The performance and efficiency of novel oxy-hydrogen-argon gas power cycles for zero emission power generation

Hodgson, Matthew; Roy, Sumit; Roskilly, Anthony Paul; Smallbone, Andrew

doi:10.1016/j.enconman.2021.114510

The performance and efficiency of novel oxy-hydrogen-argon gas power cycles for zero emission power generation

Hodgson, Matthew; Roy, Sumit; Roskilly, Anthony Paul; Smallbone, Andrew

Authors

Matthew Hodgson

Dr Sumit Roy sumit.roy@durham.ac.uk
Assistant Professor

Professor Tony Roskilly anthony.p.roskilly@durham.ac.uk
Professor

Dr Andrew Smallbone andrew.smallbone@durham.ac.uk
Associate Professor

Abstract

This study investigates the performance and efficiency of closed-loop oxy-hydrogen Brayton power cycles through numerical modelling and simulation. Coupled with storage hydrogen and oxygen produced by a water-electrolysis system, these cycles have the potential to produce flexible electrical power at high thermal efficiency whilst producing zero exhaust gas emissions. The efficiency and power output of the cycles are investigated using a thermodynamic model. A standard Argon Power Cycle (APC) fuelled by hydrogen is explored which yields an efficiency of 19% under typical operating conditions. To improve the performance, the cycle is modified by including an intercooler, reheater and regenerator, which has the potential to increase the efficiency to 64% when operating under the same conditions. In addition, the potential use of helium and air as the working fluid is explored, as well as a methane fuelled cycle. It is found that the hydrogen–helium cycle is more efficient over all pressure ratios but the most expensive to operate.

Citation

Hodgson, M., Roy, S., Roskilly, A. P., & Smallbone, A. (2021). The performance and efficiency of novel oxy-hydrogen-argon gas power cycles for zero emission power generation. Energy Conversion and Management, 244, Article 114510. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2021.114510

Journal Article Type	Article
Acceptance Date	Jul 2, 2021
Online Publication Date	Jul 14, 2021
Publication Date	Sep 15, 2021
Deposit Date	Jul 15, 2021
Publicly Available Date	Jul 15, 2021
Journal	Energy Conversion and Management
Print ISSN	0196-8904
Publisher	Elsevier
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	244
Article Number	114510
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2021.114510

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Copyright Statement
© 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)