Maisotsenko Open Cycle Used for Gas Turbine Power Generation

Abstract

The Maisotsenko Open Cycle combines the thermodynamic processes of heat exchange and evaporative cooling in a unique indirect evaporative cooler resulting in product temperatures that approach the dew point temperature, (not the wet bulb temperature) of the working gas. It is an open thermodynamic cycle utilizing several thermodynamic processes that cools a product fluid with a liquid evaporating into a gas, generally water evaporating into air from the atmosphere and returns it to the atmosphere. It is a new cycle as no other cycle can be diagramed in the same way on the psychrometric chart of a gas. In a gas turbine, the gas is air and evaporate is water. An atmospheric pressure heat and mass exchanger operating with the Maisotsenko Cycle can be used to cool compressor inlet air below the wet bulb temperature. In a high-pressure heat and mass exchanger the cycle can create a compressed air saturator using heat from the turbine exhaust gases and also cools water for heat recovery in a compressor inter-cooler. The same saturator will humidify and/or superheat the compressed air before entering a combustor to the amount desired. From a practical stand point the limit of humidification of the compressed air is the amount of heat available at a temperature above its dew point temperature from the exhaust gas and/or intercompressor coolers. The amount of superheating or humidifying of the compressed air is easily controlled and changed during operation allowing added power, or greater efficiency, (60% overall thermal efficiency) quickly and easily. The equipment uses existing shell and tube heat exchanger or plate heat exchangers technologies. There are many other benefits ranging from lower NOx to greatly reduced equipment cost compared to any other power cycle enhancement systems.