Performance Investigation of CHP Equipment

Abstract

The Cooling Heating & Power systems for Buildings (BCHP) are attracting more attention due to their advantages as compared to conventional energy systems. As a developing technology, there are still problems to be solved. Fuel flexibility and dynamic response between different machines in the system are two of the main issues to be investigated.

This study presents research conducted on a BCHP system that is composed of a microturbine, an absorption chiller and a solid desiccant unit that are driven by the microturbine's exhaust gas to provide cooling and dehumidification. It demonstrates the feasibility of operating the microturbine that is originally designed for natural gas on propane and analyzes the reasons for the efficiency reduction when operating on propane. It further presents a model that describes the transient behavior of the absorption chiller, which requires a much longer period to reach its steady state compared with the microturbine.