Thermodynamic Performance of a Cogeneration Plant Driven by Waste Heat from Cement Kilns Exhaust Gases

Baby-Jean Robert Mungyeko Bisulandu (), Adrian Ilinca, Marcel Tsimba Mboko and Lucien Mbozi Mbozi
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Baby-Jean Robert Mungyeko Bisulandu: Laboratoire de Recherche en Energie Eolienne (LREE), Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR), 300 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski, QC G5L 3A1, Canada
Adrian Ilinca: Department of Mechanical Engineering, École de Technologie Supérieure, Montreal, QC H3C 1K3, Canada
Marcel Tsimba Mboko: Faculté Polytechnique, Université Président Joseph Kasa-Vubu, Boma B.P. 314, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Lucien Mbozi Mbozi: Faculté Polytechnique, Université Président Joseph Kasa-Vubu, Boma B.P. 314, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 5, 1-24

Abstract: The dwindling and scarcity of fossil energy sources is the basis of the energy transition, where renewable resources are increasingly valued. The purpose of the cogeneration system studied in this article is to recover the residual heat from the gases coming out of the chimneys of the cement kilns, to produce at the same time the electricity and the heat required for offices and residential houses of cement workers. Cement kilns are reputed to be energy-intensive, generating excessive heat losses. These heat losses are found mainly in the conduction–convective and radiative modes, representing about 26% of the overall heat input to the system. Nevertheless, the gases at the chimney outlet can still have temperatures between 250 and 350 °C, which presents a non-negligible potential for a cogeneration system. This study compares the thermal performance of different cogeneration plant configurations (KCA, KCB, and KCC systems) using the Kalina cycle to determine the best one. Several assumptions were made to reduce the complexity of the model. MATLAB and Excel software were used to solve the system of equations. After extensive analysis of the results, the KCA system showed the best performance, compared to the KCB and KCC systems, with a thermal efficiency of 22.15%, an exergy efficiency of 45.12%, and a net electrical capacity of 2565.03 kWe. Model sensitivity to concentration, temperature, and pressure variations also gave the KCA system the best-performing system. Evaluation of the excess heat flux removed from the process yields values of 7368.20 kW, 7421.86 kW, and 8094.15 kW for the KCA, KCB, and KCC systems. The results of this article serve as a decision support tool for installing the cogeneration system via the Kalina cycle in cement installations.

Keywords: cogeneration plant; exit gases from cement kilns; waste heat recovery; kalina cycles; heat transfer; electrical power (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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