Investigation of novel, hybrid, geothermal-energized cogeneration plants based on organic Rankine cycle

Abstract

This paper presents and investigates several new hybrid integrations of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plants driven by low-temperature geothermal water. Here, the main reason is optimization of the heat source utilization in vapor of promoting the net output power of Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) as power plant operating in CHP models at variety of heating plant parameters. In order to evaluate and assess usefulness and importance scope of applying the new configurations, an exergetic and energetic analyses have been conducted. The simulations demonstrated that the power production has been considerably increased by the new CHP cycles, where optimization ratios could reach values till 130%, compared with conventional plants, at same heating plant conditions. Simultaneously, the heat source has been efficiently utilized by the hybrid models; where the exergy efficiency could register values till 71%. Finally, the new integration (HB4) is the lone hybrid principle which is characterized by its simplicity and enables high heat source exploitation flexibility and also provides possibility for maximizing the ORC power at the same heat demands and supply temperatures. Thus, this plant could produce 88% of the power generated by simple stand-alone ORC with total exergy efficiency of 70%.