Session: 33-20 Tutorial - An Introduction to Supercritical CO2

Paper Number: 84294

84294 - An Introduction to Supercritical Co2: Basics, Cycles, and Applications 

The recent interest to use supercritical CO2 (sCO2) in power cycle applications over the past decade has resulted in a large amount of literature that focuses on specific areas related to sCO2 power cycles in great detail.  Such focus areas are demonstration test facilities, heat exchangers, turbomachinery, materials, and fluid properties of CO2 and CO2 mixtures, to name a few.  As work related to sCO2 power cycles continues, more technical depth will be emphasized in each focus area, whereas those unfamiliar with the topic are left to undertake the large task of understanding fundamentals on their own. 

Supercritical CO2 has increasingly played a part in discussions of the decarbonaization of the power generation sector, transportation, and industrialization processes. The practical aspects of utilizing CO2 in these applications will be reviewed, and the following content provides an introductory tutorial on sCO2 used in power cycle applications, aimed at those who are unfamiliar or only somewhat familiar to the topic.  The tutorial includes a brief review of CO2 and its current industrial uses, a primer on thermodynamic power cycles, an overview of supercritical CO2 power cycle applications and machinery design considerations, and a summary of some of the current research and future trends. 

 

Presenting Author: Robert Pelton HPSA

Presenting Author Biography: Rob pelton is a manager at Hanwha Power systems americas

Authors:

Jason Wilkes Southwest Research Institute
Robert Pelton HPSA
Aaron Rimpel Southwest Research Institute