A comparison of advanced thermal cycles suitable for upgrading existing power plant

In view of the constant growth of electricity usage and public pressure to reduce the dependence on nuclear power plants in the energy supply, solutions are sought to increase the capacity of power plants using fossil fuels. Highly efficient cycles are available : gas turbines combined with waste heat boilers and steam cycles are able to achieve efficiencies above 50-55%. However building new plants requires a large amount of capital. Alternative proposals are based on upgrades of existing plants : capital savings are expected by reusing part of the facilities. In the present study, three parallel proposals are compared on the basis of exergy efficiency; cost of investment and flexibility of operation are also discussed. They are compared with classical Rankine cycle and state of the art combined cycles. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.