Exergy Analysis (Facts)

Facts

• Per capita energy consumed is a measure of the level of development of the nation.

• World’s energy resource are limited and possible depleting at a fast rate, therefore many
countries are re-assessing their policies and take measures for eliminating/minimising
waste.
• An engineer designing a system often aims for the highest possible technical efficiency at
the minimum cost under the prevailing technical, economic and legal conditions while
acknowledging ethical, ecological and social considerations (M.A. Rosen and I. Dincer
2003).

• The exergy concept can make an engineers work easier and offers unique insights into
where losses are found and possible improvements. Life cycle exergy analysis is
suggested as a better method to meet environmental conditions and/or requirements.
 Therefore What is Exergy?

• Several authors including (M.A Rosen and I. Dincer 2003) state

that Exergy is a powerful and effective tool for the followings:

 Designing and analyzing energy systems by combining the conservation of mass and energy
principles with the second law of thermodynamics.

 Furthering the goal of more efficient energy resource use by assessing meaningful efficiencies
and enabling the locations, types and true magnitudes of wastes and losses to be determined.

 Revealing whether or not, and by how much, it is possible to design more efficient energy
systems by reducing the inefficiencies in existing systems,

 Addressing the impact on the environment of energy resource utilization

 Helping to achieve sustainable development.

 Confluence of Exergy
• Based on the previous slide figure below demonstrate interdisciplinary nature of Exergy

Exergy

Sustainable development

• Exeryg therefore is the confluence of energy, environment and sustainable development.

• The link between exergy and the environment is particularly interesting. Energy
production, transformation, transport and use impact the earths environment.
 Exergy Further Definitions
• Exergy (also called Availability or Work Potential): the maximum useful work that can
be obtained from a system at a given state in a given environment; in other words, the
most work you can get out of a system

• Environment: the area of the surroundings not affected by the process at any point (For
example, if you have a hot turbine, the air next to the turbine is warm. The environment
is the area of the surroundings far enough away that the temperature isn’t affected.)

• Dead State: when a system is in thermodynamic equilibrium with the environment,

denoted by a subscript zero; at this point no more work can be done
 Exergy analysis
• The steady state exergy balance equation may be written as below:

Total exregy transported into the system = total exergy transported out of the system + energy
destroyed within the system.
 Exergy analysis
• Consider power generation plant.

• The exergy of the working fluid at each point, calculated from its properties is given by
equation below.

Where the subscript “o” indicate the “dead state”. The dead state is defined by
To = 298.15 K and Po = 1 atm
 Example 1
• A 200m3 rigid tank contains compressed air at 1MPa and 300K. Determine how much
work can be obtained from this air it the environment conditions are 100kPa and 300K

• A piston cylinder device contains 0.05 kg of steam at 1MPa and 300oC. Steam now
expands to a final state of 200kPa and 150oC, doing work. Heat losses from the system to
the surroundings are estimated to be 2kJ during this process. Assuming the surrounding to
be To = 25oC and Po = 100 kPa. Determine
(a) the exergy of the steam at the initial and final states.
(b) the exergy change of the system
(c) the exergy destroyed
(d) the second law efficiency of the process.