In this thesis the Copper-Chlorine (Cu-CI) thermochemical cycle and its components as well as operational and environmental conditions are defined, and a comprehensive thermodynamic analysis of a Cu-CI thermochemical cycle, including the relevant chemical reactions, is performed. Also the performance of each component/process is evaluated through energy and exergy efficiencies. Various parametric studies on energetic and exergetic aspects with variable reaction and reference-environment temperatures are carried out. A detailed analysis of the general methodology of cost estimation for the proposed process, including all cost items with their percentages, the factors that affect accuracy, and a scaling method, is also presented. / UOIT

Hydrogen is likely to be an important energy carrier in the future. It can be produced by the steam reforming of natural gas, coal gasification and water electrolysis among other processes. However current processes are not sustainable because they use fossil fuels or electricity from non-renewable resources. In this context, this thesis focuses on biomass based-hydrogen production and considers three plants intended for sustainable producing hydrogen using. These three systems are analyzed thermodynamically using Aspen Plus and their performances are examined and compared in regards to hydrogen yield. Therefore, comparisons of the systems are made based on several factors, including energy and exergy efficiencies. In addition, an economic analysis is performed in order to determine the minimum hydrogen production cost for these three systems. The results are expected to be useful to efforts for the design, optimization and modification of hydrogen production and other related processes. In the three system considered, the gasifiers are modelled using the Gibbs free energy minimization approach and chemical equilibrium considerations. Gasification, which is characterized by partial oxidation, is a vital component of several clean energy technologies including the ones considered here. Parametric analyses are carried out of several factors influencing the thermodynamic efficiency of biomass gasification. The energy efficiencies were found to be between 22-33% for all systems. However the exergy efficiencies range from around 22 to 25%. It was also found that gasifier produces the greatest quantity of entropy, due to its high irreversibility, and merits attention from those seeking to improve efficiencies. It was found that the hydrogen production cost range varies between 1.28 and 1.84 $/kg for the three systems; this is higher than the cost for that produced from conventional oil. / UOIT

This study was directed at examining the effects of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR), water/N2/CO2 injections and oxygen enrichment on availability destroyed because of combustion in simple systems like those of constant pressure and constant volume. Higher cooled EGR fractions lead to higher availability destruction for reactant temperatures less than 2000 K. The availability destroyed for 40% EGR at 300 K for constant pressure and constant volume combustion was 36% and 33%, respectively. Neglecting the chemical availability in the products, the equivalence ratio and reactant temperature that corresponded to the lowest availability destruction varied from 0.8 to 1.0 and 800 K to 1300 K, respectively, depending on the EGR fraction. The fraction of the reactant availability destroyed increased with the complexity of the fuel. The trends stayed the same for the different EGR fractions for the eight fuels that were analyzed. Higher injected water fractions lead to higher availability destruction for reactant temperatures less than 1000 K. The availability destroyed for a 40% injected water fraction at 300 K for constant pressure combustion was 36%. The product temperature ranged from 2300 K to 450 K at a reactant temperature of 300 K for injected fractions from 0% to 90%. For a 40% injected fraction at a reactant temperature of 300 K, water injection and cooled EGR resulted in the greatest destruction of availability (about 36%) with CO2 injection leading to the least destruction (about 32%). Constant volume combustion destroyed less availability compared to constant pressure combustion at a reactant pressure of 50 kPa. At a higher reactant pressure of 5000 kPa, constant pressure combustion destroyed less availability compared to constant volume combustion for reactant temperatures past 1000 K. Higher fractions of oxygen in the inlet lead to higher product temperatures that lead to lower availability destruction. For 40% oxygen in inlet, the product temperature increased to 2900 K and the availability destroyed dropped to 25% at a reactant temperature of 300 K for constant pressure combustion.

This work is an example of a CFD-assisted design and characterization process for thermal energy storage vessels. A general modeling technique for future works is also proposed. The Short-Term Thermal Storage (STTS) tanks at the Drake Landing Solar Community (DLSC) were used as the principal case study. The performance characterization of the STTS tanks and the evaluation of other tank designs were made under solar charging conditions and for the STTS “Hot Tank” only. Three sets of simulations were undertaken for each tank design, each representing a different state of inlet conditions reflected in the DLSC’s operational manual. Characterization of the STTS tanks was done mainly by applying a set of 2nd Law characterization indices, both existing and new, using exergy as the primary Figure of Merit. It was evident that significant mixing occurs in the current STTS tanks due to the ineffective placement of the inlet ports and the lack of an appropriate flow diffuser to prevent mixing. For example, at the end of the simulations exhibiting constant inlet temperature and flow rate, the total exergy in the original STTS tank was only 68% of a perfectly-stratified vessel. A modified design of the STTS tanks, which only shifted the position of the inlet port and center baffle, significantly improved this value to over 90%. Additional analysis also indicated that the STTS tanks would benefit from a simple flow distributor or inlet manifold that would address stratification issues inherent to variable temperature inlet conditions. However, further analysis on this particular design configuration is needed. The characterization methods employed in this work represent an effective means to differentiate between the stratification effectiveness of various thermal storage vessel designs. This work would further benefit from a future study that compares changes to the STTS tanks’ stratification efficiency with changes to the DLSC’s overall performance, including a cost-benefit analysis. / Thesis (Master, Mechanical and Materials Engineering) -- Queen's University, 2009-09-18 05:50:58.362

Refrigeration systems, air-conditioning units and heat pumps have been recognized as indispensable machines in human life, and are used for e.g. food storage, provision of thermal comfort. These machines are dominated by the vapor compression refrigeration system and consume a large percentage of world-wide electricity output. Moreover, CO2 emissions related to the heating and cooling processes contribute significantly to the total amount of CO2 emission from energy use. The ejector refrigeration system (ERS) has been considered as a quite interesting system that can be driven by sustainable and renewable thermal energy, like solar energy, and low-grade waste heat, consequently, reducing the electricity use. The system has some other remarkable merits, such as being simple and reliable, having low initial and running cost with long lifetime, and providing the possibility of using environmentally-friendly refrigerants, which make it very attractive. The ERS has received extensive attention theoretically and experimentally. This thesis describes in-depth investigations of vapor ejectors in the ERS to discover more details. An ejector model is proposed to determine the system performance and obtain the required area ratio of the ejector by introducing three ejector efficiencies. Based on this ejector model, the characteristics of the vapor ejector and the ERS are investigated from different perspectives. The working fluid significantly influences the ejector behavior and system performance as well as the ejector design. No perfect working fluid that satisfies all the criteria of the ERS can be found. The performance of nine refrigerants has been parametrically compared in the ERS. Based on the slope of the vapor saturation curve in a T-s diagram, the working fluids can be divided into three categories: wet, dry and isentropic. A wet fluid has a negative slope of the vapor saturation curve in the T-s diagram. An isentropic expansion process from a saturated vapor state will make the state after the expansion to fall inside the liquid-vapor area of the T-s diagram which will result in droplet formation. Generally, an isentropic expansion for a dry fluid will not occur inside the liquid-vapor area, and consequently no droplets will form. An isentropic fluid has a vertical slope of the vapor saturation curve in the T-s diagram and an isentropic expansion process will hence follow the vapor saturation curve in the T-s diagram, ideally without any droplet formation. However, when the saturation condition is close to the critical point, it is possible that the isentropic expansion process of a dry fluid and an isentropic fluid occurs inside the liquid-vapor area of the T-s diagram, resulting in formation of droplets. In order to avoid droplet formation during the expansion, a minimum required superheat of the primary flow has been introduced before the nozzle inlet. Results show that the dry fluids have generally better performance than the wet fluids and the isentropic fluid. Hence the thesis mostly focuses on the features of vapor ejectors and the ERS using dry fluids. Exergy analysis has been proven to be very useful to identify the location, magnitude, and sources of exergy destruction and exergy loss, and to determine the possibilities of system performance improvement. This method is applied to the ejector and the ERS. The ejector parameters are closely interacting. The operating condition and the ejector area ratio have a great impact on the ejector overall efficiency and system COP. The ejector efficiencies are sensitive to the operating conditions, and they significantly influence the system performance. A so-called advanced exergy analysis is adopted to quantify the interactions among the ERS components and to evaluate the realistic potential of improvement. The results indicate that, at the studied operating condition, the ejector should have the highest priority to be improved, followed by the condenser, and then the generator. Thermoeconomics, which combines the thermodynamic analysis and economic principles, is applied to reveal new terms of interest of the ERS. The economic costs of the brine side fluids (fluids that supply heat to the generator and evaporator and remove heat from the condenser) play very essential roles in the thermoeconomic optimization of the ERS. Depending on different economic conditions, the system improvement from a thermodynamic point of view could be quite different from the thermoeconomic optimization. The ERS is economically sound when using free heat sources and heat sink. An ejector test bench has been built to test the entrainment ratio of different ejectors. Although the experiments do not achieve the desired results, they could still be discussed. The insignificant effect of the superheat of the secondary flow found in the theoretical study is validated. The assumption of neglecting the velocities at the ejector inlets and outlet are confirmed. The quantification of the ejector efficiencies shows that they largely depend on the operating conditions and the ejector dimensions. / <p>QC 20141102</p>

In this thesis, fuel cell systems are analysed thermodynamically and electrochemically. Thermodynamic relations are applied in order to determine the change of first law and second law efficiencies of the cells, and using the electrochemical relations, the irreversibilities occuring inside the cell are investigated. Following this general analysis, two simple solid oxide fuel cell systems are examined. The first system consists of a solid oxide unit cell with external reformer. The second law efficiency calculations for the unit cell are carried out at 1273 K and 1073 K, 1 atm and 5 atm, and by assuming different conversion ratios for methane, hydrogen, and oxygen in order to investigate the effects of temperature, pressure and conversion ratios on the second law efficiency. The irreversibilities inside the cell are also calculated and graphed in order to examine their effects on the actual cell voltage and power density of the cell. Following the analysis of a solid oxide unit cell, a simple fuel cell system is modeled. Exergy balance is applied at every node and component of the system. First law and second law efficiencies, and exergy loss of the system are calculated.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2009. / Title from PDF title page (viewed Sept. 2, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 63-65).

Neste trabalho, foi desenvolvido e colocado em funcionamento, por 295 horas, um protótipo de sistema de geração de energia de baixo custo que utiliza biogás proveniente de um aterro sanitário em Porto Alegre (RS – Brasil). Idealizado para a utilização da energia no manejo de um aterro sanitário durante o tempo de vida útil do mesmo. Também aplicável para processos industriais que gerem resíduos orgânicos e que devem ser tratados biologicamente. Consiste de um motor de combustão interna acoplado a um motor assíncrono capaz de gerar até 5 kW em 220 volts em três fases com 89% das medições dentro do padrão adequado, 9,9% precárias e 1,1% críticas, sendo as últimas preconizadas para 2004 pela agência reguladora em 7% e 1,1%, respectivamente. O biogás necessário para o funcionamento do protótipo é da ordem de 10,5 a 13,8 kg/h, com tratamento mínimo, ascendendo através de limalhas de aço em um recipiente onde também são retidos os condensados. O custo do quilowatt-hora para um sistema semelhante, mas com um poder de geração maior, na faixa de 40kW, foi estimado em torno de US$0,04, valor que incorpora o custeio do equipamento mais o investimento de instalação. Concluiu-se que o sistema é operacional e pode em curto prazo ser utilizado para o manejo sustentável de um aterro sanitário. No aspecto impacto ambiental, a partir de uma análise exergética baseada nos indicadores ambientais: eficiência exergética ambiental (η ex. amb.) e razão de poluição total (R pol), o sistema representa uma alternativa vantajosa à queima simples do biogás, tendo rendimento exergético ambiental (η ex. amb.), da ordem de 8 vezes maior e uma razão de poluição total (R pol), 10 vezes menor. No aspecto econômico compete com vantagem com qualquer outro energético. / This work developed and put in operation, for 295 hours, a prototype of low cost energy generation system that uses biogas originated from a sanitary landfill in Porto Alegre (RSBrazil). It was idealized for the use of the energy in the sanitary landfill handling its useful life time. Also applicable for industrial processes that generate organic residues and that should be treated biologically. It consists of a coupled internal combustion engine in an asynchronous motor capable of generating up to 5 kW in 220 volts in three phases, with 89% of measurements of the appropriate pattern, 9,9 % precarious and 1,1% critical, being the last ones required for 2004 by the regulatory agency in 7% and 1,1%, respectively. The necessary biogas for the prototype operation is ordered than 10,5 to 13,8 kg/h, with minimum treatment, ascending through steel filings in a container where also condensed ones are kept. The cost of kilowatthour for a similar system, but with a larger generation power, in the range of 40kW, it was estimated about US$0,04, value that incorporates the installation investment and costs of operation. It was concluded that the system is operational and it can be used for the maintainable handling of a sanitary landfill in a short period. In the aspect of environmental impact, starting from an analysis exergy based on environmental indexes: environmental exergy efficiency (η ex. amb.) and total pollution rate (R pol), the system is an advantageous alternative to a simple burning of biogas, having an environmental income of exergy efficiency (η ex. amb.), 8 times bigger and a total pollution rate (R pol), 10 times smaller. In the economical aspect it competes advantageously with any other energy.

Neste trabalho, foi desenvolvido e colocado em funcionamento, por 295 horas, um protótipo de sistema de geração de energia de baixo custo que utiliza biogás proveniente de um aterro sanitário em Porto Alegre (RS – Brasil). Idealizado para a utilização da energia no manejo de um aterro sanitário durante o tempo de vida útil do mesmo. Também aplicável para processos industriais que gerem resíduos orgânicos e que devem ser tratados biologicamente. Consiste de um motor de combustão interna acoplado a um motor assíncrono capaz de gerar até 5 kW em 220 volts em três fases com 89% das medições dentro do padrão adequado, 9,9% precárias e 1,1% críticas, sendo as últimas preconizadas para 2004 pela agência reguladora em 7% e 1,1%, respectivamente. O biogás necessário para o funcionamento do protótipo é da ordem de 10,5 a 13,8 kg/h, com tratamento mínimo, ascendendo através de limalhas de aço em um recipiente onde também são retidos os condensados. O custo do quilowatt-hora para um sistema semelhante, mas com um poder de geração maior, na faixa de 40kW, foi estimado em torno de US$0,04, valor que incorpora o custeio do equipamento mais o investimento de instalação. Concluiu-se que o sistema é operacional e pode em curto prazo ser utilizado para o manejo sustentável de um aterro sanitário. No aspecto impacto ambiental, a partir de uma análise exergética baseada nos indicadores ambientais: eficiência exergética ambiental (η ex. amb.) e razão de poluição total (R pol), o sistema representa uma alternativa vantajosa à queima simples do biogás, tendo rendimento exergético ambiental (η ex. amb.), da ordem de 8 vezes maior e uma razão de poluição total (R pol), 10 vezes menor. No aspecto econômico compete com vantagem com qualquer outro energético. / This work developed and put in operation, for 295 hours, a prototype of low cost energy generation system that uses biogas originated from a sanitary landfill in Porto Alegre (RSBrazil). It was idealized for the use of the energy in the sanitary landfill handling its useful life time. Also applicable for industrial processes that generate organic residues and that should be treated biologically. It consists of a coupled internal combustion engine in an asynchronous motor capable of generating up to 5 kW in 220 volts in three phases, with 89% of measurements of the appropriate pattern, 9,9 % precarious and 1,1% critical, being the last ones required for 2004 by the regulatory agency in 7% and 1,1%, respectively. The necessary biogas for the prototype operation is ordered than 10,5 to 13,8 kg/h, with minimum treatment, ascending through steel filings in a container where also condensed ones are kept. The cost of kilowatthour for a similar system, but with a larger generation power, in the range of 40kW, it was estimated about US$0,04, value that incorporates the installation investment and costs of operation. It was concluded that the system is operational and it can be used for the maintainable handling of a sanitary landfill in a short period. In the aspect of environmental impact, starting from an analysis exergy based on environmental indexes: environmental exergy efficiency (η ex. amb.) and total pollution rate (R pol), the system is an advantageous alternative to a simple burning of biogas, having an environmental income of exergy efficiency (η ex. amb.), 8 times bigger and a total pollution rate (R pol), 10 times smaller. In the economical aspect it competes advantageously with any other energy.

Neste trabalho, foi desenvolvido e colocado em funcionamento, por 295 horas, um protótipo de sistema de geração de energia de baixo custo que utiliza biogás proveniente de um aterro sanitário em Porto Alegre (RS – Brasil). Idealizado para a utilização da energia no manejo de um aterro sanitário durante o tempo de vida útil do mesmo. Também aplicável para processos industriais que gerem resíduos orgânicos e que devem ser tratados biologicamente. Consiste de um motor de combustão interna acoplado a um motor assíncrono capaz de gerar até 5 kW em 220 volts em três fases com 89% das medições dentro do padrão adequado, 9,9% precárias e 1,1% críticas, sendo as últimas preconizadas para 2004 pela agência reguladora em 7% e 1,1%, respectivamente. O biogás necessário para o funcionamento do protótipo é da ordem de 10,5 a 13,8 kg/h, com tratamento mínimo, ascendendo através de limalhas de aço em um recipiente onde também são retidos os condensados. O custo do quilowatt-hora para um sistema semelhante, mas com um poder de geração maior, na faixa de 40kW, foi estimado em torno de US$0,04, valor que incorpora o custeio do equipamento mais o investimento de instalação. Concluiu-se que o sistema é operacional e pode em curto prazo ser utilizado para o manejo sustentável de um aterro sanitário. No aspecto impacto ambiental, a partir de uma análise exergética baseada nos indicadores ambientais: eficiência exergética ambiental (η ex. amb.) e razão de poluição total (R pol), o sistema representa uma alternativa vantajosa à queima simples do biogás, tendo rendimento exergético ambiental (η ex. amb.), da ordem de 8 vezes maior e uma razão de poluição total (R pol), 10 vezes menor. No aspecto econômico compete com vantagem com qualquer outro energético. / This work developed and put in operation, for 295 hours, a prototype of low cost energy generation system that uses biogas originated from a sanitary landfill in Porto Alegre (RSBrazil). It was idealized for the use of the energy in the sanitary landfill handling its useful life time. Also applicable for industrial processes that generate organic residues and that should be treated biologically. It consists of a coupled internal combustion engine in an asynchronous motor capable of generating up to 5 kW in 220 volts in three phases, with 89% of measurements of the appropriate pattern, 9,9 % precarious and 1,1% critical, being the last ones required for 2004 by the regulatory agency in 7% and 1,1%, respectively. The necessary biogas for the prototype operation is ordered than 10,5 to 13,8 kg/h, with minimum treatment, ascending through steel filings in a container where also condensed ones are kept. The cost of kilowatthour for a similar system, but with a larger generation power, in the range of 40kW, it was estimated about US$0,04, value that incorporates the installation investment and costs of operation. It was concluded that the system is operational and it can be used for the maintainable handling of a sanitary landfill in a short period. In the aspect of environmental impact, starting from an analysis exergy based on environmental indexes: environmental exergy efficiency (η ex. amb.) and total pollution rate (R pol), the system is an advantageous alternative to a simple burning of biogas, having an environmental income of exergy efficiency (η ex. amb.), 8 times bigger and a total pollution rate (R pol), 10 times smaller. In the economical aspect it competes advantageously with any other energy.