Waste Heat Recovery Potential Research Articles

A Comprehensive Perspective of Waste Heat Recovery Potential from Solar Stirling Engines

Despite the higher efficiency advantage, the cost reduction of PV technology has been more successful compared to the dish Stirling engine (DSE) due to the large market volume and sturdy competition. Irrespective of the types of source, there exists a potential of waste heat recovery from Stirling engines operating at higher temperature regime. Accordingly, to make DSE commercially viable and efficient, innovative ways such as hybridization (combing a bottoming cycle), Co-generation, Tri-generation etc. need to be explored. In this paper, the techno-economic feasibility of hybridization of a typical solar DSE with a bottoming organic Rankine cycle (ORC) via. a heat recovery vapour generator (HRVG) is explored. The overall energetic and exergetic efficiency of the DSE has been improved by 5.79% and 5.64% while recovering the waste heat through a bottoming ORC. The design and effective incorporation of the HRVG with cooler side of the Stirling engine is identified to be crucial for the overall exergetic performance of solar Stirling-ORC. Further, the economic feasibility of a solar String-ORC combination is evaluated in terms of levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and payback period. Both LCOE and payback period are found to be in comparable range with the PV technology.

Techno-Economic and Sustainability Analysis of Potential Cooling Methods in Irish Data Centres

11% of Irish electricity was consumed by data centres in 2020. The Irish data centre industry and the cooling methods utilised require reformative actions in the coming years to meet EU Energy policies. The resell of heat, alternative cooling methods or carbon reduction methods are all possibilities to conform to these policies. This study aims to determine the viability of the resell of waste heat from data centres both technically and economically. This was determined using a novel application of thermodynamics to determine waste heat recovery potential in Irish data centres, and the current methods of heat generation for economical comparison. This paper also explores policy surrounding waste heat recovery within the industry. The Recoverable Carnot Equivalent Power (RCEP) is theoretically calculated for the three potential cooling methods for Irish data centres. These are air, hybrid, and immersion cooling techniques. This is the maximum useable heat that can be recovered from a data centre rack. This study is established under current operating conditions which are optimised for cooling performance, that air cooling has the highest potential RCEP of 0.39 kW/rack. This is approximately 8% of the input electrical power that can be captured as useable heat. Indicating that Irish data centres have the energy potential to be heat providers in the Irish economy. This study highlighted the technical and economic aspects of prevalent cooling techniques and determined air cooling heat recovery cost can be reduced to 0.01 €/kWhth using offsetting. This is financially competitive with current heating solutions in Ireland.

Generation of 3D Turbine Blades for Automotive Organic Rankine Cycles: Mathematical and Computational Perspectives

Organic Rankine cycle technology is gaining increasing interest as one of potent future waste heat recovery potential from internal combustion engines. The turbine is the component where power production takes place. Therefore, careful attention to the turbine design through mathematical and numerical simulations is required. As the rotor is the main component of the turbine, the generation of the 3D shape of the rotor blades and stator vanes is of great importance. Although several types of commercial software have been developed, such types are still expensive and time-consuming. In this study, detailed mathematical modelling was presented. To account for real gas properties, REFPROP software was used. Moreover, a detailed 3D CFD numerical analysis was presented to examine the nature of the flow after generating the 3D shapes of the turbine. Moreover, finite element analysis was performed using various types of materials to obtain best-fit material for the current application. As the turbine is part of a larger system (i.e., ORC system), the effects of its performance on the whole ORC system were discussed. The results showed that the flow was smooth with no recirculation at the design point except at the last part of the suction surface where strong vortices were noticed. Despite the strong vortices, the mathematical model proved to be an effective and fast tool for the generation of the 3D shapes of turbine blades and vanes. The deviations between the 1D mean-line and 3D CFD in turbine efficiency and power output were 2.28% and 5.10%, respectively.

Waste heat recovery in low temperature networks versus domestic heat pumps - A techno-economic and environmental analysis

The planning of energy infrastructures in new districts often follows the practice adopted for the rest of the city. In Stockholm, district heating is a common solution for multi-apartment neighborhoods. Recently, because of an average clean electricity mix, heat pumps have gained interest. However, European studies suggest to limit the reliance on electrification to avoid an extreme demand increase. Thus, an effort is required to improve the environmental impact of alternative options. This study proposes waste heat recovery in low temperature networks as a promising solution. By means of a techno-economic and environmental analysis, this option is compared to domestic heat pumps. A new approach is proposed to combine a district level perspective with simulation tools able to capture sector-coupling interactions. Scenarios, for a real neighborhood, assess waste heat recovery potential and electricity grid loading status. Results show that a waste heat recovery capacity equal to 10% of the peak load can reduce fossil fuel use of 40%. Local grid limitations are shown to be a bottleneck for the feasibility of domestic heat pumps. Their heat generation cost is 28% higher than for district heating. The carbon footprint is strongly dependent on the emission factor of the electricity mix (+11%/-24%).

High-performance eco-friendly MnTe thermoelectrics through introducing SnTe nanocrystals and manipulating band structure

Abstract MnTe, which is comprised of earth-abundant and environmentally friendly elements, shows great potential for waste heat recovery in the moderate temperature range. However, its low carrier concentration limits its thermoelectric performance. Here, we achieved ultrahigh thermoelectric performance of MnTe by manipulating band structure and introducing SnTe nanocrystals. We found that incorporation of SnTe exerts a high band convergence in the electronic structure of MnTe, leading to remarkable enhancement of Seebeck coefficient. The Seebeck coefficient was greatly enhanced compared with previously reported doped MnTe. Furthermore, the carrier concentration can be optimized simultaneously by introducing SnTe. The large Seebeck coefficient combined with increased electrical conductivity give rise to high power factor ~1230 μWm−1 K−2. Meanwhile, SnTe nanocrystals help to achieve highly effective phonon scattering leading to markedly reduced lattice thermal conductivity. The proposed novel strategy decouples electron and phonon transport of MnTe, contributing to a record high ZT of ~1.4 at 873 K for the Mn1.06Te-2% SnTe material. Our finding promotes MnTe-based materials as a robust candidate for waste heat recovery at medium temperature.

Turkey's industrial waste heat recovery potential with power and hydrogen conversion technologies: A techno-economic analysis

In this study an investigation of Turkey's overall industrial waste heat potential is conducted, and possible power and hydrogen conversion technologies are considered to produce useful energy such as power and hydrogen. The annual total industrial waste heat was has a 71 PJ in 2019 and is expected to double by 2050. The temperature range of the waste heat differs by sector at a large range of 50 °C–1000 °C. Absorption power cycle (APC), Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC), Steam Rankine cycle (SRC) and Gas Turbine (GT) systems are adapted for power production based on the waste heat temperature while electrochemical and electro-thermochemical hydrogen production systems are adapted for hydrogen generation. Proton Exchange Membrane, Alkaline, and high temperature steam electrolysis methods are selected for pure electrochemical conversion technologies and Hybrid Sulfur (HyS), Copper Chlorine (CuCl), Calcium–Bromine (CaBr), and Magnesium Chlorine (MgCl) cycles are utilized as hybrid thermochemical technologies. Many cases are formed, and best temperature matching power-hydrogen system couples are selected. It is possible to produce enough hydrogen to compensate up to 480 million m3 natural gas equivalents of hydrogen annually with selected technologies which corresponds to ~5% of residential natural gas consumption in Turkey. Economic analysis reveals that lowest hydrogen generation cost belongs to the GT-HyS system. When hydrogen is used for heating applications by a certain mixture fraction to NG pipelines, it may reduce more than 720 thousand tons of CO2 reduction annually due to natural gas use.

Predicting vehicle waste heat recovery potential in road gradient driving cycle - A case study

A commercial vehicle was instrumented for assessing the engine operation modes on a mountain route in Romania, in a 70.4 km round trip with mean road gradients +4.2% and -4.5%. The real world test cycle was processed to find the distribution of the most frequent engine operation modes (time intervals versus n × n speed and load rankings) in order to extract a steady-state gradient road cycle. The direct injection turbocharged diesel engine has been tested on the dynamometric brake in the selected operation modes, investigating the energy recovery potential of the exhaust system. An exergy analysis has been performed by processing the variables of the exhaust gas flow rates for each operation mode (gas composition, pressure and temperature) which have been weighted with the time share of each mode in the driving cycle. The exergy exhaust potential has been evaluated by means of several indicators such as mean weighted exergy rate, weighted exergy to energy ratio and weighted exergy to fuel exergy ratio. By comparing the results to local urban and extra-urban cycles from previous works, it has been revealed that the gradient road cycle has a higher energy potential than the urban cycle, but a lower one than the extra-urban cycle.

Application Research on deep recovery and utilization technology of flue gas waste heat of coal water slurry boiler

Coal water slurry boiler has attracted great attention in the field of urban heat system because of its efficient and clean coal combustion. The coal water slurry contains 35% moisture, which makes the waste heat recovery potential of flue gas greater. After the combustion of coal water slurry, the 100°Cunsaturated flue gas becomes 50°C saturated wet flue gas after Wet Desulfurization Process. The Direct Contact Thermal Storage System and Heat Pump technology are used to realize the deep recovery of low-temperature flue gas. The technology has been successfully applied in the 6×70MW coal water slurry boiler of La Shan Heat Source Company. After 120 days of operation, 393000 GJ of flue gas waste heat is recovered, about 23000 tons of coal water slurry is replaced, and 84000 tons of flue gas condensate is recovered. It has good economic and social utility. It is an effective way to recover and utilize waste heat from flue gas of coal-fired boiler, and has a broad application prospect.

Optimization of the integrated power and desalination plant with algal cultivation system compromising the energy-water-environment nexus

This article examines the exhaust waste heat recovery potential of a microturbine (MT) for seawater desalination using an organic Rankine cycle (ORC). Waste heat from microturbine is exploited using organic Rankine cycle (ORC) and the power generated is delivered to the reverse osmosis (RO) plant. The brine of the reverse osmosis plant is sent to a membrane distillation (MD) plant for further treatment after preheating using the excess heat from the turbine. Also, biological capture of CO2 through cultivation of microalgae has been considered by using flue gases from the microturbine. Plant integration is performed on the basis of the energy-water-environment nexus concept. In this regard, a multi-objective optimization approach is implemented in this work considering economic and environmental points of views. The first objective function is to maximize the annual profit of the system. The second objective function is an environmental index which is defined as the CO2 emission per desalinated water production. Minimization of this index is considered as the second objective function. The results showed that the proposed integrated ORC-RO-MD-CO2 capture plant can considerably improve the system both economically and environmentally.

Experimental investigation of waste heat recovery potential from car radiator with thermoelectric generator

Thermoelectricity (TE) is a zero-emission and low-energy generation solution based on semi-conductor’s technology. Thermoelectric modules (TEM) consists of p-doped and n-doped materials connected by copper junctions, and covered by ceramic wafer. It can be used for cooling purposes (TEC) by converting electricity into heat, or in generator mode (TEG) converting thermal energy into electricity. In general cases it uses thermal waste from existing systems to generate complementary power under Seebeck effect. This experimental work investigates the opportunity to produce electricity from recovering automobile radiator waste heat. A Mathematical model is firstly used to predict thermoelectric generator performances under different conditions. However, the direct potential is then explored from direct contact applied on a RENAULT Kangoo 1.5 DCI passenger car radiator within a single TEM. Then, a Test bench is setup under improved laboratory conditions, using adapted heat exchangers. Besides, an Arduino micro controller is envisaged wherein temperatures, flows and electrical data are depicted in real time and stored to the lab computer. Results showed considerable performance of TEG for radiator and Test Bench scenarios, with a great fit of the developed mathematical model. Likewise, it is found that test Bench conditions have improved experimental results, the divergence is not bigger than 6% from the T-model. In general, the optimal predicted point by theoretical T-Model is for (RL = 0.25 Ohm, I = 1 A, V = 1.4 V) and in consequence (P = 1.4 W), with an efficiency of 2.8%. The maximum power obtained is (P = 1.8 W), with an efficiency of 3.85% which is considered an optimistic value in real conditions.

Assessing fuel consumption reduction in Revercycle, a reversible mobile air conditioning/ Organic Rankine Cycle system

Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) is a promising solution to improve vehicle efficiency, but its commercial success is hindered by the compactness and cost requirements of the automotive sector. In an attempt to overcome these limitations, a reversible mobile air conditioning (MAC)/ORC, hereafter called ReverCycle, is proposed in this work. ReverCycle is a compact system that operates in two different modes: a standard MAC system when cabin cooling is required or an ORC recovering mechanical energy from the waste heat of an engine’s cooling system.This study presents a simulation methodology to assess the ReverCycle fuel consumption gain. A global light duty vehicle model allows the estimation of the yearly working hours for each ReverCycle operating mode and quantifies the recovered mechanical energy in ORC mode. The ORC module is validated with experimental results. Validation has shown a normalized root-mean-square deviation between 5% and 11% for the main ORC variables (pressures, temperatures and electric powers).The average fuel consumption reduction in ReverCycle was 1.3 and 2% with cold start and hot start conditions, respectively. The reversible system lost 25% of the ORC waste heat recovery potential owing to MAC activation time; however, the significant reductions in cost and compactness were advantageous.

Experimental investigation of a novel heat pipe thermoelectric generator for waste heat recovery and electricity generation

Waste heat recovery helps reduce energy consumption, decreases carbon emissions, and enhances sustainable energy development. In China, energy-intensive industries dominate the industrial sector and have significant potential for waste heat recovery. We propose a novel waste heat recovery system assisted by a heat pipe and thermoelectric generator (TEG) namely, heat pipe TEG (HPTEG)，to simultaneously recover waste heat and achieve electricity generation. Moreover, the HPTEG provides a good approach to bridging the mismatch between energy supply and demand. Based on the technical reserve on high-temperature heat pipe manufacturing and TEG device integration, a laboratory-scale HPTEG prototype was established to investigate the coupling performances of the heat pipes and TEGs. Static energy conversion and passive thermal transport were achieved with the assistance of skutterudite TEGs and potassium heat pipes. Based on the HPTEG prototype, the heat transfer and the thermoelectric conversion performances were investigated. Potassium heat pipes exhibited excellent heat transfer performance with 95% thermal efficiency. The isothermality of such a heat pipe was excellent, and the heat pipe temperature gradient was within 15°C. The TEG's thermoelectric conversion efficiency of 7.5% and HPTEG's prototype system thermoelectric conversion efficiency of 6.2% were achieved. When the TEG hot surface temperature reached 625°C, the maximum electrical output power of the TEG peaked at 183.2 W, and the open-circuit voltage reached 42.2 V. The high performances of the HPTEG prototype demonstrated the potential of the HPTEG for use in engineering applications.

Technical assessment of LNG based polygeneration systems for non-interconnected island cases using SOFC

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is one of the most promising fuels with high calorific value and low specific GHG emissions that offers several advantages as an energy carrier for power generation. In this paper, a novel polygeneration concept based on LNG fired plant for power, cooling and drinking water production in island systems is presented. Two Solid Oxide Fuel Cell based energy systems (one simple SOFC and another hybrid concept of SOFC combined with GT) are modelled in Aspen Plus and compared with two conventional combustion based technologies (internal combustion engine and Gas Turbine Combined Cycle) in terms of overall efficiency. Furthermore, a Low Temperature Multi-Effect Distillation (LT-MED) plant was modelled and coupled with the energy systems to evaluate the waste heat recovery potential for desalinated water production. Moreover, three concepts for cold recovery from the LNG regasification plant were presented and modelled. Process simulations results revealed that the hybrid SOFC-GT plant is the best solution in terms of energy efficiency and the heat recovery of the exhaust gas in a LT-MED unit is a promising option for drinking water production with almost no energy cost. Last, from exergetic point of view, the cryogenic energy storage (CES) via the production of liquid air was evaluated as the best option for waste cold utilization during LNG regasification.

Techno-economic analysis of combined inverted Brayton – Organic Rankine cycle for high-temperature waste heat recovery

Many practical cases with waste heat recovery potential such as exhaust gases of reciprocating engines, cement kilns or heat-treating furnaces, are nowadays often integrated with organic Rankine cycle to convert waste heat to the mechanical power. However, when dealing with high-temperature waste heat, organic Rankine cycle faces efficiency limit due to the physical properties of the working and thermal fluids. That gives room for further enhancement of the waste heat recovery technologies via the investigation of different non-conventional schemes as one of the possible ways. In the present work, a system introducing the combined inverted Brayton plus organic Rankine cycle is under investigation. Aspen Hysys models of both conventional organic Rankine cycle and combined cycle were designed, orienting on waste heat recovery from the heavy-load gas-fueled reciprocating engine exhaust. In this way, the performance of the combined scheme was benchmarked versus the conventional organic Rankine cycle. An assessment of the organic Rankine cycle working fluids was provided, and pentane has shown the best thermodynamic performance. The study on inverted Brayton cycle defined the remarkable effect of the water condensation in the gas duct on the inverted Brayton cycle performance. Finally, both thermodynamic and economic optimizations of the models were conducted, setting the stage for the comparison of solutions. Results have shown the 10% advantage of the combined scheme over organic Rankine cycle in generated power and system efficiency. The levelized-cost-of-energy-based optimization for variable capacity factors has highlighted above 6% advantage of the investigated solution. The analysis of the sensitivity from machines’ efficiencies and heat exchangers’ pinches has shown that with some sets of parameters, the studied scheme may concede to the organic Rankine cycle.

The High Potential for Waste Heat Recovery in Hybrid Vehicles: A Comparison Between the Potential in Conventional and Hybrid Powertrains

In future mobility, the mix of different drive trains will probably be much more diverse than it is today. According to a large number of scenario analyses, a predominant number of vehicles will continue to be based on the internal combustion engine (ICE), while an increasing number of hybrid vehicles are expected. To achieve the required reductions in CO2 emissions it is necessary to investigate all potential technologies for efficiency improvement. Therefore in this work the potential of waste heat recovery is examined for conventional and hybrid vehicles. Due to the fact that in an internal combustion engine approximately 2/3 of the fuel's chemical energy dissipates as waste heat, the potential for the recovery of this energy in all ICE driven powertrains is, in principle, high. The results of this work show that in hybrid vehicles the highest share of the energy supplied by the fuel is lost in the exhaust gas. In order to further elaborate this result, we conduct an exemplary examination of two comparable vehicles of the compact class within the worldwide harmonized light duty test cycle. Measurement data from the two vehicles at the roller dynamometer is used. The result shows that the averaged exhaust gas heat flow of the conventional vehicle is 5.0 kW. For the hybrid vehicle, driving in the charge sustaining mode, the averaged exhaust gas heat flow results in 8.1 kW. The comparison shows that the temperature level of this exhaust gas is even higher than that of the conventional vehicle. In addition, this work shows that through the higher temperatures, the exergy in the exhaust gas is higher in hybrid vehicles even if the combustion engine works with a higher efficiency. In the exemplary comparison the averaged exergy of the exhaust gas is 3.2 kW for the conventional and 5.7 kW for the hybrid vehicle. As a result of this work, the high potential for waste heat recovery in hybrid vehicles could be demonstrated.

Potential of thermoelectric waste heat recovery in a combined geothermal, fuel cell and organic Rankine flash cycle (thermodynamic and economic evaluation)

The present work aim is performance improvement of an integrated geothermal system by proposing the integration of organic Rankine flash cycle (ORFC) with the Proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) and waste heat recovery from condensers using thermoelectric generator (TEG) modules. To achieve this goal, a novel integrated system is proposed, thermodynamically modeled, investigated, and compared with the conventional system. To assess the performance of proposed system, thermodynamic and economic evaluations are performed. The results indicate that R123 as working fluid, has the best performance for the conventional and proposed systems. The findings demonstrate that with employing TEG modules an increase of 2.7% and 2.8%, for the first and second law efficiencies can be obtained respectively. Additionally, the results of parametric analysis indicate that however the geothermal fluid temperature increment decreases the first and second law efficiencies of the system, it leads to the net output power enhancement. Also, enhancement of the flash vessel pressure ratio increases the first and second law efficiency as well. Additionally, the simple payback method showed that a payback time between 1.25 years and 25 years according to the TEG modules cost can be achieved.

A Compound Cycle for Power Generation by Utilizing Residual Heat of Flue Gas in Electric Steelmaking Process

Electric furnace short process steelmaking is one of the most important steelmaking methods in the world today, and the waste heat recovery potential of electric furnace flue gas is huge. The research on the recovery of electric furnace flue gas waste heat is of great significance. In order to make better use of this part of the heat, in this paper, a compound cycle of nitrogen Brayton cycle as a first-order cycle and toluene transcritical Rankine cycle as a second-order cycle is proposed to recover waste heat from furnace flue gas in steelmaking process for power generation. A mathematical model was established with the net output power as the objective function and the initial expansion pressure, the final expansion pressure, the initial expansion temperature and the initial pressure of the second cycle as the independent variables. The effect of multivariate on the net output power of the waste heat power generation cycle is studied, and then, the optimal parameters of the compound cycle are determined. The results show that under the general electric furnace steelmaking process, the power generation efficiency of this new cycle can be increased by 21.02% compared with the conventional cycle.

ETEKINA: Analysis of the potential for waste heat recovery in three sectors: Aluminium low pressure die casting, steel sector and ceramic tiles manufacturing sector

Abstract In the framework of the ETEKINA project, waste energy streams have been analysed at an aluminium automotive parts production facility in Spain, at a steel foundry in Slovenia and at a ceramic tile production unit in Italy. The aim is to recover more than 40% of the waste heat contained in the exhaust streams and reuse it within the industrial plant rather than emitting it to the atmosphere. To select the applications where the profitability of heat recovery can be demonstrated, the flow rates and temperatures of the applicable exhaust streams have been measured and analysed to select the processes for waste heat recovery and it's re-used in the three industrial plants. The demonstration of the cost-effective waste heat recovery is to be made by using heat pipe heat exchangers (HPHEs) and the processes whereby the heat recovery installations will be erected have already been selected. HPHEs were selected as a heat recovery technology due to their advantages and key features over convectional heat exchangers considering space restrictions, pressure drop limitations, and other waste stream challenges. The challenges include high temperature of the waste and the heat sink streams, fluctuations in the waste stream flow rate and temperature, presence of corrosive moisture such as sulphuric acid in the waste stream, and the presence of particles in the waste stream which can cause fouling leading to failure of convectional technologies. Furthermore, HPHEs are maintenance-free and can have payback period of less than three years.

Estimating the waste heat recovery in the European Union Industry

Industrial processes are currently responsible for nearly 26% of European primary energy consumptions and are characterized by a multitude of energy losses. Among them, the ones that occur as heat streams rejected to the environment in the form of exhausts or effluents take place at different temperature levels. The reduction or recovery of such types of energy flows will undoubtedly contribute to the achievement of improved environmental performance as well as to reduce the overall manufacturing costs of goods. In this scenario, the current work aims at outlining the prospects of potential for industrial waste heat recovery in the European Union (EU) upon identification and quantification of primary energy consumptions among the major industrial sectors and their related waste streams and temperature levels. The paper introduces a new approach toward estimating the waste heat recovery in the European Union industry, using the Carnot efficiency in relation to the temperature levels of the processes involved. The assessment is carried out using EU statistical energy databases. The overall EU thermal energy waste is quantified at 920 TWh theoretical potential and 279 TWh Carnot potential.

WITHDRAWN: Techno-economic analysis of combined inverted Brayton - Organic Rankine cycle for high-temperature waste heat recovery

Abstract Many practical cases with waste heat recovery potential such as exhaust gases of reciprocating engines, cement kilns or heat-treating furnaces, are nowadays often integrated with organic Rankine cycle to convert waste heat to the mechanical power. However, when dealing with high-temperature waste heat, organic Rankine cycle faces efficiency limit due to the physical properties of the working and thermal fluids. That gives room for further enhancement of the waste heat recovery technologies via the investigation of different non-conventional schemes as one of the possible ways. In the present work, a system introducing the combined inverted Brayton plus organic Rankine cycle is under investigation. Aspen Hysys models of both conventional organic Rankine cycle and combined cycle were designed, orienting on waste heat recovery from the heavy-load gas-fueled reciprocating engine exhaust. In this way, the performance of the combined scheme was benchmarked versus the conventional organic Rankine cycle. An assessment of the organic Rankine cycle working fluids was provided, and pentane has shown the best thermodynamic performance. The study on inverted Brayton cycle defined the remarkable effect of the water condensation in the gas duct on the inverted Brayton cycle performance. Finally, both thermodynamic and economic optimizations of the models were conducted, setting the stage for the comparison of solutions. Results have shown the 10% advantage of the combined scheme over organic Rankine cycle in generated power and system efficiency. The levelized-cost-of-energy-based optimization for variable capacity factors has highlighted above 6% advantage of the investigated solution. The analysis of the sensitivity from machines’ efficiencies and heat exchangers’ pinches has shown that with some sets of parameters, the studied scheme may concede to the organic Rankine cycle.