Part-Load Performance Prediction and Operation Strategy Design of Organic Rankine Cycles with a Medium Cycle Used for Recovering Waste Heat from Gaseous Fuel Engines

Abstract: The Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) is regarded as a suitable way to recover waste heat from gaseous fuel internal combustion engines. As waste heat recovery systems (WHRS) have always been designed based on rated working conditions, while engines often work under part-load conditions, it is quite significant to analyze the part-load performance and corresponding operation strategy of ORC systems. This paper presents a dynamic model of ORC with a medium cycle used for a large gaseous fuel engine and analyzes the effect of adjustable parameters on the system performance, giving effective control directions under various conditions. The results indicate that the intermediary fluid mass flow rate has nearly no effect on the output power and thermal efficiency of the ORC, while the mass flow rate of working fluid has a great effect on them. In order to get a better system performance under different working conditions, the system should be operated with the working fluid mass flow rate as large as possible, but with a slight degree of superheating. Then, with the control of constant superheat degree at the end of the heating process, the performance of the combined system that consists of ORC and the engine at steady state under seven typical working conditions is also analyzed. The results indicate that the energy-saving effect of WHRS becomes worse and worse as the working condition decreases. Especially at 40% working condition the WHRS nearly has no energy-saving effect anymore.