Combined production of electricity and heat in a microcogeneration unit

Abstract

Paper presented at the 9th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Malta, 16-18 July, 2012.

Diesel engines are widely used in industrial activities in Peru for electricity generation and heat production. The requirement of different types of energy and its separate generation represent a higher demand for fossil fuels, when the equipment used are internal combustion engines, and higher emission of high-temperature pollutant gases to the environment; all of this, with a deficient utilization of the energy supplied by the fuel. In this context, a Diesel cycle generator of 40 kW was evaluated for the production of electricity and heat. The engine was mapped with different electrical charges (5 kW, 10 kW, 15 kW, 20 kW, 25 kW and 30 kW) simulated by a copper resistance submerged in a tank with salty water. A regenerator was used for the recovery of the exhaust gases heat to allow cogeneration. The experimental device was monitored and instrumented with K type thermocouples, differential pressure sensors, power meters, flow meters, among others; all the signals were received and stored by a data acquisition system for its processing and interpretation. The electrical power, thermal power, specific fuel consumption, thermal efficiency and electric efficiency were evaluated for conventional electricity generation and for combined production of electricity and heat