THERMOECONOMIC OPTIMISATION OF AN AIR-CONDITIONING SYSTEM

Abstract

Thermal systems cannot always be optimised by means of mathematical or numerical techniques, because a complete model of the plant is not always available. Furthermore, mathematical or numerical optimisation simply applies to one specified structure of the system whereas, often, structural modifications would be able to improve the cost effectiveness of the plant. Thermoeconomics is a discipline, which combines concepts of the Exergy Method with those belonging to Economic Analysis. The purpose of thermoeconomic optimisation is to achieve, within a given system structure, a balance between expenditure on capital costs and energy costs which will give a minimum cost of the plant product. In this thesis, an attempt has been made to optimise an air conditioning system (vapor compression) with the help of thermoeconomic anlaysis. First of all, the _exergy (thermodynamic) analysis of the components of the system is carried out to have an understanding of the performance of the components. The same has been presented in the form of a Grassmann diagram. Finally, the structural method of thennoeconomic analysis is utilized for the optimisation purpose, The results of the analysis is compared with the result of d'Accadia & Rossi [1]. It has been found that a remarkable improvement of the system can be achieved with suitable modifications of the system