Thermodynamic and exergoeconomic optimization of a new combined cooling and power system based on supercritical CO2 recompression Brayton cycle

Abstract

Combined cooling and power (CCP) systems have received global attention for their fuel-saving benefits, energy efficiency, and energy generation capabilities. Our research introduces a new and unique CCP system, which utilizes nuclear power. This is achieved through integrating a supercritical carbon dioxide recompression Brayton cycle (SCRBC) with a bottoming cycle, consisting of an absorption power cycle (APC) and a booster-assisted ejector refrigeration cycle (BERC), to simultaneously produce cooling and power. Our research analyses the thermodynamic, exergoeconomic, and comparative aspects of the stand-alone SCRBC and the proposed SCRBC/APC-BERC system. We then conduct a comprehensive parametric analysis to investigate the effects of nine decision variables on the energy efficiency, exergy efficiency, and total cost rate of the proposed system. The proposed SCRBC/APC-BERC system and stand-alone SCRBC system are also optimized based on multiple criteria, including energy utilization factor (EUF), exergy efficiency, and total product unit cost, using Engineering Equation Solver (EES) software. Our results demonstrate that the exergy and energy efficiency of the SCRBC are enhanced using the APC-BERC, and there is also a significant improvement in exergoeconomic performance. In addition, the reactor and sCO2 turbine are identified as the primary and secondary crucial components, respectively, in terms of exergoeconomics. Our analysis shows that the proposed system demonstrates a 12.56% increase in exergetic efficiency while reducing the total product unit cost by 6.32% compared to the stand-alone SCRBC system, which is significantly higher than similar studies in the literature, highlighting the potential of our proposed system.