Exergoeconomic and exergoenvironmental analyses of a trigeneration system using solar energy
Exergoeconomy, exergoenvironmental analysis, trigeneration, evacuated tube collector
This paper discusses the exergetic, exergoeconomic and exergoenvironmental analysis applied to a trigeneration system. An internal combustion engine powered by natural gas powers a mixed-effect absorption chiller and a heat exchanger to produce electricity, cooling and hot water. A solar field composed of vacuum tube collectors with two thermal tanks helps the system. The exergy model is based on the SPECO methodology and the life cycle assessment of the components used the Eco-indicator 99 method. The objectives of the study are the modeling of the trigeneration plant and the assessment of the economic and environmental feasibility of the system on an exergetic basis. . The results showed that the greater the global solar radiation, the higher the temperatures of the glass tube and the absorber plate and the thermal efficiency of the collector. The higher the proportion of exhaust gas, the higher the COP of the chiller. The solar field including the collectors and the tanks have the lowest exergetic efficiency. Reducing the reference temperature slightly increases the energy efficiency of the engine and the solar field. The efficiency of the absorption chiller reduces to a reference temperature of 15 ° C and increases at a temperature of 10 ° C due to the change in the product and fuel definition. The solar field and the evaporator showed the greatest exergoenvironmental factors, while the solution circulation pump and the HX1 heat exchanger obtained the greatest relative differences in environmental impact.