Thermodynamic evaluation of a geothermal power plant for advanced exergy analysis

• Evaluating thermodynamic performance of a GPP using advanced exergy analysis for the first time.
• Investigating the interactions between system components and their improvement potential.
• The conventional exergy efficiency is 9.60% while the modified exergy efficiency is 18.26% through improving.
• Total avoidable exergy destruction indicates that the heat exchangers and the turbine all merit priority for modifications.

As a result of decreasing fossil fuel resources and their adverse impacts on the environment, interest in renewable energy resources, particularly geothermal energy, has been revived. Finding approaches that are more accurate and systematic to the energy system development is of great importance for the exploitation of geothermal energy. The aim of this study was to carry out both conventional and advanced exergy analyses of an existing geothermal binary power system. In this way, in-depth information was collected about the exergy destroyed in the system and its parts. Through advanced analysis, it became possible to investigate the interactions between the system components and the actual performance of the reasonable improvements. The results show that the order of the primary improved components is CON 1, TURB 1 and VAP 2 for the conventional analysis and CON 1, CON 2 and PRE-HE 1 for the advanced analysis. The results of the advanced analysis were found to be more qualified than the results of the conventional one. The improvements made to the system, increased the modified exergy efficiency to 18.26%, while the total system efficiency was found to be 9.60% in the real conditions.