How To Calculate Thermodynamics For ORC
How To Calculate Thermodynamics For ORC
How To Calculate Thermodynamics For ORC
* Corresponding Author
ABSTRACT
Low-grade heat from geothermal or industrial processes is an eco-friendly resource for electric power
production. The Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) has become a popular means to exploit these energy
sources. This growing popularity has resulted in the need for rapid, accurate simulation tools for plant
design and specification.
In this paper, an advanced, steady state, thermodynamic model of an ORC is developed. The model is
composed of several sub components including: an evaporator and condenser, centrifugal pump,
turbine expander, and pipe elements. Each of these components is modeled independently and their
inputs/outputs are combined together to form the overall system.
The model is developed using simple programming language (VBA) in excel and utilizes NIST
Refprop for calculation of state properties. This medium was chosen because of its simplicity and low
cost; however, the general model structure can easily be implemented in any programming language.
The model predictions are validated against field data collected from ORC systems operating at
several evaporating and condensing conditions.
1. INTRODUCTION
Rising energy costs, the demand for improved system efficiency, and government programs to reduce
plant emissions have led to a surge in the popularity of the Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC.) Advanced
modeling techniques are required to estimate the electrical power produced by an ORC system and to
choose appropriate system components. The demand for simulation tools which can quickly and
cheaply accomplish these tasks has grown in lockstep with ORC demand.
Commercially available process simulators (e.g. ASPEN HYSYS, CHEMCAD) are powerful but
often expensive and cumbersome to work with. These “all encompassing” simulators are excellent
for plant designs yet lack modeling for key components necessary to develop a high fidelity ORC
system simulator. The following paper will describe the development of a low cost, flexible model
written in Excel VBA. The model has been used to design over 100 plants and shows excellent
agreement with field installations.
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
Paper ID: 68, Page 2
The working fluid loop model is composed of several component models arranged in series to
represent the ORC system. The following sections will describe each component model in detail.
2. MODELING METHODOLOGY
𝑚̇2
∆𝑃 = 8𝜋𝜋𝜋 (1)
𝜌𝑖𝑖,𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 𝐷 3
The inlet density in Equation (1) is calculated from the inlet temperature and pressure. The Darcy
friction factor in Equation (1) is found from an iterative solution to the equation below, Colebrook
(1939).
1 𝜖 2.51 (2)
= −2 log10 � + �
�𝑓 3.7𝐷 Re�𝑓
The Reynolds number in Equation (2) is calculated using the inlet density and viscosity. These
properties are calculated at the inlet temperature and pressure. Treating the pipe section as a cylinder
with 1-D convective heat transfer and a constant ambient temperature, the temperature drop across the
pipe section is calculated by (Incropera and DeWitt 2002):
𝜋𝜋𝜋𝜋
− ̇ (3)
𝑚𝑐𝑝
∆𝑇 = (𝑇𝑎𝑎𝑎 − 𝑇𝑖𝑖 )𝑒
The overall heat transfer coefficient in Equation (3) is adjusted based on test data of a production
ORC. The specific heat is calculated at the pipe inlet temperature and pressure.
The pressure loss of system fittings within the working fluid loop (i.e. filters, valves, etc.) may be
modeled as an equivalent length of pipe for a given diameter.
𝑚̇
𝐺= (4)
𝜌𝑖𝑖
(𝑃𝑜𝑜𝑜 − 𝑃𝑖𝑖 )
∆𝐻 = (5)
𝜌𝑖𝑖 𝑔
The values for volumetric flow rate and hydraulic head are input into a table map which outputs the
pump efficiency, ηpump.
𝜂𝑝𝑝𝑝𝑝 = 𝑀𝑀𝑀(∆𝐻, 𝐺) (6)
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
Paper ID: 68, Page 3
Next the ideal outlet enthalpy is calculated at the inlet entropy and outlet pressure. The true pump
outlet enthalpy is calculated using:
Combining the output from Equation (7), the mass flow, and inlet enthalpy, the pump power is found
using:
Finally the outlet temperature may be calculated at the outlet pressure and outlet. The MAP used by
Equation (6) was developed experimentally from the centrifugal pump model used in Calnetix ORC
products. Maps for other types of pumps may be developed in the same manner.
The working fluid flows into the nozzle, through the turbine, over the rotor, and around the generator.
Heat from turbine efficiency losses, rotor windage, and generator efficiency losses are added into the
fluid stream increasing the exit enthalpy. These losses are estimated using table maps and
correlations developed using CFD and empirical test data.
The inputs to the IPM model are inlet temperature, inlet pressure, outlet pressure, and turbine speed.
Additionally there are several internal variables used from the previous calculation. These values are
the static speed of sound at the nozzle inlet 𝑎∗ , the static density at the nozzle inlet 𝜌∗ , the
dimensionless enthalpy drop across the wheel, the dimensionless wheel rotation speed, and the flow
parameter at the wheel exit. The outputs are grid power, temperature at the IPM outlet, and working
fluid loop mass flow.
The model calculation is carried out in several steps. Initially the internal input variables are input
into map files which represent the turbine operation. The outputs are the isentropic efficiency (ηT ) of
the nozzle turbine system, the dimensionless inlet flow parameter (𝜙𝑖𝑖 ), and the turbine exit swirl
angle (θ.)
Δℎ𝑠 𝑁
𝜂 𝑇 = 𝑀𝑀𝑀 � ∗ 2 , ∗ � (9)
(𝑎 ) 𝑎
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
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Δℎ𝑠 𝑁
𝜙𝑖𝑖 = 𝑀𝑀𝑀 � ∗ 2 , ∗ � (10)
(𝑎 ) 𝑎
Δℎ𝑠 𝑁
𝜃 = 𝑀𝑀𝑀 � ∗ 2 , ∗ � (11)
(𝑎 ) 𝑎
Next the turbine exit swirl angle and wheel exit flow parameter are used to find the percentage
pressure drop across the generator, Δ𝑃𝐺𝐺𝐺 %.
Next the entropy and enthalpy at the nozzle inlet are calculated at the IPM inlet temperature and
pressure. The ideal enthalpy at the wheel exit is calculated at the wheel outlet pressure and entropy at
the nozzle inlet. The true enthalpy at the wheel exit is calculated by combining values from:
Next the system mass flow is calculated from the inlet flow parameter (𝜙𝑖𝑖 ), static speed of sound at
the nozzle inlet (𝑎∗), and static density at the nozzle inlet (𝜌∗ ). The model accounts for turbine
leakage as follows:
𝑚̇ 𝑇 = (1 − α)𝑚̇ (15)
Combining the values from Equations (14), (15), and the nozzle inlet enthalpy, the turbine work may
be calculated as:
The generator converts the turbine work calculated in Equation (16) to electrical power. A portion of
the mechanical work is lost due to viscous effects acting on the rotor and wheel outer surfaces. These
loses are called "windage" losses and are calculated through the aid of correlations from Norris (1970)
and Vrancik (1968.) Additionally there are electrical losses due to resistance in the copper windings
of the stator and iron losses due to changes in the magnetic field. An energy balance across the
wheel/rotor control surface results in:
Where Qloss is the heat lost from generator due to inefficiencies. Equation (17) may be simplified by
introducing the generator efficiency, ηGen, which relates the portion of turbine work lost due to
generator efficiencies as:
𝑊𝑇 − 𝑄 𝐿𝐿𝐿𝐿
𝜂𝐺𝐺𝐺 = (18)
𝑊𝑇
Thus combining Equations (17) and (18) then generator work may be expressed as (19):
The generator efficiency is found from a map lookup with inputs turbine work and generator
frequency. The final step in the grid power calculation is to account for losses due to inefficiencies in
the electrical power rectification and conversion process. These losses are accounted for with the
power electronics efficiency number, ηPE, and related to the generator power and grid power by:
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
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To determine the temperature at the exit of the IPM, the enthalpy at the exit of the generator must be
determined. This is found by forming an energy balance for the control surface surrounding the fluid
flowing into and out of the generator:
The enthalpy at the generator inlet is found from a mass weighted average of the enthalpy exiting the
turbine and leakage enthalpy. Using Equation (15) and values for the wheel outlet enthalpy and
nozzle inlet enthalpy:
Thus using Equations (18), (21), and (22) and solving for the generator outlet enthalpy, we arrive at:
Finally the exit temperature of the wheel is a function of the IPM outlet pressure and the enthalpy.
The Calnetix ORC utilizes a reaction type turbine, thus the model is readily compatible with different
types of reaction turbines. With appropriate map files, the model may be modified to accommodate
other types of turbines.
The initial speed of sound is calculated at the nozzle inlet temperature and pressure. Using the value
for enthalpy at the nozzle inlet found earlier, an intermediary enthalpy is found. by subtracting the
square of the initial speed of sound:
𝑎𝑖2
ℎ𝑖 = ℎ𝑖𝑖 − (24)
𝐶
Next the speed of sound is recalculated using the intermediary enthalpy, hi, and the nozzle inlet
entropy:
The new speed of sound value is placed back into Equation (24) and the process is repeated until the
∗
value for ai converges. This converged value is the static speed of sound at the nozzle inlet, 𝑎𝑖𝑖,𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛𝑛 .
The final value of hi is the static enthalpy at the nozzle inlet, h*. The static density is now calculated
from the value h* and the entropy at the nozzle inlet.
Next the values for the static speed of sound at the nozzle inlet, nozzle inlet enthalpy, ideal nozzle exit
enthalpy, and rotor speed are used to calculate the quantities Δℎ𝑠 ⁄(𝑎∗ )2 and 𝑁⁄𝑎∗ . A new inlet flow
parameter is calculated using the mass flow calculated by the IPM model. Finally the flow parameter
at the wheel exit may be calculated using the procedure described above with the temperature,
pressure, enthalpy, and entropy at the wheel exit.
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The overall user inputs to the working fluid loop model are temperature at station 40, superheat at
station 40, temperature at station 20, and sub-cooling at station 20. From these values the pressure is
calculated at stations 40 and 20 respectively. The pressure drop across each pipe element is added or
subtracted from the P40 and P20. Thus the pressure inputs to each component are calculated by:
The inlet temperature to each component is found using the temperature loss for each pipe section
with Equation (3). In some cases the temperature loss is calculated in reverse and added to the user
input temperature. The input/output temperature values are updated with each successive calculation
of the working fluid loop. Convergence is achieved after several iterations.
𝑚̇2
𝑃𝑜𝑜𝑜 = 𝑃𝑖𝑖 − 𝜉 (30)
𝜌𝑖𝑖
The inlet density in Equation (30) is calculated at the inlet temperature and pressure. The pressure
loss coefficient, ξ, is typically given by the heat exchanger manufacturer. The heat exchanger duty is
calculated from the inlet enthalpy, outlet enthalpy, and mass flow on the working fluid side by:
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
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The source mass flow is calculated by dividing the heat exchanger duty calculated by Equation (31)
by the enthalpy change between the inlet and outlet of the source:
𝑄𝐻𝐻𝐻
𝑚̇𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 = (32)
�ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑜,𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 − ℎ𝑖𝑖,𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 �
The inlet enthalpy for the source is calculated at the source inlet temperature and pressure. The outlet
enthalpy is calculated from the source outlet temperature and pressure. The source outlet pressure is
updated iteratively using Equation (30), (31), and (32).
The heat exchanger surface area is found using a discrete integration process. The process begins by
determining the enthalpy and pressure step sizes for both the source side and working fluid sides of
the evaporator and condensing with:
ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑜 − ℎ𝑖𝑖
∆ℎ = (33)
𝑘
𝑃𝑜𝑜𝑜 − 𝑃𝑖𝑖
∆𝑃 = (34)
𝑘
From Equations (33) and (34), a discretized pressure and enthalpy field for the source and working
fluid sides is defined by:
By Equation (36)(37), the pressure field is evenly spaced with the enthalpy change for both the
source and working fluid sides. The discrete temperature field may be calculated from each enthalpy
and pressure pair as:
The heat flux through each heat exchanger section is defined for both the source and working fluid
sides as:
𝑄i ∈ {(1⁄𝑚̇)(ℎi − ℎi−1 )} 𝑓𝑓𝑓 𝑖 = 1,2, … , 𝑘 (38)
Next the log mean temperature difference for each section is found from:
⎧ ⎫
⎪�𝑇𝑖,𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 − 𝑇𝑘−i,𝑅𝑅𝑅 � − �𝑇𝑖−1,𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 − 𝑇𝑘−i−1,𝑅𝑅𝑅 �⎪
Ti,LMD ∈ (39)
⎨ �𝑇i,𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 − 𝑇𝑘−i,𝑅𝑅𝑅 � ⎬
⎪ ln ⎪
⎩ �𝑇i−1,𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 − 𝑇𝑘−i−1,𝑅𝑅𝑅 � ⎭
The index "i" in Equation (39) takes integer values from to 0 to k. Using Equations (38) and (39) and
the relationship between heat flux, the overall heat transfer coefficient, heat exchanger surface area,
and log mean temperature difference:
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
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Finally the heat exchanger surface area is found by summing the values in Equation (40) and dividing
by the user input overall heat transfer coefficient, U.
𝑘
1
𝐴 = �(𝑈𝑈)𝑖 (41)
𝑈
𝑖=1
The model described above is intentionally simple for the following reasons:
1) The model is iterated many times to arrive at the desired set point. A simpler component
model reduces the overall computation time.
2) Complex models require parameters such as local friction factor which need to be determined
experimentally or analytically across a broad range of fluid conditions. This data is often
unavailable from heat exchanger manufacturers.
3. CASE STUDIES
The model described above is used extensively by Calnetix to assess new applications as well as
validate unit performance at specific operating conditions. The data tabulated below is from 4 distinct
applications in the field. The applications are all commercial, utilizing generated power within the
facility or exporting power to local utilities. The working fluid in these cases was R245fa refrigerant.
The model output in general shows good agreement with field data. The Gross Efficiency is defined
as the gross electrical power exported to the grid divided by the rate of heat is transferred to the
working fluid.
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
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Table 4: Flue Gas from Clay Factory Using Intermediate Oil Loop- Europe
Model Field data
Heat Source Temp (ºC ) 148 160
Heat Source Pressure (Bar) 7 No Value
Heat Source Flow Rate (kg/s) 20.8 20
Coolant Temperature (ºC ) 19 28
Coolant Pressure (Bar) 1 1
Turbine Inlet Temperature (ºC ) 128 130
Turbine Inlet Pressure (Bar) 18.7 18.6
Condenser Exit Temperature (ºC ) 25.7 30
Condenser Exit Pressure (Bar) 1.8 2.8
Gross Power Output (kW) 125 125
Gross Efficiency (%) 12.6 12.4
4. CONCLUSION
The development of an advanced thermodynamic model of an Organic Rankine Cycle was discussed.
The model is implemented in Excel VBA script and uses Refprop as an equation of state. Each major
component of the ORC is modeled in detail and combined together to form the completed system.
The model obviates the need for complex and expensive process simulation tools, and delivers a
highly accurate output. This affords a high degree of confidence to Calnetix and its customers when
selecting balance of plant components and arriving at sensitive capital investment decisions.
NOMENCLATURE
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
Paper ID: 68, Page 10
D diameter (m)
f Darcy friction factor (-)
G volumetric flow rate (m^3/s)
g gravitational constant (m/s^2)
H hydraulic head (m)
h specific enthalpy (J/kg)
k number of heat (-)
exchanger sections
L length (m)
MAP value lookup table (-)
𝑚̇ mass flow rate (kg/s)
N rotational speed (RPM)
P pressure (MPa)
Q heat (Watts)
Re Reynolds number (-)
T temperature (ºC)
U overall heat transfer (W/m^2-ºC)
coefficient
W work (Watts)
Subscript
* static condition
amb ambient
Cond condenser
Evap evaporator
Gen generator
i index integer
in inlet condition
IPM integrated power module
LMD log mean difference
Loss heat loss
out outlet condition
PE condition or item related to the power electronics
pipe condition or item related to the pipe model
Ref working fluid side of the condenser or evaporator
s isentropic
Source source side of the condenser or evaporator
T condition or item related to the turbine
Windage energy loss associated with windage
REFERENCES
Colebrook, C.F., 1939, "Turbulent flow in pipes, with particular reference to the transition region between
smooth and rough pipe laws", Journal of the ICE, vol. 11, no. 4: P.133-156
Incropera, F.P., De-Witt, D.P., 2002, Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer5th ed., John Wiley & Sons,
New York, 981p
Hawkins, L., Zhu, L., Blumber, E., Mirmobin, P., and Erdlac Jr., R., 2012, “Heat-To-Electricity with High-
Speed Magnetic Bearing/Generator System”, 2012 GRC Annual Meeting
Norris R., Buckland F., Fitzroy N., General Electric Company Corporate Research and Development, 1970,
Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow Data Book, G408.3, G408.5
Vrancik, J., 1968, "Prediction of Windage Power Loss in Alternators", National Aeronautics and Space
Administration, TN D-4849
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium
Paper ID: 68, Page 11
Yuksek, E., Mirmobin P., 2015, “Electricity Generation from Large Marine Vessel Engine Jacket Water
Heat", ASME Power Energy 2015
3rd International Seminar on ORC Power Systems, October 12-14, 2015, Brussels, Belgium