I. ENERGY BALANCE & OVERALL EFFICIENCY
The ORC cycle has a high overall energy efficiency: 98% of incoming thermal power in the thermal oil is converted into electric energy (18-26%) and heat (74-82%), with extremely limited thermal leaks, only 2 % due to thermal isolation, radiance and losses in the generator.
Depending on whether there is an outlet for heat, Turboden ORC units are configured for either electricity only applications (HRS units) or Combined Heat and Power applications (CHP units) that produce both electricity and hot water at temperatures which can cover a wide range of heating process requirements.
The graph below provides an overview of the energy balance and electric efficiency for the different types of standard size Turboden units. Larger size HRS units can reach an even higher electric efficiency of up to 26%.
| II. COOLING WATER TEMPERATURE EFFECT |
III. EFFICIENCY AT PARTIAL LOAD | |
| The electric efficiency achieved by the Turboden ORC is practically a function of cooling water temperature. The effect of cooling water temperature on the electric efficiency of HRS units is captured in the graph below. | Turboden ORC units demonstrate an excellent behavior in variable flow and temperature conditions maintaining 90% of the cycle efficiency at 50% load and can operate even at 10% of the nominal load. |
