Modeling, Simulation, and Performance Evaluation Analysis of a Parabolic Trough Solar Collector Power Plant Coupled to an Organic Rankine Cycle Engine in North Eastern Greece Using trnsys

2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pantelis N. Botsaris ◽  
Alexandros G. Pechtelidis ◽  
Konstantinos A. Lymperopoulos

The present work is focused on the development of a simulation model for an existing cogeneration power plant, which utilizes a solar thermal field with parabolic trough solar collectors coupled to an Organic Rankine Cycle engine. The power plant is modeled in the trnsys v.17 software package and its performance has been validated with real operating conditions. The simulated system (concentrated solar power (CSP) field and ORC engine) is the main part of a hybrid power plant located near “Ziloti” village of the Municipality of Xanthi, in northeastern Greece. The construction of the hybrid power plant was funded by the Strategic Co-Funded Project of the European Territorial Cooperation Program Greece–Bulgaria 2007–2013 with the acronym ENERGEIA. The power plant simulated in this paper includes a 234 kWth solar parabolic trough collector (PTC) field, a 5 m3 thermal energy storage tank, and a 5 kWe ORC engine for the production of thermal and electrical energies. The results of the simulations present small deviation in contrast to the real operating data of the CSP power plant coupled with the ORC engine, therefore the simulation model is considered as reliable.

Author(s):  
Sylvain Quoilin ◽  
Olivier Dumont ◽  
Kristian Harley Hansen ◽  
Vincent Lemort

In this paper, an innovative system combining a heat pump (HP) and an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) process is proposed. This system is integrated with a solar roof, which is used as a thermal source to provide heat in winter months (HP mode) and electricity in summer months (ORC mode) when an excess irradiation is available on the solar roof. The main advantage of the proposed unit is its similarity with a traditional HP: the HP/ORC unit only requires the addition of a pump and four-way valves compared to a simple HP, which can be achieved at a low cost. A methodology for the optimal sizing and design of the system is proposed, based on the optimization of both continuous parameters such as heat exchanger size or discrete variables such as working fluid. The methodology is based on yearly simulations, aimed at optimizing the system performance (the net yearly power generation) over its whole operating range instead of just nominal sizing operating conditions. The simulations allow evaluating the amount of thermal energy and electricity generated throughout the year, yielding a net electric power output of 3496 kWh throughout the year.


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