Enhancing power cycle efficiency for a supercritical Brayton cycle power system using tunable supercritical gas mixtures

Patent · 29 August 2017

OSTI ID:1377870

Wright, Steven A.; Pickard, Paul S.; Vernon, Milton E.; Radel, Ross F.

Various technologies pertaining to tuning composition of a fluid mixture in a supercritical Brayton cycle power generation system are described herein. Compounds, such as Alkanes, are selectively added or removed from an operating fluid of the supercritical Brayton cycle power generation system to cause the critical temperature of the fluid to move up or down, depending upon environmental conditions. As efficiency of the supercritical Brayton cycle power generation system is substantially optimized when heat is rejected near the critical temperature of the fluid, dynamically modifying the critical temperature of the fluid based upon sensed environmental conditions improves efficiency of such a system.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-94AL85000
• Assignee: National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC
• Patent Number(s): 9,745,899
• Application Number: 13/204,150
• OSTI ID: 1377870
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

42 ENGINEERING