Abstract
Thermal analysis of a heat and power plant with a high temperature gas
cooled nuclear reactor is presented. The main aim of the considered system
is to supply a technological process with the heat at suitably high
temperature level. The considered unit is also used to produce
electricity. The high temperature helium cooled nuclear reactor is the
primary heat source in the system, which consists of: the reactor cooling
cycle, the steam cycle and the gas heat pump cycle. Helium used as a
carrier in the first cycle (classic Brayton cycle), which includes the
reactor, delivers heat in a steam generator to produce superheated steam
with required parameters of the intermediate cycle. The intermediate cycle
is provided to transport energy from the reactor installation to the
process installation requiring a high temperature heat. The distance
between reactor and the process installation is assumed short and
negligable, or alternatively equal to 1 km in the analysis. The system is
also equipped with a high temperature argon heat pump to obtain the
temperature level of a heat carrier required by a high temperature
process. Thus, the steam of the intermediate cycle supplies a lower heat
exchanger of the heat pump, a process heat exchanger at the medium
temperature level and a classical steam turbine system (Rankine cycle).
The main purpose of the research was to evaluate the effectiveness of the
system considered and to assess whether such a three cycle cogeneration
system is reasonable. Multivariant calculations have been carried out
employing the developed mathematical model. The results have been
presented in a form of the energy efficiency and exergy efficiency of the
system as a function of the temperature drop in the high temperature
process heat exchanger and the reactor pressure.
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