Today, the study of thermal systems that take advantage of residual thermal sources in the power generation sector is of great importance to mitigate environmental impact and promote sustainable alternatives in this sector. Among these alternatives, the organic Rankine cycle (ORC) is of great relevance since it allows taking advantage of residual energy sources at low temperatures. This work presents a methodology to evaluate the feasibility of using a refrigerant as a working fluid in an organic Rankine cycle based on an exergetic viability index. As a case study, R134a, R600a, R245fa, and R123 refrigerants were considered. A residual thermal source was used that came from the Hybrid Cycle Plant of the Valley of Mexico. Thermodynamic analysis was performed to determine generated power, thermal efficiency, refrigerant mass flow, pinch point temperature difference, specific steam consumption, unused thermal exergy flow, exergy efficiency, and total heat transfer requirement. The weighted average of the differences between these indicators, the global warming index, and the ozone depletion potential relative to the most favorable indicator corresponded to the definition of the exergetic viability index of the refrigerant. The results indicate that the ORC operating at condensing temperatures of 25, 35, and 45 °C with R245fa shows the highest rate of exergetic viability despite not generating the greatest amount of power and being one of the refrigerants with the highest total heat transfer requirement. Finally, at condensing temperatures above 45 °C, it is observed that R600a is exergetically the most viable refrigerant used in the ORC.

This paper considers the criterion of minimum compression work to derive an expression for the interstage pressure of a multistage compressor with intercooling that includes the gas properties, pressure drops in the intercoolers, different suction gas temperatures, and isentropic efficiencies in each compression stage. The analytical expression for the interstage pressures is applied to estimate the number of compression stages and to evaluate its applicability in order to estimate interstage pressures in the operation of multistage compressors, which can be especially useful when their measurements are not available.

The aeroderivate gas turbines are widely used for power generation in the oil and gas industry. In offshore marine platforms, the aeroderivative gas turbines provide the energy required to drive mechanically compressors, pumps and electric generators. Therefore, the study of the performance of aeroderivate gas turbines based on a parametric analysis is relevant to carry out a diagnostic of the engine, which can lead to operational as well as predictive and/or corrective maintenance actions. This work presents a methodology based on the exergetic analysis to estimate the irrevesibilities and exergetic efficiencies of the main components of a two-shaft aeroderivate gas turbine. The studied engine is the Solar Turbine Mars 100, which is rated to provide 11.86 MW. In this engine, the air is compressed in an axial compressor achieving a pressure ratio of 17.7 relative to ambient conditions and a high pressure turbine inlet temperature of 1220 °C. Even if the thermal efficiency associated to the pressure ratio of 17.7 is 1% lower than the maximum thermal efficiency, the irreversibilities related to this pressure ratio decrease approximately 1 GW with respect to irreversibilities of the optimal pressure ratio for the thermal efficiency. In addition, this paper contributes to develop a mathematical model to estimate the high turbine inlet temperature as well as the pressure ratio of the low and high pressure turbines.

This work presents a thermodynamic analysis of a triple-level pressure combined power plant with supplementary firing. The supplementary firing is a technological development for improving and increasing the output power of a combined-cycle (CC) power plant. In Mexico, there is a plant operating with this configuration, which generates a net power of 1,170 MW, with a power ratio of the gas turbine (GT) to the steam turbine (ST) of 1.35∶1. This plant is composed of four combined-cycle units with supplementary firing, each providing an output power of 292.5 MW. The energetic and exergetic analyses of the combined cycle with and without supplementary firing are pursued, taking into account the combustion process of natural gas and humid air. These analyses are also carried out for the heat recovery steam generator, considering the waste gases of the gas turbine and of the supplementary firing as the energy sources. The obtained results are fuel, steam, and humid air flows; excess of air; gas and stea...

In an energy system, it is important to identify the origin of residue formation in order to implement actions to reduce their formation or to eliminate them as well as to evaluate their impact on the production costs of the system. In the exergetic cost theory, although there are several criteria to allocate the cost formation of residues to the productive components, no unique indication on the best choice has been defined yet. In this paper, the production exergy costs are determined by allocating the residue cost formation to the irreversibilities of the productive components from which they originate. This criterion, based on the Gouy–Stodola theorem, is an extension of the criterion of entropy changes, and unlike this, it avoids the existence of a negative production cost. This criterion is applied to a combined cycle of three pressure levels, and the production exergy costs are compared with the criteria of entropy changes, distributed exergy, and entropy. The results of the proposed criterion are in agreement with the compared criteria.