Small Organic Rankine Cycle Coupled to Parabolic Trough Solar Concentrator

In this paper, the design and performance of small Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) coupled to parabolic trough solar collector (PTC) are showed. The system is analyzed using the first and second laws of thermodynamics. This small ORC is designed to provide 10 kWe for almost 18 hours every day and also energy to heat water. The main components of this system are: a) parabolic trough solar concentrators (PTC), b) thermal storage system and c) ORC system, which uses R245fa as working fluid and a radial turbine as expander. The ORC system is designed to operate in Temixco, city located at the central region of México. The solar radiation database of Temixco was used to compute the estimated performance of the proposed ORC system. Simulation was carried out using Matlab and CoolProp. The ORC power and efficiency were computed. The mass flow and thermal load stored for the PTC loop are shown.