Isobaric Expansion Engines–Compressors: Thermodynamic Analysis of Multistage Vapor Driven Compressors

Alexander Kronberg (), Maxim Glushenkov, Sander Roosjen and Sascha Kersten
Additional contact information
Alexander Kronberg: Encontech B.V. TNW/SPT, P.O. Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, The Netherlands
Maxim Glushenkov: Encontech B.V. TNW/SPT, P.O. Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, The Netherlands
Sander Roosjen: Sustainable Process Technology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Twente, P.O. Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, The Netherlands
Sascha Kersten: Sustainable Process Technology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Twente, P.O. Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, The Netherlands

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 19, 1-15

Abstract: Isobaric expansion (IE) engines can directly convert heat into mechanical energy, making them particularly attractive for applications such as vapor-driven pumps and compressors. A recent initial assessment investigating the utilization of IE engines as vapor-driven reciprocating compressors has revealed that the vapor use efficiency is inherently low in the case of the simplest direct-acting compressor designs. Based on this analysis, it was anticipated that multistage compression can offer significant advantages for vapor-driven compressors. Therefore, this paper aims to conduct a comprehensive analytical thermodynamic analysis of direct vapor-driven multistage reciprocating compressors. The analysis considers processes without intercooling and processes with intercooling of the compressed gas between stages. The findings demonstrate that, for vapor-driven compression, the benefits of multistage compression are superior to those known for conventional compression processes. Multistage vapor-driven compression not only reduces compression work and temperature elevation but, more importantly, mitigates the adverse effects on vapor compression of the driving vapor, thereby enabling a substantial improvement in vapor utilization efficiency. Furthermore, the total volume of the IE engine compressor experiences a significant decrease with an increasing number of stages. Consequently, under specific process parameters, the overall dimensions of the engine-compressor system may also decrease as the number of stages increases. The results offer significant opportunities for energy savings in energy-intensive compression processes by replacing electrical energy with readily available low-grade heat sources (<100 °C). Such processes include hydrogen, air, and ethylene compression at high pressure.

Keywords: energy efficiency; heat-driven compressor; isobaric expansion engine; multistage compression; hydrogen compressor (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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