHP system. The working principle of the system was discussed in detail and further design of the configuration for CCHP was conducted. Based on the cycle mentioned above, the models of energy conversion and exergy analysis were set up. The multi-element valued method was used to assess the performance of the CCHP system in a whole sense, thus the analysis of influence factors on the system performance can be carried out. The typical climate conditions of Xi’an in 2005 were taken for discussion, and the results showed that the system performance is mainly affected by the quantity of solar radiation energy. The objective of the system’s optimization is to increase the exergy efficiency of the metal hydride heat pump, based on the quantity of solar radiation energy. The comparison with two different traditional types of CCHP systems proved that the novel CCHP system is superior to the traditional CCHP systems concerning the integrated performance.     

节能技术在新建芳烃联合装置中的应用

新建芳烃联合装置中节能技术被广泛应用:热联合技术将高温塔的塔顶和塔底物料作为低温塔的再沸热源,实现热源的联合应用,充分确保了低温热的二次利用,并且节约燃料和占地面积;传热效率更高、结构更紧凑的纯逆流板式换热器,换热效果突出,加热炉负荷显著降低;旨在预热空气、提高加热炉燃烧效率的烟气余热回收系统的应用,保证了每台加热炉热效率在90%以上,其板式空气预热器具有阻力小、不易积灰、结构紧凑、使用寿命长的优点;选用乙苯脱烷基型催化剂,乙苯单程转化率高(在70%以上),装置内部二甲苯循环量减少,从而降低了二甲苯分馏、吸附分离和异构化单元的规模,相应装置投资及能耗也得到一定程度的降低,其能耗比乙苯异构型催化剂的平均能耗降低5%左右;高效机泵、变频风机、高性能塔盘和精细控制系统的广泛应用,也是该装置的主要节能手段。     

Designs of metal hydride reactors

As metal hydride beds have extremely poor heat transfer characteristics, the configurations of hydride reactors will have a marked effect on the performance and cost effectiveness of these metal-hydrogen systems. Therefore, it is of great significance to develop these reactors into the most suitable configurations for optimum heat transfer performance. The results of comparative studies of one-dimensional reactors and two-dimensional reactors can be used as guides to design reactors optimally and to augment heat and mass transfer processes in metal hydride beds. The comparative study of the three elementary reactors reveals the fact that the 011 reactor has an excellent heat and mass transfer performance and reactors with similar configurations may be recommended to be used in practical metal-hydrogen systems.     

Discharge dynamics of coupled fuel cell and metal hydride hydrogen storage bed for small wind hybrid systems

In small hybrid wind systems, excess wind energy is stored for later use during the deficit power generation. Excess wind energy can be stored as hydrogen in a metal hydride storage bed and reused later to generate power using a fuel cell. This paper deals with the discharge dynamics of the coupled fuel cell and metal hydride storage bed during the power extraction. Thermal coupling of the fuel cell and metal hydride bed is also discussed. The waste heat generated in the fuel cell is removed using a water coolant. The exit fuel cell coolant stream is passed through the metal hydride storage bed to supply the necessary heat required for desorption of hydrogen from the bed. This will also lead to a reduction in the load on the radiator. The discharge dynamics and the thermal management of the coupled system are demonstrated through a system simulation model developed in Matlab/Simulink platform.     

Compound passive heat transfer augmentation techniques: A comprehensive review

The function of energy is becoming increasingly vital in meeting the requirements of modern societies and sustaining rapid economic and industrial growth globally. Heat transfer equipment has been employed for heat recovery and conversion in various domestic and industrial applications. Therefore, due to the recent global energy crisis, boosting the thermal efficiency of energy systems has become an essential requirement, which would reduce both their size and rates of energy demand. There are active and passive methods for boosting heat transfer rates. As they have no moving components, passive methods are more affordable and dependable than active ones. Applying two or more passive techniques concurrently will result in a higher heat transmission rate than any approach working independently. The current article comprehensively reviews experimental and computational investigations of passive compound forced convection heat transfer augmentation techniques at laminar, transition, and turbulent flow regimes. This article focuses on compound techniques arrangement in the form of turbulators, typical twisted tapes (TTs), surface roughness, vortex generators, and so on. The pioneering research suggests that using a lower twist ratio, lower pitch, and smaller winglet angles in TTs can result in higher heat transfer rates, albeit with a slightly increased friction factor. The combination of alternate-axes and wings in TTs leads to more effective heat transfer enhancement within the tube.     

Selection of metal hydrides for a thermal energy storage device to support low-temperature concentrating solar power plants

Metal hydrides have become more and more significant both as hydrogen storage devices and as basic elements in energy conversion systems. Besides the well-known rare earth hydrides, magnesium alloys are very promising in the field of thermal energy storage for concentrating solar power plants. There is interest in analysing the performances of such materials in this context; for this purpose, a numerical model to describe hydrogen absorption and desorption processes of a metal hydride has been connected to a model elaborated with the help of Cycle-Tempo software to simulate a CSP plant operation. The integration of this plant with four metal hydride systems, based on the combination of two low-temperature hydrides (LaNi₅, LaNi_4.8Al_0.2) and two high-temperature hydrides (Mg, Mg₂Ni) has been studied. The investigation has taken into account CSP overall performances, transfer surfaces and storage efficiencies, to determine the feasibility of designed plants. Results show that the selection of the optimal hydrides must take into account hydride operation temperatures, reaction enthalpies, storage capacities and kinetic compatibility. In the light of the calculated parameters, a solar ORC plant using R134a as the working fluid is a valuable choice if matched to a storage system composed of LaNi₅ and Mg₂Ni hydrides.     

PEM fuel cell performance with solar air preheating

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC) have proven to be a promising energy conversion technology in various power applications and since it was developed, it has been a potential alternative over fossil fuel-based engines and power plants, all of which produce harmful by-products. The inlet air coolant and reactants have an important effect on the performance degradation of the PEMFC and certain power outputs. In this work, a theoretical model of a PEM fuel cell with solar air heating system for the preheating hydrogen of PEM fuel cell to mitigate the performance degradation when the fuel cell operates in cold environment, is proposed and evaluated by using energy analysis. Considering these heating and energy losses of heat generation by hydrogen fuel cells, the idea of using transpired solar collectors (TSC) for air preheating to increase the inlet air temperature of the low-temperature fuel cell could be a potential development. The aim of the current article is applying solar air preheating for the hydrogen fuel cells system by applying TSC and analyzing system performance. Results aim to attention fellow scholars as well as industrial engineers in the deployment of solar air heating together with hydrogen fuel cell systems that could be useful for coping with fossil fuel-based power supply systems.     

A critical review on design aspects and developmental status of metal hydride based thermal machines

Over two decades, research in the field of metal hydride based thermal machines has gained immense attention by the researchers of different fields. Because of its capability to store large volume of hydrogen per unit mass at near ambient condition, its utilization has been spread in numerous applications such as energy storage and other biological, chemical, aerospace and nuclear applications. Though there have been several review reports published on metal hydride based hydrogen storage, but the present work is focused on the thermal management issues and worldwide developmental status of various metal hydride based thermal machines such as thermal energy storage, heat upgradation, heat pump, cooling system, and hydrogen purification and compression. With a brief discussion about the basic understanding of metal hydride alloy formation, this paper also covers screening of metal hydride alloys, design considerations and evolution of different reactor geometries for various metal hydride based thermal management systems. The review also addresses the benefit of coupling of a metal hydride based hydrogen energy system with a conventional thermal system in order to a produce hybrid system with much higher performance and almost zero environmental pollution.     

Perspective and potential of CO2: A focus on potentials for renewable energy conversion in the Mediterranean basin

Figures commonly quoted on the soon shortage of generating energy from fossil sources which may give the impression that it will be possible to switch to renewable energies conversion as foundations for the future of industrial instances in the Mediterranean basin. In this study, CO₂ energy potential and perspectives in the Mediterranean basin have been investigated in terms of efficiency, feasibility, geographical patterns and savings. Two conjoint mathematical protocols have been carried out in order to yield a simplified extracted scheme for prototype CO₂ trapping/storage plants.     

Optimal locations for second generation Fischer Tropsch biodiesel production in Finland

A country level spatially explicit mixed integer linear programming model has been applied to identify the optimal Fischer Tropsch biodiesel production plants locations in Finland. The optimal plant locations with least cost options are identified by minimizing the complete costs of the supply chain with respect to feedstock supply (energywood, pulpwood, sawmill residuals, wood imports), industrial competition (pulp mill, sawmill, combined heat and power plants, pellet industries) and energy demand (biodiesel, heat, biofuel import). Model results show that five biodiesel production plants of 390 MWfeedstock are needed to be built to meet the 2020 renewable energy target in transport (25.2 PJ). Given current market conditions, the Fischer Tropsch biodiesel can be produced at a cost around 18 €/GJ including by-products income. Furthermore, the parameter sensitivity analysis shows that the production plant parameters such as investment costs and conversion efficiency are found to have profound influence on the biodiesel cost, and then followed by feedstock cost and plant size. In addition, the variations in feedstock costs and industrial competition determine the proportion of feedstock resource allocation to the production plants. The results of this study could help decision makers to strategically locate the FT-biodiesel production plants in Finland.     

The potential of solar industrial process heat applications

The temperature requirements of solar industrial process heat applications range from 60 °C to 260 °C. The characteristics of medium to medium-high temperature solar collectors are given and an overview of efficiency and cost of existing technologies is presented. Five collector types have been considered in this study varying from the simple stationary flat-plate to movable parabolic trough ones. Based on TRNSYS simulations, an estimation of the system efficiency of solar process heat plants operating in the Mediterranean climate are given for the different collector technologies. The annual energy gains of such systems are from 550 to 1100 kWh/m² a. The resulting energy costs obtained for solar heat are from 0.015 to 0.028 C£/kWh depending on the collector type applied. The viabilities of the systems depend on their initial cost and the fuel price. None of these costs however is stable but change continuously depending on international market trends and oil production rates. The costs will turn out to be more favourable when the solar collectors become cheaper and subsidisation of fuel is removed. Therefore the optimisation procedure suggested in this paper should be followed in order to select the most appropriate system in each case.