Power Generation from Low Grade Heat Using Trilateral Flash Cycle

Though the world is suffering from energy crisis, a large amount of low grade heat (temperature lower than 100̊C) is being wasted for the lack of availability of cost effective technology. Recovery of waste heat is drawing the attention of the researcher around the world and the recovery of energy from low grade heat which has a temperature lower than 100̊C is still a big challenge. In our current work, a concept has been developed to produce electricity using a generator coupled with a Pelton turbine. Though solar pond is considered as the heat source for this conceptual design, it can be replaced by any other heat source like geothermal heat, industrial waste heat etc. Unlike Organic Ranking Cycle (ORC), heat will be added in a single phase working fluid of low boiling temperature like iso-pentane under high pressure to increase the heat transfer efficiency. Afterward, saturated liquid iso-pentane would be passed through a convergent-divergent (CD) nozzle and a high velocity jet of mixture of liquid and vapor from the nozzle exit will run the turbine. Finally, the mixture from the turbine exit would be condensed to liquid and recycled to the heat exchanger by a high pressure pump.