Performance Assessment of a Shell Tube Evaporator for a Model Organic Rankine Cycle for Use in Geothermal Power Plant

Abstract

The global energy demand increases with development and population rise. Most electrical power is currently generated by conventional methods from fossil fuels. Despite the high energy demand, the conventional energy resources such as fossil fuels have been declining and harmful combustion byproducts are causing global warming. The Organic Rankine Cycle power plant is a very effective option for utilization of low grade heat sources for power generation. In the Organic Rankine Cycle heat exchangers such as evaporators and condensers are key components that determine its performance. Researches indicated that shell tube heat exchangers are effectively utilized in this cycle. The design of the heat exchanger involves establishing the right flow pattern of the interacting fluids. The performance of these exchangers can be optimized by inserting baffles in the shell to direct the flow of fluid across the tubes on shell side. In this work heat exchangers have been developed to improve heat recovery from geothermal brine for additional power generation. The design involved sizing of heat exchanger (evaporator) using the LMTD method based on an expected heat transfer rate. The heat exchanger of the model power plant was tested in which hot water simulated brine. The results indicated that the heat exchanger is thermally suitable for the evaporator of the model power plant.

Dynamic Simulation of an Organic Rankine Cycle—Detailed Model of a Kettle Boiler

“…Each pass (or segment) has a certain cross-sectional area A s as defined by Equations (33) and (34). Another useful quantity is the cross-sectional area of the tube bundle in contact with the liquid volume A l , function of the liquid level l l .…”

“…The pressure drop of the exhaust gas on the shell side has a negative impact on the performance of the topping cycle and should be minimized [30][31][32]. Shell-and-tube heat exchangers are applied or assumed for ORC optimization in different studies [33][34][35][36]. This type of heat exchanger can be deployed up to very high pressures and temperatures, has a relatively simple geometry and its design and manufacturing procedures are very well-known and established [37].…”

Diseño térmico, mecánico y simulación estructural de un evaporador del tipo coraza y tubos para aplicaciones de baja temperatura en un Ciclo Rankine Orgánico

“…Durante los últimos años, el ORC ha comenzado a tener diversas aplicaciones, principalmente en técnicas de recuperación de calor residual de algunas industrias, así como en el aprovechamiento de energía geotérmica, solar y de biomasa (Tartière y Astolfi, 2017). Particularmente, en el sector de la energía geotérmica es donde ha tenido mayor auge, debido a que, a diferencia del resto de energías limpias, la geotérmica no es intermitente; además, produce pérdidas considerables de calor, que, de no ser tratadas adecuadamente, producirían contaminación térmica en el ambiente circundante (Nigusse et al, 2014). En el caso de México, sólo el 2 % de la energía producida al año es de origen geotérmico, sin embargo, se han reconocido por lo menos 11 provincias con reservorios cuya explotación es viable en términos económicos (Prol-Ledesma y Morán-Zenteno, 2019); esto representa un área de oportunidad para cumplir los objetivos del acuerdo de Paris de reducir las emisiones de dióxido de carbono, así como para garantizar el acceso a la energía en determinadas comunidades.…”

Thermo-hydraulic rating of a shell and tube heat exchanger for methanol condensation

“…Heat exchanger is a universal device in many industrial applications and energy conversion systems (Rao and Raju, 2016). A heat exchanger is an apparatus or equipment built for efficient heat transfer between two or more fluid streams at different temperatures (Nigusse et al, 2014). Usually, heat exchangers remove the heat of a particular medium by allowing it to absorb into another heat transfer medium such as water, oil, air, etc.…”