Aerodynamic and Thermodynamic Design of Heat Management Systems Accelerating Net Zero using Advanced Fluids

In the push towards achieving "Net Zero" it is necessary that further technological advancements within the energy industry are proposed and identified in order to reduce plant costs, improve plant efficiencies and allow for plant adaptability with other renewable energy sources. These advancements hence must achieve higher system efficiencies with minimised operating losses in the utilised energy systems. Thus, this project aims to research advanced working fluids with desirable transport properties (such as low viscosity to high heat transfer capability) to operate in advanced turbomachine-based power cycles to aid in this transition. These advanced working fluids contain Supercritical fluids (such as sCO2) and organic vapour dense gases which are already directly found within advanced cycle configurations utilising organic Rankine cycles of SCO2 recovery. Applicability for said fluids is found within the heat management systems of these power cycles such as for heat recovery or intercooling which aims to directly push the cyclic efficiency further for the cycle itself. The achievable high power-densities with the use of these high operating pressure advanced fluids can thus allow for higher efficiencies and reduced plant size thus, directly influencing plant cost and size.
Thus, the research aims to address three key criterions
1. Identify heat transfer trends observed with the use of proposed advanced working fluids in heat management systems.
2. Aerodynamic loss mechanisms being observed and the net effect on performance and efficiencies of the heat management system itself.
3. Proposed way forward in terms of design criterion and operating conditions for advanced fluid/fluids deemed as the best suitable contenders.
These criterions shall be addressed through a combination of high-fidelity scale resolving computational simulations and further verification through experimentation with a proposed heat transfer facility and an already existing facility for aerodynamic loss analysis which will be adapted for higher supercritical operating conditions.