Power Plants Based on a Steam Drive with a Working Body Closed Circulation

Abstract

The authors investigated the heat carriers thermodynamic characteristics and the power plant structural components, which ensured the efficient conversion of thermal energy into mechanical and electrical energy.(Research purpose) To conduct modeling for calculating the structure manufacturing technology and studying the power plant characteristics based on a steam engine with given energy parameters.(Materials and methods) The authors carried out mathematical modeling based on the heat and mass transfer laws. To create a prototype model of a steam engine, the recuperation principle based on the “liquid–vapor–liquid” cycle with the use of low-temperature heat carriers was used.(Results and discussion) The authors showed that double transformation of the aggregation state of the working body was much more efficient than its heating. They calculated the characteristics connecting the energy processes of low-temperature heat carriers vaporization (freon R-134a) in the radiator and engine. They revealed dependencies: the radiator heating time from 30 degrees Celsius (ambient temperature) to 100 degrees (maximum operating temperature) at different powers of the heating source (3; 4; 5 kilowatts); density and average density of steam in the radiator from temperature; the steam engine power and the freon steam consumption from the pressure of 0-3.97 megapascals.(Conclusions) The authors determined that the working steam amount, proportional to its density at a temperature of 90 degrees and a pressure of 3.6 megapascals, was 4.75 times less than the liquid freon amount, proportional to its density, at 100 degrees Celsius and a pressure of 3.97 megapascals, the working steam amount was 2 times less than liquid freon. They revealed a limited range of operating temperatures in a steam engine. It was proved that these calculation methods and characteristics determined the structural and energy parameters of the developed power plants based on a steam engine.