Innovative Research in the Organic Rankine Cycle

Abstract

Thermodynamic cycles consist of a sequence of thermodynamic processes involving the transfer of heat and work into and then out of a system. Variables, such as pressure and temperature, eventually return the system to its initial state. During the process of passing through the system, the working fluid converts heat and disposes of any remaining heat, making the cycle act as a heat engine, where heat or thermal energy is converted into mechanical energy. Thermodynamic cycles are an efficient means of producing energy and one of the most well-known examples is a Rankine cycle. From there, scientists have developed the organic Rankine cycle (ORC), which uses fluid with a liquid to vapour phase change that occurs at a lower temperature than the water to steam phase change. Dr Tzu-Chen Hung and Dr Yong-Qiang Feng, who are based at both the Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Taipei University in Taiwan, and the School of Energy and Power Engineering, Jiangsu University in China, are carrying out work that seeks to design and build improved ORC systems which can be used for low-grade heat to power conversion.