Performance study of thermal-nuclear co-generation system based on exergy and thermal economy analysis

Abstract

The thermal-nuclear co-generation system realizes the effective complementarity of power generating efficiency and pollutant emission reduction while simultaneously reducing the consumption of fossil fuels and pollutant emissions. First, four potential combined thermal-nuclear power generation schemes are proposed in this research. The performance of each scheme is examined, and the system is compared and examined based on two indicators: nuclear energy share and nuclear energy generation efficiency. For the chosen ideal combination scheme, exergy analysis and a thermo-economic structural theory analysis are carried out. The examination of the assembly for the Direct heating scheme, which the study's findings indicated was the optimum option, revealed that the combined unit could achieve 38.14% assembly efficiency, which is 2.29% greater than that of the nuclear unit alone. The feasibility of combining thermal and nuclear power is demonstrated by the study of the influence of the key parameters on the cost per unit of assembly and the calculation that the co-generation system's economic efficiency is higher than that of nuclear or thermal power units built separately in terms of fuel economy.