Thermodynamic analysis of a combined ORC and ejector vapor compression refrigeration system utilizing a PEMFC

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Mechanical Engineering Department, Ayatollah Boroujerdi University, Boroujerd, Iran.

Abstract

In this study, thermodynamic analysis for integration of a PEMFC with an organic Rankin cycle, and an ejector expansion vapor compression refrigeration system is presented. The input energy of the system is supplied by the waste heat of a PEMFC. Energy and exergy analysis is performed on each system component and compared with a simple ORC-VCR without an ejector. The results show that employing the ejector can improve the refrigeration capacity, energy efficiency, and exergy efficiency by 18.88%, 12.29 %, and 12.27%, respectively, compared to a simple ORC-VCR system. Moreover, the overall energy and exergy efficiency of the system is 33.43% and 5.46% higher than a standalone PEM fuel cell. Furthermore, in the parametric study, the effect of condenser temperature, evaporator temperature, ejector efficiency, PEMFC operating temperature, current density, and PEMFC operating pressure on the energy efficiency, exergy efficiency, and refrigeration capacity of the system is investigated.

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