Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389

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Applied Thermal Engineering

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apthermeng

Research Paper

Parametric study of a novel organic Rankine cycle combined with a

cascade refrigeration cycle (ORC-CRS) using natural refrigerants
R. Lizarte a,, M.E. Palacios-Lorenzo b, J.D. Marcos c
a
Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Avda. de la Universidad 30, 28911 Legans, Madrid, Spain
b
Escuela Tcnica Superior de Ingeniera y Diseo Industrial, U.P.M., Ronda de Valencia 3, 28012 Madrid, Spain
c
Escuela Tcnica Superior Ingeniera Industrial, U.N.E.D., Juan del Rosal 12, 28040 Madrid, Spain

h i g h l i g h t s

A novel organic Rankine cycle combined with a cascade refrigeration cycle is shown.

Natural refrigerants (toluene, NH3, CO2) used as working fluids.

Regression models of COP and gex enable a better design of this ORC-CRS system.

Suited to be driven with low- or medium-temperature renewable sources.

Encouraging results for its application where electricity supply is unreliable.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: This paper presents a novel design of a stand-alone refrigeration system consisting of a combined organic
Received 10 March 2017 Rankine cycle and a cascade refrigeration system (ORC-CRS) for low-evaporation-temperature applica-
Revised 17 July 2017 tions (from 55 C to 30 C). Natural refrigerants were used as working fluids: toluene for the organic
Accepted 11 August 2017
Rankine cycle and NH3/CO2 for the cascade refrigeration system. A parametric study and a regression
Available online 12 August 2017
analysis have been performed to characterize the system and to estimate the overall system coefficient
of performance (COPoval) and exergetic efficiency (gex_oval). The highest values of COPoval and gex_oval cal-
Keywords:
culated were 0.79 and 31.6%, corresponding to ORC evaporation temperatures of 315 C and 255 C,
Organic Rankine cycle
Cascade
respectively. Renewable thermal energy sources from 100 to 350 C can be used to drive the facility, thus
Refrigeration reducing dependence on fossil fuel and CO2 emissions. This stand-alone facility seems to be a feasible
Natural refrigerants option to exploit low- and medium-grade thermal energy (geothermal, solar, waste heat) in places where
Simulation the electricity supply is unreliable.
2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction proven to be economical and reliable for using thermal sources

There is increasing general concern about global warming
related to CO2 emissions due to fossil-fuel combustion to produce
electricity. In addition, the oil and gas reserves are predicted to
become depleted and coal is projected to be the only cost-
effective fossil fuel remaining after about 2042 [1]. Moreover, it
is estimated that more than 2.5 billion people in the world live
with unreliable electric power supply or none at all [2]. Accord-
ingly, the use of low-grade thermal energy (geothermal, solar,
waste heat) to produce electricity can help reduce conventional
energy consumption and dependence, and relieve environmental
pollution. In this sense, organic Rankine cycle technology has
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: rlizarte@ing.uc3m.es (R. Lizarte).
as low as 80 C [3]. On the other hand, Columb [4] pointed out that
refrigeration consumes about 15% of all electricity produced
worldwide, which is generated mostly using fossil fuels (coal, oil,
and gas), and highlighted that reducing the energy consumption
of refrigeration equipment will become a key environmental prior-
ity throughout the sector. Among all the possible solutions [5], one
application that is gaining attention involves the use of organic
Rankine cycles and vapour-compression cycles (ORC-VCC) [69].
In the organic Rankine-cycle-powered vapour-compression cycle,
the ORC is used to convert heat energy into mechanical shaft
power, which in turn is used to drive the compressor of a single-
stage refrigeration system (VCC) instead of an electrically powered
motor. The ORC makes use of organic compounds as a working
fluid and, since the normal boiling point of these compounds is
lower than that of water, low temperature sources (such as solar,

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2017.08.063
1359-4311/ 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389
Nomenclature
COP coefficient of performance
dt temperature difference in the cascade heat exchanger
(C)
h specific enthalpy (kJ/kg)
NBP normal boiling point (C)
GWP global warming potential
m_ mass flow rate (kg/s)
P pressure (bar)
Q_ heat transfer rate (kW)
Rc compressor pressure ratio
S_ g entropy generation (kW/K)
s specific entropy (kJ/kg K)
t temperature (C)
W mechanical power (kW)
Greek symbols
g efficiency
geothermal, waste heat) can be used to drive the compressor of a
VCC. Thus, this is a promising technology to mitigate both the
dependence on fossil fuels as well as CO2 emissions, and it could
be applied in places where the electricity supply is unreliable
(e.g. islands, deserts). In a computational analysis carried out by
Mols et al. [10], a combined organic Rankine cycle and vapour-
compression cycle (ORC-VCC) achieved overall thermal COP rang-
ing from 0.3 to 1.1, for evaporating temperatures ranging from
13 C to 7 C. Nasir and Kim [11] reported the thermal perfor-
mance of seven working fluids, in an ORC-VCC for domestic air
conditioning. They found overall COP and exergetic efficiency val-
ues ranging from 0.172 to 0.217 and from 24.99% to 26.76%,
respectively. Aphornratana and Sriveerakul [12] performed a theo-
retical analysis of an ORC-VCC coupled with a device called an
expander-compressor unit. With R134a, for an evaporator temper-
ature of 10 C, and a condenser temperature of 35 C, the overall
COP was 0.125. Li et al. [13] evaluated an ORC-powered VCC using
low-grade thermal energy with hydrocarbon refrigerants for con-
denser temperatures of 3050 C, boiler-exit temperature ranging
from 60 C to 90 C and evaporation temperature from 15 C to
15 C. Butane gave the best results with an overall COP of 0.47
for an evaporation temperature of 5 C. For evaporation tempera-
tures of 15 C, the overall COP was 0.22. Bu et al. [14] developed
a thermodynamic model of an ORC/VCC ice maker driven by solar
energy for generating temperatures of 60160 C, condensation
temperatures from 35 C to 45 C and evaporation temperature of
5 C. Aneke et al. [15] compared a waste-heat-driven ORC-
powered VCC with a waste-heat-driven NH3-H2O absorption
refrigeration system. They had better results with the ORC driven
VCR system with a COP of 0.57 for an evaporator temperature of
20 C.
However, for very low-temperature applications (e.g. storage of
frozen food, tissues, rapid freezing, etc.) where the required evap-
orating temperature of the refrigeration system is also very low,
ranging from 30 C to 55 C, it is not cost effective to use a
single-stage refrigeration system, since the high temperature dif-
ference between the heat source and the heat sink results in a high
pressure ratio, low volumetric efficiency, and a low coefficient of
performance of the system. For this reason, cascade refrigeration
systems are usually adopted to meet those requirements [16
18]. The electricity grid is the source for these conventional
mechanical compression systems.
The present study proposes a novel stand-alone refrigeration
system using an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) combined with a
379
Subscripts
comp compressor
cond condensation
CHX cascade heat exchanger
CRS cascade refrigeration system
evap evaporation
ex exergy
exp expansion
H high temperature reservoir
IHX internal heat exchanger
L low temperature reservoir
ORC organic Rankine cycle
oval overall
p pump
s isentropic
sub subcooled
sup superheated
cascade refrigeration system (CRS) for applications that need very
low evaporating temperatures and low-to medium-grade thermal
energy as the heating source. The overall system coefficient of per-
formance (COPoval) and exergetic efficiency (gex_oval) were esti-
mated by means of a parametric study for different operating
conditions and a regression analysis. The regression models
obtained can be useful to establish the operating conditions of
the system. This facility is presented as an option for places having
an unreliable electric power service or lacking electric power.
2. Working fluids
The selected working fluid for the organic Rankine cycle is
toluene. Toluene is one of the fluids currently used in commercial
ORC power plants [19]. Although HFC-134a (GWP = 1300) and
HFC-245fa (GWP = 950) are also used [19,20], according to the
Directive 517/2014 [21], domestic refrigerators and freezers that
contain HFCs with GWP > 150 have been prohibited since 2015,
and refrigerators and freezers for commercial use (hermetically
sealed equipment) that contain HFCs with GWP > 2500 will be pro-
hibited by 2020, and those containing HFCs with GWP > 150 will
be prohibited by 2022. For this reason, in this study low-GWP flu-
ids are used as working fluids. Toluene has a GWP = 3.3 for a 100-
year timescale [22]. Toluene is a natural refrigerant that showed
good performance in previous ORC studies [23,24]. Pezzuolo
et al. [25] proposed toluene as the most promising among the flu-
ids studied both thermodynamically and economically. Since
toluene is a dry fluid, the expanded stream at the turbine outlet
is always superheated vapour. In this way, the superheated appa-
ratus is no longer needed [19]. The selected working fluids for
the cascade refrigeration system are CO2 for the low-temperature
circuit and NH3 for the high-temperature circuit. Using different
refrigerants for each cycle makes it possible to select those which
are best suited for that particular temperature range. The evaporat-
ing pressure of ammonia is below atmospheric pressure when the
evaporating temperature is below 35 C, thus causing air to leak
into the refrigeration system and leading to short-term inefficiency
and long-term unreliability of the system. A gas with a positive
evaporating pressure should be chosen for evaporation below
35 C. The use of a cascade system using CO2 in the low temper-
ature stage and NH3 in the high temperature stage turned out to be
an excellent alternative for cooling applications at very low
temperatures [2630]. Ammonia is the natural substance most
380 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389

Table 1 low-pressure vapour enters the internal heat exchanger (IHX)

Properties of the ORC-CRS working fluids [33]. and cools in the process (4-4a) by transferring heat to the com-
Parameter Toluene CO2 NH3 pressed liquid that is heated in the process (2-2a). Then, the fluid
Molar mass (kg/kmol) 92.14 44.01 17.03 enters the condenser, where it condenses at tcond due to the rejec-
tcrit (C) 318.6 30.98 132.25 tion of Q_ cond ORC to the external medium, which is at temperature
Pcrit (bar) 41.26 73.77 113.33 to. Next, the working fluid enters the pump, which moves the fluid
ttriple_point(C) 94.97 56.56 77.65
to the internal heat exchanger, where it heats up, and then to the
NBP(C) 110.36 87.84 33.33
evaporator to complete the cycle. The liquid entering the pump
is subcooled, to prevent pump cavitation. The aforementioned pro-
cesses are presented in a t-s diagram (Fig. 2).
commonly used in low-temperature applications [31], while Lor-
The net power delivered from the ORC (W _ net W
_ exp  W
_ p ) is
entzen [32] pointed out the high potential of using CO2 in cascade
refrigeration systems. The properties of all the above-mentioned _ comp
used to drive the compressors of the CRS (W low and
working fluids are presented in Table 1. _ comp high ), Fig. 1.
(W

3. Description of the ORC-CRS facility 3.2. Cascade refrigeration system

Fig. 1 depicts a scheme of the facility proposed, which consists
of two systems: the organic Rankine cycle (ORC), identified as 1-2-
2a-3-4-4-a-1, and the cascade refrigeration system (CRS), consist-
ing of two loops, i.e. a high-temperature cycle (56-7-8-5) with
NH3 as the working fluid, and a low-temperature cycle (9-10-11-
12-9) with CO2 as the working fluid. Hereafter, the global facility
will be called ORC-CRS.
3.1. Organic Rankine cycle
This system consists of a pump, an evaporator, an expander, a
condenser, and an internal heat exchanger (Fig. 1). In the evapora-
tor, the working fluid is initially heated and then vaporized at
tevap_orc by means of the heat absorbed from the heat source
(Q_ evap ORC ). Then, the generated high-pressure vapour enters the
_ exp . The
expander, where its enthalpy is converted into power W
This system consists of an evaporator, a condenser, two com-
pressors, two throttle valves, and a heat exchanger, the so-called
cascade heat exchanger, which thermally connects the high-
temperature circuit (HTC) and the low-temperature circuit (LTC),
(Fig. 1). This device acts as an evaporator for the HTC and as a con-
denser for the LTC. In the evaporator, the CO2 absorbs the cooling
load Q_ evap low from the cooling space at the evaporation temper-
ature (tevap_low). Then, it is compressed in the CO2 compressor and
condensed in the cascade heat exchanger at tcond_low. Finally, it
expands in the throttle valve to supply the evaporator. On the
other hand, NH3 evaporates in the cascade heat exchanger at
tevap_high, then it is compressed in the NH3 compressor, and in the
condenser, NH3 rejects Q_ cond high at tcond to the condensing medium
which is at to. Finally, it expands in the throttle valve. Fig. 3 shows
the processes for both cycles (HTC and LTC) in two t-s diagrams. dt
represents the difference between tcond_low and tevap_high; Dtsub and

ORC-CRS
Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) Cascade refrigeraon system (CRS)

10 11
Evaporator Condenser

Cascade heat
exchanger
9 12
Expander
6 7
2a 4

IHX

Pump
2 4a
Evaporator
Condenser 5 8
1

Fig. 1. Scheme of combined ORC-CRS system.

 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389 381

400 _ low h6s  h5

m
_ comp
W 3
350
low
gs CO2

300 _ high h10s  h9

m
_ comp
W 4
250
high
gs NH3
200
tevap_ORC 3 where gs_CO2 and gs_NH3 represent the isentropic efficiency values
t (C) of the NH3 and CO2 compressors calculated according to Eqs. ((5)
150 and (6)), [35,36].
4
100 2a gs NH3 0:00097Rc2  0:01026Rc 0:83955 5
50 2 tcond
4a
1

0 gs CO2 0:00476Rc2  0:09238Rc 0:89810 6

0,2 0,4 0,6 0,8

-50 where Rc is the compressor pressure ratio.

-1,0 -0,5 0,0 0,5 1,0 1,5 2,0 2,5
_ comp
W _ comp
W _ comp
W 7
s (kJ/kgK) total low high

Q_ cond
Fig. 2. t-s diagram of the ORC for toluene.
high _ high h11  h10
m 8

Dtsup are the degree of subcooling and the degree of superheat at Q_ CHX m
_ high h9  h12 m
_ low h6  h7 9
the outlet of the condenser and at the outlet of the evaporator,
respectively. The coefficient of performance and the exergetic efficiency are
defined by (10) and (11), respectively.
4. Thermodynamic analysis Q_ evap low
COPCRS 10
_ comp total
W
The thermodynamic model of the combined ORC-CRS facility
has been developed using the Engineering Equation Solver (EES)
COPCRS
[33]. The calculations were made based on the following gex CRS 11
COPcarnot
assumptions:
The Carnot refrigeration coefficient of performance is defined

Thermodynamic equilibrium exists throughout the system. as:

The cycle is operated under steady-state conditions. TL

Heat is not exchanged between the system and surroundings. COPcarnot 12
TH  TL

Pressure drops in the tubing and components are negligible.

Flow through the valve is isenthalpic. In Eq. (12) the temperature is expressed in kelvins. In this case,

Refrigerant is saturated vapour at the outlet of the ORC TL is the temperature of the refrigerated space. The difference
evaporator. between TL and the tevap_low is set at 5 C [30]. TH is the ambient

Minimum dryness fraction at the outlet of the turbine is kept temperature (to). The difference between TH and tcond is set at
above 85% to prevent damage of the turbine blades [24]. 7 C [37].

Refrigerant is subcooled 3 C at the outlet of the ORC condenser,
to prevent boiler feed pump cavitation [13]. 4.1.2. Organic Rankine cycle

Isentropic efficiency of the pump and expander registers a value The Organic Rankine cycle proposed is a saturated cycle [24]
of 80% [11]. Hung et al. [38] concluded that thermal efficiency of ORC cycles

Temperature at the outlet of the IHX on the low pressure side decreases with superheating when working with dry fluids, and
(point 4a) is 5 C higher than the temperature at the outlet of Mago et al. [39] reported that second-law efficiency decreases with
the pump (point 2) [34]. superheating a dry working fluid.

The net power produced by the ORC is the sum of the power _ net
W
consumed by the compressors of the cascade system, _ ORC
m 13
_ net W
_ comp total [11]. h3  h4  h2  h1
W

The cooling load Q_ evap low is 1 kW. Q_ evap _ ORC h3  h2a
m 14
ORC

4.1. Model
Q_ IHX m
_ ORC h4  h4a m
_ ORC h2a  h2 15
The mathematical model for the whole system is presented
Q_ cond ORC _ ORC h4a  h1
m 16
below:
_
4.1.1. Cascade refrigeration system _ p mORC h2s  h1
W 17
gp

Q_ evap low The thermal efficiency and the exergetic efficiency are defined
_ low
m 1 by (18) and (19),
h5  h8
_
W
_ high
_ low h6  h7
m gORC _ net 18
m 2 Q evap ORC
h9  h12
382 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389

Fig. 3. t-s diagram of CRS for CO2 and NH3.

gORC
gex ORC 19 Table 2
gcarnot Comparison of gORC and COPCRS values with previous simulation and experimental
works.
where the Carnot efficiency is defined as:
[40] [Present work] [41] [Present work]
TL
gcarnot 1 20 gORC 12,45 12,44 4,66 9,40
TH [28] [Present work] [29] [Present work]
COPCRS 1,51 1,50 0,92 1,15
In Eq. (20) the temperature is expressed in kelvins. In this case,
TL is the ambient temperature (to) and TH is the heat source. The
difference between TL and tcond is set to 7 C, and the difference
and therefore our results cannot be validated in this way. For this
between TH and tevap_ORC is set to 15 C [37].
reason, both sub-systems have been validated separately, that is,
comparisons have been made with the results reported by Aljundi
4.1.3. ORC-CRS system
[40] and Muhammad et al. [41] for the organic Rankine cycle, and
The energy balance for the ORC-CRS system is defined by
by Lee et al. [28] and Dopazo and Fernndez-Seara [29] for the cas-
0 Q_ evap ORC  Q_ cond ORC Q_ evap low  Q_ cond high 21 cade refrigeration system. Table 2 compares the gORC and COPCRS
values of the present work with those from previous simulation
The entropy generation is given by and experimental works.
Q_ evap ORC Q_ cond ORC Q_ evap low Q_ cond high -Organic Rankine cycle: with tevap_ORC = 100 C, Pevap_ORC =
S_ g   22 19.9 bar, tcond = 30 C, Pcond = 4.04 bar, gt = 0.85, gp = 0.65,
TH To TL To
t4a = 40 C, using isobutene as working fluid Aljundi [40] obtained
In Eq. (22) the temperature is expressed in kelvins. In this case, m_ ORC = 18.84 kg/s. In the present study, for the same working con-
TL is the temperature of the refrigerated space, TH is the heat source ditions, m _ ORC = 20.58 kg/s and the gORC relative difference with
temperature, and To is the ambient temperature. respect to [40] was 0.08%, in good agreement with the previous
The ORC-CRS system coefficient of performance can be calcu- work. Muhammad et al. [41] carried out an experimental investi-
lated as, gation using R245fa as working fluid. Temperature and pressure
in the evaporator outlet were 132.6 C, and 12.09 bar, pressure in
Q_ evap low
COPoval gORC COPCRS 23 the condenser inlet was 1.12 bar. The electric generator power out-
Q_ evap ORC put was 1 kW, m _ ORC 0.057 kg/s. For a net power of 1 kW and the
From Eqs. (21) and (22) the COPoval can be expressed in terms of same operating conditions mentioned above, in the present study
the entropy generation, m_ ORC 0.025 kg/s and the thermal efficiency relative difference
  with respect to [41] was 180%. The reasons for the difference
Q_ evap low  T1o1
TH
between simulated and experimental results can be attributed,
COPoval   24 on the one hand, to the heat losses in the facility (for instance,
Q_ evap low To  TL  Sg
1 1 _
the temperature difference between the evaporator outlet and
the expander inlet was 5.3 C), and on the other hand, to the lower
Finally, the overall exergetic efficiency is given by
efficiency of the expander in the experimental facility. If the isen-
 
Q_ evap 1
 T1o   tropic efficiency of the expander reported by [41] is introduced in
low TH TH TL  To
gex oval   gex gex CRS the model (58.8% instead of 80%), the thermal efficiency relative
Q_ evap low To  TL  Sg
1 1 _ To  TH TL ORC
difference decreased from 180% to 100%. A reduction of an 80%
indicates that if other particularities of the experimental facility
25
such as heat losses or electric efficiencies of the devices not
considered in the model had been taken into account, the relative
4.2. Model validation difference would have been even lower, so, we consider the
attained value consistent with experimental results.
To the best of the authors knowledge no simulation studies nor -Cascade refrigeration cycle: with TH = 303 K, TL = 318 K,
experimental works are available on ORC-CRS systems as a whole, tcond = 30 C, tevap_low = 55 C, Dtsup = 0 C, Dtsub = 0 C, and
 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389
dt = 3 C, assuming combined motor and mechanical efficiency of
each compressor to be 0.93, Lee et al. [28] calculated
gex_CRS = 49.7%. In the present work, for the same working condi-
tions, gex_CRS = 49.26% and the COPCRS relative difference with
respect to [28] was 0.7%, again matching previous results. Dopazo
and Fernndez-Seara [29] designed and built a prototype of a cas-
cade refrigeration system using NH3 and CO2 as refrigerants. With
tcond = 29.72 C, tevap_low = 50 C, dt = 3.48 C, Dtsup = 0 C,
Dtsub = 0.34 C in the CO2 cycle, Dtsub = 4.74 C in the NH3 cycle
and Dtsup = 0 C in both cycles, they attained Q_ evap low 9:45 kW
with CO2 mass flow rate of 124.4 kg/h, NH3 volumetric flow rate
of 1.23 l/min. In the present study, for the same operating condi-
tions, the CO2 mass flow rate was 116.6 kg/h, the NH3 volumetric
flow rate was 1.04 l/min and the COPCRS relative difference with
respect to [29] was 54%. In a real experimental setting we cannot
expect to reach the theoretical COP provided by the model, because
of ideal assumptions, such us no heat losses in the devices. Specif-
ically, Dopazo and Seara [30] concluded that, as the isentropic
compressors efficiencies strongly influence both the COP and the
CO2 condensing temperature, the isentropic efficiency for each
compressor should be determined as accurately as possible from
manufacturer or experimental data in order to attain reliable val-
ues for COP and the CO2 condensing temperature. If the isentropic
efficiencies and CO2 condensing temperature reported by [29] are
introduced in the proposed model, COPCRS relative difference
reduced to 25%. This value is in close agreement with the one
reported by [29], thus supporting the validity of our design.
In summary, gORC and COPCRS differences between the present
work and the simulation works are negligible. The available exper-
imental results for each cycle are consistent with the simulated
data, and the differences do not preclude the usefulness of this
model for the system design and to calculate optimum operation
points.
4.3. Parametric study
The COPoval and gex_oval can be expressed as a function of the
following parameters: tevap_ORC, tevap_low, tcond, dt, Dtsub, and Dtsup
(Figs. 2 and 3). Thus, a parametric study was carried out to show
these cases of dependence and to attain correlations for COPoval
and gex_oval as a function of all of them. Since the ORC proposed
is a subcritical cycle, the highest value of tevap_ORC will be lower
than the critic temperature of toluene (tcrit = 318.6 C). The values
of tevap_low, tcond, dt, Dtsub, and Dtsup are shown in Table 3.
Getu and Bansal [27] formulated an expression (Eq. (26)) to get
an optimum value for tcond_low as a function of tevap_low, tcond, dt,
Dtsub, and DDtsup. Thus, Eq. (26) is used to determine tcond_low.
tcond low 7:0992 0:0215tsup 0:2662tcond
0:4602tevap low 0:4264 1dt 0:2945tsub 26
Finally, a statistical analysis was performed using SPSS Statistics
version 20.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). The aim was to build a
linear model to estimate COPoval and gex_oval as a function of the
parameters studied.
Table 3
Values of the input parameters.
Parameter Values
tevap_ORC 85315
tevap_low 55, 50, 45, 40, 35, 30
tcond 30, 35, 40, 45, 50
DT 3, 5, 7
Dtsub 0, 5, 10
Dtsup 0, 5, 10, 15, 20
383
5. Results and discussion
5.1. tevap_ORC and tevap_low
Figs. 4 and 5 show the influence of tevap_ORC and tevap_low on
COPoval and gex_oval while keeping the other parameters constant:
tcond = 30 C, Dtsub = 0 C, Dtsup = 0 C, and dt = 5 C.
As expected, a lower tevap_low led to a lower COPoval. This is due
to the decrease of COPCRS with tevap_low. For a fixed tevap_ORC, the
decrease of COPoval from tevap_low = 30 C to 55 C was around
48%. On the other hand, for a fixed tevap_low, an increase of 64%
was observed in the COPoval for the entire range of tevap_ORC. This
tendency in the thermal efficiency with tevap_ORC was also
observed by Bu et al. [14]. Regarding gex_oval, it can be seen that
lower tevap_low led to lower gex_oval. For a fixed tevap_ORC, the
decrease of the gex_oval from tevap_low = 30 C to 55 C was of
11.7%. On the other hand, as tevap_ORC increased, initially gex_oval
rose to a maximum value, and then declined slowly. This ten-
dency in the exergetic efficiency with tevap_ORC was also obtained
by Aljundi [40].
It is also observed that heat sources in the range of 100
350 C are suitable to drive this facility [20]. This includes
geothermal energy [42], solar energy, by means of parabolic
through collectors, which is the most mature solar technology
to generate heat at temperatures up to 400 C [43], or waste-
heat recovery [44]. Waste-heat recovery for the production of
the electricity, apart from its environmental benefit, can help
decrease the energy demand and, as a result, reduce fuel con-
sumption costs [45].
5.2. Subcooling and superheating (Dtsub, Dtsup)
Figs. 6 and 7 show the results for different values of Dtsub = 0, 5,
10 C, and Dtsup = 0, 5 10, 15, and 20 C, with constant values of
tcond = 30 C, tevap_low = 40 C and dt = 5 C.
As can be seen, the increase of Dtsup decreased COPoval and
gex_oval while the higher Dtsub raised those values. It is also evident
that the effect of the Dtsup on COPoval and gex_oval was weaker than
the effect of the Dtsub. These tendencies were also noted by Getu
and Bansal [27] in a cascade refrigeration system. When Dtsub rose
10 C, keeping Dtsup = 0 C, the COPoval and gex_oval increased by
6.3%, and when Dtsup rose 10 C, keeping Dtsub = 0 C, both fell by
2.7%. These percentages did not change throughout the range of
tevap_ORC.
5.3. Temperature difference in the cascade heat exchanger (dt)
Figs. 8 and 9 show the results for different values of dt = 3, 5,
and 7 C with constant values of Dtsup = 0 C, Dtsup = 0 C,
tevap_low = 40 C and tcond = 30 C.
As expected, COPoval and g ex_oval rose with the fall of the dt
[27], since a higher cascade temperature difference raised the pres-
sure ratio of the HTC while the condensing temperatures of CO2
and NH3 were kept constant. For a certain value of tevap_ORC, when
dt increased 2 C the increase of COPoval and gex_oval was around
4.6%. Such percentages did not change throughout the range of
tevap_ORC.
Unit
5.4. Condensation temperature (tcond)
C
C
Figs. 10 and 11 show different values of tcond = 30, 40 and 50 C
C with fixed values of Dtsup = 0 C, Dtsub = 0 C, dt = 5 C and
C tevap_low = 40 C. A water-cooled system and an air-cooled system
C would be the case for tcond = 30 C. On the other hand, tcond = 40 C
C
and 50 C would be suitable values of air-cooled systems.
384 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389

0,8
tevap_low (C)

0,7 -30
-35
0,6
-40
-45
0,5
-50
-55
COPoval

0,4

0,3

0,2

0,1

0
65 85 105 125 145 165 185 205 225 245 265 285 305 325

tevap_ORC (C)

Fig. 4. COPoval as a function of tevap_low and tevap_ORC.

Fig. 5. gex_oval as a function of tevap_CO2 and tevap_ORC.

Both the COPoval and gex_oval fell with the rise of the condensa-
tion temperature, and that fall varied with tevap_ORC. For
tevap_ORC = 85 C, when tcond increased from 30 C to 50 C, the
COPoval and the gex_oval, decreased 55.5% and 19.1%, respectively.
However, when tevap_ORC = 315 C, they decreased 37% and 9.4%,
respectively.
Next, we made a comparison with a conventional cascade
refrigeration system in terms of global coefficients. Lee et al. [28]
calculated COPCRS = 1.51 for a conventional cascade refrigeration
system. The global coefficient of performance for that system, tak-
ing into account a power-plant efficiency of 0.3, was 0.45. In the
present study, for the same operating conditions and with
tevap_ORC = 315 C, COPoval = 0.47. Thus, for the aforementioned con-
ditions, a stand-alone facility can attain results equivalent to those
of a conventional cascade refrigeration system.
5.5. Entropy generation
Finally, Fig. 12 shows the entropy generation as a function
of tevap_ORC and tevap_low for constant values of tcond = 30 C,
Dtsub = 0 C, Dtsup = 0 C, and dt = 5 C. It is observed that a lower
tevap_low led to a higher Sn _ g . On the other hand, as tevap_ORC
increased, initially S_ g decreased to a minimum value, and then
increased slowly. As was expected, the entropy generation affects
the COPoval and gex_oval tendencies.
5.6. Regression analysis
A regression analysis was carried out to generate a linear model
to estimate COPoval and gex_oval as a function of the inlet
parameters (Table 3). Eqs. (27) and (28) show the model used.
 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389 385

0,7

0,6

0,5

0,4
COPoval

0,3

0,2

[ tsub (C) ; tsup (C) ]

[10 ; 0] [5 ; 0] [0 ; 0]
0,1
[0 ; 5] [0 ; 10] [0 ; 15]
[0 ; 20]

0
65 85 105 125 145 165 185 205 225 245 265 285 305 325
tevap_ORC (C)

Fig. 6. COPoval as a function of Dtsub, Dtsup.

0,31

0,29

0,27

0,25
ex_oval

0,23

0,21

0,19
[ tsub (C) ; tsup (C) ]
[10 ; 0] [5 ; 0] [0 ; 0]
0,17
[0 ; 5] [0 ;10] [0 ; 15]
[0 ; 20]
0,15
65 85 105 125 145 165 185 205 225 245 265 285 305 325
t evap_ORC (C)

Fig. 7. gex_oval as a function of Dtsub, Dtsup.

The non-linear behaviour of COPoval and gex_oval made it necessary the coefficient of determination, R2. Optimum fitting was achieved
to perform transformations of some variables (COPoval, tevap_ORC, with a log-transform of COPoval and tcond, and an inverse transform
tcond) in order to achieve a good linear model fit, as assessed by of tevap_ORC.
386 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389

Fig. 8. COPoval as a function of dt.

Fig. 9. gex_oval as a function of dt.

1 The standard errors between the data and the predictions were
logCOPoval a0 a1 a2 tevap a3 logtcond
0.017 and 0.006, for the COPoval and gex_oval respectively. R2 values
low
tevap ORC
a4 dt a5 tsub a6 tsup 27 of 99.3% and 95%, respectively, confirm the goodness of fit of the
models. The coefficients ai and bi and their relative importance in
1 estimating the model, are shown in Table 4.
gex oval b0 b1 b2 tevap low b3 tcond b4 dt As commented above, an increase in tevap_ORC, tevap_low, and
t2evap ORC
Dtsub raises the COPoval and an increase in tcond and Dtsup lowers
b5 tsub b6 tsup 28 the COPoval. Regarding gex_oval, there was a similar tendency with
 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389 387

0,7

tcond (C)
0,6
30

35
0,5
40

45
COPoval

0,4
50

0,3

0,2

0,1

0
65 85 105 125 145 165 185 205 225 245 265 285 305 325
t evap_ORC (C)

Fig. 10. COPoval as a function of tcond.

0,31

0,29

0,27

0,25
ex_oval

0,23

0,21

0,19
tcond (C)

30 35 40
0,17
45 50
0,15
65 85 105 125 145 165 185 205 225 245 265 285 305 325
t evap_ORC (C)

Fig. 11. gex_oval as a function of tcond.

the increment of the aforementioned parameters, except for tevap_low and tcond. It also shows that the most important variables
tevap_ORC, since a maximum of gex_oval was calculated for a certain of the gex_oval model are tevap_low, tevap_ORC and, dt and tcond. The
tevap_ORC and then it decreased. Table 4 indicates that the most parameters Dtsub and Dtsup did not contribute so much in the lin-
important variable to determine COPoval was tevap_ORC followed by ear model.
388 R. Lizarte et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 127 (2017) 378389

Fig. 12. S_ g as a function of tevap_low and tevap_ORC.

Table 4 with tevap_ORC = 255 C, using the same aforementioned values of

Regression coefficients for COPoval and gex_oval.
tcond, tevap_low, Dtsub, Dtsup, dt.
Coefficient Value Importance (%) It is important to mention that further investigation with ORC-
a0 2.018 CRS facilities are needed to verify these results experimentally,
a1 61.352 57.3 since the model proposed has not been implemented.
a2 0.011 23.8
a3 1.052 17.8
a4 0.011 0.8
6. Conclusions
a5 0.003 0.2
a6 0.001 0.1 A novel stand-alone refrigeration system has been simulated for
b0 0.418 different operation conditions. It consists of an organic Rankine
b1 364.406 26.2
cycle combined with a cascade refrigeration system (ORC-CRS)
b2 0.002 34.7
b3 0.001 15.5 for very low evaporating temperature applications. Natural refrig-
b4 0.006 16.2 erants (toluene, NH3, CO2) were used as working fluids. The conclu-
b5 0.002 5.2 sions are:
b6 0.001 2.2

The most important variable of the COPoval model was tevap_ORC

Table 5 followed by tevap_low and tcond. The most important variables of
Results for all state points of ORC-CRS facility. the gex_oval model were first tevap_ORC and then tevap_low. The
parameters Dtsub and Dtsup were found to be the least signifi-
Point t (C) h(kJ/kg) P(bar) m_(kg/s)
cant parameters of the models.
1 27 154.8 0.049 0.0021 Regression analysis allowed us to construct a linear model use-
2 28.54 149.1 39.67 0.0021
2a 102.5 13.4 39.67 0.0021
ful for setting optimum thermodynamic parameters for future
3 315 596.9 39.67 0.0021 ORC-CRS facilities for the studied parameters range.
4 133.6 400 0.049 0.0021 Thermal renewable energy (i.e. solar, geothermal, waste heat) in
4a 33.54 264.3 0.049 0.0021 the range from 100 C to 350 C can be used for driving the
5 30 70.0 14.28 0.0036
overall system, thereby decreasing the dependence from con-
6 22.55 32.4 27.83 0.0036
7 18.25 348.7 27.83 0.0036 ventional fossil-energy sources.
8 30 348.7 14.28 0.0036 Conventional compression refrigeration systems are driven by
9 11.25 1449 2.763 0.0010 electricity provided by the electrical grid. The COP and gex_oval
10 114.5 1714 11.67 0.0010 results found in this work encourage the possible use of this
11 20 293.9 11.67 0.0010
12 11.25 293.9 2.763 0.0010
kind stand-alone facility in places where electricity supply is
unreliable.
Further investigation with ORC-CRS facilities are needed to ver-
ify these results experimentally.
Table 5 shows the mass flow rate, temperature, pressure and
enthalpy for all the state points of the ORC-CRS facility derived
from the numerical simulation. These correspond to the maximum
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