Thermodynamic Analysis and Multiple System Layouts Comparison of the Supercritical CO2 Brayton Cycle for Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor with Offshore Scenes

Abstract

The supercritical CO2 (sCO2) is regarded as the good working fluid for multiple energy applications. It has advantages on high energy flux density, compact equipment, higher cycle efficiency, product modularization. This paper discusses the sCO2 application with sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) on offshore scenes. Numerical models are built for the thermo-dynamic process of the recuperation, the recompression, and the partial cooling sCO2-SFR cycle. Energetic analysis, exergetic analysis, and genetic algorithm are used to find the optimal solution. The sCO2 cycle is well matched with SFR on temperature and pressure ranges. Higher cycle and exergy efficiencies could be achieved with both of the recompression and the partial cooling cycles. The structure improvements make more energy/exergy from the working fluid after the sCO2 turbine be re-used. The recompression cycle could get the highest cycle and exergy efficiencies as 37.85% and 67.15% with 27.17 MW net power. For offshore scenes, both of the recompression and the recuperation cycle are recommended. The recompression cycle owns highest efficiencies, moderately simple structure, similar power class of compressors. And the recuperation cycle has edges on simple structure, less control strategies, the potential realization on Turbine-Alternator-Compressor integration.