Abstract
Research on applying a supercritical carbon dioxide power cycle (S-CO2) to concentrating solar power (CSP) instead of a steam Rankine cycle or an air Brayton cycle has been recently conducted. An S-CO2 system is suitable for CSP owing to its compactness, higher efficiency, and dry-cooling capability. At the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), to implement an S-CO2 system, a 10 kWe class test loop with a turbinealternator-compressor (TAC) using gas foil bearings was developed. A basic sub-kWe class test loop with a highspeed radial type turbo-generator and a test loop with a capability of tens of kWe with an axial type turbogenerator were then developed. To solve the technical bottleneck of S-CO2 turbomachinery, a partial admission nozzle and oil-lubrication bearings were used in the turbogenerators. To experience the closed-power cycle and develop an operational strategy of S-CO2 operated at high pressure, an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) operating test using a refrigerant as the working fluid was conducted owing to its operational capability at relatively lowpressure conditions of approximately 30 to 40 bar. By operating the sub-kWe class test loop using R134a as the working fluid instead of CO2, an average turbine power of 400 W was obtained.
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Acknowledgments
This work was conducted under the framework of Research and Development Program of the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER) (B7-2414). In addition, this work was supported by the On Demand Development Program of Core Technology for Industrial Fields (10063187, Engineering Technique for Power Generation System Design using Industry Waste Heat), funded by the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MI, Korea).
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Cho, J., Shin, H., Cho, J. et al. Preliminary experimental study of a supercritical CO2 power cycle test loop with a high-speed turbo-generator using R134a under similarity conditions. Front. Energy 11, 452–460 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11708-017-0504-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11708-017-0504-4