Faculty of Engineering

3rd Year Mechanical Department

Thermodynamics II

Thermodynamics II Course Project

(1) In the preliminary design stage of a steam power plant that is working on reheat
Rankine cycle, the following specifications are considered:
- The boiler pressure = 15 MPa
- The condenser pressure = 10 kPa
- The maximum temperature is 500 oC
- The isentropic efficiency of all turbine sections is 0.85
- The isentropic efficiency of the pumps is 0.95
A. Plot the reheat pressure against the thermal efficiency and network on the
same graph to determine the optimum reheat pressure that maximizes the
efficiency and the optimum reheat pressure that maximizes the network.
B. Repeat the problem while changing the boiler pressure between 12 and 21
MPa to get a relation between (Preheat, opt/Pb) and Pb
The maximum obtainable efficiency of the previous plant was not adequate, in
order to increase the plant efficiency, 5 proposals were investigated:
1) One OFWH was added to the reheat cycle.
2) One OFWH and one CFWH were added to the reheat cycle.
3) One OFWH and two CFWHs were added to the reheat cycle.
4) One OFWH and three CFWHs were added to the reheat cycle.
5) One OFWH and four or more CFWHs were added to the reheat cycle.
C. For the 1st proposal, use the reheat pressure that maximized the efficiency in
(1-A), and plot the OFWH pressure (vary the pressure from Pc to Pb) against
the thermal efficiency and the network on the same graph to determine the
optimum OFWH pressure that maximizes the efficiency and the pressure that
maximizes the network at that reheat pressure.
D. Determine the best layout for each of the aforementioned five proposals and
use EES or any other software to obtain the optimum operating pressures of
the various components to maximize the efficiency, then plot the number of
FWHs against the optimum efficiency.
E. Bonus will be granted if you can approach the optimum number of feed water
heaters considering the pressure drops in FWHs. [Hint: apply either constant
pressure drop at each feedwater (0.5 ~ 2 bar) or a constant ratio from the inlet
pressure to each feedwater heater (2 ~ 10%) ]

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Faculty of Engineering
3rd Year Mechanical Department
Thermodynamics II

(2) A gas turbine power plant operates on a simple gas turbine cycle with air as the
working fluid. The air enters the compressor at 95 kPa and 310 K and the turbine
at 1300 K. The isentropic efficiency is 80% for the compression and 85% for the
expansion. Accounting for the variation of specific heats with temperature.
(Hint: Vary the pressure ratio from 2 to 20) Using EES:
A- Find the optimum pressure ratio for maximizing network output of the cycle
and plot the rp-wnet relation.
B- Plot the relation between the pressure ratio and the thermal efficiency then
compare it with the simple ideal cycle.
C- Use an ideal regenerator and plot the relation between the pressure ratio and
the thermal efficiency to compare it with the simple ones and find out the
maximum pressure ratio can be used with the regenerative cycle.

(3) The figure below shows a combined cycle formed by a gas turbine and an organic
Rankine bottoming cycle. SteadyState operating data are labeled on the figure.
Owing to internal irreversibilities, the generator electricity output is 95% of the
input shaft power. The regenerator preheats air entering the combustor. In the
evaporator, hot exhaust gas from the regenerator vaporizes the bottoming cycle
working fluid.
A. For each of three working fluids—Refrigerant 717, Refrigerant 22, and
Refrigerant 134a—study the effect of P8 and T8 on the net efficiency of the
plant and the electricity production (e.g. plot T8 against the efficiency and the
network of the plant at different P8 pressure on the same graph) keeping the
pressure ratio in the gas turbine = 8, assume any missing data using
reasonable assumptions.
B. The effect of gas turbine ratio is to be investigated for the three working
fluids, plot the pressure ratio of the gas turbine ratio against the optimum P8
and the optimum T8 on the same graph.

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Faculty of Engineering
3rd Year Mechanical Department
Thermodynamics II

November 21, 2019 3

Faculty of Engineering
3rd Year Mechanical Department
Thermodynamics II

Instructions:
1. The project is performed in groups of 8 to 12 students.

2. Discussions will be held by the 7th of December 2019.

3. Use the link below to register your group seat numbers:

https://goo.gl/forms/Lgg76j85UqrhB2Tr1

4. Registration using the form deadline 30th of Nov. 2019 after that detailed groups

with numbers and specified discussion time will be announced.

5. The EES manual should be consulted whenever is needed.

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