A comparative study of the entropy generation by an integrated fuel cell-intercooled gas turbine

Abstract

Lower efficiency and a lower maximum output are causing problems for conventional gas turbine power plants. Additionally, the emission is the major issue that causes the global warming. Either modifying its settings or integrating it with another system will allow for an increase in productivity. With the goal of increasing efficiency and decreasing emissions, this paper describes how fuel cells can be combined with traditional ICGTs. Fuel cell is an electrochemical device which converts chemical energy to electrical energy and generates additional power. The high temperature fuel cell, a SOFC (Solid Oxide Fuel Cell) is integrated with the conventional ICGT cycle. The maximum level of irreversibility in a system can be identified with the use of exergy analysis and energy analysis. The maximum irreversibility is observed in the combustion chamber 55.1% in hybrid configuration and 47.3% in non-hybrid configuration. There is a 65.789% and 167.801% increase in energy and exergy efficiency, respectively. The environmental effect of the cycle is determined by evaluating the sustainability index, which is 100.78% greater for the hybrid cycle compared to non-hybrid cycle.