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Thermoeconomic evaluation of three proposals for the energy cogeneration unit powered by natural gas, biogas, or syngas

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Abstract

This study uses thermoeconomic analyses to compare proposed cogeneration units that use alternative internal combustion engines operating with three possible fuels: natural gas, biogas, or syngas. The technical basis of the study is thermodynamics, which enables the identification of losses and the determination of system efficiency through energy and exergy analyses conducted with the Engineering Equation Solver software. The thermodynamic tools reveal the technical potential of each energy cogeneration unit to assist the economic–technical viability analysis. The study indicates how an energy cogeneration installation with high cooling demand in commercial and industrial enterprises reduces energy costs. In the calculation of the levelized costs of electricity of the cogeneration units, the imputed electricity is the sum of the electricity saved with an absorption chiller with the electrical power produced by motor–generators. This procedure shows that the reuse of heat reduces the cost of electricity, making the hypothetical installations more economically attractive. The levelized costs obtained for syngas and biogas cogeneration units are higher than the levelized cost for the natural gas unit. However, the biogas project stands out since its levelized cost for the cogeneration unit is only six percent higher than the cost obtained for the natural gas cogeneration unit.

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Abbreviations

COP:

Coefficient of performance

EES:

Engineering equation solver

EH:

Heat exchanger

LCOE:

Levelized cost of electricity, $/MWh

LHV:

Lower heating value, MJ/Nm3

\(\dot{C}_{{{\text{in}}}}\) :

Cost rates that enter in the system, $/s

\(\dot{C}\) :

Total cost flow rate, $/s

\(c^{{{\text{ex}}}}\) :

Specific exergetic cost, $/W

\({\text{Cp}}\) :

Specific heat of the mixture, kJ/(kg.K)

\(C_{{{\text{saved}}}}\) :

Specific savings with cogeneration, $/MWh

\(C_{{\text{SpEx chillers}}}\) :

Specific exergetic cost for chiller system, $/W

\(C_{{{\text{SpExCog}}}}\) :

Specific exergetic cost for cogeneration unity, $/W

\(C_{{SpEx{ }Engine}}\) :

Specific exergetic cost for engine system, $/W

\(E\) :

Generated energy, kWh

\(\dot{E}_{{{\text{cooling}}}}\) :

Energy released in the cooling system, kW

\(\dot{E}_{{\text{in,Unity}}}\) :

Input energy rate in the unity, kW

\({\text{Elect}}_{{{\text{saved}}}}\) :

Electricity saved, MWh

\(\dot{E}x\) :

Exergy rate, kW

\(\dot{E}x_{{{\text{chiller}},{\text{ exhaust}}}}\) :

Exergy rate used in the exhaust gas chiller, kW

\(\dot{E}x_{{{\text{chiller}},{\text{ HT}}}}\) :

Exergy rate used in the hot water chiller, kW

\(\dot{E}x_{{{\text{Lost}},{\text{ HT}}}}\) :

Exergy loss rate in the HT system, kW

\(\dot{E}x_{{{\text{Lost}},{\text{ Gas}}}}\) :

Exergy loss rate in the exhaust gas system, kW

\(\dot{E}x_{{{\text{OthLoss}},{\text{Destroyed}}}}\) :

Other destruction rates and loss of exergy, kW

\({\text{e}}_{{\text{M}}}^{{\sim {\text{ch}}}}\) :

Chemical exergy of fuel, MJ/mol

\(e_{i}^{{\sim {\text{ch}}}}\) :

Specific exergy of the constituent, MJ/mol

\(F\) :

Fuel expenses, $ (USD)

HT:

High-temperature cooling water system

\(I\) :

Investment costs, $ (USD)

\({\text{LCOE}}_{{{\text{electCog}}}}\) :

Levelized costs of energy cogeneration considering the electricity saved as an output, $/MWh

\({\text{LCOE}}_{{{\text{energyCog}}}}\) :

Levelized costs of energy cogeneration considering the cooling energy as an output, $/MWh

LT:

Low-temperature cooling water system

\(M\) :

Maintenance expenses, $ (USD)

\({\tilde{\text{m}}}\) :

Total mass of the gas, g/mol

\(\dot{m}\) :

Mass flow rate, kg/s

\(\dot{m}_{{{\text{fuel}}}}\) :

Fuel flow rate, m3/s

\(Mi\) :

Molar mass, g/mol

\(\dot{m}_{5,6}\) :

Chilled water flow rate produced by the exhaust gas chiller, m3/h

\(\dot{m}_{15,16}\) :

Cooling water flow rate of the exhaust gas chiller, m3/h

\(P_{{{\text{cooling}}}}\) :

Chiller cooling power or capacity, kW

\(P_{{{\text{electric}}}}\) :

Electric power, kW

\(P_{{{\text{Motor}}}}\) :

Total engine power, MW

\(\dot{Q}\) :

Heat rate, kW

\(R\) :

Universal gas constant, MJ/mol.K

\(r\) :

Annual interest rate

\(T\) :

Dead state temperature, K

\(T_{0}\) :

Dead state temperature, K

\({\text{T}}_{16}\) :

Inlet cooling water temperature of the exhaust gas chiller, °C

\({\text{T}}_{15}\) :

Outlet cooling water temperature of the exhaust gas chiller, °C

\(\dot{W}_{{{\text{net}}}}\) :

Net electrical power rate, MW

\(\dot{W}{ }_{{{\text{c.elec}}}}\) :

Rate of electricity consumption by the chiller, kW

\({\text{x}}_{{\text{i}}}\) :

Molar fraction of the constituent

\({\text{y}}_{{\text{i}}}\) :

Activity coefficient

\(\dot{Z}\) :

Expenses rates of maintenance, operation, and investments, $/s

\(\dot{\beta }\) :

Specific chemical exergy, MJ/Nm3

\(\varepsilon_{{{\text{cogeneration}}}}\) :

Exergy efficiency for cogeneration

\(\varepsilon_{{{\text{exerg}}}}\) :

Exergy efficiency

\(\varepsilon_{{{\text{electric}}}}\) :

Exergy efficiency for generated electricity

\(\varepsilon_{{{\text{f.law}}}}\) :

First-law efficiency

\(\eta { }_{{{\text{electric}}}}\) :

First-law efficiency for electricity

\(\eta { }_{{{\text{cogeneration}}}}\) :

First-law efficiency for cogeneration

\(\varphi\) :

Chemical exergy correction factor

\({\text{absp}}\) :

Absorption chiller

\({\text{air}} - {\text{sc}}\) :

Stoichiometric air

\({\text{chillerEx}}\) :

Exhaust gas chiller

\({\text{chillerHT}}\) :

Hot water chiller

\({\text{chillerTotal}}\) :

Hot water and exhaust gas chiller

\({\text{comp}}\) :

Compression chiller

\(ct\) :

Cogeneration unit

\({\text{cw}}\) :

Chilled water

\({\text{electrTotal}}\) :

Total of electricity

\({\text{exhaust}}\) :

Exhaust gas system

\({\text{fixed}}\) :

Fixed cost

\(g\) :

Outlet combustion gas

\({\text{i}}\) :

Initial state

\({\text{in}}\) :

Inlet

\(in,HT\) :

Inlet of the high-temperature cooling water system

\({\text{in,LT}}\) :

Inlet of the low-temperature cooling water system

\({\text{jacket}}\) :

Water jacket system

\({\text{out,HT}}\) :

Outlet of the high-temperature cooling water system

\({\text{out,LT}}\) :

Outlet of the low-temperature cooling water system

\(O\& M\) :

Operation and maintenance

\({\text{pu}}\) :

Power unit

\({\text{surr}}\) :

Surrounding

\(t\) :

Time, in years

\({\text{Variable}}\) :

Variable cost

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. SENAI CIMATEC–Integrated Campus of Manufacturing and Technology, Salvador, Bahia, 41650-010, Brazil

    Rafael Magalhães de Melo Freire & Alex Álisson Bandeira Santos

  2. Science and Technology of Bahia, IFBA–Federal Institute of Education, Salvador, Bahia, 40301-015, Brazil

    Antônio Gabriel Souza Almeida

Authors
  1. Rafael Magalhães de Melo Freire
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  2. Alex Álisson Bandeira Santos
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  3. Antônio Gabriel Souza Almeida
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Correspondence to Alex Álisson Bandeira Santos.

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Communicated by Monica Carvalho, PhD.

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de Melo Freire, R.M., Santos, A.Á.B. & Almeida, A.G.S. Thermoeconomic evaluation of three proposals for the energy cogeneration unit powered by natural gas, biogas, or syngas. J Braz. Soc. Mech. Sci. Eng. 42, 440 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40430-020-02526-9

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