Chapter Three : Rankine Cycle

10/31/2020 1
 Rankine Cycle

1-2 Isentropic compression in a pump

2-3 p = cst, heat addition in a boiler
3-4 Isentropic expansion in a turbine
4-5 p = cst, heat rejection in a condenser

10/31/2020 2
 Rankine Cycle Equations

10/31/2020 3
 Rankine Cycle Equations

10/31/2020 4
 Deviation of the actual cycle from the
ideal Rankine cycle

10/31/2020 5
 Heat Rate and Thermal Efficiency

10/31/2020 6
10/31/2020 7
10/31/2020 8
10/31/2020 9
 Superheated water table

10/31/2020 10
 Materials Balance for a Coal-Fired Steam
Power Plant.
Consider a power plant with a heat rate of 10,800 kJ/kWh
burning bituminous coal with 75 percent carbon and a
heating value (energy released when it is burned) of 27,300
kJ/kg. About 15% of thermal losses are up the stack, and
the remaining 85% are taken away by cooling water.
• a. Find the efficiency of the plant.
• b. Find the mass of coal that must be provided per kWh
delivered.
• c. Find the rate of carbon and CO2 emissions from the plant
in kg/kWh.
• d. Find the minimum flow of cooling water per kWh if its
temperature is only allowed to increase by 10◦C.

10/31/2020 11
 Materials balance for a coal fired
power plant

10/31/2020 12
 Rankine Cycle, Efficiency Improvements

Lowering the condenser pressure Decreasing the

average low T of the cycle.
 The pressure in the condenser cant be lower than the saturation
pressure corresponding to the temperature of the cooling
medium.
 Example: a condenser is to be cooled by a nearby river at 15°C, allowing a
temperature difference of 10°C for effective heat transfer, means that the
steam pressure in the condenser must be above 3.2 Kpa which is the
saturation pressure at 25°C.
 Two disadvantages: 1- Air leakage
2- Moisture at the last turbine stages
Efficiency decrease and Erosion of turbine blades

10/31/2020 13
 Rankine Cycle, Efficiency Improvements

Superheating the steam to high temperature Increasing

the average high temperature of the cycle
 Two advantages: 1- increasing the cycle thermal efficiency
2-decreasing the moisture
 The increase of T is limited to 620°C and depends on
improving the present used materials (ceramic coating, blade
cooling)

10/31/2020 14
 Rankine Cycle, Efficiency Improvements

Increasing the boiler pressure Increasing the average

high temperature of the cycle at constant inlet turbine
temperature (the cycle shift to the left).
 Disadvantages: 1- The moisture increases (this side effect can
be corrected by reheating the steam)
 Recent Boiler Pressures: p = 30 MPa

10/31/2020 15
 Mollier (H-S) Diagram after Richard
Mollier (1904)

10/31/2020 16
 Regeneration : Regenerative Cycle With Closed
Feed Water Heater

10/31/2020 17
 Cogeneration : Combined Heat and Power

10/31/2020 18
 https://youtu.be/SPg7hOxFItI
how does a steam turbine work

10/31/2020 19