ORC Finned-Tube Evaporator Design and System Performance Optimization

摘要

Finned-tube heat exchangers have been used in many applications systems (refrigeration, waste heat recovery...) for many years. A considerable improvement in the thermal performance of these heat exchangers is possible by choosing an appropriate geometrical configuration for the corresponding application. In the present study, using exergy analysis, the geometry of an Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) evaporator has been derived, and optimized geometrical configurations have been found out. Results show that operation parameters (superficial air velocity, internal mass velocity), geometrical parameters (fin types, fin pitches, tube lengths, tube diameters, tube pitches) and evaporator circuitry can be optimized to ensure a compromise between exergy losses and evaporator compactness. The elaborated procedure can be used to design heat exchangers of various systems (refrigeration, heat pump, ORC ...).