Yeditepe University, Department of Mechanical Engineering June 2nd, 2023

Spring 2023 Semester, ME212, Thermodynamics II

Midterm Exam; Question 1 (25 points)

Duration: 20 minutes + 5 minutes for uploading your answer to the YULEARN = 25 minutes

Automotive manufacturers are looking for ways to improve the cars' overall efficiency, and one
way they are interested in is the brake system of the cars for improvement. In this problem, let us
look into a disk brake system of a car. Typically, a disk brake system consists of a disk brake and
brake pads. We want to analyze this problem from the first and the second law of thermodynamics
perspective; therefore, let us assume that one of the car's disk brake system is 3 kg in mass and
brake pads are 1.5 kg in mass. When a driver needs to stop, he/she presses on the brake pedal, and
the brake system stops the car by applying friction force to the wheels. Note that there is a heat
dissipation during stopping. Temperature measurements show that disk brake surfaces reach up to
2XYC just after the brake is applied. The driver parks his/her car and stops the engine by letting
the brake system cool down to a surrounding temperature of 20C. Determine the exergy
destruction for the braking process by considering the braking and brake system to be cooled to
the surrounding temperature. Specific heat of the brake pads can be taken as 0.5 kJ/kg-K.
Reference temperature for this problem is surrounding temperature.

Note that the XY value in the temperatures is the last two digits of your student ID number. In
other words, if your student id ends with 45, then you should take the temperatures as 245 C.
Also, note that you may not get any point from this problem if you solve this problem with different
numbers than given in the problem statement.
Yeditepe University, Department of Mechanical Engineering June 2nd, 2023

Spring 2023 Semester, ME212, Thermodynamics II

Midterm Exam; Question 3 (25 points)

Duration: 20 minutes + 5 minutes for uploading your answer to the YULEARN = 25 minutes

The Brayton cycle is a thermodynamic cycle that describes how gas turbines operate. The idea
behind the Brayton cycle is to extract energy from flowing air and fuel by compressing, heating,
expanding, and exhausting the working fluid in a continuous process. The net work output of the
Brayton cycle is the difference between the turbine work and the compressor work. The thermal
efficiency of the Brayton cycle depends on the pressure ratio, which is the ratio of the maximum
and minimum pressures in the cycle. A higher pressure ratio means a higher efficiency, but it also
increases the temperature at the end of the compression, which may exceed the material limits of
the turbine blades. In this problem, let’s say we have a large stationary Brayton cycle gas-turbine
power plant delivering a power output of 1XY MW to an electric generator. The minimum
temperature in the cycle is 3XY K, and the maximum temperature is 16XY K. The minimum
pressure in the cycle is 100 kPa, and the compressor pressure ratio is 14 to 1. The compressor has
an isentropic efficiency of 85% and the turbine an isentropic efficiency of 88%. Please determine
turbine output in MW, back work ratio and the thermal efficiency of the cycle?

Note that the XY value is the last two digits of your student ID number. In other words, if your
student id ends with 45, then you should take the power output as 145 MW, minimum temperature
as 345 K, and maximum temperature as 1645 K. Also, note that you may not get any point from
this problem if you solve this problem with different numbers than given in the problem statement.
Yeditepe University, Department of Mechanical Engineering June 2nd, 2023

Spring 2023 Semester, ME212, Thermodynamics II

Midterm Exam; Question 4 (25 points)

Duration: 20 minutes + 5 minutes for uploading your answer to the YULEARN = 25 minutes

The Rankine Cycle is an idealized thermodynamic cycle describing the process by which certain
heat engines, such as steam turbines or reciprocating steam engines, allow mechanical work to be
extracted from a fluid as it moves between a heat source and heat sink. The first practical
application of the Rankine Cycle was the steam engine developed by James Watt in the late 18th
century. Since then, many variations and improvements have been made to the cycle, such as
superheating, reheating, and regeneration. The efficiency of the Rankine Cycle is limited by the
high heat of vaporization of the working fluid and the temperature difference between the heat
source and heat sink. Consider a power plant operating based on a Rankine Cycle as described
above and it produces 25 kg/s steam at 3 MPa, 6XY °C, in the boiler. It cools the condenser with
ocean water so that the condenser exit is at 45 °C. A reheat is done at 5XY kPa up to 4XY °C, and
then expansion takes place in the low-pressure turbine. Find the net power output in kW and heat
energy provided by boiler in kW.

Note that the XY value is the last two digits of your student ID number. In other words, if your
student id ends with 45, then you should take the temperatures as 645 C, reheat pressure and
temperature as 545 kPa and 445 C, respectively. Also, note that you may not get any point from
this problem if you solve this problem with different numbers than given in the problem statement.
Yeditepe University, Department of Mechanical Engineering June 2nd, 2023

Spring 2023 Semester, ME212, Thermodynamics II

Midterm Exam; Question 2 (25 points)

Duration: 20 minutes + 5 minutes for uploading your answer to the YULEARN = 25 minutes

A spark ignition engine is a type of heat engine that converts the chemical energy of a fuel-air
mixture into mechanical work by undergoing a series of thermodynamic processes. The most
common thermodynamic cycle used by spark ignition engines is the Otto cycle, which consists of
two isentropic (constant entropy) processes and two isochoric (constant volume) processes. The
Otto cycle was invented by Nikolaus Otto in 1876, and it improved the efficiency and power output
of the spark ignition engine compared to the earlier Lenoir engine. Furthermore, the Otto cycle is
an idealized thermodynamic cycle that does not account for many real-world effects, such as heat
transfer, friction, valve timing, and gas dynamics. Therefore, many variations and improvements
have been made to the spark ignition engine over time. However, let’s analyze a Spark Ignition
(SI) cycle with a compression ratio of 9.2 and uses air as the working fluid. At the beginning of
the compression process, air is at 9X kPa and 2YC. The pressure is doubled during the constant
volume heat-addition process. Draw the P-v diagram for this cycle and determine the thermal
efficiency of the cycle.

Note that the XY value is the last two digits of your student ID number. In other words, if your
student id ends with 45, then you should take the compression ratio as 9.4 and temperature as 25
C. Also, note that you may not get any point from this problem if you solve this problem with
different numbers than given in the problem statement.